Thankful Challenge, Day 3

Today I am thankful for my parents. :-)

My mom went shopping with me & the boys today. She goes to help "entertain" them so to speak while I try clothes on and such.

My dad always helps with fix it type things, advice & being a great Papa to my little guys.

I LOVE them so so much.

I look forward to this weekend. We are going to a wedding and it should be lots of fun.

Now.

Why is there only ONE entry to the Shutterfly giveaway?! If someone was offering me 25 FREE photocards I would jump all over it.

So, go here and enter the giveaway!

Some randoms..

I mentioned a little bit ago that we have a wedding to go to this weekend. I went shopping today to see if I could find a new outfit. I don't know why. I have enough clothes.(Yeah, right.)

BONES comes back on tonight! YAY! I am so excited.

Leon & Logan are learning so much these days. Leon is talking so much and learning a new word every day. Logan is not talking as much but he is still learning new things. I love them.

I no longer block off the kitchen from our living room. I was doing it because there is a step there and I didn't want the kids getting hurt on it. Well, now.. they figure out how to get around it or climb over it. Logan fell over the chair that was blocking it and got a nice boo boo on his forehead. Now it's wide open and they feel so freeeee! :-)

Since my husband hasn't installed the locks on the cabinets like he's said he was gonna do for months I will do it tonight. I got a drill. I will learn how to use it.

Winter is almost here.

Anyways,
I have a lot of cleaning to do so..

What are you thankful for?

Thankful Challenge, Day! & Giveaway!

Welcome to Day 2 of my “I’m thankful” challenge. I say challenge because it’s going to be quite a challenge for me to blog everyday.

Today I am thankful for our jobs. Mine & Leons. Granted, I only work 3 days a week. But not only does that give us extra money, it pays for our insurance and keeps me sane. I could be a stay at a home mom.. but I would probably be paying a shrink because I would for sure lose my mind. I am also thankful for my husbands job because without his job we wouldn’t be able to have the things we have. I wouldn’t be able to stay home with my kids 4 days a week. Unemployment is something that is very high in our state (& nation!) and it is NOT something we want to have to deal with. So for that my friends? I am thankful!

What are you thankful for today?

Next topic.

Who wants 25 FREE Photocards from Shutterfly?! Have you heard of Shutterfly? I got the twins first Birthday invites from there. See?

They turned out so good. I have some photobooks from them. They ship fast and their work is awesome! I want to give my readers a chance to use Shutterfly. So, all I ask is you either sign in using your Google Friend Connect or if you have a blog using Blogger and follow me! Then leave me a comment and tell me which occassion you will use the 25 FREE cards on! (hello, Christmas?!)


Find me on Facebook if you are having trouble leaving a comment and I will help.

Also, there will be a shipping charge. You have til next Wednesday (the 9th) to enter! I will choose a winner (randomly of course) on the 10th!

Good luck!

And..

What are you thankful for?

Happy Tuesday ya’ll! Oh, and Happy November!

I usually have so many things that I want to write about while I doing stuff through the day then when I sit down and open Blogger, I can NEVER remember.

Sucks.

I am going to TRY (I reallllly am) to blog every single day in November. Since Thanksgiving is in November and it is afterall a day for giving thanks, I am going to write about something I am thankful for. Of course, I will have other topics thrown in because for some reason I can never stay on topic.

So, today? I am Thankful (yes, I capitalized it) (yes, I know it shouldn’t be) for my two healthy baby boys. Since becoming apart of the blogging world, I have read many (MANY!) stories. I follow peoples lives. (A little weird, yes?) There are many moms out there just like me. There are some moms out there that blog because it helps them to cope. Some moms whos babies/children have gotten their angel wings much to soon. You get drawn in. Your heart feels heavy. You wish there was something you could for them. And that, folks? Is why I am thankful for Leon & Logan and their health.

When I open my Internet in the morning I sign on to Facebook. (Who doesn’t?) Then? Blogger. I have a long list of blogs I read. Some of them are just moms like me who like to document their children and growing up, some are telling their journeys through trying to conceive and being pregnant, some (like I said earlier) just wanna write about their feelings for losing their child, and some are just artsy blogs. They are all good. 

