Marderosian Family Tree

Preschool Is Among Us

2010-09-06T13:04:00.002-04:00

Wow. Time flies. My lil man is off to his first day of school on Friday. I have mixed emotions. I am super happy and excited for this great oppotrunity for him, but I am also sad. Its been me and him for the last three and a half years! Everytime I step near that preschool, I feel like crying, lol! Its silly, I know, but I cant help myself. I am proud of him and I know he will do so well. He keeps asking if I am going to come with him, so he definitley has not grasped exactly what "school" is. But he will soon discover how great it is going to be! Making new friends, going on field trips, becomming more independant. He is going to experience so many new things this year! I welcome the coming months and mostly I welcome hearing about his days at school!

Roly Poly

2010-06-03T21:30:00.002-04:00

LOVE LOVE LOVE this video! Peyton is so cute doing her roly polies!

Two Sneaky Chocoholics and a Fun Face!

2010-05-31T21:33:00.007-04:00

I got woken up this morning my two bright eyed and bushey tailed early risers before 7am! I had worked a 16 hour shift yesterday and got off at 11pm, so I was so NOT feeling getting up that early. When I finally rolled out of bed I find two kids looking like this...

C A U G H T

R E D

H A N D E D

Have to admit, I had a little giggle, but then proclaimed "NO TREATS!" for the rest of the day, mean, I know. I wasnt sure if I was more mad they got into the candy without asking (seeing we have had this conversation on several other occasions) or mad that they ate my very last piece of dark chocolate! I heart dark chocolate!

Carter also made his very first "face" drawing today! I had been working with him trying to get him to draw a face and eyes before and he never really did, but today, he did it! It looks a little scary but you can make out the two eyes, nose and mouth! Heres his masterpiece!

Earn On The Side

2010-05-30T11:43:00.005-04:00

I have shared with some people different ways I have been "earning on the side"!. It can be time consuming and definitley takes dedication, but its so rewarding when you FINALLY get enough points to redeem a check or giftcard!

Here are some of the sites I do to "earn on the side"!

Swagbucks
How it Works: A simple site similar to google where you search and can win points! Once you earn enough points, you can cash out to earn gift cards, magazine subscriptions, etc.

What I have earned: I always choose the Amnazon giftcards. I have redeemed $20 in Amazon giftcards since I signed up!

Opinion Outpost
How it Works: You are sent surveys to complete. If you qualify for the survey you have to complete it to earn points. Once you earn 500 points (equal to $5) you can cash out. They will send a check directly to your home. One thing to point out, this will start off slow, but the more surveys you complete, the more they will send you.

What I have earned: Since joining in January, I have earned $83.20! Prety awesome considering its money I didnt have!

My Survey
How it Works: Pretty much the same as the above survey site. The only difference is you cash out for giftcards, not actual checks.

What I have earned: Since joining in January, I have earned $10 to Amazon. This doesnt send as many surveys but you always get points, even if you dont qualify for the survey.

My Points
How it Works: You earn points just by reading daily e-mails, staking surveys and by shopping! It takes a little time to earn enough points, but its worth it!

What I have earned:
2 $25 Old Navy giftcards
1 $25 Gap giftcard
1 $10 Starbucks giftcard
1 $10 Panera Bread giftcard

So, as you can see, I have earned over $100 in giftcards and checks since starting! If you have the extra time, I highly urge you to try it! Its a great way to earn rewards!

I've Been Slacking

2010-05-30T11:38:00.003-04:00

Sorry about that! We've been very very busy with...LIFE! Work, baby showers, birthdays, retirement lunch, hanging out with friends and just plain enjoying this beautiful weather! I have lots of pictures but cant find the time to post! Lucky for you if you are on Facebook, you have already seen lots of them!

And June proves to be yet another busy fun filled month! Peyton has her gymnastics recital (I can FINALLY take pics!), Marks family is coming to visit, Fathers Day, more birthdays...phew!

In fact, as I am writing this today, I am working a big fat double shift, 7a-9p.

I'll try and do better!!

Riding Along in my Automobile...

2010-05-24T20:08:00.007-04:00

We had been looking for a used power wheels for about a month now! So I was so excited when I found one! They are not as abundant on Craigs List as I had originally thought! Anyways, Carter and Peyton were so excited! Carter got the hang of driving very quickly. Peyton, on the other hand, not so much! Can you say whiplash?? LOL! Here are a few pictures and videos of the kids and their new "ride".

VIDEOS

**Note: Mute the music at the bottom to hear the video

This first one was when we first got it and were bringing it into the backyard. I like how Carter opens and door when he's "here"!

And a big surprise when I got home from gymnastics with Peyton, Mark had found a used red Jeep on the side of the road. It needs a battery but we tried Peytons battery and it does work. We really lucked out! Now both kids have one! Here are a few pictures of the kids and their Jeeps!

Two little bursts of energy!

2010-05-19T19:57:00.001-04:00

I sure wish I had the energy my kids have! This running back and forth is pretty much a nightly event in our home!

Farm Fresh Triples

2010-05-18T22:33:00.004-04:00

Farm Fresh was doing a special I have never seen them do before...TRIPLE COUPONS! They did it for three days but I was only able to make it today. I have been so busy! Two hours and two Farm Fresh's later, this is what I got:

4 pkgs Butterball Grilled Chix Breast Strips
4 pkgs Tyson Grilled Chix Breast Strips
2 Michellina Dinners
2 Glade Sprays
2 loaves of Natures Own Honeywheat Bread
2 loaves of Natures Own Whole Wheat Bread
4 (4pk) Dole Fruit Cups
2 pkgs Keebler Pecan Sandies
4 boxes Orville Redenbaucher Popcorn
1 box Kraft Mac and Cheese
4 Oscar Mayer Lunchables
2 Vlasic Relish
2 boxes brown Minute Rice
2 (2pk) Betty Crocker Warm Delights
1 box Pizza Rolls

Total Before Coupons: $80.67
Saved: $72.24
Spent: $8.43

Sew Mama Sew Giveaways

2010-05-17T09:19:00.005-04:00

I heard through that today is giveaway day in the blogger world! Many bloggers are giving away hand made items! Here is a listing of the participating mama's. I plan on entering a few. I heard of this through an old friend, Sharon! And guess what?? Shes even joined the force and is giving away a handmade mermaid towel!! Check out her giveaway here! Also check out her Etsy shop, Happy Hapa! I can definitley vouch for Sharons work! In fact, I just recently ordered the Aloha camera strap from her for my Nikon! I love it!

Good Luck!

Brunch Playdate

2010-05-12T13:29:00.004-04:00

We went to a playdate this morning at Martina and Sophia's house. It was fun but sad since Martina will be leaving in less than a month to move to the west coast! I have always enjoyed the playdates at her house! We had a good morning and Peyton was asleep in the car within five minutes of us leaving!

New Rug and New Recipe

2010-05-10T20:20:00.005-04:00

I had been looking for a car rug for Carter to play with his cars on. Some were pretty pricey but a friend of mine was selling her sons for cheap, so I took it! I picked it up yesterday and Carter LOVES his new car rug! He loves driving his cars on the street and Peyton loves walking on it, lol! Carter has really started entering into the creative and imaginary phase and I thought this would be great for him! And when hes not playing with it, it simpy serves as a rug in his room, so it takes up no space at all to store or anything. Its perfect! Heres a few pictures of Carter and his new rug!

In addition, tonight we had a "New Recipe Night"! I made Baked Spaghetti. It definitley had a different taste than traditional spaghetti, but it was good, I liked it!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Green pepper, chopped
1/3 cup Onion, chopped
1 Tablespoons Margarine
8 ounces Cream cheese, softened & cubed
1/4 cup milk
8 ounces pasta, any variety
1 jar Spaghetti Sauce, plain
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
3 ounces French fried onion rings

Directions:
Prepare pasta as directed on package. Saute vegetables in margarine. Add cream cheese and milk until well blended. Combine half of spaghetti sauce and cream cheese mixture with cooked pasta. Place in 2 quart baking dish. Top with the rest of the cream cheese mixture and then with the remaining spaghetti sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and top with 3 oz of french fried onion rings, continue baking for 5 minutes.

Feel The Love

2010-05-09T19:41:00.014-04:00

I had a very nice Mothers Day! I needed a good day with my family and I loved every minute ~~until I had to go to work~~! My one request today was that I wasnt wiping anyones butt, lol!

My day started when we woke up and we all ate cinnamon rolls for breakfast! Shorlty after we were done eating breakfast, I had just sat down in the glider and I see Peyton come out with a little blue box, then Carter brought anther blue box, then Mark brought the third blue box. I FINALLY got my Tiffanys charm bracelet that I had wanted for so long. I cried. I was so happy. Its a charm bracelet with two heart charms with the kids initials on one side of each of the hearts. I really love it! I cant wait to wear it and show everyone! After I got my beautiful Mothers Day gift, we all got ready and headed to Starbucks for coffee then on to my moms for lunch! I made two new recipes to share! I made a lemony yogurt fruit dip to dip fruit in and a chocolate bundt cake! MMMMMMMMM!!! We ate and the kids played for a while outside. It was a gorgeous day. My mom gave me a card with a Starbucks giftcard inside! Everyone who knows me knows how much I love my Starbucks! After spending time with my mom we had to leave since I had to head to work today at 3 o'clock. I had a great Mothers Day! I felt so loved and so special. I feel so blessed to have Carter and Peyton. I am thankful God chose me to be their mommy. They bring so much joy to my life, its truly indescribable. I love them both more than anything and I really love being their mommy!

**Not too many pics of Carter today! He wasnt in a photo taking mood, lol!

**A special "Happy Mothers Day" to all of my especially special mothers, Mom, my sister Tracy, my mother in law Janice and my sister in law Tracy!

Happy Mothers Day

2010-05-08T18:19:00.002-04:00

"Bath, Bath!"

2010-05-02T21:52:00.006-04:00

It was a GORGEOUS day outside Sunday! We were on our own since Mark was working in the morning and I was working at night. So, I decided to scrub out the ole pool today! The kids just couldn't wait to get in! I wasnt sure what Peyton would think. I just filled it up a little thinking they would put their feet in it and be done. Peyton liked splashing around, until she slipped on her butt and got her clothes all wet. She was screaming "wet! wet!". I changed both of them into their bathing suits and they loved playing in the water after that. I had to brib them with Nutella to come in for lunch! Carter also liked me spraying him with the hose and spraying it too! He kept asking "mom, can I have a turn now?!" It was cute watching them play and splish splash. Peyton kept calling it the "bath"! At least I know how to entertain em' for the summer!

Favorite Friday

2010-04-30T22:54:00.006-04:00

Here are a few of my favorite flashback pictures of Carter!

Easily Amused

2010-04-28T20:45:00.003-04:00

This is what we do EVERY night in the bathtub! And night after night, its just as funny as the night before! How can you not laugh at him?! So silly!

Bright Whites

2010-04-27T13:28:00.003-04:00

Carter had his very first dentist appointment yesterday with Dr. Huie! He did an amazing job! I wasnt expecting him to be so cooperative. They looked inside his mouth, cleaned his teeth and were even able to floss! He did everything they asked him to do. I am so proud of him for being such a good boy and doing what they asked him to do. And the best news--no cavities!!

