Good Bye January

January has been a very wet and dreary month.  I am so ready to put it behind us, hopefully February will be nicer.
Regardless the end of January gets me a little closer to Spring!  I am so over winter.  I am never someone who wishes for winter or cooler weather so when it is here I am just over it.  When it has been as wet as this month has been it just brings you down.

The creek down at the enterance to our neighborhood has had just about all of the rain that it can hold.
Come on February, be a little nicer to us than January was!

My House Is Wet

So today was out of uniform day for the boys!  It is a little extra that they get when we attend the home and school meetings.  I enjoy going to the meetings anyway, but this day for them makes it so worth it even when I have 1000 other things to do.  I love the little things that make them light up the way that children do.
I was pretty productive today even with the rain and the desire to curl up with a blanket and a good book.  I am reading the Sookie Stackhouse series right now.  I am seriously thinking I am going to have to by the True Blood seasons on Blu Ray.  I figure that will be cheaper than HBO.  We will have to see.
After school today the boys and I rode out to the new house.  While they did not do anything today because of the rain it was great to see it again.  I am so excited and I love the fact that they are too!  The boys were tickled that it rained in the house even though there is a floor upstairs.  It was too funny.  I cannot wait to see what they get done tomorrow.  I hope that it is the rest of the floor and the walls upstairs!

John Michael's game was canceled because of the rain.  We really needed it though so I am definitely not complaining!  In fact since I did not have to water the plants it was great in my opinion.  It is the little things again that make me so happy.

My dear friend Aubrey had her baby girl today.  I hated that I could not get by the hospital but with it being Brandon's late night I sure did not want to take the boys.  Hopefully I can get by there tomorrow.  Maybe Brandon and I can do that after we drop the boys off.  Along with the 1000 other things that we need to do.

Corner Forms

Brandon and I had a pretty full day today, which is pretty common because he is off so we try to cram everything into that one day.

We took the boys to school. We had to run in and take some popcorn for one of the scouts and Danny's lunch order form. Danny is testing again today and we are praying that John Michael gets a green face. He has been doing so good and then the last two days we have been at yellow.

Brandon and I ran to the mortgage company to sign papers. It is always stressful to sign your life away, but it is also most definitely a blessing. I am so thankful and cannot wait to be moving in! Hopefully time will go pretty fast. It should since we are pretty busy.

After the mortgage company we headed to Morris Avenue where I had a photo shoot. It was a great shoot and we had to work fast since the rain was trying to get to us. It sprinkled a few times, but we made it through which was a plus. After we picked up the boys we went to Botanical Gardens for another shoot but for this one I was not so lucky. It rained, and rained, and then rained some more. Still got some fun cute shots so I am not going to complain. It was definitely an experience and one I hope that Brooke and her family enjoyed and will look back on with smiles later.

BTW...John Michael got a green face and Danny has to continue testing through next week! They had great days though, which makes me happy!

We went to the house and were so excited to see that the corners were formed, more gravel was brought in, and there was a little dumpster looking thing on the lot! Progress makes me so happy! Maybe next week there will be even more. Fingers crossed.

Back to the Grind

Everyone was back to work and school today. It is always nice when we have some time together, but routine is what works best for us. As I am sure that it does everyone.
Our alarms did not go off, but the thunder at 6:10 this morning did the job quite nicely. While it is later than we like to sleep it was not too late.
I got ready and got the boys up while they got ready I fixed breakfast and Brandon headed out. While the boys were eating I got dinner in the crock pot. Roast and potatoes. Because both boys have basketball it is easiest to do crock pot meals on Tuesday nights.
I came home and managed to get three loads of laundry done. Danny's bedding changed from Christmas to Auburn, which made him happy. Now just two more beds to go. I was able to knock out some homework and got some photograph's edited. The time went by quickly and before I knew it I was heading out to get the boys. Then it was time for homework.
John Michael ended up with a yellow face, which meant extra homework that I make him do. He has to write an apology to his teacher. Tomorrow will be better. I am a little sad that we have this string of yellows that keep appearing. We will just keep working on it, I know that he can do it and will keep encouraging green and discouraging anything else.
Both boys had practice tonight and it came a serious downpour while we were there. It was pretty much done when we left but it made the ride home a little scarier than what I like. It was pretty bad but we made it safely.
Well, bedtime is here and I am glad. It has been a long day and I am beat. I hope that everyone has a great night. Do not forget a jacket tomorrow it is going to be cold.

