Different stuff

I just noticed that I hadn't updated about Hunter's report card... HE PASSED!! He's going to the 8th grade! I can't possibly be old enough to have an 8th grader. Right?! He's not ready for school to start back tho. Lauren asked me Friday how much longer she had till school started back. I take it she's ready to go back lol. We just have to get 2 boxes of tissues and 2 more packages of notebook paper and a new backpack and she's good to go.

I figured out what was up with her not wanting to stay the night... I think. She had told me her ear was hurting a few days before the sleepover but hadn't really complained that much till she came home. That Friday I took her to the doctor and sure enough she had a nasty ear infection. The same ear infection that she is still complaining with. Back to the doctor with her.

We haven't been doing much swimming b/c of her ear and Hunter's road rash. He's good now we have to wait on her.

Speaking of that we got a call from the insurance company. They went and had the vehicle fixed with only 1 estimate and now say we owe $3700.00! Holy crap... can they really do that? That was the first we talked to anybody. Please tell me someone out there as something good to say?!

I am trying to decide if I want to work at a different school this year or not. I really want to be at the kids school but the other school has a full time aide job open. It's a paycheck every month but it's not with my kids. If I knew I would work as much as I did at the end of the year last year it wouldn't even matter about the other job. I am wondering if I stay will I still be at the top of the sub list or will I only be at the top when the top one is busy? I hate to take another step back at the kids school like I did the year before. But I also hate to pass on a steady paycheck to find out I'm back at the bottom again! I HATE having to make choices like these!!! Somebody help me!

OK I am off to try and sleep. Last night was a restless night so I am tried but not sleepy!

Only my child

Lauren has been wanting to sleep over with someone all summer so yesterday she went down to a friends house and stayed the night. When I got there to get her today the mom told me that at 1 am she asked to come home. The mom asked if she would stay if she laid with them and Lauren said yes. So the mom figures she will lay there for a few minutes and go back to her bed. Boy was she in for a laugh... she said just when she thought Lauren was asleep she felt her touch her arm to make sure she was still there. So the poor mom had to sleep with 2 girls last night.

Anyway they have a in ground pool so the mom and I floated around while the girls swam for an hour and then I told Lauren it was time to leave. Do you know what that child of mine then asks... if she could spend the night again?!? Needless to say she came home and has been asleep since her head hit the pillow at 8:30. Kids!

I can't believe June is almost over

Where did this month go? I want summer to s l o w down. I am enjoying the time off. The kids are enjoying the time off.

We are trying to find a new Church. The one we have been going to is a great Church but there are no kids. I want my kids to remember VBS like I do. I always looked forward to that week every summer. Of course there is more to it than VBS. We are just looking for something that has more to offer the kids. Today we visited one I think might work. We will visit again and see where it leads.

Being the mother to a full blown teenager has been fun lol. He has days that I just want to lock him in his room and throw away the key. Most days are good tho. I will just be happy when he gets full lol his stomach is never ending. Tonight we grilled steaks. We had baked potatoes and brown beans with them. He then ate a bowl of chicken and dumplings and a piece of cake. If he's awake he's eating something. We are now looking each other in the eyes. He's LOVING that one but I just keep reminding him no matter how big he is I will always be his mother who is older and wiser lol!!

Lauren can't get enough of the pool. I think she's really a fish. The other day we went to the pool and she came swimming up to me and said she had find a $5 bill in the deep end and couldn't get it. I went out with her and got it for her. She is forever finding money in the pool. She then eats lots of ice cream with her found treasures.

I am off to watch a movie. Everyone is on bed so I get the tv to myself. :)

13 years ago...

today I was laying in a hospital bed waiting to meet the baby I had been carrying for the past 9 months. It was not an easy labor but the end results where worth it all. My baby boy was born at 12:59 pm (11:59 pm where we live now lol) and he has kept me on my toes ever since. I can't believe it's been 13 years. I am not ready for the teenage years... the dating, the smart(er) mouth, the hormones or the 8th grade. Oh my... my baby's not a baby anymore! When did that happen?

Happy 13th Birthday Hunter, I love you!!!

100th post

I have been dreading writing this 100th post b/c nothing is really happening around here but here it goes.

Lauren and Hunter are both out of school and fighting like cats and dogs most of the time. I am grateful for them having their own bedrooms. I did see on another blog something I really need to try... she is making her kids hug for five minutes when they fight. That would kill mine.

