Keep breathing...you can handle this.

Jillian Jean

2009-06-12T21:07:00.003-05:00

"I love you more than I did yesterday, but not nearly as much as tomorrow"

Jillian Jean Leighty

5lbs, 14ozs, 19in

June 10, 2009

8:12pm

www.flickr.com/photos/ashleyleighty

4. Sick ward

2009-03-05T20:31:00.002-05:00

The girls are out, boys are still holding strong.....

3. More cloth napkins

2009-03-03T20:24:00.002-05:00

More cloth napkins
Originally uploaded by AshD23

They each got to pick out 2 fabrics, to be packed in their lunches. Have I mentioned how much I love my serger?

2. ACG 3141

2009-03-02T18:39:00.001-05:00

Continuation of accounting for leases tonight...

1. Paper football

2009-03-01T13:46:00.001-05:00

For the month of March, I'm going to try and post a picture every day, a little way to:

1. Document a month in our lives.
2. Remind me to bring my camera out more.
3. Improve my photography skills.

I hope to use my "big" camera most days (Canon 20D) but when I forget it the iPhone will have to substitute. At least until I can convince Nick that I really need that pocket camera...

Here's #1:

At Ashley's Restaurant in Rockledge, FL. With no kids menu's (meaning nothing to color/play) we resorted to paper football. The kids LOVED it!

Researching Vacations

2009-02-18T22:33:00.003-05:00

Wanting to book some kind of "babymoon" for the 4 of us, choices are:

New York City
Atlantis, Bahamas - we don't have passports though, not sure how long it takes to get them
Florida Keys - anywhere
Renting a beach house somewhere along the coast of Florida
Disney

Obviously, looking for child-friendly vacations. Nick can't take off work at all so it will only be the weekend, leaning towards Disney because of that. Plus, they have their $99 FL resident thing right now...but...it's Disney, ugg...

Thinking maybe we'll rent a beach house close by for later in the summer, after the baby's born, for just me and the kids (Nick can come by after work), but not sure if I'm going to want to do that. Also, Lexi's DYING to go to New York (and so am I) so I would like to do it now before the baby's born, but is 2 days enough? The only 3 day weekend we have is Memorial day, and I'm sooooo not wanting to travel then.

Would love to go on a cruise, but they changed their guidelines so now pregnant women aren't allowed after 22 weeks, so much for that....

Back to research!

Whoop!

2009-02-17T09:51:00.010-05:00

I did it, I got an A on my test! One part of it at least, I won't know my grade on the written part until next week, but I think I did well. I was going to take just the written part last night and go back Wed night for the 2nd computer part, but I decided I'd studied all I could study, and the idea of driving back to Orlando again was not appealing, so I pulled up my big girl panties and went for it. Despite the fact that my eyes were so tired I couldn't see clearly (I also lost my glasses last week, so that didn't help), and I didn't get done until 11pm, I still got an A!!!

This is extremely exciting because this class is known for being INCREDIBLY hard. In fact, it is so hard that employers will look at your grade in this class first to decide if you really know your stuff. And my teacher said only about 5% of students will end up with an A in the class, with less than that making an A on the first test. SO HURRAY!!

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders, for this week at least. 1 test down, 2 to go!

PS - By the way, that is totally what I looked like coming out of the testing lab...and I danced in the car the whole way home. Then I couldn't fall asleep until 3am!

I surrender!

2009-02-11T14:55:00.005-05:00

I know I was supposed to post every day in February, but due to a GIGANTIC test next week (actually, 2 tests + graded homework), I have to spend every possible free moment reading my accounting text, studying, and doing problems. Not easy when you also have 2 kids to take care of (and all their projects), plus Valentine's day - AAAGGGGHHHH!!!

So, something's gotta give and unfortunately it's this "project". I'll try to post some this month, but not every day. Here's to next month, the plan is to post at least one picture every day...

Oops!

2009-02-08T10:29:00.003-05:00

Completely missed a day of posting. Did I even even mention I was going to try and post every day for the month of February? No? Ok then, it doesn't matter ;-). Playing along with my friend Shannon, but she missed yesterday too, so there...I'm pretending it was intentional.

Anyway, the agenda for today is to chill with the in-laws in St. Pete, then head over to Busch Gardens with Nick and the kidlets for some Bud & BBQ (minus the Bud for me) and Phil Vassar, who sings "our" song - Just Another Day in Paradise. I've met him before and he's super nice, but Nick's never gotten to see him and he rarely tours. I can't wait!

My Macbook has a new home!

2009-02-06T17:39:00.004-05:00

Couldn't find anything cute I liked online (and didn't feel like paying $30 or more for something so simple) so I decided to make my own sleeve for the macbook and a matching cord holder.

The inside is quilted fabric with a layer of batting, but it's very thin so I can easily slip it into my backpack. The cord holder can fit in with it or be carried seperately.

2009-02-06T15:44:00.004-05:00

Totally doing this when "uterus girl" (my son's nickname for her) makes her debut.

Cooties

2009-02-05T21:00:00.003-05:00

Had a post planned for tonight but due to a sick child and a migraine headache it will have to wait...

Green is the new black

2009-02-04T21:14:00.008-05:00

25 cloth napkins I made for Lexi's 1st grade class. They are doing a unit on recycling this week and the teacher asked me if I would make the class a set. They are using them at lunch and the teacher is taking them home and washing them. Lexi took them in to show the principal and vice-principal today, and someone is coming to take pictures of the kids with them later this week.

We're trying to raise awareness about making lunch as waste-free as possible. It doesn't take much and it's so much better for the environment. Go here for some interesting facts and more information.

Her class this year is filled with a bunch of animal lovers, so I picked this fabric out special for them. I think they turned out cute!

Sugar and Spice

2009-02-03T21:38:00.005-05:00

A baby girl...

one of the most beautiful miracles in life,

one of the greatest joys we can ever know,

and one of the reasons why

there is a little extra sunshine, laughter and happiness

in your world today.

~Author unknown

Totally caught the baby picking her nose, the kids love this!

Today was the big ultrasound, which began with major drama. My husband could not get off work at the time he was supposed to because someone didn't show up on time. He waited and waited and finally decided to leave at 8:45am. From Orlando. The ultrasound was at 9. So, needless to say, he didn't make it in time, despite my deliberately being 10 min late to my appointment and begging them to stall. My mom and my kids were with me though, so that was nice. I was going to make my kids stay in the waiting room with my mom until the end, but decided at the last minute to have them come back for the whole thing. They were completely well behaved, which I knew they would be, and thought the whole thing was really cool.

The tech waited until the very end to tell us the sex hoping Nick would make it, but finally said it was time. When she went to look the baby decided to be shy! She was persistant though, and poked and prodded until she saw those 3 lines - IT'S A GIRL!!

I was completely shocked, I was POSITIVE the baby was a boy. I had even been looking at boy stuff and picking out boy names. Lexi was beyond excited, Spencer promptly stopped watching the screen. He was cheered up later though when daddy told him he would be her protector, he likes that. And besides, according to him, mommy can just keep having babies until she has a boy :-)

As it turns out, the DVD they were recording for me wouldn't finalize, and when she went to do another one the baby had turned completely backwards. So we got to come back this afternoon and have another ultrasound. And Nick was actually there!

All in all, it was an awesome day. Now, LET THE SHOPPING BEGIN!!

2009-02-02T22:00:00.002-05:00

Tomorrow! Tomorrow!

I love ya

Tomorrow!

You're always a day away!

20 Weeks!

2009-02-01T21:05:00.004-05:00

Whooah, We're half way there,

Livin' on a prayer

Take my hand and we'll make it - I swear

Livin' on a prayer

~Bon Jovi

Bikes

2009-01-24T21:17:00.012-05:00

So recently I got on this new kick and decided Nick and I needed bikes, pronto. Paying $60/day for us to rent bikes when we went camping was just ridiculous. And besides, doesn't everyone have a bike? I decided I wanted a beach cruiser and, after much research, narrowed it down to Electra or Trek. After visiting our local bike store that sells the Electra's, I wasn't real impressed. Then we hit another bike store that sells Treks, and there it was....the Trek Wasabi. They said they'd had it for a while and gave me a fantastic deal. I love it! Nick calls it my hippie bike. Love the flip-flop friendly pedals:

Nick refused to even look at the bikes while we were there, said he wanted time to research on his own, but after coming home and riding mine a little, with catalog in hand, he picked out the bike he wanted. Back to the bike store we went and he ordered his, the boy version of mine, the Trek Drift:

Next, we decided Lexi really needed some new wheels. She fell in love with the Trek Wasabi 20" in the catalog, so off the bike store we went AGAIN and ordered her one, it just came in yesterday. I love it because she'll be able to use it for a long time, and it's not covered in barbies or hannah montana or something she will grow out of soon:

Look at the cute seat!

