Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained

I'm not a fan of red meat (other than the occasional pot roast or hamburger) so Matt rarely gets a home made meal that includes anything real "meaty". I decided after being married for almost 8 years I would venture out and buy some ribs to cook for dinner. He enjoyed them, and we agreed the recipe I used could use a little tweaking for better flavor, and I am happy to say I plan on buying a little more red meat in the future. However, the peanut gallery was NOT so impressed with dinner & 3 children's plates were brought to the kitchen for disposal that appeared nearly untouched.

When I asked my usual "foodie" what she thought of dinner her reply was, (as she pointed to the creamed carrots, the slow cooked ribs, & the egg noodles) "This one tastes disgusting, this one smells disgusting, & this one looks disgusting. So, I ate half of a roll."

I guess I should give Trinity points for being honest. Ah well, better luck next time I guess?

Hmm...OK

"Mom, you have LOTS of hair!"
(me taking this as a compliment on how much my hair has grown out)

2 seconds later: "On your legs."

-Brinley 3 1/2 years old.

(on second thought, maybe I shouldn't be wearing Capri's today)

Love Hate Relationship

Have you ever noticed that there are those things in life that cause you to have a Love/Hate relationship? I seem to be noticing them a lot more lately! (probably because I saw a post like this somewhere a while back, but I can't remember where) Well, here are a few things in my life that seem to have that effect...

I LOVE using PS to do my digital scrap booking...I HATE that it is too old to work on our new computer!! OK, so it may be time to update. Considering that the newest version is 8.o & mine is 4.o-SO?I LOVE the smell of citrus candles...I HATE that when you blow them out you are left with the stinky smell of smoke! PS I don't like candle warmers either...the idea of an entire jar of scalding hot wax hanging around the house waiting to be tipped over is too much for me.I LOVE going to the car wash & seeing our sparkly reflection of clean-ness as we drive off...I HATE that it almost always rains within 24-48 hours later! Oh well, that is about how long the freshly vacuumed carpet & trash free interior last too.I LOVE to vacuum, especially because of the perfect pattern of lines it leaves behind...I HATE that the pattern is destroyed in mere seconds by people walking on it! (C'mon can't we enjoy it for an hour at least?)I LOVE, love, love, Chinese food...I HATE that the leftovers always taste like crap! And yet I continue to bring them home in hopes of a new idea that will revive them to their original state of yummy-ness?

I LOVE trying to become more "prepared" by purchasing a case of canned wheat for food storage...I HATE that I have NO idea how to use it. In case of any disaster we are sure to have six large cans that can be used as chairs, building blocks, or make shift wheels?

I LOVE when I get the chance to take a Saturday afternoon nap...I HATE when I sleep too long & wake up feeling worse than before I went to sleep. (and yes, I can often be found asleep with a book in hand and drool dripping from my face!)I LOVE a good warm bowl of freshly popped, perfectly salted, & deliciously buttered popcorn...I HATE trying to pry gum-invading popcorn shell devils from the depths of my teeth. I think I'll invent teeth guards that can be worn while eating popcorn. Thereby eliminating the chance for unwanted intruders!!
I LOVE Pub Mix, "A Savory Blend of Crunchy Snacks" bought in bulk from Costco...I HATE that they have one variety of cracker that unexpectedly sneaks into your mouth and without warning BURNS the life out of your taste buds! One of my friends informed me that this is the wasabi cracker. I say boo to the wasabi cracker...BOO! If I want the fiery burning effect of wasabi I'll ask for it thanks!I LOVE reusable grocery bags. They are lifesavers for people who have to walk up three flights of stairs with all "the goods". Plus they cut down necessary trips back and forth to the car in half, and you can use them for so many other things!...I HATE (there are a few things actually-bear with me) First: when I forget to put them back in the car & end up using plastic bags. By the time I have all the bags upstairs my hands and arms have red-ish purple indents from the nasty little handles it's like plastic bag burns! Second: washing the bags turns them into flimsy, lint gathering, garbage bags! I say garbage bags because that is where they end up going. It is never appealing to put your fresh food into a bag that looks all haggard & gross! Third: BAGGERS SUCK at loading them! Seriously, do they honestly think it is a good idea to load a bag big enough to carry 2 gallons of milk FULL of canned food! Who do they think is going to carry this for me? The Hulk? The idiocy of each persons bagging flaws never ceases to amaze me.

