Snow Day!!

We woke up to about 3 inches of the white stuff!! While Brooke went down for a nap, I let the older girls go outside and play in it. *I heard we were to have some rain later-so knew this might be their only chance.* Afterwards they came in all wet and enjoyed some hot chocolate followed by a nice warm bath. Loving today!

Christmas

Making the Cookies for Santa

I thought I'd put a picture of me in here-for once.

All Santa's Loot

All smiles-she knew I had the camera ofcourse and hammed it up as usual!If she could jump for Joy-she does!

My favorite gift to give out this year was Whitneys-she has been pleading with me all year to sign her up for basketball. We haven't been able to fit extras like this in the budget for quite some time but through a little christmas miracle-we were able to sign her up for winter basketball. So we bought her a basketball and some shorts that she we found on clearance and wrapped them up with the registration form on it.

She was so excited when she found out-can't you tell??

Gingerbread Girls and Boys

One of my favorite things to do during the Christmas season is to make cookies. Since Sunday we have been making Gingerbread boys and girls. This was my first time making these fun cookies and since I didn't have a cookie cutter I used a stencil and hand cut them all. I think they turned out pretty cute! Luckily for our tummies, none of them have run away yet. Tomorrow night we will be doing the traditional sugar cookies for Santa!

Wow I just noticed that this is my 300th post...crazy.

Today I feel so blessed

From my blogworld I have learned recently of a tragedy that has happened to someone I don't even know. But learning of it has made me even more deeply appreciate how much I have in my life. This friend of a blogger friend lost her husband and two children to a house fire-she was able to get out with her step daughter but the rest of her family did not survive. I can only imagine the heartbreak if that was to happen to me and have been teary eyed all morning thinking about this dear woman and the challenges that face her. You can read more about the story Here.

I feel everything happens for a reason and sometimes we are blessed to know the reasons and sometimes we don't ever know. I have seen many small miracles in my life and as I sat this morning holding my youngest (she isn't feeling well today) and rocking her I couldn't help but feel that being a mother is one of the greatest miracles I experience everyday. Too bad it takes sweet moments like when our children fall asleep on our laps or the laughter we hear from them and sadly, the loss of someone to help us remember that.

Everyone has new years resolutions-lose weight, do more acts of service, save up money for a vacation, etc. But my goal -and hopefully it is something that will stay as a habit with me, is to always remember the blessings that are mine and to do as Elder Bednar encouraged us in the last Oct conference ;"Express love and show it."

I never want to question whether my children and husband know how much I love them and how proud I am of them. They are so special to me and I hope that I will be able to show them that more than I do now-and also to find many ways to express it as well.

Say Cheese!

Can you tell this girl loves the Camera?? What a Ham!

Stretch Marks and Stuff

I am really excited about the changes to report so far-no more excessive saliva, sensitivity to smells have decreased (not totally gone-but way better than before), and my stomach isn't churning at all times of the day anymore. Almost 6 months along and I feel that I have made it over the hill and am on my way down. I am one that gains all baby weight up front in my stomach-not anywhere else. Most women have the lower tailbone pain that feels like your hips are being split in two. With each of my previous pregnancies I have ribs that slipped out of place in my middle back as well. Mostly due to hormones making everything more flexible to make room for baby-added to the months of being sick and laying in bed-no exercise, they just slide out and it's really painful -as my stomach is getting larger, there isn't much I can do to put them back in place. I do physical therapy exercises to help me lesson that.

Rigtht now-I have one out of place and it's affecting my right hip-which i think is out of place as well. I am going to try to get into a chiropracter to get adjusted as best as I can before it gets worse. My hip went out with Brooke and I remember after she was born it was still out (probably because she got stuck and the dr. literally twisted and yanked to get her shoulders out) Say OUCH. I remember at times I would put weight on my right leg-it would give out on me -which scared me knowing I was carrying an infant most the time. I always made sure I had something to lean on for support. It was horrible. I really don't want to deal with that again.

My dr will induce me early with this one-no matter how much I don't want to. My kids have jumped 1 1/2 pounds with each one and that would make this baby roughly 11 1/2 lbs-no thanks, I'll pass. For those of you who wonder if it's because I gain alot during my pregnancies, this is what I have gained with each of my pregnancies and how big each of the babies were:
Whitney gained 17 lbs she weighed 6 lb 14 oz (lost 20 to begin with gained that back +the 17)
Amber gained 17 lbs she weighed 8 lbs 1 oz (lost 10 " ")
Brooke gained 26 lbs she weighed 9lbs 9 oz. (lost 8 to begin with, gained it back + the 26)
Baby 4 so far 15 lbs gained (none lost-i'm scared already)

My sisters used to say that I was lucky to get morning sickness because I didn't ever gain much and didn't get any stretchmarks like them. Well I can now brag that I have my very first stretchmark ever on my stomach-right above my belly button. Not something any pregnant woman would boast of-but for me I feel with my last pregnancy it's nice to say that I have had at least one- I am sure I will get more, since I have 3 more months of stomach stretching that will occur-so sisters beware-you might get sick with your next babies...ha ha. Just kidding. I would never wish this on anyone.