The pool opened but the kids don't know that yet. The water is still so cold. I know they won't care and I don't plan to swim but I hate to start going so early b/c then they get tried of going. Come August the pools the only place to be here in Arkansas and even then it feels like your swimming in a warm bathtub.

We had talked about taking a vacation this summer but hubby doesn't have any vacation time left and since he's working as a conductor and not an engineer the moneys not as good. We decided to wait till next spring and try to do something big. We are going to do somethings close by throughout the summer. My sil, her kids, my kids and I are going to Wild River Country one day this month. We are aiming for the week of Hunter's birthday.

We are waiting for report cards... they aren't going to be mailed till the 5th. Hunter goofed off the 1st semester and worked his butt off the last nine weeks so we don't know if he made it out of 7th or not. He made 2 100's on his semester tests so we know he can do it... it's his want to that bites!

Lauren was on the Honor Roll all year. Hunter says it's easier in the 2nd grade but even back then he didn't give it his all. I hope that she will always love school b/c it sure makes things better. Hunter HATES it and it makes the school year hellish!

Jenny got a picture of Nate standing up outside the hospital last week. How awesome is that! What a wonderful God!!

I also can't believe it's been 2 years almost since this...http://brandyb.wordpress.com/2007/06/11/shes-gone/

Well I am going to run outside and play with the kids. See you later.

It's OVER..

I didn't think this day would get here but it finally did. Summer break is here... thank you Lord! Lauren's last day was the 20th but Hunter had to take 3 semester tests so he didn't get done till yesterday.

Today Lauren and I went to Benton to sell some clothes at Simon Says... love that store! If you leave close to there you really need to check them out. After we were done there we hit Old Navy. 50% off anything already on sale!! Man I love Old Navy. After that we went to Park Plaza and hit some stores there. Met up with a friend and her girls and shopped and then ate lunch. While the older girls were finishing eating we took the little ones to the candy store. OMG can you believe I paid $11 for M&M's!!! Never ever again will we go to that candy store!

Well I must run and feed the dogs. They are all barking letting me know it's dinner time lol. :)

I may have..

lost my mind. If you have been reading older posts you know we have a dachshund named Lady Bug. She had puppies back in March. We have decided to keep the only girl that lived. So now we have 5 beagles and 2 dachshunds. Yes I am crazy... I know! I just couldn't sell her and Vince fell for her too and of course the kids wanted to keep all of them. Now we need names. We have Blue, Red, Grady, John, Henry and Lady Bug so what do y'all think? She's black and tan and she will be small. Please help us out. Lauren says Princess and Hunter says Honey (we had a black and tan named that when he was a baby) and I haven't a clue. I counting on y'all, please don't make me cry! :)

Falling so far behind

I don't know how any of you girls do it. I am so far behind with the housework it isn't even funny anymore. I have been working everyday the last 2 weeks and I am PRAYING for a break next week. Yeah the money will be super nice come payday but I am so TRIED and cranky. Now I know how Lauren (baby girl) feels when she's oh so whiny. I will try to remember that when she gets that way.

Then Vince (hubby) says he's thinking about laying off tomorrow night. Hello I have been busting my butt and taking EVERY call from the school so we can go somewhere this summer! Then he says "you wanna switch?" Will do buddy boy. I will ride the choo choo train to Dexter and then get a free hotel room and sit back, relax, catch up on missed sleep, and eat out while you go to the school and work then come home and keep up with house stuff and kids homework, baths, and feed them all before Lauren's 8 o'clock bedtime. Tell me where to sign on the dotted line. Oh and hurry before the bags under my eyes get bigger and darker.

I wanna know why I can't just say "oh it will be there tomorrow and go to bed at night"? I can't do it I have tried but I lay there thinking about what needs to be done and had I done it I would stop thinking about it already. Like right now my eyeballs are on FIRE but here I sit reading and writing waiting for the clothes to finish drying. It's just CRAZY!!! My body quit hours ago but not my pretty little head. One of you can stick me with a pin because I'm done! ;)

Hi Ho Hi Ho

it's off to work I go. I have worked everyday this week and will finish the week off working too. They have me floating around the High School in the mornings while they are doing the 7th and 8th grade Benchmark tests. In the afternoons I have been a few different teachers who have had dr. appointments or gone home "sick" (sick of the Benchmark test). I am working Tuesday next week too.

A little funny... Monday morning I had the 8th graders out in the gym (they started Benchmark Tuesday) and the Principal comes in to talk to them. He finishes with his talk and I got up and walked over to him to ask him something. He looks at me and says "Oh Mrs. Brandy I thought you were one of them"! Come on I know I look young BUT really 8th grade?!

