Checking In .............Today is an absolute gorgeous day here. It's around 80 and very breezy. Steve, Mark and I just returned from a walk around the lake. Our sub division has a community center and right next to it are several lakes with a walking path around it. We walked up there and Mark took along his scooter. Right now, Florida is in a drought and the lakes are very low. A lot of the retention ponds have dried up. It's pretty ugly here right now. There is a chance of rain tonight so we are keeping our fingers crossed that it rains. We are also in a high/severe fire danger warning as well. While we were out walking, we saw smoke and the planes circling around. Hopefully it was just a brush fire and not someones house. It seems to have died down now. While we were walking around the lake, we saw a huge alligator. It was about 5 or 6 foot. Although, any size alligator is huge to me. We also saw some cute turtles. As soon as we get some decent rainfall, everything should start turning green again.

I'm still hanging in there with my workouts. I actually look forward to them now. The time seems to go by quicker. I'm not as sore anymore.

Elizabeth will be home next week for her Spring Break. I'm really looking forward to it. The other kids aren't on spring break until April so we will get to spend some quality time together. Next Saturday, we are all headed down to Sarasota to watch a spring training game. It's the Cincinnati Reds versus the Tampa Bay Rays. Since those are our two favorite teams, we don't have to worry about which one loses. Sadly, this is the Reds last year to have their spring training down in Florida. They sold us out and are moving to Arizona. So, next year we will just be Rays fans. Steve was also able to get Opening Day tickets for the Rays v. Yankees. He is going to take Mark and Greg. It's a night game and also is on their first day back from school. It will be a very late night since the stadium is in St. Pete. The things men will do to watch a good baseball game.

Not much else going on. Getting ready to fire up the grill and have an early dinner so we can chill out tonight. It's been a long week. Steve is finally home after a week of travelling. I am so glad he is home. For some reason, the kids think that there are no rules when dad is gone.

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend. I'm going to go out and do a rain dance in the hopes that the rains come. :)

I'm back...........Has it really been that long since I've blogged? Time flies.

To be honest, I really haven't had much to blog about. My life is pretty much the same thing day in and day out.

However, I did make one huge change. I finally started working out with a personal trainer two days a week. I'm not going to lie. It's hard work. It was very painful in the beginning. My first day, we worked on lower body. Oy. Simple things hurt. I dreaded having to use the restroom. It meant having to sit down and get up. Getting in and out of the car---hurt. After two days, I felt better. My next session was upper body. YIKES. Again, after two days, I felt good. Week number two didn't hurt at all. I've been able to keep up with them. I started my third week this week and I wasn't dreading it. At first, I thought, why do people want to do this to themselves? It's boring. But, each trip in is better and better. I love the people I am working with. There's no yelling, but lots of positive encouragement. The other hard thing for me to start doing is to eat breakfast. I have never been one to eat it. Now I do. Otherwise, I get dizzy and lightheaded during the workout. I have no idea if I've lost weight yet because I'm not getting on the scale. I don't want to get let down so early in this. But, I have a whole new outlook on the Biggest Loser Show. Those people work at it every day. I only go twice a week.

I'm still battling whatever crud I've had. I've been to the doctor twice now. Still not 100%. I'm so sick of coughing. I will hang in there like they say and hope that I can shake this after six weeks.

My oven went out last week and I finally was able to get it fixed yesterday. Boy, did I miss it! I tried making chicken in the crock pot and it just wasn't the same as baked.

I finally got back into my scrapbooking groove. I did four pages over the weekend. I was so happy that I was able to sit down and actually concentrate long enough to finish some layouts. I'm trying to use up a lot of my supplies so I can justify buying new stuff. I was at Michaels yesterday and they have some cute new stuff but nothing just "had to have".

Well, it's almost that time of day where I have to go and get in that car pool lane. So, I better get a move on and get some stuff crossed off my "to do" list before the kids start rolling in.

Happy Tuesday!

I just don't get it..............................We got notice last week that State Farm is pulling out of Florida when it comes to Homeowner's Policies. We got our official letter on Friday that we will be losing our homeowner's insurance within the next two years. However they WILL continue to service our Auto insurance. We've been with State Farm forever and were quite happy. We've been good, loyal customers and have never had a claim on either the homeowner's or auto. So, now it's time to begin the hunt for new insurance. We will also be taking our auto insurance with it. Their reasoning is that they can no longer afford to stay in Florida. Okay, fine. Times are tough. I understand. So, imagine my suprise last night when I saw a State Farm insurance ad during the Superbowl. What? They can spend millions on a TV ad?? Just my .02.

Happy Monday!

Awww man (in my best Ted voice from Scrubs) it's Monday again. Where did the weekend go? However, it's a beautiful day here in Florida. Blue sky, cool morning and temps are supposed to be around 78. This is why I love Florida!

I finally broke down on Saturday and went to the health clinic. I was admitting defeat with my most recent bout of whatever was kicking my behind. The constant coughing was so annoying that my chest was hurting whenever I coughed. I was sick of the scratchy voice and wanted my own voice back. So, turns out I have pharyngitis (sp??). I left with a dosage of drugs. On my way home, I stopped at CVS to get my prescription filled and there was a sign in their window "pharmacy closed". What???? So, I stopped at home and picked up my picture card to my camera and decided to hit Walgreens. While they filled my prescription, I got some pictures printed off in the hopes of scrapping them. I am feeling somewhat better after 3 of the 5 doses. I feel good enough to go get my teeth cleaned which I was supposed to do last week but cancelled because I felt so bad. This morning, Mark woke up hacking and coughing. I gave him a dose of medicine and sent him off to school. I have a feeling he will have a short week this week. That poor kid has missed more school this school year than he has his entire time in school.