Don't they make a good pair?

Now Spencer, not needing a new bike, couldn't be left out of the big bike craze so....he lost his training wheels!

More pics here

I'm not sure how much longer I'll actually be able to ride a bike, once the belly gets bigger, but it's fun for now! I think we'll be taking a family ride to the park later, then maybe to the book store, out to lunch.....

Parties!

2009-01-19T11:19:00.008-05:00

Lexi chose to have her party at Snip-its this year, a kids hair salon that she loves. They do awesome parties, and they are so easy. All I had to do was show up with a cake! They have 2 party planners that do everything, so I just hung out and took pictures, a totally stress-free experience (which was great because I just happened to have a really bad migraine that day, doing a party with 8 first grade girls on my own would have been hard). They do everyone's hair, then they each get a makeup kit, dress up in costumes, and do a cute red carpet walk (where they each received oscars). After the show, they go back, eat cake, watch their runway show on the tv, then open presents. Fun!

Spencer chose to have his usual party at the park after the last day of school before break. That seems to be his favorite type of party, I gave him lots of different choices and all he wanted was that, so hey! - it's cheap, easy, and everyone seems to have fun. The big addition this year was the pinata, I've never had one at a party before but he really wanted it. AND we had to be able to hit it with a bat, none of this silly string pulling for him. In the end, we did have to pull the strings, but at least everyone got a turn whacking it once!

Did I mention both of these parties were in the same week? It was busy but lots of fun! Next I'll do a Christmas update, then I'll finally be caught up!

Spencer is 5!

2009-01-19T10:10:00.006-05:00

Oh Spencer, I cannot believe you are 5 already! I swear I just had you yesterday, I have no idea where the time went.

This year you became a big 5 day kid, which means you now go to school 5 days a week. Since you are the oldest and one of the only boys in your school, you took on the role of big brother and you are so kind and helpful to everyone. You love to sing and dance, play any kind of board or card game, kick everyone's butt on the Wii (you own Mario Kart), family movie night, put on shows with your animals, go to gymnastics, help mommy cook, playdates with your friends, and hang out with your family. You are so excited about the baby, you love talking to my belly and seeing if you can wake the baby up with different animal noises. You have a HUGE imagination and will make a game out of any and every inanimate object you can find. You're math skills are incredible (you help Lexi with her math homework), and you even started reading!

You are such a joy to be around and so hilariously funny, I am constantly getting reports from your teacher about what funny things you said or did that day. You always have something to say about everything, whether it's the fact that you don't like what I made for dinner (again!) to how much you love the baby. I love to see the world through your eyes, and I can't wait to see all the changes the coming year will bring in you. This next year will be a big one for you, not only will you be starting kindergarten but you will be a BIG brother! I LOVE YOU!

Happy Birthday Spencer!

Alexis is 7!

2009-01-19T08:28:00.012-05:00

Ok, so a little late but not too bad right? Having 2 kids with birthdays right around the holidays is rough...at least, that's my excuse.

So, what can I say about my baby girl? I can't believe how much you've grown in the last year, from innocent kindergartner to, dare I say it?, wise first grader, who is just growing up waaaaaayyy too fast! This year you lost 4 teeth, went to a Hannah Montana concert, learned to do a backbend from a stand and then a back walkover, made more new friends (as if that's even possible), learned to rollerskate, and were granted the freedom to play outside in the neighborhood without parental supervision!

You love to read (you now read at a 3.5 grade level), draw, make books, sing, dance, show off your gymnastic talent, ride your bike, fix hair, hog the mirror in the morning, try all sorts of crazy outfit combinations (you want to be a fashion designer when you grow up), sew (important for that future career, thanks for all the scarves!), go on special ice cream dates with mommy, roll your eyes, and hang with your family and friends. You are excited about the new baby, you enjoy giving me the daily update on how big my belly is getting, and you are having fun helping mommy and daddy pick out names (you've come up with some good ones!).

I look forward to witnessing everything you will learn and accomplish in the coming year, and I can't wait to see how you grow and change with the addition of a new little brother or sister. I LOVE YOU!

Stay Beautiful, by Taylor Swift
You're beautiful

Every little piece love, and don't you know

You're really gonna be someone, ask anyone

And when you find everything you looked for

I hope your life leads you back to my door

Oh but if it don't, stay beautiful

Happy Birthday Lexi!

Love this quote

2008-12-11T11:09:00.003-05:00

"I am the one who starts out to get her a child a drink of water, who stops briefly to pick up a paper clip from the floor, and ends up weeding the garden with absolutely no understanding of why that child is still thirsty."

From the book If I'm Diapering a Watermelon, Then Where'd I Leave the Baby?: Help for the Highly Distractible Mom by Carol Barnier.

Totally going on the Christmas list...

According to Spencer

2008-10-22T14:00:00.004-05:00

Walking out to the car after gymnastics yesterday, a little boy waves to Spencer.

Spencer: Mama, you know why he just said bye to me? Because we're best friends.

Me: Oh really? What's his name?

Spencer: I forget.

New Playroom!

2008-09-09T13:59:00.003-05:00

The big playroom redesign is (almost) finished! Here's some pictures, if you want to view them with notes go to my flickr page.

Entertainment center where I envisioned the tv going, only I liked the room so much without one we decided to put in a stereo instead - big hit!

Dress up corner holding our (surprisingly) large costume collectionDesk/Creativity Center/BookshelvesWall still needs magnet strips for hanging artwork and some kind of decal, probably the dandelion one talked about in previous post

Girl corner: Boy corner:Yes, we really have rings in our house:

That's about it, still in need of some artwork, I have canvases for the kids to paint and I will hang those next to each window. Gotta go pick Lexi up now!

2008-08-05T14:27:00.008-05:00

It's time to start designing the upstairs, starting with the playroom. For the walls, I'm thinking we're going to do a light green. I was originally thinking blue, but I read that the most conflicts happen in a blue room, so definitely not a good color for a playroom. We're going to do a decal on the wall, these are the choices:

Definitely going to do this, in different colors though:

Major storage is needed, so we're off to Ikea! I can't decide if we want to do their child storage:Or their more adult storage and just use pretty baskets and bins (everything will be in white):

Love these:

I love all the options for the child storage, I'm just afraid they will be outgrown eventually and will look too "babyish". The adult stuff could grow with them and be repurposed later. How long does furniture from Ikea actually last? One thing I really like about the child options are they're safe for them to climb on, even the buckets. And they come with wall anchors so they won't tip.

Anyway, I'm going to Ikea on Thursday, I need to see it in person. Anyone have any ideas/insight?

Spencer is 4 (and a half)!

2008-08-04T08:42:00.005-05:00

Ok, I am officially the worst mother ever. My baby turned 4 and I didn't even post anything for him. Now, he's on the other side of 4 1/2 headed to 5. I will never feel right about myself if I don't post something so here goes:

Spencer,

You are growing up so fast. This year you started preschool, you made new friends, you started (and then quit) karate, you started gymnastics (which you love and are quite good at), you said goodbye to sissy while she went off to kindergarten, you were my helper, my errand buddy, my carloop assistant. You are hillariously funny, we can't wait to see what you're going to say next. You are kind and gentle, you love to give names to all of your stuffed animals and you worry about them when they are not around. If you leave one in the car, you will go out and get it at bedtime so it will not be scared. You can hang with the girls, but you also relish anytime there is a boy around, then you can play pirates and bad guys and cars and all things boy.

This song pretty much sums up how I feel about you (and it's also one of your favorite songs at the moment):

My Heart (does a little dance)
Joanie Bartels

My heart does a little dance,
Every time I see you.
My heart does a little dance,
Every time I'm near you.

When you walk into the room,
I can hear my heart go boom boom boom.
Just a smile on your sweet face,
I can feel my heart begin to race.

My heart does a little dance,

Every time I see you.

My heart does a little dance,

Every time I'm near you.

My heart does a little dance,
Every time I see you.
My heart does a little dance,
Every time I'm near you.