The puppies had their first "real" meal tonight. They of course ate like 3 little pigs.

Only 28 more days of school!!!!!!!!! Yes I am more than ready for SUMMER vacation. I am ready for the pool to open and us hang out there most days. I am ready to not have an alarm clock waking me up Monday through Friday. I am ready to hung out with my kids and have no worries of homework, tests and grades!

Also one month from tomorrow I am going to see Kenny Chesney, Miranda Lambert and Lady Antebellum with 2 of my bff's. This will be our first concert together and I am so looking forward to it. This will also be the 3rd time I have seen Kenny.

I need to run and catch the weather and get into the bed before 1 am like I did last night. Thanks to Jenny! :P

A shout out

for my friend Jenny... she passed the Real Estate test today!! Way to go girl!

After work tonight Jenny, another friend Mary and I went out to celebrate. We had a great time. We ate and talked for 3 hours. We also decided to make this a once a month outing... of course that's not counting our lunch dates. ;)

The kids are out of school tomorrow. Baby girl went over to my moms to stay the night. Mamaw was glad to see her. It lifted her spirits some. Please keep praying for her. Now I am off to watch DVR and then bed. Oh before I forget the littlest puppy has put on some weight. :)

Now I remember why I don't do....

Facebook. After reading this post at Chicky Chicky Baby http://chickychickybaby.blogspot.com/2009/03/let-sleeping-dogs-lie-but-if-you-insist.html it hit me. I have a ex that should NEVER try to get it touch EVER!!! He was close to a felon way back in the day. And yes I was young and stupid and stayed with him even after it. Not that I would every want to redo my life b/c I think I am the person I am b/c of my past but if I could block out those 3 years it would be like laying on a beach with nothing else to do every again! I really thought 7th grade was awesome till we broke up during 9th grade and then my eyes opened to a new world... one were I was free to be me. I am SO very thankful cell phones weren't the thing back then. :)

What time is it?

No it's not summer time... tho I do wish it was!! It's SPRING BREAK!!!!!!! :D Time for a week of sleeping in. No homework! Staying in our pj's till noon if we want to. Sleeping in! Fishing trips! Kids going camping with the grandparents! No homework!! Oh we are expecting puppies any day now too. So let the fun begin.

Oh my!

My baby girl is now 8 years old!

This doesn't seem right. Where have the last 8 years gone? I really shouldn't be surprised because she was in such a hurry to get here back then. She tried to make her entrance into the world at 30 weeks but we put a stop to that after a week in and out of the hospital. After 6 weeks on brethine, 2 steroid shots and lite duty (whatever that means when you have a 4 year old too) she was given the OK to come. Which she did and then she wouldn't wait for the dr. to get there so the nurse delivered her. Every since it's been go go go. I've heard when can I do this and how old do I have to be before that? Why can't she just slow down and be little while she can? You are one of our blessings and I'm so very thankful for you everyday. I love you baby girl. Happy 8th Birthday!!

Another late call...

I waited till 7 am to get the kids up this morning. I got them fed and dressed and drove them to school. I thought to myself ahhh silence at last. Wrong thought because the phone rang 8:22 am and the caller ID said the schools name. Crap! They wanted to know if I could come in this morning... yes I will be there as soon as I can is what come out of my mouth. So I jumped in the shower and got ready. Can you believe I was signing my form at 8:55 am!? I am good like that lol. Which is why I get the late calls. ;)

meme's

Husband Tag

1. Where did you meet? In High School

2. How long did you date before you got married? 9 months 24 days

3. How long have you been married? Will be 15 years in Nov.

4. What does he do that surprises you? nothing comes to mind

5. What is your favorite feature of his? eyes

6. What is your favorite quality of his? sense of humor!

7. Does he have a nickname for you? Honey

8. What is his favorite color? red

9. What is his favorite food? steak

10. What is his favorite sport? whatever the kids are playing

11. When and where was your first kiss? Feb. 1 1994... in my car when I dropped him off after our first date... hey it was on the cheek.

12. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? When we sit and watch movies together at home.