And, for being such a brave boy, he got a sticker, a bouncy ball, a new toothbrush and a picture with Dr. Huie!

Breakfast In Bed

2010-04-27T13:25:00.001-04:00

I have the sweetest lil man! He brought he breakfast in bed yesterday morning! Doesn't it look delish? He will some lady very happy one day!

Barnum's Funundrum

2010-04-25T21:39:00.009-04:00

Tonight we went to the Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey Circus! We had fun, but the kids were just very ancy and didnt want to sit still unless we had snacks. They were climbing everywhere, bumping people around us, spilling things...sigh...But I didnt expect them to sit there the entire time either. We ended up leaving a little early but hey, we got to beat the traffic!

We got there early for the preshow and the neatest thing was that the kids got to see an elephant up close! They both loved it! And, guess what the elephants name was? "Kelly Ann", just like ME! She painted a picture and did some tricks. We saw men walking in stilts, jugglers, clowns, the whole works! When the show was about to begin, we found our seats. One of my favorites is still the motorcycles inside of the cage. Its utterly amazing how they dont crash into one another. The kids liked the "big kitties" also known as lions! All in all, it was a fun night! I love sharing new things with the kids and even though we left early I know they had a good time and thats most important!

Nail Polish

2010-04-24T15:34:00.004-04:00

What happens when you leave your daughters nail polish within your sons reach? Yep, your son gets a hold of it when hes awake at the butt crack of dawn and you are not. He not only paints his big toe pink but he proceeds to attempt to paint Peytons toes too. Of course Mark walked in and interrupted the mani/pedi session.

Twenty Nine Years And Counting

2010-04-24T15:33:00.009-04:00

Yep. Happy Birthday to me! Although I was perfectly content being 28. I didnt have much planned on Thursday. Just another day in the life of a mom and two toddlers. I did get to wake up Carter sleeping in bed beside me. He loves to crawl in mommy and daddys bed and I love it when I wake up and he is there. Its so sweet to wake up to him laying next to me. We got up and had breakfast and then I decided to take the kids to Bluebird Gap Farm. It was beautiful out and the sun was shining so it was a great idea to get out of the house! My babysitter and friend, Jessi, joined us! We had fun letting the kids see all the farm animals, then played on the playground for a bit.

Shortly after, we headed home for nap and I started an early dinner. We had some spaghetti before I headed off to Bunco with my moms group! While I didnt win, it was a fun time and Jessi even baked me a birthday cake. Shes so sweet!

Friday I had to work all day but when I got home, Jessi had also gotten me an edible arrangement! She snuck it into the kids lunchbox and I found it when I got home. I LOVE edible arrangements! The chocolate covered strawberries and apples are my favorite! She is so sweet to have done that for me.

Mark and I also went out to dinner to the Melting Pot! I had wanted to go for so long, so many of my friends had raved about it, but knew it was super expensive. We had a GREAT time! It was fun to dip and cook and really just relax and take our time. I really had a good birthday to thanks to my family and friends.

Flashback Friday

2010-04-23T21:05:00.005-04:00

These are two pictures I have looked at before because the kids are the same age and sitting in the exact same angle. Do you think my babies look alike?

Carter, May 2007, 4 Months Old

Peyton, November 2008 4 Months Old

Candy Necklaces and Coloring Cookies

2010-04-21T21:23:00.009-04:00

We had the quite the boring day today. It was super gloomy out and I just felt like staying in all day. But things got a little more exciting this evening. Carter ate most of his dinner so he got to pick a "treat". He picked a candy necklace out of this candy bag we have. This was his first experience with this so I was trying to explain to him how you wear it and bite the candy off. Carter even let mommy have a few nibbles! Of course after she saw me, Peyton wanted to try and Carter was more than willing to share! It was so funny watching the two of them trying to figure this whole candy necklace thing out. Carter licked half of the candy and was drooling everywhere trying to bite it off, it was pretty gross. And of course, the two of them broke the string and candy went flying! Tgat created a mad dash to see who could get the most candy, lol! These pictures are funny because you can just see the concentration and determination to get the candy into Peytons mouth! Way to work as a team, lol! I love these kids!

**excuse the messy faces! I hadnt wiped them from dinner!

After our candy necklace fun, I let the kids do a craft I had gotten for them to do a couple weeks ago but we never got around to doing it. It was Snoopy cookies that came with special markers for coloring them! They kids had fun coloring their cookies. Of course, they had to taste them too! They each managed to sneak in a bite or two but that was it since they were already bouncing off the walls from the candy necklace, lol!

Mickey and Minnie

2010-04-20T22:23:00.002-04:00

Just a fun picture tonight!

Carter and Peyton LOVE their Mickey and Minnie dolls Grammy got for them last summer. Each one sleeps with them at night. Peyton will even ask for "Minnie" to make sure shes in there with her! Today they both had them on the couch when they were watching tv and I thought it was so cute!

I Had An Epiphany Today

2010-04-17T12:04:00.006-04:00

Epiphany (feeling), the sudden realization or comprehension of the essence or meaning of something.

Carter started soccer this morning! I had been looking forward to it all week long. We talked to him about it and he was even getting excited about it too! There were a bunch of kiddos in the class, at least 10 little heads I counted. Carter was doing very well learning how to stop the ball with his foot and kick it to the next child. But he soon became too concerned with what sissy and mommy were doing on the bench and he kept waiving at me and running over yelling "mommy!", then he said he wanted to play on the bench where we were sitting. So, hence my epiphany. I realized that although I wanted to get some good shots of Carter playing soccer and be there to see how well he did, you know, be the involved parent, I wanted to give him the opportunity to succeed, do well and be a kid. I wanted to take away the distraction of mommy and sissy, so we left. No amazing pictures, no great stories to tell. Just a soccer ball, Carter and Daddy and the opportunity to learn something new.

When Peyton and I were going to the car, only 20 minutes into the class I might add, I saw another mother dragging her child by the arm. I recognized the mother and son from the class. I tried to reassure her "don't worry, ours isn't going as planned either". Her response was "I am getting a refund, I am not spending every Saturday doing this". My heart kind of hurt for that little boy because how can you be a quitter 20 minutes into the first soccer session? I can understand leaving, but try again next week! I know that Carter needs to learn the difference between just playing and learning to play a sport, and that will take time. Not only that, but taking the child out is definitley not teaching your child to follow through with a commitment. I dont want Carter to be a quitter, I want him to give it a good shot and be open to learning new things before I drag him out by the arm kicking and screaming. And if hes not a sports kind of kid, thats totally fine. But I want to give him the chance to discover what he does like!

Cloudy Day

2010-04-17T12:03:00.003-04:00

One thing I really love about our babysitter is that she will surprise me and sneak crafts into the diaper bag. When I open it at the end of the day and see something special my kids made, it makes me so happy! This is what I found inside the other day. You can probably tell which one is Carters (my kid who likes to line EVERYTHING up!)

Friendly Visits

2010-04-15T13:42:00.008-04:00

My best friend Sara and her family were in town last week. We had such a good time hanging out with them. Lucas and Carter are three weeks apart in age so they love playing together and Peyton is certainly doing a good job keeping up with the boys. While she was here we took the kids to McDonalds for lunch and playtime, went to the mall, played at her house one day, they came here one day and then she had a cookout. It was really nice and of course, I took alot of pictures of the kids!

Tuesday April 5, 2010 (playing at Sara's!)

Thursday April 8, 2010 (playing at my house!)

Saturday April 10, 2010 (cookout and trampoline fun!)

Updates

2010-04-13T11:19:00.003-04:00

Our house is still on market and although it feels like it has been forever, its really only been about a month and two weeks. We had our third showing last week. The buyer liked the house and wants to see it again, although we havent heard when she wants to come back. We are one of three houses she likes. I am ready to be one of one house someone likes, lol! In the meantime, we looked at two houses ourselves in Gloucester last week. One we didnt like and the other I liked, but Mark did not like. We are supposed to look at two more tomorrow but I havent heard back from our agent if it is a go or not.

Sara and family visisted VA last week. We had a really good time hanging out and all the kids had fun playing together. Pics to come!

Lastly, Peyton started her gymnastics last night. She was so cute! I had her in her little leotard, pants and her hair in a little bun. She did a really good job in gymnastics. They had 3 different obstacle courses including activities like the balance beam, the vault, rings and bars and other littke toddler activities. She is one of four in the class. Unfortunatly noone is allowed in the gym except the participant and a parent so we couldnt take any pictures :( I hope to take some of at the end of course during their little show they have.

Thats about it for now!

Addicted to Deals?!

2010-04-12T00:24:00.004-04:00

Farm Fresh was doubling coupons all week long and now with only two days left, I found out! Seriously? I am one of their best customers, you would think they would call me personally to tell me....just kidding!

Heres what I got:

8 pks of Dentyne Gum (FREE)
2 pkgs of McCain fries ($1.39 each)
4(4pk)Dannon Crush Cup Yogurt (FREE)
4(4pk)Activia Yogurt (FREE)
3(4pk)Danactive Yogurt (FREE)
2 packages of Thomas English Muffins ($.50 each)
3 pkgs Birdseye Steamfresh Veggies (FREE)
1 bg Flipz Pretzels (FREE)
2(12pk) Sorrento String Cheese ($2.49 each)
6 cans Dole Pineapple ($.33 each)
4 (3pk) Act II Popcorn ($.19 each)

Total Before Coupons: $85.55
Total Spent: $10.77
Total Saved: $74.78

The Sorrento String Cheese also had a rebate attached--when you buy 2 you get back $5, so technically after I get my $5 back, I spent $5.77!!!

Pretty Panties

2010-04-09T21:14:00.004-04:00

Its that time again--potty time! Peyton has really been showing interest in her "pretty panties". She loves trying them all on and showing them to dadda. So, since we ran out of diapers, this was a great time to start. We officially start tomorrow. I am working so Mark is on his own and armed with "treats" for using the potty!

Heres a picture of her trying out the potty!

It turned into a family affair when everyone joined Peyton in the bathroom!

Now onto a funny story! Tonight when I was putting Peyton to bed I was giving her lots of kisses, as I normally do. I was naming body parts and asking her if she wanted me to kiss them. This is how it went...

Me: "where your nose? you want mommy to kiss your nose?" **mommy kisses nose
Me: "where is your ear? do you want mommy to kiss your ear?" **mommy kisses ear
Me: "where is your hair? do you want mommy to kiss your hair?" **mommy kisses hair Me: "where is your elbow? do you want mommy to kiss your elbow?" **mommy kisses elbow
Me: "peyton, what do you want mommy to kiss next?"

Peyton looks up at me with the most serious look on her face, lifts up her arm and points under her arm saying "pit! pit!"

Me: **while laughing my butt off** proceeds to tell her I am not kissing her armpit! She noticed she got a rise out of me and of course kept saying it, it was hilarious! I love that girl!

