The Story of 5

Our first snow day here!

2012-02-13T16:23:00.000-06:00

We got our first "real" snow last night! I think we had a dusting before, but this time, all the local schools were closed! I love a good snow, stay at home all kind of day!

Jenna had so much fun this year. Everything seems to just get better and better with her. I think this is the most fun she's ever had out playing in the snow. So much fun, that we went outside 3 different times!

(the snow angels were completely her idea!)

I thought it would be a fun day to try out some of our pinterest activities. So, the second time we went outside, I filled up a couple of spray bottles with water and food coloring. Jenna had fun trying to "paint" the snow.

And on a similar note, she also painted her goldfish bread. This one just involves a tiny bit of milk and food coloring. Afterwards, we put them in the toaster and then she ate it!

And we also got her Valentines ready for her school party tomorrow! She chose Veggie Tales at Hobby Lobby the other day. Last year, we did those really cute photo valentines. I should have also put a piece of candy on these too - oh well, didn't think about it. So, we are going the super easy way this year. (She also had to make a box, but it's already at school.)

It's been a fun snow day, but one day is all I need! I'll be ready to get out again tomorrow!

10 on 10 - February 2012

2012-02-13T13:52:00.010-06:00

10 pictures for the 10th of the month.....just a few days late. :)

So, last February 10th, we were headed to Joplin for JM's interview. I remember driving around thinking that we weren't really going to live here. Hahahaha :) Anyway, yes, it has been better than I ever thought, and it's just one of those funny things to think about now.

Jenna watching Max in the morning.

It was an Uggs wearing kind of day. And I do think they are a bit hideous, but they are so warm and cozy!

Usually on Fridays when we are able to, I've been giving Jenna the choice of going to open play at our local gymnastics or the bounce house by our house. She chose the House of Bounce. It was so fun, because she ended seeing a few of her friends there too! AND, that is one thing that is nice about Joplin - just casually running into people like that would never happen in KC.

After a fun 2 hours at the bounce place, we came back home for lunch.

My favorite lunch lately. (And with chips or something else.)

I spent a few hours cleaning out this ice mess in our freezer. I thought I could try and clean it out and see if I could figure it out. I think it's either the door won't close all the way or maybe a leak from the ice maker. Anyway, it's already starting to build up again, so I'm guessing we are going to have to call a repairman soon. Oh, the joys of having your own house.

(And don't know why this one won't rotate.) After the cleaning, I did a fun little online shopping at Sephora using the gift card JM got me from Christmas.

I noticed that Jenna got quiet and Sophie was missing - which usually means trouble for Sophie. And yep, I was right. She put the leash on her so she wouldn't get away from her. Smart Jenna - poor Sophie.

Jenna spent the night at my mom's. Sophie always goes into a mini depression when we get our bags/suitcases out. She always, always either tries to get in it or stands right by it, as if to say, "Don't leave me!!"

And JM and I got to go on a fun little date night. We went to a Thai food place and I got pineapple fried rice with shrimp. Seriously so good. This is me playing with my leftovers. :)

And that was our February 10th of this year! Can't believe the difference a year makes! :)

Our Disney World trip 2012!!!

2012-02-06T20:14:00.007-06:00

Soooo.....a few weeks ago, I mentioned in this post about how awesome my husband is. Well, it's because he surprised us with a Disney trip!!!! Well, we had been talking about going to Disney for a few months before this, but we kept wavering on it. Well, one morning he just decided to book the tickets himself!

So, we went from last Sunday until this last Saturday. It was Jenna's first plane ride too! On Sunday, we got there close to 8 and they were having extra magic hours in the Magic Kingdom until 1 am! So, we went - I didn't think we would stay the whole time, but we managed to stay until around 12:30! Craziness! I definitely don't think Jenna has ever been out that late before and I probably can't even remember the last time I stayed up til 12:30 a.m.!

So, John Michael took around 800 photos and managed to narrow it down to around 525! Still, a bit overwhelming for me. So, I put the main ones into collages. There are tons more I could probably share, but I don't want to make this too obnoxious. He also has plans to make a photo book.

I, of course, have to post the stereotypical stand in front of the castle picture. :)

We stayed at one of the Disney resorts - Pop Century. And funny thing, Jenna actually learned the word "pop" while we were there! We stayed in the 60's looking hotel - they had different buildings with different decade themes. And yes, the weather was absolutely gorgeous when we were there. Jenna and JM went swimming twice at night. (I prefer to swim when there is sun shining down on me.)