Love's the name of this happy sound,
When my heart begins to pound.
Like a drum with that strong back beat,
I can feel it all the way to my feet.

My heart does a little dance,
Every time I see you.
My heart does a little dance,
Every time I'm near you.

My heart does a little dance,
Every time I see you.
My heart does a little dance,
Every time I'm near you.

I've never felt this way,
Standing here outside your door.
Trying to find the words to say,
You're the one my heart beats for.

My heart...does a little dance
My heart...does a little dance

Happy Birthday Spencer!

2008-06-17T09:09:00.002-05:00

Wow, I just realized I never posted for my little man turning 4! I must do that, even though he's 4 1/2 now :-)

My baby is 6!

2007-12-11T23:21:00.000-05:00

Wow Lexi, where has the time gone? So many things have happened for you this year - you started kindergarten, you learned how to ride a bike without training wheels, you can tie your shoes, you lost 2 teeth, you can fix your hair (and everyone else's), and you can read this post!!! You love reading, your friends (old and new), family-time, crafts with mommy, sewing, dress up, hair/makeup, fashion, cooking, gymnastics, going to shows, High School Musical, Hannah Montana, music in general, and you love to do anything "special" and out of the ordinary. If it's any change in routine, you are up for it girlie...you fly by the seat of your pants!

I can't even begin to describe how much I love you and how much I revel in your accomplishments. Every day you are growing stronger, more independent, and more self-confident than I could have ever dreamed. I always joke that the only reason you need me around is to drive you places, and I really believe that's true. You can get yourself ready from head to toe in the morning, one day you even surprised me and fixed my breakfast (if only I could teach you to make coffee)! You are a joy to be around, your light shines so bright people can't help but be drawn to you. I look forward to seeing the changes you go through this year, but I hope this year goes by slower than the last...your baby years are slipping away so fast. I love you so much - HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEXI!

PS - We had a really awesome "pretend sleepover" for you and all your friends - no boys allowed - but in the utter chaos of it all mommy forgot to take any pictures. :-( I am heartbroken, a group shot of everyone in their jammies would have been so great. Where is that rewind button?

Procrastination at its finest...

2007-12-02T19:18:00.001-05:00

Instead of doing the massive amount of work I have to do for finals this week, I'm reading blogs and killing time. I need a break from my professor for a little while (I've been watching nonstop video streams since 4pm, I thought I had more time to watch them all!). I haven't written much lately, so here's a little something.

Spencer has been on an 'I love you' kick lately, he tells me all day long. It's so sweet and I am so not complaining! Here's what he said in the car the other day after leaving Wallyworld:

"Mommy, I always love you, even when we go to Walmart."

Wow, just how stressed do I get in Walmart?

Then today at Fishlips: "Mommy, I love you" (he says it in this sing-songy kind of way where he draws out the I, there's no way to explain how cute it is in print).
Literally 30 seconds later - after I told him to pick up the paper bits from the straw wrapper he was tearing apart - he screamed "I'm not listening to anything you say, only daddy!" After which he spit on me.
About five minutes later, after this episode was over, guess what? "Mommy, I love you"

Ah, the joys of having a 3 year old, it's like living with a bi-polar person off their meds. I already have enough crazy in my house, thank you very much!

From Spencer's mouth:

2007-11-12T20:18:00.000-05:00

Mama, when I'm a grownup and you fall out of my belly, I'll be sure to
pick you up and put you back in.

2007-10-28T02:24:00.000-05:00

For my beloved Jasmine:

Sleep

Your suffering shall end soon,
though mine has just begun.
I do not want to let you go,
But I’m told the time has come.

I’ll hold you while you go to sleep,
and wish that I could too–
I do not want to say goodbye;
I want to go with you.

Sleep now, my precious baby,
Dream of your favorite toy,
And hide n’ seek and tug of war–
Those games that brought us joy.

I’ll think how very blessed I've been
For all the years we've shared,
I'd not trade them for anything–
Though this heartbreak would be spared.
--Kathy Doerr

I love you and I miss you so much.

August Blast from the Past

2007-08-09T08:01:00.000-05:00

Here is a picture from August 2004. Lexi is 2 years, 9 months and Spencer is 8 months old. Lexi still has some of her chunkiness and look at the size of Spencer!

Summer update

2007-07-16T15:58:00.000-05:00

Sorry, I haven't posted in a long time. I've gotten caught up in the lazy pace of summer. We started out our summer sick. We all had some sort of flu virus, the kids had it for about a week each, I had it for a month, and my dad ended up in the hospital with it. It was not a good start to the summer, but we have all made a full recovery now.

Nick and I went to see Kenny Chesney and Sugarland in June where we had 7th row seats. It was so much fun, as his concerts always are. Here's some pics:

Nick and I in the car before the show

Sugarland rocking out Jennifer Nettles (of Sugarland) posing for my pic :-) Show's about to start! Finally! Mr. Entertainer of the Year!

Next we went to Nick's cousin's wedding. It was awesome, they had it at the Florida Aquarium in Tampa, we had a great time.

Getting ready to leave the hotel

Food, Food, Food! Lexi and Mimi (my mom-in-law)
The beautiful bride Kristy

Lexi and my sis-in-law Miranda

Lexi, Miranda, Aunt Kelly, and me

Nick and his brother James Lexi in the dress I made, her "princess dress".

For my birthday, we decided to continue the tradition and get new tattoos. I got a celtic motherhood knot with a pink and blue star for both of my kids.

My sister's tattoo, if you know her you will know it fits her perfectly. She plans to get a devil duck on the other shoulder blade for her birthday in October. April's tattoo, she also got a puple dragonfly behind the other ear.

The other really cool thing that happened on my birthday was Lexi lost her 1st tooth! The tooth fairy visited her, she was so excited!Since her tooth had been lose for a while, my next project was to make her a tooth fairy pillow, I even bought the glow-in-the-dark thread. I figured I had at least another week, but she knocked it loose at dinner and it fell out that night. Since we were having a hard time finding a babysitter for them for when we went to get tattoos, we were joking that she was going to lose her first tooth at the tattoo parlor. That would have been a story for the baby book!

Other than that, we've just been hanging out in the pool and having fun. I've been doing a lot of sewing lately, I've made 6 pillowcases with names on them, Lexi's dress for the wedding, some pillows, a couple of purses, some reconstructed t-shirts, and a few other odds and ends. My father got me a new embroidery machine for my birthday, now I just have to order it and wait for it to arrive, YAY! It's a Brother PE-700 embroidery only machine. I have a Brother 270D right now, which I love, but it only does 4x4 embroidery and I always want to do bigger designs. I can't wait!!

A pic of the pillowcases I've started making for each birthday party we go to. I use the pillowcase as the gift bag. It turns out really cute.

Finally, I'll leave you with a picture from July 21, 2001 - the day Nick and I got married!

Blast from the Past

2007-05-31T12:47:00.000-05:00

I'm going to try every month to post a pic from the same month years past. Here's one of Nick and I at my high school graduation in May 1999 - Go Mustangs!

Look out for the whale....

2007-05-29T10:57:00.000-05:00

For everyone who doesn't believe that I really gained 80 lbs while pregnant with Lexi, here's the proof:

Let me tell you, walking was difficult in those last few months!

Arrrgh...

2007-05-27T15:55:00.000-05:00

Living with someone who has Alzheimer's is difficult. And tiring. And frustrating. Kids are so much easier. Remember to breathe, remember to breathe....

Some fun pictures from camping in December I never posted

2007-05-25T01:33:00.000-05:00

While I was organizing some photos in my Flickr account, I realized I never posted my pictures from camping the week between Christmas and New Year's at Cars Park.

My sis-in-law Ashley ready to partay!

Four wheelin' it like real rednecks

He thinks he's hiding

Nick's cousin Sam, look closely and you'll see a lizard hanging from his ear

Spencer getting the party started

Chillin' in Aunt Jenny's RV (so much more exciting than our tent!)

Ballet

2007-05-24T16:05:00.001-05:00

Lexi's professional pictures taken at ballet a few weeks ago:

My favorite one

I don't want to hear any snickers about her face and that pole...

Pool Party

2007-05-24T16:00:00.003-05:00

A few pics from the party yesterday, I didn't take many because I was too busy running around...

Lexi and Rachel chillin'

Spencer on the trampoline

The cake I made, the recipe can be found here

It was a lot of fun, we'll probably have another one before the summer is over.

