just go with the flow , in deeper water...

 So my last post announced our new expected addition.... and HE'S HERE ..

after a pregnancy that was SO different than my last 3 ,and about 2-3 weeks of early/slow labor ,a 4th cesarean that resulted in anemia and a spinal headache we were blessed with the littlest brother in our house , who was ironically also our biggest baby . Weighing in at 9lbs 9oz and 21 3/4 inches long , David Owen joined us on February 7th at 8:51am . He is just about perfect and everyone is adjusting very nicely .

Here are Big Sister and Biggest Brother , waiting my mom was great enough to bring them up to the hospital early in the morning so that they could meet their new littlest brother , this is them waiting.

  And here he is ,the littlest brother.

 Biggest brother loving him , he was SO excited to have been there and to be one of the first to hold him and see him . He's so in love with him .

  While another brother wasn't on the top of her list, she's in love with him , and probably the BEST big sister anywhere around.

  My mom, this makes her 9th grand child. Who was ironically 9lbs 9oz.

 Sweet baby Owen , one day old.

 Since his birth he's done lots - had his first bath at 3 weeks old in his Tummy Tub  he absolutely loved it

He has spent an afternoon outside enjoying some of the random 77 degree weather days we've had

so while I don't know what I am really doing with 4 kids , Softball for Big sister , and Baseball for the big brothers , in two different leagues, all starting in the next 2 weeks. While the Daddy of the house is still a workaholic and we are trying to buy a house and learn to live debt free.... we're having fun and just going with the flow even though it seems the water is getting deeper.

Just go with the flow..

So , Im here to start off again by apologizing for not posting as often as I had intended .. But no one is reading anyway. At least not regularly or following . 

But since my last post a lot has come into play. Big brother has started Kindy and is loving it ! , Big sister is rocking the 4th grade ,and is loving being involved with student council. And newest news is that Little brother will now be a big brother too ... so I guess Big brother gets bumped to Bigger brother .

   We are expecting baby #4 , by mid February . It's another BOY! we are thrilled , Big sister was hoping ,and a lot for a little sister , but no such luck.. She's come around to the idea a lot more here lately . 

So soon to be 4 kids, are we crazy? No. Are we financially wealthy? No, we could always use more money. Are we taking things as they come and cherishing every day with our beautiful kids? Yes, and we wouldn't have it any other way. 

This has been a great motivator to get on the ball with our plans to purchase a home. We are both sure we want to stay in the same school zone that we are in now. We love this little school and this side of town. We have been loosely following Dave Ramsey's plans for Financial Peace. It has brought us a long way in a short amount of time , But between now and the end of the year we are really cracking down and plan to pay of the 2 small debts we have only leaving my van to be paid off. In hopes that it will boost our score a few more points since they will be early pay offs and help us by lowering our debt/income ratio .. not to mention just saving us that much more money on a month to month basis.. 

So, hopefully I will have some fantastic news to post , good news Im hoping. As we purchase our first home.

seize the day

Myself and the kids took a week long trip to Michigan to visit my father.In mid June. It was the first time I had driven so far alone with the kids. I'll admit I was nervous but all went well . Extremely well .  The day we got there , we rested a little. The kids ran a muck with my dad and loving on his beagle , Jack. The next day was Big brother's birthday. The big 5 . So , I decided last minute to get up early and take the older two to Cedar Point.  This was his first time here. It was Big Sister's 3rd time , but first time she was tall enough to ride the "big" rides.. She was thrilled as well . 

here is my big guy on his big day :) this was taken about half way through the day , I was worried he would get too tired and our day would come to an end sooner than we had all hoped. But he held up great , there was just so much going on , i dont think he had time to get tired.