Some of the other characters we met (besides the princesses.) I definitely think one of Jenna's favorite things was seeing all of the characters and princesses! Rapunzel and Tiana were the only ones we didn't get to meet. We saw a ton!

We did 2 of the character dining events. This one was with the princesses at Akershus banquet hall. When we arrived, Jenna immediately got to meet Belle and they printed out pictures of us with Belle to take home. A little bit later, all of the princesses came around to each table. And afterwards, they had a princess parade around the restaurant. Yes, I know Jenna was definitely in heaven with this!

This was the other character lunch we did. It was at Hollywood Studios. These are the Disney Jr. characters. They also came to the table and then every 15 minutes they would do a song together.

We saw plenty of shows! We saw Beauty & the Beast, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Disney Jr. puppet shows, and Philharmagic show. They were all really great in their own way, but JM and I both agreed that The Lion King was by far the best performance. I have a few videos I took on my phone that I may try to post to YouTube later. And Jenna also really loved the shows. It was fun just to watch her stare in amazement at them. It was probably the most she sat still the entire time!

And another favorite thing we did was the Bibbiti Bobbiti Boutique. Jenna's fairy godmother was Sheri and she was by far the best one there. She kept talking to Jenna and was so good with her. Later on that afternoon, they had a princess parade and Ms. Sheri kept talking to me and telling me how much she enjoyed Jenna and how she thought she was such a special little girl. (I'm sure she may tell that to everyone, but I just thought that she was really nice!)

We had a great week together. It was our first real big family vacation all together and it was definitely much needed! I'm so glad we finally took the plunge to just go and do it! And of course, a huge thank you to my very sweet husband for surprising us with this!

Isabel's birthday party

2012-02-05T20:30:00.012-06:00

Last Saturday, we went down to the Tulsa aquarium to celebrate Isabel's 2nd birthday!

My 2 JM's in front of the fish. :)

Jenna with Diane and Isabel. It seriously seems like yesterday that I was going to Diane's baby shower. Can't believe Isa is already 2!

And just a super cute one of their fam together.

And this one just cracks me up....This is what happens when you try to get a group picture! Jenna, Hannah, and another little girl were some of the oldest kids there and you can see them "trying" to cooperate. JM stood there for awhile trying to get them all to stand there, but I finally just told him to just take a picture - and well, this is it. :) ha!

I think she liked her cake.

Her pretty cake. It came from the same place we got our wedding cake from!

Does this banner look slightly familiar??? :)

The cute little gift bags that Diane made.

We had a great time! Thanks for inviting us!

And on the very next day, we took Jenna on her first ever plane ride to a very special place.....A blog on that coming soon....:)

Jenna's interview about Mommy

2012-02-01T13:19:00.000-06:00

I saw this on someone else's blog, so I am completely just copying the questions. Just being honest here, ha! ;)

1. What does Mommy always say to you?
Love you! (aww!)

2. What makes Mommy happy?
When I clean my room up.

3. What makes Mommy sad?
When I don't clean my room up.

4. How does Mommy make you laugh?
Tickle me!

5. What was Mommy like as a child?
I don't know. (And then she started listing her toys that she thought I'd like.)

6. How old is Mommy?
20!

7. How tall is Mommy?
30 feet

8. What is Mommy's favorite thing to do?
To work on the computer

9. What does Mommy do when you're not around?

Go to Target. (Yep, she knows me so well.)

10. If Mommy becomes famous what would it be for?

For being stylish. (I don't think she understands what famous means, nor the word stylish.)

11. What is Mommy really good at?
catching butterflies in your hand (????)

12. What is Mommy not good at?
hide and seek

13. What does Mommy do for her job?
"You don't do a job, mommy."

14. What is Mommy's favorite food?
spaghetti (again, ???)

15. What makes you proud of Mommy?
For sleeping in my bed. (Again, doesn't understand the question.)

16. If Mommy were a princess, who would she be?
Cinderella....Or Belle...Or Aurora, maybe Aurora!

17. What do you and Mommy do together?
play dollhouse

18. How are you and Mommy the same?

We have the same clothes and pants on. (As she is wearing her princess dress.)

19. How are you and Mommy different?

"Let's do this later."

20. How do you know Mommy loves you?
TO THE MOON AND BACK!!!!! (yes, she yelled it!)

21. Where is Mommy's favorite place to go?

Fazoli's

A few of my favorite things....

