laugh....

i needed a good laugh today....

the last few days have been really hard for me...

i am missing my husband something fierce and well, to be honest, it's got me in a rut....which is a place that i do not often visit...

and then we went to soccer practice and of course i took pictures...

and i saw this...

and i laughed until i literally had tears streaming down my face...i am actually still laughing...

this child of mine can turn my darkest days around...

the things she says...like tonight for instance "why do i have to take the ball away from the other kids, that's not nice"

the things she does....

like the time she "forgot" to put her panties on while dressing herself one morning...off we went to drop avery off at school and then we were off to the gym...not until i was finished with my two hour work out and i she was laying on the floor for me to put her tennis shoes on did i actually SEE that she was showing her girly goodies to the entire gym day care....i still laugh (to myself of course when i think about that)

her facial expressions...revert back to picture one again...it says it all!!!!

i thank God for her everyday....that He would put someone so very special in my life...

she is so very special to me....

she is my heart, my love

and can turn my frown upside down any day!!!

happy hump day friends.................GO VIPERS!!!

x's & o's
~r~

happy birthday mom

the relationship between my mom and i is very special, and that is the truth.

my mom means the world to me....

from birth she has been my protector, my nourisher and has bestowed upon me an abundance of love and care....

she has sacrificed many things in life to give the best to me, my sister and my brother...

thank you mom for all of the unconditional love that you have given me

thank you mom for all the pain and sacrifice it took to raise me to be the person i am today...

thank you for forgiving me when i was wrong....

thank you for your unconditional love....

thank you for holding me and standing by me when it felt as though the whole world condemned me for the choices i made and the roads i took...whether they be the right ones or wrong ones...i could and still can count on you to be there...holding me...standing by my side....

thank you for being by my side when i needed you and when i thought that i didn't need you...

thank you for creating memories with me that i will remember forever and always....

your love for me is something that will never be able to be explained with words...

your love is endless and unselfish and enduring......

even when your heart was broken only the way a mothers heart can break for her child your love has never failed or faltered.....

without you i would not have achieved what i have achieved.....

without you i would not be the mother that i have become....

you my mother have taught me to fly...to achieve things and become things you dreamed of for yourself but were not sure how or if you could obtain them....for that i am forever grateful...

you my mother, are the most beautiful woman i have ever seen....

all i am i owe to you.....

you my dear mother, you are the truest friend i will ever have....

i thank my lucky stars for everything you have ever given me, but mostly for the unconditional love that that you give, never skipping a beat.....

i hope that your 60th birthday was bigger and better than you could have ever imagined or dreamed that it would be....

i hope that the memories that we created for you will stay with you forever just as the memories that you created for me through my life i still hold very close to my heart....

i love you forever and always mom.....happy happy birthday!!!

x's & o's
~r~

i'm sorry

i'm going to be straight forward....

i lose my patience with my girls sometimes...lately it's becoming more frequently and for silly things. often i am cynical, or short, or downright impatient and mean.

i lose it and i raise my voice. closing my eyes and counting to ten sometimes just doesn't work.

i am not the type of mommy that will tell you i have never raised my voice at my children.

as soon as i do a little piece of me dies inside...i look into their eyes and i cringe when i see fear. i never want my children to fear me.

as soon as i raise my voice i wish i hadn't...but you can't undo the already done.

i wish i were the woman with the kind words and gentle touch at all times. the woman with the mild temperament and the gentle but firm tone at all times.

but i'm not.

i know it's about tone. i have taken several child psychology classes and have read dr. dobson's books on parenting...i know it's about the tone, not the volume of the voice.

but sometimes i still lose it. sometimes i can't stop it.

it's hard. it's hard when the other parent is thousands of miles away and everything goes wrong at the same time. like when the sink in the kitchen is over flowing, the toilet is stopped up because one of the darling dears put a bouncey ball from old navy in it, the phone is ringing, there is marker on big baby (adilyn's favorite doll) and i just dropped the canister with 5 pounds of fine grain sugar in it all over my kitchen floor that i had just mopped and swept.

