Welcome 2015

Time for my yearly review. I do this just not for you guys but for myself. It's a great way to capture many things I had forgotten about and an awesome way for me to reflect on the past year. I way for me to make my goals for the next year

And since I had a throw away monthly calendar (never had one before), it might make remembering much harder then previous years.

January:
We started the year off right with our annual #friedfoodextravaganza. We had some great family and friends to help us eat all the food.

Since January is usually pretty chill month there is not a whole lot to report. Except one thing. THE COLD. We had just about the coldest weather I could ever remember. I do remember one night being -25 without the wind chill factored in. School was closed many days. Doors on cars froze and broke (uh, yeah, mine). You really couldn't be out side for more then a few minutes. And on top of the cold, the snow came. It kept falling and falling and falling. So much snow.

See what happened was my latch broke and it was about -10 outside. So yeah that was awesome.

It just kept snowing. And snowing. And snowing.

February:
3 pretty awesome things happened this month.

The first completely amazing, awesome thing was that my daughter, Emma, and my husband were both baptized. It was one of the most emotional things I have ever seen. I just bawled like a baby hearing their stories and watching them be baptized by some of the most influential pastors I have ever known. I believe I already wrote a blog on this Although I am not sure I actually published it. Some blogs I write are just for me and my family to have record of.

Matthew

Emma

#2 Monster Jam!!!!!! We try and take the kids to one event each year. The past two years it has been the Monster Jam. It is one of the loudest things I have ever been to but one of the coolest. The kids all just sit and stare in awe. (Emma was there too but she was sitting on the seat beside me)

And here we are back to snow. Now I thought we had a lot of snow in January. I was soooooo wrong. February was horrible.  It was the most snow I think I had ever seen.

March:
March was kind of a chill month also. We did have 2 cool things happen.

#1 - I got tattoo #11. Backstory is  - I took my grandma to get her first tattoo when she was 77 then took her to get her second tattoo the following year. The first tattoo was a rose and lady bug and the second was a monarch butterfly, so yup, I got a butterfly. It's beautiful. It's amazing. And I will always have some of my grandma with me.

My grandma getting her first tattoo in 2004

Here is my and grandma

And here is my new tattoo!!

#2  We took the kids on a small Spring Break Trip. It was only a two day trip in a local water park here and possibly a stop a The LARGEST Candy Store in the USA!!! The candy store was quite amazing. And we only spent about $60 so I think we did really well!!! Next we were off to Maui Sands Resort in Sandusky, OH. It's just over an hour drive for us so it wasn't so bad in this Ohio winter. Now this is a new waterpark here. We do have the cool ones like Kalahari and Great Wolf Lodge but they were kind of pricey and I found a Groupon for Maui Sands. So this waterpark would of been great if we had small children (ages 3-6) but it was not meant for children older then that. We had fun but there was not a whole lot to do.

The crazy boys!

Emma and her friend

April:
April is on of my favorite months. Everything tends to be fresh and new. The smell in the air is fresh. Clean. Energizing.

April was a busy, yet, not so busy month.

Emma turned 12 this month!!! We celebrated pretty low key for her. She had a few friends over and they did girly stuff. We ate pizza. We ate cake. That's it.

It wouldn't be a birthday celebration without a trip to WalMart right??

For Emma's birthday we re did her room. She was complaining about her baby room so Matt and I fixed that. We got rid of all pink ( since she decided she hates that color). We painted, got new curtains, new rug, new accessories and did it all in one weekend!! We did have some painting help from some friends, and thank goodness for that!!

It went from "baby room pink" to this. I am in love with the teal and orange. And painting the one wall a neutral brown was a really awesome idea. 

Almost all the fabric stuff came from good ole Target clearance. The rest was stuff I found over the previous months here and there. And this is a room that will grow with her. No more baby. 

Let's see....we also had Easter this month. Our Easter's are pretty low key. We go baskets, church and visit family. This is a day that for me personally I do a lot of reflection. I like to spend some time alone and pray and journal. I know it sounds weird but Easter is probably the day I write in my journal the most. 

Next on the list (and of course this is totally out of order cause I am cool like that) - We had a women's retreat in Amish country the first week on April. It was an amazing, uplifting time. My sister in law went with me and I was able to spend a lot of time with her. We talked, we shared, we prayed. I went home so refreshed.

Yup. This is what we do at night after the retreat. 

