Happy Halloween????

Just came back from taking the children trick-or-treating and there were VERY few people out! Came back and hubby said that NO ONE has come by trick-or-treating!! A couple of people have come by since I've been home, but geez people, what's going on? Are there just not that many kids in our neighborhood anymore? I do know of a few neighbors that are going to a local Halloween carnival at a church. That seems to be the big thing nowadays, I guess......

It's just not like the old days, you know? I used to go trick-or-treating in my grandma's neighborhood growing up. We went up one side of the street and back down the other side, and we knew all the neighbors.

It seems like the neighborhoods just aren't like they used to be when I was growing up.........:(

A Bittersweet Year.....

Today my eldest child was saying how this year has been such a good year. It is, and it isn't....

So far this year, I've lost 25 pounds so far, I'm in so much better shape, I'm so much more active, I'm the room mom for the eldest child's class, the youngest is in preschool and getting a handle on potty training, I helped my eldest's class to win the prize for the most creative basket for the silent auction at school, and yet.........it's the first year without my mom........

So many good things have been going on this year and yes, I'm happy about that. But I'm also so very sad that I don't have my mom anymore and that I can't just pick up the phone and call her and tell her about everything that's going on. Oh, I know she knows what's going on, I know she watches over us, but still, it's not the same.

I was looking at her picture the other day and just thinking about how I'm the oldest of me and my siblings, and how, because I'm the oldest, I was automatically the one who was supposed to be the more responsible one and help my mom. Of course now, I'm the executor for her estate. But she knew I was to be the one to do it. She made sure I knew to be responsible and fair.

Sigh............

Too Much Work!!!!

AUGH!!!! Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed with all the stuff that I have going on!! Right now I have to put the finishing touches on for the silent auction basket for my child's school. Plus I have to somehow fit in dinner, straightening up the house, and take care of the children! I hate it when I get this busy and overwhelmed! I snap at my kids, which I really hate doing. All I want to do is cuddle up with them and play games! Alas, no can do right now.....

At least I'm done for the night, for the most part. Tomorrow is a semi-lax day. The little one has gymnastics and that's pretty much it. I do have to bring some stuff to the older one's school in the morning. Maybe the little one and I can play tomorrow............

A Slacker Mom......

I was waiting for my child to get out of school today and I went into the book fair that was going on at the school. I was talking to this one friend of mine who, let's be honest, used to intimidate me. She just has her crap together, you know? She has 4 kids, a spotless house, skinny (yes, after 4 kids no less!), a nice person, AND helps out a few times a week at school and is heavily involved in the PTA. Now damn, wouldn't YOU be intimidated by that? When I'm next to her, hell yea, I feel like a slacker mom! I should be baking something right now instead of sitting her on the computer typing on this blog!

She was showing me this book, "Confessions of a Slacker Mom", joking with me, yea, this is you, huh! Well............ I would say that I used to be that, and hell yea, I sometimes still am! I do feel like I've come a long way from vegging out a lot.

I would love to NOT be able to clean my house! I would love to be able to NOT cook dinner. I love my children with ALL my heart, but yea, sometimes I'd sure like a nanny when I'm in a mood....

I'm sure everyone out there has someone they know that is just intimidating to them. When I first met her, she definitely was intimidating to me, with ALL the stuff she does, and makes it look so easy!

I've definitely organized myself a lot more than I did last year. My little one is a year older and more apt to help and listen (is that possible?), I'm off my butt more (no, seriously I am, I don't ALWAYS spend my time on the computer), dinner's just about ready when hubby comes home, I'm trying to work on my crafts more, the house is picked up more. The only thing I slack on, and I'll freely admit it, is cleaning. That is just one thing I loathe doing, but once I do it, I love doing it! It's a love/hate relationship I've got going with the cleaning thing. I used to know this friend who cleaned her floors EVERY day, repaint her baseboards once a month, and her house was spotless! I'd love to be able to do that! Of course she yelled at her kids quite often too. I'd rather not have a spotless house and not yell at my kids. I do have to say my hosue is a lot cleaner than it used to be. I'm not saying my house was a pigsty or anything like that, but when my oldest was younger, and my youngest wasn't born yet, I definitely had more time, and the house was pretty spotless most of the time. It's slowly working it's way back to that. Plus, I've got help now! I can enlist the help of my oldest to help clean too!

A Slacker Mom......naw, I don't think so.......in the cleaning department? Probably... In the raising kids department, definitely not. The house will always be there, the kids won't always be so small and wanting to listen to mom.....

I really should get that book and read it though.................

UberMom anyone?