Bored...

2007-05-24T10:44:00.001-05:00

Basics:
Name:	Ashley
Date of Birth:	7-14
Birthplace:	Palm Beach
Current Location:	Merritt Island
Eye Color:	Brown
Hair Color:	Brown
Height:	5'1"
Heritage:	Irish, English, don't know what else
Piercings:	5
Tattoos:	1
Favourite:
Band/Singer:	Dierks Bentley
Song:	Long Trip Alone
Movie:	Clueless, My Best Friend's Wedding, Cruel Intentions
Disney Movie:	Lion King, Nemo, Cars
TV show:	Smallville, Heroes
Color:	blue, pink
Food:	pizza
Pizza topping:	cheese and pineapple
Ice-Cream Flavor:	birthday cake
Drink (alcoholic):	Long Island Ice Tea (if it's made right), Madres, Italian Wedding Cake Martini
Soda:	Wild Cherry Pepsi
Store:	Target
Clothing Brand:	anything on sale
Shoe Brand:	see above
Season:	winter/summer - I can't decide
Month:	July
Holiday/Festival:	Christmas
Flower:	daisy
Make-Up Item:	lipstick
Board game:	Life
This or That
Sunny or rainy:	rainy
Chocolate or vanilla:	chocolate
Fruit or veggie:	veggie
Night or day:	night
Sour or sweet:	sweet
Love or money:	love
Phone or in person:	in person
Looks or personality:	personality
Coffee or tea:	coffee
Hot or cold:	hot
Your:
Goal for this year:	have fun, don't stress so much, breathe!
Most missed memory:	hanging out with my friends and having no responsibilities
Best physical feature:	don't know
First thought waking up:	are the kids up and what are they doing?
Hypothetical personality disorder:	OCD
Preferred type of plastic surgery:	lipo
Sesame street alter ego:	Cookie Monster
Fairytale alter ego:	Tinkerbell
Most stupid remark:	???
Worst crime:	shoplifting
Greatest ambition:	be a good mom
Greatest fear:	losing one of my children
Darkest secret:	if I told you, it wouldn't be a secret
Favorite subject:	math
Strangest received gift:	don't know
Worst habit:	cracking my knuckles
Do You:
Smoke:	no
Drink:	yes
Curse:	only when my kids aren't around
Shower daily:	no
Like thunderstorms:	yes
Dance in the rain:	yes
Sing:	unfortunately for those around me
Play an instrument:	not anymore, I used to play piano and flute
Get along with your parents:	yes
Wish on stars:	yes
Believe in fate:	yes
Believe in love at first sight:	no
Can You:
Drive:	yes
Sew:	yes
Cook:	yes
Speak another language:	no
Dance:	not really
Sing:	not good
Touch your nose with your tongue:	no
Whistle:	yes
Curl your tongue:	yes
Have You Ever:
Been Drunk:	yes
Been Stoned/High:	yes
Eaten Sushi:	yes
Been in Love:	yes
Skipped school:	yes
Made prank calls:	yes
Sent someone a love letter:	yes
Stolen something:	yes
Cried yourself to sleep:	yes
Other Questions:
What annoys you most in a person?	lying
Are you right or left handed?	right
What is your bedtime?	whenever i want
Name three things you can't live without:	Coffee, ipod, computer
What is the color of your room?	white
Do you have any siblings?	yes
Do you have any pets?	yes
Would you kill someone you hate for a million dollars?	if i knew i wouldn't get caught...but i don't think I could go through with it
What is you middle name?	Irene
What are you nicknames?	Ash, Ashes, Ashtray, Oooshley, Delectable, Rizzo, Boobs Magee, Ash-hole, Yelhsa
Are you for or against gay marriage?	for
What are your thoughts on abortion?	pro-choice
Do you have a crush on anyone?	yes
Are you afraid of the dark?	no
How do you want to die?	in my sleep
What is the largest amount of popsicles that you have eaten on one day?	don't like popsicles
Would you take a bullet for the one you love?	yes
What is the last law you’ve broken?	speed limit
In a Member of the Opposite Sex:
Hair color:	don't care
Eye color:	don't care
Height	taller than me (which doesn't say much)
Weight	healthy
Most important physical feature:	eyes
Biggest turn-off	smoking
Take this survey or other MySpace Surveys at PimpSurveys.com

Too cool for preschool...

2007-05-22T23:40:00.001-05:00

So sweet

2007-05-22T23:38:00.001-05:00

052007 056
Originally uploaded by AshD23.

What a wonderful sight to see when you go check on your children at night...

Saving Dinner...

2007-05-07T14:39:00.000-05:00

Have you seen this website? I bought her book a long time ago, but I kind of forgot about it until I visited her website recently. I stopped eating meat - again - about 5 weeks ago (I was a vegetarian for about 6 years until I got pregnant with Lexi), and I've been struggling to find good vegetarian recipes that everyone in my family will eat (especially Nick). I downloaded her free Vegetarian mailer and made all those recipes, and we loved all but one of them (Split Pea soup, but we're not really split pea people).

What you do is you print out a mailer that contains 6 recipes, along with a shopping list that lists everything by type in the grocery store (produce, cannned goods, etc.) She also gives you suggestions about what to serve with each meal and highlights those ingredients with an asterick in case you decide to serve something else. She tells you which meal each item on the shopping list goes with, so you can easily find the recipe if you need to make substitutions. I bought almost everything on the list and only spent around 1 hour there (important when you're shopping with small children) and about $120 (that included a few other things I needed that were not on the list) - and I had dinner for the rest of the week! Totally worth the stress involved with dinner time for me and resorting to takeout when I have nothing planned (I am not a cook, although I do fine with a recipe - I cannot just got into my pantry and "whip something up").

She has a bunch of different menus - Regular, Low-Carb, Heart Healthy, to name a few - in different serving sizes, and you can try them for free - go check it out!

Long time no blog

2007-05-05T19:17:00.000-05:00

Wow, I can't believe how long it's been since my last post. It seems like I've gone on some sort of internet diet this semester. I think it's because I didn't have any online classes this semester, so I had no real need to log in every day, and I just couldn't make myself come on more than once a week. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it wasn't great since my job at Labschool is to be the e-mail person for preschool and the parent leader for toddler, so it did pose a problem when important e-mails needed to go out and I didn't send them as soon as I should have. It is good in a lot of ways though, because when I come on the computer I tend to get "sucked in" - Nick says I enter computer world - and hours can pass without me realizing it. So that's one reason I'm glad I haven't been spending too much time online.

So, what have I been up to? Let's see, I just finished the spring semester and I will FINALLY possess some sort of degree - just an AA but hey, it's something to show for all the work I've been doing. And I managed to keep my 4.0 to the end, I had nightmares I would screw up in the final semester, but all was ok. Actually, my Economics professor said my average for the class ended up being 100% - woo hoo!! There was one final headache at the very end...my previously mentioned Eco professor called me and told me when she tried to input my grade, she found out I had been dropped for non-payment from both of my classes. I went to BCC the next day and was told by 2 advisors that I would either have to take them over, or go through an appeals process with the deans where I would have to get both of my teachers signatures along with the dept. chair and hopefully get reinstated back in my classes. After almost breaking down in tears, I went to the dean's secretary, and she asked my name, disappeared into a back office for a few minutes, and came out with a signature on my add/drop form. She asked if I was ready to pay and took me over to the cashiers office where I paid and got back in my classes. No signatures, no appeal, nothing. It turns out, they had been expecting me because my professor had been e-mailing everyone telling them to get me back in. Have I mentioned how much I love this teacher? I was so glad I was able to work out my schedule this semester so I could go during the day, mostly because I wanted her again (since I had her for macro), she is an awesome professor!

In other news, Lexi is graduating from Labschool this month and moving on to Kindergarten. I can't believe it, my baby is growing up. I have been dreading this transition for a couple of years now, it's going to be hard to leave the safety of Labschool and move on to PUBLIC SCHOOL...dun dun dun. Actually, we're really not going far, since all but one (and she's most likely going to get in also) of the 5-day class is going to the same school. I'm so glad I will be able to move on to a new school with the same network of support I have had for a few years now. These parents are truly awesome, and if I wouldn't have joined Labschool 4 years ago, I never would have met them. I truly grateful to the labschool program for allowing me to meet so many wonderful parents and friends.