More Yellow :(

So I think that these rainy days are effecting my children and not just me. John Michael got another yellow face today. :0( He will do better tomorrow, I might even click my heels together for luck!
We had basketball tonight, but because the boys felt it was play time instead of homework time we were pretty late. John Michael's practice started at 5:30 and we got there at 6:20, he literally got to practice for 10 minutes. I made him apologize to his coach for being late and explain why we were so late. Danny was there for his whole practice, which is good for him since he was not the reason we were so late leaving.
I am so tired of being stressed about homework. Mine and theirs, one day it will have to get better or at least easier to get everyone to sit down and get it done.
I did great on day two of keeping up with my calories, Brandon went over by a few, but there is always tomorrow.

Rained Out

So today we were supposed to have soccer practice, but the rain won out for the day.
It was most definitely a nasty day. I seriously could have stayed in the bed most of the day. It was just one of those sleepy rainy days. Plus I did not get anything accomplished anyway. I probably could have at least gotten rid of the bags under my eyes had I taken a good nap. :)
The boys had a great day in school even though they were stuck inside most of the day. Recess and PE are almost always outside, but there has to be exceptions for rainy days. It was much needed though and they know tomorrow will be better.
Today was also progress report day. I was very happy with both of the boys' work. I know that they have been working hard, and I am super proud of them. I know that they will keep it up as they really do love to learn. They really make me happy.
Since it was rainy once homework was done we had a lazy day. I worked on laundry and that was about it. Next week I will be more productive. I would say the rest of this week, but I am actually pretty busy with photography sessions for the rest of the week. YAY!!!
Well, I still prayers. Thanks everyone. Know that you are all in my prayers!

Got Smurfed!

Today we wanted to make the day all about the boys and we wanted to make it a fun day. While we had work we had to get done, there are no days off when you own your own business, we wanted to make sure that we did something with the boys.

We took them to see the Smurfs. I have been wanting to see it since it came out and they have too. I loved the Smurfs when I was little so seeing them on the big screen was great. The boys loved it. Even Brandon seemed to like it. It was funny and really cute! I am so glad that we finally made the time to go and watch it.

When we got home Brandon cleaned my camera lenses. After several outdoor events they were in need of some TLC. I am always nervous about it so I let Brandon have at it. He did an amazing job. Now I am ready for September and the sessions and events that are coming with it.

It also finally rained today. It was a good slow soaking which we seriously needed. It is supposed to keep it up for a few days which I hope that it does. We have been in a serious drought so a few rainy days will be great for everything and everyone.

The boys enjoyed the rainy day and spending some time on the Wii. I do not let them play very much so on rainy days they know I am more generous with the time they have. They even got creative with a box that Danny's backpack came in.

I worked until almost midnight and when I was getting ready to blog Danny man got sick. He never throws up so the fact that he was and a lot I was nervous. He had no fever and seemed okay after a long shower. Hopefully it was just something he ate and not anything serious. I do not like it at all when my men are sick.

Well, I am off. Lots of work and cleaning to do.

Rained Out

Today started off slow, rainy days always seem to make it a little harder to get into gear. My plan was to drop off John Michael and go to the store, but the bottom decided to drop so I came on home. Brandon was not too happy that it meant another night with no milk. I am going to go tomorrow though. I am hoping that I can get this couponing thing figured out sooner than later too, it sure would be nice. The cost of gas is absolutely killing us.

Well, heading out to get the boys was not any better. It was just nasty and rainy. I was also very weepy today. I miss my dad a lot. It seemed that today everything and everyone reminded me of him. I heard the other day that the grieving stops but the sadness does not and this is so true. Also the rain and the VERY cold May temperatures broke my heart for all of those trying to recover items that mean something to them. I guess it was just a day.

The ballpark closed the fields meaning that the 2 games we had tonight were canceled. Danny will make his up tomorrow night, but I am not sure when John Michael's make up day will be. There are several games to make up so we will see how it all works out. I just hope that they are able to play this week, as they are not scheduled for another game until Tuesday. It is not easy for these little guys to remember everything when they have not been on a field in a while.

I am super excited too, we received the letter today that John Michael was accepted and will start kindergarten at St. Francis next year. This means one schools schedule to maintain and one trip in the mornings and afternoons. Any of the parents there who want to meet me there about an hour before pick up in the afternoons and walk let me know. I am looking forward t adding this to my daily schedule!