My Opinion SYTYCD

The routines from my favorite to least favorite:
1. Jakob and Kathryn's contemporary piece-loved this -My favorite for the season-I couldn't wait until these two got to dance together and I was totally left satisfied and in awe afterward. These two should get married and have kids-don't you think??? ha ha.
2. Ashleigh and Ryan's contemp.-I was so moved by them dancing as a married couple and I don't agreee with Nigel at all about Ashleigh having more chemistry with her former partner than her own husband-this was just so special to watch-I was close to tears.
3. Ryan and Kathryn's Samba-brave for Ryan to go shoeless with Kathryn in those heels-this is one my favorite sambas on this show ever -that ending was crazy awesome!
3. Ashleigh and Russels' lyrical jazz-so many beautiful parts in the choreography-loved the story.

4. Jakob and Ashleighs Foxtrot-so fun and lively-loved seeing these guys back together.
5. Jakob and Ellenore's broadway-both fantastic in this-both so technically on.
6. Russel and Kathryn's krump/hip hop routine-it was okay-I am not a big krump fan..sorry.
6. Ellinore and Ryans wierd jazz routine-i thought both did a great job and I liked it-felt it showed ryan's growth alot.
6. Ellenore and Russels Paso doble-Finally ellenore came alive to me as an audienc in this.

If Jakob doesn't win-Kathryn should. I would be disappointed in Elinore or Russell won and just a bit shocked if Ashleigh or Ryan did..

Oranges

Because I don't really get to eat too many acidic things when I'm sick to my stomach during pregnancy-it is really awesome when I am able to eat an orange or drink orange juice. Even when I can't eat them-just smelling a fresh orange brings joy. And lately-since I have been able to eat an orange here and there, it has me thinking "tis the season"!!! Yeah-I've been eating at least 2 a day since I am feeling much better.

What is it about oranges that makes me think of Christmas??

1. The Christmas Oranges Story

2. The fun decorations

3. Orange Slice Candy

4. Traditional orange at the bottom of my stocking

5. Orange Rolls Baking

6. Hot Wassail

Whenever I smell an orange-it's got me thinking Christmas.

Laundry Soap on the Cheap

Arm and Hammar 2x concentrated Laundry soap is on sale at Walgreens for $2.49 they have three kinds 26-32 loads (w/bleach, original, sensitive skin). This is the brand I usually use and it's around $4.50 usually at Walmart so this is a really good deal-I am stocking up!! There is a coupon at ArmandHammer.com save $1 on 2..you can print two of these-just click your browser back button. SO you can get these for $2 each.

Recent Family Activities

So we have had a few busy weeks. Amber had a Thanksgiving Feast for Kindergarten before the Break and Whitney had her Thanksgiving Program.

For Thanksgiving we headed out of town to visit Joe's brother and his family. It was nice to visit-we hadn't seen them for a while and the cousins were so excited to see eachother! Well for the most part anyway-Brooke like to say "no" alot and scared her cousin of the same age quite frequently with the use of it. Oh well. It was a nice break for all of us. The girls loved playing with this baby and it's bathtub-especially Brooke.

Next it was Brooke's 2 year Birthday-this last Monday-we just did something small as a family-cake and presents. It was so funny watching her try to blow out the candles-she was kind of scared and when we put the candles closer to her she would shut her eyes and blow. We finally had to help her extinguish them.Two Ponies she got from Dad.A baby doll and bottle that makes Miss Brooke feel like Mommy.

And we got our Christmas tree this week and have been decorating it the last two days. I will post pictures when it's all done.

SYTYCD

As usual here is my take on the routines of last night-I've listed them in order of favorite to least favorite:
1. Ryan and Kathryns' cha cha (executed perfectly)
2. Molee and Jakobs Broadway (loved this for so many reasons)
3. Molee and Jakob's V. Waltz (Just wonderful to watch-so fluid through-out)
4. Ryan and kathryn's Disco ( Very fun and would have liked Ryan in a lighter-colored shirt)
5. Russel's Baliwood routine (He is doing so great with every style given him!!)
6. Ellenore and Legacy's contemporary (I think I didn't like the musicality in the beginning)
7. Russel's Hip Hop (I would have really enjoyed seeing Ashleigh in this routine but liked it)
8. Ellenore and Legacy's hip hop (There were some good moments in here that I thought were cool-but Ellenore for some reason-just kind of felt to me that she was trying to keep up with Legacy and was getting left behind)

Based on Last nights' performances I think Legacy is the guy to go home and a toss up between Ellenore and Ashleigh-only because I think her injury may limit her in the finale.

You would expect this from a four year old.....