oh did i scream. i stood in the middle of the living room feeling lost and hopeless and helpless and aggravated and just defeated and just let out a scream.

and it felt good. it felt so good.

and then i glance over and see my girls staring at me with wide eyes and silent mouths.

and then i felt bad. felt bad that i lost it. right there in the middle of my living room.

oh i scooped them up and told them i was having a bad day...told them i was sorry and that i loved them more than anything....

the lesson...my children learning that parents aren't perfect. that we make mistakes and we have bad days and we occasionally lose it...and it's ok...because it would be a bigger travesty for my children to grow up thinking that mommy is perfect..because i am not. i make mistakes. we all make mistakes and teaching my children that it is ok to make mistakes and to say "i'm sorry" is an important life lesson.

i know that i will yell again. and i know that when i do i will feel horrible and i will wish i hadn't done it.

but i will never. EVER. be too big of a person or too proud to get down and look my girls in their eyes and tell them that i am so sorry. and hug them and love on them.

happy monday friends

x's & o's
~r~

she titillates me

she has since birth....i believe she always will....

with her big heart, few words, beautiful eyes, caring soul.

she tickles me with the things she says.

right now she calls licking "icking", vitamins "mightymens", coke "coke-coke", tea "tea-tea", avery "avwey", oh i could go on...i could listen to my sweet girl for hours. the way she says things just slays me.

she is adamant, stubborn, easily heart-broken, sensitive, a girl of few words, a tad bit bossy, painfully shy.

she wears her heart on her sleeve and is not afraid to show you her emotions.

it takes her time to warm up to you but when she does, her heart she gives you forever.

she gives the biggest and best hugs that have turned my mood around on more than one occasion.

she is a snuggler and a cuddler...her favorite spot right now is curled up in a ball on my lap...and to be honest....i do not mind one bit.

she is doing well in school. loves her teacher. could do without the "noisy kids" (her words, not mine). is recognizing the majority of the alphabet and her numbers. loves spending time at part day pre-school and learning lots. she is smart this one, maybe too smart for her own good.

she is starting to toy with the idea of challenging me, showing a bit of her sassy side...i got her number on speed dial though.

this one. she thinks she's tough, hard core and all that. but the moment that she gets scared, hurt or just feels bad she comes running to me, her safe place to fall.

she is so particular in everything that she does. everything!

she is my little mimic. she "sews" when i sew, "talks on the phone" when i'm on the phone, does her "business" on the computer when i am dealing with my business on the computer. everything i do she does, she flatters me, she really does.

she takes "big baby" with her everywhere we go. more times than not "big baby" has to stay in the car as i am a little embarrassed by how she looks. (the girls decided they needed to pull out her eyelashes over one eye and write all over her with pen and try as i might i can't get it off).

she loves pretending. dancing. singing. and dress-up. (as long as she can do it undetected....this one will never yearn to be in the spotlight, she's more of a behind the scenes type of girl!)

she is trying to be more independent everyday, i'm not sure how i fell about that or if i am ready for that.

she is a delight.

she is my heart.

this kid and i....we have a special bond.

and i really, honestly don't' understand how there was life...real heart-breaking, gut wrenching, scared out of your wits, the feeling of responsibility and being held accountable, laugh until you pee your pants, gut wrenching life....before my girls came along .

