Christmas Questionnaire/Meme thing

The lovely and always awesome Jess at IROCKSOWHAT posted this little Christmas meme on here blog so I thought I'd post my answers so everyone can see my favorite Christmas traditions!


1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate with tons of marshmallows. I love the foam it makes.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? The elves wrap them of course!

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? I prefer white that way you can have colorful ornaments but our tree has colored lights and it was given to us so colored it is!

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope, I don't know where to get it and hove nowhere to hang it.

5. When do you put your decorations up? Usually the first week of December. I do it all myself, even putting the tree together. But I might hold off on decorating and even putting the tree up until we get the new house (if we do)

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Stuffing and broccoli casserole

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? All my cousins would come over to our house on Christmas eve and we would play and eat and open a few presents. It was fun

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? We got this big gift one year that was set up and I went into my mom's bathroom as she was getting ready and saw the box for it.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We go down to Jordan's aunt's in Tennessee and they have a few presents for everyone so we get those. But The girls' presents and our presents from Jordan's mom aren't until Christmas day.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? As much as I'd like to do a theme, I get little cute ones and we let the girls pick one out each year so it's very personal

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it!! Except when it's too cold or I have to walk long distances in it.

12. Can you ice skate? Nope, never been. I so desperately want to learn

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I've liked most of what I have been given. I really liked the iPod touch Jordan got me a few years back but it's now gone lol

14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Making my kids happy, music and movies, oh and FOOD

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Banana pudding or this eclair stuff Jordan's sister makes....so good!

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? I love watching The Grinch (cartoon version), Mickey's Christmas Carol and decorating cookies

17. What tops your tree? An angel

18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Giving. I love shopping, online or in store, just the atmosphere of the holidays, seeing the look on someones face when you give them the gift. However, I do not like wrapping presents. I'm horrible at it.

19. Candy Canes: Yuck or Yum? Yum. And for some reason, they taste better when you take them from the tree instead of the box hahaha

20. Favorite Christmas show? Like I said, The Grinch, Mickey's Christmas Carol, Flintstones Christmas Carol (my all time favorite) and Charlie Brown's Christmas

21. Saddest Christmas Song? That Carol of the Bells song. It's not that it's sad it just freaks me out.

22. What is your favorite Christmas song? Merry Christmas, Baby- Hanson

November TWO and an update

So, once again I am late to the November TWO post once again...I'll try my best to get December on track. I know I said that with November but We were up at Jordan's mom's for Halloween and I had school and stuff and Jordan was on vacation that it completely slipped my mind. Anyway, here they are:




And, in other news, we put in an offer on a house and the seller accepted!! Now we're going through that whole process. Not much has happened yet. We should get a call today or soon from our processor asking for our tax forms, pay stubs, etc. There's someone renting it right now and our latest tentative move in date is January 15 if we close by December 15....but I'm hoping they've moved out before then and we're actually able to celebrate Christmas at our new house. I don't have any pictures of it though, so I'm sorry. But I'll keep you all updated on the progress!

September is almost over.....

And I haven't blogged that much at all. We'll just say that life got in the way. It's been an amazing month and I can't believe how fast it has gone by.

Jordan had vacation the week of the 11th. So Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday we went down to Gatlinburg with our friends Kenny and Whitney. Rosslyn was going to stay with Jordan's mom while we were gone and we were bringing Aurelia along. We had rented a cabin, too so it was exciting. We went shopping at the outlets where I bought some new clothes and bought the girls and outfit too. Jordan got a new shirt and a new watch. We also spent the day walking around in Gatlinburg but I don't feel like we did a whole lot.

Jordan goes on vacation again in a few weeks so I think we're going to go down again as a family and do something.

Other than that, nothing much has really happened. I'm plugging a long at school, I have my second math test next Thursday. And I'm dreading it. I'm behind because you have to go online to do the assignments and I haven't found the time....I hate to say it, but I'm sure I'm failing it.

Also, something awesome might be happening to our family but I don't want to divulge information about it yet, because I don't want to jinx it. Just please send us all your good thoughts and prayers. (I am NOT pregnant if anyone is thinking that).

Fun at the library!