He really believed he was driving this truck although it was on a track lol

He was even nice enough to give his Big sister a ride

Then she wanted to drive the pink one herself

This one is special to me , I have pictures of my brother and I on these ride with our Grandmother about 15-17 years ago <3

and they even had bumper cars in his size.. he was in Heaven

He loved the snoopy areas , where the rides were his size. It really made him feel like a big kid since he had to be a passenger on other rides or sit out while we waited for his sister to ride .  It was a fantastic and very tiring day , especially after driving 11 hours to Michigan from Tennessee , then another 3 hour drive to Sandusky , and back to Michigan after 10 hours at the park.. It was a great day.

stay the course

I know when I started this blog, I had every intention of blogging daily and about all these fantastic things... well , honestly... the days when things that happen , that some might consider fantastic and worth blogging/reading about.. I dont have the time to blog about them. So , it doesn't happen , sorry.

As for our house we've had a few changes. We are expecting baby #4 in Mid-February. We are all pretty excited about it. School is about to start for the old two. They are pretty excited , 4th grade and Kindy watch out here they come !  Also littlest brother is going to start 2 day a week preschool in September , not that I need a break from him but I'm sure he's gonna be bored out of his mind with his siblings being gone everyday , all day. And it will also give me a few hours a week to handle my doctors appointments , grocery shopping and even just some time to relax. 

So that's the last 2 months pretty much in a nutshell..   I will come back to post about big brother's birthday , it was a blast. We took him to Sandusky Ohio and spent the day in Cedar Point . It was his first time and although he couldn't ride everything he wanted too , he still had a blast.

just make it if you can't buy it

So , our middle son is about to be 5... with his little brother's birthday only 2 weeks after. We have been lucky for the last 2 years to be able to have a joint party , saving time and money.. Well , No such luck this year . He has requested his own birthday party this year .. That is fine. He went back and forth between the ideas of another Mario Brothers party or another popular game.. Angry Birds.. well , since we did Mario Brothers last year. Angry birds won.. As you may know , there aren't Angry Birds birthday decor for sale... SO... out comes the craftiness again ..starting with invitations : 

these started with precut cards ( just solid color cards ) from JoAnn's they came with coordinating envelopes the rest was made by me using cardstock , and foam sheeting ..and you get these , 15 were made and each one was different , those that do not have "you are invited" on the inside had it on the outside.

this is the envelopes that they came in , each childs name was put in there , hand stamped

Make it yourself

So , I know Im not here too often and all my followers ( HA ) are just going nuts with out me Im sure. School is almost out for the year and this will be the last summer before Gage starts school, So we have some pretty big summer plans this year , including my sisters wedding in July. 

But back to my title of this post.. I may have picked up yet another hobby.. it definatly was something fun to do .. since of all the things Ive done in the past , things Ive made etc.. I have never made functional furniture. Ive stacked some closetmaid shelves to make a larger shelf but never anything from raw lumber... Until Monday that is . I decided kinda last minute that I was going to make the leap into building the shelves Ive wanted for years, but was too cheap to buy the closet maid version and too scared to make them myself.

So without further ado.. here is my finished product and some progressive pictures of them as well :

The shelves are 2 shelves that are 63inches long and 30 inches high to span the length of the wall all the way except the last 22 inches . The last 22inches was filled in by the desk I build same height but instead of only the width of one board , it's made with two on the top. Stained in a dark walnut to match out coffee and end tables. I am loving it . I worried that it would make out akwardly long living room seem crowded but it actually made it look MUCH larger... go figure lol..  I cant wait to start another project . Im thinking a sofa table to go behind the love seat ( love seat has it's back to the "office' part of the living room ) or night stands for our room.. who know's I want to make them all .. just a matter of picking which one first.

Have a hobby

So , it's Spring Break... and well the weather is not agreeing . So while A has been having sleep overs . The boys have been pretty much home bound. Its been nearly freezing at night and raining most the day..

With all the time indoors a couple of good things have come from it , my house is about 87% clean , laundry is caught up . and I picked up ANOTHER hobby.. After the boys fell in love the their Mario and Luigi figures from Pocketful of Clovers . They were constantly asking for more . So i thought with my ridiculous amount of paints on hand , I could pick up some wooden peg people and give it a try .. I am very pleased with our own little "pegple" and the boys LOVE them :)

here are a the first ones I made in the last two days , my very first was the black hair zombie and well.. we all just love him.

first one was the zombie <3 and our little ninja's

then we have Dash , Hulk , a pirate ,and Wolverine

Backs

Backs

soon to be Leonardo ( ninja turtle ) and a red headed zombie

and their backs

I imagine at this pace I'll have  my own little army before I get bored with this hobby .. but who knows there is a chance the last two will never be completed .