*i want to thank the amazing Audrey Coley...she is an amazing photographer (she did all of the pictures above as well as so many more of the girls i have and is collaborating on a new project with me)...an amazing friend....inspirational....feeds my creative side...you are wonderful dear friend. Thank you so much for being in my life*

have a wonderful thursday dear friends

x's & o's
~r~

the knock

i never thought that i would be scared of a knock on the door...not just scared but petrified....

but i am...and last night i found out just how terror-stricken i would be from something as simple as a knock on the door...

i went to bed as usual last night...i was able to talk to colby on the phone for a bit....we chatted about our day, the girls, what we want to do when he gets home....just our usual conversation...he said good night...i told him good morning and then off i went to bed.....

i was awoke by a knock...let me rephrase that...i woke up to what sounded like someone beating my door down...

not a simple knock...not a knock of authority...but a knock that demanded that i rip myself from blissful slumber....

i somewhat staggered, somewhat threw myself out of my bed trying to get my barrings about me...trying to shake the sleep from my head and to rationalize what is playing out before me...

everything that happens next felt as though i was watching a movie being played in slow motion....i know in my head that it was only a few brief moments, but it felt like a lifetime

as i raced down the hall i made a mental note that both of the doors to my children's room were closed just as they were when i went to bed....

i hear the beating on the door again as i approach the top of the stairs....

at the top of the stairs there is a window....somehow, someway i had enough sense about me to peer out of the window to make sure that we would not be in eminent danger by me going down the stairs to try and figure out who is beating my door in....

all time stops at the sight before me as i am looking through the slats in the blinds....

there are a multitude of law enforcement vehicles, marked and unmarked....

my heart feels as though it stops for a moment...

my hands start to shake.....

my mind is going a million miles a minute playing through all of the scenarios as to why this is happening....and i keep going back to the only thing that i can logically think of....something has happened to my husband...why else would this scene be playing out before my eyes....

i want to wake up from this dream...i don't want this to be happening...

i don't cry...i think at this point i am too numb to cry...

now i am not as anxious to get down the stairs....

maybe if i don't answer the door they will go away and i won't be delivered news that will forever change my life, my girls life....our lives as we know them....

i finally scrounge up enough courage to make my way down the 14 stairs and put my hand on the lock above the door knob....

the door unlocks....

as soon as i open the door i am immediately bombarded with flashlights....

surely this is not how they give a death notification....scaring the bejeebeez's out of someone by the "knocking" on the door and then assaulting them with flashlights to the eyes...this can't be right....

i was asked to step outside...so here i am in my pajamas...hair looking a hot mess...standing outside with no shoes on (thank the Lord it wasn't cold out there and that i do sleep with clothing on) in front of about 6 military police officers....

i can not see their faces because i have been blinded by what seems to have been 100,000 watts of light coming from their flashlights....

i put my hand up to shield my eyes and seeing that the pajama clad chick poses no threat they put away their flashlights and ask me if everything is ok....

really...ummmm...no...you scared the living s*** out of me...no, i'm not ok...no everything is not alright....

after a brief conversation with these officers i learn that there was a 911 call in for a domestic dispute but there was no specific housing unit given, only a building number so they were questioning everyone in the building...

i felt like hugging each and everyone of those men who were looking at me...it wasn't about my husband...he was ok...he was safe...he was alive....

but for a moment in time i felt terror...fear...horror and so many more emotions that even now it is hard to wrap my head around them....

what if that knock had not been for a domestic dispute...what if something had happened to colby.....

so tonight...give your spouse an extra hug...hold them tight....act as though you do not want to let go...my heart goes out to anyone who has ever had "that" knock at their door...

x's & o's
~r~

fall

my favorite time of the year....

the colorful leaves....i love taking drives and soaking in all of the brilliant reds, oranges and browns....it is just breathtaking and i am always in awe at the beauty...

chilly nights....the kind where you sit outside with friends or loved ones and huddle together by a fire...or leave the windows cracked open and pile on the blankets in bed...create a cozy cocoon....

the bluest skies...when the summer haze clears out, the sky deepens and brightens to a limitless blue...i could get lost in a fall blue sky...

afternoon light....when the sun rides close to the horizon and the light slants in from the side, the trees blaze. i love that light, even though it means it will be night soon...

the smell of wood smoke...for some reason i find that smell very soothing....

hot apple cider...it's about the ONLY thing hot that i will drink....

halloween...that goes without saying as it is my favorite holiday of the entire year...i love absolutely everything about halloween....