Well, all good things must come to an end...................... I'm a mini van mom. I've been a mini van mom since we found out we were having Emily. So for 15 years, I've driven a mini van. I'm on mini van #2. We got this mini van right after Mark was born so it will be 9 years old. It's in great shape. I remember the day we got it. I was so happy because the other van was icky. It was always breaking down and cost us a fortune to keep fixing. Sad thing was, it "died" with only 70,000 miles. With 3 kids and a newborn, we decided to invest in a new one. My new van has been through the Nevada desert, through the burnt hills of California, up the mountains carrying skis, from Florida to Ohio. "She" has about 104,000 miles. She just keeps going and going. The kids won't drive her though. It's "uncool" to drive a mini van. So they would rather me drop them off than to drive her. Two years ago, we invested in a 3rd car. Liz inherited Steve's car and Steve got a new red Toyota Camry. I love that car!!! But, he got it since it was better on gas mileage. Last week he worked in Kansas so he took the van to leave at the airport and I was spoiled driving his car. When he came back, I kept his car in the garage purposely blocked in when he got back. He never said anything, but he drove the van to work for a couple of days. I never offered to move the cars back either. hehe. Last night, he finally went out and switched the cars back. I asked him why. He said (with a smile), the van is too big and takes too much gas. He wanted "his" car back. So, this morning as Mark and I were leaving, even he commented "aaw man, we have to take the van"? Yep. I'm back to "mini van" mom. So, I was informed that Steve will be working in Kansas next week so you can bet which car will be sitting at the Tampa International Airport!

Today is just a typical Monday. It's so quiet here right now with everyone gone back to school. My plan is to catch up on Mt. Washmore and "air" out the house since we were able to shut the furnace off. I may even sneak into my scrapbook room and see if I can finish a layout. I'm in a major scrapbook slump right now. Maybe the warm sunshine will inspire me to finish it.

Have a wonderful Monday. Make it a good one.

{CHANGE IS A GOOD THING}

I woke up this morning feeling very happy. I wasn't unhappy but having been sick this whole week, I woke up "better". I'm still not feeling 100% and I probably should go to the doctor, but each day is "a better day". I'm not a doctor, but I have had bronchitis before and I am sure that this is what I have. But, I am responding to over the counter stuff. I hate taking (and paying) for prescriptions. Anyway, I'm getting off the topic here but I woke up determined to make it a good day. It's still cold but the sun is shining. This morning is supposed to be our last morning of cold and then we are warming back up. Supposed to be back in the 70's this wekend.

For the last several years I've been a red head. Yes it's out of a bottle. To be exact the color I use is called "Ginger Spice". I never really cared for my "mousy" brown looking color. But lately, the gray hairs are coming in way too fast. I also have very fast growing hair so it was starting to look obvious. So, this morning I colored my hair back to the brown it was in the hopes that the grays will not be so obvious. I love it! It's weird looking at myself in the mirror. No more "ginger spice". Change is good.

Tuesday, I start my personal training sessions. I've lost 10 pounds since the Fall on my own but I'm greedy and wantto lose more. I will train two mornings a week and the rest of the days, I am on my own. I'm not "obese" but definately over my ideal weight. I've had 4 children and have had two big moves. Stress is my biggest enemy right now. One of the biggest changes we've made is we've been eating healthier as a family. We try and have some kind of fish or salmon once a week. More salads. I love salmon and believe it or not, so do the kids. Especially grilled. YUM. Lots more fruit in the house. Mark is my fruit eater. The other day, Steve went to the store for me with Mark and I guess Mark saw a pear. I don't buy pears because no one will eat them. So, Steve got him one and he devoured it. Too cute. He loves bananas, apples, strawberries, and grapes. The other kids won't touch fruit. Funny how kids can all be of the same gene pool and have such different tastes. I've also stopped buying pop. We weren't big pop drinkers but if it was there, it was a temptation. I loved my diet coke. But now when I drink it, I don't finish it. Now the sweet tea is a different story. I still drink it but in moderation. I also still love the citrus flavored green tea, again in moderation. But, water is my best friend. I can drink it all day. Give me a lemon wedge and I am good to go. Change is good.

Happy Friday! Make it a good one. The weekend is almost here. Yippee.

I'm back............

Wow. These past few weeks have just blown on by. I had hoped that a new year would mean things would slow down, but nope. I'm still on that highway in the fast lane.

Remember how I said everyone got sick at Thanksgiving and again right before Christmas? Well, I did get it at Thanksgiving but was able to avoid it the second time. Well, I finally got it. And boy did I get it good. I probably should go to the doctor but I have been able to manage it with over the counter stuff. I'm not one to run to the doctor but I am going to hang in there for the moment. I have never coughed so much or so hard in my life. For awile there, I thought I was going to cough up my lungs. I was taking Nyquil but I stopped because I was having some weird dreams. Once I stopped taking it, the dreams stopped. So, I'm just drinking lots of hot green tea and popping Vitamin C.

How about them Florida Gators??? The champs!!!!! How exciting. I was so happy that Elizabeth got to enjoy that and be part of the school's history. She loves being a Florida Gator. She is studying Journalism. She has been writing stories since she was a little girl. So, it was only natural for her to go that path. She spent high school being on the school newspaper and was the editor her senior year along with another gal. She even interviewed Jenna Bush when she came to Tampa to promote her book (which is a phenominal by the way). You can only imagine her (and our) excitement when she got a call from The Alligator (UF's newspaper) to cover the pep rally after the Gators big win. It was so exciting to go online and see an article that she wrote. She came home over the weekend and gave me a copy of the paper. I am one proud mom!