Happy Easter

2010-04-04T19:14:00.004-04:00

Today was a beautiful day! You could not have asked for a better day for Easter to be on. It was the prime example of the perfect spring day! We had a great day to go along with the great weather! We woke up and did easter baskets and the kids LOVED everything. They are still new at this so they kept going to each others basket and we had to keep directing them back to their own. Also, after they would pull out one thing, they would want to open and play with it before getting the next thing out. I guess every kid has a method to their madness! After baskets, we made a yummy breakfast; scrambled eggs, fresh strawberries and orange iced cinnamon rolls! The kids got a little play time with their new toys before we headed over to yaya and papas house! When we first got there, we had an easter egg hunt with the kids. Of course, baby Cammie watched, and Kaelin, the oldest one snagged most of the goodies. But nonetheless, the kids had fun. Carter got the hang of things really quick. Peyton, on the other hand, was happy with just one egg! I had to help her find more! After the egg hunt, we had lunch; ham and sides. It was delicious! We stayed and let the kids play for a little while before heading home. I had to work tonight--lucky me. It was a great day and I am so happy to welcome spring!!

He Hopped On By!

2010-04-03T22:16:00.009-04:00

I have to say I went a little overboard on the kids easter baskets this year. With that being said, I know they will LOVE everything they get. Heres what the Easter Bunny brought this year!

For Carter:
A Turtle Kite
2 (5pk) Hot Wheels (one package is construction vehicles and one is law enforcement)
2 new Thomas the Train DVD's
1 Motorized Thomas the Train (Salty)
2 Books, "Wheres Waldo" (he LOVES these) and "Pickles in Pittsburg" (a spin off from "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs")
3 Chocolate Easter Bunnies
1 glitter bouncy ball
a new soccer ball

For Peyton:
A Ladybug Kite
Fairy Wings
5pk of nail polish with glitter
lip balm
2 My Little Ponies
2 Books, "Fancy Nancys Elegant Easter" and "Fill a Bucket"
1 Motorized Thomas the Train (the pink one, Rosie)
3 Chocolate Easter Bunnies
New Toaster for her play kitchen with toast
1 bouncy ball

A special thank you to Grampy and Granpy for the Old Navy and JC Penny giftcards (I was able to get the kids a few odds and ends they needed for summer!), tullips and Easter gift basket with fruit and easter treats! The kids LOVED it!

Another special thank you to my Aunt Marsha in Kentucky! She was so thoughtful to send the kids each a $10 giftcard to McDonalds! Thanks!!

Good Night for now...

Park Picnic Playdate

2010-04-01T14:05:00.011-04:00

Today we went to Newport News park with my moms group for a park picnic playdate. It was a gorgeous day. Its so easy to get caught up in the routine with two small kids so it was nice to get out and break up the monotony of the day. Being outside under the warm sun was so refreshing. We played for a while, then ate lunch, walked over to see the geese and feed them, then went back for a little more playtime before heading home. Both kids fell asleep in the car on the way home.

It was really neat seeing how independant Carter and Peyton are becomming. It was nice to sit back and watch them playing and discovering new things. Peyton even took a digger when she decided to go down this twirly whirly slide alone and I didnt notice until I heard the shreking sound of crying. A fellow mommy told me she started down the slide and twisted around backwards then fell face first at the bottom. Poor Pey Pey, but good for her for taking the chance and trying it alone. She even went back to do it again. I told my mom I am liking this stage and this independency they both seem to be developing. Don't get me wrong, its nice to be needed, but not hearing "hold me" from the little one for over two hours was quite enjoyable!

Hippity Hoppity, Hippity Hoppity Easters on Its Way!

2010-03-31T20:55:00.008-04:00

After dinner tonight we took the kids to Bass Pro to see the big fluffy guy! They were so excited! We got there before the Easter Bunny so the kids walked around checking out the fish. When the Easter Bunny came walking about the corner, Carters little face lite up. It was adorable seeing how magical it was for him. When it was the kids turn to sit with the Easter Bunny, I didnt know what to expect from Peyton since she screamed hysterically for Santa. But she was intrigued by the bunny and liked looking at him. Even when our turn was over, she got down and turned around and just stared at him in amazement. I got a couple pics but we didnt have time to try and get a good one. They were kind of moving people quickly along, but thats okay. After we saw the Easter Bunny, we got treated the kids to Cold Stone. After we had our icecream, we let them run out some energy before heading back home. It was a fun evening out!

Puddles of Fun

2010-03-29T14:17:00.006-04:00

Today it was a rainy yucky gloomy day! One of those days you want to sit inside, curled up with a blanket, your favorite movie and lots of snacks. I mustered up enough motivation to make a trip to Harris Teeter. On the way back home I was just thinking how much fun it would be to let the kids play in the rain instead of going back home and sitting inside again. So, "who wants to go outside and play in the rain?" I said. "Me! Me!" I hear. So, outside we went. The kids were laughing so hard. Partly because they were having a good time and partly because they knew they were doing something they are not normally allowed to do. It was all fun and games until Peyton fell face first in a big dirty puddle. I was laughing of course, she was not happy, so that ended out afternoon splish splash. What a mess to clean up! Everything and I mean everything was wet! But seeing the smiles on their little faces was totally worth it. Besides, every now and then you have to let kids be kids, even if it means splashing around in the puddles on a rainy day!

Note to self: Invest in rain boots for the kids! It took two days for their shoes to dry out!

Decorating Easter Eggs

2010-03-29T14:11:00.012-04:00

Yesterday the kids and I dyed and decorated easter eggs! Mark wasnt feeling well so he stayed inside napping. It was a nice day so we went outside to dye the eggs. The kids favorite part was dropping the eggs into the dye! After we dyed them, I let them dry off, then we stuck stickers on them! Carter put zoo animals on his and Peyton put pretty easter stickers on hers, although she had more fun ripping up the stickers than putting them on. And at the end, she also liked cracking the egg shells! I love doing things to let the kids be creative and they really enjoyed this!

What does $.21 Buy You?

2010-03-28T17:47:00.013-04:00

Not sure what it will buy you, but this is what it buys me :)

3 bags of Snyders Pretzels
3 pouches of Bumble Bee Tuna
1 Stride Gum
3 Gatorade
1 Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner
3 Joy Dish Detergent
3 Suave Kids Shampoo
3 (10pk) Johnsons bandaids

Total Before Coupons: $40.14
Total Savings: $39.93 or 99.4% savings!!!
Total Spent: $.21

I also went back a second time today! This was also a good trip!

3 Joy Dish Detergent
2 Johnsons Bandaids
1 Keebler Choc Chip Cookies
3 Hot Pockets
3 Total Cinnamon Crunch Cereal
1 Hellmans Mayo
3 Pringles on the Go Chips
2 pouches Bumble Bee Tuna
1 Orville Redenbauchers Popcorn
1 (4pk) Breyers Inspirations Yogurt (had a Free coupon!)
2 Pillsbury Easter Cookies

Total Before Coupons: $58.76
Total Spent: $11.17
Total Saved: $47.59 or 81%

'Super Couponers' Clip Their Way to Savings at the Grocery Store - ABC News

2010-03-25T23:47:00.000-04:00

I was up late tonight and this news story came on ABC, it definitley caught my attention since I myself are a "super couponer". I go out of my way to find and get deals such as these. But, in the long run its worth the time and effort to save such a considerable amount of money on groceries every week.

'Super Couponers' Clip Their Way to Savings at the Grocery Store - ABC News

Harris Teeter Triples

2010-03-24T12:25:00.004-04:00

I havent posted one of these in a while so I figured I would :) I hadnt been doing much couponing lately since we were trying to eat up what we already had. However, the other day, Mark commented that we were running low so it was time to jump back on the couponing bandwagon. I was able to go twice today, a friend let me use her shopping card (thanks Heather!) since she wasnt going to use it. You can only use 20 coupons per card so I have to go everyday in order to use all of my coupons.

Here is what I got today:

3 lbs fresh strawberries (no coupon)
2 pkgs Archway Iced Oatmeal cookies
6 pouches Martha White muffin mix
4 bags Birds Eye Steamfresh veggies
4 boxes Nutri Grain bars
3 bottles V8 juice
5 Shammrock Chocolate Milk
3 pouches Bumble Bee Albacore Tuna
2 Suave Kids Shampoo
1 Lysol Toilet Bowl Cleaner
2 Lysol All Purpose Cleaner
2 8pk. Reese Cups
3 bags Snyders Pretzels
6 2pk. Viva Papertowels

Total Spent: $27.60
Total Before Coupons: $121.29
Total Saved: $93.69

Thomas and Friends

2010-03-22T22:10:00.002-04:00

Carter and Peyton are HUGE "Thomas the Train" fans, I mean really! They never watch tv but when Thomas comes on, all eyes are on the tv. They really love dancing to the music at the beginning of the movie. They ask for Thomas all day long, so now we watch it once a day, period. The "Easter Bunny" is bringing two new movies, thankfully because Mommy is going crazy watching the same two over and over and over...Here is a short video of them dancing. I love seeing them happy :)

**NOTE: You will need to stop the music at the bottom of the page to hear the video.

Marital Bliss

2010-03-22T21:47:00.008-04:00

Happy Anniversary Grammy and Granpy! Marks parents celebrated 41 years of marital bliss today :) Carter made a message for them!

**NOTE: You will need to stop the music at the bottom of the page to hear the video :)

Spring Fever

2010-03-20T10:24:00.015-04:00

You know warm weather is near when we break out the infamous freezer pops. My kids just LOVE these. They love getting to pick which color they want and they love drinking the all the juice at the end. Freezer pops are always such an exciting thing for them!

After our freezer pop fun we headed out to to Huntington park, one of my favorite little beach/playgrounds to visit. Not only it is super close, but it's really the best of both worlds! We walked on the beach and Carter loved chasing the seagulls. Peyton didnt care much for walking in the sand although she liked saying "sand" over and over. We walked over to the playground and played for a little while. The slides and swings are always fun but the playground was very crowded so we headed back to the beach becuase Carter wanted to put his feet in the water. We took our shoes off, rolled up our jeans and felt the water. Carter said it was cold, but he liked it. Peyton wanted absolutley nothing to do with her feet being in the sand or water. I would try to put her down and she would keep from putting her feet on the ground, it was pretty hysterical.

This is the picture I got of Peyton refusing to put her feet in the sand. You would try and put her down and she would put those little legs straight out. It was soooo funny!

Also at the beach, HIPPIES! One hippy even played music for Peyton. He asked what kind of musis they liked, I told him "Thomas the Train". While he didnt know the tunes to that, he did play "Old McDonald" for them. Another hippy in the group had REALLY long dreads. He told me he hasnt had a haircut in 18 years! Wonder how long it has been since he last washed it???

Updates

2010-03-19T09:04:00.005-04:00

I wanted to fill you all in on a few things going on! First off, I was able to sign Carter up for soccer! I am super excited! I wasnt going to be able to do it but luckily, someone switched with me at work and I will have to work Saturday nights for two months, but its for Carter, so its fine! He will start soccer April 17th and it will be every Saturday for an hour for two months. I think he will have a blast, especially since Mark will be out there with him!

