Two Men and a Lady

Oh....here I am.

2011-10-26T19:24:00.002-05:00

OMG.

Has it really been since JULY since I've posted?!?!?!?! Well, I suck. Big time.

There has been SO much happening in my life lately. I started my new job on August 1st and I absolutely LOVE IT! Like, can't even begin to describe how much. My coworkers are amahhhhhzing and my boss is great as well! I still miss my old office and it's been about a minute since I've been in there to visit! It's hard to believe my "90 days" are almost over. But I've never been so happy about a decision before and I thank God everyday for this great opportunity.

I know about 10000000001 people who are pregnant right now! What is the deal people?!?!?! I'd love to get down on whatever they're drinking but that'll still have to wait. I'm so happy for all my friends/family that are expecting and can't wait to snuggle those sweet babes!

Brogan turned 3 in September and has been a pistol ever since! Oh my Lordy does this kid keep us on our toes! With my new job, I have Fridays off so it's nice to spend 3 straight days with my boy (and hubs on the weekend). But sometimes, by Sunday, this momma is READY for Monday morning!!! We decided, with Brogan's help of course, that he'd be a train conductor for Halloween and this kid is SO excited! This Saturday our zoo has what they call 'Boo at the Zoo' where you can trick or treat around the zoo. We are taking B in the morning and his daddy is even making train costumes for us to wear. Brogan doesn't know it yet but I'm stoked to see how excited he'll be!

I am so so tired that I don't know what else to write about. Hopefully I can get better with this..but let's not hold our breath.

Happy Fall Ya'll!

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I'm a Beast!

2011-07-29T20:49:00.002-05:00

When my husband showed me the house that would be ours after we got married, I was extremely worried. This house was a P.O.S. Granted, it had been gutted so of course it was not as 'sexy' (can a house be sexy? I dunno.) as I had hoped. But they did a wonderful job at making this house really be SEXY! Haha! So jump forward 5 years: we now have a child and way too much stuff for this 2 bedroom/no basement or storage house. Our loft area (that I once had a vision of a cute little nook for reading/office/movie watching) has sorta turned in to a storage area. We finally got rid of this GINORMOUS desk we had and that helped open up the loft a TON! My parents gave us a cute little desk that used to be my grandma's and it is an absolutely perfect fit. However, with all the moving around of furniture to get that big a** desk out of here, the loft again turned in to a cluttered mess and it was just U.G.L.Y. (You ain't got no alibi! -- yeah, I totally just typed that.)

Yesterday, I had enough of the clutter. I attacked this loft like a BEAST! And I dominated it...fo sho (<--I say this A. LOT. Like too much. But what can ya do?). I moved SO. MUCH. HEAVY. STUFF (ex: a couch with a hide-a-bed in it). And anyone who knows me, knows I am not a manual labor type girl. I don't like to get dirty and I HATE to sweat, which I do a lot lately cause A) It's hotter that Haites in Kansas this summer and B) I've had a child. Anywho. I'm so proud of my handy work! I moved some of Brogan's toys from the living room up here and he loves it! It's his own little play area. He can watch his movies up here and play with some of his favorite toys. There are a few things that need a 'place' or stuff we probably could get rid of, but for now it's cozy and comfy and it works. I'd show you pictures but I have yet to do that. Lame, I know.

It's amazing how rearranging a room or just tackling a project that has been on the back burner can make you feel so good! And it's a great way to handle stress...not that I would have any right now. *insert sarcasm*

I'm am, however, happy to have my cute little nook for reading, an office, and a play area for Brogan.

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Giveaway!! from Little Miss Momma

2011-07-29T08:56:00.002-05:00

If you've never heard of Ashley aka Little Miss Momma, head there NOW. She's a DOLL! She's absolutely gorgeous and would totally be a GF I'd hang out with! Her family is ADORBS and her house is to die for! She's hosting a FAB giveaway today and I think you should go take a look. Even if you don't enter, stay a while and read up on LMM. You will not be disappointed! Trust. Me.

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TGIF Tomorrow is Suckie Friday

2011-07-28T09:15:00.006-05:00

Tomorrow is not a Friday I'm looking forward to. Weird, right? Normally Friday is the day people can't wait for throughout the week! I'm normally one of them. But tomorrow, I'm not.

Tomorrow is my last day at my current job. I've been working at this office for 8 years and have honestly loved it. It's ultimately going to be the hardest day of my life (so far). I'm so freakin' grateful for my boss and his family. They have treated me like a member of their family and been there for me and my family. My boss is like a dad to me and he has been more than understanding of my decision. I know I'll always be welcome in the office and whatnot but it won't be the same.

I am, however, excited for tomorrow a tiny bit because it's an excuse to have a FOOD DAY! And those of you who know me, know I LURVE me some food....for reals. They actually give me a hard time at work regarding food days and my on going love affair with them.

So, as horribly emotional as tomorrow might be....at least I'll have the food to keep me happy! HAHA!

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Test.

2011-07-27T08:56:00.001-05:00

Kim is ~~a loser~~ totally awesome.

(I did NOT type this, b.t.dubs.)

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No More Binky For Piggy, or Brogan.

2011-07-27T08:35:00.004-05:00

One of our fave books right now is "No More Pacifier For Piggy" but we change the words. We say No More Binkie for Piggy...it flows better and Brogan calls his pacifier a binkie.

Anyway.

Since Saturday, Brogan has asked maybe once a day for his binkie. He doesn't cry and whine about it anymore; just asks where it is. He's been sleeping through the night just fine and naps are getting a tad bit better. I'm SO super proud of our little guy! I think that Saturday for his "week anniversary", I'm gonna do something fun with him!

I'm gonna leave you with some pictures that have become my favorites lately!

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I Don't Do Change

2011-07-26T08:56:00.003-05:00

Yep. Second post this week...back to back. WHAT WHAT?!?!? <--I don't know.

So I just got a text from one of my best friends, Jenna. She doesn't know how emotional I've been (re: leaving my job of 8 years for something completely knew and different) this last week. But yet she tells me "I know this week is going to make you sad, and possibly question your decision to leave, but keep your chin up and remember you will be going to a place that you will love what you do!" Instant tears folks. Instant. I know I'm making a great decision for myself, my family, and for the future. But holy freakin' cow, it's SO hard to imagine me not sitting behind this desk next week. And for the weeks to come. This has been a safe place for me. I don't do change very well. But we all grow up and move on and I'm not the only one in the universe who's ever gone through this.

Before the text, I also got an email from Jenna this morning regarding a new song I should download. Totally made my morning as well! It's titled "Booty Work" by T-Pain. Very inspirational if you ask me....haha! I told her that I wanted to dance like those girls when I grow up (b.t.dubs: there is a ghetto girl inside this little white girl). It's talent ya'll...pure. talent. Look it up on YouTube. Trust me.

Anywhos. Thanks Jenna for helping me in more ways than one! LOVE YOU OODLES AND OODLES!

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I've been here the whollllle time.

2011-07-25T10:45:00.006-05:00

Let's not talk about where I've been or why I haven't blogged. That'd just be a silly topic and I'd rather pretend it hasn't been half past FOREVER since I've logged on to good ol' Blogger.com.

I have, however, still been blog stalking (courtesy of the wonderful Google Reader) on my hiatus and everyday feel guilty for not keeping up with my own blog. Not that I'm THAT interesting, but ya know...I could be if I tried. I'm funny...can I say that? (inside joke...lame I know)

So anywhatsit. Let's at least get down to what we did this weekend.

Spur of the moment Friday afternoon, I text the hubs and through out the idea of finally breaking our sweet little boy of his binkie. His beloved and always faithful binkie. I figured if we don't "rip it off like a bandaid" (sick) then it's gonna take ME a long time to finally get it done. So...that night I told Brogan about how the next day the Binkie Fairy was going to come to our house and get his binkie to give it to a baby who was sad and didn't have one. I explained that this was because he is such a big boy now and big boys don't need binkies. I was hesitant but did it anyway. Saturday morning, I let him have his binkie longer than usual (he normally would put it away right when he got up) and both daddy and mommy reassured him he'd be ok without his binkie and had him say his final goodbyes. Enter emotional mommy here. MAN THAT WAS FREAKIN' HARD!!!! You'd think it was MY binkie that was getting taken away. I made a quick trip to Walgreen's to pick up a little something to leave in the binkies place. I know, bribery probably isn't the best parenting tactic, but lay off me, mm'kay? It's what I needed to do to make myself feel better. Haha! We went swimming for about an hour trying to wear our little monkey out. Come nap time, I honestly was nervous. We showed him what the Fairy had left him and read him the note she left as well. He only cried for about 20 minutes...not. bad. at. all. Except....he woke up 1 1/2 hours later (on a good day, this kid will sleep for 3+ hours). SCREAMING -- So much for wearing him out.And that lasted a good 45 minutes. I felt horrible. But we still held our ground and after his tantrum, he was fine.

Saturday night we headed to Lawrence for dinner to celebrate my FIL's birthday. Brogan was PERFECT! We don't go out to eat much due to a very antsy and busy child. But we were able to eat some fantastic Chinese food and then my BIl, his GF, and my self took Brogan to The Toy Store (family owned! DISCOUNT BABY!) down the street. It was fun for Brogan and for me too...ya see, my BIL works there and on top of getting a family discount, we also get lots of free/discounted goodies. So I was going around making my list of things Brogan needed. Yes, needed. After playing for a while, we headed to the local froyo shop. DELISH.

Brogan was in sugar heaven! We headed home and put B down for a LATE bedtime. He asked Tommy one time for his binkie but that was it...out like a light.

Sunday morning, Brogan so graciously slept in till 8:30 (cue angel chorus) and asked me one time about his binkie. Again, I told him about the Fairy and that was it. I totes broke out my Cinderella waffle iron (wedding gift from my in laws...5 YEARS AGO and this was the first time it's seen light) and made some shitey waffles. Whatevs.

Brogan didn't hardly notice since I put Nutella on top. That afternoon I had a date with my besties daughter (we saw the movie Zookeeper...Hi.Larious.) so I left Brogan at my mom's since Tommy was working. She said nap time was a littttttle rough and he only slept for a little over an hour. Sweet Baby Jebus, I hope this napping thing gets easier/better. Our evening was low key and again, bed time went fine. At least he's sleeping at night, I guess. All in all, this weekend was great!

Today marks my last Monday at work. I was offered a great job so I put in my 2 weeks and this coming Friday is my last day (after 8 years...EIGHT, PEOPLE). Maybe I'll do a post about all that jazz...but honestly, I'm so freakin' emotional about leaving that I don't know if I can. Whatevs. That's life, right?

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Mother's Day {2011}

2011-05-09T09:23:00.004-05:00

(Hopefully I can get some pictures up by tomorrow)
I had a wonderful Mother's Day yesterday! I'll be honest and say the last few haven't been the best. God bless my husband, but it took an almost all out brawl (I only joke) last year for him to understand that yes, I'm not his mother, but I did birth his child and until Brogan is 15 and can do things for me by himself, it's Tommy's job. Anyway. I woke up to a loud little boy wanting to get up! Tommy got up also and got Brogan fed and dressed while I got ready for church. After church, we were welcomed to Tommy grilling out hamburgers! I was pumped! I love me some grilled hamburgers, especially when Tommy makes them. Tommy had to work at noon so it was a quick lunch before he had to leave. I did get a sweet card from my boys and a very nice gift card to Barnes and Noble! I have already purchased 2 books for my NookColor. One being Two Kisses for Maddy by Matt Logelin. While Brogan napped I was able to relax on the couch and read. I was planning on sleeping while he slept but it didn't turn out that way. I always seem to find other things to do besides sit and relax. I ended up cleaning the toilets! Ha! So when Tommy got home, I was able to sneak in a little bit of a nap before we started our afternoon/evening plans. I got to pick where we ate dinner but before that, we headed to Gage Park to ride the carousel. Brogan LOVES the carousel! We also played on the play groud until we were all sweating to death! It got hot on Sunday! I was a little nervous to go out to eat with Brogan since we haven't done it much. But he was perfect! He ate so well and behaved himself. After dinner, we headed to Tommy's dad's house to have tapioca pudding and enjoy some more time outside. By the time we got home, Brogan was SO sweaty and sticky! Bless his heart. It was definitely a bath kind of night for that boy! He was so ready for bed too!

All in all, I had a wonderful day! I am a very blessed momma! And I'm blessed to have such a wonderful momma! She spent her Mother's Day sungglin' my niece in Kansas City. Lucky :)

Maaaaayyybbbeee I'm hoping to possibly have/almost have another little buddle of joy by next Mother's Day. We'll see!!

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Easter Weekend {2011}

2011-04-26T10:09:00.007-05:00

I started off my 4 DAY WEEKEND with chores around the house. But I was definitely ok with that! I wanted to get all the laundry, cleaning, dishes, etc done before the actual weekend so I could spend plenty of time with my family. I got to run a few errands on Thursday, one of which included buying my boy some new clothes for Spring/Summer. The Children's Place was having a great sale AND I had a coupon. I love that store! We didn't get home and down for a nap until close to 2; Brogan usually goes down between 12:00 and 1:00...oops :) He finally fell asleep around 3:15 and then slept till 6 pm! Thursdays are the days when I don't see Tommy till after 9 and Brogan doesn't see him at all, unless we're up watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse when Tommy leaves for work. I was definitely ok with Brogan sleeping till later. He went to bed 30 minutes later than normal time but slept like a champ! My kid is definitely one of those that NEEDS an afternoon nap or else he will not sleep at night. Sounds weird, but so so true.

Friday, Mr. B got a haircut and we had lunch at Panera with one of my besties, Jenna. We had a great time just chattin' away and watching Brogan be silly. I've found that having a relaxing girls lunch doesn't happen with a toddler but we still found the time to catch up. Jenna and I have had our issues in the past but we really have overcome some HUGE obstacles and become crazy close. I love that girl SO much and she's a friend who I know will always be there for me no matter what. She may not check her voice mail, but I love her none the less ;) Plus, she owns a gun AND a walkie talkie....holla!

Friday night, Tommy and I went to celebrate one of our dear friends 35th birthday in Kansas City at Dave and Busters. If you've never been, YOU NEED TO GO! It's a restaurant AND a huge arcade. I've never been one to play a lot of video games, but I played my heart out! And won tons of tickets! I got Brogan a stuffed pug and naturally he named it Gus, after our pug.

Saturday, we spent time inside and out. The weather wasn't great so it allowed me to get lots of house work done. I rearranged some things on the kitchen cabinets that just makes me feel more organized. I love that feeling! It's nice to not have clutter all over the place. It was a low key night since I had to get up to sing at church on Sunday.

Brogan got to find his Easter basket before church and he loved all his goodies! He wasn't sure he wanted to leave every thing at home while we went to church. I was asked about a month ago to sing on the praise team for Easter Sunday. I got to sing with our youth director (AWESOME lady with such a talented heart!!) and a friend of mine from high school who I've always enjoyed singing with. I'm gonna toot my own horn and say that we KILLED it! I felt so on fire for God during that service and loved every second! We are going to try to do this once a month and I couldn't be more excited. I get so much more out of church when the music is awesome; I've always been like that. It's my passion, what can I say! After church, Brogan and I headed home to change clothes and get Tommy. We headed up to Tommy's grandma's house to do lunch and Easter egg hunts. The kids had a blast! Brogan even took a nap in a 'big person' bed and did great! After spending most of the day at grandma's house, we headed to my parents house so Brogan could find his Easter basket. Brogan LOVES to help Gramma and Papa in the yard (or wherever he can) so my parents got him a toy shovel and rake. He decided it was a great idea to dump out the fake grass in his bucket and rake it up. Such a big helper! On our way home, we made a quick stop at Tommy's dad's house to see everyone and ended up staying for dinner and a makeshift Easter egg hunt. Brogan sure did make out good between money, candy, and toys.

