You heard him correctly...

Some of the jewels that have come out of my boys mouths lately...

Mom: "We are going to dog beach guys."

Frank: "Not kid beach, dog beach."

Ollie did a "trick" for us tonight at our family gathering and after we were done applauding he turns towards his audience, points towards the ceiling, and says "That's right!!" I fear my son has an extreme confidence issue.

"Mom, I want to wear my cake?" says Ollie as he holds out his superhero cape to me.

"Your cape?" I asked

"Yea, my cake."

"No, your cape." I said again.

"Auugh, that's what I SAID!"

alright.

Frankie: "Mom, can I have that toy when I turn 16?"

Of course you may!

Read more...

Made With LOVE!

In an effort to make Valentine's Day a happier holiday in my life I decided that we needed to do something special. Frank, Ollie and I baked two cakes to celebrate the birthdays in February. Jesse's mom and my dad. My dad's birthday was on Valentine's Day and so was the day he passed. I do not want my kids growing up NOT celebrating this holiday because of me so I decided to celebrate my father's memory on this special day and make it fun for the kids too. Here are my litte chefs ready to bake!

everything was measured out just right:)

No, we did not end up with crunchy cake.

Getting out the lumps... Mom had to help with that one.

Ready for the oven!

Frosting with care, and licking what was left.

Sprinkled to perfection.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Read more...

There is bad news and there is good news...

Hello blogging world. I have two stories to tell today that have nothing to do with each other so I decided to write them both in one entry and number them instead of using some sort of witty transition or trying to connect them... which I could... but I don't feel like it.

Story #1:

I got a disturbing letter in the mail a couple of weeks ago. A letter from my credit card company arrived saying if I continued to pay the minimum on the card, by their calculations, I would never pay off my debt. How kind of them to tell me what I already know! I am sure they did this out of concern for me. Or because now they have to disclose these things. Thank you government legislation. Haha! I have actually been pouring obscene amounts of money into that particular card and I still didn't feel like I was getting anywhere over all.

We all have it. DEBT! If you don't I am jealous and you can stop reading right now. For those of you who DO, read on. I have tried website after website trying to find a truly free, comprehensive debt calculator. I finally did. This calculator calculates interest and sets up a monthly payment plan that will have you debt free in a reasonable amount of time. I calculated mine and it gave me a three year plan to be completely debt free. That is if you stick to the payment plan. I realized, after calculating, two things.

One: It really does add up! A balance here and there and boom! You're in a 10 ft deep hole that you thought you were digging with a spoon.

Two: I had been going about paying the debt down the wrong way. Click here for the link.

Story #2:

Jesse and I took the boys out to get free Grand Slams at Denny's today. After driving to two different Denny's and seeing lines out the door we decided to go to The Original Pancake House instead and pay for lunch. While we were eating lunch we could see out the windows facing west and south. At one point it was raining outside the west window and not raining out the south window. That was kind of neat. Anyway, the boys got smiley face chocolate pancakes, eggs and oj. Jesse and I got sandwiches, salad, and fries. Frank and Ollie cleared their plates, ate two packets of crackers each and half of my fries. BOTTOMLESS!! We finished, paid, and left. As we were on our way to Walmart I realized I didn't leave a tip! I was mortified. It was in my mind all day. I tried to wave it away. I was distracted. Oh well. NO, I know what people in the food biz think when you don't leave a tip. I am cheap, but I'm not mean! Tonight when I was on my way home from the gym I stopped by the restaurant and went inside. The gal that served us was off for the night but I explained to another waitress what happened and asked her to give her my money. "Just tell her it was the family with the two little blond boys. She'll remember us. We were probably the only one's who didn't tip her today." So true. We laughed, and I left feeling much better about life. To sum up my day.

We went out for free lunch, ended up paying for it. I didn't tip the waitress because I forgot to. (seriously?) I got seeds for my garden at Walmart. I went back and tipped the waitress I forgot about. Yup, that was my day.

Read more...

LOL!

I cannot stand that abbreviation, and rarely do I use it. BUT, if you watch this video and don't laugh out loud you need to go to the doctor. Something must be wrong with your funny bone! Check it out.

PS- Thank you Arica for finding such an entertaining morsel:)

Read more...

Girls Fashionably Late Fashion Show sneak peek...

Here is what is going on in the photography world for me. I went to a charity fashion show. These clothes were so great! click here to check out the slideshow on my website.

Read more...

Handy Jesse

That is his new nick name. Haha! My husband is a DIY, figure it out, I'll grab my drill kind of guy. Lately he has been doing every one else's projects. During the rains he saved our apartment complex from flooding. He was on the roof clearing debris. He was setting up sump pumps and digging trenches. What a man:) He helped the elders fix a bike and paint a helmet. Yesterday he planted our guava tree in a friend's back yard because the poor thing was root bound in it's pot and tapping into the soil underneath. Today he installed a shelf and a baby gate in one of our neighbors houses. He loves using his tools and fixing things. I just can't come up with projects fast enough or break things often enough for him to fix, SOOOOOOOOOO. Attention all ladies! Need a project done? Pictures hung? Something built? He'll do it. No really, he will:) I attribute his willingness to his scout training. You just help those who need it. I love you handy Jesse.

Read more...

The ER....again

About a week and a half ago, when it was raining cats and dogs, we took a trip to the ER with Ollie. I was taking Pepper for a quick walk to do her business while my neighbor hung out with our kids at my house. All three boys were playing up stairs when Angele, my poor neighor, heard a few loud thuds proceeded by "I'm hurt" screaming. She came upstairs to find Ollie and her son, Bryson, crying while Frank is explaining over them "they hit heads!" He failed to mention that Bryson fell back into Ollie and he, in turn, fell back into the corner of the wall. Silly, non discript four year old:) Ollie turned to look at Angele and that is when she saw blood gushing down the side of his face, pooling in his ear, and soaking his shirt. She tried to call me, and failed. I didn't think I would need a cell phone for a five minute walk. When she couldn't get me on the phone and the bleeding was not stopping she called 911. I walk back into the house to hear her talking to the 911 dispatcher and bringing my sobbing child down the stairs. I got everyone calmed down, Angele included:) and assessed Ollie. He was slow to respond at first. There was a seeping gash in the side of his head a little over an inch long. It definitely needed staples and the calvary was on its way. Sheriffs, three, fire fighters, five and all their gear, our kids and us, six, made for an impressive crowd in our living room. I called Jesse at the station and told him that we were going to the emergency room. Then I carried Ollie out to the parking lot where the ambulance and fire truck were waiting. Why waste an opportunity for an ambulance ride, right?

"Look buddy," I said "They brought their ambulance for you to ride in!"

"I wanna ride in the fire truck!" he replied. Typical!

He settled for the ambulance when I told him that they had a special seat in it just for him. So off to the ER we went. When all was said and done we came home with three staples and a happy meal toy. Looking back I should have grabbed the staple gun they used for Ollie's head. It had plenty of staples left. That way the next time this happens I don't have to pay the ER $100 for someone else to staple up my kid. I am all about DIY.

Read more...