I got the pleasure of waking up early yesterday morning (around 12:30 am) with a stomach bug. I would like to thank everyone who keeps coming into work sick for that one! I had a pretty craptastic day but am feeling 90% better today. Its so hard being sick and still taking care of two little people. Sometimes you just want to be selfish and sit on the couch and have a pity party, but thats just not possible. But thankfully, we survived. Can't say I won the "mom of the year" award yesterday, but, we survived.

We also had an open house last weekend. Unfortunatley, only one person showed up. So that didnt go as well as I had hoped, although I havent heard many good things about open houses. We are just going to have to continue to be patient. Meanwhile we drove through Gloucester on Saturday and Williamsburg on Sunday. We drove by about 15 houses and I liked two of them (one in Gloucester and one in Williamsburg), Mark didnt like any. It definitley showed me that there is slim pickin's! Mark is convinced we will find the house that we both love in the location we want. Unfortunatley, I am not so optimistic.

Peyton has been going pretty well in her "big girl" bed. She is definitley taking full advantage of her freedom. When she wants out, whether it ben when I first put her to bed or in the morning, she knocks on her door as to tell us "hello, is anyone there?". The first night, I think I put her in bed about ten times before she feel asleep on the floor behind her door. Its funny because Carter used to do that too. Yesterday for nap, I heard her playing for an hour before it was quiet in there. However, when I checked on her, she was actually in the bed, so what was good. And the night before, she even fell asleep standing up. I died laughing when I went in to check on her. Of course, I had to get my camera!

Kiss Me, I'm Irish!

2010-03-17T20:16:00.006-04:00

Okay, not really, try Scandinavian! But, arent we all Irish on St Patty's Day?! Monday I decided to make an Irish feast! A friend gave me a crockpot recipe for corned beef, cabbage and potatoes. Mark got it all prepared in the crockpot and we let it do its thing all day. By five o'clock the house was smelling p.r.e.t.t.y good! The cabbage was the best part. It was delicious! Along with our feast, Mark had Irish beer of course and I even made green jello!

Delicious!

Cheers!

Freedom

2010-03-17T20:14:00.003-04:00

What happens with you pair a curious one year old with the ability to get out of bed and raid her room??......

Big Girl Bed

2010-03-15T19:53:00.004-04:00

Tonight we converted Peytons crib to the toddler bed. I had been wanting to do and we kept putting it off, but tonight was a good night to do it. Mark converted it and Peyton already loves climbing in and out of it as well as her new pillow! Peyton and Carter had a blast jumping on it and Carter even showed Peyton how to get in and lay down, lol! When it was bedtime, she walked right in and climbed into bed. I tucked her in and left. About five minutes later, we hear her knocking on her door (she cant reach the doorknob yet). I go back in and put her back in the bed and she says "hold me". So I do and then I quietly leave. We heard her knocking again another five minutes later. We couldnt help but giggle when Carter said "someone is knocking on Peytons door!" We asked him who he thought it was and he says "Kittie". It was cute. A couple more times I heard her playing and I go in there Super Nanny style, pick her up, place her in bed again and walk out again without saying anything. I hope she falls asleep soon!

Candids

2010-03-14T23:52:00.009-04:00

A few candid shots from Febuary and March :)

Dressed to the Nines

2010-03-12T21:40:00.008-05:00

On Tuesday I packed up the kids and we headed out to Colonial Williamsburg (I love it up there!) to try and take some Easter pictures. I decided I wanted I just try and take my own this year instead of spending the money on them. It was a gorgeous sunny 62 degree day, although while we were there in the morning it was still a tad bit chilly. The kids were just interested in running around and well, being KIDS! There was ALOT of snack bribing to get some half decent pictures. And Peyton decided to walk into a flower bed and of course she tripped and got her WHITE dress all dirty. Thats about the time mommy called it quits! I am not happy with the pictures, but it was a fun morning so I wasnt dissapointed. I just wish Mark had been with me to help me. Here are a few of the pictures I did get.

Expanding Our Talents

2010-03-11T21:59:00.005-05:00

Sorry to be such a bore lately, but we just havent done much! Mother nature has thrown some beautiful sunny days our way which we have enjoyed to the fullest! Other than that, just nothing too interesting in the Marderosian household! I did however sign up for two classes both of which will start in April. The Newport News Parks and Rec offers a wide aray of classes at very affordable prices. This is where Carter used to do his swimming. I signed myself up for a 10 session photography class. It will be every Wednesday evening from 6:30-7:30. I am sooooo incredibly excited. Not only do I not do much for myself, but I have wanted to take this class for over a year and just keep finding excuses not too. I really love taking pictures so I am so excited to try and build on what I already know. I also signed Miss Peyton up for a toddler gymnastics class. Classes are from April-June every Monday from 3-3:50. Its a 1 1/2 - 2 year old class so all the kids will be little. And its a parent/child class so I will be in there with her. I am excited to have something just the two of us can do. I had to buy Peyton a little leotard for the class and she looks so cute. She doesnt like it. Each time I have put it on her she repeatedly says "Off, Off!" My mom thinks she doenst like how tight it feels on her. I even got the size 4/5 one and shes only in 18-24m! Heres a sneak peek of my little gymnist!

Peyton telling me "Off, Off!"

I am working on a class for Carter. I am thinking soccor, but they only do them on Saturdays and well, I work Saturdays. Mark would be on the field with Carter and Peyton would not be allowed. I am going to see if someone will switch shifts with me for two months so Carter can do it. I wanted Carter to get to try something new and also I didnt want to him to feel left out that sissy is doing something he isn't. Then again, he does start preschool in the fall, that should count for something!

Saturday Six

2010-03-06T22:11:00.003-05:00

1) I love Jelly Bellys
2) One of my favorite movies is "Good Will Hunting"
3) My most comfy thing is Old Navy pajama pants
4) I still love looking at "Wheres WaldO?" books
5) I am a chocoholic ;)
6) When we sell our house, we hope to move to Williamsburg or Glocuester

Peytons Body Parts

2010-03-02T21:24:00.002-05:00

Peyton has been doing a very good job on her body parts. We do them several times a day and I think she likes it too! I pulled out my camera today so I could share it but my camera cut off before we made it to the end. I decided to post anyways since she is just so darn cute ;)

**NOTE: You will need to stop the music at the bottom of the page to hear this video clearly.

Seussapalooza!

2010-03-02T13:56:00.008-05:00

We FINALLY ventured out this library I had been wanting to check out. I have heard rave reviews from mommy friends but I just couldnt find the time to get out there with working so much! So today, off we went! We went to the Mary D. Pretlow library in Ocean View. This is NOT your ordinary library! The second floor is called "Kid Zone" and is devoted strictly to kids. They have all sorts of pretend toys such as a kitchen, baby dolls, play food. They also have a lot of learning toys such as puzzles and counting toys. The most exciting to my kids was the soft play area. They loved climbing on everything, especially my little climber Peyton! We went into the story time while we were there. And fortunatley, its Seussapalooza week! We sang songs although my kids repeatedly said "snack" the entire time. We read a Dr Seuss classic "Hop On Pop" and then sang some more. We had to excuse ourselves after the story since the kids wanted their snack and boy did they let me know. After snack we went back up and played a little more. It was a really nice library and definitley somewhere we will be going again!

Inspiration from a Friend

2010-02-27T14:38:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine, Lisa had this on her blog and I loved reading it. It spoke depths and I knew I wanted to have it on my blog so I could share it with you. Happy Reading!

“You were born a daughter. You looked up to your mother. You looked up to your father. You looked up at everyone. You wanted to be a princess. You thought you were a princess. You wanted to own a horse. You wanted to be a horse. You wanted your brother to be a horse. You wanted to wear pink. You never wanted to wear pink. You wanted to be a Veterinarian. You wanted to be President. You wanted to be the President’s Veterinarian. You were picked last for the team. You were the best one on the team. You refused to be on the team. You wanted to be good in algebra. You hid during algebra. You wanted the boys to notice you. You were afraid the boys would notice you. You started to get acne. You started to get breasts. You started to get acne that was bigger than your breasts. You wouldn’t wear a bra. You couldn’t wait to wear a bra. You couldn’t fit into a bra. You didn’t like the way you looked. You didn’t like the way your parents looked. You didn’t want to grow up. You had your first best friend. You had your first date. You had your second best friend. You had your second first date. You spent hours on the telephone. You got kissed. You got to kiss back. You went to the prom. You didn’t go to the prom. You went to the prom with the wrong person. You spent hours on the telephone. You fell in love. You fell in love. You fell in love. You lost your best friend. You lost your other best friend. You really fell in love. You became a steady girlfriend. You became a significant other. YOU BECAME SIGNIFICANT TO YOURSELF. Sooner or later, you start taking yourself seriously. You know when you need a break. You know when you need a rest. You know what to get worked up about and what to get rid of. And you know when it’s time to take care of yourself, for yourself. To do something that makes you stronger, faster, more complete. Because you know it’s never too late to have a life. And never too late to change one. JUST DO IT.” – Nike, 1999

The Saturday Six

2010-02-27T11:46:00.002-05:00

1)I graduated with honors in 2002 from Thomas Nelson Community College with an Associate of Science in Business and in 2005 from Old Dominion University with a Bachelor of Science in Communications
2) In high school I wanted to be a news broadcaster
3) I had braces for three years
4) I am addicted to Super Target
5) I hope to have lasor vision correction surgery in no more than two years
6) I love avacado

Being Sneaky

2010-02-27T08:55:00.003-05:00

Carter has been getting into any and everything lately! He will sneak out of bed before we get up and get into whatever he can. Today before Mark got up, Carter had gotten ahold of the parmesan cheese and shaken it out in numerous places around the house. Two days ago he got into a brand new box of 250 toothpicks. I was NOT happy to wake up and find that. I told him to help me throw them in the trash. I didnt want to deal with the stress of getting all 250 back in this tiny box. On Wednesday I was cleaning the floors with the swiffer and a homemade vinegar cleaning spray. I went to hop in the shower real quick and as I came out, Carter has the swiffer and is "helping" me clean the floors. I then find that the vingear cleaner has been sprayed on top of the tv, on his chair, on his smart cycle bike, on his table and several other places. I felt bad getting upset with him because in his mind he is "helping", but yet another mess for mom to clean up. Marks mom sent the kids a musical hershey kiss with kisses inside for Valentines Day. I got awoken to the music going off which means the candy kiss is open. I come out to find several hershey kiss wrappers on the floor and a year year old whos breath smells like a Hershey kiss. Yesterday I caught Peyton shoving tums in her mouth. I got the two out that she put in there and they are now relocated to a higher shelf. These kids are into things in the blink of an eye. Sometimes I think I am going to go crazy. You clean up one thing and then there are two more to clean up. What will it be next??

Adventures in Babysitting

2010-02-25T20:18:00.004-05:00

One night last week Paden came to play with us while Jessi went to a meeting in Portsmouth. Carter and Peyton liked having Paden over since they normally go to his house since Jessi watches the kids when I work. Paden is three days older than Peyton and its funny how close their names are...Peyton and Paden. When I sat Paden down to eat, Carter and Peyton wanted to get down to go sit with him. They loved showing Paden all of their toys. After bath, all three kids got to hold and read a book. We had fun watching Paden and hes such a good boy, it was easy as pie ;)

For Sale!!