I have a feeling we'll be eating hard boiled eggs and candy for WEEKS!

Here are some pictures from our Easter afternoon. I didn't take a whole lot of pictures AFTER we left Tommy's grandma's house...oops!

Hope you all had a great Easter!

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last single night

2011-04-19T08:46:00.007-05:00

This last Saturday was one of my best friends bachelorette party. Let me tell you a little about this lady. Danyelle is about the nicest person you'll ever meet. She's had her fair share of 'not good' relationships but we always knew that when she found the one, it was going to be someone outstanding. And she has definitely found that. Her fiance, Beau, is just as nice and caring as she is. They compliment each other so well. We were all so stinkin' excited when they got engaged! It's hard to believe that her bachelorette party is already over and the wedding is a week from this coming Saturday! Time flies when you're in love! I was honored when she asked me to be a bridesmaid and to sing at her wedding. I love that girl so so much!

I gotta say, Saturday night was the funnest night I've had in a loooonnggg time! We met at Danyelle's house for food, a couple games, and gifts. Then we had a kick ass party bus pick us up for our night on the town ;) Let me tell you, this bus was decked out! And it was clean! Haha! We hit up some bars around town and then ended up at Danyelle's favorite dance bar. This girl had the time of her life and I know the bride did as well.

Here are some pictures of our night out. I can't wait for the wedding! It'll be epic, I'm sure!

Danyelle and her momma

The bride and her 'maids

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i HAVE to be responsible!

2011-04-15T08:47:00.002-05:00

A while back I posted about wanting to get involved with the youth group at my church. The last couple months I haven't been able to due to our schedule but this last Monday I got to go hang out with the Monday night girls bible study (GOF = Girls of Faith). It wasn't their typical Monday night setting; this week they were helping out at the church making the meal for Wednesday's Lenten dinner. Not all the girls were there but I did get to meet a few of them and they were adorbs! They seemed to like me too, which is a good thing if I'm going to be around them more :)

Every summer, the youth group from Faith (as well as all the other YG's from the Lutheran churches in Topeka) takes a week long trip to Woodland Park, CO. The camp they go to is called LVR (Lutheran Valley Retreat). I LOVED going every year! It was the highlight of my summer. We stayed in cabins, did strength building activities, had amazing bible studies, and just had a freakin' blast! Well, Tuesday morning I got an email from Audrey, the youth pastor @ Faith, and she asked me if I'd like to go as a sponsor this year, FOR FREE! Um, excuse me??? A week long vacay in CO with amazing kids/adults for NOTHING OUTTA MY POCKET???? Like seriously, I pay for nothing! Except for snacks I may want during the week. I was beyond thrilled! I talked to Tommy and he was definitely ok with me going, as long as it was something I wanted to do. I was so excited to tell Audrey I would go!

Then last night I couldn't fall asleep 'cause I was thinking of all the stuff I'd need to take, outfits to wear, the responsibility I'll have. Then I panicked. I'm going to have to be RESPONSIBLE!!! Not just for myself, but for a cabin of girls. I have to lead a daily discussion in our cabin about stuff. I have to watch my mouth. I have to be....wait for it.....an ADULT. As freaked out as I am, this makes me oooooober excited! I want to be the sponsor that these girls look up to and admire. I want to be the girl they want to be like (not trying to be conceded). I want to be fun and silly but they know when I'm serious and mean business. I look up to Audrey so so so much and she's ALL of those things.

Another thing I'm looking forward to on this trip, is the fact that I'll get so much more out of it NOW then I did in high school. And that's such an awesome thing.

Now, as excited as I am....I'm totally not looking forward to a week without my boys. I think they'll be just fine and will have fun...but I'm secretly hoping that they'll miss me a whole bunch.

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{oh hey...}

2011-04-12T16:00:00.002-05:00

It's totally been about a minute since I've posted last. But here's the thing. I just don't have much motivation lately. So to fix that, I'm going to revamp my blog name! I love what I have but I feel it could be more "me". I'm not only a wife and a mom, but I'm ME. And I want to feel I have an outlet to discuss ALL things in my life. And to be honest and angry and happy and silly and stupid and crazy.

Hopefully I'll start posting more often. Now, the hard part will be to figure out what kind of "blog title" I want.

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{untitled}

2011-01-18T16:03:00.002-06:00

Brogan has been doing slightly better with the whole binkie situation. It still takes him a little bit to go down at nap time, but at least it's not a screaming match for 3 hours. (Ok maybe that's an exaggeration but you get it). I totally had a 'mommy moment' last night. Ok, wait. Back it up. Yesterdays nap time was NOT a success. My mom said he cried/talked in his bed until 3:45 (he goes down between 12:00-12:30) and only slept for an hour....AN HOUR! Anyway, back to my story. Last night on the way home I wanted to stop by Dollar Tree to get some crafting supplies. I told B he could have a balloon if he behaved and let mommy quickly shop. When I was trying to put him in the cart, he was refusing to sit in the designated seat. Ok, I chose my battle and moved on. I tried to get him to SIT in the big part of the cart like he wanted. He wanted no part in sitting. O.M.G. I told him that if he wasn't going to listen to mommy that we were just going to go home with no balloon. He still carried on. So, in front of a whole store of people, I said nope and walked out the door. I have NEVER had to do that before but I also didn't want to be "That Mom" who made everyone in the store suffer and listen to my screaming child because I wanted to shop. He threw a huge fit in the car and I kept telling myself to breathe so I wouldn't break down. We were fine when we got home and the rest of the night was alright.

My best gay, Ivory, is coming over tonight to hang out for a bit and I'm so excited! He came over last night to watch The Bach and drink wine. We are going to try to make it an every Monday occurrence. We need to see each other weekly. Speaking of Brad. Oh. My. Emily. If he doesn't marry that girl, he is one crazy S.O.B. She's a DOLL! And that Michelle b*$&%, holy CRAZY TOWN! I'm SO excited to see next weeks episode!

I hope to get better at my blogging. Obviously I've been sucking at it. Hardcore. I'm SO addicted to like a BILLION blogs and I check my Google Reader seriously like 10 times every hour. I just don't think to update mine very often. Oh well. Such is life!

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Binkie Dilema

2011-01-15T12:18:00.002-06:00

We are having WW3 here at the Guffey household. Slowly but surely we are trying to rid our boy of his beloved "D" aka his binkie. My sweet Brogan boy has been attached to his "D" from day one. It's never been an issue and I guess technically it still isn't. Our doctor did tell us that until he is 3, they see no problem with him having it. We've done pretty good in the past with getting him to just have it at nap and bedtime. Well, when your baby doesn't feel good or is just so distraught over not having his only vice, sometimes it's easier to give in. Enter: me. I think I'm mostly the problem, I don't always feel up to sticking to my guns and it's such an easy fix to just give him the bink. But something came over me on Thursday. I decided I'd had enough. I knew the way to ween him off the binkie was to do just that; ween. In the past with his bottle and sippy cup, it was a whole lot easier to ween him off little by little. I ended up cutting 2 of his binkies and he absolutely HATED it. And still does. Naptime on Thursday was a nightmare. He cried for an hour and a half and slept for a bout as long. This child normally takes a good 3 hour nap. I wasn't going to deal with that again at bedtime so we decided our best bet was to give him his 'normal' binkie that way we all get a good nights sleep. Yesterday, my MIL said he did just fine at naptime...figures. But today, we've been battling again. As I type this, he is crying in his bed, cut binkie tossed out on to the floor, and I'm trying to drown him out so I don't give in.

I was in tears before his nap because I don't know what to do. Am I doing this the right way? Should I give in to him since he is still little? I feel horrible because like I said before, it's his vice, his blankie, his stuff animal. I've thought about just throwing them away all together and just dealing with it. But that action would be out of anger and frustration and not logical thinking.

I knew parenting was tough. I know we haven't even hit the tip of the ice berg yet. But holy cow! We NEED to get this binkie sitch figured out before we start potty training and I'd LOVE to think it'll all be figured out before baby #2 comes along. That's sorta my 'goal'. But I also know not to put a timeline on this either.

If anyone has ANY advice whatsoever, please please please help me!

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A few of my faves...

2010-12-01T09:28:00.005-06:00

I am VERY in to a few things right now and I just felt like sharing!

China Glase has 2 colors that I've been obsessing over lately!
Ruby Pumps (my ALL TIME FAVE Christmas color)

And Lubu Heels:

I love my new holiday Scentsy burner! I have it on ALL THE TIME! I believe the scent I have in it is Snoberry. The scent I have in the kitchen is Christmas Cottage and together they smell SO GOOD!

I have also been mildly obsessed with Shutterfly! I ordered our Christmas cards from there, started a family website, ordered some pictures, and made some calenders! It's definitely a great website!

There are lots more things I've been enjoying lately but I thought I'd just share a few.

I can't believe it's already December! This year has flown by, that is for sure. I still have more Christmas decor to put up but for some reason, I just haven't had the motivation. Maybe I will finally get it all done tomorrow on my day off. But I won't hold my breath! Ha!

I did get most of our cards addressed last night and I'm hoping to get them done tonight so I can send them off by Friday! It's definitely one of my fave things to get done this time of year. There is something about sending them off and knowing I'm ahead of the game. Makes me happy!

I'm totally copying from one of my besties, Jenna, and making a CA-UTE card holder! Check out her blog to see what she did (she is ALWAYS making the cutest things and I am beyond envious! LOVE YOU GIRL!)! I cannot WAIT! We got our first card in the mail yesterday so I need to hurry and get our holder done before the card flood gates open!

OH! I totally just remembered! One of our friends got a group of us tickets to the NYE Laughing Matters again this year. I cannot wait! We had huge group go last year and had the best time! I know this year will be just as fun! We are beyond blessed to have such wonderful friends, who happen to also be our theatre family!

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Thanksgiving Festivities

2010-11-29T15:53:00.002-06:00

We enjoyed our 4 day break, that is for sure! I was not ready to head back to work today, especially since yesterday I started to feel yucky. This could be from the over eating and lack of sleep...oops!

Thursday we headed over to Tommy's mom's side for lunch and man oh man was everything delish! We ended up with 6 pies and like 3-4 other desserts. It was a dream come true! I actually made an apple pie this year. But not really. I used Pillsbury pie crust and my SIL's apple pie filling she had made a couple months ago and canned. Either way though, I put it all together, added a few of my own little touches, and baked it! It turned out delish! I was proud of myself. Brogan had so much fun playing with his cousins as well as anyone else who'd give him attention! The girls on Tommy's side (MIL, SIL, aunt, cousin, and myself) decided this year that we were going to head to Legend's Shopping Center in KC on Thursday night. We left at 9:00 pm and had an absolute blast! We stood on a few lines out in the cold but it wasn't too bad. We hit up Carter's (majority of my money was spent there), OshKosh, Rack Room Shoes, Old Navy, The Rocky Mountain chocolate place (DUH!), and a few other little places. OMG, was this a freakin' BLAST! We decided that this was the start of a tradition.
I failed at taking pictures on Thursday. I was so busy chasing Brogan and eating and just taking in the family time I didn't care much for taking pictures.

The last few years on Black Friday (minus last year and the year after B was born), my MIL, SIL, and myself venture to Lawrence to just have a fun day shopping. It's so nice downtown cause the stores are unique and normally aren't packed. When we first got down there, we stopped off at Michael's to waste time while my SIL got her car worked on. And that is where I scored my most favoritest Christmas (or birthday) gift! The Cricuit machine! Michael's had them on sale BF for $60 and they still had plenty left so I snagged one up! I've been secretly, but not so quietly, wanting one of these! I kept hinting to Tommy about it and was SO excited to get it at such a great deal. I also got a few other things but they don't amount up to my Cricuit. I can't wait to take it out of the box, but I'm being a good girl and waiting till Tommy wants to give it to me.

Friday night after Brogan went to bed and Tommy went out for a bit, I got down all our Christmas decorations and went to town, sorta. I was so tired from the last couple days that I mostly focused on the tree. I purchased shatter proof ornaments this year since SOMEONE (a cute little 2 year old who lives in our spare bedroom) broke most of our ornaments last year. It looks so good and I love dimming all the lights in the house and just having the Christmas tree lit. I have, since Friday, gotten most everything out and placed, except our stockings cause I ordered a cute new stocking holder that is BACK ORDERED!!!! Soooo frustrating!

Saturday we had Thanksgiving with my side of the family. We had a great time. Brogan took a wonderfully long nap that allowed this momma and daddy to have a couple glasses of wine, eat a delish lunch, and visit with family! After little man woke up, we played at my parents neighborhood playground. He had SO much fun! We all slept great that night! Sunday morning, my sweet hubbs let me sleep in and I stayed in that bed as long as I could before feeling guilty! Although, I did wake up with a headache and that's when the yucky feeling started. I really hope I don't get sick and that plenty of rest, water, and vitamins will help! FINGERS CROSSED!

Last night, we had dinner at Tommy's dad's house for my SIL's birthday. I ate SO much pizza and tapioca pudding! SO yummy!! We were able to get a game in, which is always fun with this group of people. Tommy's brothers GF played with Brogan so that we could play the game. Soooo sweet of her!

Tonight, I'm helping my sweet momma decorate their house for Christmas! I love doing stuff like that, especially with my bestest friend!

Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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Craft Morning with the girls

2010-11-23T08:35:00.003-06:00

This last Saturday, some of my best girlfriends got together for coffee and crafts. Chelsey came up with a great idea to make our GF Melisa cute onsies for her baby girl Delaney, who is set to make her appearance in just a couple weeks! They turned out so cute! We had such a nice time catching up over coffee and then continuing the fun over at Chelsey's house. Some of us (mostly me) got frustrated with the freezer paper project and went straight for the iron ons. BUT they all turned out SO CUTE! Here is a picture of all the finished projects (Chels, I stole this picture from you!! It was much better than mine!).

I'm not exactly sure where Chelsey found the freezer paper tutorial, but I know I've seen it around on some other blogs. And it's such a cute, cheap, and fun way (as long as you don't have an very detailed stencil) to make shirts. I'm totally trying this again, maybe with less espresso in my system (right Jenna!?!?).

We all decided that as each of us have more babies, we'll do this again and again. It was a blast girls! Now, LET'S GET PREGGERS! ;)

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Youth Group Bound!

2010-11-19T17:37:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, I had a meeting with my church's youth pastor, Audrey (or DCE is her official title). It went WONDERFUL! And it got me SO EXCITED! Audrey walked me through all the activities the youth do and holy smokes does it make me want to be in the youth group again! And they still do things that we did way back when! That made my heart happy. There are so many places and ways to get involved but I think my heart is leading me to get involved with the girls bible study. They meet every Monday night and Audrey told me that would be a great way to get to know the girls. I'm going to pray about it and see if this is where God wants me. There are plenty of other ways they could use me also, when I'm ready. I can't wait to really get in the mix of all this stuff! On a side note, Audrey said I'd really be great with this youth group especially with all my sass! And if you know me, you know I can have some sass (and can get a little ghetto too, but that's for another post).

I'm not sure when I'll start helping but I would love it to be soon! But I also don't want to jump in and get overwhelmed. I also think that helping with a bible study of some kind will be good for my own heart as well. I've been wanting to be a part of a bible study or group and even though these girls are SEVERAL years younger, I know that I will get something out of this one way or another.