2012-01-30T14:07:00.000-06:00

Here are a few of my favorite things right now. I love looking at other people's favorite things list, so I'm thinking of trying to do this monthly. We shall see if I do....but, here are some of my favorite things from January 2012.

My newly organized pantry shelf. I should have taken a before picture because this shelf was a total mess. I love my new chevron containers from Target. Just adding a shelf and containers created so much more room! I still have more I'd like to organize - but baby steps, right!?!

In an effort to work on my 2012 goals, I bought this fabulous cake milk made, hand and cuticle scrub from Sephora. It really does an amazing job leaving your hands so soft! I love it!

When we were hanging out with Whitney on New Year's, she told me about these little Mio liquid bottles. You just put a few drops in a glass of water. I'll do anything to try and figure out how to drink more water so I gave them a try. And they are also a winner! My favorites so far are Strawberry Watermelon and Peach Tea.

And ugh...I should have never bought these over the Christmas season. I don't think I have ever had Lindt Lindor truffles before, but now they are going to be a definite splurge every once in awhile. So yummy!

And finally, my cute polka dot purse organizer. I found it on sale at Charming Charlie's and wasn't really sure if I'd like it or not, but I loved the polka dots so I bought it anyway. And the verdict is that I do love it! I love being able to have everything in one spot and taking the whole thing out of my purse at one time. I love all the little pockets around it - perfect for snacks for Jenna, Aleve, lipgloss, pens, etc... In the middle I have my wallet and zipper pouch with cards.

So that's it for January. Do you have any current favorite things??

Joplin moving forward

2012-01-27T21:51:00.004-06:00

It seems like there is a lot going on with Joplin lately, so I thought I would just blog a list of all that I know of lately.

1.) This pic is from JM's cell phone. Tonight the hospital had a memorial for the staff. At the end, they gave the staff a marble cross - the marble is from the hospital that they were able to save and give everyone a piece. On Sunday, they are having their public ceremony to start knocking down the hospital and then breaking ground on the new location.

2. The Joplin Humane Society is supposed to be on the Nightly news on Sunday. I think it's supposed to be about their sponsor program which is what Jenna and I did here.

3. Today, Academy Sports and Payless opened their newly re-built stores. Academy let 40 students have a little shopping spree before they officially opened. (More on that here.) And of course, these stores joined several others that have been opened and a few more that are still in the process of re-building on the same street.

4. The Will Norton memorial field has received several donations and they will be building soon. This will be a sports field for kids with disabilities. More on this story here.

5. Homes of Hope and Habitat for Humanity have started building other homes for families.

I'm sure there may be a few other stories out there I might be missing, but these are the main ones I've heard about. When we came the week after the tornado, I blogged here about the amazing spirit of the people here. Well, 7 months later, it hasn't stopped one bit.

At tonight's hospital ceremony, they played the song, "Blessings" by Laura Story. What a perfect fit. (Lyrics here.) Because out of that absolutely heart-wrenching, devastating, terrible night of May 22, so much good has come from it. Be thankful in every circumstance.

Whitney's Teacher of the Year Party!

2012-01-24T13:20:00.007-06:00

I first met Whitney in 2004 (I think?). We were both brand spankin new first grade teachers and we were across the hall from each other. Because of her drive and insane amount of energy (ha!), I knew right away that she was going to be a great teacher.

A few weeks ago, I got a call from one of the other teachers saying they were going to throw her a surprise celebration instead of their usual Monday faculty meeting. So of course, Jenna and I drove down for it yesterday.

They had a sewing theme because Whitney is also very crafty. The little pink dots on the cake are supposed to be buttons. The banner says, "Whitney, we are sew happy for you." They gave her a pink basket of sewing supplies and a Michael's gift cards!

Paula, Whitney, and Deann - the kindergarten team. I was also on that same team what now feels like forever ago! Paula and Deann are also great - I think the kindergarten team is still the best to work with!

Jenna was so excited for Whitney. And want to know how you tell if you have a true friend?? They really care about your child. You can't be friends with me if you don't like Jenna. Sorry, we are a twofer. :)

All of the faculty in the art room. There were so many people I didn't know.

A cute one of us. :)

Afterwards, we went down to Whitney's room. She has such a cute room. That bathtub used to be mine in my reading center.

Anyway, a huge Congrats to Whitney! You are an amazing teacher and you definitely deserve the honor!