sweats and hoodies and socks...the long fuzzy knee socks that are bright in color....fall clothes are so comfortable...and it's the perfect time for layers...no need for a coat quite yet...

pumpkin patches and hay rides....nothing like taking a hay ride through a pumpkin patch with your children...the giggles, the excitement the nip in the air...

breaking out the crockpot or the big soup pot and finding new recipes for hearty soups and stews....have them cook all day and the aromas in the house are just scrumptious....


i can't wait for fall...the cool breezes that make the fallen leaves dance....the cool temperatures...the pumpkin picking...the corn mazes...bon fires....the smells....oh i can't wait...can you?

happy monday all

x's & o's
~r~

soc-who?

a month ago avery asked if she could sign up to play soccer this year....adilyn's response...

"sock - who....who are you going to sock sissy?"

i hurriedly explained to her that it was a game and of course the next words out of her mouth were "i wanna sock her too mommy".....soooooo i signed both girls up for soccer....

avery has yet to start....her first practice is next week...adilyn started this week and OH MY GOODNESS....if you want/need a good laugh my suggestion to you is to watch a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds run around on the field for an hour.....it is roll on the ground funny...even avery didn't get bored watching!!

a little side note...i was very upset with myself for not checking the charge on my camera battery...i get to the field and after the first ten minutes the camera decided it needed a nap...boooooooooooooooo!!

so we start with some sit-ups....she wasn't too enthused about these...

can you see the enthusiasm in her face about the sit-ups...i don't blame her....that's how i look when my gym nazi christina told me to come up with a new ab routine....i think the face below is the exact face i gave her!!!

on to running in place....this seemed to be more her cup of tea...after all, she HAD to run up and down the isles of target with her cleats on to prove to me that they make her go "supa fast"

then we move onto every body's favorite....jumping jacks....or more like jump up and down...wave your hands in the air and then throw in a few claps for good measure....

warm-up is over...team stands in a circle and discuss what is next on the agenda........(please make a note that adilyn has the same problem her mamma does....poor girl is always having to hike up her pants....not sure why...we both have plenty of junk in our trunks but the pants just do not seem to stay where they are supposed to)

SNACK TIME....and they all come running....all 5 of them!!!! 4 little boys just as cute as can be and my baby girl....the boys on the team already love her...this one...i tell you she is going to have every male around her wrapped around her little finger....she is trouble i tell you!!

just look at those sweet sweet little shin guards...and the cleats...cutest things EVER....i mean come on....white and pink soccer socks....white and pink shin guards....black super little, super cute cleats with pink trim....the only thing that could possibly be better than this if they were trimmed in purple!!!!!!!!!!

boy was she ever ready for her break...and this was just after 15 minutes of warm-up..in her defense it was hot with no breeze...i am looking forward to the cooler days...oh how i am longing for those cooler days!!!

i tell you...that coach....a daddy of one of the little boys on the team and also a solider....he deserves some type of award for taking on coaching 3 and 4 year olds....i tell you...it's like herding a bunch of bouncing tiggers....they are all bouncing in different directions all at the same time...if it were me i would probably have a flask of something hidden in the cooler just to get through an hour practice....hysterical i tell you!!!

notice the pose....this was how she stood when she wasn't kicking the ball...when she wasn't kicking the ball...when she was running after the ball...when she was being the goalie....

i asked her after practice why she always had her hands on her head....her response...