Anywho...this makes me excited and I just ask that maybe you all (whoever still reads this since I'm so MIA all the time!) say a little prayer for me that I'm making a good decision! I'd totes appreciate it, for real. :)

Happy Weekend!

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Winter is coming!

2010-11-17T14:34:00.003-06:00

It's officially snowing in Topeka, KS today. Actually, it's more like rainy, slushy, snowy mix...but still there is snow in the mix. Which means one thing for this gal!!!!

WINTER DECOR IS COMING OUT! I wonder if my husband knows exactly how much 'winter decor' his wife has. He might be completely shocked when he gets home!

I'm so excited for tomorrow! I have a meeting with my churchs DCE (Director of Christian Education) to discuss how I can get more involved with the youth. I really think this is something that God is calling me to do and seriously, I'm so excited to get involved in this way. Now, I might just help out every once in a while but I could also be taking on more than I think. Either way, I trust that God will lead me to do what's best for me and Him.

And tomorrow is also Tommy and I's kidless night! I love Brogan more than words can say, but Tommy and I need some one on one time. Like I said in yesterdays post, we could very well just sit and vedge on the couch but whatever we do, we'll be together with no distractions.

Give someone a hug or big smile today...they might need it more than you think!

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Christmas Cards!

2010-11-16T09:31:00.005-06:00

Every year, I like to get our Christmas cards out at least the week after Thanksgiving! And this year, I decided to use Shutterfly for our Christmas cards! This will be the first time getting cards from them but it won't be the first time I've used their website! I absolutely LOVE Shutterfly and all the stuff they offer.

All of their designs are SO cute (go here to see for yourself: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-cards) and I love how many choices they have. They have folded greeting cards, flat stationary cards, or flat photo cards. I most likely will go with the Flat Photo Cards this year. Here are some that I'm thinking about:

Our color scheme for our pictures were black, gray, and blue. I wanted something less traditional but I still love the reds and greens, with a little blue mixed in!

I also love Shutterfly for their other products!

Their calenders are SO CUTE!

Go here to take a look for yourself: http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars/wall-calendars

They also have canvas art (http://www.shutterfly.com/home-decor/canvas-wall-art) which I could DIE over! I'm going to take a couple of our family pictures and get some made. What a great way to show off your pictures! Plus, saves you the hassle of a frame!

On top of ALL these great things, Shutterfly has so many other amazing gift ideas! It's almost hard to choose! They have different holiday cards, baby invitations, photo books, etc.

What's so great,is bloggers get 50 free holiday cards from Shutterfly… sign up here: http://bit.ly/sfly2010 That's definitely something you shouldn't turn down!

Happy shopping!

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As of late...

2010-11-16T09:19:00.002-06:00

I have fallen, yet again, off the blogging band wagon. Life has been busy and I've been lazy. I also have been using Google Reader to read all my blogs and I since I don't have to sign in to Blooger anymore, I just don't feel as obligated to blog. Hopefully that'll change (but that's not the first time I've said that!).

Here's what's been happening in a nut shell:

*Tommy has been SO busy with the play he is in. It's called 'Rumors' and OMG. HILARIOUS! I saw it this last Friday and am also going again on Sunday afternoon. We're so very happy he'll be home more often. Brogan and I have really missed our time with him. This Thursday night, my MIL is keeping Brogan over night so us lovebirds can have some alone time. I'd love to say we're going on a romantic date but I have a feeling that we'll either stay home and lounge on the couch, or go do some crazy Christmas shopping (which I'm almost done with, thankyouverymuch!).

*Tommy and I have had some ups and downs lately, if I'm being honest, and we really have figured some things out. Our relationship is so much stronger than it was even 3 weeks ago. I love him more than words can say and I'm so thankful for my husband!

*Brogan is sill on. the. go. CONSTANTLY! But I love every second! There are evenings when all I wanna do is not play the mom and just go to bed right when I get home. But then I think that he isn't as tired as me and totally deserves 100%! We have so much fun together and he truly is a gift from God.

*Saturday, we had our Christmas card pictures taken by our sweet friend Sara. She took them last year too and they turned out great! I'm so excited to get them edited and get our cards ordered!

*This last Sunday was my niece Sloan's baptism. My sister and BIL asked if I'd be her Godmother and I was so honored! Hopefully I can get pictures uploaded this week. She wore the baptismal gown that all 4 of us kids wore (even my brothers). She looked darling!

*I'm SO excited for Thanksgiving and Christmas! I want to decorate for Christmas RIGHT NOW but Tommy put his foot down and said that it's not appropriate till after Thanksgiving. I had my pout session, but I'll deal. He did say, however, that if it happens to snow before next Thursday, that I could at least get out my stuff that's more 'wintery', like my snowmen and such. I did get some new decor for our tree and I'm so excited to get it all put together!

*This coming Saturday, us Diva's are meeting at a local coffee shop for breakfast before we go to Chelsey's house to craft! We're making onsies for our girlfriend Melisa's bundle of joy, Delaney! She's due in December and will no doubt be an absolute doll baby!

I can't think of much more to gab about! I'm sure as the holidays get closer, I'll have much more to blog about!

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Pumpkin Patch!

2010-10-14T14:55:00.003-05:00

We woke up to a beautiful, chilly Fall morning this morning and I decided to take Brogan to the pumpkin patch! We met our friends, Nib and her daughter Kenadie, there and they kids had SO much fun! We got pumpkins, apple cider slushes, rode the little train (mom's included), and jumped and jumped in hay! Brogan couldn't get enough of the hay bales! But he kept insisting on riding the train. So...we did. WE did. He wanted no part in riding alone so being the nice momma I am, I hopped in! The thing kept making squeaking sounds but the 'conductor' told me it was normal. Thank the Lord cause it almost gave me a complex!

Here are a few pictures from our morning! We hope to go back this weekend or even try our a bigger patch close to here!

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Our Night With Baby Sloan!

2010-10-08T10:25:00.004-05:00

Last night I got to babysit my niece, Sloan, for the first time! I was slightly nervous because Tommy wasn't going to be home so it was just me, Brogan, and baby Sloan. We did GREAT! I only mildly panicked for a second when trying to figure out how to entertain a 2 month old who doesn't like to be put down for long AND how to do our normal bedtime routine. I had a genius idea and it worked! I quickly downloaded a noise machine app on to my phone (have I mentioned how much I'm in LOVE with my iPhone! It's a must have!) and set it on the oscillating fan noise. I put the phone in the pack-n-play with Sloan and got Brogan to sleep no problem! She just layed there quiet as can be, just listening. Thank. The. Good. Lord.

She was a doll baby and my son was so gentle and loving with her! I was so relieved! Brogan LOVES to love on and give hugs, but he doesn't know his own strength most times and loves a little to hard. But like I said, he was gentle and very helpful. I'm hoping this is a sign that he'll be an amazing big brother when the time comes!

Here are a few pictures I snapped with my phone last night.

Sloan smiling at whatever Brogan was doing

Brogan LOVED turning the vibrate on and off...over and over and over....

Such a sweet baby!

Brogan helping again!

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Lately...

2010-10-07T12:38:00.003-05:00

There have been a lot of "life discussions" going on in the Guffey household lately and it's starting to stress me out. But I know God has a plan for us as a family, and individually, so I have to trust He'll take care of us! These are all good things we've been talking about but I tend to be antsy and want things to happen NOW. I've been praying for patience. Alot of our changes have to do with my hubbie and I know how stressed and worried he can get. He's an amazing man and I know he only wants what's best for us and our family.

Brogan has been talking up a storm in the past couple weeks! He says something new each day and most of the time we have no idea what he's talking about! I just love how independent (sometimes...haha!) he's getting! It's amazing how their little brains work, isn't it? We've been trying to decide what he should be for Halloween...we have some options (thanks to our amazing and generous friends!) and I'm hoping we can narrow it down this weekend! I'm normally very on top of decisions like this but not this time I guess.

I've been taking pictures left and right lately with the new lens Tommy got me for our anniversary! It's AMAZING! The zoom on it is ridiculous I totally feel like paparazzi when I use it! Ha!

I've had our house decorated for Fall since September and as much as I LOVE my decorations, I'm ready to take them down and get started on Christmas! I know, it's only October but I LOVE Christmas time in our house! They aren't over the top but I do tend to buy new things every year, whether we need them or not, so the house tends to fill up quick! One thing I have been thinking about is our tree. We got a new tree last year and it's a lot bigger than our previous tree. I do not have enough matching ornaments to fill the whole tree, especially after last year. A little boy who will remain nameless broke most of our 'nice' ones. CRAP. So, I'm trying to think of a color combo. I would kill to do something oober chic and girly, but I think my husband would nix that completely. We'll see what comes about....

Today is my second day off this week and I've been so grateful to spend them with Brogan! I've wanted to be a SAHM for a while now so it was nice to sorta experience that. Tonight, I also get to experience what it would be like if we had an infant and a toddler. My sister is dropping off my niece, Sloan, so she can go to the KSU football game with my dad. I'll only have her for about 4 hours but I will be all by myself so this could get interesting! Brogan LOVES baby Sloan so I know he'll be more than excited; I just hope he's gentle! Hahaha!

Today is also one of my very best friends birthday! We're celebrating Saturday by having a girls lunch at a local Italian restaurant! I'm super excited! Saturday night, we're going to celebrate some more with all our friends at Laughing Matters. It worked out that most everyone will be there either working, seeing the show, or in the show. Tommy and I always have the best time when we're there. We were lucky enough to get an overnight sitter for B so we can stay at the theatre and hang out after the show.

Now that B is down for his nap, I'm going to finish watching my shows from last night and do some crafting! I've really gotten in to doing little things here and there! It's quite the stress reliever!

Happy Thursday!

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4 Years

2010-10-01T11:22:00.004-05:00

The last 4 years have been the best (and sometimes worst, if I'm being honest) of my life! I've spent them as a Guffey. Yesterday, Tommy and I celebrated (but not really 'celebrated' cause he was gone all day/night) our 4 year wedding anniversary. I've been with Tommy for over 10 years but September 30, 2006 we officially became ONE. I love him more today than I ever have! He's given me so much from a beautiful, unique house to a sweet little boy who loves us more than he even knows! Every day is different, harder, more fun, amazing, stressful, full of love, and the list goes on. We don't have a perfect marriage by any means, but it's perfect to US. Tommy has a way of getting to me even after the biggest argument or annoyance. I still think he's the most handsome man on the face of this Earth and I thank God for giving him to me. Sometimes I even wonder why someone like him is with someone like me. How did I get so lucky???

I'm excited to see what our future holds. I know some things are probably going to be hard and stressful over the next few years with Tommy finishing school, new house (eventually), another baby (sooner than later, in my mind anyway...hehe), but as long as I have my wonderful husband and our Bean, I'm golden!

I'm also excited to officially celebrate tomorrow evening...haha! I think we're just going to do dinner and a possible movie....either in or out. Depends on our 'babysitter' sitch :) And that is just fine with me! Cute or comfy, as long as I'm with my love I'll be just fine!

Our wedding day: September 30, 2006

Our most recent picture together: August 26, 2010

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Brogan's Birthday Party (FINALLY!)

2010-09-24T17:40:00.010-05:00

This might be more of a picture post since I have so many!

We decided to do a Dr. Seuss theme this year and I had so much fun decorating! Everything went over splendidly and Brogan had a great time...and he got spoiled like CRAZY! This kid is set with Fall/Winter clothes for sure, and for that we're so thankful!

The only 'issue' we had was when it came time for cake. We had been singing and singing 'Happy Birthday' to Brogan for a couple weeks just for fun and he loved it every time. We thought for sure he'd love everyone singing to him and making a big deal of him. Well...we thought wrong. Apparently he doesn't like when more than 2 people sing to him. He was scared and cried the whole time we sang to him! I hated to laugh but it was so cute. After it was over and he blew out his candle, he was just fine. He dug right in to that cake...mouth first! That's my kind of cake eating!

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!

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Weekend Recap

2010-09-20T12:55:00.003-05:00

Wow, what a productive, yet relaxing weekend! Friday night, the hubs and I decided just to stay in, spend time with our boy, and watch our Netflix movie that we've had for a LONG. TIME. It was so nice! We haven't taken time to watch a movie for a while and it was much needed! We watched 'Brothers' and it was very good. I'd definitely recommend it!

Saturday was Brogan's birthday party (a post and LOTS of pictures to come!) and it went great! He had so much fun and got lots and lots of goodies. We won't have to worry about a Fall/Winter wardrobe that's for sure! We're very blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives that love and adore our son as much as we do!

Saturday evening, two of my best friends came over to see Brogan and have left over cake! They love him so much and it just warms my heart to know that! After Brogan FINALLY went to sleep (it took him a while...probably due to a LARGE amount of sugar he had!) we poured some wine and watched 'Julie and Julia'. I'd never seen it before and I really did enjoy it! It was such a cute, girly movie :) I will admit I fell asleep before it was over but what I did see was really good!

Sunday, Brogan and I went to church or rather, his Sunday School class. He started Sunday School last Sunday (technically he should still be in the nursery since he wasn't 2 until AFTER September 1st but they let him stay in the class as long as I/he was ok with it and so far so good!) and I'm still sitting with him in his class, just until he gets used to it. Brogan wasn't so sure about the music portion of the class, which is totally bizarre giving who his parents are. He loves music and dancing but I don't think he likes LOTS of people singing around him. So...instead of forcing him to join in and having to hear him cry, we walked up and down the hallways and ended up back in his classroom to play with the toys until the other kids came back. They got to play with playdough and eat snacks! He loved it and I'm hoping within the next couple weeks, I'll be able to leave him there so I can enjoy some adult church :)

Sunday afternoon was GREAT! Brogan took an excellent nap which could've allowed me to take a nap as well but every time I lay down, I think of a thousand other things I could be doing and get up to do them. I painted some letters for a Halloween craft I'm working on, I did the dishes, cleaned the floors, and started going through Brogan's toys in the living room and packing up all his baby toys. I swear, it looked like he had NOTHING left! But he did just get some cool new toys for his birthday, so he'll be just fine! After B woke up, I sorted toys and books in his bedroom as well. It felt good to get some stuff cleared out and make room for new stuff! The weekend always seems complete when by Sunday evening, the house is clean and picked up! Makes me sleep easy...haha!

I'm ready for this week of TV! All the new shows and seasons are starting and I can't wait!

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The last few (or so) days...

2010-09-16T13:38:00.005-05:00

Last Saturday morning, I joined one of my best friends in the Breast Cancer walk. Both of my grandma's were diagnosed and fought very hard against breast cancer and it was great to walk in their honor/memory. We walked the 3.4 miles in 1 hour and 3 minutes and felt amazing afterward! We're also going to walk in a BC walk in October also! I love doing something fun for a great cause :)

Here was us after we got finished:

Sunday, we took Brogan to Sesame Street Live for the very first time! Our seats were amazing! Both Tommy and I confessed to each other that we were fighting off tears when we saw how extremely excited Brogan was when all the characters first came out. That was definitely a mommy moment I'll never forget! Brogan only got fussy a few times when he wanted to get down and run up on stage but we obviously wouldn't let him! He would've given anything to give Elmo a HUGE hug!