Jenna's fashion friday!

2012-01-20T17:26:00.000-06:00

I know…I haven't done a Jenna FF post in a long time! But, it's really because I haven't been buying her clothes and I have nothing new to post. However, I do have these 2 outfits that I thought I better put up before I forget!

Hanna Andersson's playdress set. I love these. I actually like them more on the younger crowd, so I don't know how much longer she will be wearing them for. But it's seem like such a comfy (and cute!) outfit!

I love this next one as well. From Gymboree's Growing Flowers line. Also, I only paid around $15 for the whole outfit. I was with a couple of other moms one time in Gymboree, and they were all talking about how way too expensive it is. Once again, you have to know how to shop there and when to buy stuff.

And sadly, that's all I've got to post now. I'm not sure I'll be buying her anymore long sleeved/pants - I'm much more in spring/summer buying mood! So, with that said, it might be awhile before our next FF post!

Pastries with Pops day

2012-01-19T20:28:00.000-06:00

Today was a Daddy's day at Jenna's pre-school. The dads brought the kids in and had doughnuts and juice with them. And in true John Michael fashion, he made sure to get pictures. :)

They all gave them this rock that says, "My pop rocks." Jenna painted it with glitter. And that is also the first time I'm seeing this picture of her and it's so much better than her last year's school picture! But, geez…doesn't she look like such a big girl?

She got to be the flag helper today.

And then they did this little dance that JM got a video of - but not sure how to post it here, so you get the picture instead. And yes, look at that class - They are now up to 7, (yes, SEVEN!!) boys and only 2 girls. Last year, I think it was the opposite for Jenna's class in that they had more girls than boys.

I'm glad JM was able to attend! (and photograph it as well!) :)

January Birchbox plus my random 10 list

2012-01-18T13:46:00.007-06:00

1. Last night, I heard Jenna taking a few pictures. Today, this is what I found on my phone. Rows and rows of Max in the Dining room. She really loves to take pictures, and I don't mind, it's just annoying when it clogs up your photo stream since you can't delete those.

2. I am still obsessed with owls. Why are they so darn cute?? Anyway, I got this cute necklace from one of my favorite places - Francesca's!

3. Oh, and speaking of necklaces, remember my Christmas wish list post? Well, I did get the necklace from The Vintage Pearl (and a cake ball maker.) JM got me the necklace and my mom got me a gift certificate there. Anyway, I finally got the necklace on Saturday but it came with a mistake. JM contacted them and he heard back from them on the same night (a weekend!) and they will be sending me out a new one soon. Anyway, it's really cute and they do seem like a great company! And I can't wait to use my gift certificate to get another one!

4. I'm currently reading this book - MWF seeking BFF. It's just ok, but I picked up because I feel like I can completely relate to it. Maybe it comes with moving, but I feel like I'm always on the lookout to make new friends. Now, yes, I do have 2 really great friends that I would call my BFF's, but it would be nice to have someone in the same town too. It is a true story and she blogs here, if you are interested in checking it out. There are some really interesting facts about needing friendship on there.

5. My January Birchbox! I'm still loving these boxes! They are so fun! In this one, I got a full size Stila eyeliner, skin concealer, skin serum, moisturizer, and a disgusting fruit bar. Now, I was a bit bummed that I got 3 skin products in one box - I would have like a bit more variety. BUT, In saying that, these are really great products! The fix serum and the moisturizer are over $100 for the full size products! Now, I think that is just crazy, and I'll never buy that, but it's nice to get to try a sample size! The Larabar was completely awful - I tried a bite and just had to throw it away. Also, the stila eyeliner is $20 for a full size, so I think that completely makes this box worth the $10. For more details on birchbox or to join, click here.

6. So, did you all watch the Extreme Home Makeover - Joplin show on Friday?? I let Jenna stay up and watch it with us because I wanted her to see that she was there. I tried to tell her people from all over the world were watching this show, but I'm guessing she can't fully grasp that concept yet. On Monday, Jenna and I went to the new Cunningham park and she did talk about seeing it on tv, which was neat. Anyway, we thought it was a really great show. It's funny to see how much editing goes into it. Remember this post I did with me and Paul Demio? We could not believe how much shooting they did at the humane society and then literally only showed a 2 second clip. It just seems like such a waste.