With the new year also means it's time for the dreaded FCATs. Let me tell you how much I hate them. FCATS are Florida tests that are given to different grades. You have to pass them. I don't believe that one test can determine whether a student can pass onto the next grade. They are stressful not only to the students but to the parents. This year Mark will have to take his first FCAT (Reading). Greg is taking one (not sure which one but it will be his last) and Emily also has to take them. I can't wait for them to be over. I think they take them in March. But for the next few months, all they do is prepare for these tests. Enough said about this subject.......it gets me all worked up. Sorry.

I've officially become addicted to my IPOD. I got it back last fall, put a few songs on it and went on my way. I got a few gift cards for Christmas and now I can't stop. I have it on all the time. I sit in car pool lane with it on (no commercials like the radio). My next investment is an adapter for my car. We all have one (except for Steve) and we all have them on. We look pretty silly all walking around the house with our ear plugs in. I love to clean with it on. I actually forget that cleaning is not my favorite thing to do but it sure helps pass the time.

Last year for Mark's birthday, he got a pogo stick. He tried it but never could get the hang of it so it sat in the garage. Two weekends ago, he got it out and tried it. At first, he couldn't do it and was getting frustrated. He kept at it for HOURS. Each time he jumped longer and he finally got it. Sunday morning he came in at 8:00 am and wanted to go out and "jump". He jumped for hours. OMG, all he does is jump on that thing. He has mastered jumping up the curb through the grass and down the street. He's a jumping maniac. We are all amazed. So, I highly recommend a pogo stick if you are looking for something that burns a lot of energy. I'm thinking about investing in another one (for grown ups), just so we can jump with him. His only goes up to 80 pounds. He is having a blast with it.

Winter has finally made it's way to Florida. They say there may even be a few stray snowflakes tonight. Brrr. When we first moved here from Utah, I hung onto our winter coats. After two years, I got rid of them. So, we don't even own winter coats anymore. Steve is in Kansas right now with just a jacket. oops. But, I won't complain too much because I know people up North are getting it much, much worse. Stay warm.

Well, it's that time of the day to pick up Mark. Believe me when I say it won't be quiet. I figured I will send him out to "jump" and wear him out for awhile.

Have a wonderful Inaugeration Day!

What else is there to say today except:

GO GATORS

Last night when I was listening to the news, I heard our local guy say that there were going to be some changes to their programming. Their 24/7 weather station wasn't doing what they were hoping to do so they were changing the format. They were going to show "Retro TV Shows". Well that caught my attention. So when I crawled into bed last night I turned on channel 460 and this is what I saw: Johnny Gage and Roy DeSoto. Anyone who grew up in the 70's remember these hunky men. I was so in love with Johnny Gage. This show was a staple in our house. My younger brother even had the Squad 51 hot wheel. I still even have my Emergency View Master slide. Laying there for that hour so took my back.



With the station just turning on yesterday, the man also said this show would be on too


Who was not in love with the Hardy Boys? I sent my first fan letter to Shaun Cassidy and even got an autographed picture back. The guide to the station isn't up yet so I don't know when it will be on. But, you can bet I will be watching it. It's fun to look back and remember all the good shows that used to be on. Today's TV shows just don't do it for me. There are only a few shows that I "don't miss". I love Monk, Psych and for laughs, Scrubs (which a new season starts tonight). I used to be a huge TV watcher but now, I just mostly lisen to my IPOD.

Speaking of Ipods, I am totally getting addicted to it. I got on back in October and had about 14 songs on it. Well Emily and Liz got new ones for Christmas and now I am totally addicted to Itunes. We all have to confer with one another before we download songs to make sure it's not already in the library. Now, I have to get the adapter for my car so I can listen to "MY" music without interruptions. I keep a list going of the songs I want to download. I love modern technology.

Today the kids went back to school. Ahh the silence.....I get to spend my day finishing the Xmas decorations and finding a place for all the new stuff but if you could only hear how quiet it is. (Although the last two weeks, everyone was still sleeping except for Mark). Only the sound of SpongeBob was heard. Elizabeth went back to Gainesville on Sunday and she starts classes today. She is very excited about her classes this semester. Now that she has the first semester of her Freshman year under her belt, she is so much more relaxed. Speaking of UF, how about them Gators? Playing in the championship game this Thursday? Go Gators.

Not much else to report. I have already missed two days of my 365 photos. I have two so far. But, I'm not quitting. I have spent the last few nights getting all my photos saved onto a CD and cleaning up my computer files. I have way too many pictures not backed up. If something were to happen to this computer, I would just lose it. So, I'm organizing and sorting and trying to figure out what pictures, I have printed off and saved. It feels good to see some actual progress.

As part of my 2009, I promised myself that I would be a healthier me. So, yesterday I started off the year with my annual well woman's check up. Scheduled my mammogram. Here's my PSA---get your mammogram. I feel very strongly about us women getting these. My BP was still up somewhat but they weren't too concerned. I had a spike in my cholesterol back in the Fall so I also scheduled my routine blood draw for next week. I'm determined to get off these meds. I even managed to lose a few pounds over Christmas. Go figure. The only problem I'm having now is that I'm having a very hard time falling asleep at night. I don't know what's up with that. I just lay there. It's not caffeine related because I don't drink a lot of it except my coffee in the morning. I'm hoping now that I'm back in a routine and not sleeping in will help. Otherwise, it will be back to the doctor for that.

Well, I guess I better get a move on. Before I know it, it will be time to start my routine again. I need to get a jump on Mt. Washmore before it erupts. Right now, it's "dormant". hehe. I've been able to keep up with it.

