during my spare time

I'm excited to announce the birth of my newest blog!! During My Spare Time was created out of the need for a suitable place to showcase all my fun, crafty, time-consuming projects. I thought long & hard about this & wondered how on God's green earth can I possibly keep up with 3 blogs. Well, I don't know that I can but I will sure as heck try my hardest. Wish me luck & check on me often, I may be drowning over here. Thanks for the support & you are more than welcome to click to become a follower! Much love to ya'!

ten things about me

*I wanted to preface this post with a small side note. I totally found this as a myspace bulletin, you know, one of those "quizzes" that someone starts & a million different people copy & paste with their own answers. Yeah, except I thought it would make a WONDERFUL post on the blog since I haven't done one of those in a REALLY long time.

TEN things you wish you could say to TEN DIFFERENT people.
Don’t name the person:
1. goodbye.
2. goodbye.
3. goodbye.
4. goodbye.
5. goodbye.
6. Grow up & take care of your responsibilities.
7. For the love of God, GROW UP! We shouldn't have to be parenting you.
8. Thank you for all your sacrifices, I appreciate them now more than ever.
9. I'm so happy that we've gotten to know each other so well over the past year. You've been a life saver.
10. I love you & can't imagine life without you.


NINE things about yourself:
1. I am a Christian, first & foremost.
2. I am a mom.
3. I over analyse everything.
4. I take things very personal.
5. I am a bit of a perfectionist.
6. I hold grudges.
7. I have a pretty good memory.
8. I procrastinate, a lot!
9. I hate to cook but love to bake.



EIGHT ways to win my heart:
1. be good with/to my kids.
2. talk TO me, not DOWN to me.
3. remember the little things.
4. gossip with me.
5. make me a top priority.
6. love me unconditionally.
7. be a good friend.
8. be my cheerleader, but not in a super cheesy way.


SEVEN things you wish you never did:
1. lied to myself for so long.
2. spend so much money on stupid **** in the past.
3. quit college (the first time).
4. quit college (the second time).
5. gained so much weight.
6. trusted the wrong people.
7. try to change myself to fit in where I didn't belong.


SIX things that cross your mind a lot:
1. my kids. (bad things happen when they get quiet)
2. my husband. (especially when he's driving home)
3. bills.
4. money.
5. plans for the upcoming weekend.
6. what could have been.


FIVE turn offs:
1. secrets.
2. lies.
3. poor hygiene.
4. double standards.
5. treating mine or any kids badly.



FOUR turn ons:
1. honesty.
2. love of family.
3. personality.
4. a captivating smile.

THREE words that describe your life:
1. chaotic.
2. happy.
3. full.


TWO things you want to do before you die:
1. finish college.
2. meet my grandkids (I want to fill their heads with stories about their daddys!)


ONE confession:
1. I love Texas & being close to family but I would love, love, love to move back to Los Alamos.

New Post

Okay, I've got to be offically the worst blogger in the history of blogging! I am so utterly neglectful. I could come up with about a thousand excuses as to WHY I haven't been blogging but really who would believe me. I COULD tell you that I've been cleaning my house like crazy or that because of the Christmas holiday & such that I was taking a break from blogging. But no, I won't lie to you, my loyal readers (you know who you are). I have just not made the time to sit down & write about anything. And don't think I don't a few things to write about (we just bought a new house!!), I just haven't made the time to do it. So forgive me, I will try to get better. So, on to why I started this post to begin with...

I sometimes wonder what would bring such a random person to my lil ol' blog. I don't have ads on my page, I'm not part of Blogher or any blogging groups, it's just me, myself & I. Sometimes I post rants, sometimes raves but mostly what is on my mind at the time. Well, I did a little research & found a couple of searches that brought some of the random folks to my site. The top three searches :

1. photobucket quotes. amazingly that was the most popular search, I just had no idea that the Random Quotes from Photobucket post would be so popular.

2. childhood cancer. one word: heartbreaking. I'm really at a loss for words when it comes to this one. I've got a very dear friend who's son is fighting this & I cannot even begin to imagine all that they have been through over the last two years. The fighting childhood cancer post makes me cry everytime I read it.

3. funny phone numbers to call. Ok, that one was pretty funny, I gave the Hubby hell for about a week afterwards. Funny thing about the funny phone call post is that 3 different people from 3 different parts of the country all googled the phrase 'funny phone numbers to call' & ended up at my lil ol' blog. Sorry folks, wrong number.

snaps to snapfish.com

I had to do a second post today because I had to send out major props to Snapfish.com. I am absolutley love, love, LOVING this website right now!!!


Background story: I ordered some really cute picture Christmas cards & some collage prints a few weeks back & sat back & waited in anticipation for them to arrive. Well the cards came in the day before Thanksgiving so I waited, waited & waited some more for the prints. All the while getting VERRY antsy, I'm not the most patient person. Anyways, I thought for sure I would see them in my mailbox by this last Thursday (a week after Thanksgiving) & no such luck. So I called the customer service, spoke to a very nice man on the phone. He told me they would re-print the prints & rush them to me at no cost. Okay. Now I'm figuring I would see them by Wednesday at the earliest & to my surprise they were in the mailbox today!!!!! I am so freakin' excited about these pictures. I'm giving them to the grandparents for Christmas & they turned out to be the cutest things ever!


So, much love to Snapfish.com!!! I highly recommend them for all your printing needs!* (my celebrity endorsment)

See for yourself, so worth the wait!

oh, the pain!!