I am really one that loves surprises-mostly because the good ones come around fairly rarely. Today I got one of the other surprises that sometimes takes place when you have daughters. It has finally happened to me, at least worse than it has before. Whitney cut the front portion of her bangs close to her head on the left side. At least when amber cut hers it was chin length and I could salvage it well. My first reaction was-"why?" I mean she's 7 1/2 years old-you would think she would know better right? Well Whitney has hair that tangles massively. And she was brushing her hair last night and couldn't get a tangle out so she decided to cut it out. Brilliant -attack the problem head on (nice choice of words huh?) and go with the easy fix. Unfortunately I had to explain to her that because she cut it so short, it's going to be a long time before it grows out and now she won't be able to do her own hair anymore. And if she ever cuts her hair again-i threatened to cut it short like a boys. OH the consequences. So with some hair gel and using the comb over technique-i had her sporting a side part style to school, that hopefully will hide her spikeys enough that will eliminate any teasing. Kids can be cruel and I only hope that her hair grows faster than I think it will.

All about Dance!!

So here is what I thought about the routines:

Nathan and Kathryn I liked their broadway routine-so sweet and who doesn't love White Christmas. IT was really sweet but I think Kathryn outperformed Nathan and maybe that is why Nigel didn't see the chemistry between the two. Their Rumba was okay-I think Kathryn again did a wonderful job but Nathan just is fading out. He wasn't very strong in this.

Legacy and Ashleigh Their contemporary was so good. I loved the mirroring sequence and also when legacy jumped off of Ashleighs leg-the the energy was there through the entire strenuous routine. I was really afraid of this pairing when I found out they were together and my feelings were justified in their second routine. The hip hop was so boring...arhh. No substance whatsoever.

Russel and Mollee Their first routine,by Mandi Moore was wonderful. The beginning lift was amazing as well as the link of arm throw that Nigel mentioned-it was so awesome. Loved It tremendously!!! And their last routine- the Jive was so fun to watch...love these two together.

Jakob and Ellinore Their quickstep was fun-i liked the part they came apart and kept their frame. All in all-it looked effortless.
Their contemporary peice had Sonja written all over it. It was so weird and funky and showcased both dancers' technique. I was intrigued enough by it because of how odd it was the movement-Jakobs flexibility and strength is amazing. He deifinitely is the best dancer on this show hands down. Ellinore showcases her partner really well and I am always drawn away from her because of it. I want her to stand out just a bit more. This is one power team.

Ryan and Noelle hip hop-didn't necessarily love this one. I think it was because the desk hid Ryan alot and maybe his inability to do more. Would have liked to see more side by side work with them. Noelle was just workin it and Ryan played the character well.
I really loved their Waltz-so captivating and soft and romantic. The only thing I would have changed was to pulle Noelle's hair back in some fashion.

Who I think will go based on the performances: Nathan or Legacy for the men and Noelle or Ashleigh -though I really hate to see any of the girls go-they are really all very close.

Who I would like to see go first: Nathan and Mollee

It's SYTYCD time

Alrighty it is becoming more difficult each week to predict who will be eliminated from this competition.
Okay so here is how i ranked the couples after last night:

1. Ryan and Ellenore -These two are so charismatic-they play their parts and perform whatever they are given to their best abilities and it works so well!! Loved their Lindy and Broadway!!

1. Jakob and Ashleigh-Finallly Ashleigh was given Lyrical -so she got to show that she can do both ballroom and also a style that should have been more difficult for her. I still think they choreographed it rather safely still for her-no big jumps/turns for her to do. Still both routines were so Phenomenol!!

2. Legacy and Kathryn-I loved their Jazz routine and the waltz was so beautiful. Only one thing i was dissapointed in was that Legacy's waltz showed his weaknesses and comparing that to the other men dancers-I feel that he is going to be going home sooner than some others.

3. Noell and Russel-Loved their Contemporary-it was the best of the night for me. Just loved this routine so much-so wonderful-I wish it had been longer-i could have watched it forever. Their other routine however the samba-i agreed with the judges..just too airy and not grounded enough.

4. Mollee and Nathan-I actually thought mollee did a great job with the hip hop compared to what the judges thought. Her movement was overall good-just a few places that seemed a bit sloppy. Their can can was amazingly cute and they did a great job keeping me entertained throughout.

5. Karen and Victor-Liked their tango-again she gets' to play the sultry part..blah blah blah. I was expecting it to be just a bit sharper though. Hated their hip hop-i think they weren't together on lots of parts and could have done without the lifts because they didn't flow with the peice.

I think that Mollee and Karen are the two I would put in danger-but again, really comes down to what America thought and how they voted. I am really hoping to not see any of the others go though. For the men..Victor's time is up. He still hasn't drawn me in as an audience to his personality like the others have. While the rest shine on their own-he kind of is in the background. I cannot wait for next week and the change in partners..ooohh the change in dynamics is going to be something to look forward to. Here is who I hope get paired together:

Jakob and Noelle
Ryan and Kathryn
Nathan and Ashleigh
Legacy and Ellinore
Russel and Mollee

These partnerships would really match up well...at least that's if Karen and Victor are gone.