Have a wonderful Tuesday. Make it a good one. My word for the year is relax so don't forget to take a deep breath if you start getting stressed out today. :)

Welcome 2009

Can't believe another year has come and gone. It seems like 2008 just flew by.

Highlights of 2008 for me were:

Got my Canon Rebel

Mark made his First Communion

Greg made his Confirmation

Elizabeth graduated high school
(those three all took place within two weeks of each other)

Elizabeth went off to college

Emily started high school

Patti & Krissy came down to celebrate Thanksgiving

Went to Disneyworld

Unfortunately for me, 2008 was not one of my favorite years. So much happened and it was just run, run, run. Especially in May. All the preparation for First Communion and Confirmation.............times have changed and now it's mandatory this, mandatory that. The kids attended Religious Education classes but they also had to attend more monthly meetings and had projects. This was all in addition to their schooling. It was tough. When Liz made her Confirmation several years ago, it wasn't this difficult. I don't know, it just seems like they forgot that these kids go to school and do other things. But, it's over. Done. But, in 2010, we get to go through it again--Emily will make her Confirmation the same time as Greg graduates!

For the first time ever, I didn't enjoy the holidays. At Thanksgiving, we all got the stomach flu. Then two weeks later everyone got "the actual flu". With Thanksgiving being so late, we lost that extra week in between. We went to Disney the weekend before Christmas and family also arrived. They were on vacation. I was not. So, we were expected to hang out with them. I wasn't on vacation. I still had shopping, baking and wrapping to do. I didn't even get all my Christmas stuff out. So, it was my family that didn't get done. Steve's car didn't get fixed as planned because of it all (he did finally get it done but paid way too much). I just didn't enjoy it. The phone was constantly ringing to go and do. It was just way too stressful.

So, I vow in 2009 to make it about me. I'm going to learn how to tell my kids "no". I spend way to much time doing for them. I didn't get hardly any scrapbooking done. We spent all that money to get that extra room made into a scrapbook area and I never can get in there. Someone was always in there watching TV or studying. So, I'm taking my room back. I want to learn how to use my camera that I got. If it means taking a photography class then that's what I am going to do. I am hoping to do some fun online scrapbook challenges. Ali Edwards has one going on where you choose a word to focus on for the year. I am hoping to do one of those Projects 365--you take a picture a day. I've never done one so I need to look into it but I think it would be fun to do. Anyone done one of these and can point me in the right direction?

I am also going to make this the year I get healthy. It's no secret that I've put on weight. As a result, I'm now on medication for high blood pressure and high cholesterol. My goal is to get off all of those by year's end. I've lost about 5 pounds this past month on my own but I'm very greedy and want to lose more. :)

I didn't mean to make this post such a downer but I am vowing to turn it around in 2009!

So, to everyone I wish a Happy 2009. Make it a happy one.

It's been a crazy month to say the least. Getting computer time has been next to impossible for me. With the kids home, I don't seen much time online.

Christmas came and went. We went on our usual trip to Disneyworld. It was fun and it was warm. We had a blast though. We stayed at the All Star Resorts (Music) in a family suite. On Saturday, we ended up hanging around and took the bus to downtown Disney to hang out. I can't say enough how gorgeous the weather is.

Speaking of weather, this is what it looked like on Christmas Day. The sky was so blue and there was not a cloud in the sky. It just didn't feel like Christmas. Santa brought Mark a remote control car and he spent most of Christmas Day out in the cul de sac playing with the car. The battery finally died just as it was getting dark. Only in Florida can we play outside like this.

I am really enjoying having the time off from all my running around. The kids are pretty much busy lazy and catching up on all their much needed sleep. I'm even being lazy and sleeping in. But, pretty soon break will be over and it will be back to the daily grind. I'm looking forward to it though. For my Christmas gift, Steve got me a "personal trainer". Greg has been working out with Alex and Ashley since last June and I have been itching to jump in. I'm ready to make the commitment to get more healthy. This is their link. Ashley has been there where I am. I hope I can have the results that she has had. Plus, Alex has been great to Greg and I think Greg wants to something in the personal fitness field. Tampa Personal Trainers

We got a Wii for Christmas from Steve's parents. Oh man, what fun that is. We have been having such a blast with it. I can't believe we haven't gotton one before this. If you are even thinking about getting one, I say do it. It's a lot of fun.

I'm enjoying having Liz home. I think she is bored though and needs "her own space" back. We went shopping today and had fun. She goes back to UF on Sunday and starts classes on Tuesday. I can't believe she is halfway through her first year of college. It's just flying by!

Not much else to report. I'm in the process of organizing all my photos so I hope to have more uploaded soon. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a great New Year's.

I've been a bad blogger. Wait, bad is not the right word. I've been a busy blogger. It's already December 4th. Where has the time gone? It was just Halloween!

We survived Thanksgiving. I say that because just days before our favorite day of the year, we got hit with the stomach flu. We were on the "every other day" schedule so it took a week to work it's way through. We all got it! We had our friends come down from Ohio and we had to send them to a hotel the first night just in case. Elizabeth came home and she was freaking out because she can't afford to get sick with finals coming. So, luckily, they did not catch it. One of the nice things about living in Florida is that we could scrub, clean, spray and have the windows open. Even when it got cold, we left the house open to air it out. Hopefully that will be it for us. Our dinner was wonderful and we had a blast with Patti & Krissy (pictures to follow).