And there you have it. A nice list of things that I can't resist loving to hate. What kind of things have this effect on you?

Loving it!

I usually create my own blog designs in Photo Shop, but am having some "technical" issues in that department right now. I settled for part of an old design to use for the background & found a pathetic picture that actually came in the "sample photos" folder on our computer. Horrible-I know! I've been wanting to change it & finally decided to search out a free blog background. It didn't take me too long before I came across this beauty & I LOVE IT!! I may never go back to designing my own. I do not speak the "Html Language" and don't think I'd ever be able to add as many cute elements as the designer of this LO has. For now I will just sit back & enjoy the awesomeness of this free design...thank you Leelou.

So so...

TIRED. All the time! I realize that being pregnant takes a toll on the body (in more ways than I want to think about right now), but I just can't believe how super tired I am this time around!! Don't get me wrong-I am very grateful to be prego & feel lucky to have had such quick success getting pregnant after having a miscarriage. I know so many amazing women who have had so many struggles trying to conceive & I don't want to seem ungrateful for one minute. Having said that, I suppose I just feel like documenting my "milestones" because I really don't remember having so little energy the last 3 times around.

I go to bed around 10-10:30, wake up around 7-7:30 and feel like I could stay in bed for at least another 45 minutes. I usually convince myself to get up & start taking on the days events, and by the time everyone is fed & I have finished eating I am so drowsy that I could crawl right back into bed for an early afternoon nap. Sheesh! That is pathetic right? Yea, that's what I thought too. I force myself to stay awake & attend to one of the many chores that lay ahead. The easiest thing is to throw a load of laundry in the washer & hope that I have the desire to move it to the dryer before it starts emitting that awesome moldy clothes smell. (Does anyone else have that problem??...oh well, I could commit an entire post to the mis-haps of my bad laundry habits-but not today.)

Finally 11:00 rolls around & Grayden is ready for his nap. I relish the thought because I know that actually means it is time for MY nap too. I bribe the girls with some promise of reward if they will stay out front & watch a movie while Gray & I rest. For a while I was foolish enough to think that would work & would be skipping down the hall to my bedroom only to wake up an hour later to an array of disaster. The last time it was yogurt. Everywhere. In the carpet. On the door handles. In hair. You get the idea, so now I settle for a nap on the couch. At least this way I am able to be woken up in the case of any loud mischievous activities taking place! (In hopes of stopping them before they reach critical mass)

So here it is. 9:30 and we are two hours into the day. Can I make it to 11:00? I MUST! I suppose I'll go re-wash the load of laundry that is stuck to the sides of the washer from its last spin cycle last night. I'm not sure if it has started to smell yet-thanks to my allergies-but can guess that it's well on its way....

*on a side note: yes, I get low blood when I am pregnant & yes, I am taking Iron supplements for it and my blood levels are fine.

I've got all my sisters with me

That's the song Grayden will be singin these days! I was totally floored when the ultrasound tech told us that this baby is a GIRL! I guess the man upstairs didn't want us to quit at 4 & that was our "tentative" plan if this would have been a boy.

This pic is from my very first ultrasound @ 15weeks

This is another one from my 15 week apt. I have one like this from all my pregnancies & I lovingly refer to it as our "alien baby".

She was so much less cooperative today & kept her arms and hands up in front of her face almost all the way throughout the ultrasound.

Here is one of her feet.

And lastly here are a couple of profile pics. You can still see her hand up by her mouth, so they aren't the best pictures. However, I am happy knowing that she is growing well & is healthy. I guess its time to start thinkin pink again!

It's a...

Date! :) Sorry for the cruel trick, but I couldn't resist! hehehe I know you were probably hoping that this would be the post announcing the gender, but never fear....you only have to wait one more day!!

That's right folks we have an apt TOMORROW morning at 9 am! It will be a real miracle if we make it there on time since the whole crew is coming, and we barely make it out the door before 10:30 on any given day anyway.

Trinity's rooting for a boy & Brinley is hoping for a girl. Although, Brinley said she would be just as happy if its a boy as long as we get another Dog that is a girl! (better not hold your breath Brin!) Grayden really has no idea about anything at this point, but his obsession with babies is enough to get him excited at the mention of the word "Baby". If you want to take a guess at the gender of this baby check out the little poll on the sidebar-you only have 24 hours to vote! I will try to get the blog updated with the gender as soon as we get back from the apt, so check back sometime tomorrow afternoon. See you then :)

What is going on!

