This Is It For '08! See You Next Year!!!

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before? started working at Meijer.



2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year? well, last year I said I wanted to drink more water and use my treadmill more... I've been more successful with the drinking water thing. There are lots of things I would like to accomplish in my life but no "resolutions", no time frame, just a determination to keep working on "things".



3. Did anyone close to you give birth? 3 of my bestest friends all had babies: Mr. Lincoln, Miss Elayna, and Miss Kendall, plus about a 1/2 dozen other little ones.



4. Did anyone close to you die? Tom's aunt Patty.



5. What states/countries did you visit? I'm so lame... I didn't leave Michigan once this year!

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008? less stress and worry or a better way to handle it all=)



7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? Austin's first day of kindergarten. Christmas because it was a little different this year without my mom here to see the kids open their presents from Santa.



8. What was your biggest achievement? Simplifying life (in the form of 3 huge garage sales).



9. What was your biggest failure? I'm still hurting from this one (and it's too personal to share) but it all basically comes from not trusting God like I should have.



10. Did you suffer illness or injury? I had a bunch of tests and procedures done recently but my doctor has assured me that the results are all ok and I am "normal". Tom begs to differ. Other than that just some minor cold and flu bugs.



11. What was the best thing you bought? My Dyson!!! I have wanted one for so long and I *love* it!!! Actually, the only reason we were able to rationalize such an extravagant purchase was because Austin's asthma was out of control this fall. Since we couldn't afford to rip out the carpet and put down new floors we went with the next best thing~ a vacuum that actually works! This is what the Dyson sucked up from our living room and hallway carpet the first time we used it. And, I should add, I really do clean my home. I had vacuumed with my old vacuum only 3 days before.

12. Whose behavior merited celebration? Tom's for finally finishing his associates degree in marketing. Austin's for loving learning and being so independent in kindergarten. Audrey's for loving gymnastics; and Lexi's for being potty trained!

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? My own. Can someone please just admit me?

14. Where did most of your money go? the house and the kids

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about? Coaching track, putting together my scrapbooking room, Christmas, my kids' accomplishments

16. What song will always remind you of 2008? Kid Rock "All Summer Long"

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
 a) happier or sadder? I'm pretty happy and content b) thinner or fatter? Let's not ask that question right after Christmas... let's say the same, give or take a few pounds=) c) richer or poorer? richer in the long run but only because we've paid off some debt. Definitely feeling pretty poor right now!

18. What do you wish you’d done more of? Scrapbooking and blogging. Just relaxing with my kids and forgetting about my to~do list.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of? Stressing over the "imperfections" in my life. Yelling at my kids. Worrying about finances.

20. How did you spend Christmas?
With our families. Hosmer family the Sunday before Christmas. Hrebec family Christmas eve. My brother Micah, and BIL Paul with Tom, the kids and me Christmas morning. My mom came over later in the afternoon and then Christmas nite with Tom's family.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008? Every day more deeply with my kids (and with Tom,too!=).

22. What was your favorite TV program? Little People, Big World, John and Kate plus 8, 17 Kids and Counting (makes me feel better about my life)=), House Hunters, Flip That House, Property Ladder, Redneck Wedding.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year? Laundry, she is my new worst enemy. the sight of her makes me sick. She is so needy always wanting attention and turning into a monster if I don't give it to her.

24. What was the best book you read? Dear John by Nicholas Sparks. Right now I'm into magazines (I *love* and highly recommend Wondertime for parents)~ They're short and quick and I can read them article by article.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery? Figuring out how to add a playlist to my blog.

26. What did you want and get? My Dyson! my kitchen repainted, a scrapbook room... too much to even list- I have been blessed!

27. What did you want and not get? The credit cards paid off (I may be saying that for awhile...) so let's see, something different from last year. A new tattoo~ I want stars for each of the kids. And I want dining room furniture that doesn't fall apart on my guests! Sorry, mom!

28. What was your favorite film of this year? I'm waaaayyy behind on my list of must see movies. I think one of the very few "adult" movies I saw this year was 27 Dresses. Very chick~flick, very cute!

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? 28. I had a really good day.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Not being so stressed about money. And if we had had a little more, enjoying the finer things in life that money brings~ family vacays, activities with the kids, dinners out.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008? What fashion concept!?! Audrey rocks it better than I do.

32. What kept you sane? Blogging~ it's so theraputic. Having the time I was working as a time of quiet reflection, play dates, and girls' nites out.

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? I read People but I didn't go ga~ga over anyone in particular this year.

34. What political issue stirred you the most? The election

35. Who did you miss? No one- everyone is close by

36. Who was the best new person you met? Coffee. She is my favorite and my best. I don't know how I would have made it through this year without her by my side (in my cup;)

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008. Sometimes it's ok, even for the best, to let go. Just keep trusting God.

38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year. "You've already won me over, in spite of me. Don't be alarmed if I fall head over feet. Don't be surprised if I love you for all that you are, I couldn't help it!... Alanis Morrisette (Because I am amazed that I fall deeper in love with my kiddos every single day!)

Finally!!!

After all of the fun and excitement of Christmas... finally a day to stay home and relax!!! The entire Hosmer family (minus my FIL) headed to Henry Ford yesterday. The kids enjoyed the museum and we watched Madagascar 2 at the IMAX theater before doing a little shopping at Old Navy and eating at Chili's. I've got some really cute pics of the kids but you all know how efficient I am at getting them off the camera and onto the computer so I'll have to update later;)

Tom had some unused vacation time at work and since their policy is "use it or lose it" he's using it all this week. He's only working tomorrow so it'll be fun having him around. My Christmas present from my in~laws was gift cards to Home Depot, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Kohls for a new kitchen makeover. Tom ran out to get paint this morning so our little project for the afternoon is going to be painting the kitchen. We have paneling above the cabinets that I want to paint but I'm not looking forward to doing it; other than that, there is not a whole lot of wall space so it shouldn't take too long (key word is shouldn't).

Aside from me working a couple of days (and Tom working 1) this week, we're spending New Year's Eve with my BIL's family, and Tom is driving down to South Carolina with his brother and then flying back home sometime early next week. Austin returns to school next week so we're just going to try to enjoy these last few unscheduled days of 2008.