The day after when everyone was at the malls and shopping, we decided to drive over to the beach and "frolic". It was fun. I went with the intention of taking pictures for our Xmas cards. The kids did not cooperate. It wasn't until we were driving home that I realized that I did not get pictures of just the kids. The whole reason we went. DUH. I got pictures, of the boys, the girls, the family, the water but not just the kids. I should have known to take extra clothes for Mark. He loves the water. I figured the water was too cold to swim so we were just going to take a walk and get some photos. Not Mark. He went in clothes and all! He's our water kid.

After we left the beach, we went to lunch at Skyline Chili. YUM. Skyline is a restaurant that started in Cincinnati. We are lucky to have one down here in Clearwater. It's fun to go to a restaurant that's all decorated in your hometown decor. Especially when one of your college teams is winning. Go Bearcats!

Not much else to report. Just trying to get the Christmas shopping done. Steve's family is coming down for Xmas so I don't have to worry about shipping their stuff. Yeah. That's huge. Getting everything wrapped and shipped is the hardest part.

Our new mall opened a few weeks ago. We so needed a mall close by. It's wonderful. I can't tell you how many times I've been there and just walked around. It's an outdoor mall and is awesome. I fell like a tourist when I'm there. I can't believe it's only 10 minutes from my house.

I've also been busy finishing up "my" science fair project. I'm sorry, but 3rd graders just don't get it. They get the experiment part but when it comes time to write and type everything up, they're done. They don't get how to do pie charts and bar graphs. We did the experiment so now it's just putting it together. It's due next Wednesday so that will be the biggest thing I get to cross off my "to do" list.

I got to see the movie Twilight on Thanksgiving. I loved it. I was hesitant to read the books because I thought I was too old. I'm so glad I read the book. I'm on the second one right now. The movie didn't disappoint. I know it had mixed reviews but I give it two thumbs up. The book was so long that they couldn't put everything in the movie. But overall, I enjoyed it. It moved really quick and was over before I knew it. I also get to go to a free showing of Four Christmases. I'm glad it was "free". I didn't hate it but I didn't love it either. I liked Twilight better. The cast was perfect. Dark and mysterious just like in the book.

Well, it's time to get my day started. I'm off to volunteer in the media center at school. I wasn't sure what I was signing up for but I really love doing it. It's fun to see the kids and see what they are reading. Mark goes to a wonderful school full of great kids and teachers.

Have a wonderful Thursday.

{DOH}

Last night I actually got to climb into bed at a decent hour. I had the dishwasher loaded and I even set up the coffee pot to go off automatically this morning. Lately my days have been so busy, I'm so exhausted that I have neglected getting the coffee ready the night before. So, last night I was able to get it ready. Well, it's been awhile since I've done it that I had never changed the clock from when the time changed. So, instead of it going off at 6:10 it went off at 5:10. Our bedroom is right off the kitchen so I heard it noisily brewing. I went into a total panic at first because I thought everyone had overslept. Nope. Whew. I was wide awake by this time. So, I debated whether to get up and get my started or lay there like a slug until it was time for me to get up--I usually get up at 6:30. I recently started reading the Twilight series books. My girls swear by them. Liz even has her ticket to the midnight showing of the movie coming out soon. I debated if I should get up and read while the house was quiet. Finally, I gave in and went back to sleep. That was dumb. Because when I needed to get up I was dragging. I was wide awake an hour earlier. DUH. I am really getting into the book though. I may just have to see the movie as well.

We are working on Mark's science fair project. Have I mentioned how I hate them? After 4 kids you would think that I would be used to them. I even went into our science fair "library" to see if there was anything that we could "recyle". Nope. So, we are trying to do a project that is geared toward a 3rd grader that isn't way above his head. Why we do these--I don't know. It's a parent project. They don't get it. They don't care. I love going to the actual science fair. You cannot tell me that elementary schoolers do these projects. I'll just be glad when it's over. Then it will be another year until the next one.

Hard to believe that Thanksgiving is only 2 weeks away. I think we are going to put our Xmas tree up next weekend. With Thanksgiving being so late this year, we lose a week before Xmas. So I want to enjoy my tree. The Christmas tree is my favorite part. I love turning off all the lights and sitting in the dark just staring at the lights. Add in a glass of wine and the Christmas music and I am set.

I can't wait to hit Disneyworld up next month. We have been going to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas party since we moved here. No lines, no crowds. It's great. I know the kids are getting older but as long as they still want to go, we will. The first year it rained but that didn't stop us. Every year since, it's been kind of warm. I just hope it gets cool enough this year to wear our "winter" sweatshirts. Have I mentioned how much I love the lights? You haven't seen lights until you have seen Disney all decked out for Christmas.

Well, time to get a move on. Lots to do on my To Do list. Lots of running and the day will fly by. I'm actually looking forward to sitting in the car pool lane just so I can read my Twilight book. I'm having a hard time putting it down!!!!!

Have a wonderful hump day!

{Favorite Time of the Year}

They're here. Starbucks has their holiday coffees out! Oh happy day. I've been putzing around the house picking it up after a very busy weekend. I have the Xmas music on the satellite and I decided what I needed was a Starbucks. I am now sitting here typing this entry with a Venti Egg Nog Latte. YUM. The pumpkin and egg nog are my favorite. Oh and the Peppermint Mocha. I am totally starting to get into the Holidays. This morning I actually picked up my Turkey for Thanksgiving. This is the time of the year though where I wish we lived back in Utah. I miss the snow capped mountains and the smell of the fireplace burning. However, on December 26 when everyone else is freezing their behinds off, we usually flip on the pool heater and swim.