Ultrasound!!.

So lately I have been a little bummed because I haven't felt the baby move much. The Ultrasound tech had asked me if i felt baby move alot and I told her no, not really. It has been something that i've been a little concerned about because with the girls I could feel them move constantly by this point. She said she expected as much because of the location of my placenta is providing extra cushion-so it's normal. I was so relieved by that. One of the things I was looking forward to seeing on the ultrasound was the baby move. And baby didn't dissapoint-in fact when the tech went to it's feet-it decided to give me a little kick. I think it's so cute:

So although-we didn't find out what gender the baby is-it was so much fun to see that he/she is healthy. I will have to do another ultrasound next week because we couldn't get a good picture of the baby's heart-so next time I can let you know 100% that baby is as perfect as we think. And no-going in and looking at baby a second time around won't tempt me to find out what he/she is. Sorry. I told Joe before hand that he needed to be very observant on his own if he wanted to know what it was...luckily baby wasn't forthcoming with any information. Already knows to mind his/her mommy.

Happy Birthday JOE!!!

My hubby turns a year older today!!! Because he didn't get what he wanted for his birthday(If I could have gotten it for him-I would have)- I still hope that he knows how much we love him and that His Birthday Rocks anyway. He is a wonderful husband and father. I appreciate him so much and how he puts me and the kids before himself entirely. Just to let you know how awesome he is-this is his birthday so far today: Got up early and went to work to do inventory. Came home and raked our yard and both of our next door neighbors yard. Yeah on his birthday-can you believe this man?? Anyway-he doesn't expect any grand party and is happy with little things for gifts-am I lucky or what? I know I am. Just another reason why I love this man and I wish that he Has the Best Birthday ever!!! The rest of his day will be a little more fun-we're taking him out to eat with the Kids. Texas Roadhouse-here we come!!

SYTYCD-This weeks review ..a little bit of sunshine gone.

To be honest I loved all but one routine-kevin and Karens. The entire night as i was watching I kept thinking oh..this is going to be my number 1 pick and then each couple just started to rock their routines. All except for Karen and Kevin's Broadway-this dance should have been so much more exaggerated and bigger and it was way too bland. I just couldn't wait for it to be over.

Loved Jacob and Ashleighs soft hip hop-hit hard and flowed soft and right on-fabulous.
Loved Noelle and Russells Foxtrot-lucky to get it a second time-but she was so gorgeous and they looked like they were having fun and it was so smooth.
Loved Legacy and Katherine's Paso Doble-Stunning-so intense and powerful-YEAH for them!
Loved Channing and Victor's Jazz. -i loved the weird quirkiness of this and the beat so different-i was captured initially by this moving piece of art.
Loved Mollee and Nathan's Pop Jazz-so much fun and hip-totally meant for this young couple to dance.
Loved Ryan and Ellinore's Contemporary-left me breathless-wonderful to see how well these two are doing.

With that said I really was happy to see Kevin go but mixed about Channing getting the boot. I like her more than Karen but Karen has been more consistent-so I am thinking that is why they chose her over Channing. Still, having really loved Channing's solo and her routine from Wednesday night-makes me feel like she went home too early. Karen was getting rather boring with her sultry style all over the place all the time. Channing was just more refreshing. I have to say next week Karen has got to step up because i can't imagine the other girls going home before her...and to pick a guy for next week...really it's going to be hard-but I would say Victor has to step up-or he'll lose the votes.

Thanksgiving Deals at Walmart

Frozen Whole Turkey $.40/lb limit 2
Green Giant Canned Vegitables $.50
Ocean Spray Whole Cranberries $.88
Sweet Potatoes $.25/lb
Stovetop twin pack stuffing $1.50
Great Value Brown and Serve Rolls $.75
Campbells cream soups (mush&chick) $.58 use $1/2 or $1/4 IP $.08-.33
Heinz Gravy 12 oz $.75 use IP $1/3 $.42 each
Swanson chicken Broth 14 oz $.45 use $.25/4 11/08 SS $.39 each
Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers 12 oz. $1.50 use $.40/1 10/04 GM or IP $.50/1 $1.10 each
Pillsbury crescent or sweet rolls $1.50 $.50/2 or $.40/2 IP $1.25-1.35 each
Reddi Whip 7 0z $1.88 use $.50/1 11/15 SS or IP $1.38 each
Philadelphia cream cheese 8 oz $1.18 use $1/3 11/15 RP $.85 each
Great Value Butter 16 oz $1.50

Crisco Vegitable Oil $2 use $1/1 11/08 RP $1 each

coupon shopping at Walgreens

bought 2 Ricola mixed berry cough drop packages on sale $1.
used 2 $ .50/1 from the walgreens healthy coupon booklet
$.50 each + got $1 RR

Welches sparkling grape juice 2/7
used the $2/5 in ad store coupon + $2/1 coupon from coupons.com
= $.50 each

4 Aussie Mega Products on sale $2.99
used 4 $1/1 coupon from 10/11 P&G insert
=$1.99 each +got $2 RR

total spent $11.10 including tax received $10 in RR from Aussie Mega and Ricola items
Like spending $1.10 for everything.