In April we also had the kids pictures done. Matt's little brother is a phenomenal photographer. He is still in his teems but we were thrilled with his work. He has put in alot of learning and dedication to photography. 

May:
OK, so this was a very busy month, so I am going to try and breeze through it. And this is so not in any order......

Matt and I celebrated our 9 year anniversary. Honestly I cannot remember what we did that night. We didn't even take any pictures.....boo......here is one of Matt from right around that day

Emma's very first ever SCHOOL PLAY!!!! She only had a two line part but let me tell you....SHE ROCKED IT!!!! It was called Haphazardly Ever After. Basically a messed up fairy tale. Emma played the phone operator.

Emma was also selected as STUDENT OF THE WEEK!!!!!

One weekend my hubby scored some tickets to Norwalk Raceway for some drag races. We drove. We sat in traffic. It rained. We never saw a race. I got stuck in mud. Long drive home. But we did get to walk on the track. That part was actually really awesome. I had no idea it was that sticky. The boys lost their shoes a few times.

We went to the Akron Rubberducks baseball game too!! Not many pictures because my kids were crazy that night!!

 My brother, Gary, came in town from Florida. We had lunch at Luigi's and went to visit grandma for a little bit. Man, I miss him and the kids so much!

Landon graduated the 2nd grade!!! He is making the move up to the next school for 3rd to 5th!! Can you believe it??!!!

And sometime during this month we actually re did the boys room too!! We didn't go all out like we did Emma's room.

The could not decide on a color until they agreed on ORANGE. Yup, ORANGE. And I was going to make them some cool flame curtains but they couldn't decide on which flame pattern so we picked out a camo print.

So on top of the craziness of the end of school activities we are preparing for vacation. We left May 31st but since most of the vacation happened in June, it's going to the June recap.

June:

So let's start with VACATION!!!! 3 families went to Virginia Beach for a whole week!!! We had some bumps in the beginning (mainly due to being tired and hungry) but as the week progressed I witnessed these kids bonding in ways I never imagined. They were all pretty great and they all showed so much love and respect for everyone. I won't completely bore you with all details, but I will leave you with a ton pf pictures!!

After we got home, it was prime strawberry picking season. So we went to a local farm and picked strawberries until we got enough!! And let me tell you, they were so sweet and juicy!

Sometime during the month we went to the Akron Zoo with my sister in law, BIL and nephews. All the kids were very well behaved and we all had a really great time!

And we rounded out the month with some landscaping!! Our yard is always a hot mess. We try every single year to make it pretty but by July it just looks awful again!

July:

Ok, so let's just start off with Emma leaving me for 9 whole days! Emma flew ALL BY HERSELF to Texas to visit her Aunt, Uncle and cousins. She did so good at the airport right up until she had to board, then we both kind of lost it. But she did good. She got herself together and did really well on the flights. And she had a total blast spending time with family!

And speaking of Emma, she got a smartphone for her birthday in April. Ever since then she has been a #selfie queen!! Seriously, 100's and 100's of selfie. So it was only right I get her this shirt

Moving on to the 4th of July. I don't know why but I did not snap a ton of pictures. Boo.

We had two parties. The first one was on July 4th and I co hosted with a friend of mine. The 2nd party was the next day at my BFF's house. 

Here are a few other random photos before I get to the Grand Finale of JULY

Chase

Landon

Emma

And the big GRAND FINALE of July was our Kids Adventure Week at my church, Cornerstone FMC!!!!! I had the honor and privilege of being the assistant director this year. It meant a lot of work and a ton of fun. We had a science theme this year and the kids loved it!! We had the biggest and absolutley best group of volunteers. They loved on these kids so hard. I walked away each night in tears because of all the love in that place. 

TWINS!!!!!

August:

Well August always starts off with a bang! My birthday is August 2nd, so yeah, pretty awesome. We went to dinner with another couple to the Melting Pot in Cleveland. It's by far my favorrite place to eat, like ever.
As for my birthday present, my wonderful and handy husband re did our bedroom (I'm starting to see a theme this year..LOL). We repurposed all of our furniture by sanding and painting. We painted the walls and added a little bit of new decor as well as new curtains. One of the changes I really love is we took the closet doors off and put up curtains!! I am so in love with our new bedroom.

Another highlight of the month is CAMPING!! Well, to be honest, Matt went camping with his brothers so me and the kids decided to do our own kind of camping. Thank you priceline.com

 Yup, hotel camping is my favorite. The boys had an awesome time. We were joined by my friend Stacy and her son.