"mommy...coach said i can't touch the ball...so i stuck my hands on my head to mind (remind) me not to touch it.....i don't want to get in trouble!" she is SO her mother's child!!!

and yes...those are matching pink bows she is wearing.....

everything is better when it's done with bows.....didn't you know that??!!?!?!

happy sunday friends

x's & o's
~r~

proud

that is what i am.....

so very proud that i have the privilege to call her my daughter...

today was her very first spelling test......E V E R....

we studied....boy did we study.....every morning at breakfast she pulled out a piece of paper and i would call out the words from the kitchen as i was making her lunch for school....and then again every afternoon when she got home from school we would do it again....

i didn't have to push or badger her to study...she took the initiative......so i took her cue and we studied....wrote the words carefully...spelled them together....found them in books we were reading...and all the while i would just sit back and look at her in amazement...when did my baby grow up....when did she become such a little lady????

i wanted her to do well because she wanted to do well...not because i want her to be perfect....not because i am going to be "one of those moms"

and it paid off....

she came running down the hill with a peice of paper in her hand shouting "guess what mommy, guess what?" over and over all the while trying to hide her excitement so i could guess while she was so excited.....

i played along with a sly smile on my face....gave a few guesses....

"did you get picked to read allowed?"

"did you get your favorite snack in your lunch?"

"did you get to be the paper passer outter?'"

"no mommy" she replied..... "i did it mommy....i did it!!!!"

and that is what she did...she did it....she spelled all of her words correctly....to include the 3 bonus words.....

i gathered her in my arms and gave her a huge hug and told her that i was over the moon proud of her and that her daddy was going to be just as proud when i tell him....

we celebrated with sharing a root beer and a few cookies and then off we went to pick up adilyn from part day pre-school....

my hope for her is that she continues to have such a passion for learning and a thirst for knowledge....that she finds things that interests her and peaks her interests...which right now happen to be all things science and art....

i do not have the expectation for my children to be perfect....i want them to do their best even if their best is not perfect....no one is perfect and before avery hopped out of the car this morning as i was dropping her off i told her even if she doesn't get them all right as long as she does her very best i will be proud of her....

that child of mine does not need any added pressure from mamma......she puts plenty of pressure on herself to excel...that is just who she is...guess she did pick up a few traits from her good ol' mamma!!!

happy friday friends

x's & o's
~r~

gotta minute.....

someone asked me today if i had a minute....here is what ran through my head.....now take a deep deep D E E P breath....

try new shampoo. make avery's lunch. clip coupons from newspaper insert while fixing breakfast for the girls and myself. , get girls ready for the day to include priming and priming for 2 little divas (normally this includes changing their mind on their outfit that they picked out the night before. drop avery off at school (musn't' forget to roll the back windows down so adilyn can yell "love you sissy...be good at school". drive 20 minutes to the gym to get my a** handed to me in my spin class or p90 class (whichever day it happens to be) and then after my a** has been handed to me for an hour i get tortured for another hour with some weights and ab work. drive home and if no one is looking stop at mcdonalds for their $1 coke (hey i just worked out...it's allowed right??!?!?! fix lunch for adilyn and try to find something to stuff down my throat. rush off to the shower. do hair. throw on some make-up time permitting. take adilyn to school. rush home to answer the copious amounts of emails received in the last 24 hours. grab a handful of peanuts (those are allowed.....right!?!?!?!?) try to get as much sewing done as humanly possible...or maybe not so human....i do have a robot mode...don't you know??!?! drink 8 glasses of water. do some glute squeezes while sewing. meet avery at the half way point from school. go home and get the first stages of dinner together. have avery read me a story. go over homework, notes, or whatever other flyer's are in the every growing stack sent home each and every night. get packages ready for the post office. grab avery by the arm and throw her in the car. pick adilyn up from school. go to the post office. drive past the drive-thru. replace the toilet paper roll (why do i feel like i do this every other day?) remember nothing is as bad as it seems. explain to adilyn what "you are what you eat" means. get dinner ready. charge cell phone. feed the children. clean the kitchen. figure out what is for dinner tomorrow night so you can start the thawing process. stick $1 in avery's book bag for snow cone day. bathe the children. pick out our outfits for the next day to include any and all accessories. work as hard as i can. braid the girls hair. pick up the stray socks found in the hallway. RSVP for a party. stop and give the kids a big hug and kiss. check the weather. remember to drive slower and avoid quick starts to preserve the life of my car for the next few months. think about exercising more. shred mail. pay bills online. transfer money into savings. check the mailbox. iron the clothes. write a to-do list with the #1 thing being put the laundry away. clean the bathroom. read a few bedtime stories. put the kids to bed. remind yourself to eat out less. trade the coke in your hand for a water. do christina's ab workout during commercials of big brother. check emails again. sweep kitchen floor. laugh at a joke. step on the scale. pick yourself up off the floor after looking down while standing on the scale. get on the scale one more time to see if there was some type of malfunction. tell yourself to weigh in the morning as soon as you wake up for a more accurate weight. put library books in the library bag and set by the front door. look for healthy recipes. try to make a blog post. wait for hubby's phone call. read the glamour magazine from two months ago that is still in the plastic. answer hubby's call. tell him about your day. get off the phone and put it on the charger. check and respond to emails one last time. make sure water bottles are filled for the next torture session at the gym. jot down your grocery list on the back of the receipt sitting by the microwave. turn the lights off. turn the lights back on. start a to do list because calling the dentist keeps getting forgotten. turn the lights off. creep upstairs so to not wake the kiddos. crawl into bed. set the alarm for 5:30am to get the stuff done you weren't able to do today done before the kids wake up. read the latest james patterson novel until your eyes close while you are still holding the book. wake up and turn the light off. pass out......