2010-02-24T19:05:00.002-05:00

Today we officially went live and our house is on the market!! Coincidently we also had our first showing today at 5pm. Mark and the kids came up to meet me at work for dinner so they could be out of the house. After they got back home, our realtor Deb called to tell us that they loved the house. Our home is one of four they are interested in. They will be coming back for a second showing tomorrow afternoon. Although our little starter home is small, it is really nice and we have put alot of work into getting it prepared to sell. I am hoping all of this pays off. PLEASE keep us in your prayers for a quick sale!

Teenager in Training

2010-02-22T13:23:00.004-05:00

Monica was showing Peyton the ropes of texting. Monica is a texting pro so Peyton was in good hands. Peyton loved playing with Auntie Sara's phone.

The Saturday Six

2010-02-20T10:07:00.001-05:00

Six more things about yours truly.

1) Cheesecake is one of my favorite treats
2) Flip flops are my favorite shoe (sometimes even in the winter!)
3) I would love to adopt a child to give them a loving family and good home
4) I have considered becomming a doula
5) I want to vacation in Banff, Canada
6) I wrote for my high school newspaper for three years and yearbook for two years

Enjoying Friendship

2010-02-17T21:53:00.007-05:00

I am so happy to have my best friend in town! I miss her dearly and am so happy to have her here. Ever since she left several years ago (military move) I have missed having that best friend support. Of course she and I still support one another near and far, but sometimes I just want to see her and spend time with her and let Lucas and Carter play together! Anyways, before I had to work Sunday afternoon, we went and hung out at the hotel and let the kids play with Lukes new birthday toys for about an hour before heading to McDonalds for lunch. The kids had a great time eating and playing. Peyton really keeps up with the bigger kids! Its funny to watch my "baby girl" doing all the "big kid" things!

TNT Birthday Party

2010-02-17T21:51:00.008-05:00

My best friend and her family are in the town! Thats exciting in its own, but her son Lucas turned three this past Saturday on the 13th! Sara had rented space at TNT which is a locak jumping place! They have all the inflatable things to jump in and slides. It was a lot of fun. There were a bunch of kids there and they were all running wild! We played for an hour, then we went into another room and had cake and icecream and Lucas opened his gifts! It was a little overwhelming for Lucas having everyone there and he screamed the entire time we sang to him. He was happy once he got to open his gifts! He got alot of great gifts, mostly train and car things...every little boys dream ;) We had a blast, > ~~until my kid starting flipping out~~! Here are some pictures of the party!

Happy Love Day

2010-02-14T17:26:00.006-05:00

As Valentines Day approached, I knew I wanted to get Mark something. I didnt know what. I wanted to get him something really nice, but I just didnt have a whole lot of extra money sitting around right now. He had mentioned he wanted new bedding. Ours is from when we first moved in together so we were long overdue for new bedding. I just wanted to wait until we moved to get it. But when I came across a sale JC Penny was having, I decided to poke around and see if I could find something I liked. All bedding was 50% during their home sale which is awesome. I have never had REALLY nice bedding before. Online the front page of the bedding page was this gorgeous set! I loved it immediately! I loved the price even more! Originally $200 and 50% off! Then I stopped in JC Penny to try and find the bedding. I saw it on dispaly, but they were all sold out (my luck!). After seeing it in person, I knew I HAD.TO.HAVE.IT. It was exactly what I wanted. I had customer service call around and she located one. So, I drove to Greenbriar Mall on Friday to pick it up. I found some great super soft deep brown sheets to match! Even better is that I had $150 in giftcards plus a 15% off coupon. So I got gorgeous new bedding and new sheets for $136 (in giftcards). I got the bedding ready today while Mark was at work and I had a card sitting on the bed waiting for him to get home. I love it and I love that it is something we can both enjoy and take with us to our new home!

Special Deliveries

2010-02-14T17:10:00.003-05:00

Thursday night when I got off work I stopped by Target to get a few Valentine items. I picked up some mini cupcake cups, sugar cookie dough and a few heart shaped sparkly Valentine plates. When I got home I made over 50 red velvet mini cupcakes. I could not believe one box of cake mix made that many! I iced them with cream cheese icing and decorated with Valentine sprinkles. I had so many I sent a platter of them to work with Mark. On Friday morning after the kids had breakfast they helped me make the Valentine cookies. I had bought peanut butter m&m's. The kids always love helping with things so I try and find things they can do. They each got a baking sheet of dough and got to put the m&ms on the cookies. Of course, they each ate several! I even caught Peyton take an m&m, put it in her mouth, spit it out and try and put it on a cookie, thankfully I caught her before the m&m touched the cookie, lol! I got the kids dressed and Peyton wore her heart dress :)After the cookies baked, I made two platters of cupcakes and cookies on my heart shaped plates. I made a stop at my work first and dropped of a plate for my co-workers to enjoy! Afterwards we surprised Mom at work with her platter and a card for her and papa! She was surprised, but also busy at work, so we kept our visits short today. Everyone seemed to enjoy our goodies since I got back two empty plates! Here are a few pictures of Carter and Peyton helping in the kicthen!

Flashback Friday

2010-02-11T23:34:00.004-05:00

Here is Carter on February 14, 2007. I remember this day ver well. I got him a cute outfit and we had gone to my work (I was still on maternity leave) and I showed my new lil man off! He wasnt even a month old yet!

Old Man Winter

2010-02-06T21:01:00.016-05:00

Our area had a record breaking snowstorm last weekend. The weather man called for 8-12 inches but I am not sure what the final tally was. Our area rarely sees snow so when we do, its always exciting. But not so exciting when you have to work and drive out in it several times. Its "snow" joking manner, it was very icy and scary, but we are all "white" here (LOL!)! Mark took the kids out Saturday while I was working. Carter liked it, but Peyton, not so much. Sunday before I went into work we took the kids out again. Peyton still screamed the entire ten minutes we were out there. Carter was loving it! I even threw snowballs at him and he was laughing. He was a really good sport! We tried to build a snowman, but the snow wasnt sticking :( Peyton just really didnt know what to think of this white wet stuff on the ground that she couldnt walk in! Mark even made snow cream with the kids which they loved! Today, we got another wintery mix of weather. It was a combination of heavy snow, high winds, rain, etc. It was really just a wet mess! Luckily, it didnt stick this time, but the temps will be in the teens tonight so I am sure all the wet roads will be quite slick! Here are a few of our snow pics! We had "snow" much fun!

Saturday January 30th

All bundled up and ready to go!

Trying to figure out why his bike wouldnt go!

Checking out the yard, he didnt mind the snow one bit!

Peyton did not like anything about it and she made it pretty clear!

You Scream, I scream, we all scream for Snow Cream!

Sunday January 31st

The snow had stopped falling and the sun came out :)

Carter was so happy!

He was excited to get to play in the snow again!

Peyton hadnt changed her mind, she still didnt want anything to do with it!

Saturday Febuary 6th

Chocolate Dipped Clementines

2010-02-06T20:50:00.005-05:00

I got this idea off a healthy eating blog I follow called Healthy Eats. I found a 5lb box of clementines at Target the other night, orginially $6.99 on sale for $3.99. I grabbed a box and Carter loves them...Peyton, ah, not so much, lol! I remembered seeing this idea so we gave it a shot tonight. Carter loves to help in the kitchen, so his job was to shake the salt on them after I dipped them in chocolate. He did a great job making sure he got just the right amount on there! We even cut up a banana and dipped it in the leftover chocolate. Definitley made me feel better about eating chocolate! Here are a few picks of our clementines. You can click here to see the original recipe and pictures.

Carters Point of View

2010-02-06T20:36:00.006-05:00

I got Carter a Discovery Kids digital camera for his birthday. The kids have been having a blast with it. Peyton will even hold it up (as to attempt a take a picture) and say "cheese". Its really cute. Here are a few pics...not sure who took each one though ;) The first two show Carter and how proud he was of his new camera!

Carters Pics!

Mommy and Carter self portrait

The Saturday Six

2010-02-06T20:33:00.002-05:00

Six randoms about me :)

1) Spring and Fall are my favorite seasons
2) I hope to travel to Italty before I die
3) I love chocolate covered strawberries
4) I used to sing in my youth group choir
5) I often second guess myself
6) I only drink hot chocolate if it has marshmellows in it

"He's Stocky"

2010-02-06T11:41:00.003-05:00

Carter went to the dr for his three year well visit. I told him we were going to the doctor and he said "I have to go because I dont feel good". I said, "no, we just have to go". He said "I am going because I have a boo-boo". I said, "no, we have to go to make sure you are growing". He did such a good job yesterday. He was hesitant to cooperate at first, but after I pulled out my emergency lollipops, he did great. He weighs 34lbs (50%-75%) and his height is 35in 7/8 (25%). The nurse proceeded to tell me is well, "stocky". I took offence to it, but can I help it that my child is not a picky eater. I am quite pleased he chooses to eat veggies before everything else on his plate. Besides, I think he is just perfectly handsome. In any case, after the stats, he had to pee in the "bucket" as he called it. He had his blood pressure taken and had his finger pricked. Afterwards, we saw Dr. Butcher who is always a pleasure to speak with. We discussed how Carter counts to ten, knows his ABC's and his colors. We talked about how is regressing with potty training which Dr. Butcher said it so normal until around the age of four. I was so proud of Carter. He did such a good job with the exam. I am blessed that I have a healthy growing handsome man.

Opinion Outpost

2010-02-05T17:18:00.002-05:00

I found and joined this survey panel where you basically get paid to take surveys on all sorts of things. I joined about a month ago or so. Since then I have gotten numerous surveys to take. You have to qualify for them, but if you do, you can get points which equal dollars. One point is equivalent to $.10. So if a survey is worth 25 points, you would earn $2.50. Just last month I earned $11.10 for a little bit of my time. I got my first check in the mail yesterday. You also get points for referring people! If interested, click here to join and start earning! You joining under my name earns me money too! Its really simple! And its not a huge earning opportunity, but its money you didnt alreayd have. Happy surveying!

Carters Birthday Pics

2010-02-01T10:40:00.017-05:00

Now that we have a new computer, I am still trying to get used to a laptop. Everything seems more time consuming without a mouse. In any case, I wanted to share a few pics from Carters and Moms family birthday gathering.

The two guests of honor!

Carters race car cake I made him (minus one m&m Logan stole off of it, lol!) I got this idea from a friend of mine Jillian! For Carters I made fudge marble cake with hersey chocolate icing! The cake also has sprinkles, m&m's and oreo's! All the kids LOVED it!

Opening presents

Yaya's Grands!

Happy Birhtday to Carter!

Making a wish!

Happy Birthday to Yaya/Mom! Delores made mom a yummy carrot cake!

Waiting for cake!

Carter enjoying the first piece!

The Saturday Six

2010-01-30T10:49:00.004-05:00

Six randoms about me :)

1) I am a patchwork junkie
2) I have an obsession with Starbucks coffee mugs
3) I despise turtlenecks
4) My favorite pizza is Hawaiian
5) My favorite Dr Seuss book is "Horton Hears a Who"
6) I love stargazer lillies

I Say "Eat It"!