This morning, I took the girls to story time at the library. The kids have a story read to them and they get to make a craft as well. As part of the library's ongoing summer reading program, the theme is "One World, many Stories" so today, they had a story about Australia. Rosslyn was so well behaved. They have like a thing of risers that kids can sit on, like platforms stacked on top of each other. I don't know how to describe it but we had something like it in the music room in elementary school. But Rosslyn, being ever independent decided to sit in a chair by all the other kids. I saw a look of hesitation and worry in her face when I didn't immediately follow her and have her sit on my lap. But I was only about 30 feet away from her and I kept looking over at her to make sure she wasn't freaking out. She was so well-behaved you would think she wasn't my kid. She participated in the questions that the librarian asked. She even said something about trees and butterflies. After the story was craft time where they all painted boomerangs to look Aborigines. She had lots of fun and after that, she played with the other kids in this little train climber thing.

I am so glad she is growing up and being more independent. And I love that she loves books. Every time we go, I check out at least 5 books for her. She is so excited to go next week because there is a book fair and story time will be with Clifford the big red dog!! I plan on getting her a few books at the book fair also.

It just amazes me so much because I cannot believe how advanced she is for her age. She can recognize numbers and is starting to recognize letters. I have bought a couple preschool education books, like to help with her writing and things like that and she is doing really well on her numbers. She loves writing number 4 and number 6. I just can't believe how bright she is!!

Rosslyn is Three!!!

Yes, yes, yes, I haven't blogged in over a month and I am extremely sorry. I'm just going in full force and pretending like my month-long hiatus never happened. I promise, dear readers, I will try to blog more.

Last Wednesday, my first born, my accidental home birth baby, my sweet silly girl turned three!!!! And we had a big shindig. A rainbow candy party!! Here are a few pictures to highlight the party.













Then later that evening, we went to the county fair. Rosslyn had a blast! We went with our married friends Kenny and Whitney, who both absolutely adore the girls. We ate yummy fair food, like Philly Cheese steaks, fries in a cup and bloomin' onions, rainbow sno-cones and drank $5 cokes (not the best choice) but I sadly forgot my obligatory bag of cotton candy. We even got to see an old-fashioned Side Show! They had displays of "mysterious" animals and then a guy came in and walked up machete stairs, walked on glass, hammered a nail into his face, fit his body through a tennis racket and ate fire. All in all, it was a good day.And I swear it has taken me all week for my house to recover from such a big mess.

Finally an update!

Sorry it's been so long since I've last blogged. But just to touch on the subject of my previous blog, Jordan said he's thinking of talking with the VA about it but he also said there are more people out there who are more deeply affected by PTSD and they need more help than he does.

Anyway, since that last blog, a lot has been going on. We went up to his mom's for a couple nights and we were actually able to have a date night fully alone and go out and get something to eat. It was so nice. I would love to do it again some time soon.
Here's a picture of out eats from that night:


Not much else noteworthy happened. Aurelia turned 6 months old! Holy crap when did that happen?? She's still teething, isn't crawling yet but can get around by rolling and using her arms as like paddles in the water. She loves her Sophie Giraffe and Woodour's Bear as well as her star stacker and any tag she can find to chew on. It's funny, the little bear came with a teething toy attached to it and it has more scratch marks than teeth marks. Here she is listening to music with daddy on youtube. She loves the sound of banjos.


Rosslyn is really good as well. As cute and sassy as ever. We let her spend the weekend with Jordan's mom over Memorial day and when she got back, she had a full on meltdown because she had to leave her cousin. I'm talking screaming, crying, growling (grrrr), nearly puking, scratching me and so much more. I don't know why she does it either. It was sad and very upsetting at the same time. I didn't want to see her crying but I was upset that she was behaving like that since she never had before. And she did it again after we took a shopping trip last week. But thankfully those episodes are few and far between.