Lovin' The "Ponies"

Flashback Friday: December 2006

Not Exactly Christmas Cards

Well, my Christmas cards are finally in the mail... 1 day after Christmas. So this year, I'm calling them holiday cards because they'll arrive sometime between Christmas and New Years;) Since I couldn't do this, and our last studio session at JC Penny was less than stellar, we went with this for the cards this year:

I printed the photos off in black and white so they would "color coordinate" with my cards=). Don't let the smiles fool you though. I'm sure the whole neighborhood heard me yelling~ just stand still! Lexi, look at the camera! C'mon kids, I just want one decent picture! Seriously, can't you just cooperate?!?! Of course, the cold zapped my half-dead battery so I had 1 minute to capture the "perfect" picture; which didn't exactly happen. So this is what we ended up with: the kids with their snowman "Fred". And I have to give credit where it's due... it was Austin's idea to use dog food for the facial features.

From Our Home To Yours...

Merry Christmas!!!

Going Postal On UPS

Yesterday the big brown truck delivered not one, but 2 big packages to our door. The only problem is... they're not our packages. So sure, our house numbers may be a little obscure (they're only each 4 in. big) but how could the driver miss our address on our mailbox?! Since I spent the day unshowered and in pj's, I asked Tom to run the boxes to (supposedly) the next door over when he got home from work. Ten minutes later he returns with boxes in hand. "Uhh," he says, "there's no 4162. I drove all over the neighborhood just in case and there is no 4162." So he gets on google earth and *ta~da*! it shows us as 4162 (we are, by the way, 4154). We decide that I'll try to call UPS the next day and have a driver come back and pick them up.

Flash forward to today. I call UPS and get an automated system (gotta love 'em.) But you don't punch a number in, no, this one's fancy~schmancy and it's voice activated, so the "lady" gives me a bunch of choices to speak and of course, "dumb~ass driver delivered package to wrong house because address on box is non~existent" is not a choice. So I speak ve-ry clear-ly "I want to speak to someone." By default the system actually connects me to someone. Except that someone is apparently the only someone who is working at UPS 2 days before Christmas and has decided to not answer the phone. So it rings, and rings, and rings.... I call back and go through the whole system again only to hear that crazy busy signal when you can't get through. Someone somewhere is waiting for Christmas to arrive and I have their 2 packages sitting by my front door. Can my friend in brown help me out?

Down For The Count

That was me Friday. I felt the flu coming on as I was going into the last couple hours of my shift early Friday morning. I made it home and didn't actually get sick until around 6 and then again at 8:30am. After that, the ache set in and unbelievable exhaustion. The kids woke to find mommy on the couch with these instructions:

• sippy cups (of juice) were in the fridge
• watch cartoons
• stay away from mommy's germs

For the rest of the day the kids ran the house. In my complete and utter sickness I almost didn't care about the inevitable destruction that I would surely awake to come Saturday morning. I was able to summon enough strength to pop some toast into the toaster and left them with little butter knives, honey, and scoops of butter for breakfast. Somewhere around 2:30 Austin repeated his request for lunch so I pulled myself out of bed to plop some jelly in one bowl, peanut butter in another, dispersed more butter knives, bread and oranges and left them to make their own pbj's. By the time Tom came home, Lexi had taken it upon herself to make dinner and had handed out bowls of cookies sprinkles and decorations to everyone. And I was so sick, I didn't.even.care. My mom came later with homemade turkey soup to balance out the sugar rush and kept the kids occupied for awhile.

I woke up Saturday morning feeling quite a bit better but still completely wiped out. It's now Monday, I've been through one round of Christmas shopping, church, Christmas with the Hosmer family and an 8 hour shift at work. My strength is back but my stomach is still a little queasy, too much still for me to enjoy my beloved 1/2 pot of coffee in the morning. So that's where I'm at. 3 days before Christmas and frantically trying to make up for all of the lost time and energy from my "sick day". Today's agenda:

• finish Christmas cards
• put away gifts from yesterday's Christmas
• write thank you notes
• clean up the house
• catch up on laundry
• plan Christmas eve & Christmas day menus

Happy Monday!

Snow Day

Today we're snowbound, enjoying an unexpected vacay from our very busy week before Christmas. My MIL called at 6 this morning to tell us school was closed (she teaches at the HS so she gets all of the inside info;) Since I worked 3rd last nite, I was very content to just stay under the comforter until the kids forced my butt out of bed. The phone did at 9:30 and we've just been taking it easy since then. Austin was absolutely thrilled with his very first "snow day".

I'm hoping to get caught up on laundry, get clean sheets on the beds, and bake some Christmas cookies for Austin to take to school tomorrow. My last basketball game of the season was scheduled for tonite and has also been canceled. My cheerleaders were planning on coming to the house after school today for a Christmas party and that's been postponed until tomorrow. So plans have been changed. Today is a day of no schedules, if it gets done, it gets done; if not we'll do it tomorrow. Happy snow day!

A Little Bit Of This & That

It's the weekend (and I've got 2 days off)! I had my day fully planned out so I wouldn't waste a spare moment but my plan went to pot as soon as I woke up this morning and saw the clock read 8:26. Yeah, and Austin's supposed to be in school at 8:20. We've had a less than stellar week with school attendance. He missed Monday- Wednesday with a nasty cold/flu bug. And then he was 45 minutes late for a half day today. He has next week and then we have the Christmas break to get our act back together.

Audrey is off with cousin Katy tonite celebrating Katy's 4th birthday. Plans included going to Red Lobster for birthday dinner (both girls *love* shrimp) and Fun 4 All before a sleepover at Katy's. Audrey has looked forward to this all week so I'm sure she is having a fabulous time tonite.

I have one more week of basketball to go, so the end (and the paycheck) is in sight. We have a game in Tekonsha tomorrow morning and then 2 more this coming week. The cheerleaders are heading to my house before our last game on Wednesday for some Christmas cookies, hot chocolate, and a small gift exchange. For the last week, Lexi's been parading through the house in full cheerleader mode calling off cheers and even getting the pom poms out for a little cheer action.

After I return from the game tomorrow I have a couple of errands to do and then I have to get my scrapbook room ready because Leslie and fam are coming for pizza and Christmas projects. We ordered scrapbook calendars awhile back to make for Christmas gifts so we're combining our resources to get them done.

The kids' Christmas program is this Sunday at church and then I work a full shift. And that is pretty much our weekend. Still on the agenda for tonite: wrapping Audrey's Christmas gifts and folding several loads of laundry. Happy weekend, all!=)

Blah, Blah, Blog

It seems as if the whole blogging once a day in November has ruined me. I was doing really well and then had to miss a few days because we were so busy around Hosmerville and after that I lost complete motivation to post anything. I've tried several times and each time the words escape me and I trash the attempt. But good or bad, I'm publishing this post!