I will still be in Labschool of course, because Spencer is moving up to the 3 day program. I am really excited for him, because I know he's going to have a blast. After 4 years of the toddler program, I am finally leaving it behind. It was sad for me this year to only register 1 child for Labschool instead of 2, it made me realize my days in this program are numbered. I know, I still have 2 years, but I am already dreading the day it's over. It almost makes me want to have another one...almost. However, we did have a scare here a little while ago that really made me realize how satisfied I am with both of my kids, and how happy I am to be leaving the baby stage behind and moving on to new experiences. It's not that I don't love babies, but I am finally at a point where the end of my school is in sight, where Nick and I can go away for a weekend knowing the kids are ok, where I can sleep through the night and be happy to get up in the morning, where I don't have to change diapers and make sure I'm not away for more than 3 hours at a time so I can feed the baby, where I can take medicine for a headache without worrying about the effect it will have on the baby. I have 2 perfect, adorable, wonderful children and while I will always cherish the time I had with them as babies, I am at peace knowing that that time in my life is over.

For the summer, my graduation present to myself was taking the whole summer off. I have been going to school every semester since Spencer was born, so I'm glad I will get to just chill out all summer with my family, not having to be anywhere at any certain time and just having fun. It turns out that was a really good decision, since it's possible that Nick might be gone for work for most or all of the summer. Don't feel too bad for him though, because he'll be in working in HAWAII! The company he works for is bidding on a job out there, and if they get it they'll be sending him. They say it will only take about 2 months, but that means at least 4...we know how this whole thing works. We'll found out in the next few days. It's not going to be fun for us, but at least the bulk of it will be during the summer when I don't have school, nightmeetings, etc to have to worry about finding babysitters for. We're going to get webcams and he will take my laptop so at least the kids will be able to see him and talk to him every night.

That's about it, I'll have a craft update soon, although sadly there's not much to report. Hopefully that will change over the summer.

Here's a few pics that I have in my flickr acct, I need to update that with more but I'm on the wrong computer right now.

Spencer before his haircut at Labschool:

One of Lexi's favorite pastimes, eating cheese at Grandma Dot's:

Spencer and my sister-in-law Miranda, giving eachother what appears to be the same look. Genetics?

Every Mile a Memory

2007-05-05T09:21:00.000-05:00

Nick and I did end up going on our concert weekend, and it was so much fun! I was right up against the stage for Miranda Lambert, Jason Aldean, and Dierks on Thur night. I got to meet Jason Aldean:

FYI - he is so cute and nice! He signed my shirt (he said I needed a new one because that one said Dierks!):

Miranda Lambert was on first, she put on a great show, she is my favorite female performer.

Then Jason Aldean, his show was good too, although I wish he would've done more of his stuff, instead of some of the covers he did:

Dierks was next, and everything about his show was awesome. I was right up against the stage, and he pointed to me 4 times during the show (yes, I actually remember how many times, I also remember during which songs, lol). It was the best performance I've seen from him, it was perfect. I met some really cool fan club members there too. We were in the "pit", but we were surrounded by great people who held our spots if we had to leave and respected our space.

Dierks tried to reach my hand to sing to me, but he couldn't so he got the girl next to me :-(

Dierks and Jason at the end:

On Friday night I got to meet him through a meet and greet I won through the fan club.

He was so nice and down to earth, he is just as beautiful (both inside and out) in person as he is on tv. He makes each person feel special, and he even remembered people he had met a year ago. It is true, once you meet him you become an even bigger fan than you were before (if that is even possible).

I also met a couple really awesome girls through the fan club, Kelly and Kristin, who had a meet and greet with me in Live Oak.

We are planning on going to another concert together soon!

We had really bad seats to this concert because it was a weekend long event and the gold cicle seats (those right in front of the stage) were $350 each. Since I didn't have $700 to spend on one night, we sat behind the gold and silver sections on the side. But, since I was so close the night before, being that far back was unacceptable. So, when the lights went out and the security guard wasn't looking, Kelly, Kristin and I jumped the fence! It was so much fun, we got all the way up to the front by the end of the show. We were standing on our chairs and dancing, and Dierks pointed us out a few times and pointed directly at me for So So Long...one of my favorite songs. He knew us because our meet and greet was before the show. Here he is looking directly at me and waiting for me to take his pic:

I didn't take too many pics at this show, since I had a bunch from the night before and I just wanted to enjoy this show.

The next night, we went to Kenny Chesney and Sugarland, where I met another fan club member and also ran into a mom from Labschool last year! Small world huh? None of my pics came out from this concert, since we were about 35 rows back, but I'll have lots in June, where we'll be 4th row. They put on a great show, it's easy to see why Kenny's won Entertainer of the Year for the last 2 years.

That was our weekend, such a blast. Nick makes fun of my concert obsession, but I just can't get enough of them. I love music, I define my life based on music, I can hear any song and tell you what I was doing when I first heard it and what it means to me. I just love the energy at live concerts, and the community of being with hundred or thousands of people who are just as passionate about it as you are. Nick likes them too, but he doesn't go as crazy as I do. In order to pull off this whole weekend, I had to agree to not go to any more concerts for the rest of the year, except for Kenny in June, since we already have the tickets. I'm also allowed a free pass if Dierks comes anywhere within a 5 hour radius from here. Crazy huh?

So bummed...

2007-02-26T18:10:00.000-05:00

Dierks Bentley (aka my Dierks) is coming to Florida in April and he is playing in Kissimmee on Thursday night, Live Oak on Friday, and Kenny Chesney is playing in Jacksonville on Saturday. So, Nick and I were going to make a weekend of it. Well, I just found out the fanclub tickets for Dierks went on sale last week! I kept telling myself I needed to check when they went on sale, but I procrastinated. I can still buy tickets through Ticketmaster, but they won't be in the "super close" VIP section. I'm hoping someone through the fan club can't go last minute and will sell me theirs, it seems I always have bad luck with Dierks tickets!

Some upcoming projects:

2007-02-07T08:16:00.000-05:00

I finally finished the project I've been working on FOREVER! It is a present so I can't put any more details on here until it is received, but I will be posting pics as soon as I can. I also made a hat for Nick which I forgot to take a pic of and it's probably all dirty now, I'll have to get it back and take a quick picture today when he comes home. So, now it's on to new projects:

No idea what to do with this yarn, but it was 80% off $5.99 and I thought it was so pretty! There is only one ball of the purple/blue combo (that's my favorite) but 5 of the blue/yellow.

Another yarn that was 80% off $5.99...I plan on making Lexi some sort of summer top. The yarn is really soft and pretty.

My first attempt at socks, I picked some that used big needles to start out with.

I haven't cross stitched in years, but I've been eyeing this kit for months now and finally broke down and bought it. In case you can't read it, it says "Who are these kids and why are they calling me Mom?" There are more that can be found here, all of them are really funny. If it goes ok, I'll probably be making more.

So cute, can be found at Hancock fabrics 30% off right now (not sure how much longer). There are a bunch of different ones, and you can buy them individually or in a 3 pack. Spencer picked these. There is also a pattern to make a stage that hangs in a doorway:

This will be ribbon sleeves for Lexi that will attach to a regular shirt with the buttons. I just cast on for this last night, hopefully will be done in the next couple of days.

Ok, I gotta go to school now and take not one, but TWO tests...wish me luck!

Spencer at Labschool

2007-01-26T08:12:00.000-05:00

My cool little man ;-)

Merry Christmas!

2007-01-04T16:02:00.000-05:00

A couple of gifts I made...

2007-01-04T14:36:00.000-05:00

I didn't do much Christmas knitting, just a couple of gifts (and one I'm still working on...sorry mom!). Here's a scarf I made for my best friend Alicia (who's up in Tennessee and might actually have a use for it):

I used 4 different strands of yarn and it came out really soft and pretty I think. I hardly ever make scarves since we don't need them in Florida.

I also made a pillow for her:

I made a purse for my mom's birthday, which I lined in Elvis fabric (she LOVES Elvis)! It came out really cute, I also made the keychain.

My little man is 3!