Friday was Jordan's sister's high school graduation. Jordan couldn't go because he didn't get off of work in enough time to make the 3 hour drive and still be able to see her graduate. But she's coming in to stay with us for a few days before she starts cosmetology school so that'll be nice. On the drive up, I decided to leave fairly early to beat the heat since I don't have a working air conditioner in my car. Well, it didn't work. We were about 45 minutes into the drive and Rosslyn got sick and barfed everywhere! So I had to stop at a walmart which thankfully I was right in front of, get her some new clothes since she puked all over them and let her in out of the heat for a bit. We got back in the car and she fell asleep and all was well, or so I thought. I was maybe 10 minutes from Jordan's mom's house and she puked again.... so we stopped, got her some gatorade and went to the house. She took another nap and was fine when she got up. Then, before Jessca's graduation, I decided to take her and the girls out to eat. We made it 30 minutes before she puked in my car again and I had to stop at another walmart to get her a clean outfit. We went into the restaurant where she vomited once again. Then we called Jordan's mom to get her because her car has air and she was seemingly fine for the rest of the day. Then we went to the graduation and wall was fine there. Everyone had accepted their diplomas, Jessca and another girl sung a beautiful song and it was at the final benediction that Rosslyn puked once more. I grabbed her and tried running to the bathroom. I was holding her and her puke was just running down my back. It was like someone pouring a cup of hot water down my back. Very unfun.

So the moral of this story is I can't take Rosslyn anywhere on long trips until my air is fixed. She gets overheated way too easily.

And that's just about it. We went shopping last week and I got a Nook Color!! I love it so much. The first thing I did was buy Catching Fire, the second book in the Hunger Games series and I read it in a matter of days. That's what I love most about it, is it's much easier to have access to it and read. I'm literally reading ever chance I get. When I'm feeding the baby, when they're outside playing, when they're asleep. So it was definitely worth the money.

I'll leave you all with a few more pictures taken with Instagram from my iPhone since I'm a jerk and I haven't used my camera in about 2 weeks.


The girls in their swimsuits playing outside


Nook!!


Early morning playtime with daddy


Sass pants Rosslyn


Aurelia and Jordan's mom's dog Hooch. She loves him so much. She just giggles and grabs at his face and he lets her! He's such a good dog.

Easter Dress update and a few pictures

So the girls' and my Easter dresses came today. They're all so cute but mine wasn't what I expected. I had thought I ordered the yellow dress but I ended up ordering this instead, which I totally forgot about and was surprised when I opened the package.

Don't let the image fool you. I ordered a medium and it's huge. I had to check the label to see if I accidentally got a plus-size. I didn't. Needless to say I will be returning it. That's what I hate about vanity sizing, sure it makes you think you're smaller but when you order your standard size and it's massive, it sucks.

Also, we ordered Aurelia a portable crib. Because the crib we have was from when Rosslyn was born and it's been recalled. Plus, the main reason we're getting a portable crib is because their room is small.

Not much else has been going on. I only have 2 weeks of classes left and I'm excited to have a break for summer. And I've already been been looking at things for my sisters and I to take our kids to. Like there's a children's museum in Lexington that I think they'd like. And I'd love to go to Dolly's Splash country. I've never been to a water park and heard that one's really awesome.

Getting to Know you!! (or me)

Go to Mannland5.com and get the questions, blog then link up!


1. what's something you've eaten and liked, but didn't think you would?
French Toast. It's made with eggs which I absolutely hate but it's very delicious!

2. plastic surgery..yay or nay?
Um yay! Jordan has toyed with the idea of getting me boobs after I'm done breastfeeding but I'd love lipo on my thighs and stomach.

3. 2 things you love about spring are.....?
Flowers, sunshine and flip flops.

4. when's the last time you went on a picnic?
I can't remember when we've done the whole spiel... Probably a year or more

5. what's your favorite app?
I have like 4. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Cut the Rope.

6. who does the grocery shopping in your house?
I do mainly but when we do our big shopping, to last us 2 weeks or so, Jordan comes along. He's a bit of an impulse shopper but it's ok.

7. would you rather take a spin class or zumba?
Zumba. But I'd much rather do the Kinect version because I don't think you're ready for this jelly.

8. how often do you go out to dinner?
A few times a month. I mean we eat out for lunch like once a week but we hardly go out as a family because Jordan has terrible crowd anxiety.

Hippity Hoppity, Easter's on its Way

Last night I ordered mine and the girls' Easter dresses. I got them at Old Navy so they're not too foofy or ruffly or over the top. Nice dresses that we'll be able to wear again and again.