Sparkling Grape Juice for the Holidays

Sparking Grape Juice $.50 at Walgreens next week $2.50
Print a coupon here (IE) or here (FF) for $2/1 Welch's Sparkling Grape Juice
Get 'em while you can.

Free Kashi All Natural Granola Bar

Go HERE to sign up and receive a free kashi granola bar sample in the mail.

Awesome Job Whitney!!

So again Whitney was chosen to receive an award in her school-this one on citizenship. I am really happy that she tries to do her best and help her fellow classmates-she is really tenderhearted. Way to go Whitzy!!!

Here are the girls on Halloween night-don't you love the costume change on Brooke?

We thought it would be easiest if she wasn't tripping on cinderella's gown the entire night so opted for the Fairy costume instead.Siting out which house to go to first..hmm.

SYTYCD -my thoughts

Just to cut to the chase here is how I ranked the couples from last night and my opinions about each dance.

1. Noelle and Russell-My favorite dance of the night-maybe my favorite of the season so far-. Loved the energy -I love love love african styled dancing and it was done so perfectly-both of them were so energetic and on beat. Loved her hands when Russel slid down her back leg and the handstand flips were so great. Liked the sequence of her moving behind Russel while he did some sharp hand arm choreography around his torso and head. Altogether such a wonderful routine. I could watch this one over and over and over again. YEAH!!!

1. Channing and Victor- Contemporary-I agree with the judges-it was so nice to see Channing's softer side and I love the story behind it and both did exceptionally well with this new partnership.

1. Ashleigh and Jakob-Jazz-loved this one-Huge 80's music fan-so this really had to live up to the music for me and they were awesome!! Sharp, stayed in character and the choreography was amazing for this.

2. Legacy and Kathryn-Broadway -so I really liked this-even though I could see Kathryn be more vixen like as the judged had wanted her to be. But thought this had so many creative elements to it that I just loved it. Fully entertained the entire time.

3. Karen and Kevin-it was nice and sharp-kind of cheesy cruise style entertainment-but still good.

4.. Pauline and Peter-Quickstep-loved this routine-so adorable but like Mary-yeah they should have been in a better closed position and connection was lost through those parts-so could have been way better.

6. Mollee and Nathan-Salsa- I enjoyed this one-even though there were tons of broken parts-I appreciated it.

7. Ryan and Ellinore-Hip HOp Not together at some points but yes-if he's this big guy and she's more compact-he has to move faster than she does to match movements..so really this was stellar considering that. I was bored with the story as Jeannette and Brandons Ruby Blue was similar-not hip hop though. So great-nothing exciting. Too much use of props.

That Pauline and Peter went home didn't surprise me much-I am happy with that because really neither of them have really become too noticeable at this point. The other dancers are each stepping up and demonstrating their characters and personalities more.

It is still a bit early to choose my favorite girls and guys but definitely I am liking Noelle and Kathryn. Can't tell about Ashleigh yet as none of the routines she has done in the past has made her have to do more than what I know she can-so I am waiting for a contem/mod peice before really putting her with the other two. For the guys-ofcourse I like Jakob and Nathan and Legacy/Russell are most likely going to be the underdog guys that I see coming through and winning america over. So can't wait for next week and more dances to help with my choices.

My emotions crashing down on me.

Feeling OVERWHELMED today,

Maybe it's because my kids don't have school today and tomorrow due to parent teacher conferences. Maybe it's because I am an emotional wreck because of my pregnancy hormones. Maybe it is the struggle I am having getting a hold of Amber's pediatrician to get the referral i need to set up the appointment for her much needed evaluation with the Occ. Therapist. Maybe it's trying to keep my children out of the candy left over from halloween. Maybe it's the constant nagging for a playdate after my kids just spent half the day with the neighbor kids. Or perhaps it that my house can be clean one minute and a disaster the moment i turn around. Maybe it's trying to figure out how to lessen the meltdown moments i have with Amber. Or the fact that I don't get to spend enough time with children A and C because child B is more demanding and what am i thinking to add child D to the situation. Maybe it's the pressure to find out what gender child D is going to be. And the entire sick feeling I am experiencing because of Child D inside my body. Really it's probably all of the above and even more that I can't even express right now. Either I don't have the time or the there is so much going on inside my brain that I can't seperate or focus on any or all of them in the short time I have tor write this post before starting dinner. Here is my real moment of craziness and yes I have crazy days and days where my imperfections follow me until i break. It's all normal right? It's what being a mom is right? But at least I've seen miracles in my life and know that I have my own special mission and it uplifts me enough to think Maybe next year I will go as Supermom for halloween. Yep I am truly CRAZY!!

grocery shopping this week at Albertsons

Okay so I haven't shown much coupons shopping as of late but here goes-w/out pictures even.