I don't know if you've heard the term "UberMom" before or not. It's one of those moms who does EVERYTHING. Cook, clean, take care of the kids, even work, help out at school, take them all to soccer/softball/whatever practice, have a fabulous body, shop, etc, etc.... you get the gist. And all without taking their kids ADHD medication. Now seriously, who can do all that and remain completely sane? There are some moms at my child's school who would sometimes be considered an "Uber Mom". But then you get to know them, and hey, they don't always do it all themselves, sometimes they get help. Some have maids so they don't have to clean. Some don't have other hobbies. Some only have one child to take care of. Some have husbands who do the cooking or other stuff. It definitely empowers me when I realize that, "Hey, they aren't perfect. They do have flaws". Hmmmm....makes me feel like I am actually accomplishing something.

I do think I certainly do a lot more than I used to. I used to weigh 20 more pounds than I do now, not exercise, barely clean, and be cranky a lot. I'm telling you, finding time to exercise in my busy schedule was rough. So I did what my SIL did, I woke up earlier than everybody else and did it then. Now I certainly don't get up as early as she does, or run, like she does, but I do get up and get my exercise in. It definitely has made a difference in how I feel about myself, and I actually get a lot more accomplished now too, now that I have more energy. Will I become an "Uber Mom", hmmmmm, by the true definition, probably not, but I like to do what I can. I am helping out more at my child's school, I work part-time, the house is looking cleaner, it's starting to get back to what it was before I had child number two, and the errands are getting done. Of course I did miss an orthodontist appointment for my child............ Whoops!

Doing The Single Mom Thing For A While......

Hubby just got sent over to Pensacola, Florida with his squadron to help with the relief effort from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, so I'm doing the single mom thing now for a while. He is definitely needed back east, so it's a small sacrifice I have to make, for him to help others. And plus, it's not like I haven't done it before when he's out to sea. At least it's only for a few weeks and the oldest is in school anyway. So at least there's some routine going on for me.

Hey, my mom did it my whole life, and a lot of other single parents do it all the time, so I will try not to bitch about it.

It's times like this when I think back about my life growing up and how my mom did it all on her own. We didn't have much growing up, but I did have VERY good friends, and my mom and grandparents did what they could for me, and I hope that at some point, I did appreciate it back then. I know I certainly do now! I knew mom couldn't afford things, and I don't think I even asked that much. Sure I wanted to do gymnastics and a lot of other stuff, but I knew we couldn't do it. I remember when I was on the vollyball team and I needed shoes, and we had to wait until payday so I could get them. My coach kept getting on me about it, and I just kept thinking, geez, coach, I'll get them in a few days.

Sometimes part of me wishes that my girls didn't have so much, so they might appreciate the things they do have more. And I do think they do. Because I know that they certainly don't have as much as some of their friends, but I know they have a lot more than I did growing up.

I know I am VERY lucky to be able to only have to work part-time, and have a wonderful husband who works hard and provides for us. Granted we don't have as much as a lot of people, but we do okay on our own. Sure we'd love to have more stuff, but hey, who doesn't? In this day and age, it all seems to be about "instant gratification", and I know I'm guilty of that at times too. But with all the loss that part of our nation has experienced, I have to remind myself, along with my children how much they DO have and to appreciate it.

Okay, enough ramblings.......I've got to get a move on and get some crap done around the house. The inlaws are coming next weekend and I've got to get the house in tip top shape. Got to be the best "Wannabe UberMom" I can.

Being Sick? Yea Right!

It's so hard being a mom and being sick at the same time! It's not like you can just take a sick day, crawl into bed with your kleenex, chicken noodle soup and old movied and go from there. Time does not stop for you when you are a mom. You still have to get them up and dressed, off to school, fix dinner, keep the house semi-straight. And naps? Unless your little one takes a nap, forget about taking one! Well, when the hubby comes home from work, he'll take over for a little bit, but then he has to go bed because of course he has to get up for work too. You just hope that the kids go to bed at their bedtime so you can go to bed right after them, and you pray that none of them get sick while you're sick, because that's just too much on your plate. Then? You hope that you CAN get to sleep and your sinuses aren't so bad that you can't even find a comfortable position to sleep.

It just sucks being sick and still try to get things done....

I just want to get better so I can get back to all the crap that's building up around the house. Maybe I need to go lay down for a while........yea right!

Eating SnoCones....

As I sat at the table eating a sno cone with my youngest, I was so at peace and relaxed.

Too often there is just so much going on in my life that I don't get that much time to "stop and smell the roses" When my oldest was little, I didn't have as much going on in my life and I really was able to enjoy everything around me. We rented back then (or should I say in Navy Housing), I only had one child, I didn't work as many hours (not that I work a whole lot now, but it was still less back then), and actually I didn't have as many friends then either. Everybody always say to appreciate them when they are young, because they grow up so fast! I made sure and did that with my first. Sadly, with my second, I haven't had the chance to enjoy her as much.