So what have we been up to around here? One word~ Christmas!!! Each year the kids and I go on our traditional turkey hunt the day after Thanksgiving and gather up all of the fall decorations. Once everything is taken care of then Christmas gets to come up out of the basement. Things were a little tricky this year as I was scheduled to work the day after Thanksgiving and the rest of the weekend. Knowing I only had the morning, we were able to get an early start and get all of Thanksgiving taken care of before 9am. I brought all of the Christmas tubs into the dining room where I made the kids repeat my mantra as they unpacked~ "if it's wrapped, it's breakable!" They did an amazing job unpacking the tubs and starting to decorate while I tried to control the the mess and get ready for work. Because I worked the whole weekend, the kitchen and dining room basically looked like Christmas had exploded but by Monday we had pretty much managed to get everything decorated. The snowman on my front porch is still sharing space with half rotten pumpkins and gourds but eventually I'll get outside long enough to clean up the yard, too.

We're big into traditions around here in Hosmerville but instead of making this an overly huge post, I'll try to touch on them in the next few days or so. Other than doing everything Christmas, we've been busy fighting a nasty cold/flu bug the last week or so. Austin's home from school for the second day in a row recuperating on the couch. As I tucked him into bed last nite and told him I was sorry he wasn't feeling well, he angrily declared it was Audrey's fault because she had given him her germs. *sigh* These kids really do love each other, right?

MIA

Wow! It's been almost a week since I last posted... and I was doing so good with the NaNoMoPlo thingy. I do have a valid excuse though~ we've been busy;)

• Last Friday evening we went downtown to make an appearance in the Christmas parade. We froze our niblets off, it was so stinkin' cold!!! We sat for quite awhile in the staging area waiting for the parade to start. As our wagon finally began rolling, Audrey immediately stood up and began her beauty pageant wave. After several enthusiastic moments she turned to me upset and exclaimed "they're not even waving back!" (keep in mind, we were still on the dark, unlit back street with only a couple of people walking past to get to the parade route.) I do believe we have a beauty-queen-in-training on our hands.
• Late Saturday nite, Austin threw up. Twice. First in his bed, then in ours. That only added about 5 extra loads of laundry to the growing mountain in the laundry room. Thankfully, no one else has gotten sick... yet.
• I had cheerleading practice and worked 2 full shifts this weekend.
• Monday I boarded the bus to Waldron with the 3 kids in tow. Even though they are all very well behaved on the bus and during the games, I do believe the 45 minute+ bus ride is the limit in regards to my sanity.
• Tuesday morning it was 3 for the price of 1 as the girls (and myself) joined Austin at kindergarten. He had a small part in the Thanksgiving chapel and then the class had a feast. Lots of good food. Incidentally it was Austin that volunteered to bring the turkey for the class feast. And couldn't be talked out of it. We compromised and took a rotisserie chicken from Meijer instead.
• Tuesday evening we enjoyed chili and pies at church. Once again, I cheated. And once again I enjoyed a yummy homemade pumpkin layer pie instead.
• Today my grandma watched the kids while I went to an appointment and then I got her to stay to give me my once yearly crash course in pie making. She got me through the first 2 steps and thinking I could handle the rest by myself (her thinking, not mine) I reluctantly dismissed her. 5 full pie crust recipes later I was going mad. I.could.not.get.it.right. Let's just say it sucks being a type A perfectionist (sometimes). I finally got a pie together and decided to bake it knowing that it looked too crappy to even consider taking to Thanksgiving tomorrow at my in-laws. I called my grandma looking for some helpful hints. We made a couple of changes to my process and the sixth time was a charm. In the end I can recite the recipe from memory (2 cups flour, 1 tsp. salt, 2/3 cup Crisco, 4 tbsp. water...) I blew thru a 5 pound bag of flour and about 5 sticks of Crisco but I now have a pie waiting to be freshly baked for tomorrow's dinner. At least the kids enjoyed playing with all of the extra pie scraps like play-doh.

So that's my MIA week in recap. We're looking forward to making stuffing and strawberry pretzel salad tomorrow while watching the Thanksgiving day parade. And if the weather cooperates, the outdoor Christmas decorations may make an appearance before dinner with mom and dad Hosmer. Oh, and in case you were wondering about the pie, it's apple. What's your classic Thanksgiving dessert?

Ummm, Yeah, I'm Not Sure

Flashback Friday: August 2007

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town (Tomorrow)

Don't forget, all you Jacksonians, the Christmas parade is downtown J-town tomorrow at 6pm. The Hosmerville family will be parading with the HOME.FM "float", so give us a shout out and we'll throw some candy your way. And as always, the famous jolly ol' St. Nick comes riding in on the last float of the parade. Always an exciting evening!

Christmas Cheer From Hosmerville~ Disco Style

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

We're Baaack! (and better than ever!)

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Help A Blogger Out

Somehow, I've gone and messed things up. It used to be that if I received a comment on a post, blogger would automatically email me a notification. And Leslie just clued me in that I can actually respond to the comments just by hitting reply in my email. Duh!=P Uh, I'm a little slow, ok? Anyways, as far as I know I haven't changed my settings or done anything different yet I don't get the emails anymore. Anybody else have this problem? Anybody have a solution?

Just Call Me Miss Suzy Q. Homemaker

So I know that my main "official" title is SAHM, but can I just say that today I totally rocked it!?! Let's start with the house, shall we? You can only imagine the condition it was in after I worked 2 eight hour shifts this weekend. Living room- cleaned and vacuumed! Kitchen and dining room- cleaned, dishwasher loaded and unloaded... twice! Austin chauffeured to and from school... on time;) 2 loads of laundry folded and put away, 2 more washed and dried. 3 loaves of pumpkin coconut bread baked. 2 homemade chicken pot pies made (with 1 stashed in the freezer for a later dinner). Thanksgiving plans finalized. 3 kids bathed and in bed. Happy Monday, all!

Pure Joy

We woke up this morning to a soft dusting of snow on the ground. Now, I'm not really fond of the white stuff, mainly because it's COLD!, but I can appreciate the beauty of a winter snowfall (especially from the inside of a warm home with a great cup of coffee;). I'm pretty sure Lexi was too little to remember any snow from last year so she was especially thrilled with the small taste of a winter wonderland this morning. Tom and I were hurrying around trying to get ready to get to church on time and Lexi kept bursting into the bathroom exclaiming, "it's snowing in the backyard!" (Not the front yard, mind you, just the back=) She was so excited! Then she'd invite us to "come see!" We took several trips to the back door so she could point out the snow on the swing set, the sandbox, the deck.... Anybody else wake up to snow?

Just Not Feelin' It Tonite

2 hour cheerleading practice this morning.

Snuggled with my girls.

Read the schedule wrong and got to work 1/2 hour early.

Worked 8 hours with Christmas candy.

Banged my shin so hard on an L-cart it almost took me to my knees.

Saw stars and a four letter word escaped my mouth.