Brogan's 2nd birthday was Monday and we decided to spend the morning as a family! Tommy doesn't work on Mondays and only has class from 1-4, which worked out great since that's normally when Brogan is napping anyway. We woke up and got ready for our family morning. We took Brogan to our local zoo and he had a great time! He loves animals and being outside! There were hardly any people at the zoo so it was nice having the place (almost) all to ourselves. After we left the zoo, we headed to a new little diner close to our house for lunch. It was so good!

Brogan took a great nap and allowed this momma to get some rest and housework done! Later in the evening, Tommy had to get some homework done so I took Mr. B to a school playground close to our house that we'd never been to before. He had a freaking BLAST!!!! Oh my goodness! He would've stayed there all night if I'd let him. We even went back on Tuesday night (with daddy!) to try it all out again.

I can't believe we have a 2 year old....I have cried several times in the last couple weeks. I love him so much and have enjoyed the last 2 years (plus my pregnancy!) more than I ever thought I could. He brings more joy to my life than anything else(besides the hubbs). I absolutely love being a mommy, especially since it's to a perfect little boy.

Today Brogan had his 2 year checkup and it was a little traumatic. He freaked out the second Nurse Ellie tried to lay him down to see how tall he was. It was downhill from there! It was about time for him to get his Hepatitis A shot and we figured if he was already in a grumpy mood, we might as well go for it. Before the shot, the doctor checked everything over and said he looked perfect! He weighs 28 pounds and is 35 inches tall. Tall and skinny, like his daddy! Of course, the shot time was horrible but he calmed down pretty quick and was fine after that. I was even able to run some quick errands afterward.

Saturday is his Dr Seuss themed birthday party! I'm so excited for him! I can't wait to post pictures!

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So Many Topics!

2010-09-15T08:12:00.002-05:00

I have a list, seriously, of posts I need to do. Hopefully I can find time tonight or tomorrow during nap time to post them! There are TONS of pictures included!

Here is my list, just in case you were curious :)

Breast Cancer Walk
Sesame Street Live
Brogan's Birthday
Trip to the Zoo
Brogan's Birthday Party (happening Saturday but still on the list!)

On a side note, I'm SO excited for my Fall TV schedule! After Brogan goes to bed, the hubbs and I snuggle up (sometimes) on the couch and start the DVR! We love so many of the same shows but I've found a good one who will watch my sappy girly shows with me. He tends to open his mouth a bit much and make fun of the sappy, sometimes horribly written shows, but I can live with that as long as we're in the same room together!

Today it's so rainy and yucky here...I LOVE IT! I wish I could be home in my jammies, with the windows open and just enjoy the morning!

Alright, I'm off to do some actual work! Cross those fingers I get my blog list done!!

Happy (rainy) Wednesday!

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Terrific Thursday, Elmo, and MOPS

2010-09-09T13:03:00.005-05:00

Even though here in Topeka, KS it's cloudy and drizzling, I've had a terrific Thursday so far! I started early on my 'chores', got to sit down and enjoy 2 cups of coffee (oops!), put more Fall decorations out, and lots of play time and Elmo! Speaking of Elmo, my son has become a HUGE fan of Elmo, Dorothy, and Abby Cadabby (Abby Dabby in Brogan's words). This coming weekend, Sesame Street Live is coming to our city. We've always talked about taking Brogan to something like this eventually but we didn't think it'd be now. But as much as he talks about Elmo and wants to watch his movies 24-7, we figured now would be a perfect time! Plus, his 2nd birthday is Monday so this will be part of his birthday present! I could not be more excited!!! I never got to do these things when I was little so I'm more than thrilled to experience this with our son. AND we got REALLLLLY close seats! He is going to flip! I can't wait!

Also, I just got an invite on Facebook to possibly be a part of a MOPS group! I am MORE THAN THRILLED about this! I've always wanted to get involved in something like this but being a full time working mom, that wasn't an option. However, this group meets every other Thursday morning; my day OFF! This is definitely something I'm going to pray hard about! I think it'd be a great way for me to meet new mom's and for Brogan to meet new little friends!

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2010-09-08T09:40:00.005-05:00

Oh my peas has it been a long time since I've posted! Excuse my Super Why! reference...my son may have a slight obsession with that show!

We've been super busy the last couple months! My niece was born (Sloan Elizabeth), Tommy jumped out of a plane, the school year started, Brogan's first haircut, family gatherings, an awards ceremony, planning a certain little boys 2nd birthday, the start of college football and tailgating(Go State!), etc.

I also am having my friend Kim (Surprise!) hold me accountable for blogging more. I LOVE blogging and it has been an outlet for me in the past. We've had some ups and downs lately and I know had I blogged about it, I would've felt better. So...Kimmi? HELP ME BLOG MORE!

So, to make sure this isn't a long winded post, here are some pictures from the last couple months to just 'update' you.

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Brogan's 1st Haircut

2010-08-20T09:52:00.005-05:00

My sweet boy had his first hair cut yesterday! I didn't think a few weeks ago that I'd be as emotional as I was. It was definitely sad seeing those sweet baby curls hit the floor but it was very much needed! Brogan did GREAT! He sat so still, it was unbelievable. I thought for sure that my little wiggle worm would try his hardest to get down from the chair. We made sure to bring a long some suckers to help keep him occupied, just in case!

Afterwards, I decided to treat him to a cupcake from a local cupcake shop, Daddycakes (even though he had already had 2 suckers and NO lunch...oops!).
We had so much fun! I'm so proud of our little man! When we got home, he was SO sleepy that he hardly ate lunch. I put him down for his nap and he slept 3 hours and 45 minutes! THANK THE LORD! This mama was able to craft, clean, and do laundry! I was tempted to lay down for a bit but I felt guilty...hehe!

The rest of the day/evening, we both kept saying how Brogan looked so different and so grown up! I can't believe in less than a month he'll be turning 2 years old. I'm not ready.

And because my son is comletely obsessed with blowing bubbles, before dinner we enjoyed some time outside doing just that! I love how close he needs to put the bubble wand to his mouth! I kept wiping bubble residue off his lips! Sweet boy...

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Weekend Recap

2010-07-26T13:13:00.002-05:00

We had a great weekend! Or I least I did :)

Saturday morning started off with an hour massage and a pedi for this momma! My dear husband got me a gift certificate to a local spa for Christmas and I just never found the 'time' to use it. But last week I decided that I wanted a little pampering that I didn't actually have to pay for :) It was fantastic!! I would've spent all day there just talking to the girls who work there and getting pampered. Maybe next time...hehe!

Saturday evening we had dinner and Tommy's dad and stepmom's house for his dad's birthday. My time was spent chasing my very curious and speedy 22 month old ALL OVER THE PLACE! Needless to say, my hair was frizzing and I was dripping with sweat...ok, not literally but it sure felt like it. The food was delish, as always, and I actually got to sit and enjoy adult conversation this time. Normally after dinner, I'm still chasing that little monkey around but my 2 sister in laws and my brother in law said they'd gladly chase him! They don't see him to often so any extra time with him is welcomed! After dinner, we went home and ran next door to our neighbors 30th birthday party. By this time it was WAY past someones bedtime so we didn't stay for long. Brogan didn't get to bed till after 9 which is very rare for that little boy. We lounged on the couch after he went down and watched some DIY Network and also some funny animal videos on YouTube! As silly as that sounds, it was fun!

Sunday I took Brogan to my mom's church, the church I grew up in. That's also the church that Tommy and I got married in and the church Brogan was baptized in. It's my 'home' even though I haven't been going there for long time. I met one of my best friends and her daughter there. It was nice to not have to go alone (that's a WHOLE blog post on it's own. Don't' know if I'll ever talk about it but we'll see...) and I know Nib (my friend, otherwise known as Nicole) feels the same way. We took the kids to the nursery and went in to the service. Kenadie, Nib's daughter, has serious separation anxiety when Nib leaves but we figured she'd cry it out and get distracted by some toys. Wrong. Not even 5 minutes had we been sitting down and they came to get Nib. She brought Miss K back in to the service and she lasted about 10 minutes before Nib took her back to play. I figured I'd be sitting thru the service a lone, which was fine, but then MY pager went off. I went to the nursery to find Brogan crying!! So, this weeks church service was spent playing in the nursery with our kiddos...we're hoping next week (and the following weeks) gets better!

After church, we had lunch and took naps! We played outside a bit but once that sun came out it was so hot! So we finished the day inside playing with toys and watching 'Super Why'. It's Brogan's latest obsession! It's all he EVER wants to watch! At least it's a learning show, right?

Happy Monday! Hopefully it won't be so long before my next post!

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Wordless Wednesday

2010-07-14T09:50:00.005-05:00

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Playground Fun

2010-06-30T09:25:00.003-05:00

Last night, Brogan and I met up with my good friend Kela and her son Keaven at a nearby playground. It's just down the street from my house at an elementary school and I had never been there before. We had a blast! This was the first time for Brogan and Keaven to meet and they got a long fabulously. Keaven is 1 year and 4 months older than Brogan and is a big kid....and by big, I just mean tall and stout! He looks quite a bit older than he actually is! He's such a sweet heart and kept calling Brogan a 'baby'. Sooooo funny! The boys loved going down the slides and swinging but I think by far, their favorite toy was a little digger thing. They shared it and helped each other fill up the bucket! It was adorable :) Thanks again Kela for meeting up with us! This will definitely be happening more often! And of course, I was busy gabbing and going down slides myself (I have a nice slide burn on my elbow to prove it!) that I didn't take a single picture. Horrible, I know.

After we played to our hearts content, Brogan and I made the trip out to our mall to get him a cute 4th outfit!

The best part was that both items were CRAZY on sale! I need to go back and get him some other things. I got these at The Children's Place! I absolutely love that store, especially since they have amazing sales!

After we got home, I gave B a bath and put him in bed. He didn't make a peep after I shut the door and he slept until after 7 this morning! He was tuckered out! Bless his heart!

Tonight is dinner with our friends, Kellie and Jason, and I'm sooo looking forward to it! We have so much fun when we're with them and I'm looking forward to spending lots of time with them this weekend!

Happy Wednesday :)

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Lots of Happenings

2010-06-29T09:48:00.002-05:00

I'm really looking forward to the next few (or more) days! Tonight I'm meeting up with a good girlfriend and her son for a play date! We're going to a nearby school playground (it's brand new and so nice) and we're super pumped about it! Kela's son, Keavan, isn't much older than Brogan and this will be their first time meeting each other. Hopefully it turns in to a great friendship! I just adore Kela and have gotten super close with her in the last 6 months. We've vowed to have a play date with the boys no less than once a month....and hopefully we can make it more than once a month!

Tomorrow night we're having dinner with a couple who we'll be spending lots of time with this weekend! Kelly and Jason are great friends of ours who invited us to Omaha (Nebraska) on Friday night to see Styx, Foreigner, and Kansas FOR FREE! I've never seen them in concert nor have I ever been to Omaha so I'm pretty excited! Tommy and I had already asked them to go to another concert Saturday night in Kansas City and Tommy had been wanting us to have a little getaway without Brogan....so, this weekend is just that! Most likely we'll be staying in Omaha Friday night and possibly staying Saturday during the day before making our way to KC for the concert. I feel bad about not being with Brogan until Sunday (and I took Monday off of work) but I know that this will be good for Tommy and I. We haven't taken a trip together since before Brogan and it's something that we need. I will say that we are planning a little family trip to Omaha for Brogan's birthday weekend though and I'm so excited for that! They have an amazing zoo (apparently!) and lots of fun, kid friendly things to do.

Sunday is the 4th and is one of my favorite holidays! We normally go to Tommy's dad's for a bit to celebrate some July birthdays and then we head up to his mom's for fireworks and a cookout! They have a pool now so I'm sure we'll be splashing around a bit too! And I'll be loving on that little boy of ours since I'll have missed him :) Monday I took off work so I'll definitely be recooping from the weekend, cleaning house, doing laundry, and loving on my boys!

I definitely can't wait!

Oh! I almost forgot! I got a fantastic surprise last night! My hubbs came home with a new vacuum! I was PUMPED! It's the little things that make me happy. I vacuumed my little heart out last night! And probably will some more tonight...and we hardly have carpet in our house! That's how excited I am about this new toy!

I vow to be better at posting...*fingers crossed*

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Lazy Morning

2010-06-17T08:14:00.002-05:00

I gotta say, I just love lazy mornings with my cutie patootie! Coffee and pj's are a great combo!

Our evening will get busy but this morning I'm taking advantage of not having anything to do! Now, during naptime it's a whole different song and dance. I will need to fold/put away laundry and take a shower and get ready for tonight. Then we'll have swim lessons and then right after we'll have to head to the Cabaret!

Ok, I just started to stress about this evening so I'm going to go enjoy my coffee and couch before it's to late!

Happy Thursday!

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The Last Few Days...

2010-06-15T09:03:00.002-05:00

So I was going to try to post a 'What I've Been Up To For The Last 9 Years I Haven't Been Blogging' but decided to scratch that idea. I'll just fill you in on the last few days, how's that?

This weekend was FULL of stuff! Friday afternoon my sweet hubbs called and told me to see if our sitter could come over for a couple hours so we could have a much needed date night. We go out often with friends but it's been a long time since it's just been us two...and we had a great time! Nothing fancy at all. We went to a new (sorta...new to us at least) restaurant called Cheeburger Cheeburger. We'd been hearing great things about this place for the last year but never got a chance to try it. We definitely picked the right time to go because it was their 1 year anniversary as well as the 23rd anniversary of the franchise so they were having amazing 'meal deals'! We walked away from there stuffed to the max on cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and shakes...and all for under $20! After dinner, we did the most romantic thing ever! You ready to hear about it....?

We went to Home Depot! Stop the jealousy! Hehe! It was fun though...we looked at plants and flowers and imagined what it'd be like to have a beautiful landscape/backyard. And we also got some paint samples to FINALLY start working on our master bedroom/bathroom redo! Let's just hope it actually happens!

Saturday was a busy day!! First we had our dear friends wedding at 1 pm. It was beautiful and hilarious and sooo them! I'm so happy for Melissa and Les...they are absolutely perfect for each other. Then at 3 pm, we went to our cousins little boy's 1st birthday party. We spent majority of it outside chasing the little ones but they were having a blast! We left the birthday party around 6:15 to go home and try to fix ourselves before we headed to the newlyweds reception! Brogan stayed up at the party and spent the night with my in laws. The reception was a BLAST! I haven't had that much fun in a long time! We danced, had free beer/wine, took pictures in a photo booth, ate good food/cake, and enjoyed the night! I have tons of pictures from the reception that I need to post...maybe later this week. I'm not going to lie...I got a little tipsy. I haven't had a chance to really let loose and be my old self again for a long time and it was so great! And the best part, I felt fine on Sunday! Whoo!

Sunday was a laid back day with my sweet boy! Tommy had to work till 2 and after he got home we headed to his dad's house to celebrate Tommy's birthday (which was back in March...) and his brother's birthday (which was last week). I didn't get to stay long over there because I got asked to sing on a jingle! How freaking cool is that?!?! My friend Nora and I sang backup to another friend of ours and the jingle was for a veterinarian office's website. And the best part? I got PAID! I hope to be able to sing more jingles in the future.

We started our second week of swimming lessons last night. Brogan has been doing so good! He LOVES being in the water...but the only downfall is that he just wants to go go go and do his own thing! He doesn't always want the structure of the lesson. Thank goodness the lessons are only 30 minutes long!