Next..

Halloween. Everyone knows (no? well…) I hate Halloween. It’s a sour topic for me. I wasn’t going to even take the boys out, I wasn’t gonna buy them a costume… My cousin (their Godmother) decided to buy them costumes. I am so happy she did. They rocked those costumes for 3 days straight. Leon was a Blue Crayon and Logan was a Red Crayon. They were so cute. My decision to take them out was solely based on the fact that they would love being outside, love seeing the other kids, love being in the wagon & it would get me out of the house too. Oh, and free candy! (Duh)

Anyways, my cousin brought her little girl over who is 6 months older then L & L. We loaded them up in the wagon and started walking around. Before long, they were all out of the wagon begging for candy with the best of them. They picked up on the whole concept pretty quick. Leon was running for the next house. Funny thing is, I don’t ever give my kids candy. Like MAYBE they get a sucker when they are getting their hair cut. So for the life of me I can’t figure out how they know that candy is the good stuff. Anyways, before long Logan was throwing a fit. He didn’t wanna walk, he didn’t wanna be held, he didn’t wanna be in the stroller.. until I gave him a sucker that is. He was all stretched out in the wagon, feet kicked back, arm hanging over the edge, lollipop in his mouth.. yelling “GO!” everytime Jordan stopped the wagon. Towards the end, both kids were laying in the wagon all bundled in blankets. They wanted to be home, and so did I!

The night ended with a little cuddling on the couch with my 2 favorite guys. We watched some Mickey. Drank some milk. Maybe shared a little Reeses Cup.

Their second Halloween was pretty good.

OH! Come back tomorrow for the deets on my giveaway!! 25 FREE photocards from Shutterfly! :-)

 (They did NOT want to stand still for a picture, can't you tell?!)

 (Yes, we rock red jammie pants under a blue suit- what of it!?)

 (Leon eating a tootsie pop)

 (All 3 babies)

(A little closer)

What are you thankful for?

blurbettes

What's up people?

Warning: This is so RANDOM, yo.

I have two sick toddlers right now. Guurrr.

Leon has been at the docs (ER once) for his asthma. And now Logan is having breathing troubles. Poor kids. I can hear them wheezing from another room. They are both on breathing treatments every.4.hours. OMG.

Remember that Halloween party I said I wasn't sure if I wanted to go to or not? Well, we went. I went to Halloween City and bought Leon a costume. It was pretty funny. I just bought a cat mask and wore it like 2.5 seconds for 2 pictures and then took it off. I couldn't see without my glasses and I couldn't wear them with the mask.

On Sunday, I took the boys to my aunts house and we visited for awhile. :-) That was nice. She hasn't seen the twins in quite some time. After that visit we had to go to my cousins baby shower. We laughed a lot. I love seeing the girls in my family! We are a hoot. :-)

I am going to be doing a giveaway around here for 25 free photocards from Shutterfly. I LOVE Shutterfly. I am in no way affiliated with them. They didn't ask me to do this. I am not quite sure how I will do it yet, but look around next week for more details!

I reallllly wanna go to the pumpkin patch this weekend. I hope its nice out so we can go.. and at least get a couple pumpkins.

WHY oh WHY do people keep asking me when the boys are "gonna have a little sister?!" Um, scuse me? My plate is plenty full right now with 2 TODDLERS running around here and pushing every.single.button. this mommy has. IF I decide to have another baby(ies) I will let you know. k? thankyouverymuch.

Ooh I am hosting an online Scentsy party! PLEASE help a sista out and go here and order something. Scentsy is sooooo awesome. I just love it and can't wait to fill my house with all of the yummy scents. :-)

Who are you roitng for on DWTS? I just love love love Rob & Cheryl.. I have a feeling JR or Ricki is (are?) gonna win. I was bummed when Carson went home. He was so funny.

Here are some pictures:

 (The twins with Karissa & I)

 (Thw twins with their cousins C & C)

 (Karissa, Ava & myself at the babyshower)

 (The boys at Aunt Hopes)

 (Leon taking his breathing treatments.. he usually screams bloody murder, but today he held it.)