Friday

so, i dont know what to post about on Friday.. So i thought I would share some pictures. Without further ado and in no particular order .. 

Stock shot for Decky Doodle's listing of Chocolate dipped Gummi bears

We actually got some snow this winter :)

Our cat Joplin is not pleased

kiddos ready to play in the snow

D is loving the snow

Igloo my brother , sister and myself built ALL of snow

Snow wears a boy out.. this was at the dinner table <3

Thanks for looking :)

try to get some sleep

that's something I hear all.the.time.Said to me like it's no big deal , like it's something I can JUST do.. don't you think I know most of my peers are sleeping at 11: 58 on a Tuesday night? don't you think I am aware that I am not?  I don't really have a reason why? no new stress , not really working on anything specific. Kids are actually in bed, Hubs is at work.. I am just up , online. Thinking.. about what ? you ever wonder at any random moment what an insomniac has on their mind? well lets see.........

Wishing I had found an ink pen before now so i could have signed oldest school papers so i wont be rushed to do it in the morning

thinking about taking the trash cans to the road in the morning for pick up 

hoping boys cooperate in the morning as they are spending a couple hours with my sister while I volunteer at local consignment sale

volunteering at local consignment sale for 5 hours tomororw 

not going to see my husband until he's leaving for work again Wednesday night

Hoping oldest really likes the cat in the hat shirt I dyed for her tonight , tomorrow is Dr.Suess's birthday ya know ;) 

needing to go to grocery store and Sams club

how badly I want to de-clutter every room in my house at once . including garage

how much I loathe my laptop for not holding a charge and debating with myself on getting a new one

and well really , i could go on .. but that was literally all that came to mind in one minute ,60 seconds of not thinking gets me that... 

so maybe now, off to browse Etsy or eBay , see if there is some retail therapy for this insomnia :)

you really should ,be thankful

I dont have an excuse as to where I have been... Other than just busy with life in general. Getting items dyed for my store , helping some family members out, and enjoying my kids.

Today , I am not going to go back and name something for every day i missed, although I said I would, Ive changed my mind.  I am allowed to do that.

But the past couple days I have spent my escapes online following other blogs with giveaways,promo codes, and referral contests. I have cashed in over 140$ of giftcards for completely free to me . I have knocked out a couple gifts for friends and some family , So i would have to say today I am thankful for my thrifty friends, online and in real life. without them I would probably miss most of the deals Im able to grab , then well.... I would be sad lol.

You really should , be thankful #8

So I'll be honest. This has proven to be harder than I thought it would be. Thinking of a legitimate thing daily I am thankful for , Beyond a cliche friends, family and my health kinda thing. So if these seem a little off , I am sorry. I am trying.

November 8th

I guess today , I find myself being thankful for my children. I wouldn't be the person I am today without them. I wouldn't have the relationship I have with my husband if we had not grown together to love these guys. I would not have the appreciation I have for my parents If I wasn't a parent myself. I would not find the happiness I have when my kids spend time with my grand parents .I am so thankful to have 3 great happy , healthy children. I'll be honest every day is no walk in the park. In fact , some days I want to lock the door on my way out and leave for possibly , depending on the day , a few days. I couldn't do that , not only cause it's illegal . But I just couldn't be away from my kids like that and for really any amount of time. The rare occasion David and I get a chance to go out without kids, we both find ourselves , talking about them and just plain missing them .

I know people, some are "friends" who find their children as a burden, an inconvenience. I could never truly think of my children that way . The thing about them that gets to me the most is the part about them being so open about it. To talk about it like it's normal to be inconvenienced  by the blessings that children are to a couple.What I have to say about those people are, Thank you for making me feel that much more thankful for my children, I must be doing something right to be against the majority of parents my age with more than one child that openly talks about how they feel when it comes to being a parent.