Grossed out my co-workers when I made them feel my goose-egg thru my pants.

Promised to shave so they could actually see it tomorrow.

Finally home and just want to go to bed. So much to do...

Flashback Friday

Audrey: Christmas time 2005

Should've Got Decaf

I've just realized that as I have been on the laptop for the last hour I have been rocking in the la-z-boy at a rather frantic pace. (Think Dustin Hoffman as Rainman.) And now at 12:30 I. am. WIDE. awake. Maybe the coffee I had from McD's at 8:30 tonite wasn't such a great idea.

So Tom and I made an executive decision to do Christmas presents a little differently this year. (The kids' protests were quickly overruled.) In years past we have always set a specific spending limit for each person on our list and when the money was gone we were done shopping. Every year the $100 we designate for each of the kids never seems like quite enough until we put all of the presents together under the tree and then it's almost too much. Add to that the wealth of goodies they receive from the grandparents and it all gets to be a little overwhelming. So this year we are limiting the number of presents we're buying. For example, each of the kids will receive one "big" or main present, some books, a DVD, stocking stuffers, and their Christmas Eve pj's from the elves.

I thought that once the ads started coming out and we ventured into the stores it would be really hard not to overspend but so far so good. In fact, it has become a rather fun challenge to look thru the ads and plan out how our money can be best spent. I figure the kids can't read yet so it's safe to give a sneak peek into Santa's workshop. Shhh! Don't tell, it's a secret;) Here in Hosmerville the elves have been busy scoring:

* a deluxe jawbones set for Austin and a fashion friends set for Audrey from Discovery Toys, and a bitty baby outfit and a bitty piggy for Lexi as their "big" presents.

* pajama pants from a sale last January for Audrey and a nightgown for Lexi.

*books for all of the kids thru Austin's latest Scholastic book order. (I also plan to pick up the Curious George hardcover books available at Kohl's right now.)

*Shrek 1, 2, & 3 ~one for each of the kids (all on sale at Target this week).

*some miscellaneous stocking stuffers from the Target dollar spot.

So pretty much at this point aside from getting Austin some pajamas and picking up some more little stocking stuffers we've got most of the Christmas shopping already done. That was surprisingly quick and easy, now if only wrapping them was, too.

Better Late Than Never

So I took these pics awhile back for Nicole because she had requested feedback from clients as to how they displayed their portraits (that she had taken) in their homes. Then I never got around to sending them to her. This may surprise some of you, as I have this fantastic blog, and all, (ha ha;) but I'm just not that computer savvy, so I can't figure out how to just email her my pics, but I do know how to post on my blog;) so you all get to enjoy my little house tour. I absolutely love Nicole's work. Someday when I'm rich I'll hire her to follow my family around and document our everyday adventures. Then I'll have gorgeous pics to scrapbook and display all the time. Hey, a woman can dream, can't she?=)

Our bedroom

the living room (on the verrry long wall):

the console table, right inside the front door:

Monday Nite=Fun Nite

Anybody else love Monday nites on TLC? After watching "Little People, Big World", "Jon & Kate plus 8" and "17 Kids & Counting", life with only my 3 seems so much more manageble. This is Tom's and my weekly date nite. We put the kids to bed and chill in front of the tv. I can usually fold the 3 or 4 loads of laundry I've washed during the day and get ready for Tuesday. I know what you're thinking, TLC as "date nite"?! Yeah, we're full of passion around here in Hosmerville.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

I came out of work tonite to find icy snow all over my car~ ugh! It was the first official snow of the season and I'm so not ready for the white stuff. If I could somehow convince Tom for my space back in the garage so I won't have to scrape every morning, the prospect of the upcoming winter might not be so bad. Alas, this is a losing argument so I may have to add an automatic car starter to my Christmas wish list. Perhaps my BIL could gift me with this since it's HIS car in MY space;) How do you deal with the winter weather: a dry spot in the garage, a car starter, a super swell husband who scrapes for you...? Any other suggestions?

Because I Needed A Laugh

Thanks Bubba and Lindsey for sharing this with Tom (who passed it along to me). I laughed until my stomach cramped! I tried several times to put this video on the blog but as you all know I'm slightly technologically challenged. Anyways, here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPsNi1k8Df4

You may want to fast forward to 2:50 into the video unless you enjoy listening to this chick singing.

BTW, on a totally different "note", today is my 1 year blogiversary. Thanks to all of my readers who have left comments this past year~ it's been way too fun!=)

A look back: November 8, 2007

Life Is Good

Flashback Friday: November 2004

Toy Time

Leslie and I are co-hosting a toy party tonite. I have to admit when I was invited to my first Discovery Toys party I didn't think I was going to be real impressed, but I was wrong. I really like all of the great toys that they offer and my wish list for the kids has grown considerably. The toys, games, and books are educational and different enough for the grown ups to enjoy some quality playtime with the kiddies, too.

I'm hoping to get some Christmas shopping done tonite but I'm really looking forward to some dessert and time with friends and fam. Leslie is graciously providing the venue and I'm baking a pumpkin pie cake. Want the recipe? It's delicious warm from the oven with fresh whipped cream!

~*~*~Pumpkin Pie Cake~*~*~

Beat together :

3 lg. eggs

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

Then add:

2 cups pumpkin

1 lg. can evaporated milk

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

Pour into a 9X13 pan and then sprinkle 1 box yellow cake mix over the mixture and drizzle 1 1/2 sticks melted butter over the cake mix. Bake @ 350 for 50-60 minutes. (You can add 1 1/2 cups chopped pecans for the last 20 minutes of baking time.)

Disgusted

Yeah, that pretty much sums up how I'm feeling today.

A President-elect who sees nothing wrong in killing babies through partial birth abortion.

Support for more stem cell research.

A blatant disregard for the precious gift of life.

And the majority of our population supports this.

Our country is in the hole.

My only hope rests in the fact that God was, is, and always will be in control.

Just remember not to whine when the "change" comes because it's exactly what everyone was clamoring for. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go work so that all of the non-working citizens of this blessed country can return to their life of luxury from the couch.

Happy Birthday, Bubba!!!

oh, to be 22 again!=)

October: What A Month!

We had quite the month around here in Hosmerville. No wonder Austin was psyched that he didn't have school today. He told me he didn't want me waking him up because he was "going to sleep in". If you want to see the pictures in chronological order you'll have to start at the end off this post and work your way towards the top because I'm too lazy to switch it all around;). Tom told Audrey last nite while trick or treating that she was doing really good (as in having fun and getting lots of candy). She responded by saying, "yeah, I'm doing really good, I haven't got smushed by a car yet." Apparently trick or treating can only be successful if you avoid being hit by a car.