2010-01-28T11:30:00.002-05:00

I saw this on a blog I came across and got a good laugh out of it!

Sleepy PeyPey!

2010-01-26T11:49:00.002-05:00

I just got this picture from our babysitter Jessi! She went off to get the kids lunch ready and within the five minutes of her getting it ready, she came back to Miss Peyton fast asleep in her "sleeping position" (i.e butt up in the air!) on the floor. So funny and cute, I had to share!

55 Reasons

2010-01-25T07:42:00.002-05:00

My mom turns 55 today (hopefully she doesnt kill me for telling you all that!). I compiled a list of 55 things I love about her.

1) She gave me life
2) She loves me unconditioanlly
3) As a single mother, she provided for me
4) She has always supported me
5) She provided me with a college education
6) She is effortlessly beautiful
7) I can call her whenever I need someone to talk to
8) She is a giving, caring person to everyone
9) She loves and understands me
10) She was there for me when I needed her while recovering from childbirth
11) She has always been encouraging of me in everything I do
12) The way she always try to help others
13) She and I share so many common thoughts
14) She always makes me smile even when I dont want to
15) The way she loves and spends time with my children
15) She tells good stories
16) I love her cookouts on the deck
17) She is a great cook
18) She is kind to animals
19) She always tries to help me out when I ask her to, even if she has to change her plans
20) Her faith in God
21) Her affection
22) She always knows what to say and how to say it in any situation
23) I can tell her my secrets
24) She made her house a home
25) She can laugh with us when we make fun of her clumsiness!
26) She is a good listener
27) She gave me a great God-Mother
28) She is always buying clothes and shoes for the kids which helps me out
29) She is a gracious hostess
30) She loves to have big family dinners, even though that can be chaotic
31) She always has pretty flowers and loves showing them off
32) She always told me to be creative
33) When we were little, she encouraged us to play outside all the time
34) She is responsible with money and has taught me how to be
35) She makes everyones birthday special
36) I love how she puts garlic in everything
37) She has taught me to be clean, even though I despise cleaning
38) She always has gorgeous Christmas trees
39) She loves to burn candles
40) She allowed me to have an amazing relationship with Grandy
41) I love the stories she tells about my Granddaddy
42) She laughs at herself
43) She raised my sister and I in a safe place where we could just be kids
44) She supported my christianity when I got involved with church
45) She took pictures of us as kids and I enjoy looking at them now
46) After a divorce, she re-married Curtis, allowing us to have a father in our life
47) She used to leave "I love you" notes in my lunch box
48) She accepted Mark when she first met him, even though he "wasnt my type"
49) Shes not afraid to cry
50) She never wants me to spend money on her, but I do anyways
51) She always made us hide in the bathroom while she hid easter eggs for us to find
52) She is a good parent, she took my sisters door off the hinge once after she got caught smoking in her bedroom, I'll never forget that.
53) One Halloween she played spooky music and sat outside in the dark for trick or treaters, I think two came all night
54) When someone stole our scarecrow one year, she found it along side of the road on her way to work, she brought it back home and put it back together
55) She is my mother and I am so proud to have her in my life. I hope Peyton and I have the relationship I have with my mother.

Happy Birthday Mom. I love you!

Lots of Updates!

2010-01-24T17:18:00.000-05:00

I am pleased to annouce that Carter got offered a spot in the three year old three day preschool class. I am beyond thrilled for him! The director had previously told me she thought they would only have the two day available since the three day program gets filled so quickly. But, she e-mailed me on Friday to tell me they had a spot for Carter. My baby is going to school! I mailed off the registration form, registration fee and supply fee today.

In other news, the tummy virus struck me on Wednesday night. I had the same as Carter had, throwing up all night long for a little under 12 hours. It was miserable. I had to call out from work and laid on the couch sleeping all day long. Luckily, it seems to be a 24 hr virus as I was able to go into work the following day.

Yesterday I got the call that our computer is officially to the point of no return. Windows is "corrupt" and it cannot be fixed. Luckily, my pics, videos and documents were able to be saved (thankfully!). Mark and I are now looking into something else but cant decide between a laptop or desktop computer.

Saturday evening we went to Moms and celebrated Carters and my moms birthday. I made Carter a race car cake the night before and Delores made my mom a carrot cake. Both were so yummy! Carter got a Thomas the Train dvd, Hungry Hippo game, Hi Ho Cherry-O, Let's Go Fishin game, Cars book, a new die cast car and a prayer book! I got Carter a Discovery kids camera and play tent with tunnel. Carter and Peyton loved playing in that tunnel today! It was a really fun night, full with the normal chaos! We did manage to get a picture of all the grandkids.

**Pics to come when we get a new computer!

Carters Birthday

2010-01-22T09:28:00.003-05:00

Since we are doing a little combined (Carter and Moms birthday) family party at my moms Saturday we didnt do much on Wednesday for Carters actual birthday. I made Carter cinnamon rolls for breakfast (he had two!), then we went to the outlets and met my good friend Amber for lunch at McDonalds for "chicken and fries". Afterwards, we headed home for naptime. When Mark got home, I took Carter to Target to spend his giftcard from my friend April (thanks April!). Since we are doing his birthday Saturday I was waiting to give him is presents. Carter loved picking out his own present. I let him do it all by himself. He picked out a green motorcycle that does wheelies and also a Tonka outdoor adventure set with a Jeep and truck that it pulls behind it. He was so excited! We had to run to Farm Fresh afterwards to get stuff for dinner. I let Carter pick out a candy from the check out line. Again, something he never gets to do. He couldnt decide..there were so many choices, lol! After some deliberation, he picked dark chocolate peanut m&m's. I made one of his favorites for dinner, spaghetti and then he enjoyed his candy treat for dessert. He even shared with Petyon. He had a really spoiled day filled with junk, but he loved every minute and I loved getting to spoil him!

Three years ago today...

2010-01-20T12:16:00.000-05:00

a beautiful baby boy came into our lives at 1:28pm, weighing 7lbs 2oz, 20in long. I remember hearing his very first sweet little cry for the very first time, I still remember his teeny tiny face the moment I first laid my eyes upon him. He was all wrapped up in a warm blanket and had this little hat on. I remember thinking how surreal that moment was and how I could not believe this was my baby. I remember the first time I held him and how amazing it felt. He's been such a blessing to our little family. Becomming a mommy is by far the best thing that has ever happened to me. Watching him grow and discover new things has been so much fun and I look forward to all of the many things he will do in his life. I am so lucky God chose me to be his mommy.

Happy Birthday Carter!

Carters Thoughts

2010-01-19T20:10:00.002-05:00

Last night I was talking to Carter about his birthday. I had told him we get to eat cake and open presents! This is the following conversation.

Me: What do you want for your birthday?
Carter: I want cake
Me: What presents do you want?
Carter: I dont want any
Me: You dont want any presents to open on your birthday?
Carter: No, I already told you, I just want cake!

Gotta love him ;)

Happy, Healthy Girl!

2010-01-19T18:51:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I took Miss Peyton to her 18 well visit. She is 23lbs 14 oz (25-50%) and 31 1/2 inches tall (50%). Dr. Butcher kept telling me how beautiful she is. Of course, I agreed. Everything he asked me about her developement, she is doing. She says way more than 5-10 words, she follows my commands, she can ask me for things, she has just really taken off in the last few months. Although, I cant say she was so healthy the night before. Sunday night, around 12:10am she woke up vomitting. I gave her a bath, changed her sheets and put her on the couch with me. All I could think of was "here we go again" since I was up with Carter all night just a few nights ago. She threw up another hour later. It was pitiful. But after the two vomits, she was fine and I even got her back into her crib around 2am and she slept the rest of the night. I slept on the couch in case she needed me.

In other news, our computer crashed...again...sigh. This time I recruited a fellow mommmy friends husband. He is a computer programmer and we made a deal that if he could fix it, they would charge us $35. If they could not fix it, they wouldnt charge us anything. I dropped it off yesterday. I hate having no internet. Its amazing how much we rely in the internet for things. I actually had to pull out the yellow pages today...whats that?! LOL! We need a new computer anyways, but I am concerned that I may have lost two months worth of pictures. I am hoping he can fix it! Until then, Mark and I have limited access from work to hold us over.

Walk, No Run, To Your Nearest Old Navy!

2010-01-17T18:18:00.001-05:00

Old Navy is offering an additional 50% off clearance. I finally made it in today (3rd day). I hadnt planned on going, but I had time before work, so I went. I love getting good deals on name brand items. There was not a lot left at all, but I managed to score a few goodies for next winter!

**Price in () is original price!

Toddler Girls
Rockband Toddler Shirt - $1.33 ($12.50)
Floral Dream Shirt - $1.34 ($8.50)
Pink Heart Shirt - $1.34 ($8.50)
Pink Stripes Fleece Footed PJs - $2.90 ($16.50)
Hearts Fleece Footed PJs - $2.91 ($16.50)
Green Penguin Fleece Footed PJ's - $2.91 ($16.50)

Toddler Boys
Penguin 2 Piece PJs - $2.46 ($14.50)
Football 2 Piece PJs - $2.47 ($14.50)
Cute Kid 2 Piece PJs - $4.49 ($14.50)
Graphic Tee - $2.24 ($10.50)
Graphic Tee - $2.24 ($10.50)
Graphic Tee - $1.57 ($10.50)

Plus a 10% discount for being a "service" employee (I work in a hospital)

Grand total was $29.84
Total Before Savings: $154!

He's Ready, But Am I?

2010-01-15T15:21:00.004-05:00

Today I went to check out the preschool I want to enroll Carter in. Its a church in York County called Yorkminster Presbyterian. I figure it will be closer to where we move than choosing a preschool that is close to us now. If we move to Williamsburg, I will try and find somewhere closer, but registration for the fall is going on now. I would rather have him enrolled somewhere than wait and then not be able to get him in anywhere. The lady I have been corresponding with is Laura, she seems very nice. I have been talking to her since last November. She invited me to see the classrooms, but I was so busy with the holidays. She told me that current students get first priority to move up in level, church members get second priority and people like me are last priority (which I understand). Laura told me she will know how many spots she has open around the third week of this month. The have a two day program and a three day program but Laura told me she thinks they will only have spots open in the two day a week class. I was very impressed with the classrooms and staff. It really does take a special person to work with children and I liked watching the interaction between the teachers and students. One class we saw was doing a show and tell, it was cute. Another class, they were doing "free time". Two kids were finger painting, some were playing with legos, it was really cute! The kids have a snack/lunch time and chapel time. I really loved it! I liked the feeling I got when I was there. They were so warm and friendly. I really think Carter will do well. Hes so smart and talks so well. I know he is ready. I think this is going to be harder for me that for him. I almost got teary eyed walking around there thinking that I could be dropping him off there in September. Its funny how you want so badly for your kids to talk and walk and when they do its hard letting them go and become more independant. But this is what is best for him and I am excited to start a new chapter--the school years!

The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Night!