sure i have a minute....what do you need?

the average day in the life of me.....happy thursday sweet sweet friends

x's & o's

~r~

no sister's allowed

a little background.....about a year ago avery made a "no sister's allowed" sign to hang on her door.....

we had a little talk...maybe a bit of a lecture...about how that would make her feel

how it would hurt her feelings if someone hung a sign on their door that said that she couldn't enter.....

it was decided at that time that the note would not adorn her door...and we would put it away with all of her other art work....

mind you...this was when avery was 5 and adilyn was 2

so the note was put away and was not thought about again....at least i had forgotten about it...seemingly i was the only one who forgot about it!!!!

from the pictures below you will deduct that avery's long lost note is not longer tucked safely away...

i go upstairs after getting home from the gym to find this:

the first picture is avery's door.....

second picture is adilyn's door.....

*please excuse the not so great pictures...the lighting is not all that desirable up there*

curious to see what the "signs" say???

this is avery's note.....

written over a year ago....

in brief...it says "no adilyn" at the top and underneath it says....."yes it does...this means you" not real sure about the word order in the sentence but you get the point....

no sister's allowed!!!!

avery decided she was going to hang that on her door this morning while i was making sure the lunch box was in her book bag, my water bottle and towel were in my gym bag and i had my purse and keys and everything else i needed....so it's safe to say that i was not paying 100% attention to exactly what she was doing....

in retaliation and with a few...ok A LOT of hurt feelings adilyn decided she was going to hang her "no sister's" allowed sign...

it looked like this:

what is that you ask?

it is a big monster....please note that there are two different "people" in this picture...

and inside the belly of the big monster is avery....

adilyn explained with a look of innocence on her face and sweetness in her voice that avery tried to go into her room so the monster ate her....

so as i sit here and the girls are in bed with their "no sister's" allowed signs hanging on their doors i giggle to myself....

i know that they are not going to get along with each other all of the time....

i know that there are going to be bruised feelings....

shouting matches.....

"borrowed" clothes......

"lost" make-up or nail polish or whatever coveted item one or the other has...

arguments over who's turn it is....

tears and contention between the two....

but there is also going to be hugs and hand holding....

giggling and laughing together only like little girls can do...

playing and creating and imagining taking trips together to far off lands that only the two of them will journey to....

sharing secrets that will be kept to the death...or until they are old enough they will not get in trouble from mom or dad.....

as much as these girls pick and prod and antagonize each other they have a bond that is strong and builds more and more as each day passes....

i look forward to watching them grow and develop as individuals.....but it is just as exciting to watch them grow as sisters....

a sister is a forever friend and as the girls get older i hope that they find that a sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.....

happy hump day dear friends....

x's & o's
~r~

10 Day Challenge - Day 10

day 10 - ten secrets

who doesn't have secrets.....i think it's an undeniable factor that not one of use are open books...

i find that in the past ten years, as time goes by, i learn new things about colby....and i'm sure, in return, he learns things about me

not all secrets are bad....some secrets are just undiscovered tid bits of knowledge that a person holds within them until they are ready to share these little known facts....

so here are mine...some of you might already know them...so of you might not...and some of them might be a little on the scandalous side....*GASP*...shocking...I know!!!!