Watch out neighbors, here they come!


Stopping by to visit meme and papa collins.

Trick or treating at grandma thomas'.

Austin competing in the Pumpkin Fun Run at school. He was so proud of the little pumpkin token he received after his finish. Worried that he might be too competitive (especially because he had spent all week recovering from an asthma attack) I quizzed him as we got ready for the race.

Me: do you know what's the most important thing to remember today?

Austin: never give up!

Me: well, that's important, too, but it's very important to listen to your body. If you start to hurt, it's okay to slow down and walk until you feel better.

Well, my little dude was so determined he didn't stop to walk once and although a little winded he recovered quickly. He's already planning to participate in next year's doggie dash, informing me that this run would be "good practice". Apparently one needs only to run once 12 months in advance to be properly trained for a 5k run. I'll remember that.

Carving Jack-o-Lanterns:

This was the kids' attempt at making scary faces.

Before the start of Bailey's Doggie Dash. How do I know this pic was taken at the start? Because I was still smiling.

Austin showing some brotherly love at Greenfield Village.

Making a haunted Halloween gingerbread house.

Lexi and Reyna watching the rabbits eat donut crumbs at Flavor Fruit Farms.

Austin and Audrey enjoying their mid-morning sugar rush at FFF.

A Playa' (football, that is), Princess (naturally), & a Ladybug

Happy Halloween!!!

Cider Mill Pics

These are all courtesy of Lindsey. Our pics are still on our camera waiting for my husband to download (?) them to our computer. Thanks for a great afternoon, Bubba and Winsey!

From the kids' perspectives at Lindsey's place:

The Opposite Of Fun

Today was the 9th annual Bailey's Doggie Dash, a 5k run for dogs and their owners. While living in GR our neighbor, an avid runner, introduced us to this experience and we've been hooked ever since. I drew the short straw this year which meant Eddy dragged me 3.2 miles uphill, through the woods, along the beach, and through a campground as I struggled to just hang on. We always joke that if he could run uninhibited by his owner's lack of fitness he'd win the race and then be patiently waiting for us to crawl across the finish line before suggesting that we go do it all over again. The event is always held at Wabasis park/campground and although we had beautiful weather, it was a bit chilly running this morning. The kids (and Tom) cheered me along and all helped me cross the finish line, Austin proudly holding Eddy's leash. As Austin impatiently waited for the awards ceremony he kept eyeing the trophies. I tried to suggest that maybe it would be okay if mommy didn't get a trophy because we all knew that I did my best, but he promptly shot that idea down. Turns out, I placed 3rd among my age group. Are you impressed? (Maybe I shouldn't mention that there were only 3 of us ladies in our group~ ha ha!) I would like to think that despite my utter lack of training the real reason I ran an uninspiring 37:20 was because Eddy jerking at the leash and constantly crossing in front of me knocked me off rhythm and caused me to struggle on the course. We all know better but for sake of my self-esteem as a track coach, let's just go with it.

After collecting my trophy and dog dish we headed over to Rivertown Crossings where we traditionally go to enjoy a post-race meal at Max and Erma's. Yum! Then we checked out the deals at Old Navy. I was hoping to score a winter coat for Audrey and boots for the kids but I just couldn't bring myself to spend the money quite yet. We did get a couple of school shirts for Austin and Tom got new jeans, khakis, and a blazer. Of course, the kids spied the escalator right away and couldn't wait to ride it. Tom and I, of course, told them they would have to wait until we were done shopping so for the next half hour as we tried to quickly browse through the 2 levels of the store Austin kept informing me in a whiny voice, "mommy, you are the opposite of fun!" (Hmmm, maybe next time we could leave him in the van with Eddy.) While I took Lexi in the stroller down to the 1st floor on the elevator, Tom took Austin and Audrey down on the escalator. Have you ever see the movie Elf where Buddy takes his first escalator ride? He tries to step on but freaks out, when he finally gets on he ends up in the splits because the stairs are moving and he's doesn't know what to do with his feet? That was Audrey exactly. It was hilarious but once she got the hang of it we had to take several more trips.

We finally appeased Austin with a carousel ride and a quick look through the Disney store before heading to K-zoo to meet up with Micah and Lindsey. The plan was to meet at a cider mill and enjoy the fall afternoon. Tom had found a cider mill googling online but it turned out to be more of a road side stand with apples and pumpkins and less of an "attraction". We took a quick look around then decided to go in search of an orchard that offered a bit more of an "experience". We found a corner sign off the main road directing us to Ver Hage's cider mill. We got to see the donuts and cider being made as we stood in line to purchase our goodies. The kids were really mesmerized with the whole process because they had just seen the Curious George where George, trying to keep the apples away from Jumpy Squirrel, accidentally makes cider at an orchard. The workers at the orchard were literally making the cider and filling jugs as customers waited to buy it. It was so delicious, by far the best cider I have ever had! The kids took a turn jumping in the ginormous bouncy pumpkin and then we went back to Lindsey's before heading back home.

Regardless of what Austin may think, I personally feel our mini-vacation was the definition of fun. My opinion may change tomorrow, however, when my whole body will remind me of the "fun" I had.

You're My (Super)Heroes!!!

Overkill

Taking advantage of the beautiful weather yesterday, I vacuumed and cleaned out the van while the kids got some fresh air. With various week-old sippy cups, articles of clothing, shoes, trash and toys our van was smelling rather "pleasant" so I broke out some The Body Shop home fragrance oil. A nice pumpkin nectarine scent for the fall. I got some cotton face pads and liberally doused them in the scent before tucking them in discreet spots throughout the van.

With the heat going this morning on the way to school, our ride smelled like a homey candle shop and Austin noticed. "What's that smell?", he asked (neither a good nor a bad reaction). I explained to him what I had done and I thought that was the end of it until I arrived to pick him up after the end of his day. On average, we wait 20 minutes in the pick-up line every day as his teacher loads the students into their awaiting rides. As Austin finally climbed into the van he announced, "I could smell the van before I could see you!"

At least no one can accuse our van of smelling like a garbage dump!

The Cutest Thing

Overheard by Tom (why does he always hear the good stuff?)

Audrey to Austin: I'll be on your team because I like you and sometimes I snuggle you in bed.

Apparently they were preparing to play some sort of game or activity and Audrey thought it necessary to split into teams (though it was only the two of them). As a mom I live for these rare moments, when there's peace and love and all is well between brother and sister.

