If you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything.

This weekend is hopefully the end of my CRAZY weekends for a while. Lance left Friday afternoon to go to the country to go on a 4-wheeler ride. He was gone Friday - Sunday. He arrived Sunday afternoon, just in time to attend Rylan's birthday party. He was there, but barely functional. Saturday night I kept my sisters kids, and had the neighbor kid over to watch movies. So, I had 7 kids and no hubby. It turned out to be 'fine', but an extra set of hands does help at times. They kids are all great, but they range in ages from 8 - 2. My sister's youngest, loves my son and husband - he could care less about me. We had a moment on the potty, but other than that we were fine. Saturday night while winding down, I got a phone call from my brother (he lives in AR). Him and I were really close growing up. We have grown apart over the last couple of years. Between having families and finding ourselves, our lives have gone in different directions and we have not communic...

With each stage of childhood our house goes through some learning curve. As they learned to crawl, we had to search the floor for small items. Remove the items before they scooted over there and put the hazardous item in their mouth. Then they started to toddle and/or walk, everything that would have been placed at a comfortable level now had to be moved up and out of reach. Items such as remote controls, DVD players, cups, glasses, beer cans, candles etc. Some of these items were moved up after we found out they were hazard. Like when Rylan found the remote control on the coffee table pressed every damn button and suddenly I had to watch TV in Spanish for a weekend because I couldn't figure out how change it back. Lance was on the road and I had to wait for him to return to fix it. Or when Pyper tried to step on the DVD disc holder when it popped out.....we had the DVD player on the bottom of the entertainment center (dumb). Hence our learning curve. All lesson's learned...

I still remember the day I found out I was pregnant with him.....I thought my world was crashing down all around me. Lance & I were living together (living in sin), enjoying the fact that both of us had full-time jobs and traveled alot. We would spend our weekends, partying, going on dates and hanging out. We were careless, carefree and selfish. I liked to go out, sleeping in, traveling - did i mention how much I liked my sleep (ha!). I was crabby, moody, and gaining weight - I figured I was eating out too much. Lance said one day, 'when was your last period?' Me 'I don't know...' I was rather flip, I was on the pill for gosh sakes. We waited a couple of more days, still no period. Lance suggested we at least take a test. Fine. I got to Walgreen's grab a generic test. Who wants to pay $15.00 for a test that is negative? Not me. I go home, pee on the stick and immediately I have two lines. I feel sick. I refuse the leave the bathroom. I pee on the second stic...

Okay so this month has been CRAZY in our house hold. March 09 was Pyper's Birthday, then we had St. Patricks day (which we had to get candy and gold coins), then Easter, next is Rylan Birthday (this Sunday). Last Thursday in a frantic mode I called BounceU and rented a room for Rylan. He finally decided to go to BounceU rather than go bowling. They are actually open on Sunday, which is his actual birthday, so I booked it for Sunday. Great! They were suppose to send me a packet of info, this packet would include cake choices, invitations etc. It is Wed, and I am STILL waiting on the packet. Last night on the way home I stopped by dollar tree and picked up some invitations. Rylan needs to hand some of them out today while he is at school. I am sitting down last night filling out the invitations, half angry because the damn packet has still not arrived. humf. Rylan hands out one of the invitations this morning at the babysitters and I hear 'March 09? Why does this say Mar...

Okay, so I am a bit ashamed to admit it, but I watch the Hills. Once everyone goes to be in my house (around 8:30 / 9 O'clock), I stay up and start looking for trash TV. Anything from the girls next door / the hills / fatherhood (snoop-dog) / etc. I lay on the couch, and take an hour or two and just sit there living the reality of someone else. It is fun. Last night was the premier of the Hills, they are entering a new season, and they were in Paris. Ahh! This is the real reason for my post. During my Senior year in college I did a study abroad program, I signed up to stay in Austria (Vienna) for 16 weeks. I left New Years Day and came back in April 1997. I have always known that I am suppose to live somewhere else. I have always known that I am suppose to travel - those dreams will have to wait until the kids are older, but they are still there. So there I was 18 years old, home-grown / corn feed setting foot on a 12 hour plan ride half way around the world getting ready to '...

I have been absent lately - for several reasons. I am still wading thru a series of emotions, and finding myself more and more comfortable with each passing day. I have tried to avoid posting, becuase even I am tried of listening to myself sound so damn down. Secondly, I am hesitant to reveal the dynamics between myself and my sister as of recent. I created the blog in an effort to get things off my chest, and keep a timeline that hopefully my kids might enjoy someday. I know that I have several friends and family memebers that pop by every once and a while and I don't want to fuel the situation regarding my sister. Therefore I have avoided posting about it. Part of me REALLY wants to tell everyone, but then again I have to be sensitive to her and the entire situation. That being said, this is what I will tell you. Last Saturday we had a situation, and it resulted in words. Actually, I said words (angry words), while she sat there acting flip, sassy and semi-listening. Towards the...