1. i'm seriously crushing on my husband...the butterflies in my tummy...sweaty hands....stumbling of the tongue....flushed cheeks...rapid heart beat...nervous over the moon feeling....i am so totally crushing on him....he is my heart and without him here i do not feel complete

2. after my freshmen year of college i moved home to my parents house and got a job as a server in this little sea food joint called the barberry coast...it was an eclectic place and the owner was also on the eclectic side....this place had a restaurant on one side and the other side was a night club....complete with table top cages...so in addition to waiting tables for lunch and dinner...i became a cage dancer after the restaurant side closed...(*disclaimer...i was FULLY clothed*) in addition to having a rockin' summer.....i made enough money to pay cash for my entire year sophomore year of college without taking any loans out.....best summer EVER!!!!

3. i do not make my bed everyday....i know....it's a shock...but i don't....and i don't' make my kids make their beds everyday....

4. i am not 100% happy with my physical appearance....i do not think i'm horrid but i always find things about my outward appearance that i can change....so for now i work out hard...try to eat healthy and use sunscreen....

5. i sometimes have a desire to go back to work...it's not a strong desire and it normally goes away very quickly but i sometimes miss work...miss the adult interaction...but it is not worth it to me...my focus right now is my children and giving them the best foundation that i can...

6. i sometimes wait two to three weeks before i put the clean laundry away...i totally despise putting the laundry away...maybe it's because i have to walk up 2 flights of stairs to put it away but yah...i loath putting the laundry away...

7. i sometimes scold my children for being children...you know...for doing silly things...making too much noise...not listening to me the first time around...i attribute this to stress and the fact that daddy is 7000+ miles away and it is something that i work on daily....actually i work on it by the minute....i'm getting better and i apologize to my children as i think it is important to say "i'm sorry"...but it is also important for them to know that i am human and i make mistakes...

8. i am addicted to shopping...not so much shopping but finding the deals...like the converse for $6 for the kids....the jeans for $2.48 for the girls...clearance fabric...shoes for me (preferably heels even though i hardly ever wear them because i would feel like a freak of nature) but right now i'm digging target...who doesn't love target...they had hot hot hot heels for $5...i was in heaven...

9. i dye my hair....yup...not a natural red head...i have been dying my hair since i was a freshman in high school...it just kind of stuck with me...i actually went to a dark brown about 2 years ago and i just didn't feel like "me"....i am a red head through and through...even if i need help from a bottle....

10. i was on a dart league when i was in college.....i played with a bunch of men...i was the only chick throwing, but i was good and i loved it and i had fun...when hubby came home for r&r we had the wonderful opportunity to spend a few days just him and i...one of the things we did was to play darts...oh how it brought back memories......

so there you have it...ten secrets...some you may know...some you might not...some you could care less about....but there they are...

on another note....

i have had the pleasure of being a pattern tester for some absolutely wonderful and talented pattern designers in the past....

over the weekend i had the opportunity to test a pattern for whimsy couture....the retro romper....i am in love love L O V E with it....and adilyn rocked it!!!

i mean seriously...who would not love this...i want one in my size!!!!

she is not a huge ham in front to of the camera....usually she has to be coaxed and bribed......

but for some reason...today she needed no prodding from mamma....she rocked the romper as well as the camera!!!

oh how i love this girl of mine....and this romper patter.....be still my heart...

happy sunday lovely readers.....i hope that you have had a wonderful weekend!!!

x's & o's
~r~