My Mantra

I refuse to dwell on the negative today. I will remain positive and upbeat. (Repeat. Repeat.) In an effort to do so I'm making myself list 10 things I'm loving right now, things I'm looking forward to, things that are making me laugh:

1. chai tea and meme bread (I thought I'd start out small)
2. Audrey sucking her thumb with her boo bunny
3. Lexi's little biscuits in her big girl underwear
4. Madagascar (the movie, not the island)
5. Seeing one of the senior girls at JCS on her "unicorn" (for spirit week) as I drove Austin to school this morning
6. clean laundry
7. vacuuming my living room
8. Reyna coming
9. eating dinner as a family
10. Audrey going to gymnastics tonite
11. spending time with Austin while Audrey is in gymnastics
12. going to work tonite (believe it, or not)
13. the beautiful sunshine

Wow, that was easier than I thought and I feel better already!=)

Playing Favorites

Anybody weird like me? Do you always order a certain drink with a certain meal? Without it your dining experience just wouldn't be the same? Take for instance Taco Bell. I always, always, always drink Dr. Pepper at the bell. Always. Until we happened to go to a Taco Bell far, far away from here and they didn't have Dr. P. Maybe they do things differently in that "neck of the woods". Anyways, I can't even remember what I ended up settling for, but it just wasn't the same. So, yeah, I'm weird. Here's some more favorites:

• Olive Garden: peach tea
• McD's: Hi-C orange
• Outback: coke with grenadine- if they try to slip me cherry coke I'll send it back
• Subway: wild cherry pepsi
• Knight's Steakhouse (our hangout for GNO's with my fave girlies): I'm starting to lean toward their margarita~ so good, so strong=)

Oh, and I always prefer Pepsi to Coke. Got any favorites?

Monday, Monday

Not a whole lot to post on tonite. A typical Monday. Austin had school. He came home with his first official homework assignment. An "All about Me " book due in a couple of weeks. Aside from what he has to include as his favorites and basic info, his teacher has pretty much given us free reign for the format and design of the project. I absolutely do not want to be one of those kind of mothers that takes over and does all of her child's work for him but I'm hoping maybe he'll be interested in doing it as a scrapbook style book~ maybe 8X8? I've got lots of ideas, but again, I don't want to force anything if he has his own plan.

Other than that, I've done 3 loads of laundry. I made an easy dinner and then we hit the trail for a quick walk/bike ride before bath time. The kids are in bed, Tom's off with his brother and I'm just enjoying the quiet before bedtime.

Happy fall, y'all!!! (today's the first day of autumn in case you didn't know;)

WHY?!?!

After you pray about something for forever (ok, slight exaggeration). Asking God for the right moment, the right opportunity. Telling yourself that when the time comes you'll have peace, you'll have words to say, everything will just fall into place because God has provided that exact moment. Why then, when God served me my moment tonite did I shove it back in His face and say, "no thanks!" Why? Because I'm a freaking idiot and I blew it again!

So Far...

... so good. Lindsey was absolutely beautiful last nite! As Miss Ann Arbor she was the first one out on the stage for both the swim wear and evening gown portions of the show. Her dress was a gorgeous shade of aqua with a high front slit and a small train. She carried herself with poise and grace. She was confident, but not overly so like some of the other girls strutting their stuff. I have NO pictures of the evening. Of course, there was no photography or video permitted and Lindsey was on a bus headed back to the hotel before some of the other contestants had even finished. She had her interview with the judges this morning and the big show is tonite at 8pm. All of the girls will do a dance number before they announce the top 15. Then the 15 will do the swim wear and evening gown again and then they will narrow it down to the top 5 who have the final on-stage question before they crown the Miss Michigan USA 2009. I have to work tonite so I'm going to try to get Micah to text me with updates throughout the evening and I'll post the outcome tomorrow.

Send Some Luck Her Way

So I' m off to the Miss Michigan USA pageant tonite. The winner, who will be crowned on Saturday, will go on to compete in the Miss USA pageant next year. What makes tonite so special is one contestant, Miss Lindsey Ann Wiley. Around here in Hosmerville, we simply refer to her as Winsey because she's my brother's girlfriend. I can't wait to see her tonite. She's got looks, she's got talent, and most importantly she's got the sweetest personality. How could she lose? ... not that I'm biased or anything=) Let's go Lindsey!!!

Playing Hooky

It's only the second week of school and Austin's already sick. His asthma flared up this week and last nite was pretty rough. I called the office to let them know he wouldn't be coming today. I think I'm more crushed than he is (only because now he has no chance at getting perfect attendance K-12). Ahh, the crazy hopes and dreams I have for my kids~ living vicariously through their little lives.=) Now we're just waiting for the doc to get back to the office from doing his hospital rounds. It's rainy and dreary~ a perfect day to lay low and chill. Maybe we'll swing by the library after Austin's appointment and check out some movies and come home to be lazy for the day.

Anyways, I'm a bit late on this one but I wanted to post about Austin's first day of school for memory's sake. He was so excited. The morning went well~ breakfast, getting dressed, loading the kids, and getting him to school on time. We walked in just as his teacher was leading all of the early arrivals from the gym down to the room. Austin jumped right into the back of the line. He was ready! I filmed him finding his coat hook for the first time and hanging up his back pack. I didn't realize it at the time but watching the video later, Austin hangs up his bag and marches right into his classroom, high fiving his teacher on the way in! No "good bye, mom" or anything *sniff, sniff* So as I sat watching my "footage" from the morning, I thought to myself~ wow! what a defining moment! My little man is off to conquer the world. Austin must have sensed the unspoken transition as he left his mommy's side and walked confidently into his classroom for the first time because he piped up from behind me, "and that's when I became a kindergartner!" *sniff, sniff, waahhh!!!*

The girls and I hung back and watched Austin through the big windows for a minute before joining him in the classroom. I helped him find his spot and took a couple of pictures. By that time other parents were saying their good byes and a couple of his classmates were starting to cry. I was worried for a split second that Austin would pick up on the tears, but no need to worry! Mommy was the only one with tears that morning. I asked Austin if he needed a kissing hand and when he told me no I held back my urge to ask him if I could have a kissing hand. I had to hunt down Audrey who was busy making new friends in the playhouse and headed out into the day to learn how to live my mornings without my baby Jamers by my side.

The morning went by quickly and we headed back to the school to pick Austin up. His teacher brought all of the kids out to the parking lot and loaded them into the waiting vehicles one by one. As Austin got settled and we drove away he exclaimed, "it's just like the drive-thru!" Yes, I'll have an Austin with a side of fries and a Pepsi, please!

Yeah, That Kind Of Morning...