I mean seriously , how can you NOT love the heck out of these guys?

you really should , be thankful #6 & #7

So , I know again , I am posting a double thankful for post.... BUT... not like anyone knows this is there right? whos gonna complain? Let's just say someone is or might one day read this, and that's why I am posting... On the 6th and 7th of November , I want to say how thankful I am for Medical Science. I say this  because a family member was put into ICU after a pretty routine hysterectomy went bad , She had a cyst in her stomach that ruptured and caused her to have an infection in her blood stream that then spread to her lungs. and then that made it so that she couldnt breathe on her own and had to be put on a ventilator. Well you could imagine going into the hospital for a routine surgery then waking up hooked up to basically life support , she woke in a panic and tried to remove the tubes herself so they had to sedate her to keep her from hurting herself. I got word from my cousin ( her son ) that she is improving . I am so thankful for that news. I am thankful for the Medical staff that can take care of her and the science to enable them to do that for her. 

I think that is worth 2 days of being thankful posts , it being such a big deal to me and all . 

you really should , be thankful #4 & #5

So , I burnt the roll I was on  no pun intended. Thursday we had a family emergency . My brother had a small house fire , in the kitchen. he was burnt 2nd and 3rd degree burns on his chest and arm , some small burns on his face  leg and foot. All in all he is doing fine was only kept in the hospital for a couple hours and has been home since . 

So obviously I am thankful for My brother's well-being and the fire department for being there for him and helping..

I know this is a super short post and even shorter when you consider it's 2 combined in one , But I will return tonight and post #6

You really should , be thankful #3

Well... day 3 and I am 3 for 3 ... I have actually posted everyday so far , all 3 of them lol .


November 3

Today's thing I am thankful for might seems a little non conventional . Something most people would loathe , well maybe not loathe but not be thankful for. Today I am thankful for rainy, cold fall days. I am thankful for these days becuase my boy and I cuddled on the couch watching cartoons all morning. I am thankful for rainy days because we staying in our pajamas all day . the boys took a 2 hour nap , at the same time while I just relaxed. Cleaned my kitchen and started on the de-cluttering I need to do in there to prepare to pain it . Once A come home from school D was awake and G was still sleeping. We all just hung out around the house. Topped a lazy day off with ordering pizza for dinner , then making Magic Cookie Bars for desert.

after posting on Facebook about the cookie bars , I thought I would share the recipe here , although I did not make it up ,Nor am I the first person to blog about them I'm sure.. here they are :)

First you mix graham cracker crumbs and melted butter together until all are moist and it's moldable

You then press the mixture into a baking dish about 1/4-1/2 inch thick

poor one can of condensed milk over the top of the mixture

cover that with coconut flakes

cover that with chocolate chips

bake on about 300 degree's until lightly browned , cool , cut, and eat

there they are  nothing super special , nor are my pictures.... but like I said before I am thankful for rainy cold days , cause no other day would have motivated me to make a batch of these , and spend the day laying around enjoying my boys company

You really should , be thankful #2

Well.. day 2 out of ... how many ? like 30.... yea well we'll do this one day at a time .

I would like to say , these are in no particular order. What I feel thankful for that day could be sparked by something that was said while I was by my laptop and had a few minutes to post.

Today I want to say how thankful I am for my husband , David. This is gonna sound kinda sappy I'm sure , maybe even corny. And if you know me.. neither of those things are me . Dave and I have been together for 11 years this December, and married for 7 as of June 6th 2010.  He has always worked very hard to take care of our family.I couldn't have asked for a greater man . I don't really know what else to say without getting cliche' . I just have to leave it at , I am so Thankful to share my life and family with him and couldn't ask for more.

I took this picture with my phone.... I have an app on there , it's retro cameras. This one obviously is a Polaroid , also if you didn't assume as much but this is my husband . lol.

I sometimes think I should write down a list so I know what to post about the next day, Although I think not planning it makes it more sincere.Who knows? I'll just keep trying to post on here daily and avoid Facebook status thankful posts ..