You know it's gonna be a bad day when...you wake up in the morning with a MASSIVE, life altering, right eye blinding headache. It doesn't make anything better when no amount of Aleve, Ibuprofen, or Tylenol will put a dent in the pain. And no Aspirin either, unless I really just wanna ralph up all that Special K w/ Strawberries cereal I managed to get down this morning. Someone, anyone, please shoot me. Aim for the head please!

the magic number

I don't typically include my age in any of my blogs, not because of vanity but because I just don't think much about it. When asked how old I am, I usually have to pause & think about it for a second. I live by the philosophy that you're only as old as you feel & I still feel pretty darn young.

Well, I turned 30 earlier this year (September, to be exact) & had my first doctor's appointment today since turning the big 3-0. Yes, it was THAT appointment, the one every woman dreads but a very important one that every woman needs. I was dreading this one a little more than normal since I wasn't seeing my usual doc. Long story short, I needed to make this appointment for a specific time & day & my doc wasn't available so I going to see one of his associates. (Yes, I said his. You 'd have to meet him to understand.) Weeeell, this appointment was just full of not so much fun. Apparently I have gained more weight than I thought (boo!), my blood pressure is a little higher than normal & I guess 30 is the magic number to start checking cholesterol!! In other words, blood work. In other words, needle. And I HATE needles!!! I don't expect to be getting any bad news from this appointment but I'll know next week if I get a phone call from the doc's office.

One good thing did come from this visit. An undeniable number staring me in the face. I've got to loose weight. I've got to do something to get healthier. Hula hoop on Wii Fit anyone? (I promise you'll look as silly as I do.)

all day

The hubby asked me recently what I do all day & why I can't get such & such done (along w/ all the other things I do). Well Hubby this one's for you.

• 5:30 am: drag out of the super warm bed to get hubby off to work, make sure he's got all his stuff (cell, keys, pen, paperwork, etc. 'cause I sure don't want to drive 2 hrs because something got left)
• 6:00 am: snuggle up on the couch to watch the news before the kiddos get up.
• 7:00 am: rise & shine (I was only checking for holes in my eyelids, i swear). the boys are up & they are STARVING!! the big one chants, "mama, i'm hungry!", while the little one walks around smacking & saying "mor". (BTW 'mor' is the word he uses for both food & drink & also one of the only words he can say clearly.)
• ok, breakfast is done, the boys & the kitchen are straightened up & around 9:00/9:30 am: like clockwork, everyday the little one will have gone off to the corner for his daily constitutional. must change that one quickly, the smell is enough to kill.
• sometime between 10:00 & 11:00 the little one will need to lay down for a morning nap. you'll know it's time when he wants to be cuddly & won't let you out of his sight.
• meanwhile the big one has covered the living room floor w/ approximately 500 toys, asked approximately 4 million questions, asked for the tv to be paused/restarted 30 times, & gone in & out about 5 times. (that one has to be stopped, little brother will have a close call with his fingers & the front door.) the big one will stay outside to dig holes in the yard until lunchtime.
• speaking of lunch, it's almost that time. hopefully the baby went down for a nap & a load or 10 can get started in the washer. if he didn't go down expect to have a cranky little boy following you/holding your leg as you walk around the house.
• uh-oh, the big one is back inside chanting, "mama, i'm hungry" again, must be lunchtime. regardless of whether the baby is asleep or not, get in the kitchen to make food & he's awake. must be sure to make his food first, otherwise he's climbing on brother to get to brother's food, then starts the squealing & the whines.
• after lunch argue with the big one to pick up some of his toys, he got them out, he can put them up. watch, i mean referee, as the boys play while i take a break & catch up on blogs, post an update on twitter, & maybe post a blog myself.
• oh crap, the clothes in the washer are done, break is over.
• little one is getting cuddly/cranky again time for the nap time fight to begin.
• once the little one is down then the housework can begin again. (notice there are no more mentions of time?) the kitchen, the living room, the bedroom all need to be cleaned & the laundry needs to be washed, folded/hung up & put away.
• still fielding about a million questions an hour from the big one.
• by now it's almost 4:30, just about time for the hubby to arrive, make mad dash to try to get house finished or face "the look" & the question, "what did you do all day?" (jackass).
• but don't you worry, just cause the hubby is home my day does not end.
• oh no, dinner still has to be made, the rugrats need baths, the living room needs to be picked up AGAIN, & i am in desperate need of a shower, a shot & some sleep. but first the kids have to be put to bed & maybe have some cuddle time with the hubby. now my day is done.

And honey, that is my day. But this is really only a glimpse at a single day at home. This does not include the days when we have to run errands, have doctor's appointments, etc. This also doesn't account for the number of times i have told the kids to quit, stop it, be careful, no hitting, no spitting, what's the matter?, what are ya'll doing?, don't do that , get that out of your mouth, pick that up, gross, throw that way, dude, chill, quit holding yourself & go pee pee in the bathroom... you get the picture. Also, I've never counted, but my most educated guess would be that by the end of the day the big one has asked about 10 million DIFFERENT questions & I have answered each and every one of them TWICE! And if he's not asking how or why, he's asking to play video games. (Darn you Playstation 3 & Nintendo Wii) Oh yeah, I almost forgot, sometime in all the craziness that is my day I in have to carve out time to work with the big one on his ABC's & 123's. Remember he starts school in only 9 months & I keep hearing (in my head) a kindergarten teacher friend of mine talking about how they can always tell which kids stayed home with a parent. (Was that a dig against daycare or parents that stay home?) So honey, next time you ask me what I've done all day I will gladly refer you to this post as I cannot possibly recite all of this all over again. Love you!