For those of you who care, my sister is doing better. She's out of the hospital but on bed rest. The doctors are really hoping to keep Sloan cooking for another 6-7 weeks but did give Shannon a couple steroid shots to help move along Sloan's lung/brain development just in case. I think I've talked to her almost everyday since...she gets really bored. Yesterday she told me she organized all of their movies (seriously, they are like a Blockbuster!) and even did one section alphabetically. This girl is B.O.R.E.D! Brogan, my mom, and I are going to spend next weekend with her though so hopefully that'll cheer her up! I think we're going to try to get her nursery painted.

This Thursday, Tommy and I are singing in another Ad Astra Cabaret! I'm so excited! Hopefully we'll get some video and I can post it!

Again, I'm hoping to get some pictures posted this week. I have TONS!

Happy Tuesday!

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8 Months Old

2010-06-10T13:50:00.000-05:00

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Prayer Request PLEASE!

2010-06-08T13:42:00.002-05:00

I was in the middle of a long over due post this morning when my mom called me with some tummy turning news. My sister who is pregnant is in the hospital because she started bleeding. She was diagnosed early on with a low lying placenta and was told to watch carefully for bleeding. Now, I don't know if she was spotting or full on bleeding but either way, she was bleeding and is now in the hospital. The last I heard was that she seemed in good spirits and they were giving her steroid shots to try to move along Sloan's (the baby) lung process, just in case she was to be delivered early. I'm praying so so so hard today that God keeps that baby cookin' for 2 more months. I just can't imagine what my sister is feeling right now. I'm sure she is scared out of her mind! I hate that I can't be there with her but I know the doctors/nurses are keeping a very close eye on both girls and giving them the utmost attention. Please keep my sister, BIL, and baby Sloan in your prayers! They need them so much right now.

I'll try to post when I hear some more news...

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Water & Smarts

2010-05-26T15:16:00.002-05:00

I've been looking for some outdoor toys for Brogan for a while now. I really want to get him some sort of playhouse/jungle-gym/slide type thingy but I've also wanted to get him a sandbox/water table. I found a water table on Toys R Us' website that was on sale so today over lunch, I headed out there to get one! I cannot wait for him to see it!

I also got a $10 plastic pool for our big dog, Bella. She's outside all the time now and since she's so dark in color, she gets hot very quickly. I think she's just going to love it!

I'm also considering signing B up for swim lessons! Our community center pool offers a Parent/Tot class and I think this would be perfect for us! Hopefully I can get him signed up for 1, or maybe 2, sessions this summer. He's just love it!

We had our 2nd PAT meeting last night and it went great! Our teacher, Cheri, is so impressed with Brogan and it just warms this mama's heart. She gave us some activities to try to expand his vocabulary and I just bet by our next appointment, he'll just blow her out of the water! This program is amazing and I'm so glad we got involved. One of my best friends is a PAT teacher for a different school district here in town which is nice because we're able to ask her questions as well. And she gives Brogan lots of fun things from her school! We like to say our son is a genius (what parent doesn't??) but he truly is so smart for his age. We are very blessed!

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Lately...

2010-05-24T14:35:00.007-05:00

...I've been slacking on getting pictures uploaded. But here are some recent pictures of what we've been up to lately!

After bath one night last week Brogan didn't want to take his 'hat' off aka his hooded towel.

Brogan's girlfiend Kenadie came over to visit last Thursday! It's hard to believe they are 4 months apart! Brogan looks like a 4 year old compared to her...

Any time we're in the garage, Brogan insists on riding the lawn mower...he LOVES to drive it. Tommy let Brogan mow with him last week when it was cooler outside and B LOVED every second of it! Especially when they went 'FAST!'.

Brogan discovered the mud puddle in our driveway on Saturday morning. I turned away for a quick second and when I turned around I saw this:

Instead of getting mad and quickly getting him cleaned up, I ran inside to get the camera! He loved it so much and I just couldn't get upset at his sweet face! He did get a bath afterwards and the clothes went straight in to the washer!

Such a little stud muffin'!

Watching Daddy hammer aka 'bang bang'! :)

Lately, he's been climbing up in this chair to read his books. It's too stinkin' adorable! And he's been obsessed with putting on his sandles!

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Swim Suit Time of Year

2010-05-18T10:11:00.002-05:00

I was browsing the internet with my credit card in hand and came across Old Navy's amazing swim suit sale! I've been needing some new suits and thought this was definitely a sign! So I got 2....

I soooooo hope they fit! I wish I could be that 'MILF' in a bikini but I'm saving the retinas of innocent people and sticking with the tankinis! When I get these pretties in the mail, I'll update on how they fit!

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Seussical: The Musical

2010-05-14T17:18:00.002-05:00

Well, I failed at getting pictures of Brogan at his first theatre experience. Bad mother, I know. My excuse is this: we didn't make it to the end of the show. But I will say my little bean did so good! He loved the upbeat songs and the bright colors and dancing. It almost brought tears to my eyes to watch him LOVE it! That or it could've been the intense pain I had shooting through my low back. You see, they were having a few technical difficulties at the beginning so I spent about 15 minutes chasing my sweet 20 month old. I bent down to scoop him up and I felt some serious pain! I tried to walk it off and not think about it...but as we sat in the seats, the pain got worse. Brogan started to get fussy about 45 minutes in to the show (I was oober surprised he made it that long) so we went ahead and left. The show itself was adorable and we're actually seeing it, in full, tonight. Tommy and I are volunteering so we get to see the show for free! I can't wait! I left a surprise in the green room for the cast and crew! I'll try to get a picture to night and post it...but we all know that I've been slacking on the 'taking pictures when I say I will' front. Oops! Oh well, such is life.

We're supposed to be going skydiving...scratch that, TOMMY is supposed to be skydiving tomorrow. But the weather doesn't look promising. SUCK. Oh well. We have another date night tomorrow night! I can't wait. So at least we have SOMETHING to look forward to tomorrow that won't get canceled!

Have a super great weekend!

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Another First

2010-05-12T15:11:00.002-05:00

Brogan is going to his first ever musical! Seussical: The Musical! Some of our best friends are in the cast and I'm also friends with the director. She's allowing me to take Brogan to their last rehearsal tonight so we don't have to worry about paying for his ticket and then him screaming and wanting to leave. I'm PRAYING he doesn't do this tonight! It's a bright and colorful show full of music and hardly any talking so I think he'll do just fine. I'm taking my camera and hope to get some good pictures of him with some of the cast. His 2nd birthday party is going to be Dr. Seuss themed so I can use the photos for that! Tommy and I are going to see the show again on Friday night as we are hosting for the show (aka: seating people) and I might be taking my niece to their last performance. I'm super excited to see this show! I've heard great things about it and who doesn't love Dr. Seuss!

I'll try to post pictures of Brogan's first theatre experience! I guess if he doesn't like it, then he must not be our son....TEASING!

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My Sissy's Baby Shower

2010-05-11T08:53:00.012-05:00

Last Saturday, my cousin Lisa and I threw my sister a baby shower! She's expecting their first baby (a sweet little lady, Sloan Elizabeth) in August! We went with a Lady Bug theme since Sloan's bedding has lady bugs on it. I think we did a great job, if I do say so myself. Shannon was thrilled with everything! We had the shower at my mom's house, since she has more room. Lisa and I were in charge of everything, except for the food. My mom made 2 breakfast casseroles; one was a french toast casserole that was to DIE FOR and the second was some sort of egg, ham, peppers, etc. that was equally as delicious. I ordered cupcakes from my sweet friend Kristina (she made B's birthday cupcakes, our wedding cake, etc.) and they turned out perfect! We had 4 different flavors: yellow cake w/chocolate ganache filling, chocolate cake w/raspberry filling, red velvet w/cream cheese filling, and pink champagne cake w/cheesecake filling. Go ahead and wipe the drool from your mouth. Kristina also put lady bugs, flowers, and polka dots on the tops of the cupcakes! And she threw in a large cupcake for the Mommy To Be! Shannon loved it! We played a couple games. First was Bingo but instead of calling it Bingo, we called it 'Sloan'. Each guest had a blank 'Sloan' card and had to fill in the blanks with baby items, chosen from a list we printed off. Then Shannon (and my sweet niece Ava) drew out the items from a bowl and the first 2 people to get a 'Sloan' got prizes! It was fun and it definitely 'educated' my sister on stuff she'll need! The second game wasn't really a game but it was still fun. While Shannon opened her gifts, we set a timer for 4 minutes. Whoever gave Shannon the gift she was opening when the timer went off, got a prize. Some of our prizes were gifts for the guest but some (and most) were gifts for Shannon and Sloan. We had 'party favors' for the guests as they left; lady bug chapstick -- thanks Avon! -- and Lucky Charm marshmallow treats. The thing that Shannon has mostly been craving has been Lucky Charms so my cousin Lisa made them in to treats, like rice krispy treats. She even went thru the whole box of cereal and picked out the marshmallows before making the treats and then she put them on top after they were done! That's love right there...hehe!

Here are some pictures from the shower! Enjoy!

My sister collects Boyd's Bear figurines and my mom got Sloan her first one!

Opening gifts!

Doesn't this little outfit scream 'Diva'!?! My best friend got it for Sloan with Aunt Lindsey in mind :)

The cupcake table

Cute, sissy. Very cute. :)

Playing 'Sloan'

My beautiful niece, Maddie

All the gifts! This little girl is not going to be spoiled at all!

The decor

My mom, Shannon, and Shannon's MIL, Peggy

The hostesess and the Mommy to Be

Now, we wait for little miss to make her arrival! I cannot wait to snuggle that sweet girl!

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A Mother's Declaration

2010-05-07T09:39:00.002-05:00

My boss got this email today and read it to me. It's amazing and I think every mother should read this! Happy (early) Mother's Day to you all!

A Mother's Declarations
What I Can and Cannot Do for You.

I gave you life, but cannot live it for you.
I can teach you things, but I cannot make you learn.
I can give you directions, but I cannot be there to lead you.
I can allow you freedom, but I cannot account for it.
I can take you to church, but I cannot make you believe.
I can teach you right from wrong, but I cannot always decide for you.
I can buy you beautiful clothes, but I cannot make you beautiful inside.

I can offer you advice, but I cannot accept it for you.
I can give you love, but I cannot force it upon you.
I can teach you to share, but I cannot make you unselfish.
I can teach you respect, but I cannot force you to show honor.
I can advise you about friends, but I cannot choose them for you.
I can advise you about sex, but I cannot keep you pure.
I can tell you the facts of life, but I cannot build your reputation.
I can tell you about drink, but I cannot say 'no' for you.

I can warn you about drugs, but I cannot prevent you from using them.
I can tell you about lofty goals, but I cannot achieve them for you.
I can teach you about kindness, but I cannot force you to be gracious.
I can warn you about sins, but I cannot make you moral.
I can love you as a child, but I cannot place you in God's family.
I can pray for you, but I cannot make you walk with God.
I can teach you about Jesus, but I cannot make Jesus your Lord.
I can tell you how to live, but I cannot give you eternal life.

Written by Anne Geddes

How amazing was that?!?

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It's Over...

2010-05-04T15:36:00.004-05:00

2 months ago, you would've heard the stress in my voice and the yearning for this show (RENT) to be over. But now, I want nothing more than to have just one more weekend. I have quickly become attached to RENT and everything it stands for. I have made some amazing, life long friendships and these people have become more than friends; they are my family. Every night on stage, I had the opportunity to tell a story. A true story. And every night, it brought me to tears. For those of you who didn't get the chance to see this show, I will tell you that I completely broke down on stage. It was so hard not to. I've never felt so passionately about a role as I did with 'Mimi'. I also felt passionate about every single person on stage with me. Like I said, we are family. So when someone 'died' or broke down, we all felt it. As I said in a previous post, I'm not one who takes compliments well and to hear people tell me I brought them to tears or that they were sobbing, just blew my mind. How can I do that? But I'm glad this cast was able to move people. This show isn't just about a drag queen, a stripper, or a rocker with AIDS. It has a much deeper meaning. I have never had such a hard time walking away from a show or a cast before. Sunday, during our matinee, we gave our freaking all! We didn't worry about blowing our voices out or saving energy for the next weekend. The last performance was specifically dedicated to anyone and everyone effect by/with AIDS. That plus the fact that it was our last show, made us all overly emotional. Curtain call was an absolute tear fest! I couldn't stop crying. I'm tearing up just typing this. I wish I could express all the emotions I felt while on stage. By the end of the night, I was always physically AND emotionally drained. Do you know how exhausting it is to go thru 'physical with drawls' on stage? It might not sound like much, but man oh man...it was tough. One of my bestestest friends came to see the show on Sunday. He's a HUGE theatre 'geek' (love you Ivory!) and takes it very serious. I knew he'd tell me the absolute truth on what he thought of the show. He had to compose himself after the show because he was a 'hot tranny mess' as another friend put it....lol! Our little joke. Anyway, I was all cried out when he got to me but we hugged for the longest time and I just knew he was proud of me. And that meant the world to me. We talked and he had lots of things, great things, to say. I don't even know where to begin on that. He said it was the hardest on him to watch me cringe and wrentch my body on the table during the scene in which I 'die' and that he just kept thinking 'Lindsey, stop it! Just get up!'. Him and another close friend of mine were sobbing at this point in the show. After all that was said and done, the cast took one more group photo on the set. Now, if ya'll really know me, you know I like to look my 'best' in pictures. Well, by the end of the show, my makeup is HORRIBLE (on purpose) and with all the tears that were cried that day, I looked like a hot mess. I guess the picture will just capture what I really 'felt' at the end of this show :) It was definitely hard to have to clean up our dressing room and see it empty. And it's still so weird to think that we don't have another weekend to do this show. Everyone in the cast who is on Facebook has had sad, sappy status updates that just breaks my heart. My hubbie's status from last night was about how the set was already torn down and in pieces on the floor. That broke my heart. Some of you may be thinking I just need to get over it and move on; it's just a freaking community theatre production. But seriously, this show was and is meant to touch peoples lives. It's a TRUE STORY about REAL people living out something that is REAL. People die everyday from AIDS/HIV.

It's taken me 2 days to write this much. I don't know if it makes sense; I don't know if I repeated stuff. I don't want to go back and read it because I don't want to get sad. I'm also starting to get sick...I'm so physically and emotionally drained that I think I'm shutting down. But at least I have my evenings to relax and get caught up!

Thank you to everyone who came to see the show!

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Special Olympics

2010-04-26T14:33:00.002-05:00

(The pictures are backwards but I'm to lazy to switch them all around...)

My oldest niece Madison participated in her first Special Olympics this last Saturday. I wasn't able to go but I did get these pictures from my SIL's sister. I'm so unbelievably proud of her! She ran and did the long jump! She got medals and ribbons for both. Here are some pictures!

Here she is with her ribbons and medals:

Right after she jumped:

Getting ready to measure how far she jumped:

Maddie and her dad (my brother):

Getting her ribbon:

Running her heart out:

Again, I am so proud of her! She gave her all and she did her very best!

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Shopping is NEEDED!

2010-04-26T10:13:00.003-05:00

I have been working semi-hard to get to a physical 'state' where I'm comfortable. I'm almost there! I have hit a weight that I'm super proud of but outside appearance could use some work, in my eyes. But despite that, I'm needing NEW CLOTHES! Plus, I just want them. And that's reason enough to go shopping :)

Let's just talk about some things I WANT:

These adorable shoes....I might be ordering them today, actually.

Ok so I just lied....I totally just bought these both! Oops! :)

I also need some new capris! I've gone down a couple sizes so most of my pants from last summer (or the summer before I was preggers, which has now been 3 years now, right? I think...) are too big.

And I just bought some new capris and a cute new ring from Charlotte Russe!