Next on the agenda is the start of football / cheer. Well technically it started in July but that was mostly camps and stuff. The real practice and games started this month. And let me tell you how insane this was. 3 kids. 3 different teams. 3 different practice schedules. 3 different game schedules. INSANE. Oh, and Matthew helped coach Chase's team. It was pure craziness but I seriously love it. Just love it!!! I love the friends we make. I love seeing my kids compete. I love concession stand food. I love it all!!

Chase #49

Emma

Landon #40

And yes, SCHOOL FINALLY STARTED!!!! One of my most favorite and least favorite times of year all wrapped in one. Luckily all my kids got amazing teachers this year so it should be a great year!!

And last but not least......

This.......

Led to this.....

Let me tell you, this was one happy guy here. He has had the same piece of crap car for 10 years. He spent so much time that day trying to fix it. It became a time vs. money thing. It would of taken so long and so much money for him to fix it. We were much better off getting him a new car and that's what we did!

September:

In a nut shell this month was taken over by football / cheer with no time for anything else.

And I should mention I became unemployed again....blah blah blah, some news different year. BUT..... that gave me and my sister in law to start a little jewelry business. Nicole Jean Creations.

We make all kinds of pretty necklaces, hair pins, earrings and are always venturing out trying new things. Again, I love spending time with Samantha and I love our little business. 

For all the good pictures and products, visit the link above (these are kinda behind the scene photos)

And of course here are a few random photos that I just love to remember.....

Matthew and I on September 30th - The first day of my NEW JOB!!!

I don't really need to explain this, do I?

And I am kind of in love with the photo of myself. Seriously.

October:

Wow - already at October!!

October was an exciting month for us!!! Matt and I were able to go to New York City for 3 days ALL BY OURSELVES!!! NO KIDS!!!! I am beyond thankful for that time to spend with my husband. Just me and him. It was much needed.

Little Italy (our favorite!!)

Carriage ride in Central Park

Top of Rockafellar Plaza

Subway selfie

Before Matt and I went to NYC, me, Chase, and Emma took a little road trip to Indianapolis for my cousins babyshower!! It's only a 5-6 hour trip and the kids did wonderful!!

While me and 2 of the kids were traveling my husband was at home starting the kitchen remodel. He was able to get all the floors done in the weekend I was gone.

And lastly, our Fall Family Pitctures. Matt's brother was our photgrapher yet again and yet again we got amazing results.

Oh, I can't forget about Halloween!! Emma was a nerd, Landon and Chase were both Iron Man....kinda......one was the Iron Patriout, but of course I forget which one and I don't even have pictures....UGH

Emma's is on the left, Landon's is the football and Chase's is the Stormtrooper

November:

Ok, so first things first. November is a big, busy month for us. Lots and lots going on. Let's start with the boys birthdays!!! Chase is November 6th and Landon is November 29th (they are about 11 months apart)

We did a huge combined party for them at Zip City - it's an awesome indoor trampoline and zip lining place. They had a blast!!

Next on the agenda was our first craft show for Nicole Jean Creations!! We had a blast and our table turned out beyond cool!

And check out these adorable haircuts......

And we finally finished the kitchen. We did the floors, refinished the cabinets, painted the walls and got some new decor. It took many many hours of hardwork but the finish product looks beyond awesome.

**side note - cabinets are actually more of a dark teal and the walls are a gold, the pictures did not come out very good**

Of course we cannot forget Thanksgiving. we had Matt's family over again and somehow ended up with 3 turkeys. Oops. We roasted one, we smoked one and the in laws brought one. Dinner was so yummy. And after we went and spent sometime with my grandma and my family. 

Only photo taken.

" I am thankful for mom because I wouldn't be alive"

Black Friday shopping (and no, I did not go out early because that is stupid)

Even these two rugrats got in on the action. They went to Gamestop at midnight to spend birthday money. They ended up getting 6 games!!!

December:

Whew.....thank you al who stuck with me on my very long yearly recap.

And here we are at December.

Honestly December was rough for me. I have been an emotional wreck and slightly depressed this month. I was there but no really there, you know what I mean? I put on a brave face for the kids but I'm sure they knew something wasn't right.

Holidays in general are hard for me. I have so much expectation and every year I am let down. Well this year I decided to try my best to have no expectations and I think it backfired. It left me solemn. Left me just blah. No excitement. None.

But still, I think we had a great month.