So what's new with you guys?

Would you be up for a giveaway??!

Halloween

I am not a big fan of Halloween. I never have been. When I was little my uncle used to take me trick-or-treating and I was always bashful & never wanted to go to the door. I would go up in a group of kids and just hold my bag out. I couldn't bring myself to ask for candy from a stranger. So anyways, my point.

I have been getting asked like every day what I am dressing the boys as. Truth is? I am not dressing them up. I didn't dress them up last year either. I have 2 main reasons why I am not dressing them up. One- I am not spending a small fortune on something they will wear for 2-3 hours and probably hate. Two- They aren't going trick-or-treating. I mean yeah, I could load them up in the stroller and take them trick-or-treating but why would I? They can't eat candy and they aren't going to be doing the work. I am. I will be the one asking for the candy.. when if you remember I said- I don't do that! :-)

When the twins are older they can decide if they want to go trick-or-treating. I will not take them before they are ready and know what Halloween is all about.

(Disclaimer: If you take your little babies out and dress them up I am not bashing or saying it is wrong in any way! I promise. It's just not for us.)
I dressed up a couple years for Halloween. That was the first time since I can't even remember. I bought some $20 wizard costume from Walmart. Leon got a mask and a cape and was the Scream guy. We only did that because we had a party to go to where costumes were mandatory..

And now? We are in the same coat. We have 2 parties to go to within the next two weekends where we have to dress up. Do I just bail on the parties because I don't want to buy costumes or do I suck it up because L wants to go and he wants to dress up.

Okay so now for the REAL reason I hate Halloween.

MichaelFreakingMyers.

Ok, I might be a little embarrassed to admit that the sole reason I hate Halloween is because of a stupid movie killer but really? The guy FREAKS ME OUT!! And the music? Please God no. And not just him. Freddy, Jason, Chainsaw guy, etc.. I am not a scary movie person by any means. I hate being scared. I hate when things jump out at me. I hate being chased. I can't even put my windsheild wipers on full blast without my heart racing.

(Theres my confesstion I am not proud of...)

So... I have been to a few haunted houses in my day. Not because I wanted to go. But because some friends were going and asked me to go. And here's how those times went.

The first time I went with 2 girlfriends (Tam are you reading!?) Since this was my first time (A haunted house virgin?) I didn't know that if you acted like you were afraid the monsters (yes, monsters) would keep coming after you and getting in your face. Well..the second I saw *Ahem* *HIM* I freaked out. I couldn't breathe! I marched my sassy little self to the apple & cider table and waited for my friends to be done. HE stalked me the whole night. When we got back to a friends house she made it known to her family that I was so freaked. We got back and they all plotted to scare me SOME MORE. They succedded. I stomped my feet like a little baby and left. I regret that now because I know they were only joking and trying to have some fun.. but still!

I went back to that Haunted House place the next year. I went with some guy friends from work. I think I scratched some people, ripped some shirts, and even choked someone?

I went with those same guys to another HH in Pontiac Mi that is the largest and scariest HH in the state. You guys, it was 4 freaking floors of monsters. One monster heard a friend of mine and myself talking and he heard me say that I hated Michael. I think at one point my friend mentioned my name because all the monsters were screaming for Michael to get "Cheryl".. it was humiliating and so scary. THEN they locked me and another in a room full of monsters and told us to find our way out. That sucked.

I also went to Halloweekends at Cedar Point once. I was okay with this place because I could avoid the scary places. My husband had to literally pick up my cousin Karissa and carry her away when she saw Freddy.

So..

Those are all the reasons why I hate Halloween. Now that I have written an essay, do you like Halloween? Why or Why not? Here is a pic from last Halloween when the lil ones were still.. little.

I'm bacccck.

Ok, so really I haven't been gone that long. My laptop battery and powercord went to crap so I didn't have these things for several days. I have finally caught up on my blog readings and will start posting again. First though, I do have to say that something very unfortunate happened in my family on October 8th. My cousin, Kenny, only 34 years old, went to be with Jesus. It was unexpected.