I've been browsing in the middle of typing out this post....oops! But everything has been on sale AND for CR, I had a friends and family 25% coupon! Sometimes I really hate spending money on myself, but sometimes you just have to, especially if you have no clothes that fit!

It's my reward, right? :)

So much for my previous sentence of 'thing I want' and now it's things I HAVE! :) Well not technically have yet, but they're on their way!

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It's Opening Night!

2010-04-23T10:26:00.002-05:00

Well tonight is opening night! It got here a lot faster than I imagined but I'm SO ready! We had a small audience last night and it made it feel so real, probably cause it was. I felt the emotions of the show so much more than I had and it felt great! I'm completely exhausted and worn out emotionally today, but it was worth it! And I can't wait to do it again tonight!

My favorite girls are coming tonight: my diva's! I can't wait to see them all and it means the world to me that they would all give up a Friday night to come see me perform. Thank you girls and I will be sure to 'wink' your direction!

I'm not one who takes compliments well. I'm very self conscious and don't think highly of myself. Last night, I had people come up to me and tell me they enjoyed my performance and I even had people in tears. What?? That doesn't happen. I'm not one to make people cry, especially with a performance. But I won't lie when I say it made my heart smile! I even had our piano player balling during one of my songs! I honestly can say I have tears in my eyes right now just thinking about it. The show has SO much emotion in it and I'm just glad I can bring that out.

Thank you so much to everyone who came last night and who will be coming in the future.

Also, here's a link to our local newspaper and it tells a little about Jon Larson, the writer of Rent. If I had more time and I could type through tears, I'd tell you about his last days here on Earth.

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I'm. So. READY!

2010-04-21T09:14:00.003-05:00

This:

Plus This:

(I look NOTHING like this silhouette but you get the idea...lol!)

Equals This:

I'M SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO FREAKING READY!

We open our show on Friday but we have our first official audience tomorrow. This last Monday, we started our tech rehearsals...mics, make up, costumes, lights, etc. It has made this show feel much more real! I really have felt in touch with my character. Our costumes are great -- even if mine aren't matchy matchy like I usually am -- and I have been in LOVE with my make up! A sweet girl named Emily has been helping me and she is amazing! She is a makeup artist and has SO many fun things to play with! Every night my eye's will be a different color! So. Much. Fun!

This weekend, I will have someone in the audience every night. It makes me super nervous but my excitement over rides the nervousness! Tomorrow, my parents and good friends Kim and Kelli will be there; Friday, my divas, my in laws, and a friend from out of town (who I haven't seen in FOREVER! I cried when she told me she was going to make it!); Saturday, my sister and brother in law, and I know someone else is coming but I just can't think of who; and Sunday, my best friend, her fiance, and her mom!

This 'ride' has been so exhausting, physically and emotionally but it's been worth it!

'No Day But Today!'

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Little stinker

2010-04-20T11:41:00.005-05:00

I know I've talked about Brogan being a little dare devil and I guess this photo just proves it.

(Do you see his cute little booty?? Adorable.)

If you can't see it (taken by my phone), he's sitting on the back of the couch 'hiding'. He did this SEVERAL times and every time I did what every responsible mother would do. I tried to take a cute picture of him and I'd giggle with him and then I'd tell him to get down cause this was a 'no no'. :)

I'm a sucker for this little stinker!

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Brogan's Big Adventure

2010-04-16T11:10:00.002-05:00

On Sunday, Brogan got to experience something HUGE!

A real, live horse!

My father in law's sister in law owns a ranch and obviously has horses. My in laws have been wanting to take Brogan to ride a horse for the longest time and it just worked out perfect last Sunday! I was a little nervous only because horses are SO big! But he did great and loved every minute! I think his favorite part was hearing the horses 'neigh' and leading the horse 'on his own'. We made a huge deal out of it with lots of cheering and clapping -- but not to loud, didn't want to upset the LARGE horses!

I'm so proud of my fearless little boy! Although, he could not be so fearless when it comes to certain things, like walking off the front porch by himself without holding on to anything. Just sayin'. The joys of having a boy I guess!

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Baby Shower MADNESS!

2010-04-13T13:50:00.002-05:00

As you may have read, my sister and brother in law found out yesterday they are expecting a girl! Well, once my totally excitement and giddy-ness (totally not a word...I don't think), I went in to mad 'planning a baby shower' mode! The shower is 3 weeks from this coming Saturday!!!!!! My sweet cousin Lisa is co-hosting this shindig with me, thank the Good Lord! We have come up with a theme, ordered the cupcakes, gotten the invite designed (just needs to be finalized and printed...and then sent out), and I spent my lunch break today getting some fun things to make! I'm no Martha Stewart but I'm willing to try for my sister. Thank goodness HL was having some good sales on everything I wanted to get...and the one thing that wasn't on sale, I was able to use a 40% off coupon for!

Since I know my sister doesn't read my blog, I can tell you a little about what we're doing! Miss Sloan's (isn't that precious?!?!) nursery is going to be lady bugs, so naturally so is her shower! The bedding is absolutely adorable. My cousin is such a great shower thrower so she's come up with some cute ideas (WHOO!). I've come up with some also, for which I'm pretty proud :) Ok, actually I've blogged stalked AND taken ideas from other showers I've been to, but hey...there's nothing wrong with taking some credit, right? So, we're going to have 2 diaper cakes...I'm making the traditional 3-tiered diaper cake with cute ribbon, flowers, and baby accessories and my cousin is making a diaper cake that will actually resemble a lady bug! Too. Stinkin'. Cute. Since every nursery needs to have the baby's name on the wall, I got letters for Sloan's wall. And the make those letters CA-UTE, I also bought scrapbook paper to glue on to the letters (thank God for crafty friends!!!)!

Ok so that's all I'm gonna give you for now! I'll be sure to take tons of pictures as we go along!

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It's a.....

2010-04-12T13:41:00.002-05:00

GIRL!!!! My sister and brother in law just found out today they will be bringing a baby girl in to this world! Her name (as of now) will be Sloan Elizabeth! I'm sooooo stinkin' excited!!! I was shaking the whole time I was on the phone with her! I get to buy all sorts of pink and purple things! Oh my! And now I also get to start officially planning this baby shower! THere are so many ideas in my head, I can't even think straight!

Oh my....a girl. God is GREAT!

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21 things...

2010-04-10T12:15:00.002-05:00

Beautiful smile

Amazing dance skills

Motherly

Young at heart (AND age)

Caring beyond belief

Crazy great hair doing techniques

Hard worker

The best Multi-tasker

Loving

Funny...can I say that? ;)

Contagious laugh

Bargain QUEEN

Sparkling eyes

Very talented in the self portrait taking field -- FB as my witness

TALENTED in general! Holy smokes!

Lover of caffeine

The most loyal Crimson and Blue fan...EVER!

Knows more about iPhones than Apple

Has an adorable sense of fashion

Intelligent

And.......IS FINALLY 21 TODAY!

I'm talking about one of my best friends, Kim. Her birthday is today and she's finally turning 21! She's been waiting for this day for a long long time but over the last 2 months, we've totally been counting down. I could go on and on about Kimmi but I figured 21 things fit the day!

Kimmi, you're an amazing friend and I love you so much! Thank you for everything you've ever done for me, even if it was just getting me a blizzard from DQ over lunch :) I couldn't ask for a better co-worker! You make my days a whole lot easier! I can't wait for the celebrations to begin....35 minutes till lunch :) I'll hold your hair anytime you need me to....even after tonight!

Hope everyone has a great weekend! I know I'll be having a blast tonight!

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No title...

2010-04-07T10:59:00.003-05:00

**Beware: this is quite the random, out of order, babbling post**

I have been having a stickler of a time trying to get ALLLLLLL my pictures uploaded on here. I have so many I want to show on here! Oh well...you might just get an Easter post in May :)

Brogan is teething hard core (at least we're hoping that's what the issue is) and has been a CRAB! He throws random fits and cannot be comforted. It's either teeth or his terrible 2's are starting early.

Rehearsals are getting intense, at least for me. I had a BREAK. DOWN. the other night. Oh my! I was fighting back tears thru rehearsal -- thank God it wasn't a full cast rehearsal -- and brown down in the parking lot afterwards. I felt better after last nights first full run thru but it's still a difficult role. Oh well, it'll be over before we know it and then I'll miss it.

I have a funny story about something I HAD to do yesterday...that's a whole other post and hopefully with a picture.

Sorta speaking of the funny story, I ordered Brogan a ton of cute clothes from Carters.com -- I'm SOOO glad they finally have a website you can buy from! I got a pretty good deal too; free shipping and 20% off! That's my kind of shopping :)

My body is SO sore today! If you've seen my Facebook status today, you'll understand why. But if you haven't, I admit my admiration for the work strippers do! HAHAHAHA! Not that 'let me take off my clothes and degrade myself' aspect, but the fact that they have to have some serious talent and upper body strength to work that pole. Owe. And my body isn't just sore from the pole, this character role takes a lot out of me physically; a lot more than you'd think.

Ok, enough about the freaking show! I'm going to try to think positive from now on!

Hope ya'll have a super fantastic Wednesday! As long as the sun stays out, I know I will!

Totally just read thru this post and it IS random....geez Linds, get with it!

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Thanks Monica!

2010-04-05T11:01:00.002-05:00

Monica over at Pixel Perfect did a post about your's truly! She does posts every now and again featuring some of her readers. It's just a 'Getting to know You' post but it's so much fun! Hop on over and visit her blog! She's a doll and has so many good posts. And it helps that she posts pictures of her ADORABLE baby boy!

Thanks again Monica!

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Stressssssed out.

2010-04-02T13:02:00.002-05:00

I just haven't been in the blogging mood lately. I've been totally stressed and the fact that I'm trying to hide my stress is NOT helping. This last week I've had 3 days off work to spend with Brogan. It's been helping keep my mind off of things (things meaning, our show--Rent) and we've been having fun! We've gone for walks, played outside, and today we even dyed Easter eggs with my MIL. And tomorrow I think we'll do our own here at home. I wish I could spend my evenings with Brogan and Tommy AT HOME. Now that the weather is staying nice, it's lighter later, and we FINALLY have screens on our windows, it's so hard to leave at night when there is a whole lotta playing left to do. I know it's good for us to be doing this show with each other and I am having a good time. I ALWAYS stress the last few weeks of rehearsal but this time, it's totally different. I think I'm almost scared. This is a huge show and a huge role. I just want to do it justice and I don't want to disappoint. Plus, this is the first show I've done with this director and as he is amazingly talented, he does things quite a bit different than what I'm used to. I just want to snap my fingers and be in mid May.

And on top of getting ready for this show to open, I'm also planning a baby shower for my sister that will be the weekend after the show is over. AND she's not finding out what she's having till April 12th which kinda puts a 'hold' on planning. I have several ideas, but I can't really plan a whole lot without knowing the sex. UUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Ok, I'm gonna go take a nice, long shower and try to calm down. I've seemed to gotten myself a tad worked up.

If you have a spare moment, could you say a little prayer for me. I just need God to calm me down and give me some confidence/strength. It may not sound like a big 'this girl needs prayer' moment, but for me, it is. Step inside my body for a day with all this stress and you'll want to get the hell outta there ASAP!

And last but not least: I am thankful for my God! He sent His son to die for me today! AMEN!

I hope you all have a happy Easter!

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Recap

2010-03-29T14:47:00.002-05:00

Our weekend was full of stuff like registering for baby stuff (NOT for me!!), a quick show rehearsal, dinner and a show at the theatre, costume fittings, birthday lunch, cleaning the house, swinging, and ending the weekend with lounging on the couch and early bedtimes--for all of us. The highlight of my week this week (besides Easter Sunday) is 3 DAYS OFF WORK!!!! And to top those 3 days off, the weather is supposed to be ab.so.lute.ly beautiful! I have my normal Thursday off work and our office is always closed on Good Friday. But this week, my mom needed Tuesday off from keeping Brogan and I couldn't find anyone to keep him, so this mama took a day off! I can't wait! Not only will we be outside playing and taking walks, but this girl is going to try to stay on top of the laundry this week! Normally, I save it for Thursdays (at least ever since rehearsals started) but the pile is so huge by then! What I'd give for a magic laundry genie....

Tonight is my early night off of work so I'm thinking we'll squeeze in a quick walk before dinner!

Oh! I just remembered something from this weekend! I had put Brogan in his crib to finish his gummy vitamin (he likes to share with the dog) and started picking up the toys in his room. While I was doing so, Brogan kept saying 'down, down' and I didn't think anything of it. I looked up to give my sweet, innocent boy a smile and the little sh** was half way over the top railing of his crib! What the (insert word here)!!!!!! How'd he do that?!?! This kid has crazy 'I should be the next world's strongest kid' toddler strength, let me tell you (as well as a monster tight lock jaw....I would know, or I guess my cheek would know). I made sure to let Tommy know that the times we decide to put an angry and in trouble Brogan in his bed, we can't leave him in there but like a minute cause he'll climb out! I just don't want him to bust his head open or crack his neck. I guess this is the life and stress of raising a dare devil!

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Dang it feels good to be a WILDCAT!

2010-03-26T08:29:00.005-05:00

I was raised to be a K-State Wildcat and I do love my Cats! I don't get in to basketball as much but this year, the team has been pretty good! We did lose to our biggest rivals every time, but it wasn't a blow out and they were good games. However, we did get in to the NCAA tournament, made it to the Sweet 16, and last night had a NAIL BITING game against Xavier and won in double over time! So now, my KSU Wildcats are part of the Elite 8 and I couldn't be more proud! They haven't gotten this far for a while and I think they totally deserve this chance to represent our state of Kansas!

It definitely feels good to be a Wildcat today! And don't think I'm not sporting my Sweet 16 t-shirt and my cute new purple ring I got! EMAW (Every Man A Wildcat) baby!!

Ok, so I had my friend takes these pictures of me this morning! I LOVE my outfit but don't mind how nasty my hair/face look! I woke up late (REALLY LATE) and didn't bother taking a shower...but don't worry--I took one late enough yesterday evening that I'm still clean! And I was smiling WAY too big!

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Just Stuff

2010-03-24T11:11:00.002-05:00

I don't have anything to really post about but I just wanted to post SOMETHING. Last night, Brogan and I went for a 20 minute walk before dinner and it was so refreshing! I really am going to try to do that most every night, as long as it's nice out! So...that means tonight is out. But that's ok. It's a rainy day here in Topeka and I'm a sucker for Spring thunder/rain storms! I can't wait to open up the windows and smell and hear the rain coming down! It's so relaxing and refreshing.

Rehearsals have been going well. I'm slightly stressed but I know it'll all come together eventually. I do love it, but part of me is ready for it to be over. I miss being home with Brogan and especially now that it's getting nice out, all I want to do is play outside with our little explorer!

I have a date with the hubbs this weekend and I'm so excited! We're going to a local community theatre to have dinner and see the musical, Curtains! I have several VERY talented friends (hi Kimmi!) in this show and I have heard nothing but amazing reviews! Plus, I heard the menu is outta this work delish! Earlier in the day Saturday, my sister and I are going to finish (or start, rather) her baby registry! This is NOT going to help my baby fever....

Ok, so that's all I got for now. I still need to do a post from Tommy's birthday weekend and need to post some cute pictures of my Brogan! In due time, I'm sure.

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New Treasures

2010-03-22T11:23:00.003-05:00

I have been horrible about getting my pictures posted! Our laptop that has all the pictures of it has been acting up and so we're not using it as much. Hopefully it'll clear up this week and I can fill ya'll in!