Let's start with all the yummy stuff first!! I went to a friends annual cookie exchange and walked away with 19 different kinds of cookies.

I was also able to go through my grandma's recipes. I made a few of the favorites and let me tell you, it was worth the work!

As a family we did our gingerbread house and decorated Santa cookies. Decorating the cookies is probably my favorite Christmas activity each year. It's a low key event that allows all of us to chat and catch up. It also allows me to see each kid and their own personality.

And one of the big events of the season is Matthew's birthday!! This year he turned 29 which means next year we will finally be in our 30's together!!

Of course we have Christmas. The most magical time of year. 

And here is a few shots of what my kids did most of the winter break.........

Emma was too busy taking selfies to be in any of my pictures....hahahaha

We went bowling the day after Christmas 

Can't forget about Chase's basketball debut!!! Love watching this kid learn the game!

Very last on our list this year was New Year's Eve (and Day). we went to church for most of the night. Kids had a great time playing games and jumping in the jumpy houses. I had a great time singing and listening to some music. We left around 1115pm and headed home. Mommy and Daddy were both beat from having to work. So we got home, got in our jammies and watched the ball drop.

And that folks has been our 2014. It was definitely a year of ups and downs, thankfully more ups. I think we are starting to get the hang of this life. For the 3rd year in a row we were practically debt free and paid for EVERYTHING in cash. Everything you see above was ALL CASH (well, with the exception of Matt's car). No credit cards, no debt. This is such a great feeling. I'm not saying we still don't struggle and sometimes we both wish we had a credit card, but it feels good at the end of the day to not owe money to someone. 

This year we worked a lot on our family dynamic. As the kids get older they are becoming their own little people. The each have way different personalities. We are continually learning how to live together in peace. Some days we surely don't but we are working on it. 

This year has been a big year for me and my relationship with Christ. I won't go into all the details but I will tell you that God has put a lot of things in my face. I have had to come to grips with many different areas of my life. Some ways I flourished, some I have failed. Failed miserably. But I am trying. I am praying. I am journaling. I am reaching out. I do not want to end up a bitter old woman who holds on to the past. I do not want to be that woman who speaks her mind to it's full extent. That's when I tend to hurt people. Some people have walked away from me. I have had to walk away from some people. It's tough. Finding your place stinks. But I am a work in progress. My life is a work in progress. It always will be. I will never be 100% perfect. I made a promise to myself, God and my husband and kids. I will try to be a little better each day. Do a little more. 

Thank you to everyone who has been part of the crazy journey of 2014. It sure was a crazy ride. I cannot wait to see what 2015 has in store for me and the family!!

Love you all!!

OK, so let's get some things straight...........

Today's post is brought to you by my annoyance with ADHD and Aspergers. Also brought to you by my annoyance with people who think my son is just a "bad" or "rude" kid. The information in blue came from this website found here. So let's explore bullet point by bullet point shall we.

Most children with Asperger’s syndrome (AS), an autism spectrum disorder, receive an ADHD diagnosis -- or misdiagnosis -- before a pediatrician concludes that it’s AS. The symptoms of autism spectrum disorders and ADHD overlap. Most children on the autism spectrum have symptoms of ADHD -- difficulty settling down, social awkwardness, the ability to focus only on things that interest them, and impulsivity.

So yeah. He wasn't diagnosed until he was 8 years old. Why? Because ADHD and AS overlap a lot of the time. Also overlapping is OCD which Landon most definitely has. It took us well over a year to get him a diagnosis. See, my son, Landon, was advanced in almost everything. He walked at 9 months, he talked in sentences at 18 months. Heck his teeth even came in early and his soft spot closed early (and yes, I know the last two have nothing to do with the diagnosis, it was listed to show you he was early on just about every milestone).

Although Asperger's syndrome is on the autism spectrum, the symptoms are often milder than those of classic autism. More severe forms of autism are often diagnosed in the first two years of a child’s life, but Asperger's syndrome is usually diagnosed at a later age. A major reason for that is while children with AS may have moderate delays in the speech development, most AS children communicate by age three.

Landon never had any type of speech delay. If anything he was so crazy advanced. The kid would talk like an adult in preschool. The things he would say amazed us almost daily. One thing we did notice while he was in preschool was the fact he always talked so literal. Seriously. You really couldn't even joke with him and make analogies. He just didn't get it. Like, at all. Still doesn't alot of the time. And actually his speech was one of the factors that made it take so long to get him a definite diagnosis. He just has impeccable speech. 