2007-01-04T13:50:00.000-05:00

Wow Spencer, I can't believe you are already 3. Where did the time go? It seems like just yesterday you were born (past daddy's "cut-off date") and we were leaving the hospital with you and going straight to Grandma Rose's Christmas Eve party. You were so sweet and calm even though you were being passed around between 20 family members, and you've been that way ever since. You are so mellow and easy-going, you truly have a go-with-the-flow attitude. You are hardly ever without a smile on your face, and you love to entertain people and make them laugh. You love to "play dead" and make goofy, funny faces. You will repeat whatever you are doing endlessly as long as people are still laughing. I have a feeling you are going to be quite the class clown, your teachers don't know what they're in for! My favorite memory of you this past year is when I was serving black bean cakes for dinner. You took one look at them and crinkled your nose. I said, "Just try one bite Spencer" to which you replied (with a scrunched up mad face that only you can make) "Never". When I asked you to try them again you said "Disgustin". It was so hilarious, the rest of us couldn't stop laughing to eat our dinner. The look on your face and the way you said it was priceless. You are becoming such a big man, you love to play with all your little plastic animals and your trains and cars, and you can play house with sissy for hours. You are very caring and nurturing, and also quite sensitive and you hate to be yelled at (especially if you didn't know you were doing anything wrong). You love to give hugs and kisses, and you are incredibly smart. You are my sweet little baby - to which you reply, "No mommy, I'm a big boy" - but you will always be my baby. I love you so much, and I can't wait to see all the new things you will conquer this year. Happy Birthday Spencer!!

Pretty cool...

2007-01-04T13:42:00.000-05:00

HowManyOfMe.com

There are:
3
people with my name
in the U.S.A.

How many have your name?

Spencer's Party

2006-12-21T14:04:00.000-05:00

I really left my comfort zone this month and threw not one, but two parties! We had a little party for Spencer at the park with his Thursday toddler friends, really easy and inexpensive. Spencer had fun, though Lexi was crabby the entire time because I made her wear boy pants (gasp!) under her dress. I didn't realize it was so short until we got there and the only pants I had were Spencer's. Oh well, it went great and I'm glad Spencer got to have a party with his friends just like sissy.

Tavares

2006-12-21T12:03:00.000-05:00

We went to stay at my mom's house in Tavares for the weekend. It was a lot of fun, we went to Lake Idamere park, which was really cool and huge! They had a dog park, fishing pier, and the playground was enormous. They had every cool playground toy a kid could ask for, even a stage. If you are ever in Tavares with children, you have to visit this park. We BBQ'd there, and then went to Mount Dora to look at all the lights and stopped for ice cream on the way home. It was a really fun time.

The park had this huge tree that, of course, we had to climb!

This was going to be our family picture for the Christmas cards, but I never got around to getting them done...oops!

Lexi's Bowling Party!

2006-12-21T11:38:00.000-05:00

Ok, I'm finally getting around to posting about Lexi's birthday party. It was at the bowling alley and it was super fun! I've never thrown a "friend" birthday party for either of my kids before, I always managed to get out of it every year. We would have our family party, but never one for the kids from school. Well this year, there was no getting out of it. She'd been to all her friends' birthday parties and the jig was up, there was no way I was going to get away with it again. You see, I'm just not a party thrower. I love to go to parties, just not host them. I have this secret fear that no one will show up, it's crazy but that's just me. Anyway, it was a blast and almost all her friends came. I was really surprised at how fun the party was, I was worried that some of the 3-day kids wouldn't be able to bowl but everyone had fun, even Spencer. After the party was over, she asked me if she could have her party at the bowling alley next year too, so I guess that means she enjoyed it!

Look at that form!

Spencer made lots of people nervous carrying the ball around!

They had this really cool slide thing, so even the little ones could get the ball all the way down, the only problem was there was only 1 of them!

I made shirts for all the kids, they turned out pretty cute...

and this is the back of Lexi's shirt.

A little Christmas survey

2006-12-19T08:22:00.000-05:00

Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
When I was a kid, Santa just sat the presents under the tree. Now Santa must have more time on his hands (or just thinks he does) and wraps them...there's nothing like seeing all the presents under the tree and unwrapping them Christmas morning.

Colored lights on tree/house or white?
I'm a fan of the white, our tree is all white lights, but our house this year has white and red icicles...pretty cool. I don't like a lot of multicolor.

What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)?
Grandma Dot's brunch

Favorite Holiday memory as a child:
Staying up way too late with my sister trying to get the presents for our parents made in time (we always made them something)...looking back they must have been so lame, but we thought they were awesome ;-)

Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
My sister and I always tried to get this tradition started but it never seemed to take off, now we got to Grandma Rose's on Christmas Eve and open a ton of presents!

How do you decorate your Christmas Tree?
We put on the Christmas music (Chipmonks for the kids, UGGH, and The Carpenters for me), pour some eggnog (with rum for the grownups) and get to decorating. Nick usually ends up super crabby because it doesn't come out perfect (with 2 little kids and all) and I usually spend the entire time yelling at Nick because he's crabby...it's so much fun!

Snow! Love it or Dread it?
Seeing as how I've never seen snow...I have no idea!

What is your favorite Holiday Dessert?
Does eggnog count?

What is your favorite Christmas Song?
Greensleeves or This Gift by 98 degrees...I know, I'm a dork.

Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum?
Yum - especially the green ones.

Favorite Christmas Tradition growing up:
Decorating the tree the day after Thanksgiving.

Least Favorite Christmas Tradition Growing Up:
Being incredibly sick every year.

Breakfast or Presents First?
Presents!!!

I'm tagging anyone who wants to share a little Christmas spirit! So feel free to join the fun!

Done!

2006-12-11T20:45:00.000-05:00

Hip Hip Horray! I am done for the semester! I'm so happy it's over, I don't even care what my grades are (oh, who am I kidding?)!! Maybe now I'll actually have time to clean the house (again, who am I kidding?) ;-)

I can't wait for December 12!

2006-12-09T17:01:00.000-05:00

Uggg....I'm so over this semester. Mon is my Calc final and the day everything is due for my Community Involvement class. Why oh why do I wait until the last minute to do everything? Every semester I promise myself it will be different, and then every single time I end up pulling all-nighters in the eleventh hour trying to get it all done. I'm getting too old for this!

Men knitting

2006-12-05T08:23:00.000-05:00

Check this out:

I love the football player knitting on the field, that's something you don't see every day!

My baby is 5!

2006-12-04T15:27:00.000-05:00

Lexi,

I can't believe you are 5 years old already, it seems like just yesterday when you were born. You were the first baby I ever held and the most beautiful baby I had ever seen. Your birthday is also the anniversary of me becoming a mother for the first time, and I couldn't ask for a better present than just being able to be in your presence every day. You have grown up into such a smart, talented, funny, beautiful little girl. You love ballet and gymnastics, being crafty like mommy, telling jokes, going to school, your friends and family, being sneaky and stealing marshmallows when nobody's looking, and playing any sort of game. You constantly ask me when you can be a grownup so you can do all the fun things grownups do, and you love to pretend you're going to "meetings and school" like mommy. Your new favorite things are makeup and hair accessories, and you have a certain flair to your walk that can only be described as "swishing" (I have no idea where you got that from!). You hate being told it's naptime/bedtime, no matter how tired you are, because that means you may miss out on something fun when you're sleeping. You are very caring and loving, and you truly feel bad for other people when they are in pain. You are always the first one to ask your brother if he needs to go to the safe place and you are right there with him holding his hand, getting him water, and showing him the different ways to breathe. You can translate his words when even mommy and daddy can't understand him, and you are right there to jump in with a "you did it" whenever he accomplishes anything. I love you so much Lexi, you are growing bigger, faster, and stronger every day and I can't wait to see what the next year will bring for you, my big 5 year old...HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Dierks...

2006-12-04T14:55:00.000-05:00

Yes, I found tickets and we got to see Dierks in Valdosta - it was so much fun!! It turns out, the tickets that I got were really bad, but if you got to the park early enough you can find a seat in the lawn chair section. Those seats were much better, but we didn't bring any lawn chairs because we had tickets for reserved seating. We got to the park 45 min early and there was already a huge line, but we waited and ran to the concert pavillion and got decent seats in the general admission area. I was under the impression that you had to sit there all day if you got those seats, but you only had to set up your lawn chair and then you could go enjoy the park. Well, since we didn't bring lawn chairs Nick ended up saving our spots while I ran to Walmart to buy 2 cheap chairs. It was pretty crazy, but it all worked out and we got to see Dierks, Miranda Lambert, and the Randy Rogers Band. It was very cold, but I had to break out the little white tank top for Dierks. It's a wonder I didn't get sick, standing out in 40 degree weather in my tank top. Oh well, it made for great memories!

Playing miniature golf at Wild Adventures

Waiting for Dierks

Dierks!!