2010-01-14T19:58:00.002-05:00

I had a very busy day yesterday. I had Tracy come over and help me clean. She worked for 4 hours and helped me soooo much. I will never put down the cleaning business again. It really opened my eyes about what a huge help having someone help clean. She was a lifesaver. We got so much done! Two bags to the good will and three full trash bags. It felt good to get rid of so much. And our room looks alot bigger without the armoire in there. Our real estate agent came last night. We talked about the market and what our price point would be, which is higher than I thought, which is good--we are going to list it at $164,900. Thats what the last house in our area sold for and it is very similiar to ours. Our house is a little starter home and it has served us well, but we definitley need more space and need to be closer to Marks work. Our relator gave us a listing of things we need to do as well as "staging" ideas. Our two biggest tasks are painting and new carpet in the bedrooms. As you remember several months ago, we laid down new laminet flooring due to our little "flood". We hope to have it on the market by the end of the month. That makes me excited and nervous at the same time. I am excited to move, but I hate stepping outside of my comfort zone. Please keep us in your prayers that we are able to sell in this market!

In other news, Carter woke up a little after mid night last night and threw up all of his dinner--so gross. I had to change his bedding & give him a bath. I got him settled back into bed and about twenty minutes later, I hear him puking again. I go in there and he says in the most pathetic voice, "I did it again!". Another bath, another bedding change. After that sat on the couch with him and sure enough, another puke, but I was lucky to have a bucket that time. I slept on one end of the couch and he slept on the other. Every 30min to an hour he would wake up and puke. I would wake up and try to catch it. It was miserable to say the least. He hasnt thrown up since 9:30 this morning, so thats good. I called the dr and I guess there is a stomach virus going around. He said its 1-2 days of vomitting, followed my diarrhea. So I guess I have that to look forward to. I got Carter to take a nap in his bed. He slept for about 3 hours and was still sleeping when I left for work at 3. Poor guy. I am working tonight till 11 but I called a little while ago and he told me his tummy felt better. I am hoping for some rest tonight.

Great Wolf "Birthday Surprise"

2010-01-06T14:18:00.010-05:00

I booked a special 3rd birthday surprise for Carter, a night at the Great Wolf Lodge in Williamsburg! It an in-door water park with a very cozy lodge feel. The lobby was gorgeous and they had this AMAZING fireplace! It was huge! As far as our experience, I have to say it was just "okay". I felt that there really wasnt a lot for the toddler age group. I think it was a little more geared towards a little bit older kids, but we had fun nonetheless. When we first got in, we checked into our room. Once we got in there, I realized it wasnt the room I booked online. I went back up to the desk and they gave me a complimentary upgrade to a Kid Cabin Suite (usually $259 a night, the room I booked was the Family Fireplace Suite at $189!). It was really neat and the kids had fun playing in the bunk beds. We got settled in and went down to the water park. We were surprised to find that the water was cooler than expected, but I guess it is normally like this. We played for about two hours, then headed upstairs to get changed for dinner. We ate at the restaurant inside the lodge. After dinner, we explored a little more, then treated Carter to icecream for his birthday treat. He picked out "rocky road" because he liked the marshmellows in it! Afterwards, we got changed and headed to the lobby for 8pm pajama story time. It was so sweet seeing all the little ones in their pajamas. They had this neat interactive story time with a talking tree, talking animals and much more! It was really cool! We headed to bed after that but got awoke around 2am by a fire alarm. Right when we dozed off, it went on again. I had to walk to the lobby at 2:30am to see if we needed to evacuate or what. I was not the only annoyed mama out there! It was nothing, just an "error in the system". The next morning we had breakfast in our pajamas, then we checked out and did a little more swimming. The kdis actually went down the water slides. They were too scared the day before. It was a fun little getaway for the night but it wasnt as "great" as I had expected in all honesty. I would give it another shot some other time in the future though.

Peek A Boo

2010-01-05T16:32:00.001-05:00

Peyton and I were playing Peek-A-Boo and I had to grab my camera because she is so cute and silly! I wanted to share my cute video :=)

Goodbye 2009, Hello 2010!

2010-01-03T16:38:00.006-05:00

We rang in the new year sitting on our couch, watching Dick Clark's Rockin' Eve, but I guess thats what you do when you have kids! We spent New Years day hanging out and in the afternoon, went to a "Welcome The Windles" open house. Our dear friends, Ryan and Kim moved away over the summer but decided to come back and visit us all :) It was so good to see them and I got to meet sweet baby Jacob, just two months old. I didnt get my snuggles in yet, but am hoping to see Kim, Natalie and Baby Jacob before they head back home.

I am optimistic about 2010. I always get in my normal end the year funk. Another year is gone, I'm getting older, my babies are not babies anymore, yadda yadda. But I am also thinking about all the new things the kids will do this year and we will do this year too! We are meeting with our real estate agent in a little under two weeks to get the process started on getting our house on the market, we will move into a bigger and better home, Mark and I will celebrate six years of marriage, I will visit Sara again in Georgia, Carter will start preschool in the fall, and the list goes on and on. I really do hope and pray good things await our family in 2010. I also wish good things await you and your families as well!

Much Love,
Kelly

Merry Christmas To All and to All A Goodnight!

2009-12-26T10:37:00.003-05:00

It was quite a wonderful and exhausting day! The kids and us got up around 8:05am. I wanted them to come out together and Carter just stopped and stared. It was like he wasnt sure what to think. Peyton looked confused! LOL! Carter them went over the scooter from Grammie, he loved it! Peyton checked out everything! I think her favorite gift is this baby doll from Grammie. Peyton got a new kitchen, lots of books, two puzzles, an alphabet pal, a Little People airplane, a Little People doll house, a Loving Family doll house, a Laugh and Learn piggy bank and several other things! Carter got books and puzzles too, a remote control flip car, a lite bright, a Handy Manny ball pit, lots of Thomas the Train stuff, Hot Wheels and more. Auntie Marsha also got them a new picnic table. They were worn out by mid morning! Around 11 we headed over to Moms house. The plan was to fry a turkey with Marks new turkey fryer. It was too windy so that plan didnt work. We ended up baking it. My sister and her family came over. We ate and then opened gifts. It was a little chaotic with five kids and 6 adults. But we managed and almost everyone was happy. Mark, me and the kids headed home around 6pm. It was a very long day. The kids slept in the car and I put them straight into bed when we got home even though it was only 6:30. We caugtht Carter up three times playing with his new toys, lol! It was a very blessed year for us.

Twas the Night Before Christmas...

2009-12-26T10:34:00.007-05:00

Not sure what it is that brings the bad out in kids?! Carter and Peyton were handfuls today! I was glad to see an early bedtime coming! We baked cookies for Santa, had bathime, got them into their matching pajamas I got them, (super cute!) and settled down on the couch to read the classic "The Night Before Christmas". After the book, Carter helped me carry Santas cookies into the living room and then the kids headed off to bed! Santa came and did "her" thing! I was so excited for morning to come and to see them so excited!

Naugty or Nice?

2009-12-26T10:28:00.005-05:00

I am so backed up on my blogs, so I am going to knock em' out today! I have been sick with something all week, starting on Sunday evening. I am finally feeling 90% back to my self! On Monday, even though I felt horrible, we took Carter and Peyton to see Santa. We had already told Carter a few times were going and plans kept changing. I figured we only had a few days left and I didnt want to be the reason he didnt get to see the big guy. So, to Bass Pro Shop we went. I heard you could take your own picture, as opposed to paying $20 and it was a short five minute drive from the house! I wasnt expecting much from an outdoors store, but I was surprisingly impressed when we got there. Not only was Santa there, but an entire winter wonderland! We waited in line for about 10 minutes, there was only one mother with three girls ahead of us. Carter and Peyton checked out all the fake snow and of course, the Christmas tree ornaments. When it was finally our turn, Carter and Peyton walked right up to Santa. But, sitting on his lap was a whole other story! Peyton screamed. It was quite funny, although its probably not nice to laugh at your kid like we did! LOL! Mark took Peyton and I got closer to hear Carters conversation with Santa! He did very well and made sure the big guy knew what he wanted! Afterwards, Santa gave them candy canes and we checked out everything else. Carter got to drive a remote control monster truck, watch the train travel through the village, and write their very own letters to Santa (although that meant just coloring on the Santa letter paper!). We had a really good time. It definitley made my crappy sick day better.

Walking In A Winter Wonderland!

2009-12-20T13:00:00.005-05:00

You got it, we got SNOW! While I was at my cookie exchange last night, we peeked out the window to find big white snowflakes falling all around! It was beautiful and cold, 28 degrees according to my car! It wasn't so much fun driving 20mph the whole way home on slick unsalted roads. The kids liked looking out the door at the snow when I got home. Mark took them out today to get a closer look at it while I was at work. Thankfully, he even took a few pictures to share with me!

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year!

2009-12-19T10:21:00.007-05:00

Among other merry things, one thing I LOVE about the holidays are the annual cookie exchanges. I can't wait until we move and have more space and hopefully I can host one next year! Who doensn't enjoy ~~slaving over a hot oven all day~~ baking up delicious cookies to swap with other lovely ladies?! I searched and searched for a new recipe and found one that sounded perfect! I gathered all my ingredients and baked up my 6 1/2 dozen last night! These cookies are simply sinful! I cant wait to share my cookies with everyone else! I hope they enjoy them as much as I did making them!

Here is the recipe I found (compliments of http://picky-palate.com/2009/12/14/intimint-chocolate-chip-cookies/)!

“Intimint” Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 Cup softened butter

1 Cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 Cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 Tablespoon real vanilla extract

2 1/2 Cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 bag Nestles Limited EditionDark Chocolate and Mint Morsels (I couldnt find these at the four stores I looked in, so I used Hersheys Mint Morsels)

1 1/2 Cups white chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla until well combined. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to wet ingredients along with the chips. Mix until just combined. With a medium cookie scoop, scoop dough onto a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet about 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until slightly golden on outside edges. Let cool for 5 minutes on baking sheet then transfer to cooling rack to finish cooling.

3 dozen cookies

And here are some pictures of MY finished product!

Georgia Day 4

2009-12-15T20:19:00.010-05:00

Sara's son Lucas woke up with a fever today so we decided not to drive to Atlanta and instead went to Walmart and Kmart for a deal they had on the Thomas Trains (I wanted to get Carter a few from Santa). We came back to Sara's and laid the kids down for nap. I jumped in the shower and got ready to drive south to see my family that lives in Georgia. After a slight car issue, I was able to leave with the kids around 4pm and drive an hour and a half to Columbus to visit my Uncle Skip and Aunt Sally, my cousin Bill and his wife Kayla (who I was meeting for the first time!). We hung around for about 30 minutes, then headed to a local restaurant for dinner. It was very good, but of course, me and two kids in a restaurant is always a disaster. Carter spilled his milk twice, Peyton was standing in her high chair, it was a mess! But I did have a good, but way too short, visit with my family. I will definitley plan a day visit next time! I headed back to Sara's and got there around 9pm. The kids stayed up and played and we took some nore pictures since I realized I didnt have a lot of the kids together. My alarm went off bright and early at 6am to head to the airport in the morning! We had a great visit, but these past four days flew by!