Researchers don’t fully understand what causes Asperger's syndrome, although there seems to be a strong genetic component. 

The above quote is not proven but let me tell you what. I totally believe it. 100%. I am not going to go into all the details for my reasoning. Just know that my husband and I have talked in great detail about it and we are convinced Landon "got it" from family.

Children with Aspeger's syndrome, like all individuals on the spectrum, have difficulties in three areas: communication, social interaction, and restricted interests. A child with AS might have some or all of these symptoms; however, symptoms are often less severe than in a child with autism. The following is a breakdown of each type of impairment.

Please reread the above. "might have some or all of these symptoms" Just because my child does not fit into ALL symptoms does not mean he does not have AS and ADHD. "well he looks fine" "well he seems to have no trouble talking to people" Umm, NO. Wrong. Well, yes, he looks fine. Just like a little kid. Landon definitely has communication, social interaction and restricted interests. His anxiety is so bad. I could write a book on his anxiety and communication. These two go hand in hand. When he is feeling anxious he says and does stupid things, sometimes inappropriate things. Ok, so he does it alot. He talks a mile a minute especially about his "restricted interests". He also speaks his mind. This one is the hardest for me to understand and deal with. He says what I think are flat out mean things. He asked very rude and inappropriate questions. His brain is just literal. He honestly doesn't know any better. He doesn't know how to word things differently. He doesn't know that he is not suppose to talk about or ask certain things. 

Now, here's the thing. We don't just sit back and watch this happen. Landon has been in doctors care once a week for over a year and a half. He has a terrific counselor (I wish I could steal her and make her live with us!). We do talk to him practically every day about the things he says and does. We try to explain very simple and literal why he can't say and do certain things. 

Over the course of our research the only thing that really works is repetitive learning. So yeah, it might take us a few years to instill the simplest thing in him, but we will. 

  Failure to develop age-appropriate peer relationships (inability to understand the social give-and-take of friendships)
Most children with Asperger's syndrome want to make friends, but they don’t know how.

  Failure to seek out others to share enjoyment, interest, and achievements (such as sharing a good grade on a test)

  Lack of social and emotional reciprocity (not enjoying being with others just for the sake of being together)

This really goes along with the above blurb too. Landon seriously is clueless about the give-and-take of friendships. This is another area we work on constantly. Landon has friends but doesn't really see them or hang out with them other then school. This is so heartbreaking for me as a mother. To think that other kids don't want to play with my son. And it's heartbreaking on a whole other level because I understand why they don't. Landon is hard to take. Landon is loud and opinionated. And when he gets upset you better watch out. He doesn't understand the "rules" of friendship. I could write a whole blog post on just this subject. And sometimes it's my fault. I push him to play with kids at events or places. It almost always ends horribly. Even with his own family, cousins and such. He would much rather sit on his bed and play on his Kindle then play with other kids.

  Narrow interests that are abnormal in intensity and focus (a single TV show, the Titanic, or an unusual object such as a vacuum cleaner)

  Rigid adherence to nonfunctional routines and rituals (following a strict protocol when leaving the house to go to school)

  Stereotyped repetitive motor mannerisms (pacing)

The Kindle. His stuffed cat, Tron. His love of mustard. I have never witnessed someone love inanimate objects more than him. He has stayed up until the wee hours of the morning playing on his Kindle. It's very much an obsession. 

His cat, Tron. He has had this stinky, smelly, dirty stuffed animal for years. And he lost it once. You would of thought it was the end of the world. But here's the thing, to him, it most definitely is. it throws so many different aspects of his life off. His security, his sleep, his playtime...etc.. I went to the hell and back (a company's trash) to get his stupid little cat back. I don't have to agree with the cat. I don't have to like it. But if it makes him feel better then I will dig in some company trash for him. 

Routines and rituals. Oh em gee. That kid is worse then me. And I am so OCD. We literally have to explain our day in great detail to him. We explain where we are going, what time and why. And we usually have to start telling him hours before we leave and many times just so he doesn't forget. I even have to go as far as tell him how many items we are buying at the store. 

