Careful what you pray for

I asked the girl in my group last week to pray for a desire for me to quit smoking.  I did well for about 3-4 months than fell off the wagon.  I told them I have no desire to quit but really want to for good.  No more back and forth.

Yesterday I had this nagging thought.  Why not make today the day.  In one year you can celebrate being 35 and one year smoke free.  I kept pushing the thought away and continued on with my day.

I smoked a cigarette while chatting with James before picking Victoria up from the bus stop.  I butted my cigarette out in the planter hanging on the porch, grabbed A&A and drove up to Grant Line to wait on the bus.  I was there about 10 minutes before the bus cam with Victoria came bouncing out and told me that she was didn't get her name moved again today.  (This is a 4 day run for Victoria not getting in trouble at school and getting her name moved to a different color.)  We chatted a bit about it and then headed back home.  I pulled into my driveway to a cloud of smoke and horrible smell.  My cigarette I "put out" wasn't out and the side of my porch was in flames.  I panicked and grabbed my coke out of the cup holder and poured it over the flames.  It didn't do much so I ran in the house and flung open the cupboards to find my popcorn buckets staring at me.  I filled two and ran back outside before I had my "Duh" moment and ran down the side of the house to get the garden hose.  It took a second to get it completely out.  In the meantime my heart is racing, Anthony has rolled down the window and thrown Addison's blanket out of the car causing her to scream bloodymurder, and is now yelling "Mommy the porch is broke!"  I cooled the planter off enough to remove it from the railing to find that about a 1 and a half 2 foot hole burned completely through the lattice work.  It took about 15 minutes for my adrenaline to level off and I broke down and cried on the swing.  Thank God we are all ok! Thank God I didn't have anywhere to go after I picked up Victoria!  Thank God the bus was on time!  Thank God I still have a home to shelter me!  Thank God for answering a prayer while protecting me and my family!  When you get a prompting from the Holy Spirit you better listen up!  God can and will use mighty ways to get your attention if he needs to.

34!

What beautiful weather to celebrate another year!  Crissy, Mom and I headed up to Hubers with the kids and took in the sights.  I told my mom to call my sister to ask her if she would like to join us.  She told me she would but she was driving the bus for a field trip.  Guess where the field trip was to.....Hubers!  How is that for fate.  So good to see her.  She brought a bag of pretzel M&Ms and a card that made me get teary eyed.  Love ya sis!  Addison my fearless child walked around the store just taking it all in.  Anthony my strong as an ox and scared as the cowardly lion spent the first hour clinging to anyone that would hold him because of Halloween decorations.  It started off with the 20 foot tall jack-o-lantern and escalated to the robotic mummy in the gift shop. Crissy had shift one till her back started hurting and then I took a shift trying to get him in a cart to sit.  When he saw Punkin he wanted her to take a shift too.  We will all have sore backs in the morning.  When we got home tonight he had to tell me that the Big pumpkin scared him because his eyes were following him.  The eyes didn't move.  It was a big balloon but to him that thing was sitting on the top of the hill so that he could watch his every move.  I will try to get a video of him talking about the eye movement of the pumpkin and post it on here.  For some reason our photo loading program is messed up and I haven't been able to load any.

We left to pick up Victoria off of the bus (side note Victoria has made it 3 days without getting in trouble at school.  Hooray!) and then headed to Applebees for dinner.  Great food!  Addison made me chuckle in the bathroom.  I was standing there in the stall waiting for her to "finish" and she looked up at me and said....
"Mommy, Is your burday today. It not my burday.  My burday is gone......I lost it."  in her matter of fact tone with her little nose wrinkled and lip turned up.  I guess tomorrow I will lose mine.  :)

Where the past month and a half of my life has gone.

Victoria turned 7 on Saturday.  I have worked my tail off on redoing her bedroom. I found the comforter and with the help of my awesome brother in law Victoria had a new twin bed on the way.  I worked away from the start of school to the bus dropping her off on the details.  I have to admit I have had a ball but dragging all of the stuff out and then packing it away again along with the hiding of things until the big reveal was a pain.  Here are a few pics to show you the transformation. 

Before...........

During.... Couldn't have made this happen without Crissy.  She is such a trooper!  She was at my house at 8am right after the bus left and didn't leave till 8:30 that night.  She didn't even complain when we ran out of paint for the accent wall and my trip to walmart resulted in the wrong color.  Now that is a friend.  :)  We ended up painting one wall 3 times due to this mistake.

After.....(as Addison says "PA-DA!")

Love this bedding.  It was ordered from Target.com.  Sheets were Walmart clearance for $5 and the floor lamp in the background was $6!