Had a wonderful weekend with Elizabeth home. She got home Friday night. On Saturday she and Mark went and saw Madagascar. They loved it. I went to a Stampin Up workshop and as usual had fun. I wish I could shut myself away from the word and stamp, scrapbook and craft. Luckily, the kids are off school tomorrow so I may just do that. I have so many idea and projects to do. We were supposed to go up to the Community Center and take pictures in the woods for our Xmas cards. We didn't. So, I told the kids that we would do it over Thanksgiving for sure when everyone was home. Then I got the idea to take beach pictures. We live so close, so why not? The last few years the pictures have been from our trip to Disney. My friend Patti and her daughter will be here so I plan on dragging them along and taking photos of them as well.

Mark is finally himself. He still occasionally coughs but he is bouncing around and back to his old self. I don't recall in his 8 years, him ever being so out of it. Now Emily is feeling crappy.

Guess what I saw while coming home from Starbucks?

Yep. That is a coyote. I was just driving along and he darted out in front of me. There was a car coming from the other direction and she and I just stopped and stared. I saw one back over the summer but this one I got to see up close. I have heard that there were some around the neighborhood. Scary. It was beautiful animal. Living in Florida you never know what you are going to see. A few years ago I saw a some kind of cat--a panther like one. He actually was really close to our house. That one freaked me out. We also have deer, racoons, gators, snakes, racoons and lots of armadillo's. This is the worst part for me living here.

I have dinner in the crock pot so now it's time to tackle Mt. Washmore. It just doesn't seem to go away. I don't even remember what it was like when it was just Steve and I. Now it's just piles and piles.

Have a wonderful Monday.

I'm feeling like a bad mom today. Mark started feeling bad on Sunday and was running a slight fever and basically just laid around. If you know Mark, he doesn't just lie around. I kept him home from school on Monday since he was still coughing and running a slight fever. Yesterday he woke up and was himself and his fever was gone. When he got home from school, he just "crashed and burned" as I call it. By dinner time, his fever was up to 102. When I was putting him to bed, I realized I was out of his cough medicine so off to CVS I went. He's been sleeping great though. This morning, his fever was still at 101. So, I kept him home. My "mom instinct" kept telling me to call the doctor and make him an appointment. They got us in pretty quick. His fever was still up and he was "wheezing". The doctor said he has bronchitis and gave him a breathing treatment there in the office. This was our first breathing treatment with four kids. Pretty good. He was still wheezing after the treatment so we could have done one of two things.......get a machine through our insurance or do the inhalers. We are now back home with an antibiotic and an inhaler. Oh and most important of all to Mark...........he should stay home one more day (possibly two) from school. I'm just glad I went with my gut and took him to the doctor.

I'm loving my new IPOD. I love that it's just mine! I don't have to share with anyone. It's my music and mine alone. I actually found my wedding song from 1987 in the Itunes library. I'm also hooked on a song that Tina, Just a minute of my time..., mentioned on her blog. It's called "The Story" by Brandi Carlile. I love this song and what the words say. I'm a huge scrapbooker. I started scrapbooking in 1997 when I moved to Utah where I was introduced to it by a mom that I met at the kids school. I've been hooked ever since. The albums I make tell "our family's story". Unfortunately, I'm the one doing all the telling and taking all the pictures. I'm not in very many pictures. So, I decided to make an album of me and "my story". I recently started a yahoo group where we make an album about "just us". So, when Tina told about this song, it was just perfect. If you are interested in making an album about you, shoot me an email and I will send you an invite to the group. We've started off slow but hopefully we can kick it in gear.

I'm finally getting some time to play with Photoshop. I've had the software for awile but have never had a chance to really do anything with it. Right now, I'm working on organizing all the pictures on my computer. It's a mess. I want to get them organized and backed up to CD. I'm also playing with my Canon getting more familiar with it. I love it!

I just got home from Publix and they were decorating the parking lot light poles with their Xmas decorations. They were also hanging all the lights inside. Hard to believe that Christmas is next month! This year flew by. The school year is going way to fast too. Hard to believe that next school year, I get to do the "senior" thing all over again. I'm glad Liz went first because she was so easy and "in touch" with everything that went on. She made it so easy for us. Greg's a guy and they just don't care like the girls. He gets to spend his Xmas break studying for the ACT and SAT so that when he goes back in January he will be all ready for the test. Still no word from him on where he wants to go to school. I am hoping he will join Liz at UF but I'm not that lucky. With our luck he will end up at Florida State (Gators rival) or Univeristy of Central Florida in Orlando. That's a neat school too. It will just be weird having my kids so far apart. And, with any luck, move in week will be at the same time! Heck, I'm still trying to get out of him what he wants to do. Gotta love the boys!

Time to tackle Mt. Washmore as Jolene calls it. I may even get some scrapbooking in this afternoon. Oh happy day!

One more Day

Only one more day (hopefully) of political ads. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of ALL of them. I'm sick of the ads on TV, in my mailbox, on the radio and the phone calls. I'm not a political person. I have my personal views and I know who I am going to vote for. I will cast my vote tomorrow and be done. Hopefully my candidates will be victorious. If not, it is what it is. I won't leave the US and live somewhere else. To those who say they will leave is a certain person is elected, I wish you safe travels. But, regardless of the outcome, I will support whomever is elected. If I don't like the way things are run, I will vote again in 4 years. Enough said..............

Today Mark is home sick. He was coughing and hacking all day yesterday. He is constantly clearing his throat. His temp was only 99.7 but it was enough for me to keep him home. I probably could have sent him in after a swig of cough medicine and Tylenol, but there is nothing worse than listening to someone hacking and coughing all over everyone. That is one of my biggest peeves is when parents send their kids sick to school. Keep them home! Right now, he is on the couch chilling. This is how I know he isn't feeling well. He's laying down. So, I figured I would let him rest this morning and then we can work on his science fair project.