13. Do you have any children? Yes, one boy and one girl!

14. Does he have a hidden talent? no

15. How old is he? 33

16. Who said I love you first? I did!

17. What’s his favorite type of music? He really likes a mix of everything.

18. What do you admire most about him? His love for his family.

19. Do you think he will read this? no

HUSBAND MEME

1. He’s sitting in front of the TV: What is on the screen? John Wayne, Clint Eastwood or James Bond

2. You’re out to eat. What kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Ranch

3. What is one food he doesn’t like? sushi

4. You go out to the bar. What does he order? beer

5. Where did he go to high school? Pine Bluff High School

6. What size shoe does he wear? 10 1/2

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? fishing/hunting gear

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? cheeseburger

9. What would the Husband eat every day if he could? steak

10. What is his favorite cereal? doesn't eat cereal

11. What would he never wear? Pink.

12. What is his favorite sports team? the kids :)

13. Who is his best friend? Mark and John

14. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn’t do? Nag him about money

15. How many states has he lived in? three

16. What is his heritage? American

17. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what kind is it? I would have his mom make him her caret cake

18. Did he play sports in high school? nope

19. What could he spend hours doing? fishing and or hunting

Late call...

7 am is when the phone rang this morning asking if I could work today. Of course I jumped up and turned on the shower. After I got out I ran and woke up the boy and got him in the shower. Went back to start my makeup when I hear the shower in my bathroom running?! Hubby thought it would be a great time for him to get his shower also. You know since he wasn't really doing anything today... angry is what I became. The girl uses our bathroom first thing because her brothers in theirs. Nope not this morning cause daddy's in there being thoughtful and all. I got their pancakes ready and went to finish getting myself together in the steamy bathroom!! Fun time putting on makeup in a steamy hot bathroom! NOT!! Needless to say we were almost late this morning cause the hubby's always thinking of others.

After school the girl was complaining her head hurt. We got home and it only got worse. She finally threw up and about 15 minutes later she felt great. Lovely, she's going to have migraines too. The boy had his first migraine in the 2nd grade also. Gotta love that DNA they share with me. I do thank God that medicine has come a long way so we don't have to suffer like my great grandmother did.

I have been ebaying some and then last night while Im'ing with a friend I came across Etsy!! I got the girl a dress and I can only hope it's as cute in person as it was on there. She wants a Jonas Brothers party so I ordered a guitar cake pan off ebay... I am doing one chocolate and another yellow/white. I am also getting ready to order the invites... they look like concert tickets! How cool is that!?!

One last thing, I never did tell about Brad Paisley. HE WAS AWESOME!!!!!!! I will see him again when he comes back!! I heard Keith Urban and maybe Sugarland where coming... yep I will be there too!! :D

I'm in LOVE!!

Yesterday hubby and I decided to break down and buy a new vacuum cleaner. Our old new has been crapping out for a while now but we will in denial. Recently we rented a carpet cleaner and were grossed out by the nasty crap we pulled out of the carpet. Mind you we built this house back in 2004 so they shouldn't be THAT bad yet. So anyway we had talked about getting something new with some of our income tax money. So I researched vacuums and decided the Dyson was what I wanted. O M G I am so in love with this machine. I don't know how I have lived without this beautiful machine this long. Anybody thinking about a Dyson and wondering if it's worth the money... it SO is you won't be disappointed!!

Song titles

If I could write a letter to me. I would start by saying all because two people fell in love I can write this. Hubby was wrapped around her finger from our first date and has been waiting on a woman ever since. Back when we were dating we danced alot and it seemed like the world was ours. We sang a whiskey lullaby when we drank alcohol and thought we'd start a band. He likes to get a little mud on the tires but when I get where I'm going I'll have to search for ticks. Do you like to search for those... me neither. It's the little moments like that I'm glad I'm not a celebrity and that I'm so much cooler online. Tomorrow night as I sit and watch Brad Paisley with my step dad who I thank God for because he's always been more than half the dad he didn't have to be. I will be new again and feel like she's everything because he's still a guy Brad that is! ;)

I hope you like this because if not I'm gonna miss her. Those are all songs by Brad. I am SO excited! I have been waiting for years to see him and in about 26 hours the wait will be over! I will let you know how it goes. Till then...

ramblings

I have been working alot in the past 2 weeks. One would think after a almost 3 week break the teachers would be coming to work. I guess I won't complain to much. I am happy they have been calling me the day before because I have gotten lazy and have not been getting up and ready in case the phone rings. This will bite me in the butt soon.

I am getting very excited about Friday night. In case you forgot... it's the night I get to see BRAD PAISLEY!!! Then Monday we are getting our taxes done. :D No better way to spend a long weekend.

Poor dog...

This post over at http://babybloomr.com/ reminded me of this picture I took of Lady. She now sports a onesie while wearing her diaper tho. I will have to get a picture of that and post it.