Woke up late. 7:02, oh s*$%! Quickly gulp down my meds with a glass of water which gives me a full-blown stomach cramp (that lasts well into the afternoon.) Get Austin settled on the couch to wake up with some juice and cartoons and happen to peek out the window. The van is gone. Do a double take. Yup, the van's gone. Tom's car is still parked, he's at work... why the heck did he take the van!?! Call Tom at work.

me: TJ, why did you take the van? Don't you remember that Austin goes to school every day now?

Tom: I left the lights on in the cutty. The battery is completely dead. Wouldn't even start after I tried jumping it with the van. I'll come home as soon as Stu gets here. Austin doesn't start till 8:30 right?

me: No, he starts at 8:10 *sigh*

Ok, no big deal, Austin will be just a couple of minutes late. Waiting for Tom will help make up the lost time because I didn't get up. And being the stellar mom that I am, I washed an extra load of laundry so Audrey's favorite jeans were clean and ready, hopefully preventing a diva meltdown and ensuring a tear free morning. She's begged to wear her "heart jeans" all summer and I have put her off all summer as it has been way too hot. Just last week she got to wear them and was absolutely thrilled. I know it's worth the extra trip down to the basement to dry her beloved jeans (at 11pm last nite) because she'll be happy and make getting dressed an easy process. Except today. We're feelin' the love the whole time she's getting dressed. Get her settled with her juice and cartoons and head off to quickly dry my hair. Come out of the bathroom to find her pantless.

me: what's the matter, Audge?

Audrey: (starting to melt) my jeans are bodderin' me! I'm not gonna wear 'em!

She heads to her room and comes out with a pair of pink shorts. I ponder.... is it worth the fight?

me: whatever *sigh*

Go to get Lexi dressed. Her diaper is dry! Of course after holding it all nite she has to go potty. Heads to the bathroom to do her thing. Success! Collects a potty treat for her, Austin, and Audrey and heads out to the living room to pass out the jelly bellys (this bit of info is important, just wait.) Phone rings. It's Tom, he's on his way. School is starting right.... now! Ok, kids, head to the door lets get your shoes on. Audrey comes running towards me all panicked, seconds away from another meltdown.

me: what's wrong, Audge?

her: it's stuck in my nose!!! *wail*

me: what's stuck in your nose?

I get down to assess the situation and see only a bit of pink something crammed up in her left nostril. A really mammoth booger? A piece of fruit loop? (where the h$%* would she get fruit loops from?) A chunk of cherry kool-aid play dough that we made the other day? What?!?!

Audrey: my potty treat! *another wail*

me: (in my head) you've got to be frickin' kidding me! to the Audrey: I don't know, honey, I guess we'll just have to go see Dr. Rao. (Am I really gonna make my kid suffer for almost an hour with a jelly bean stuck up her nose?) No time to ponder.

Phone rings. Tom again. I just got frickin' pulled over so it'll be a while before I get home!

Back to Audrey. Just hold still!!! I squeeze down over the bridge of her nose. She pulls away. OWWW! I said hold still! Another squeeze. We're making progress. Pulls away again. It HURTS!!! Ok, one more big squeeze and out pops Audrey's pink potty treat already partially dissolved by her snot.

Tom pulls in the drive. Successfully jumps the cutty while I load the kids. Austin is 20 minutes late.

Yeah, that kind of morning.

The Summer Of The Garage Sale

We're on a mini family vacay this weekend. The kids and Tom are snoozing and I'm buzzing from a cup of coffee. I finally have a little downtime. No distractions... no dirty bathroom, no laundry, no bills, even finished the book I brought along to relax with... gotta catch up on the blog!

Wow!!! It's hard to believe summer's over and we're already a week into the school year. (I have pics of Austin's 1st day that I'll have to post later.) As for now, this is a run-down of our summer accomplishments:

• Put in a crude bridge to more easily access the Falling Waters trail from our backyard.
• Attempted to have a garage sale... 3 times. None were amazingly successful but overall we made about $1100.
• Found Tom's man's room again after garage sale #1. It was so nice to walk down into a clean and (somewhat) organized space.
• Converted the storage room in the basement into my very own scrapping room. I still need a new light or 2 for the space and I would love to paint it eventually, as well as get an area rug for the floor. Right now, think unfinished storage room with single light bulb hanging from ceiling. But at least it's a space for me to spread out and chill.
• Took in a couple of movies with the kids... Kit Kittridge, American Girl, Kung Fu Panda, and Horton Hears a Who.
• Helped plan my 10 year class reunion.
• Experienced the Jackson County fair.
• Celebrated Lexi's 2nd birthday.
• Potty trained Lexi.
• Went back-to-school shopping with Austin.
• Found the garage again after garage sale #3 last week and made the final 3 of 6 total packed out van trips to drop off the remainder of the sale items to Encore! the new resale shop on Wildwood.
• Took some of the better leftover kids' clothes to Clothing Carousel where they took them in on consignment for 3 months and also agreed to take my crib and changing table (the 2 big items I was hoping to sell... but didn't).
• Restained the back deck and painted our fading ugly brown back garage door and dining room deck doors a creamy white.

Looks like some of our summer to-do list will carry over into the fall. We still need to:

• Clean out the landscaping around the sides and back of the house.
• Finish the steps down to our trail bridge.
• Put away all of the summer yard toys and deck furniture.
• Rearrange the furniture in Tom's man's room to make way for the air hockey table.
• Move the air hockey table out of the dining room (where it's been for the past 2 months) down into the man's room.
• Go through the kids' closets and make way for their fall/winter clothes.

Did you enjoy your summer as much as I did mine?

Overheard By Tom

the scene: Greenfield Village, lunchtime

the actors: Austin and his 6 year old cousin Anna

the props: "hobo lunches", a Greenfield Village specialty- pbj, string cheese, raisins, and applesauce all wrapped up in a bandanna with a stick, hobo style.

The scene begins with Austin and Anna sword fighting with their sticks, both have their bandannas tied around their necks like capes.

Anna: If a bad guy comes you kick him in the stones. Do you know what the "stones" are, Austin?

Anna: Another word for the "canolis". (spelling?)

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a short while later....

Austin and Anna are running down by the lagoon. Still playing "get-the-bad-guys-with-the-swords".

Austin: Anna, we've gotta hit the bad guys in the "rocks"!

Anna: No, Austin, it's the stones!

A Little Cup Of Black Magic

Leslie is always raving about Tim Horton's coffee but I had yet to experience it for myself... until yesterday. Leslie came to pick Reyna up bearing gifts of caffeine and sugar. The kids went for the donut holes while I enjoyed my fresh cup of coffee. I was starting to feel a mid-afternoon slump coming on, so it was perfect!

After Leslie left I took the kids into Austin's room to conquer it (but probably not once and for all). Getting his room picked up has been on my to-do list for weeks now. Every nite I tell Austin that we'll to get to his room the next day and the next day comes and goes and it still doesn't get done. So whatever was in that cup that Leslie brought me was pure magic because his room FINALLY is clean!!!