Pumpkin Patch

2006-12-04T14:48:00.000-05:00

Some pics from the pumpkin patch next to Labschool:

Yay, she can do the monkey bars...my little girl is growing up. I remember when I first visited Labschool and the big kids were doing the glider, I thought to myself "my baby will never be that big." Now she's a big 5 day kid doing the monkey bars and swinging herself - time flies!!

Halloween

2006-12-04T13:49:00.000-05:00

I guess I'll start with Halloween since I never officially added pics. Lexi was a princess, Spencer was a pirate. We always get to dress up twice because we go to Sea World's special Halloween a couple of weeks before the real Halloween. We always go with my inlaws and it's a lot of fun, although this year it was disappointing. Anyway, since Sea World is sort of a "dress rehearsal", I get to try out makeup looks before the real day. I couldn't decide how to do Spencer's makeup and Nick was no help, so I ended up with what Nick affectionately refers to as "the gay pirate":

Here's a better look:

I was going for a Johnny Depp look but somehow didn't end up with the same affect. I guess only Johnny Depp can pull off all that makeup. Here's the princess (her makeup came out beautifully by the way):

Some more pics from Sea World:

My sister-in-law Ashley with Lexi and Spencer

Lexi about to ride the new Shamu rollercoaster

Lexi and Ashley (I think this is one of the best pics of Lexi)

Spencer laying down on the conveyer belt through the shark tank

Photos from Halloween night:

I don't know what is with her and this pose, it seems to be the new thing.

Much better makeup, I don't know why I didn't think of a beard the first time.

Awww....

That's about it for Halloween, we just went trick or treating in the new neighborhood and had fun. Now on to the next post....

So sorry!

2006-12-04T09:43:00.000-05:00

Wow, so it's been an extremely long time since I've updated. It was always on the back of my mind that I needed to come on here, but I didn't realize how long it's been until I (finally!) logged on. I promise, a BIG update is coming soon...and by soon I mean this afternoon, hopefully. My dad just yelled for me, I've got to take him to BJ's (I've been neglecting him all weekend) but as soon as the kids are down for a nap I'm coming on. Get ready for tons of pics!!!

For my kids...

2006-10-20T06:39:00.000-05:00

While I love anything Rascal Flatts sings, I'm especially in love with this one at the moment. It's a great one to describe what I wish for my children in life. I hope it can be played at their weddings someday...

My Wish - Rascal Flatts

I hope the days come easy and moments pass slow,
and each road leads you where you want to go,
and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,
if it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,
But more than anything, more than anything...

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but you never forget,
all the ones who love you, and the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
and you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
and always give more than you take.
But more than anything, Yeah, more than anything...

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope the days come easy and moments pass slow,
and each road leads you where you want to go,
and if you're faced with a choice, and you have to choose,
I hope you choose the one that means the most to you.
And if one door opens to another door closed,
I hope you keep on walkin' till you find the window,
if it's cold outside, show the world the warmth of your smile,
But more than anything, more than anything...

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I hope you never look back, but you never forget,
all the ones who love you, and the place you left,
I hope you always forgive, and you never regret,
and you help somebody every chance you get,
Oh, you find God's grace, in every mistake,
and always give more than you take.
But more than anything, Yeah, more than anything...

My wish, for you, is that this life becomes all that you want it to,
your dreams stay big, your worries stay small,
You never need to carry more than you can hold,
and while you're out there getting where you're getting to,
I hope you know somebody loves you, and wants the same things too,
Yeah, this, is my wish.

I'm back...

2006-10-17T12:30:00.000-05:00

Wow, it's been a while since I've posted on here. I'm happy to finally report that everyone is feeling better and we have banished the yucky germs from our house (knock on wood). Please, please, please let this be it for cold and flu season for us!

I haven't been doing much lately, just light knitting and working on homework. I'm about to break out the old sewing machine again, my mother, sister and I took a trip to Joann's in Melbourne and I started looking at fabric and patterns again. I haven't sewed anything since we moved but I think I'm ready to give it another try. I'm just not very good at it, but oh well. Lexi asked me a couple of weeks ago if I could make her a Cinderella dress that's not a costume. I have no idea what the difference is, but I'm guessing she just wants something she can wear out in public that's not for dress up? I'm not sure, but I'm thinking about designing my own pattern for a dress that uses pretty blue silk and tulle that's all on sale right now for Halloween. I found a bunch of pretty patterns but I stink at sewing in zippers so I'm going to try to come up with something that doesn't need one. I also picked this up at the Joann's:

It's hard to tell but it's a really pretty see thru purple that has embroidered butterflies with sequins sewn on them. It came in 3 colors, blue, pink, and purple, and without Lexi there it was hard to decide which color to get. We finally decided on purple. I'm going to make it into a skirt with some white satin underneath that I had left over from the flower girl dress I made Lexi for my sister's wedding a couple of years ago. Here's how they look together:

Just for fun, here's a picture of that dress I made...look at how young she was!

Here is the knitting I'm doing, it's this shrug from Lion Brand Romance, so far I've done the sleeve and I'm working on the back.

So that's about it, I just bought the new Dierks cd that came out today, it is fabulous of course. Still working on tickets to see him in Georgia, there's some for sale on ebay I'm looking at. It's 3 weeks from Saturday (Nov 4) and my mom said she would watch the kids. I really hope we get to go!!!

Still sick...

2006-10-04T11:07:00.000-05:00

It's Lexi and daddy's turn. It seems like we're all just passing it around. Lexi woke up with a 104 fever last night, and Nick didn't go to work today (which means he is VERY sick because he hardly ever calls in to work). Spencer is very whiney (sp?) but no fever right now, for how long who knows. Lexi has started antibiotics, hopefully she'll be feeling better soon. I just have a headache, but what else is new? Hopefully this is it for cold and flu season for us, I don't know if I can take months of this!

Yay!

2006-10-03T11:13:00.000-05:00

I got 105% on my Calculus test - a perfect paper - WOOHOO!!!!

Just Another Day in Paradise

2006-10-01T20:44:00.000-05:00

Me and Nick's song, Just Another Day in Paradise by Phil Vassar. This song so accurately describes our life that it's almost as if it was written for us. Here are the lyrics:

The kids screaming, phone ringing
Dog barking at the mailman bringing
That stack of bills - overdue
Good morning baby, how are you?
Got a half hour, quick shower
Take a drink of milk but the milk's gone sour
My funny face makes you laugh
Twist the top on and I put it back
There goes the washing machine
Baby, don't kick it.
I promise I'll fix it
Long about a million other things

Well, it's ok.
It's so nice
It's just another day in paradise
Well, there's no place that I'd rather be
Well, it's two hearts
One dream
I wouldn't trade it for anything
And I ask the lord every night
For just another day in paradise

Friday, you're late
Guess we'll never make our dinner date
At the restaurant you start to cry
Baby, we'll just improvise
Well, plan B looks like
Dominoes' pizza in the candle light
Then we'll tippy toe to our room
Make a little love that's overdue
But somebody had a bad dream
Mama and daddy
Can me and my teddy
Come in and sleep in between?

Yeah it's ok.
It's so nice.
It's just another day in paradise.
Well, there's no place that I'd rather be
Well, it's two hearts
One dream
I wouldn't trade it for anything
And I ask the lord every night
For just another day in paradise

It helps to remind myself of this when the kids are sick and I'm feeling worn out. And the funny thing about this song is that every time Nick and I have a date night, it comes on the radio.

2006-10-01T19:25:00.000-05:00

Just as I was about to post an "All better" update, Spencer has gotten sick again. He's been coughing (they both have) but I thought it was just hungover from being sick. However, we went to a party today and when we got home we took a nap. When he woke up he started crying, which is not normal for him, so I went in there and he had a fever again (102). His cough sounds really croupy, so I'm just praying we won't have to be back in the emergency room tonight. We're giving him a treatment before bed and hopefully he'll be ok in the morning. I'll be back to update later.

Oh, and on a lighter note, I'm totally mad at my boyfriend. For those who don't know, my boyfriend is the super hot and extremely talented country singer Dierks Bentley:

Here's another view of him, I didn't take this picture (Connie from the KCOFC did) but I just love it!

Anyway, he just announced his fall tour, which I was totally psyched about, and there's no Florida dates! And Bud Light is sponsoring it, which is only my very favorite beer! The closest he's coming is Valdosta, GA, which really isn't that far (but tell that to my hubby). Still...don't read this Nick....I'm keeping an eye out for tickets on eBay. I don't think I can wait a whole year to see him again ;-)

Lexi can knit!