Hand painted this sign for bed.  Another dollar tree steal!  Beading by my buddy Crissy as I was sewing away on other projects.

Handmade pillow I assembled from scrap material from Large Group projects at Church.  Got to love donated things that match a project your working on. 

 

This dresser has been in our family forEVER!  Mom found this at a yard sale I believe and we have had it in every room of mom and dad's house and mine.  I painted the drawer fronts to match the bedding.  It added a nice touch.  Notice the matching rug at the foot of the bed?  This is actually a bath rug from Walmart's back to school collection.  I got a two rug set for $5!! Can't beat that!

Canvas that I painted to also match bedding.  This hangs above the dresser and Crissy added a really cute touch of wire threaded buttons to hang them with.  Very cute detail! Canvas was 3 for 6 at Walmart.  Woo Hoo!

This gives you a better view of the bedding and the throw blanket I added a flower to.  Again Walmart Back to School clearance throw for $5 and material for flower left over from church.

This was the only furniture that was in Victoria's room prior to the remodel.  This plastic shelf.  I purchased the canvas totes at Walmart Clearance for $3 each.  They matched the colors perfectly!!!

Victoria's new closet.  I knew she wouldn't have much room to move around with the new bed in the small room so I removed her closet door and added this curtain purchased by Mamaw and Papaw at Walmart.  It came with two panels and I cut the tabs off of the top and added a spring rod.  The length was perfect and this project took about 5 minutes to finish.  Had to add a little feather boa touch for the top.

I am going to have to take another pic of this but the pink curtains were made by my mom a few years ago.  I kept them and cut apart the remaining panel from the closet and made a valance from it along with tie backs.  Crissy was excited because she got to sew a bit on the tie backs.  She wanted to learn..

Some of the hand painted frames that I put together for her. These were purchased at Dollar Tree and a few coats of paint and they were ready to go!

The room turned out better than I thought that I expected.  I was thrilled and so was Victoria.  Glad that the project is almost over.  Still waiting on James to put up the white shelves over her bed.  I have a few plans for them as well.  Someone please remove the glue gun from my hand!  I'm out of control!!

Labor breathing Labor Day.

I am reminded again how incredibly blessed I am to have a man like James in my life.  He has been suffering with the respiratory crap that we have all been passing around.  He was coughing so hard this week that he had pulled something in his side and his stomach was bulging out on the side and hard as a rock.  He was coughing from his pinkie toes.  This morning we were laying in bed and he was flat on his back when a coughing fit hit him.  The first cough did him in and he let out a screaming and fell apart in the bed for about 5-10 minutes before he was able to speak.  He told me that he felt and heard something crack.  He said he believes he broke a rib.  He was unable to sit up and just laid in bed sobbing and screaming.  I was terrified and didn't know what to do.  After some gentle yet aggressive suggestions to go to the doc he decided to go.  I dropped off the kids and took him to Immediate Care.  They took an x-ray of his lungs and looked for pneumonia.  Doc was more concerned for the long lasting cough and lack of oxygen than the possible broken rib.  They decided to give him a steroid shot to give him a boost and had us stay for 15 minutes.  Boy am I glad that they did.  He started to have a reaction to it and within 5 minutes was howling and wouldn't respond to me.  The color drained out of his face and his eyes were floating. I grabbed the nurses and they brought him a cold wash cloth and took his vitals.  Shortly after his blood pressure came back up and his face began to regain color.  They said that wasn't uncommon with that steroid.  They said that they have a joke they say of the bigger they are the harder they fall.  Big guys with tattoos (i.e. James) turn to mush with that drug.  The nurses came back to check his oxygen.  It was below 90 and they wanted it up before they cut him loose.  James was able to take a deeper breath with the thought of a hospital and endure the pain a bit.  We picked up his medications one steroid, one Z pac, one pain killer, and one cough suppressant and we were off to pick up the kids.  James went through all of that and still has to go to work tonight.  He was under a load heading to North Carolina and then another to Wichita that he couldn't back out of.  So we sent him off to work tonight with worry and prayers.  Such a hard working man that man of mine.  I don't know if I could be that strong to hop in a truck and drive all night in pain.  Safe travels to you honey.  We love you and miss you already.

It's not a big girl bed....

Today while suffering temporary insanity, OK permanent, I decided to move the twins bedrooms around and convert their cribs to toddler beds.  To be honest I would rather keep them in the cribs till they are around age 7 but know that I need to make this step and so do they. 