There is something seriously wrong with my blog at the moment! I hate when it goes on the fritz!! If you can see this post will you leave me a comment-my computer isn't showing ANY of my posts or any of my sidebar stuff. Phooey!

Buckley Has Left the Building!

Our lives as dog owners has officially come to a close-HALLELUJAH!!...ahem, OK now that I have that off my chest here is the story. The painstaking responsibility of having not only a dog but a puppy became more than I could handle, physically & emotionally, right about the time when Matt left for his 6 week training in TX. (If you need more explanation as to why read my post titled "Animal Cruelty")

The kids and I were planning on a two week trip to UT for the last part of Matt's trip & I was having anxiety attacks over what was going to happen with Buckley. I knew we couldn't leave him home & I had pretty much decided that I was going to have to struggle through the drive out, the visit, & then the drive home again with him. Three days before we were supposed to leave I got up the courage to ask a friend if they would take him for us while we were gone. She had no problem with the idea & it was a huge weight off my shoulders! (we even had Buckley "fixed" the morning that we left & my saint of a friend helped him through the recovery-can you believe it!!)

The two weeks living life dog free was amazing & when Matt came to join us for the last half of our visit we decided that we would find a new home for Buckley as soon as we got back. I had talked about it with the kids several times before & they were not ready to give their pet away so easily. (Dang) One of the main reasons we were getting rid of Buckley is so that my parents would still be able to come and visit. My Mom is allergic to Buckley & had a horrible time with her asthma when they were out visiting for New Years.

During our visit in UT my Mom and I were talking about the challenges of having a puppy. (This was before Matt had gotten back & we weren't sure whether to get rid of him or not-horrible I know!) Trinity happened to be in the room & overheard the mention of finding Buckley a new home. She immediately informed us that we were NOT giving Buckley away! My Mom told her that she wouldn't be able to come and visit us anymore if we kept Buckley & asked we could give him away so she could come again & Trin instantly replied-NO we are KEEPING him! My Mom said something like, "Oh, well that makes me feel sad, do you think you could consider giving him away for me?" Trinity thought for a few seconds & then said. "OK, we will keep Buckley for 5 more weeks!" I sat laughing quietly at her decision...hehehe

When we got back Matt & I both "advertised" that we needed to find Buckley a new home & one of Matt's good friends was interested right away. He has actually become a good family friend & the kids love it when he comes over to visit. That Saturday he came over to spend some time with us & talk about it. Buckley had met him once before & took to him right away. After the kids were all asleep we asked him what he thought & he was really excited to have Buckley, but wanted to wait until his next day off to take him home so that Buckley wouldn't have to spend the day alone in his new home. Right then I knew we were giving him to the right person!

We told the kids the next day that Dad's friend was going to come and get Buckley in a few days & unfortunately they were still pretty upset at the idea. I tried to change the subject real quick & bring it up again later. Then I had an idea that I hoped would make Buckley's leaving a little easier.

I told the girls that we would get another dog someday (I was very careful in my wording) and got on the Internet to show them pictures of all the different dogs we could choose from. Having a dog that my Mom, Brinley, Graden, & I wouldn't be allergic to won't be as hard as I thought! They each fell in love with the idea of a new dog & asked if we could get a girl next time & name her Princess Fionna. I also told them that Buckley would tell me what he wanted to get them as a going away gift & I would go shopping for him. That is what sealed the deal!!

A couple of days later Matt's friend came back to pick Buckely up & the girls helped me get all of Buckley's things together. They each said goodbye & were completely tear free as they waited patiently to see what gifts Buckely had chosen for them.

That night Matt showed me this picture that his friend had posted on Face Book with the following caption: "This is my buddy Buckley that I adopted from my friend. 1st day: nice nap on my chest & then played with his toy. Life is better with a dog!" It was the perfect fit & I couldn't have asked for a better home for Buckley! The kids didn't even ask about Buckely until almost two weeks later & are happy knowing that we can still visit Buckley if we want to. WHEW! Lesson learned: Don't get suckered into the idea of having a puppy so easily!