I did snap a picture with my cell phone this morning. My friend Christy is going through her kids old toys to sell in their garage sale. We were at her house Saturday for a bit and Brogan LOVED playing with a couple things. I asked Christy if I could buy them from her and she of course said yes! So, today she dropped them by my office and I can't wait to take them home for Mr. Brogan to play with!

Brogan LOVES when I get out the vacuum so I was kinda excited when he started playing with this toy vacuum! Now I have a cleaning partner! The zebra toy was his favorite out of all the toys they had out. He jumped right on it and bounce around like crazy! It was adorable! The basket you see is to sit on our stairs to collect all my crap that needs to go upstairs that I'm too lazy to walk up myself. I had to get something outta this deal, right? Someones unwanted 'junk' is always someone elses treasures! I can't wait for garage sales to start popping up! I've decided this year, I'm going to look hardcore for decent outdoor toys for Brogan!

I'll be sure to post pictures and give a recap about Tommy's birthday! I will say, we had a blast!! And he was very grateful :)

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Surprise!

2010-03-19T12:13:00.002-05:00

Today is my wonderful husband's 28th birthday! He's so wonderful and I feel that he doesn't always get the recognition he deserves. So I wanted to change that! I arranged a little surprise 'party' for him tomorrow night! What he does know is that we're going to dinner in Lawrence with 2 couple friends of ours and then we're doing 'whatever' after that. But what we're REALLY doing afterwards is this: I was able to get (thanks to my friend/coworker) a VIP room at The Barrel House, a dueling piano bar (amazingly fun; if you've never been to one, find one and go! Sooo worth it!). I am having some of Tommy's (and I's) close friends meet at the bar around 9 and we'll probably get there shortly after. I've been trying to come up with how I'll tell him where we're going, but I think I'll just suggest going there after dinner and then he'll just be surprised when we walk up to a VIP room with his friends in there! It's nothing fancy or expensive but it's definitely something that he'll have a blast doing!

I'm excited! And sorta nervous for it all to pan out! I'll be sure to take pictures and post about it next week!

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Stinkin' Sore

2010-03-16T08:50:00.003-05:00

Oh. My. Muscles.

I had a pretty good dance rehearsal last night and I'm pretty stinkin' sore today! We worked on 3 dances that I'm in and only 1 of them didn't require polls (which I haven't gotten to use yet) or being on my knees...remember, my character is in fact a stripper. I have some bruising on my knees which I know will only get worse. My arms are sore from doing God knows what on the floor. My legs are sore from doing, well, things my legs don't normally do. My tummy (or what's supposed to be 'abs') is sore from all the core movements. My feet hurt from the shoes I wore. My butt is a little sore but I'm not sure why.

All this complaining is for a good cause though folks. Once I get these dances down, it's going to be HOTT. And yes, HOTT with 2 T's! Not only will it be amazing on stage, but let's be honest. My marriage might get a little steamy...hehe! I've really enjoyed being able to spend time with Tommy away from home and doing what we both have a great passion for!

Now all I need is a little more confidence, better memorization skills (ever since being preggers with B, my memory has flown the coop!), and a rockin' body and we'll be set!

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Binkie Free (sorta)

2010-03-15T09:13:00.004-05:00

This weekend I decided to 'break' Brogan of his binkie, or 'D' as he calls it. He did great! Saturday morning he woke up in a great mood so I took the 'D' and put it in a spot where he couldn't reach. After breakfast, he was in a terrible mood and asked for it several times, but I stuck to my guns and didn't give it to him. Instead, I changed the subject and tried to coax him with other things: toys, his sippie cup, The Backyardigans, etc. I, did, however give him his 'D' when it was nap time (and then later for bed). After nap, I took it back and told him we only need our 'D' for 'nigh nigh'. He seemed fine with that! Yesterday, he did great again! I figured we could stick with this routine and hopefully by his 2nd birthday, we can be rid of the 'D' for good! Of course, then we'll be dealing with potty training and getting rid of the 'bah bah' before bed! And to clear it up, we do not give Brogan a bottle anymore, he calls his 'bedtime sippy cup' his 'bah bah'.

(Sorry for the over used 'quote' marks in this post!)

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Finally

2010-03-12T17:28:00.002-06:00

Over the last 18 months, we've gotten Brogan's pictures taken: newborn, 6 months, 1 year, and my in laws wanted family pictures. I'm happy to say that I have FINALLY gotten all his pictures ordered! It feels great and I'm totally excited to see them in print. However, now comes the task of getting frames for all of them and then possibly hung on the wall. This is when I stress out! I have no idea what wall, what color frames, how to arrange the frames, and how to hang them (I know I know...it's probably the easiest thing EVER but my hubbs is the one who ALWAYS hangs stuff in our house. And God knows I'd screw it up somehow!)

But at least one task is done and out of the way!

Hope ya'll have a great weekend! I know I'm looking forward to mine!

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Rockin' Out

2010-03-10T16:56:00.001-06:00

I've been rockin' out to this guy all day...

...and loving EVERY. MINUTE.

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18 Months

2010-03-09T14:26:00.002-06:00

This precious boy....

...will be 18 months old on Saturday! This picture was taken by my mom this morning before I picked him up for his drs. appointment! He is just the most darling and handsome little boy ever! He looked just like his daddy this morning: both with their large-checkered shirts on!

On the way to his appointment, I had give Brogan a granola bar (still in the closed wrapper) to play with as I had forgot to grab a toy for him to mess with. As we were getting closer to the office, I turned around right as he was saying 'Bite, bite' with the OPENED granola bar in his hand and his 'D' (binkie) in the other. I immediately started cracking up! He was too adorable to get mad at. He's done this before, as you may remember, with a Hershey candy bar. Thank God he didn't get anything on his cute shirt! By the way, he had half of it downed by the time we got to the office, which was only about a 7 minute car ride. Little piggy!

He did pretty well at his appointment. He didn't have to get shots, thank God! Tommy couldn't be at this appointment and it was already a little difficult holding Brogan while our doctor checked his stats. Oh my! I can't even imagine what the shots would've been like! He's quite the strong little boy! Everything was right as it should be and Brogan is absolutely perfect...which I already knew :) He weighed in at 24 lbs, 14 oz (40%(, is 33 1/3 inches tall (85%), and has a head circ. of 19 inches (70%). Brogan is definitely his father's son: long and lean!

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Weekend Recap

2010-03-08T08:40:00.003-06:00

Friday Night: We didn't have rehearsal so Tommy made plans with a good friend of his while Brogan and I stayed home and played! After I put Brogan to bed, I tried out a new workout. It was only 10 minutes but in that 10 minutes, I got my butt worked! It felt great! (Thanks Missy for the DVD!) There's something about feeling slightly sore a day or two after a good workout that makes it worth while! I just need to make sure I keep up with it! I also got a phone call from one of my bestestestestest (this is totally a word!) friends, Danyelle, telling me some exciting news: Her boyfriend Beau asked her to marry him!!!!!!!! I couldn't be more excited for her! Beau is absolutely amazing and treats Danyelle like a Queen! She deserves every bit of happiness and he definitely gives that to her. They were in Nashville (one of their fave places) and I made sure to make her text me a picture of the ring! I cannot wait to see her, and the ring, in person!

Saturday: In the morning, I met up with some girlfriends for breakfast at Panera (tasty tasty!) and pedicures! I haven't had a pedi in a while so it was nice to treat myself! I love having pretty toes for the warm weather! I think I might try to make it a point to get a pedi every so often! After our pedis, my friend Katie and I decided to run some errands. We had a blast! I got a few cute new pairs of shoes for the spring/summer, Brogan some cute shorts and a St. Patty's Day shirt, and some other little things! The weather was perfect so we enjoyed having the sunroof open! Tommy spent most of Saturday starting our fence for Bella! We're only fencing part of our yard for now so she can have lots of room outside to run! My in laws came over to help and to watch Brogan until I got home. I cannot wait till the fence is done!! Hopefully within the next couple weekends...fingers crossed! Saturday night, we had taco salad for dinner and after B went to bed, we watched 'This Is It'. Absolutely amazing movie. I held back tears quite a bit! I love MJ and am still amazed at how unbelievably talented he was.

Sunday: Tommy had to work so Brogan and I were at it alone. We went over to my parents house in the morning to visit my sister who was in town. My dad normally gets donuts on the weekend from an amazing bakery in town so Brogan and I made sure to 'share' one! I ate most of it though...oops! We went back home in time to make some lunch and take a nap! I definitely took advantage of Brogan's naptime and slept a little myself! It was great! After he woke up, I took him to a local custard shop for a treat! Again, I ate most of it but it was fun to share! When we got back home, we spent about 20 minutes running around the yard. After that 20 minutes, I realized we definitely need some outdoor toys! After Tommy got home from work, we just lounged and played and enjoyed time as a family. We watched a little of the Oscars and caught up on our DVR'd shows. Bedtime for us parents came early!!

I took pictures this weekend but have been lazy, busy, whatever to put them on the computer! And since I work full time and now have a show to be in, God only knows when they'll make an appearance! Oh well, life happens! :)

Hope ya'll had a great weekend as well!

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My Very Own Bubble Boy

2010-03-05T20:16:00.001-06:00

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MIA

2010-03-05T16:17:00.002-06:00

Hi, my name is Lindsey and I've been MIA if you haven't noticed. We started Rent rehearsals this week so that's been my evenings and work has kept me busy during the day...this and I've been trying to spend as much time off the computer and with my son since I'll be busy the next 2 months. I've realized how hard it is to work full time and be a mom but to throw another extra curricular activity in the mix really makes it interesting! I keep telling myself that it's ok that I'm doing something that I LOVE and that I don't get to do often.

Like I've mentioned before, I'd LOVE to be a SAHM (stay at home mom) but it's just not in our cards right now. Hopefully Tommy will graduate (the plan is for this anyway) in December 2011, he can find a good full time job, we can get out of our little house and in to something bigger and with more storage, and we can have another baby! And possibly I can either be a part time SAHM or possibly full fill my dream or staying home full time. One day at a time though. God has His plans. Even though sometimes (ALOT of times!) I don't want to be patient enough to wait. Silly God :)

This weekend is going to be laid back! The weather here in Topeka (aka Google...don't ask...it's some weird thing I don't understand and frankly, I'm over it)is supposed to be in the high 50's so that means we're spending some time outside!! Tomorrow morning, the Diva's are getting together for breakfast and pedi's! I've been looking forward to this for weeks!

To leave you on a good note, here's a couple pictures of my sweet (almost) 18 month old rockin' his tie shirt his Auntie Molly made for him! Adorable, you say? Oh, I know!

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First Night Away

2010-03-01T14:23:00.002-06:00

Tonight's our first rehearsal for Rent. I'm super excited but super bummed. I know it'll go fast and I know it'll be great for Tommy and I, but it's hard leaving Brogan. I thought for sure this time would be easier but it's starting to not be.

I did, however, find out that one of my solo dances is going to be on stripper poles!! That sorta excites me! Not that I've ever wanted to be a 'stripper', but I've always been amazed at how one can dance around those things! That routine starts next week...I'll keep you updated!

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Still icky...but yay for baby's!

2010-02-26T09:41:00.003-06:00

I'm feeling a tad worse today but I'm managing to keep a semi-smile on my face. I had a delish coffee this morning to warm me up! I FINALLY ordered B's newborn pictures (good thing he's almost 18 months, right?) and I cannot wait to get them back! We are also going to order his 1 year and fall family pictures this next week. I'm wanting to get them all in my posession so I can start getting frames and deciding how I want them on our living room wall. I hate being so behind in ordering these, but they can be so darn expensive...thank God for tax returns!

Tomorrow is one of my good girlfriend Chelsey's baby shower (pray I feel better so I can make it tomorrow)! I cannot wait to see how our friends Molly and Jenna decorated and to see all the great stuff Chelsey will get! (<-- that is me staying positive about getting to go!) :) She's such a doll and I love her to death! She's going to make an absolute wonderful momma to baby Jaxen! I cannot wait till he gets here so we can all take turns snugglin' and lovin' on that sweet boy!

Alright, I gotta go blow my nose and try to de-clog! Happy Friday!

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Icky

2010-02-25T15:12:00.002-06:00

I have a couple things I could post about but frankly, I feel icky. My nose is stuffy, as well as my head. I'm tired and cranky. I haven't showered but I managed to change my underwear.

I did, however, do 15 minutes of a workout because for some reason, I felt this was a good idea. Stuffy nose + wicked headache + situps, lunges, and jumping up and down = stupid idea.

I'm off to blow my nose and die. Have a great day.

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My Celeb Boy Toys

2010-02-24T11:49:00.003-06:00

First off, I have SOOOO many celebs that I think are hottie-tottie but I narrowed it down a bit for this post!

My friend Molly got this idea from a blog she reads and I decided to tag along! And if you want to join in, leave a comment with a link to your post! I'd love to see who you swoon over!

So without further ado (in no particular order):

Channing Tatum: He's yummy with or without a shirt :)

Bruce Willis: He may be old enough to be my father, but he's quite the looker!

Joe Don Rooney (from Rascal Flatts): I've had the biggest crush on this guy for SOOOOO long! He can sing, play the guitar, and he's hot. Yow. Za.

Bradley Cooper: I agree with my friend Molly...he's definitely hotter with the scruffy look. But I'd take him either way! ;)

Taye Diggs: I'll say it...I love me some dark chocolate! (OMG, I can't believe I just typed that!) This man can act AND sing...amazingly attractive.

Michael Buble: A hot singer. 'Nuff said.

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My Mister

2010-02-21T13:38:00.001-06:00

Just a typical morning at Gramma and Papa's

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Bella's New Hoodie

2010-02-20T14:24:00.002-06:00

Bella and daddy

Sweet Bella Girl

Mid Run!

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My Valentine's (a 'few' days late)

2010-02-20T14:05:00.002-06:00

I can't get enough of these boys!

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2010-02-19T15:25:00.002-06:00

I am SO looking forward to this weekend! Tomorrow will just be a very laid back day with my boy! Tommy has to be at the university all day working on tech stuff for their upcoming show. Tomorrow night we are going with a little group of friends to Kansas City to see 'Evil Dead: The Musical'. This was the last show I was in (the one with the zombies) and it's a fabulous show! The theatre we're going to is going to have a Splatter Zone -- they use a TON of fake blood -- and we are definitely getting there early to try to get seats there. They provide ponchos, thank God! We all know this girl is going to need to look cute and will NOT be ok if fake blood gets on her!

Brogan will have an overnight with my mom so I hope to enjoy sleeping in a tad on Sunday morning!

I hope you all have a great weekend!

Oh and if I get around to it, I will try very hard to get pictures of Brogan up on here! I know some of you could care less, but I care and that's all that matters :)

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30 Day Shred....Worth it?

2010-02-17T10:46:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I've heard mixed reviews from people I know on Jillian's 30 Day Shred. I'm REALLY needing to get in shape for Rent (and for my sanity) and need something that won't take up too much time out of my morning. Obviously I know that anything will work as long as you stick to it...but still, I need advice! Or other good workouts...

Thanks!

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Rent

2010-02-16T11:58:00.002-06:00

Waiting to call the theatre to find out the cast list....

And I got MIMI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's totally the part I wanted! I'm too shaky to type anymore...

Oh my.

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Little One

2010-02-16T11:29:00.002-06:00

This here...

...is going to be the newest addition to our family!

I introduce you to my future niece or nephew!! Isn't she/he precious???