Transaction #1
Chex cereal bars $2.49 used 1 free chex bar coupon
3 Lipton Rice side dinners .99 each used $1/3
2 Prog chicken broth $1.49 used 2 $.50/1 coupons
3 betty crocker frosting tubs $1.69 each used 3 $.50/1
2 Chex mix $1.69 each used 2 $.50/1
2 Yoplus delights $2.49 used 2 $1/1
2 Yoplus yogurts $2/49 each used 2 $1/1
2 Pillsburgy Toaster Strudels $2.99 used 2 $1/1

Total OOP after coupons was $21.81 + recieved $15 catalina

Transaction #2

5 Hamburger Helper meals $1.69 each used 1 $1/2 and 1 $.75/3
3 Lipton soup mixes ( no coupons) .99 each
6 progresso soups $1.69 each used 2 $1.10/3
2 Betty crocker cookie mixes $1.69 each used 2 $.40/1
2 Klondike Icecream bars $2.99 each used 2 $1/1

Total OOP after coupons and using $15 catalina $9.17 + received another $15 catalina.

So together I spent $15.98 on 34 items factoring in the catalinas = $.47 cents each item.

SYTYCD Shocking!!

So i was totally surprised that they choreographed the kiss in Ashleigh and Jakobs waltz routine-can I say that was some pretty good acting and, like everyone else, I wonder what Ryan thought about that. Now being on a dance team before while being married and dancing with other guys myself I can say i always viewed things with total professionalism..but that is a line i wouldn't dream of crossing. I am not sure how married actors do it-no wonder why there are so many break ups in hollywood. With that now said I have to say-it was one of my favorite dances of the night along with the tango that Ashleigh's husband Ryan danced to with Ellinore. So Ballroom dances stole the spotlight for me last night. And Legacy contemporary with Kathryn absolutely blew me away-he is really growing and becoming a better dancer. I guess Stacy is the choreographer that is replacing Mia Michaels and so far I'm not dissapointed.

So here is how the dances ranked for me last night:
#1. Ryan and Ellinore Tango-so precise even with the skirt tangle.
#2. Legacy and Kathryn Contemporary -finally a cont piece that moved me!!
#3 Ashleigh and jakob's Waltz-so pretty and lovely
#4 Mollee and Nathan's Bollywood routine-so cool
#5 Noelle and Russel's Hip hop
#6 Karen and Kevin's- Hip HOp-the dancing was good-parts of the choreography i didnt' like.
#7 Bianca and Victor's Broadway-I really enjoyed this one
#8 Pauline and Peter Jazz-liked it but thought it was a little busy at some points
#9 Channing and Phillip Samba-stumbling here and there-channing definitely tried .

I think they picked the right guy to go home and only felt that Biance went home because the other girls show better potential to perform more variety of dance genres.

Halloween Preview!!! Thrifty costumes this year!

Here are some pictures of the girls in their halloween costumes this year!! I was so lucky to have found the tiger costume at a thrift store for $4 and a friend loaned us the cow costume indefinitely (so nice of them). We had the cinderella costume hanging around from a past halloween -but I have to say Brooke does it better justice than the previous wearer. All in all I was so lucky to only have had to spend $6 total including the face paint for my girls' costumes this year combined with a little bit of sewing to fix/alter whatever was needed!! And I already had everything to make my costume-just needed to sew it together. Turned out pretty cute! Daddy's not yet into the whole "dress" up thing---just yet. Sorry the pictures are grainy-I guess my mem. card was just about full and battery was dying-so hopefully tonight I will get some better ones. But I wanted to show you anyway!Girls playing in the leaves!!! WE LOVE THE FALL!!

SO you think you can dance is back!!

Okay so my favorite dances from last nights performances were:
Jakob and Ashleigh's Broadway -perfect-nothing bad about this routine, it had everything from both dancers.
Mollee and Nathan's Disco-this disco was so fun and so fast-i can't believe how much energy they had throughout the entire thing. Awesome.
Legacy and Kathryn's Hip Hop totally expected legacy to do awesome but Kathryn killed it-she did such a great job hitting everything so hard.

Hats off to:

Karen and Kevin-She danced circles around him and you couldn't watch anyone but her. Partly this wasn't his fault. I would have put him in a lighter costume as black on black-seriously he is hidden anyway. ( costume choice/lighting/background is important) But he still could have done more to match her.

Ryan and Ellenore Contemporary- I expected more out of Ellenore-performance quality was there and it was such a weird piece that i liked it.

Bianca and Victor cotemporary-It was nice -could have been brilliant if she had better technique like Adam commented on. Liked it, but wasn't blown away.