This year is the first year I'll be making Easter baskets for the girls. Should I make one for Aurelia since she'll only be 5 months old? I know se won't be able to hunt eggs so I don't know. I don't want her to feel left out. But then again, she'll only be 5 months. I'm excited to get the baskets, candy and little trinkets for Rosslyn. Then the Saturday before Easter, or the night before egg hunting, Rosslyn and I are gonna dye eggs. I'm looking forward to that.

Anyway, I now you want to see the dresses so here they are:


Mine


Rosslyn's. She picked it out herself


Aurelia's

What do you think of them? I hope they're as nice in person as they are online. I always hate that about ordering online.

Instagram Photo dump (part 1)

So I know a bunch of people have Instagram on their iPhones and so do I (I'm sheaisawesome)but I decided to put some pictures on here so those who don't follow me there can see them.


Me and Aurelia


Mexican for my sister's birthday


Finger painting


All dolled up for my best friend's baby shower


Rosslyn and Kira having a photoshoot


Rosslyn when she was sick


Rosslyn fell asleep on the way to walmart


Rosslyn playing


Aurelia was happy for a ponytail :)


Found this blanket i our dresser after Jordan's dad gave it to us


My chubber face


Eating at Golden Corral with Nana


Cloth Diaper stash


The girls playing outside


Rosslyn being cute


Rosslyn drew this face at Bob Evans. I was so proud

Again with the sucking of the blogging

Well, I sincerely apologize for not updating more. It's "crunch time" so to speak in my classes so I've been dedicating a lot of time to those. Speaking of, I just had a test on Wednesday night and it took me 2 hours to complete!! And I'm pretty much positive I failed but oh well....so long as I get an overall passing grade, I'll be happy.

What to say, hmm... Rosslyn has been up at my in-laws for the past few days and it has been entirely too calm and serene around here. I haven't gotten much accomplished that I otherwise would have been to if she were here. Except a trip to walmart without having to say "sit down" every 5 seconds. Yes, sometimes I do put her in the main part of the cart but she loves it so that's ok. But I do miss her and I think it's good bonding time for her to spend with them.

On that note, let me tell you about the big blow-up I had with my mom because I let Rosslyn stay with them and never let the girls stay with her. Once she found that out, all hell broke loose. She was accusing me of being snooty and said that I couldn't see past dollar signs (what?!) and a whole bunch of stuff. Even had the nerve to bring up my dad and ask me how he would feel if he knew I was keeping the girls from her. Bottom line is I don't like how she's lived her life in the past and I'm ready to move on from that and I don't feel comfortable leaving my kids in an environment that I don't see fit for them. I don't want my kids to be raised thinking that their lifestyle is an acceptable way to live.

Anyway, moving on.... I got the cloth diapers I ordered for Aurelia on Monday and I am absolutely in love!! There isn't much bad I can say about them. I do have to double up in the inserts because with one, they leak. I love all the designs, I love her fluffy butt, she loves them and I just throw them in the wash with all our other clothes. I've been using Charlie's soap on everything so there is no residue on anything and the Charlie's soap has actually made some of our whites brighter. They were definitely a great investment. Jordan doesn't like putting them on her though lol. Oh well, mama can do it. And for when there's a poop diaper, I just shake off what I can in the toilet then go to the kitchen and use our sink sprayer to get off most everything else then clean out the sink with soap and water.

I bought a really cute dress last night at walmart and I may wear it to school on Monday. It's made to look like a t-shirt and a high-waisted skirt but my love handles stick out pretty bad. I can't wait till we get out of this cold snap (hello, barely above 50 for the past 4 days, boo) and I can go walking at the track with the girls. Or do something... I wish we could afford a treadmill. Or even had the room for one. But, we do have the Kinect and I just downloaded the Zumba demo so I'm gonna try that out.

Other than that, not much else has happened. My sister and her boyfriend came over tonight and I got him set up with his FAFSA and got him applied to the community college. That way both of them will be starting in the fall. Well, I'm going to go do some Zumba and Dance Central for a little bit because I have the motivation to right now. Let's see how long that lasts lol.