Due to this unfortunate event we took the twins on their first long trip overnight. I'll talk more about that in a bit. We also stayed in a hotel. This is not the first time they have spend the night in a hotel but kind of is? If that makes sense. When they were like 1 month old we had to stay in a hotel because it was 8000 degrees and we had no power from the storms. BUT this time was a little different. They were in a unfamiliar place that didn't have much room for two toddlers & waaayyy to much stuff.

However, they did awesome on the drive there and back.

So, here's how our trip played out.

Saturday morning (10/15) we woke up at 5:30 to get showered and load the car. At 6:30 I woke Leon and Logan up. I changed their dipes, put clean jammies (so they would be comfy), fed them some grub and put them in the car. With some unplaned stops and such, we got there about 11:40. Thankfully our hotel was able to get us checked in early. We got in, unpacked, changed and left again. We had to meet at my aunts house at 1:00 so we could follow my parents to the memorial.

Leon & Logan cried. And they cried. A LOT. There were a lot of people that they didn't know at the memorial service. People wanted to hold them. They were just not used to that. The memorial service for my cousin was beautiful. Thankfully there was a nursery at the Church so hubby stayed in there with the boys. There was a monitor on the whole time so he could hear the service. We weren't able to stay for the lunch because the boys were ready to go and nap.

We went back to the hotel and changed. Then we went and got some dinner. There was a bunch of family at my aunts house that I don't see very often so we went to see them. Actually, some that haven't even met Leon and Logan. When we got there the boys were in a better mood thankfully! They played a lot. :-)

After that, we took the boys swimming in the indoor pool at the hotel. That was nice.

Then!! Get this. The twins actually slept all night. I thought we would have issues being in a hotel, them both sleeping in pack and plays, the long day, etc.. but they did great.

Okay, so Sunday.

I had plans (since I knew we were going north) that we would go walk the dock on the water and go to the beach. I knew it would be cold but we were only gonna be out there for a minute. I wanted to get some pics. But when we got there... that wind was something fierce. So instead we just walked around the playground near the beach and let the boys (and us) play for a little bit. I got some good pics there.

Right before the drive home we stopped by my uncles house. He had never met the kiddos either so since we were there we stopped.

That was our weekend. It was busy, sad, nice, happy.. everything.

I have some more posts I've been thinking of writing so I'll probably be here everyday for the next week or so writing! :-)

Here are some pics :-)

 (Daddy and boys)

 (Mommy and Leon)

 (Mommy and Logan)

 (The boys & I)

(The boys and I again...)

Thursdays Top 10

I am going to start something new today. Thursday Top 10 can be any topic I feel like writing about. I usually always write Top 10's when the year is coming to an end. On Myspace I used to do it every week. I got a lot of comments on them, so here we go.

Top 10 favorite things about TODAY:

10.  The TIGERS are playing right now against the Yankees in the Playoffs! Let's go Tigers, eat em up!

(The twins have on their Tiger gear here! My future ball players!)

9. Today I bought some new (different) things for the boys to eat. They are so picky so I am trying to new things.

8. The Ellen Show was so funny today! Derrick & Ricki from DWTS were on. Love them.

7. Oh, I got my hair cut today. It's really short. I love it though!

6. As I was taking a shower, baby Leon came walking in with his rubber ducky & fish. He thought he was going to take a shower with me lol

5. I got more followers on Twitter (What can I say? Today was not eventful and pretty much sucked besides these things lol)

4. Last night (yes, it's considered today because it was after midnight) Leon and Logan slept all night. FINALLY. We have been having mad issues with this.

3. My chicken I had for lunch was yummy.

2. My house has been somewhat clean today :-)

1. KELLY! I had lunch with Kelly today! I've missed her. It was so nice to catch up. And she did the nicest thing. Not one person has ever did this. She said..

She wants to come get the twins on Sunday and spend time with them. And give me time to myself! I mean, if I ask my mom to, she usually watches them... but for someone to offer. Blows my mind. I am so grateful for friends like her.

That is all. See you soon.