Just okay for me:

Russel and Noelles fox trot-mainly because he danced with sub Melanie (wish she was wearing a different dress color-too much black in entire routine/background would have like to see it broken up a bit.) I do think he did okay.

Brandon and Pauline: I really think it was such easy choreography and so there really wasn't room for them to impress anyone with this routine-not necessarily their fault, since he only had a few days to learn it. Was forgettable.

Channing and Phillip Jive- I think she did a descent job with her performance-both could have been sharper-If he performed more this would have been really cute.

Arianna and Peters' hip hop-just boring

I think the judged picked the right two to go home-it's who i think america would have voted off.

Biggest dissapointments:
Billy Bell out of the competition.

Yeah 4 months along!!!

Okay so I thought I would let you know that with my system that I am using-I am now able to eat just about anything now. I am super excited about that. I am really hoping that by next month i can completely eliminate unisom and maybe the sea bands. Just wanted to let you all know i have am back among the living again!

Better News

Joe took Amber in this morning and the Dr. said she has an ear infection and a sinus infection...so she is on two different antibiotics and I am hoping that truly that is all she has. So YEAH!

THE FLU...Our family lowdown.

Okay so Wednesday night Amber had a fever-and I was a bit concerned about what it would turn into. Thursday-ofcourse she stayed home from school-fever was gone but the whole 24 hour wait before going out in public after a fever business. Then Thursday afternoon slight fever-99...thursday night-runny nose, started to cough, fever continues. By this point we had called the dr. to find out what we should do-bring her in, keep her home and treat her like regular flu...what we should do about me-preggo?? Plus we called everwhere to see when the first avail H1N1 flu shots were available. Not much help there. Friday morning cough is worse and she is throwing up-still no news about vaccinations or whether she has reg flu or swine flu-as they don't want her coming in unless it's really bad. So tonight after more vomiting and slight fever still going on, the Nurse told us to bring her in the morning or tonight to the ER if it gets worse. Good news-My dr. has both flue vaccines in office-got them in today so first thing Monday I will be getting my shot, Whitney will be getting hers at school and hopefully we can find a place to get Brooke one. Bad news-flu may already be in my system which means-if I start showing symptoms-straight to tamiflu i go. So everyone please pray that our family can get through this flu thing. I am exhausted and Joe is starting to feel something coming on. Just hope and pray it's regular flu and not the swine flu-though we know Amber has been in contact with a family that has had a swine flu case in their household. SO please cross fingers it doesn't come down to anything life threatening (especially since Brooke is high risk and I am at double high risk)

Giveaway share!!

So I blog hop to keep up with all of my friends old and new and found this wonderful giveaway share on my friend Brooke's blog. She has a cool friend who makes slings/diaper bags and they are soo adorable. She is giving one away on her Blog-winner gets to pick which one-check it out!!

Visit http://lesassyseamstress.blogspot.com/ to see all her fun products.

My Favorite time of Year!!!

So This is What I've been doing this week: Canning Apples, Applesauce, and Applebutter! YUM!

My house smells like Autumn and the weather is perfect!!

VOIP???

Okay so I have always thought that we don't pay much for our dsl/phone service until I talked to a friend who gets Skype for $4 a month??? What? Where have I been?? Okay so I was just wondering if I am the only one that still lives in the prehistoric era of wires and am just wondering really how much can I save by going the wireless route and using Voip?? OR is is something that evens out after you factor in the special phones you have to buy wireless modem, etc. What are your opinions and who have you had the greatest service with. I am curious and wherever i can save a buck-I will, so maybe I will switch who knows?? So those who are more tech savvy-let me in on your secrets and if it does save you money.

Suggestions Please..

Okay so I am just shy of the 3 months mark..yipee!! I know I have plenty of time to prepare-but really I don't. Because we aren't finding out what we are having gender wise, and because we haven't had a boy yet-we have nothing for a little man if that is what baby is. So we will be scrambling from the hospital buying all boy stuff if that is the case. Plus I can't really set up nursery for gender specific and all the girls' stuff is pink/purple. I want to know what you other moms have done to prepare for a surprise in gender and what has worked the best. So far I plan on having four outfits for the hospital 1 girl, 1 boy, and 2 neutral (in 2 different sizes)-just in case. We already know we have to purchase a new carseat and packnplay(with bassinet)- and will be on the lookout for any neutral colors. I am leaning towards brown-because I can contrast it with pink for a girl-but alone would work for a boy too. But beyond that-I haven't done much in my thought process for preparing for baby's arrival. But one thing is for certain- I will definitely want a baby shower afterwards if it is a boy-especially with tons of suggestions for raising one. So tell me all your ideas and what you or someone you know has done?

Last of the sickies....