Catching up because I'm lame

I really don't know why I haven't blogged in so long. I was on spring break and I was at my in-laws so I had ample opportunity to do so. And I've had opportunities this week too but I haven't had the motivation. I've been in a slump like this the same time last year. Eh, I'll blog when I can. I really want to throw myself full-force into my blog and dedicate lots of time to it but part of me wonders what for? My insecurities are resurfacing even online. I know I have a few people who I talk to on twitter and blogs a lot but I feel that they have their own groups and I'm not part of them. Bloggers can get very cliquey. Maybe I wouldn't feel this way if I was part of a clique but looking from the outside, it's kind of lonely.

Moving on....

Last week we had our first glimpse of spring-like weather and it was beyond amazing. I love winter and snow so much but I'm ready to see colors everywhere again! Here are some pictures I took of the girls outside on that day.

New house, new blankets and a room for Miss Rosslyn!

So we're moving fairly soon into our new place and I'm so excited. It's so new and updated I just can't wait to be there. Anyway, with our tax money, we'll be paying off Jordan's truck, paying on some credit cards and we'll still have enough to put into savings and enough for Jordan and I to split and spend however we choose. I am choosing to buy cloth diapers and all the accessories, clothes for myself and the girls, a new lens for my camera, new bedding and a new desk. And we're going to try putting Rosslyn in her own room in her own bed. It's a pretty big leap from co-sleeping to a toddler bed. But we're getting her some cute bedding and the room is right across the hall so I think she'll be ok. First, here's the bedding I'm getting for our bed:

I'm pairing it with some gray sheets and a gray box style bedskirt (I don't like the ruffly ones) and I think it'll look pretty nice. I have an idea for some art using scrapbook sheets and just putting them in cheapy frames so I'll think about that.

This is Rosslyn's bedding:

I wanted something really cute for her but she chose this one and I think she'll be more willing to sleep in her own bed if she's sleeping in sheets that are of her favorite show.

And here is the desk I'm planning on getting. Right now, my computer is on the kitchen table and since we really don't use the table, we're gonna put it in storage and I'm downsizing to a small desk.


Everything is from Target. And I'll have to order them online since we don't have one close enough to us. And I don't want to make a trip to Knoxville just for Target.

Also, I'm going to be stopping by the new house tonight so I'll take pictures of it and show everyone!! Have a great weekend!!

Being a mom of two...

Although I've only been a mom of two for a little over 3 weeks, it does prove to be a challenge. A rewarding one but still, challenging. When Rosslyn was a newborn, I lived with my in-laws and when she didn't need nursing, there were always more than enough eager hands willing to help me. And I am beyond grateful for that. Because I had no idea, I was 21 years old, hadn't dealt with babies in a long time and my husband was thousands of miles away in a war zone. Then when I moved to North Carolina when she was 3 months old, I had gotten a routine and was able to sleep when she slept, take her out to places without worrying about her waking up or anything like that.


Now, with a 2 1/2 year old and a newborn? It's rough. I crave sleep like nothing else. My husband has been working morning shifts (12am-8am) so he sleeps most of the day and when Rosslyn is awake, she's loud and I don't want him to get mad at her for just being a kid, you know? And to top it off, it seems like Rosslyn only wants to sit on my lap and have my hair is when I'm feeding the baby. I don't think it's much of a jealousy issue as it is that she's just not used to not being the center of attention. She loves Aurelia to death but still doesn't understand that she's a newborn and can't be handled so roughly. I know she tries and I'm glad she hasn't tried to kill her...yet. Although there was one incident last night where the girls and I were upstairs and I was getting their pajamas to put on them and I came back into the bedroom and Rosslyn said "I hurt baby sister" and sure enough, Aurelia was squalling at the top of her lungs. I have no idea what Rosslyn did but Aurelia's ok so it's no big deal.

I cannot wait until Aurelia is older and is able to interact with Rosslyn more. Because I loved both of my sisters growing up. That's not true. I love them now but we fought a lot growing up. Normal girl stuff. And it wasn't until we were in middle school, usually where girls start being bitchy, that all 3 of us started getting along and would listen to music together and share clothes and things like that.


I am so thankful for my family and my girls. I love them so much. If I can make it past these next 6 months, presumably where Rosslyn will grow out of the terrible twos and Aurelia will be more alert and playful, I think it'll be cake. That is, until Aurelia turns 2....lol.