My house looked as if it had exploded as I took everything out of there that would fall, take up too much room to move furniture around or stuff to take to Goodwill.  The kids played in the living room with their new stuff and Grandma came by to say hello on her way to therapy.  Side note: Mom went to the doctor today and she has full freedom with her left arm.  She is now allowed to lift weight and she couldn't be more excited to get the OK from the doc about that.  It is funny how much you take things for granted like carrying your purse or groceries in the house until you can't use an arm. Way to go Grandma!  Doc said she is doing amazing as far as mobility but will never regain full mobility from that arm due to how sever the break was.  We are glad to have her back though even if she can't "raise the roof"

The beds were a cinch to convert. A few screws and walla toddlers bed stared at me begging me to cry over the inevitable growing up of my little muchkins.  I moved the dresser, changing table and then headed out to Walmart with the kids to grab a few storage bins for under the beds and one for a new mega toy box in the closet.  I have SO MUCh storage now.  I just love it!

School time was coming to a close and I woke up the kids asleep on their new bean bags.  We headed out to the car, snacks in hand, and I turned to them and said "Are you guys excited about your new big boy and big girl beds?"  Addison rolled her eyes at me and said "Mom, it is not a big girl bed it is a couch."  Well excuse me Miss Thang!

They are finally asleep now after sitting with them to get them used to laying in their new couches.  Anthony was a nervous wreck and kept getting me to come back into the room by having to "Tell you something Mommy...".  A good ol Baby Einstein movie with soft music and they were out like lights.  I will post pics tomorrow. Afraid that I will wake them if I try to take a picture and don't want to have to get them back asleep.  Sweet dreams my little ones.

Happy 3rd Birthday Addison Happy 5th Anthony!

Let the shopping spree begin!  What a day we had.  We started with opening presents after dropping off Victoria at the bus stop.  Cupcakes for breakfast and a quick bath we were off.

How cute are these?  The kids loved them.  Only 88 cents and no left overs to be tempted with.  :)

This part went a little something like this... "Happy Bir-(blow)"  candle was out on Anthony's cake.  No need to sing mom I just want the cake!  Please note the fancy "coffee cups" that the kids have had their eyes on at Walmart.  They think that it is really something to drink out of a cup with no spout like mommy does in the morning. 

3 year old presents are the BEST!  Dollar tree here I come.  So easy to shop for and so excited about EVERYTHING!  "I wub it! I wub it! O cank cu Mom!" came from Anthony with everything he unwrapped.  Lots of character Ziploc bags for snacks, flash cards and books for school, dress up clothes (note that tough fireman look and the fairy sister that is humoring him) but the hit of the dollar tree presents was the boo boo ice packs.  They have had more boo boos today than any other day in history, yet I can't find a single bump or scratch on them. :)

We stopped my Mamaw and Papaw's house to pick up their presents.  They got two huge bean bags for the living room.  They were very excited about them.  This is Anthony telling (arguing with) Mamaw that he is 5 today!

The kids had a ball at Chick-fil-A.  Free play areas are always nice.  This was a rare occurrence, Anthony giving Addison a hug in the slide tunnel.  They left there a sweaty mess and worn out.

We headed over to Target to check out the sales. We had birthday money to spend after all.  The kids picked out their toddler bedding.  Mommy was feeling brave and was ready for the cribs to go bye bye.  I am probably insane for doing this but feel that we have mastered the potty training on Addison so might as well take the next big step.  BTW Anthony still says "No way!" when asked if he would like to go potty.  Even after Papaw Gee promised a big T-Rex from Toy Story if he does.  The kids also got their very own Leap pad computer.  They were very excited about these too.  Great for school days.  Loud but they are learning none the less.

Walmart, another Target (just in case they had anything that the other one didn't.  Can you ever have too much Target?!) and then off to Toy's R Us.  

The newest obsession (but not purchased due to obvious reasons) umbrellas...

They pushed these carts around the store forever.  They were very serious shoppers.  Check out that pointing finger.  I am sure that he is pointing out a clearance end cap.  He is mommy's boy after all.

Anthony and his electronics.  Check out that attitude from the sister waiting for her turn. 

Addison toted around this Minnie Mouse through the whole store.  She has tons of stuffed animals and not enough room for more until we get some kind of shelf up.  So we had her put it back.  She was not happy about this and continued to look for it after her potty break.

I hope that I can explain this well.  This is a chair that you can wear.  The back of it (the jet pack) can fold underneath and that is the seat of the chair or you can flip it back so that you can wear your chair.  Buzz Lightyear of course.  Please picture Anthony running full speed up and down the aisle yelling "To finity and beyon!" 