**side bar** Funny story. We went to a store that had one hour parking. When we got out of the car he asked what time it was. I told him and thought nothing of it. When we left the store and got by the car he asked what time it was again, I told him. It was just over an hour. That kid freaked out. He just kept repeating "but the sign said, the sign said only an hour!!!!" I laughed about it for awhile. Then I got to thinking that this really upset him. We did not follow the rules that were in place. It totally threw him off. **

Motor mannerims - yep he got them. One of the biggest things he does is put stuff in his mouth. Mostly clothes, Tron, blankets. Totally annoying. So many shirts with holes. So many stinky items because of spit on them. Right now this is our big thing we are working on.

Parents may be slow to pick up on Asperger's syndrome in their child. Its subtle combination of symptoms leaves parents wondering if anything is wrong or if the symptoms are part of their child’s personality. When a child goes to preschool, social difficulties become more evident. Typically, AS kids are unable to make friends, have a hard time reading other people or understanding humor.

We did notice Landon's symptoms in preschool. However, in 1st grade is when things got back. Like really bad. It took a phone call to the doctor bawling my eyes out (over an incident at school) to convince me to take him to the doctor. I don't remember much from that doctor visit exept his doctor told us that "if his behavior effects the family dynamics on a regular basis then there is a problem.  We will find the problem. It might not be today but we will find the problem and work towards getting him better". He also said that we are parents. We know our son. If we feel that something is not right then most likely we are right. 

If you suspect your child has Asperger's syndrome, consult with a developmental and behavioral pediatrician, a child psychiatrist, or a psychologist with expertise in the autism spectrum. The evaluation will likely involve observing your child and talking to you about his development, social interaction, and communication skills. Your child may undergo several tests to determine her level of intellect and academic abilities

Consult with numerous people if needed. If you think there is an issue, don't back down. There are great doctors and therapists out there that will believe you (even if your so called supportive family and friends don't). And this goes for ANY mental OR physical thing going on with your child. Don't give up. Don't let the medical community look down on you. Don't let family or friends discourage you. Don't. You need to advocate for your child. Be their voice. 

Most children benefit from early, specialized interventions that focus on behavior management and social-skills training: learning how to interpret gestures, eye contact, tone of voice, humor, and sarcasm, for example. Cognitive behavior therapy may help them manage obsessive behavior and anxiety. About half of children with Asperger's syndrome will be treated with medication.

I don't know what we would do without Landon's care team at Child Guidance. We have a great counselor and a terrific "medicine doctor" as Landon calls her. So yeah, he takes medicine daily. Oh well, our choice. Not yours. But if you would like I can take him off the medication and have him spend about 2 weeks with you. 

SO that's it. I think I explained a lot. I went over a lot. 

Last piece of advice...ok...so it's numerous pieces of advice. 

• is he is misbehaving more than likely he is having a meltdown. Completely different from being "bad". Something probably happened that his brain could not process. If you tell me " to beat his ass", I might just have to beat yours. And yes, I am serious. Spanking my kid because he is having a meltdown because he didn't understand something is stupid. Just plain stupid. So you have been warned. You tell me to "beat his ass" and I will beat yours.
  
• yes, he most definitely says and does stupid things. Please don't be nasty to him ( and you know who you are, yep, I'm talking to you). Even though he is 9 and he is old enough to understand, chances are, he doesn't. So back off. If he upset you, please come talk to his parents. We will handle it. I would prefer you don't attack him. Chances are he won't understand and he will just get angry. And angry Landon is not really fun.
  
• My kid is a talker. If you can not handle the talking all you have to do is politely ask him to take a break from talking. Easy peasy. And no, it does not offend him
  
• Last bullet point, promise. And this is a thank you. A HUGE thank you so the friends and family that have been there and encouraged us. The ones I poured my heart out to. The ones who stepped up even is they don't necessarily agree with everything.  Much love to you guys!

Thanks for sticking with the super long post. I hoped I have answered some questions. 

Cyber Monday Randomness

Since I'm not shopping this Monday (cause I spent all my money over the weekend) I decided to let you in on the randomness that is my life. It's part of Cyber Monday over at Scope-Tech. Trying to get some new life into this blog. So for your viewing pleasure here is some awesome randomness.

1. My favorite way to sleep in bed is diagonal. Yup. Sideways. Best sleep I ever got.

2. I don't shower late at night. And I don't shower when no one is home. Why? Umm, because that's when people ALWAYS die in the movies. ALWAYS. And it's not going to happen to me.

3. Every single contact is my phone has a first name and last name is correctly capitalized.

4. My two favorite shows of all time are Roseanne and Gilmore Girls. I have the complete series of both and constantly make my husband watch them over and over. I even got my daughter hooked on Gilmore Girls!!