Had a great visit with Elizabeth home for the weekend. It was her first time driving home without Steve or I with her in her car. She got out of Gainesville late so she had to drive in the dark. Yesterday she left in the rain. I was worried but she made it safe and sound. We checked out the new mall that opened 10 minutes away. We were in heaven . We have no good malls around here so it was a drive to go shopping. Not anymore. We certainly did our part this weekend helping the economy.

Emily has her oral surgery scheduled finally. We have to wait until January when our benefits roll over but I can get that crossed off my "to do" list. She has to have a baby tooth pulled and then they have to go and grab the permanent tooth (which is impacted in the roof of her mouth) and put a bracket on it so it can come down. Oooh. They have to knock her out to do this. This is a job for dad. I don't do well when they knock my kids out. When Mark was 11 months old, they had to knock him out to do an MRI. I was terrified. I hated every minute that he was out and couldn't wait for him to wake up. Even though Emily is 14, the thought of her being out makes me nervous. On a happy note though, her teeth are already looking great. Her teeth weren't that bad but she had a gap in the front which is totally closed up. She is thrilled.

I love to listen to the satellite music stations on my TV. I love the selection. I was scrolling the channels yesterday and they have the "Sounds of the Seasaon" on. Yep, Christmas music. I flipped it on and Steve thought I was nuts. He's old fashioned. He doesn't believe Christmas starts until after Thanksgiving. Not me. I want to enjoy it all because it just goes too fast. I have already decided to put my tree up the weekend BEFORE Thanksgiving since it's so late this year. I've got a good jump on my Christmas shopping. Good thing too. Liz handed us her dorm bill when she came home this weekend. OUCH.

Well, I'm going to get sign off here and go snuggle with a little boy not feeling so good. Hopefully he will start perking up soon. Have a great Monday! Don't forget to get out there and vote tomorrow.

I can't believe I'm about to say this, but I'm cold!!! And, I like it. It's a cool low 40's right now here in Tampa. I guess the pool is officially closed until we flip on the heater. I'm just enjoying having the windows open and the AC off. However, it's supposed to be short lived. We are supposed to be back in the 80's on Saturday.

Hard to believe October is almost over. Man it's flying by. Mark has his Halloween costume ready to go for Friday. He's a skeleton. We finally came up with a Book-O-Ween costume too. He is going to be Jack from the Magic Tree House series. Since the kids aren't allowed to celebrate Halloween in school, they have Book-O-Ween where they dress up as their favorite book character. Last year he was a cub scout from the Berenstein Bears series. It's fun to come up with the ideas but there are parents who go way overboard. There are also a lot of parents who come up with the coolest costume/character ideas. I remember growing up making our Halloween costumes out of boxes and stuff. We never had costumes bought at the store.

Last week was an absolutely crazy week. The garage door broke yet again. They had been out to fix it on Thursday. It was raining on Friday and since the garage door was in need of repair again, Steve took my van since it's windshield has a leak (I need to put that on the top of my to do list). Since he works downtown, the van would be in a parking garage. So off he goes with the van I and I drove the Camry. About halfway home from dropping Mark off at school, I realized that there is no house key on my Camry ring. Hopefully, the garage door would open since the house is locked. Nope. So, as I sat in the car in the rain, oh yeah, in my pajama's, I pondered what to do. I called Steve to come home. Guess what? He doesn't have a house key on his van keys. Uh oh. So, we sat and waited for a locksmith to come and let us into the house. $55 later, I was in my dry house. The garage door guy came that afternoon and found the "real" problem. He felt so bad, he fixed it for free and didn't charge us for the new part. Lesson learned here is not to rely on the garage door or it's key pad to let you in. So, we will now have house keys on every key ring (another thing to add to my endless to d0 list). Also when said garage door was acting up, a snake was able to make his way into the garage. Not uncommon here in FL but he was a "bad" snake. With a water bottle and broom I was able to get him out. But before I could get to the shovel he was blocking, he got away. I had the heebie jeebies for days after that. I have no sympathy for snakes. If you come into my yard, garage or my pool, be prepared. Now my only problem with the garage is the "mystery odor". The garbage is out and the fridge is clean so I have no idea where/what the smell is. So, this weekened it will probably be a day to haul everything out and find the mystery smell.

Liz is coming home on Friday. Woo Hoo. Just in time for the new mall that is opening down the road. She's freezing up in Gainesville so she needs to get what few "winter" clothes she has. She is also requesting, closed toe shoes. She's a flip flop gal. She's definately changed her tune. I even convinced her before she left for school to invest in gym shoes (which she did). Since she joined a sorority, she's had to do a lot of crafty stuff. She likes it! I love this new side of her.

Baseball wraps up this week too. Yeah. I will finally have my late afternoons free. Other than Mathnasium tutoring, I will not have to get out in that traffic. Oh happy day. Oh yeah, Steve was able to score World Series tickets last week so he and Greg got to go to Game #2 (which they won). I really hope the Rays can win this. They are such a fun team. Go RAYS.................

Well, better get my butt into gear. Today is a half day. The teachers will now have one Wednesday a month where school gets out early so they can have a planning day. When we lived in Utah, they had a planning day one day a week! Kids are looking forward to it though. I reminded them though that they still have homework and it's not "a day off".

Have a wonderful Wednesday. Make it a good one.