Okay so the title may have been a little misleading--I am not done with the morning sickness but I have decided this is going to be my last post regarding how sick I have been feeling. I just wanted to give an update how the last week has gone using the vitamin B complex w/unisom. So I do feel a bit better-I can actually function around the house instead of just laying in bed all day. I did have a few bad days last week-but kept most of everything down so that is an improvement-plus I have been able to eat more than just crackers/toast. Night time is still the worst time for me-it's difficult to sleep. When the older girls are at school and Brooke is napping-I do the same. Still I cannot wait for the next full night's sleep I will get before this baby comes-because after that we all know I won't have any for a while. I will keep up with what I am doing and I am really hoping that by week 12 I will be done with this for good. Well I can hope right?? So as promised I am done talking about how cruddy I feel and for now on will only post about family matters and life beyond my miserable stomach.

A description of my morning sickness........Relief in sight!

Okay so normally a person wouldn't consider it a good day if it started out with dryheaving in the bathroom for the first five minutes. But I am not the "normal" pregnant woman. I get the severe type of morning sickness which makes me feel sick all day for months and months, and yes-I do empty the contents of my stomach when it is necessary. And actually it doesn't make me feel any better. For those of you who are TTC forthe first time-don't let this scare you-it's really not what most women experience. Here are my symptoms:
1. All day nausea
2. Excessive saliva
3. Excess bile in the stomach-which upsets my stomach-(makes me feel like i have acid reflux)
4. My head and stomach continually feel on fire
5. Sporadic headaches
6. Extremely high sensitivity to smells-even my own children smell to me sometimes *sad I know*
7. Fatigue
8. Body Aches

Well i thought I'd stop right there-that gives you all a general idea of what I have been feeling like 24/7. So after not keeping any thing down this last weekend, with all the medication I was taking, I decided to do more research on a more natural method. I had a friend who had some good results with vitamin b6/folic acid shot. I called my dr and they don't offer them. SO this morning as I was picking up some papaya mint chewables that are a natural antacid that are safe for me to take, I found a liquid B-complex vitamin with folic acid which is supposed to be the equivalent of the injection. So I took that with 1/2 a unison plus my psi bands and chewing on papaya mint tablets and i am so happy to report that it feels like it's working on my system. My nausea had decreased to the point where i was actually able to clean the bathroom and do two loads of laundry!!! So I feel like I am functioning better today compared to the past days. Hopefully this continues to work. At least I have felt some relief-I am so excited!!

First Day of School!!

It's finally here!! The first day of school. These girls got up at six this morning-they

were that anxious. Whitney Starts 2nd Grade and Amber makes the Big jump to Kindergarten.Don't they just look eager to learn??Here is Amber settling down in Kindergarten class-boy trapped.

She doesn't seem to mind one bit.

News Update.

As some of you guessed, I am expecting again. I am really excited about having another-this time we won't be finding out what it will be since this may very well be our last and I want to have the surprise experience. I am due on Tax day April 15th-but since my babies have jumped 1 1/2 lbs with each one my dr may want to induce me early to save me from an 11 or 12 pounder. I've been pretty sick this last week and it's been difficult to do many household chores. Joe's been a big help and he's done alot for the girls and me. I am on prescribed meds to help with the naseau and am wearing my psi bands. These have helped me to keep things down so far-but I still feel sick. I am really hoping that with this one-the yucky morning sickness will go away soon and not last my entire pregnancy-like the previous ones have. I have not been very good at updating my blog because I am mostly laying down whenever I can. School starts on Monday for the girls so for 1/2 the day it will just be Brooke and me. We met their teacher's last night and I am really excited for both of them. I think they both will like their teachers and that Amber will continue to progress. Well that is all the family news for now. I will try to keep up with my blog whenever I am feeling well.

Birthday News!!

So today is my birthday and to celebrate I thought I would share some news with everyone. Now hold on....I am not making it that easy by telling you outright. Just browse around my blog and you will find the "answer" somewhere..yep..you have to guess what it is. I just love surprises don't you??

Happy Anniversary, Happy Birthday and Toothfairy!!

5 years ago we were blessed with a special little red headed girl who is full of spunk and determination. Amber was born on our anniversary and somehow, it makes both a little more special. What greater gift can be given on your wedding anniversary?? Amber will be starting Kindergarten this year and she is so excited. She has grown so much this last year- I can't believe how big she has gotten. One thing that hasn't changed-she still has the most pinchable face ever.

One yearTwo YearsThree Years

Four YearsFive YearsHappy Anniversary Joe!!! Married 8 years and still going!!

Plus Whintey lost another tooth today-she is so excited so I had to share!

Organize upon entry

So with school starting-moms are happy to have a break from bored kids and a little more time to get tasks done without kids underfoot-but it also means the start of piled up artwork, muddy shoes tossed carelessly about, and lost homework. Here are a few ideas that may help declutter and organize back to school mayhem.

Very colorful with container basketsCorkboard makes a great wall accessory for hanging up

proud projects and homework.

Keeping hooks at children's height makes it easy for little ones.

A tray to set wet/sloshy shoes is great to save floors.

Simple-a hook and a basket for everyone.

Try the Hide it all in the closet method..