Weekend Wonders

Yay! I'm finally getting a post up!  This little booger here has no desire at all to take a nap while we're at home, so we are full throttle all day long.  My fumes are always running low!  He only "chooses" to nap when it's time to get in the car and wait in the car pool line to pick up AJ and Cate. (their favorite activity)
Jumping Bean Shorts $3, Bailey Boy pants $4, osh kosh shirt $2, Polo shirt $6
So Saturday, a friend and I hit up a children's consignment sale at the fairgrounds.  The kids needed shorts and Caleb needed shoes.  I decided it would be a good idea to go and see what I could find.  I spent a total of $35 ( I still feel like it is tad high- cheap people problems) and Caleb was the clear beneficiary of this sale.  I knew I would be out of luck with AJ.  He's like a grown man now! Nerf sandals $6 and Adidas $8 I managed to get both of these pairs of shoes for $14!  However, the sandals are a tad bit too small so I decided to give them to my friend. Gymboree shorts $2 and Bermudas $4 This is what I managed to pick up for Cate.

Afterwards, we stopped by the farmer's market and picked up a few things including the deliciousness of kettle corn.  This stuff should be illegal it's so good!  We all have to find our self control when it comes to the kettle corn.  We did manage to leave daddy that small bag there.  Haha.  The cheese straws were gross, in my opinion.  Aj loved them or either he was just hungry.

After we left the farmer's market, I decided to take the kids to the University Art Festival.  It is a free event that GSU has every year full of art activities for the family.  They also had dogs there for sale.  Caleb has a love hate relationship with anything that moves faster than he does, but he decided to try anyway. Miss Caitlyn loves animals too.  She even asked her daddy if she could have a pet....since she can't have a sister.  Ummm... I wish you could have seen my husband's face.  He wasn't quite sure how to respond!

 
  They made some tissue paper flowers and these two needed face paint. Of course, Caleb decided he needed his face painted as a puppy.  Cate needed to be a tiger...a pink one. 

Standing with cotton candy almost bigger than him brings instant happiness.

  And as if all that wasn't enough, we stopped by the bookstore and then went and bought flowers for one of our spring activities.  I didn't know what I was doing any more than the kids, but we tried anyway.  I would love to have a garden too...like the book "The Secret Garden."  I know.  Lord, help me! Needless to say, I'm pretty sure I was drooling in my sleep after all of this.

Well, today is the last day of school before spring break.  Although I'm smiling now, I'm sure I'll be running towards the brink of insanity by the middle of next week.  We have planned to take the kids to LEGOLAND over the break.  I've read so many mixed reviews, I'm not sure what to think.  However, I think the kids will like it.  We actually got a deal on the tickets.  We just so happened to stop by McDonalds one day (We had stopped eating there as we are taking more steps towards more organic whole foods.)  There was a little flyer in the happy meal about a partnership with LEGOLAND and McDonalds that one child gets in free with a paid adult.  I had also saw somewhere else that if you saw the movie (we did) you could get $5 off admission into the park, but the McDonalds deal was the best price for us. The link to the site for the deal is LEGOLAND.com/TLM2014.  It says enter promo code 139916.  I don't remember entering a code though to get the deal.  The offer doesn't expire until April 30, 2015.  Without the offer, we would have paid about $100 (including tax) for tickets.  However, we ended up paying about $59 including tax.  So if you've been thinking about going, you might want to check out the deal.

What A Weekend

(enjoying the nice weather by the pond)
Well I have completely been MIA for the past couple of days.  Exhaustion is catching up with me.

First, I fell asleep on Friday. Caleb's nap time has been slowly becoming my nap time.  Then, I started playing around on the computer half writing about Friday's fitness post that never got written on cutting out processed foods. There is an October unprocessed challenge that I want to try. I'll try almost anything.  Almost. The challenge is to not eat any processed foods for the entire month of October.  I'm thinking maybe completely cutting out processed food at least 2-3 times a week.  I don't know if we could go a whole month.  I stood in the grocery store dazed and confused this week.  Just what in the world isn't processed?  I really need to read more on it, but I've started.  Anyway, I never finished it due to leaving for praise dance practice.

 

While we were playing in the church yard, waiting on others to arrive for practice, we witnessed a high speed chase that resulted in a crash just a few yards from where we were standing.