Me, my Uncle Skip and Aunt Sally

My cousin Bill, Me, and Bills wife Kayla

Carter and Orson

Monica giving Carter kisses

Me & Sara

Sara's pretty fireplace :)

All the kiddos :)

Georgia Day 3

2009-12-14T18:33:00.038-05:00

Today we got up and ate breakfast and headed to the Georgia Aquarium (the largest in the world!). It was amazing! There is one exhibit where it is like a dome and the aquarium is all around you. There were even whales in the tank. It was a really neat experience and Peyton loved pointing at things and walking up to the tanks to get a closer look! After the aquairum, we drove through Atlanta and saw the CNN Building (so neat for a journalism fan!) and also Centennial Olympic Park (wish it was warmer so we could have gotten out!). My camera battery died so I didnt get any pictures but we planned on driving back to the city the next day. We left Atlanta and grabbed Chick fil A for lunch at a local mall and went back to Sara's to lay all the kids down for naps. When Monica got out of school we took the golf cart (another very chilly day!) up to a pizza place called "Mellow Mushroom". It was so good! The way they cut the slices, one slice was probably equivalent to two slices from a chain pizza place! Carter ate two slices, it was that good! After dinner, we went to go a see a light display that was recommended to Sara by a fellow mommy friend. There was also an article in the local paper about it. These people do it on their property and its free. It was amazing! We couldnt believe how nice it was for something someone did in their front yard. As we were leaving there was a sign giving us directions to anoter light display. But we also saw one across the street. So we saw three gorgeous light displays! It was a great way to spend the evening! The kids all loved it and would shout what they were seeing from the back seat! After the lights we made another trip to Walmart for more icecream (nothing like eating icecream with your best friend!). Then we went home for the rest of the night. It was a good day!

Driving into the city :)

Me with the city behind me!

Georgia Aquarium

Carter being greeted by the mascot

The entrance into the aquarium!

Inside the aquarium

Penguins (one of my favorites!)

These fish were glowing, so cool!

Crocodile

Peyton

Big King Crabs (yum! haha!)

Us in the neatest area of the aquarium!

A whale on the left and shark on the right

This fish is called a "sargent major"

Me and the kids

Lucas

THe speaker in front of this HUGE aquarium view

Carter and Peyton

Sara and Lucas

Singrays

As I called him, "the fish with the bad hair day"!

Peyton loved pointing at everything!

Peyton loved seeing all the fish swimming by!

Carter, Lucas and Peyton

A few pictures of the lgiht displays we saw! (I have so many, I will just post the best ones.)

My favorite display out of all of them! This was made from two trampolines!

The three families who created these amazing light displays

On the way home, Peyton had her first candycane (the last light display, someone was handing them out). She liked it at first...

But then she cried most of the home because her hands were all sticky!

Georgia Day 2

2009-12-14T13:06:00.036-05:00

Today after a Starbucks run we went out on the golf cart for some more cruising around the neighborhood. Sara showed us this pretty fountain by the library which the kids loved. After that, we took the kids to a bounce place called "Bounce To It". Carter and Peyton LOVED it! Peyton was even doing it on her own which surprised me! They kept wanting to do this one inflatable where you climbed up and slide down a big slide. I had a blast playing with them too! After that, we headed home for nap time. Sara cooked dinner and then we took the golf cart to a nearby lake to feed the ducks and then over to Walmart to get icecream for the kids. It was much chiller and in the 40's but we bundled up and enjoyed the ride as well as seeing Christmas lights throughout the neighborhoods!
Carter and Lucas checking out the fountain

Peyton couldnt take her eyes off it long enough for a picture

Sara and Lucas

Carter liked pretending to drive!

Me and Peyton rode on the back of the golf cart

My Name!

Special bridge for golfcarts that goes over the road!

Jump 2 It!

Clibimg Up

Me and Peyton going down
There goes Carter!

He had a BLAST!

Peyton coming out of another inflatable

Of course Carter had to drive the car!

Checking out some of the bigger kid games.

Snacktime before we left

Carters first water fountain experience! He enjoyed it and Peyton (in the background) enjoyed watching! When he got done here, the entire arms on his shirt was soaking wet.

When we went to feed the ducks, they didnt even stay in the water, they came right up to us!

Peyton was excited!

Carter and Peyton enjoyed feeing the ducks!

Lucas feeding the ducks

Monica

The Care of the Missing Paci: Peyton dropped her paci somewhere on the 10 minute drive to the lake to feed the ducks. It was getting dark but we back tracked looking for it anyways! I couldnt believe we actually found it! She dropped it near the beginning of our drive! There it was, laying on the side of the road!

Golf cart parking at Walmart

The kids enjoying their icecream treat!

Peyton wasnt shy about digging in!

Lucas

Peyton (if its messy, you know its good!)

Carter

Our Trip to Peachtree City, Georgia Day 1

2009-12-14T12:42:00.022-05:00

We arrived in Georgia nearly two hours late after a delay on the ground and one in air. We were so happy to see Sara and Lucas! We drove to their new home in Peachtree City (about 20 minutes south of Atlanta) and hung around for a while. It was a beautiful day, 64 and sunny so we took a ride on the golf cart and Sara showed me some of her new "home". Carter wasnt sure what to think of the golf cart at first but after one ride, he was asking to ride again! He also through the garage door opener button was neat (its the little things that amuse my kids!)! Peachtree City is a really unique little community. Everyone owns a golf cart and there are nearly 90 miles of paved golf cart trails through the woods and along the road. Shopping centers even have golf cart parking! The high schoolers even take their golf carts to school! I have never seen anything quite like it, it was really neat! We spent most of the day just hanging around and chatting. The kids and I were so tired from getting up early! When Monica got home from school she wanted to paint Peytons toes, so I let her! It was her first "pedi" and after some lollipop bribing, her new toes where done and she loved her "pretties"! After a long day we thew all the kiddos in the bath together!

Carter and Lucas had a blast playing with the trains!

Lollipop Bribing at its best!

Picking out her paint (she really did point to one and thats the one Monica used!)!

She sat there like a good girl! I think she liked it!

Monica and Peyton

The finished product!

Checking out her "pretty" toes!

Bathtime Fun

This one is funny because I *think* everyones tongue is sticking out! LOL! Notice Lucas with the water gun?

Lucas kept pouring water on Carter

While I was finishing up with baths, Peyton decided to check out the Wii

Baby Wii

PNP (Portable North Pole)

2009-12-14T00:40:00.002-05:00

A friend of mine, Jessi, posted this on my mom's board and its so cute! You can make a video message from Santa to your child. Just fill in a few simple questions and your video message is ready! I did Carters tonight at work but am just now seeing it. Its so cute! I told him I had a surprise for him and I cant wait to show it to him!

Click HERE to view Carters message from Santa!

Elf on the Shelf

2009-12-06T15:53:00.002-05:00

My friend Kim has this little guy called "Elf on the Shelf". It is the neatest idea for little ones on Christmas. After doing some research I learned that the "Elf on the Shelf" supposedly reports back to Santa every night as to whether the kids have been naughty or nice! You move him everyday so he is watching all over the house and the kids can find him each morning (how fun is that?!) He also comes with a book to read about him as well as some acitivies! How cute, I just HAD to share!! I will defiitley be adding this to my Christmas collection next year!

Meet Kims Elf on the Shelf!

Click HERE to buy your "elf on the shelf"!

Phone Call From Santa!

2009-12-05T08:03:00.001-05:00

I just got an e-mail via Kroger where you can set up a phone call from Santa! I scheduled one for Carter for Christmas Eve at 10am! He will love it! You can pick the date, the time and who you want the call from (Santa, Sammy The Snowman or Race Car Driver Tony Stewart).

Click here to set up your call!

Peytons New Bedding

2009-12-05T07:29:00.004-05:00

I have had my eye on Peytons new bedding and original price was over $200+ for everything! I have been watching this bedding for MONTHS! The price finally went down (on sale) and I used a 20% off coupon on top of the savings and saved $103! She will love her new bedding when we move!! Her crib will be converted into a full size bed. I told Mark I would rather buy stuff that we like as we see it as opposed to having to buy everything at one time when we move. I would rather get them gradually and get what we love. I didnt get the draperies because I am not sure if she will have one window or two in her new room, but there are so many colors in the bedspread that I am sure I can easily find something to match! I also like it becuase its not themed so she will be able to use it for a long time. I am so in love with this bedding. Its exactly what I wanted for her. Its not too bright, yet colorful and I like the white lines in between the patches, it really give it a clean look. I am a sucker for patchwork things...what do you think?

**(For ours, we only got one pillow sham and the blue roll pillow)

Christmas Ornament Playdate & Some Christmas Fun

2009-12-04T20:22:00.012-05:00

Today we went to another mommies house to make Christmas ornaments. Of course, Carter would rather play with trucks and Peyton was too young to do it, although she tried. She had more fun hogging all the markers! LOL! Carter did color one a little bit, then we had snack, played some more and then headed home. It was nice to get out since we have strayed away from the playgroups lately due to my work schedule. I needed women/mommy time and it was fun! Afterwards, I took Carter and Peyton to the Coliseum area since it was such a nice mild day. They have this ginormous Christmas tree and the ornaments are as big as Peytons head! They had fun running around and touching the tree!

Marderosian Family Tree

Preschool Is Among Us

Roly Poly

Two Sneaky Chocoholics and a Fun Face!

Earn On The Side

I've Been Slacking

Riding Along in my Automobile...

Two little bursts of energy!

Farm Fresh Triples

Sew Mama Sew Giveaways

Brunch Playdate

New Rug and New Recipe

Feel The *Love*

Happy Mothers Day

"Bath, Bath!"

Favorite Friday

Easily Amused

Bright Whites

Breakfast In Bed

Barnum's Funundrum

Nail Polish

*Twenty Nine* Years And Counting

Flashback Friday

Candy Necklaces and Coloring Cookies

Mickey and Minnie

I Had An Epiphany Today

Cloudy Day

Friendly Visits

Updates

Addicted to Deals?!

Pretty Panties

Happy Easter

He Hopped On By!

Park Picnic Playdate

Hippity Hoppity, Hippity Hoppity Easters on Its Way!

Puddles of Fun

Decorating Easter Eggs

What does $.21 Buy You?

'Super Couponers' Clip Their Way to Savings at the Grocery Store - ABC News

Harris Teeter Triples

Thomas and Friends

Marital *Bliss*

Spring Fever

Updates

Kiss Me, I'm Irish!

Freedom

Big Girl Bed

Candids

Dressed to the Nines

Expanding Our Talents

Saturday Six

Peytons Body Parts

Seussapalooza!

*Inspiration* from a Friend

The Saturday Six

Being Sneaky

Adventures in Babysitting

For Sale!!

Teenager in Training

The Saturday Six

Enjoying Friendship

TNT Birthday Party

Happy *Love* Day

Special Deliveries

Flashback Friday

Old Man Winter

Chocolate Dipped Clementines

Carters Point of View

The Saturday Six

"He's Stocky"

Opinion Outpost

Carters Birthday Pics

The Saturday Six

I Say "Eat It"!

Sleepy PeyPey!

55 Reasons

Lots of Updates!

Carters Birthday

Three years ago today...

Carters Thoughts

Feel The Love

Twenty Nine Years And Counting

Marital Bliss

Inspiration from a Friend

Happy Love Day