Since we were staying in for the night we did whatever for dinner. We had to clean out the refrigerator so all leftovers were warmed up. It was nice to get it all out. We are having taco soup for dinner tomorrow night. I froze it a while back and will be throwing it in the crock pot tomorrow. Seemed fitting since it is still going to be cool.

The boys love the Danimals Crush Cup commercial...crush, crush, zig zag lick....I think that is it anyway. So the pictures are of them recreating it with their popsicles. A treat since they were sad that there was no game.

Well, I am off to bed. There is a lot on the to do list for tomorrow. I hope that you all have a great night and have sweet dreams. Know that all of my friends and family are in my thoughts and prayers! We all have days where we are sad, or down, and today for me my emotions were definitely matching the weather but the small things that I was so thankful for today were numerous! Including avoiding a wreck this morning when some idiot on 459 decided to try to kill several people!

Baseball, Storms and Scrapbooking!

Definitely a great Saturday! I have to admit I am exhausted especially after the on and off rain throughout the day and then the storms tonight, but it was truly an amazing day.

Both boys had practice today. John Michael at 11 and Danny at 2 so most of the day was spent at the ballpark. It was interesting with the rain coming and going, but they had a good time. Of course we came home and showers were a definite must along with some dry clothes. Danny was not too happy about a shower before dinner, but when we explained to him it was about a shower before the storms he stopped dragging his feet and did what we said. You know every once in a while mom and dad are pretty smart. Although it seems to be a rarity.

Did you know if your children have paper, pictures, a glue stick, and a cutter they will play for hours. My best friend for seriously ever came over tonight. Our husbands talk electronics while we worked on our scrapbooks. We have a lot to catch up on but thanks to the cricut it is all coming together nicely. I was able to get John Michael's K3 book done, with the exception of some pictures that I need to print and some more cutting that I need to do with the cricut. I will get that done this week though. Then onto Danny's first grade book. Then I might go on and do his 3K book so that other than the current school years we are up to date, well at least with that. Back to the original statement. Our children decided that they too needed to scrapbook and they did great. They had a blast and that is what I love. Plus they are adding to their creativity, which is always a good thing.

With the storms and us needing to watch the weather, we hooked the Wii up in John Michael's room. Well you know that they loved that so they literally would scrapbook and then play the Wii. It was too funny. I am already ready to do it again! Let's make a date!

Anyway, I made chicken and dumplings for dinner, they were yummy if I do so say myself.

Well, I am off to bed. Tomorrow is Mass, then cleaning, cooking, laundry and I am hoping a little scrapbooking, but I also need to be editing, so we will have to see how it all works out. Watch the blog tomorrow for updates on our Sunday! Before I go to bed I will say a prayer for all of my family and friends. I am so thankful that in reading my friend's blog baby Jemma is definitely making great strides. Keep the prayers up everyone!

The Mother of all Water Heaters

The Mother of all Water Heaters has been installed thanks to my amazing husband Brandon and help from an old friend Adam Abts. First, I cannot thank Adam enough for coming over and lending a hand. It meant a lot. Thank you too his wife too for letting him come over. This water heater is really cool, it is a Hybrid from GE. I am super excited, and will be even more excited if it truly cuts my electric bill some! I will let you all know the outcome for that.

This morning was baseball tryouts. I did not take my camera because of the rain, but it was a lot of fun. Brandon is coaching John Michael's team, and they will meet tomorrow to chose teams. I am excited to watch my little man grow. Danny's team was picked today, and he is on Cale Webb's team. It should be a lot of fun. Danny loves baseball and I know that he will grow so much this year. I am looking forward to watching all of his games too, hopefully they will not have games at the same time. Missing one or the other is not something that I want to ever have to do. They start practice this week so expect a lot of baseball pictures in the upcoming blogs, especially once games begin. But I do think that this is where we temporarily change our address to the ballpark. Great memories coming.

I had a photo session today for a first birthday and it was a lot of fun. It was an old friends little girl, Ashlyn, and she is a doll. Tomorrow a baptism. I am looking forward to working on all of these pictures. I love photography and when I am able to capture memories for others that I know will last a lifetime and more for them means everything to me. Watch the other blog for more on each of these amazing sessions.

Well it is after 10, but I am off to bed. I am worn out. Rainy days are the best for a nap, but that was not in the cards. It is all good though. Before I go to bed as always I will be remembering all of you in my prayers. I hope that this Saturday was full of fun, laughter and love for you all. I was very blessed to see two friends that I have not seen in years.