5. I've had 50,000 jobs. Well, not really but it feels like it. I have had quite the selection of jobs which I will now list some for your viewing pleasure:
busser
dishwasher
short order cook (numerous places)
cook in nursing home
changed oil
sold insurance
worked for local utility company (worst job ever)
worked for local battered womens shelter (best job ever)
drug and alcohol testing
office manager (couple different places)
worked at a grocery store
worked for some guys from India (office work)
cleaned houses and offices
made pizzas
bread baker at a yummy place
I'm sure there are more but I can't remember all right now. Sad. Very sad.

6. I have to drink a cup of water in the morning before my coffee.

7. I am a planner. I have lists. I have calendars. Some people think it's awesome to make fun of me and mock me for that. My husband and I both work full time. We have kids in sports. I have one kid that goes to her dads on a regular basis. We like to do things. We have to budget our money correctly in order to pay bills and do things. Landon has appointments almost weekly. We have errands to run (groceries, gas, shopping, etc). So yeah, to keep my family organized I have daily to do lists. I typically start with a monthly calendar of all the big things. Then I break it down weekly then daily. Our life runs much smoother when we are all on the same page and all of us know what is the plan for the day. Landon especially needs it. I literally have to talk each day out with him. I have to be careful though. If I say something like "first we are going to Walmart then to the gas station" I have to do it in that order. That's just how his brain processes things.

8. I am a bargain hunter. I absolutely refuse to pay for price for just about anything. That includes food. I don't do much with coupons but I watch sales and shop at Aldi's. That how I do $75.00 budget a week for a family of 5 (breakfast, lunch, dinner and toiletries). We also eat out about 2 dinners a week. Not too shabby. All of our meals are definitely not gourmet meals. Sometimes they are not even all that healthy but it food in my babies bellies. And it's food they like and usually eat. I hate wasting money on meals that only 1 kid will eat. So for now I try to make food we can all eat and if that means having hot dogs and mac n cheese once a week then that's what we are going to do.

9. I usually sleep with one sock on and one sock off.

And the big number 10. I may be a little hard to handle. I am very outspoken. I rarely keep my emotions in. If I have something to say, I say it. Sometimes I fly off the handle. But I will tell you this, you stick around with me and I will show you move love, caring and compassion then you have ever seen.

2014 Football Season

This has busy a crazy busy few months! As you can probably tell things are winding down a bit. I actually wrote 3 blog posts in one day!! This is the last for today, promise.

Just have to share some highlights and pictures of the kids football / cheer season.

First let me tell you how insane the schedule was. I had to make a Excel spreadsheet to keep track of all the kids.

All the kids were on different teams this year. Ugh. 3 teams, 3 practice schedules and 3 games each Saturday.

Emma - A Team - Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday 530-7 pm and games on Saturday at 430 pm
Landon - C Team - Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday 6-8 pm and games on Saturday at 1030 am AND noon
Chase - D Team - Monday, Wednesday, Thursday 6-730 pm and games on Saturday at 9 am

Things got really interesting during the end of the season with all the crazy Ohio weather and getting dark outside quicker. There were a ton of last minute changes. I literally had to write down the changes so I didn't take the wrong kid to the wrong time or date.

Honestly, I love it all. Every minute. All the crazy schedules. All the hot and cold weather. Ok, so I really didn't love the rainy weather but who does??  We had a fantastic season. I am going to admit something but only once and I will never repeat it. I am kind of sad that next year Emma won't be in Tallmadge Youth Football and the boys will actually be on the same team. That means no games or practices for Emma and the boys will be on one practice and game schedule. Boring. HAHAHA

Ok, so here are a few pictures!! Enjoy!

Landon

Landon

Matthew, Landon and Chase

Emma

Emma

Emma

Chase

Emma's squad

Matthew in the press box

Emma

Chase

Landon

Chase

Landon

3 Days in NYC

A few weeks ago the husband and I went to New York City for 3 days with NO KIDS! Can you believe it?? You heard it right. NO KIDS.

We are calling it our 10 year anniversary trip. Technically it's our almost 9 1/2 year anniversary trip, but whatever. Details.

We had such a great time. I only almost pushed him off the subway platform once. And hey, I think that says alot.