Little baby, I cannot wait to meet you! You are already so very special and so very much wanted! I love you so so so very much!

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The Bach Recap # who knows.

2010-02-16T09:59:00.003-06:00

This recap will be in a different form than normal...I'm taking after a few of my fave bloggers and doing a list of my favorite moments.

We all got together at Miss Katie's house last night for our watch 'party'. There were so many things happening in this weeks episode, we paused the TV more than usual.

*Jake's first date was with Gia. Although she is very pretty, the girl sounds inebriated every time she talks! Oh my. Jake bought her a necklace; she wore it as a bracelet; it looked stupid.

*At dinner, Jake talked about how beautiful Gia was and she acted like she totally wasn't. Um, you're a SWIMSUIT MODEL!!!! Hello?!?!

*Gia totally had an overnight with Jake.

*Tenley is still a doll and they had a cute date. She didn't talk a whole lot of the ex but she still brought up the fact that she's been hurt in her last relationship...blah blah. She confessed her love for Jake at dinner and then he danced with her....cute cute cute!

*Tenley totally had an overnight with Jake.

*Vienna is gross. They played on a pirate ship (same from Pirates of the Carribean...luckies.) and he totally pushed her in to the shark invested waters. Ok, not really...but he did push her in, in a flirting manor. Vienna totally licked his nose, I guess as a way to flirt with him Sick. He did it back. SICK.

*Vienna wore a white teddy. DOUBLE, TRIPLE SICK.

*And with that being said, Vienna had an overnight. Vomit.

*Ali called and tried to pull an 'Ed'. Didn't work; Jake said no. (We were sad but it did seem quite desperate AND scripted)

*Gia went home. But she didn't make a big stink about it. She cried, yes, but she told Jake that he had 2 amazing women (gag me...he only has 1 in my eyes) that were perfect for him.

*The women tell all episode is next week and we can. not. wait. More Rozalyn drama!

*On the finale previews, Jake has a typical 'over the railing Bachelor moment' which leads us to believe, he chooses no one (we'd rather that than him end up with Vienna). And possibly goes back for Ali.

Till next rose ceremony ladies....!

(Head over to Molly's blog to see her recap!)

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Give-A-Way!

2010-02-15T12:05:00.001-06:00

Miss Abby over at babbling abby is having an ooooober great giveaway!

Head on over and check it out! I promise you won't be disappointed!!

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Happy Love Day

2010-02-14T10:54:00.002-06:00

Happy Valentine's Day! I'll be spending it in my jammies with my 2 favorite boys...after I go pick up the youngest. He stayed at Gramma's house last night and this momma took advantage and slept in! He's totally rockin' the cutest outfit today for Valentine's so I'll be sure to take some pictures of him.

Today is more than just Valentine's Day to us. Tommy and I had our first date (MY actual first date EVER) 10 years ago on Valentine's Day. That's a long time folks! We've had our moments, but it truly has been the best 10 years of my life! I can't wait to see what the next 10 years brings! Hopefully more babies :)

Love to you all!

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Untitled...

2010-02-12T09:51:00.002-06:00

I am SO ready for this weekend! Opening ceremony for the Olympics tonight, call backs tomorrow, a hot date with a hot man tomorrow night (who, as of Sunday, I've been with for 10 years), getting our SUV back and getting to put Brogan's new Cowmooflauge car seat in, and celebrating a day of love with my boys!

Great weekend, I might say!

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Just stuff...

2010-02-09T13:49:00.002-06:00

I'm slowly but surely working on my Bachelor recap from last night....slowly being the key word here.

I ordered Brogan's new car seat this morning! I ended up going with the Cowmooflauge (or however you would spell it) and I just know he'll love it! I can hear the 'moo' noises now!

My mother just called to inform me that my little mister has now learned to climb up on to her dining room chairs. Which eventually will lead to climbing on to the dining room table. Awesome. Good thing he doesn't ever play in our kitchen!

It's been snowing ALL. DAY. And when I say all day, I mean it.

I'm so proud of my oldest niece! She had her first (middle school) choir concert and she did great! I ended up staying for the rest of the concert (high school) and it brought back TONS of memories -- yes I was a choir AND show choir geek. They weren't as good as we were back in the day, naturally, but they were ok. :)

We are possibly getting a new morning massage therapist in our office. I'm sorta excited but kinda not -- she's blonde, pretty, skinny, and her name is Lindsey. What???? I made sure to tell my boss that she is going to be referred to as 'Lindsey' not 'Linds', since that is usually my nickname around the office. Hopefully if we do hire her, she's nice and fun to work with. If not, I might shove cheeseburgers down her throat till she's fat. Just sayin'.

Ok, last thing! We 'should' be getting our SUV back tomorrow!!!! Please pray we do! I miss it!

Now, I guess I should get back to work....ugh.

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Weekend Recap

2010-02-08T15:38:00.002-06:00

Friday night after work all I did was play with my boy and lounge on the couch! It was nice!

Saturday was spent shopping in KC with my girlfriends! We had a blast!! We all got some really cute things and even treated ourselves to The Cheesecake Factory afterwards! I was able to laugh till I had tears in my eyes, which hasn't happened in a while (thanks Jenna!). I cannot wait till we do this again! I somehow didn't find a top or outfit to wear for our Valentine's date but oh well. I'll find something this week I hope.

Sunday was my audition. I was super nervous but after I sang my first song, the nerves flew out the window! I felt really good about it and will find out tomorrow if I got a call back. If I did, they will schedule a time for us all to come back and read, sing, and probably dance. Hopefully they won't drag it out for much longer...I'll be REALLY nervous then!

For the Super Bowl, we ended up just hanging out at home. Brogan's been teething and was cranky yesterday so we weren't too keen on taking him anywhere. He ended up going down to bed 30 minutes early which was sort of a relief! I was getting tired and worn out! After he went down, we had fajita-type soft tacos and watched the game (or commercials mostly). We made it till half time then switched the channel over to one of our shows. I ended up passing out on the couch before 8!!! We both went to bed at 9 and it was fabulous! Brogan slept really well, for a teething child, thank the Lord!.

Oh and Sunday was my niece Ava's 4th birthday! She's a doll and I can't wait to give her her present! I had one of my besties, Molly make her 2 adorable shirts w/a matching bow! Ava will just die!! She truly has a diva mentality (but not the annoying kind) and it's hilarious to just watch her go on and on about whatever! And once you get that camera out...watch it! She'll be posing left and right :) Wednesday we're having dinner at a local pizzaria for her birthday.

Today has been a rainy/snowy day and I haven't done much at work. Tonight is my oldest niece, Madison's first choir concert since being at the middle school. She always gets so excited for concerts and always wants us to take pictures (or bring her flowers..hehe!). Tommy is going to stay home with Brogan (the child would NOT be able to sit still for a concert like that) while I go with my parents.

I hope you all had a great weekend and a start to a great week!

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Ugh.

2010-02-05T17:45:00.003-06:00

Just a quick post.

I have issues with holding in what I need/want to say to resolve situations; that needs to stop. Tonight actually. My husband made me upset and sorta hurt my feelings and instead of holding it inside, I need to tell him. Without fighting or arguing.

I need some prayer and guidance. I don't need comments on what to do or say. I just need to 'vent' a little. I hate feeling this way and I know it's just a way for Satan to come between us.

Thanks for reading and if you wouldn't mind, say a little prayer on this subject.

Relationships suck sometimes...teasing, of course.

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Girls Day & Auditions

2010-02-05T13:33:00.002-06:00

I'm so looking forward to tomorrow! I get to go to Kansas City with some great girls for a shopping day! It'll just be nice to get out of town for a few hours and have some quality girl time.

Tomorrow is also Tommy's Rent audition! If you would, please say a little prayer for him! I know he'll be amazing but I also know he'll be just as nervous as me :)

Sunday is my Rent audition and like I mentioned before, I'm SO nervous! I've been rehearsing the songs in my head, listening to them at work, and singing them loudly in my car (alone!). I'll probably still be a little hesitant to not hold my music but I've never been one to stare straight down at my music, so that's a good thing! Cross fingers, pray, whatever for me!

I'll be sure to post sometime Sunday (or knowing me, Monday) about the weekend!

Hope you all have a great weekend!!

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Last Day Giveaway!

2010-02-05T08:48:00.002-06:00

Go on over to Design Dazzle to enter in a Lisa Leonard jewelry giveaway! It's definitely something you do not want to miss out on! Plus stick around the Design Dazzle blog for a bit and check out all her adorable ideas!

Good luck!

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Torn

2010-02-02T19:05:00.003-06:00

**Update!** I ended up deciding TO audition! I called this morning and set up a time! So, if you don't mind, say a little prayer that my nerves calm down! I'm not having my heart set on any one part or even making the show, I just know I'll be extremely disappointed if I do not audition.

I guess I'm not so much torn as I am disappointed. In myself and just in general. One of our local community theatres is teaming up with our university, Washburn University, to do the musical RENT. I. Love. This. Show. Like, seriously!!! When I heard they were doing this show, I about died. How amazing would it be to do this show?!?! Tommy is definitely auditioning and I couldn't be more happy for him! I think he'd be amazing in this show and I so hope he gets a part. I have decided that I'm not auditioning. I've been asked by the director (or he asked Tommy) at WU and from the director at Helen Hocker (the theatre) if I'm auditioning. I hate saying no. But right now there is no way I'm ready to have us both possibly be in a show and have Brogan with a sitter all the time. It breaks my heart. But I have to tell myself (and I do know this) that it's just a show AND this is a time in Brogan's life that I won't ever get back. The weather will be getting nice soon, or at least I hope, and we can start playing outside in the evenings!

I know this feeling will go away soon enough...but then I know it'll creep back in again once I go see the show. I don't doubt that WU/Helen Hocker will do an amazing job; I just hate that I won't be a part of it (but I so so so hope my hubbie will be!).

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New Car Seat!!

2010-02-02T16:54:00.003-06:00

As I mentioned in this post, I was in a car accident. And as a result, we have to get a new car seat...a "fully paid for by my insurance" car seat! Silver lining folks!

So...I did a little browsing and these are my top 3 faves! I also found out that the ones I like are on sale at Target but the ad I sent the insurance company was from Babies R Us, that weren't on sale. So another plus is that we will have a little extra money from the insurance check! Which will most likely go to our gas tank...which is fine with me!

I can't wait to 1) get our vehicle back and 2) get Brogan's new car seat! It's the little things in life that make me happy folks!

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The Bach Recap

2010-02-02T15:52:00.003-06:00

As always, my girls and I got together to watch The Bachelor! We met over at Melisa's house this week and just had some take out...and of course vegged on candy till we felt sick!

This is gonna be a shorter Bach post than normal today!

**First one on one was with Tenley! She's definitely our favorite for Jake. They had a great time touring China Town in San Fran. They wrote their own fortunes for their fortune cookies and naturally, they both wrote the same thing...'Kiss Me'! Aaawwww.

**Next was a group date with Gia, Vienna Sausage (vomit), and Jake. They went to an old castle for awkward 3-way conversation and creepiness by Vienna. She made it known that she was going to try to get all of Jake's attention. Michelle might have met her match. This girl is Stage 6 Clinger -- Molly bumped it up last night from stage 5! Hehehe! Gia and Jake snuck away for a little alone time but not for long! Vienna was on the prowl around the castle trying to find them...of course she made a big, dramatic scene freaking out cause 'she was lost'. Girlfriend, there is a WHOLE CAMERA CREW behind you...you're not lost. Vienna snuck up to Jake's room later in the night and tried to seduce him. He said no and mentioned it wasn't fair to Gia that he was spending more time with Vienna.

**Corrie and Jake had a cute date with each other but I think she waited too long to fully open up to Jake. She did confess that she is a virgin and would not even live with a man before they are married, let alone sleep with him. I think this secretly disappointed Jake, as he didn't keep her around this time. Too bad; I was really starting to like her.

**Jake took Ali on a one on one around San Fran, her home town -- not as in 'grew up in' home town, but where she resides as of now. They had some serious convo about how Ali doesn't like Vienna and blah blah blah....you'd think Jake would get it after a while but whatev. They ran in to the ocean with their shoes on and we all couldn't believe she got her ever-so-cute boots wet. I guess it's what you do for love!

**Real quick on the Ali/Jake/Vienna subject. Does Jake not remember the whole Wes/Jillian situation??? Everyone, even himself (cue the scene from The Bachelorette when Jake flew back to tell Jill about Wes...), tried to warn Jillian that Wes was a douche and should go home.

**Vienna said some stupid thing about being her daddy's princess and now she'll be Jake's queen. Vom. IT.

**Jake said that Vienna was sexy. Again, I threw up in my mouth. Obviously, he's been drunk every time he's around her cause that's the only way she'd be remotely attractive.

**Like I said before, Jake sent Corrie packin' and we were SO made he kept Vienna Sausage. SERIOUSLY JAKE!?!?!

Next week is the home town dates and it looks mighty interesting! Vienna's dad says something about treating Vienna as the princess she is, Gia's mom is straight from Jersey Shore, and the other families seem normal. I can't wait to see the drama unfold when a girl leaves early! We all bet it's Gia...

Molly wrote a good recap also...go over to her blog and check it out!

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Bach Night, Hair Apt., & Shopping!

2010-02-01T15:45:00.002-06:00

Here are some things I'm looking forward to this week:

Tonight is Bachelor night and we're meeting at Melisa's house! I cannot wait to see the drama unfold and to spend time with my friends! I think we may order Thai food again...yummy!

Thursday I'm getting my hair done! I got it done a month and a half ago (which is a long time between appointments for me) and it needs something! I'm just going to go back to my normal all over dark color. I need a new cut to spruce up my "growing out my hair" look. I'm seriously sick of putting it back.

And Saturday is a shopping day with my girls in Kansas City! WAHOO! I know for sure I'll look for a cute Valentine's outfit and of course I'll hit up the Carter's outlet for Brogan! I know we'll have an excellent time and I'm ready for some all day girl time!

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10 Years

2010-02-01T11:12:00.004-06:00

In 1 week from yesterday, I will have be 'with' Tommy for 10 years. TEN YEARS PEOPLE! That's a whole lotta years! I know it's cliche, but we had our first real date on Valentine's Day and it also happened to be my first real date EVER. I wasn't the girl guys looked at in high school, that's for sure! But I was lucky enough for Tommy to look at me! We've definitely had our rocky, drama filled moments but we are better because of it! I married my best friend and high school sweetheart. He's truly my Valentine....aaaawwwww!

For our Valentine celebration, we are going to TCT (a local community theatre -- we also participate in shows there) to see Late Night Laughing Matters, the improv group. We are good friends with several people in Laughing Matters and try to go to every LM performace (once every couple months). My mother in law is keeping Brogan over night so we can have time to ourselves! I can't wait! I'd like to do something fun ON Valentine's Day with Brogan but I'm not sure what yet. I'll definitely be making some goodies that day and I might even let my little Bean help me.

Here is a picture of me and Tommy from 'back in the day'. Again, I wasn't a looker so I do apologize!

Whoa. Braces AND glasses...America's Next Top Model!

I just thought he was SOOO hot (and still do, of course!)

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Crafty Queen

2010-01-29T15:44:00.003-06:00

My best friend Molly is CRAZY talented...I like to think of her as a Crafty Queen! She makes tutus, bows, shirts, babies...you name it, she makes it! :)

Love her, love her crafts, love her babies, and mostly...I love that she's my best friend!

(Please visit her blog and see what she's been up to!! You'll love it!)

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