My daughter, who has barely slept through the night in 3 months due to nightmares and is easily awakened by hearing even the slightest sound (seems like anyway), is surely not sleeping now. So we are even more exhausted daily. Then Saturday morning was choir practice and dance practice. We were also cleaning for a funeral that afternoon. I and a few others acted as ushers and servers afterwards. I can't stand to go to funerals. It's just heartbreaking to watch people go through pain of loss.

But looking on the bright side, Sunday was our youth Sunday service where the youth are pretty much in charge of the everything. The kids did a great job and the guest choir was awesome.  It was a great service and really uplifting. 

 

 I also got a surprise when I pulled up to the church and saw one of my best friends from college parked there. Apparently she and the hubby had planned to surprise me.  They did.

(after church- casual Sunday)   It was so good to see her and we had such a great time spending the day together.  Of course, we took about 500 pictures, but I'll spare you.
  And we tried to get all of us fur-babies together for a picture.  AJ cannot stand taking pictures!  He's always like "you have to take a picture of us eating too?"  Yes.  He runs every time I mention pictures, but he stood for this one.  The monkey see-monkey do duo down there are usually always ready for a picture.  Making faces and striking poses are usually the best ones.   I'm looking forward to sitting back and catching the breeze.  I may be tired but this weather is really getting the best of me.  All I want to do is lounge around the house all day in pajamas curled in blanket.  The kids don't really care for this idea.  I tell them they'll understand when they're older.    How was your weekend?    

The Weekend and Back To School Goals

So this weekend the hubs decided to take the kids out for a fun trip because he was busy with work all week.  I thought that was a great idea except for one problem.  I wanted no part of it.  Usually when the hubs gets home at the end of the week I'm like "hey, I missed you", "I love you", "now here." ( hands kids over)

I love my munchkins but mama needs a break.  I contemplated not going.  Uggg.  Would I be the bad mom? 

I mean I would technically have to dig some energy somewhere out of something to enter this kid crazed world of organized chaos.  Let me mention that it was already 7:30.  I'd been fantasizing about bedtime for the last hour and a half.  Dear Lord, help me.  I'm wearing a tank top and haven't shaved in ummm.... So I need to put on different shirt which will need ironing.  (sigh) That was almost a deal breaker, right there.  Then, I would have to run after a indecisive toddler and a high spirited Disney princess.  AJ is pretty much on his own.  He's teetering into that tween "just let me be" stage which is making me nervous. 

The hubs said I didn't have to go and could rest but I could tell the kids were waiting to see my response.  I went.  I was feeling partially guilty already.  Why are moms like that?  You can do everything for your kids but if you miss that one game, didn't make those cupcakes for the bake sale, or buy that whatchamacallit on the fundraising sheet so they can get that toy that only costs a dollar at dollar store, guilt sets in. 

I'm going to put an end to that.  Next time I will stay home and I will REJOICE and be GLAD in it!  Although I'll probably call 10 times to see what they're doing. 

 

 

These two decided to take a wild ride.  Cate loves this thing.  I thought Caleb was just too small for all the shaking but he was determined to ride with big sis.     Alley ball.  AJ only stopped to check in for a second. before heading on his way.      Having a ball of fun in Ballocity.   We all had a good time and the place actually wasn't that crowded.  I was surprised being that it was Saturday night but we didn't get there until 8.      Then, on Sunday we took a trip to see one of my friends from college.  It's been 2 years since we last saw each other!  We have really got to do better.  It was great catching up with the family.  This is like my sister and I LOVE HER! Also has her natural hair going on.     There are friends who pretend to be friends, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24     School House Rock!!!!   It's almost here!  School starts in a little over a week and I've got a lot of stuff to smooth out before it gets here.  So I've set some goals for myself.  

1.  Clean out and wash the car (No big deal, right?  Half of summer is in there.)

 

2.  Set up a command center ( our current one is a mess and I need it more organized)

 

3.  Make weekday labels for the kids' clothes ( I did these last year but didn't laminate- now they're destroyed)

 

4.  Make a few new hair accessories for Cate

 

5.  Finish making the rest of the napkins for lunchboxes

 

6.  Freezer cooking - it's about to get real around here.  (play dates, homework, swimming, football, choir practice,  - a whole lot of stuff is about to hit the floor and I better get ready.  The last thing I'm going to want to do, after all that, is stress out in the kitchen.)

 

7.  Decide on a back to school hair style for Cate and have an idea of the rest of them for the month.

 

8.  Go ahead and get back on our bedtime schedule.