2006-09-27T13:55:00.000-05:00

Ok, so it's not "real" knitting but still. I've been trying to teach Lexi how to knit but the "peak through the window" part was too hard for her, so I decided to try to teach her finger-knitting. It took her all of 5 minutes to figure it out and then she was off and running.

She decided to make a headband and she's already done. I see lots of necklaces and bracelets in her future....does this mean she's going to want her own yarn at the craft store? Uh oh....

Two's a crowd?

2006-09-27T07:48:00.000-05:00

So this is what my house sounds like on a daily basis:

"He got (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack) first!"
"She got more than me!"
"I wanted that _____ (cup, plate, fork, toy, chair, anything)!"
"We read his story first last night!"
"It's my turn to turn out the light!"
"I wanted to sit in the front of the basket!"
"I'm the leader!" "No, I'M the leader!"
"It's mine!"

And then of course, the favorite:
"THAT'S NOT FAIR!!"

Sheesh, whoever said 2 kids was a good idea! I know, I know, it's good they're having all these battles, helps them learn how to deal with different personality types and be successful in the world, but come on - I'm going nuts over here! Anything and everything that can be argued over will be, and it seems that there's nothing I can do about it. Time to go read "Siblings Without Rivalry" again...

Pics of Knitting

2006-09-26T16:26:00.000-05:00

Man, I am a blogging fool today. Here's some pics of my knitting:

A baby blanket I finished for a baby due soon...

I used Bernat Baby Coordinates Sweet Stripes which is surprisingly soft but a pain in the you know what to work with. It turned out alright though. I used to pattern on the label but about 9 inches in I decided I would go crazy with all that stockinette so I designed an embossed heart in the middle. I made up the chart and everything, all by myself thank you very much. I think it turned out cute, and on the other side are all the purls with a stockinette heart in the middle.

A poncho for my daughter:

I bought this yarn at Walmart, it's actually really soft. I didn't know what to do with it, so I asked my daughter and she said she wanted a poncho. It's not finished yet, I need to knit a border around the whole thing in white. I just cast on 1 stitch, then increased once every row to make a triangle. When I got done it wasn't quite big enough, so I picked up and knit around the neck opening in white and I'm going to do that around the body. It's sooooo soft, I'm thinking about making me a scarf out of this yarn. I can't seem to find any at my Walmart though. I hope it's cause they're remodeling and not because they sold it all for 50 cents a ball or something, I will be so mad!

A water bottle holder for my kids:

I'm basically designing it as I go, doing the top as ribbing and the body in st. I want to use a solid color in the middle and either duplicate stitch or intarsia their names in the middle. The stripe/pink combo is for Lexi and the stripe/orange combo will be for Spencer. This is also my first attempt at double points, which looks so easy on Knitty Gritty but takes some getting used to.

I think I need to start over, it looks a little big, I need to cast on fewer stitches next time. Oh well, it's the process.

I also made a really cute tank top for my daughter with a matching headband, but it's in the wash right now because she wore it to school. That's about it for now, I usually only work on one project at a time, but my list of things I want to make is getting really long. I better go finish dinner!

2006-09-26T10:24:00.004-05:00

This is the next project I'm going to work on:

The free pattern is here:

http://secure.elann.com/ShowFreePattern.asp?Id=138024

I'm thinking I'll make the child one first, just so I can get a hang of the pattern, then I'll make one for me. I hardly ever make stuff for myself, but I just LOVE this jacket. Here's a view of the child size:

I'm still deciding about colors and yarn choice. I was thinking I would use cotton, since I live in Florida, but I'm concerned about the weight. I may use Elann's wool, but I have never worked with wool before and I'm worried about the itchiness factor. I really want to get started ASAP, so I may use my sick time today to decide.

I'm charging my camera so I'll be able to post pictures of FO's (finished objects) and WIP (works in progress) soon.

Sick kids, math tests, and no sleep...Oh my!

2006-09-26T09:19:00.000-05:00

It has been a rough few days. My kids have been sick and I had a math test last night (Business Calculus). Lexi got sick on Friday night, although it's off and on. She'll be fine, running around and playing, and then all of a sudden she's got a high fever. On Saturday we decided to go out to breakfast and to AC Moore so I could get some new yarn and start some new projects. By the time we got done with breakfast, she wasn't feeling well but we had already made the trip so we went to the craft store anyway. Big mistake. I took forever trying to decide what I wanted to knit (which I should have done before we went) and she spent the whole time in the cart with her head down while Spencer went running around the store like a maniac. We finally left and went home, and a few hours later her fever had spiked to over 104 degrees. The walk-in clinic had just closed, and there's no way I can afford another trip to the emergency room (I took Spencer there a few weeks ago and the bill is $1000, for an hour and a half!). So I gave her tylenol and prayed it would go down (it did). The next day (Sunday) she was fine but that night her fever went back up. I was up until 1am studying for my stupid test, then right when I got into bed she woke up crying with a fever again. I didn't get to sleep until 4am, then Spencer woke me up at 6:30am. So I got a total of 2 1/2 hours of sleep before my test, which was at 6pm last night. It wasn't too hard, and I think I did alright although I know for a fact I got one wrong.

Anyway, I came home from school, checked on them both, and they were fine. I tried to go straight to bed, but Nick was thoughtful and taped my favorite shows so I stayed up and watched them with him (How I Met Your Mother, Two and a Half Men, and The New Adventures of Old Christine). I went to bed, then around 3am Spencer woke up crying this aweful cry. It was so different and strange I thought I was dreaming, until I realized it was real and RAN into his room. He was burning up, about to throw up, and he couldn't walk to the potty. Not good. So I gave him some medicine, took his temp (104.2), and prayed he wouldn't throw it up. He didn't. They both got in bed with us, and when I finally got back in bed I felt my daughter and realized she was burning up too (104). So gave her some medicine, and layed there awake, squished between 2 heaters, until about 5:30am, then woke up at 7.

So yea, not much sleep in a couple of days and I think I'm losing it. They're sitting next to me on the couch watching Blues Clues, neither one feeling any better, and I'm supposed to take my dad all over creation today (not really, just the mall, but still). I really should take them to the doctor, but it's hard when you have no insurance and they expect you to pay right then. And I don't have $200 for the dr. to tell me they have a cold and there's nothing he can do about it. Maybe the walk-in clinic in Cocoa Beach, it's supposed to be good, but I'm always afraid they'll end up sicker by being around all the other sick people. So I think I'll give it one more day and if it's not better tomorrow it's off to the dr. Plus, my sister will be with my dad so I won't have to worry about him.

That's about it for now, I need to take pics of the projects I've finished and post them, maybe at naptime. That is, if I can figure out how to post pics.

Hello!

2006-09-23T23:10:00.000-05:00

Ok, this is my first blog entry and I would like to start out by saying that I have no idea what I am doing so please bare with me. I'm starting this blog mostly so my mom can keep up with my life since I seem to have no free time to chat with her on the phone (of course, it doesn't help that I DESPISE talking on the phone).

Why don't I have time you ask? Well, I am the proud mother of 2 beautiful children. My daughter Alexis is (almost) 5 and my son Spencer is (almost) 3. I am happily married to a man it seems like I have known forever (ok, only 12 years but who's counting?). I also go to school, Brevard Community College to be exact, where I am majoring in Accounting and almost done with my AA degree (with a 4.o). Then it's off to UCF. And oh yea, I also take care of my 88 year old father (with my sister's help) who lives with us. Ever seen King of Queens? That's my life, with a couple of kids thrown in to the madness.

I am a stay at home mom/student who, in my free time (ha!), likes to knit and try all things crafty. I like to sew and I've started scrapbooking, but I am the best at knitting. I love to have a pattern that I can follow with rules and logic and as long as I follow them I can do it. Everything else is too subjective for me, so, being the perfectionist I am, I over-analyse and drive myself (and everyone else) crazy.

My kids attend BCC's Labschool which is, in my opinion, the greatest preschool ever created. It combines a day class for my kids along with parent education for us. My children and I have found the best friends there and I am already dreading the day when it's over (luckily, I still have 3 more years).

That's about it for now, I plan to chronicle my life along with my crafty hits and misses and post pictures along the way. Oh yea, and

Hi Mom!