We own our own house, which comes with so much more responsibilities, hubby was gone for 7 months out to sea shortly after she was born. And now I have to take care of two kids, instead of one, I work more now (and I bring the youngest with me, so it's not like I even have much "down time"), I do have more interests and hobbies and friends.

But sitting there, this afternoon and eating a sno cone with her, was just such a precious time for me! I absolutely ADORE watching her and listening to her. She is such an active child and can really get on your nerves at times with her "habits she picks up from her older sister", and the way she will repeat things until you want to pull your hair out, but she has such an active imagination and will get so excited about things, you can't help but smile and my heart just swells with love!

It's just times like this that make me remember to just stop all the hustle and bustle and go eat sno cones with my children.

In A World of Their Own.....

Ahhh, toddlers and preschoolers..... you know, when they get their mind set on something, that's it for them. My little one likes to CONSTANTLY repeat herself! One time DH lost count trying to count how many times she repeated something! Sometimes I often wonder if there is something wrong with her, as she will continue to do that for a 1/2 hour straight! I'm sure there's not, but it's just so different, the difference in my two kids. The first one was a lot better to handle. This one is just SO high spirited! I need to build a track in my backyard and have her run around it for a few hours! She is constantly on the go!

And talk about determined! We are trying to potty train her, but we are doing it very slowly. Even bribes don't work that well with her. She knows what she wants and what she doesn't want and that's it. Her grandparents are getting her some underwear and a potty dolly for her birthday. Maybe that will help! I know though, that if we push it too hard, she will regress and purposely NOT do it! I know these traits will come in very well when she is older but right now it drives me crazy!

Plus she has such a loud voice! You know, you'd think that a preemie would not be like this! They come out so small and helpless, but she has sure made up for that!

I love her with all my heart and I do love watching her be so animated and playful, but man can she tire me out!

Sigh......"Calgon, take me away!".............

Shopping for the Kids

I have to say, so far it's been very nice being able to find things on the clearance rack that my child will wear. I know the time will come one day where it's "full price, because it's new, or nothing" Or even getting somewhat of a deal on the "newest and latest". Went to look for clothes for my oldest for school that starts back up in about a month. We didn't find much at all, but I did find a pair of Dickies jeans that were clearanced out for $4.50! How cool is that! Of course it's 1 size too big for her. And come to find out, I bought the same pants in her size about a month ago! Go figure! Oh well, at least she'll be wearing that style of jeans for quite a while! LOL!! And for the first time, I didn't go overboard on my youngest, buying clothes for her! They didn't have much for her that I liked. Can't wait to go back in a couple of weeks when they will clearance out even more! I tell you, I LOVE clearance shopping! I love being able to get a deal and spend $50 on clothes that normally would cost $250 or so! Of course I have to make sure that the clothes are cute, no way am I going to just buy it because it's on sale.

Of course my oldest wants a "Jansport" backpack and "Skechers" shoes. Hmmm.....hopefully Costco will have the backpack in a color she'll like, because I think that's the cheapest place to get them. I can usually get good deals on Skechers at Mervyn's too.

Ahhhh, sales......Target's an evil place I tell you! I get SUCH great deals there on their clearance stuff at the end of the aisle! At least I have been curbing myself lately, and saying to myself, "Do I REALLY need this? Why do I want this???" It certainly helps some!

Ahhhh, shopping, I just love it! Too bad my house isn't big enough to hold all the stuff I want to buy! At least that curbs the shopping a little bit! And it's not like I'm a shopaholic, I just love great deals! Now I just need to find some good quality furniture at a good deal. I'd love to go to the swapmeet one weekend with hubby's truck. Maybe I'd find something good there.

I think I ought to clean out my house first. Purging, here I come....and Salvation Army...that's where it'll end up!

Well, dinner's ready now...........

From a Childhood Journal to a Blog......

It's amazing how far technology has come, hasn't it? I remember getting my first "diary" when I was about 9 or 10. I ALWAYS wrote in it! I had that thing from the time I was 9 until my early 20's! It was such a release for me, to write things down! Gotta love the blogs nowadays, now I can write via the net! Too cool!

Of course the things I write about are far different now, than they were then. Going from writing about the boy you liked, and how he asked you to go steady, but you weren't sure if you wanted to, because it might mean you had to kiss him! To nowadays, "hey, I wonder what I'll make for dinner", and "Wow, you'll never believe the deal I got on the clearance rack at Target!" Damn, things sure change, don't they?

That diary I had, I just loved it so much! But, then came the day when I got married, and moved in with my husband. All of the sudden, it was like, uh oh, he might come across it one day and read it! Let's burn the thing! So I tore it up and threw it away. Gosh, I wish I had never done that! Live and learn! I wish I had put it in a lock box and left it at my mom's. Of course there are things in there that no one should ever read about, but that's what diaries are for, aren't they? Ah, but at least I still have the memories of growing up and all that went on! Maybe I'll share some stuff one day............