So last weekend we packed up and headed to the country, we were having Pyper's birthday in Ironton . I packed up our car and then picked up two of my sisters kids and we headed to my parents house. I find such comfort in going home, and staying in the house I grew up in. In an essence it still feels like home, it is warm, welcoming and kid friendly. I feel as if I can unwind when I arrive, let my guard down. We get in around 8pm, unload and gather around the kitchen table. I grab a bottle of wine, the guys grab beers and we sit to catch up while the kids run around and play. Everyone is glad to be in this house. My parents are a great source of comfort for me. We start with small talk, 'how are things going, how is work etc'. Apparently my parents barn had fallen down due to the recent snow, the weight of the snow was too much for the old barn to bear. So now my parents are in the process of having a new one built. Normally this would be a fairly easy process, but nothing...

Okay, so I know that depression was knocking on my door recently. I took pro-active action to attempt to 'deal' with the issues. Only, I personally cannot pin-point the issues that would drive me to be a rageing lutientic - mainly to my family. And prior to making any decisions, I like to know full well what the issues are - hence being able to pin-point my weakness. Here is the deal, I am overwhelmed with the things I have going on. In the past I dealt with my stress by working-out, walking, or any other out door activity. During the winter months getting me out of the house is near impossible. Therefore winter is my enemy, and the build up happens all day long and the explosion happens at home. I have a brain that won't shut off, I have a two year old that I feel that I cannot manage (sleep issues), I have a husband that doesn't like to talk, I have work that is taking alot, and family that lives out of town- but only ways on the agenda. I feel as if I am alot of thin...

You think I am joking....gosh if you only knew the half of it. We went to my mothers over the weekend, and yes they had a baby calf (two days old) in their spare bathroom. He was born in a creek, his mother left him there and the owner did not want to attempt to nurse the baby calf back to health, so they called my parents. *As a side barr - last time I was home my dad brought home a 2 mth old girl calf. However, she was placed down at the barn in the pen built for her. Where the cows should be. From an outsider looking in this may seem a bit out of the ordinary. My husband, who grew up in the same town; even found this cow in the bathroom situation a bit surprising. I on the otherhand grew up in a household, where you NEVER knew what might be in our house or on the land. My mother had a pet Racoon for many years, we called her Ashley. Ashley shared the bed with most of us, she too was a baby when she arrived and made her way into our hearts. My mother fed her eggs and mini muffins eve...

Well, Happy Birthday baby....I struggle with where to begin on this one. When your brother was turning 5 we decided to 'try ' again for another child, much to my hesitation. To say that I was terrified about having another child would be putting it lightly. As side from the fact that we ran a 50/50 chance of you being cleft, I just wasn't sure we could handle a 'baby' again. I had several moments which triggered me into motherhood once again, - one your brother - he deserved the chance to grow up with someone else, someone to lean on in tough times, someone to discuss how ' crazy ' his parents are, and someone to share his childhood with. I personally love my siblings and could not imagine life without them. We grew up really close, and share memories and emotions that only we understand. Lance too, he is one of 6 children - he could not fathom the idea of an only child. Actually the idea of Rylan being an only child broke his heart. -A Significant incid...

These days seem like an amusement ride that just won't end. Yesterday, was fun getting home (NOT!). I left work around 1pm, apparently right in the middle of the damn snow storm. I took the back roads in an effort to avoid the village idiots on the highways. What normally takes me 15 to 20 minutes took me an hour and half. Village Idiot # 1 - We will call her Sandy the slug: I had a lady in a car that decided my lane was moving fast than hers, so why not just come on over. And while you are on your way over, lets not turn our blinker on. Let's just scoot over in the middle of the snow filled highway and make everyone else slide around in an effort to avoid hitting you. We had to avoid hitting you because your car was rear-wheel drive and could not get any traction, therefore you could not GET OVER. Hence you were stuck in two lanes blocking traffic. Village Idiot #2 - Mr. Green Jeans: Or how about Mr. Green Station Wagon that almost took out the whole side of my car - because y...

Gosh where to begin... Perhaps we should start with the weather. Yesterday was BEAUTIFUL, my body, mind and soul need the spring. Today we are expecting sleet and snow again - WHAT the HELL. Plus the anticipated snow days, dear god, our kids will prob have to go until mid-june at this rate. Did I mention that Rylan has several days off this month, plus a full week off for spring break. ugh. Normally we take spring break as an opportunity to actually get away. But not this year, spring break is early, and it is smack in the middle of my busy season. So we may take a long weekend and go somewhere with the kids, get a hotel with a pool and attempt to make the best of it. Normally we head to Texas this time of year, which is normally good for my disposition. It looks like we will take our Texas trip in the heart of summer - where we will burn our arses off. I have meeting tonight at 7:30, therefore I in theory will be out in the muck tonight, cursing the snow gods. Today, I switch...