I worked late last nite and as the kids dragged my butt out of bed this morning I was wishing for a refill. We have a fun-filled day today. Austin is headed to Fun 4 All this morning for a friend's birthday and then we're off to do a bit of school shopping. Our schedule is just not allowing for the fun little date that Tom and I had wanted to do with him so I'm braving Target for an extended shopping trip with him and both of the girls. But what's really getting me thru my day is where I'm headed tonite... Archivers. I've heard that this is a scrapper's heaven on earth. I missed out on the last girls' nite out but I'm soooo there tonite. I'm really behind on our family book (almost 2 years... yikes!) So I'm hoping to get several pages done tonite. I'm so stinkin' excited!

Dentists & X-Rays, Doctors & Pokes

Yesterday I took Austin and Audrey to the dentist for their check up. It had been a whole year since their last visit. At that time, Audrey was barely 2 1/2 so she had only done a "lap visit" where she sat on my lap and the hygienist kinda poked around for her to simply get used to the whole concept. I happened to catch her at a bad moment when I casually mentioned that she would be going to the dentist this week and her diva mode kicked in. Being Mr. Big Brother, Austin also informed her that she might be getting a shot. Thank you, Austin. I shrugged it off knowing (hoping) that when we got there she'd get caught up in the "excitement" and everything would be fine. And sure enough it was. We go to a great pediatric dentist in town so they really cater to the kids~ goody bags with toothbrushes, toothpaste, mini floss, stickers, and a special prize from the treasure chest after their cleanings.

Audrey settled in to her chair and as the hygienist raised it up and tilted it backwards her whole face lit up like she was on a thrill ride at the fair. Austin was ushered into his own room and when I peeked in on him later he was sitting there with those horrible foam mouth trays full of fluoride with the sucker tube stuck between them. They always made me gag but he was sitting there like a champ. Neither of the kids had cavities (big sigh of relief)! Ok, quick mommy confession. When I'm doing bedtime with the kids, if I'm super tired or my patience is short or one of the kids is melting down tooth brushing is the first thing we skip. I was honestly expecting and dreading to hear the c-word from the dentist. For whatever reason brushing teeth is the most dreaded part of the nite time routine for me to do with them. It couldn't possibly be because they're fighting over who gets to stand on the stool first, and splashing water and getting their jammies wet and Lexi REFUSES to let me help her. I don't know. Anyways, the kids are cavity free and slacker mom is more resolved to do better now.

Today we took Lexi in for her 2 year check up. For being so mellow and laid back all the time, she is quite the little drama queen in the doctor's office. Cried when I had to take her "pitty dess" (pretty dress) off. Cried on the scale (what girl wouldn't?) Cried on the exam table. Cried in my arms. But overall, a clean bill of health. She's still long and lean. The 25th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height. Everyone got stickers and gum and then it was off to O' Donalds for breakfast where Austin wanted "cheese and egg on his hamburger". Any guess to what he wanted? An egg McMuffin. I love the way kids think!

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!

It was 2 years ago today we met you for the first time, and it was love at first sight! I can't believe my baby is 2 already!

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Time will change you beyond imagination; for now I hold you close as though time does not exist.

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One Tired Momma

Last nite I started working third shift. I do bulk foods every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday and it occurred to me awhile back that maybe it didn't matter when I got my work done (because this is a one person job) as long as it just got done. So I tossed out the idea to my boss for me to come in at 10 on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. My reasoning is that I'll have the evenings with the kids and Tom can focus on his schoolwork. (Hopefully) I'll be able to establish a consistent bedtime routine and have them snugly tucked into bed and snoozing before I head to work. I miss out on sleep, but they're not missing out on "mommy time". Plus, Austin is starting school in 2 weeks and I have got to get him on an earlier to bed/ earlier to rise sleep schedule.

My biggest worry is getting up to 3 kids (and having to get one to school on time) after only getting 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I'm a nite owl and really don't start to feel like I'm fully functioning until about 10am and 2 cups of coffee. To reassure myself that 2 late nites a week is really no big deal I keep telling myself that sleep is highly overrated. We'll see if this bit of psychology really works.

So last nite was my first try and I really liked it. Audrey spent the nite with her cousin Katy at grandma h's so having only 2 to put down helped ease the transition some. I figured I needed to start bedtime by 7:15 to have them ready for lights out by 9. We did bathtime, jammies, snacks, teeth brushing, and books and I put them to bed. That gave me a half hour to clean up the kitchen and the living room so my house was ready for the next day, too- bonus!!! The only negative was that the kids weren't sleeping before I left but I think within a couple of weeks they'll get used to the earlier bedtime and start nodding off sooner. It was funny because I hadn't told the kids about my new schedule so when I went in to tell Austin goodnite and I was dressed in my uniform, he was a bit confused.

AJ: are you gonna sleep in that?

me: no, I'm going to work.

AJ: are you going to sleep at work?

me: no, I'm going to work at work. I'm going to work while you're sleeping and I'll be home before you wake up in the morning.

AJ: oh, so you're going to be nocturnal. (He loves using that word.)

I headed off to work, but not before stopping to get my caffeine fix at McD's. I was a little unsure about working 3rd because I see the people on that shift punching in as I'm usually punching out. It takes a "special" person to work this shift and, let me tell you, the group I see isn't exactly the friendliest bunch. I needn't have worried. There is no 3rd shift for produce/bakery/deli so I was the only soul around. Every once in a while I'd see a straggling shopper go thru. I assisted one customer at the beginning of the nite and then worked completely uninterrupted. I felt like I got a lot accomplished and it was nice to have a renewed focus on my tasks. Hah!- listen to me talk like stocking bulk food bins is a highly important job!

Austin and Lexi both woke up around 8:45 and I conned them in to letting me have another 15 minutes before I had to get up. Surprisingly, it wasn't that hard to do and I'm looking forward to doing it again on Thursday nite. I'm sure I'm in the honeymoon phase but hopefully by the time the love wears thin it'll be a habit I've adjusted to.

The rest of the day went well but then I gave in to temptation and invited Cinderella to babysit the girls while Austin played cars. With their attention diverted, I crashed on the living room floor and woke up to find both Lexi and Audrey snoozing. That is the biggest no-no in Hosmerville right now: do NOT let the girls take a nap because if you do you will pay for it in the form of an overly long, drawn out, I'm-not-tired-so-I-can't-fall-asleep marathon bedtime. Next time I'll remind myself that sleep is overrated but the refreshing nap was worth the later/longer bedtime tonite.