Finally

Fall has finally arrived in Tampa. Hopefully it will stay. For the first time since last Spring, we've been able to turn of the A/C. It was in the low 60's this morning. There is nothing like opening up all the windows and sliding door and have some fresh air in the house. The high today is supposed to be only 83--a much welcome relief since we have had a hot Fall. Hopefully it will last but I know we are not done with the high 80's yet. This is the time of year I really miss living in Ohio. The cool, crisp air. Not to mention the beautiful leaves changing color. But, I don't miss the long, dreary, cold winters. We usually flip on the pool heater and swim on Thanksgiving and over Christmas break.

How about those Tampa Bay Rays? Wasn't it great that they were able to finally pull off the championship. I was beginning to lose hope after that disastrous game #5. I cannot wait to experience World Series festivities again. When the Reds were in the World Series back in 1990, it was awesome. I was working downtown and it was like a party every day. Hopefully, it will be like that here. The Buccaneers won last night on Sunday night football. The Super Bowl is here in Tampa as well. Would that be great to see the Bucs play in the Super Bowl in their own town? It was a good day for the Tampa teams. The mighty Bengals?? Lost again.

Yesterday, my friend, Terri, Emily and I drove up to Gainesville to visit Liz. It was so fun. Her dorm is so cute and all her sorority stuff is cute. Terri and I decided we want to go back to college and start our own sorority. We went to brunch and then did some shopping. Didn't buy very much but she now is no longer a starving college student and has a fridge full of food. I totally forgot to take some pictures. Took the camera but got all caught up visiting and just having fun. She's not able to come home until Thanksgiving so I may just take another road trip up there in a few weeks. I'm so happy that she is enjoying it there.

Today it's off to a birthday lunch with my friend, Barb. Other than that, it's just another day for me. Laundry, picking up kids, Greg has a chiropractor appointment. Just the usual stuff. Thank goodness gas is finally coming down.

Have a wonderful Monday.

{Homecoming 2008}

Well, here they are. This year's Homecoming pictures. This was his first year going (he's never wanted to go before this). This is also his first tux. Is he handsome or what? He just got his braces off earlier in the summer so this picture is just perfect to me.

Here's Miss Em. This is her first ever Homecoming as well. How pretty is she? I loved her dress. Purple is definately her color. We went this afternoon and had her hair done and it turned out so pretty. Can't believe she's in high school now.

I made them take this picture together. All the pictures have been of Greg and Liz but now that Liz is off to college and Emily is at the school, I will have pictures of these two together for two years. This time next year will be Greg's final year in school and hopefully by then he will have an idea of where he wants to attend college. I don't know if he will go up to UF or attend somewhere else. His dream colleges are the University of Cincinnati, Xavier or Ohio State. Since they are out of state, I don't see it happening. I would love for him to be a Gator. It would make my life so much easier if they were at the same college, but it is his choice.

I cannot wait to get my hands on the hard copies of these photos and start scrapping them. I have a few ideas in mind what I want to do. Right now, my problem is staying up late so I can go pick them up. The dance is over at 11 but they are going out afterward for dessert. Lucky me though--they are both going to the same place. I'm just not one to stay up late. But, it doesn't happen that often so I can do it.

Tomorrow I'm off to a craft show and then come home and bake goodies and food for Liz. Sunday, I am driving up to Gainesville to spend the day with her. I can't wait to see everything she and Heather have done to their dorm. Plus, I promised to take her to the grocery store.

Have a wonderful weekend. Don't forgot to root for the Rays. After last nights game they need all the "positive vibes" they can get.

Getting ready for homecoming here. Not trying to get one kid ready but two. Tux is picked up, hair is done, just waiting to get dressed and get the night started. Be back soon with pictures.

This is what I was able to catch on my camera earlier. I was coming home and it was drizzling. It was also sunny out. You can see where it was raining and the bright blue sky with white puffy clouds. This is typical here in Florida. It never did start to rain. As I look out the window as I type this, the moon is as white and clear as can be. I really do wish it would rain though. We need it so bad. Today was HOT. It was about 91 degrees. When Emily and I left in the car earlier, the thermometer in the car said 98 degrees. Don't forget to factor in the humidy.

What a great weekend is was for Florida sports teams. First, the Gators kicked some LSU butt. Liz said the game was fun but wild. They ended up leaving at halftime to avoid the mayhem that usually happens with these two teams. How about those Rays? I can't believe we stayed up until 1:30 am watching that game. I am paying for it today. We also had to flip and see who won the NASCAR race--Jeff Burton. A good guy won for a change. Finally, today, the Buccaneers kicked butt against the Panthers. It was a great Sports weekend. Those Bengals? Lost again. I've had to put the Bengals jerseys away. Kind of embarassed to wear them.

These weekend flew by. Homecoming is Friday night and I think we are finally good to go. Emily and her friends are having dinner here and then going on over. Greg is going with a group of his friends. He rented his tux today. Can't wait to take those pictures. They will be priceless. I'm ordering a lunch meat tray for Em and her friends. I figured why risk getting something on their dresses. I love Subway trays so that's what we have planned. She also requested salad and mini cheesecakes for dessert. That I can do. I'm so excited for her. This is her first Homecoming. Just seems like yesterday, Liz was going to hers. I think I did the same thing for her and her friends that year.

Next weekend, she asked me to come up to Gainesville to visit. I haven't been up there since we moved her in but she has come home twice. She wants to show me all the stuff they've done to their dorms, see the sorority house and of course take her grocery shopping. She's asked me to bring up some homemade pasta salad and rice. I can handle that.

Well, I'm off to keep organizing and purging my scrapbook space. It's so out of control. What better timing too--The Amazing Race is starting.

So, that being said, have a wonderful evening. Hopefully everyone will have a great week ahead.