The arm rests have holes in them so that you can slip your arms through to wear it.  I never did find a price on this but I may have to make another run to Toy's R Us for Santa.  :)

We thought that Addison had given up on the Minnie Mouse until we told her it was time to leave and we found her like this.  "We don't have to get that Minnie Mouse Mommy, I'll just take these."

We had a ball we were exhausted and the back of the car was loaded down.  Can't wait to get the beds converted and make my little ones their big boy/girl beds.

After my photo book of the day I would like to share some things about the age 3 to my little people.

*********Anthony*********

• 
  
   You are always coming up to me and saying "Mom, I want to tell you something...Pa Pa Gee is making Big T-Rex money"  You have to tell me this at least 20 times a day (no joke) as if I have forgotten that he told you he would buy you one. 
• 
  
  You still have no interest in potty training even after watching sissy get to wear something other than a diaper.  I find it funny that I mentioned this last year too.  Hopefully I won't be posting on your 4th birthday about how you are still not potty trained.  :)
• 
  
  You love and have mastered the art of pestering your sister.  You know just how to push her buttons and sometimes it is hard to tell if she is laughing or screaming at you.
• 
  
  You are still in love with anything superhero.  You refer to yourself as Ironman, or Superman on a regular basis.  Although sometimes you take a break from it to call yourself Pa Pa Gee, your other superhero.
• 
  
  You love your "Tar".  It is located in the basement of Pa Pa Gee's house.  You love to give concerts to anyone that will listen and you have to get your foot tapping first before you even start to strum the strings.
• 
  
  You love to dance and have a preference to classic rock songs or anything with electric guitar.
• 
  
  You can be found with your index finger to your chin then pointing it straight up and saying "I Know!" when you feel you have come up with a brilliant idea.  This usually involves something to eat.  ;)  You also will someone else's conversation (that you are not involved in) with "Me too!"
• 
  
  You love to play school and your coloring cracks me up. You are a one line per color kid.  Green (one line) DONE! Blue (one line) DONE!  You also get excited when we go over the letters that we have already done and make sure to let everyone know that B stands for Bubby!

***********Addison**********

• 
  
  Where do I even begin my sweet little drama queen.  You are mommy's little princess.  You are a fashion girl and will hold everyone in the house up if your shoes, socks, shirt, pants, anything on you is "Not working"
• 
  
  You also love school and your coloring is in clusters.  Your coloring pages look like polka dots.
• 
  
  You love to dance and most of your dancing is in your shoulders and finger tips.  You love club music and anything with a strong bass line.
• 
  
  You are very proud of yourself for using the potty and haven't had any accidents out yet.  I probably just jinxed myself didn't I?
• 
  
  You have become quite a picky eater.  If it doesn't resemble a chicken nugget you don't want much to do with it.  Anything with sauce is a plus, but you usually just eat (wear) the sauce.
• 
  
  You worship your big sister.  You think that Victoria hung the moon and will do anything that she does.  You watch her like a hawk and hope that one day you can be as cool as she is.
• 
  
  You LOVE to dress up!  You have a whole drawer of dress up clothes.  Most of is is Victoria's that she has out grown which  you love.
• 
  
  You have an almost permanent mark on your forehead from where you lean against your bed rails watching TV at night.  You are your fathers daughter.  You have to have your head propped up against something when in bed.
• 
  
  You hate to admit it but you love your brother.  He pesters you to death but you secretly love it.  You crack up and love to receive horsey rides from him.  You yell "Gitty up Cowboy!"
• 
  
  When you are having trouble with something like getting unhooked from the wagon you yell "Save me Superman!" to get your brother to help you.  It is quite adorable, and Anthony loves that you run to him for help.

You are still my snuggle bug and can wad up in the tiniest ball on my lap pressing your check to mine.  You love touching faces when you snuggle and think that snuggling with Gramaw is just the best.  She does too. 

I wouldn't trade either of you for the world.  I love you to pieces and you have brought me more joy that I could ever imagine.   

Goodbye 2

Where did  3 years go?  I just can't believe that my little ones are going to wake up 3 years old.  Fighting back tears I kissed them goodnight in their beds and helped Addison hold up three fingers with a grin from ear to ear.  She is so excited.   Anthony insists that he will be 5.  :)  That is growing up a little too fast there little man.  I decorated their room with balloons and streamers thanks to our good ol' Dollar Tree.  They watched with wide eyes as I pinned them on the ceiling.  "Mommy is dis my Berday party?"  Addison asked as she jumped up and down over the pink balloon placed strategically over her bed.  "Yes Honey it is!"  Mommy can't wait for the celebration but can hold off a bit on being happy at the time passing so quickly.  Love you my little munchkins!