Before I tell you all we did and bombard you with pictures, here are something I have learned and noticed about NYC:

* NYC is a beautiful city. It was not dirty or smelly. People were almost always friendly. The unfriendly people were typically in the shops or restaurants that we visited. Kinda sad.
*There are not nearly enough public restrooms or trash cans. Nope. If you gotta go like now, good luck. Better wear Depends.
*There is seriously a Starbucks on every corner. Yum.
*The weekend was not nearly as busy as the week. Honestly on Sunday we talked about how there were more people in Vegas when we went. The Monday that all changed.
*I cannot for the life of me read a map. But I soon became the subway pro.
*Don't go explore Grand Central Station during rush hour then hop on your train to head back to the hotel. Seriously. Sardines. Tight. Gross.
*Using your phone to navigate does not work well. Neither of our phones could ever get an accurate location. Hence, reading a real map. Which to reiterate, I totally stink at.

Ok so here is the low down on all that we did! Mind you, we did walk 30-35 miles in 3 days and we honestly took the train a lot!

Times Square
Rockefeller Plaza (Top of the Rock)
FAO Schwartz
walk down 5th Avenue
Central Park
Horse drawn carriage ride in Central Park
Staten Island (drove by the Statue of Liberty)
Battery Park
Chinatown
Little Italy
Wall Street
Lots and lots of shops
911 Memorial
Lots and lots of food
Central Park Zoo
Opening Night for the NBA in Times Square

I am probably forgetting a ton. NYC has lots of things you kind of just walk by and snap a picture of. We did lots and lots of that.

Our favorite spot would have to be Little Italy. We spent a lot of time there and ate the most food there. Seriously. Homemade pastas. Homemade sauce. Homemade Italian desserts.

To Chase on his 8th birthday.......

 November 6, 2014

To my sweet son, Chase,

Your dad and I are two of the luckiest people I know. We were blessed with 3 terrific kids. You being the very last.

From day one you were quite the surprise for your dad and me. See, your brother, Landon, was about 9 weeks old when we found out that you were on the way. See. You were already doing your own thing even way back then.

Since the day you were born life has been just a little nuts. Having 3 kids make your hair turn gray very quickly.

Anywho.......you were a great baby! You reached all your milestones in your own time. Although you did have us worried when you were almost 6 months old and still not rolling over. Little did we know that you were just tricking us. You would roll in your crib at night but not in front of anyone. I should of known then that you were going to do what you wanted when you wanted.

Having you as our last baby was such a treat. You have always been sweet and snuggly. Always. Still are.

Your dad and I am so incredibly proud of the little man you are becoming. You have such a caring, compassionate heart. You are always there to take care of someone who needs it (well, except when it comes to Landon and Emma...LOL). I have even gotten notes and emails from your teachers that you help take care of kids who need it.

You always befriend everyone. Always. You see no difference in girls or boys, white or black, older or younger. That makes us proud beyond words.

You are such a goofball too. You know just how to make us all laugh. Just the other day while we were playing charades.....4 days later and I am still laughing over your "Sleeping Beauty" charade. I wish I would of video taped it.

I believe you are wise beyond your years. You know how to have fun and embrace the moment. That's something you are teaching me.

So sorry for blabbing on and on about you. You just make us so proud to call you our son.

We love you with all our hearts.

You will always be my Chasey.

Love,

Mom and Dad

Life Isn't Fair

Yup, I am 34 years old and finally figured it out. It makes me want to chuckle. During my discovery I thought a lot about my children. It was then I had my epiphany. For real.

My 3 children do NOT need to be treated the same. No equal treatment for all!!!

Now hang on, let me explain. It's actually a very short explanation.

I have 3 kids. 3 different kids. 3 kids who are all individuals.

How in the world can I treat them all the same? They are all 3 completely different. They all 3 have different behaviors. They all respond to discipline differently. There is no way to parent each kid the same.

If Emma gets in trouble (which is funny because he hardly ever does), I can't punish her like I would Landon or Chase. If I sent her to her room, she would just read for hours. The smart thing to do would be take away her books and Kindle.

If Landon gets in trouble (which is like 50 times a day), taking away his books would be the opposite of a punishment. Same for Chase.

So basically, my kids are 3 different people, I need to treat them like 3 different people. What is great for one of them will not work for the others.

Simple.

yeah right!! It is so much easier said than done. But we are working on it. Daily.

And that, my friends, has been my big discovery. Change is in the works.

And now I leave you with the kids 2014 Football / Cheer pictures as a thank you for keeping with me.

Chase - 2nd Grade

Landon - 3rd Grade

Emma 7th Grade