7. Many months ago, I blogged about a new coke machine video that I saw. Well, I feel the need to update you all that our new Wendy's has one! I know, exciting stuff, right?!? But, it means another place to get my favorite - Cherry Vanilla Coke! :)

8. So today at MOPS, one of the speakers said something about how when your husband comes home and asks you about your day, all you (stay at home moms) have to tell him is about is other people's facebook status updates. Yep, thought that was just me! But apparently, everyone in the room was agreeing. And you know what one of the first things I told JM today was about? Yep, without even thinking about this morning, I did it again. ha. Anyway, just thought that was funny and SO true!

9. A lot of my pinterest recipes have been total fails lately. Anyway, I did make this hamburger soup and it turned out pretty good! We are having the leftovers tonight and I think it will go down as something to make again! (Be warned - if you click on the link, it has music. That drives me nuts.I don't like websites with music at all.)

10. So in an effort to get to #10, (because you know, that also drives me crazy when I can't even it out to a perfect 10) - well, I asked JM if he had anything to share. Apparently, his big news of the day is that he is excited about renting some kind of a tripod from an online site. Yep, that's really exciting stuff.....:) And of course, this makes #10, so I had to post it. :)

1st Daddy-Daughter day of 2012!

2012-01-16T16:09:00.006-06:00

On Sunday, Jenna and her daddy had a fun day out together. I stayed home, worked on my Project Life album, read, cleaned up a bit and just enjoyed the time by myself!

Getting ready to go

They went to church first and then afterwards McDonald's for lunch!

And the main reason of the day together - To go watch the new Beauty and the Beast movie!

Jenna was very excited about getting the popcorn. She kept talking about it the night before! (Funny because we have several packs of popcorn here and she hasn't wanted it in a while - guess it's just not the same as movie popcorn, though!)

After the movie, they went to Chuck E Cheese to just play.

I think they both had a great time. I'm thankful that they get to spend some one on one time together. JM came home saying how worn out he was from following her around all day. Yep.....I know about that. ;)

John Michael's Mercy Clinic Hospital video

2012-01-12T13:22:00.003-06:00

A few months ago, we went to St. Louis for John Michael to appear in some videos for the hospital. Here is one of them. (I think there is still a commercial they are working on?) Anyway, watching this video just makes me love him even more.

Confessions.....

2012-01-11T12:45:00.002-06:00

1. Thank you to all who sent me sweet comments on my last random post about the not blogging and trying to have another baby part. That means a lot to me. Ok, and I know this one isn't really a "confession."

2. So, here's my baby confession - I do get a teensy little bit bitter every time I hear someone else announce another pregnancy. Of course, I'm happy for them. It's just really hard, as I've already said before.

3. I'm so glad I didn't give into the hot Christmas toy - the leap pad. So, so, glad. I think it would have just been a waste around here and I honestly prefer Jenna playing with her dolls and kitchen set while she is still little.

4. Sometimes when I ~~stalk~~ look people up on facebook, I have to try really hard to not accidentally hit the friend request button. (Did I really just admit that?? Yes, I did....Ok, someone please tell me I'm not the only one here.)

5. I may have just now learned how to use the strikethrough. (~~That's this~~.) I've been meaning to look that up for awhile.

6. It's been a week now and I still haven't taken Max for a walk or really played ball with him. Really feeling awful about that one. Maybe, later today, maybe.......sigh.....

7. My no-spend days are really a lot harder than I thought. However, it's probably a good thing that I have to force myself to get this accomplished.

8. Jenna and I have barely worn our coats at all this season. (I always send her to school with a coat.) But, just getting out and about it hasn't been that cold at all. We've been spoiled lately with this nice weather. Thursday's high is 28 and I don't even want to think about it.

9. I've left Jenna upstairs with a huge roll of paper and tons of art supplies while I came downstairs to do this and a few things on the computer. Kind of scared to go back up stairs and see it.

10. It drives me crazy when I can't think of anything left to say to even this out to a complete #10. 9 seems incomplete.

10 on 10 - January 2012

2012-01-10T18:54:00.012-06:00

Since we are now in the new year, I wanted to try and get back to my 10 on 10 posts. (1o pictures for the 10th of the month.) I was looking through these pictures though, and almost decided not to post them. Just a warning - this is nothing exciting at all. But it is my typical Tuesday and I know years from now it won't be the same, so might as well document it anyway.

But, I did think it would be fun to try something new - I took (for the most part anyway) all of the pictures on the hour.

9 a.m. - Driving Jenna to her pre-school.

10:00 - Cleaning the bathroom. UGH!

11: 00 - Started a new crockpot recipe I found off of pinterest. (It was just ok.)

12:00 - Picked up Jenna from pre-school. She was in quite the silly mood. She also got a cupcake today there too, so that might have had a little something to do with it. ;)

1:00 - Made Jenna help clean up her room. I really need to get more serious on having her pick up on a regular basis, because this is just embarrassing.

2:00 - took a break from the cleaning to go check the mail. Got some fun new catalogs!

3:00 - more laundry, UGH to this one too.

(Ok, Jenna technically took this one, but I thought it was too funny not to include.)

3:45 - Getting ready for Jenna's 4:00 gymnastics class.

5:00 - Time to put on my cute new Forever 21 slippers and enjoy the rest of the night!

So, that's my exciting day in the life! But you know what? I really wouldn't change it for anything.

Madeline's birthday party

2012-01-09T19:35:00.008-06:00

Jenna and I took a fun little girls trip to KC this weekend! (I say girl's trip, because JM stayed home, but she is my little shopping buddy now days!) We went on Friday and spent the night. On Saturday, Madeline had her 4th birthday party at PowerPlay. (It's a pizza place with arcades and rides.)

The cute cake Mad's mommy made.

Jenna, Madeline, and Alyssa. They've all 3 known each other since babies - It's hard to believe they are 4 now!!

The girls were so funny when it was time for Madeline to open her presents. Jenna kept saying, "C'mon! C'mon!" Poor Madeline couldn't open them up fast enough.

Afterwards, we were able to go play some games and do the rides. Jenna actually wanted to ride this pirate ship. I couldn't believe it, but she loved it and rode it twice.

The group minus Oliver. (And wow, Jenna is really tall.)

Love this one - sweet girls.

We had a great time! I'm glad we were able to go!

Randoms: 1st edition of 2012!

2012-01-04T17:07:00.000-06:00

1. I have the most amazing husband ever. He surprised me with something completely awesome tonight! Nope, not telling yet! :)

2. For the new year, I should probably think of a cuter name for my random posts. Ideas anyone??

3. I finally got my Birchbox for December last week. I got ageless perfume, blinc eyeliner, eboost, benefit professional, show stoppers (double sided tape), and pink lip gloss. The porefessional stuff is really nice. It feels like silk on your fingers and then your makeup just glides right over it. I can't wait to try out the energy boost drink. I'm always in need of more energy! The hot pink lip gloss doesn't actually look hot pink on - it's surprisingly more of a light pink on me. Sign up for Birchbox HERE

4. We went to a fun little pottery place with another mom's group. Out of all the cute things, Jenna really wanted the motorcycle. Sometimes I have to wonder if she's really mine. She also opted out of her favorite colors of purple and pink and chose red and blue for this one. Anyway, it's a cute place and I hope we get to go back sometime!

5. I discovered this clean mama blog thanks to pinterest. It looks like there are some great ideas on there and I'm hoping that, of course, this year I will be more organized and keep a better house. (yes, I'm sure I say something along these lines every year.)

6. Already started working on #8 of my 2012 goals! We finally have something on our dining room wall. I really like it too! I'm also thinking about getting a buffet table to go under it and debating on a rug for under the table.

7. I had to take the dogs to the vet yesterday. I was told that Max needs to lose some weight. I've never put a dog on a diet before! I'm guessing I'll just try and take him on more walks and play ball with him more. Things I should probably be doing anyway.

8.. I struggle with what I should blog about lately. I really wish I could write more and open up a bit more - mostly, about our struggle to have another baby, but I'm just not sure I can. I've learned that being quiet is sometimes the best way to go. And on the flip side, every once in a while I think I should just quit blogging. The right answer would probably be to just keep my own private journal - but I haven't been very good with that either. So there you go, there's my "open up a bit more" moment for you. haha. :)

9. A few people have asked about my selling thirty one. Yes, I'm still an active consultant. I took the pages down at the top and probably won't do my 31 blog posts anymore. If you want to order anything, please just let me know!

10. We made these at MOPS today. About the only time I ever get crafty anymore is at MOPS. They are supposed to be birthday calendars. It's just a big block of wood with scrapbook paper on it. My friend, Aaryn, did hers right - it's the one with the paper on it. I knew I probably wouldn't use it for a birthday calendar, so I thought maybe I could make it into a picture frame for Jenna's room. Mine is the pink one, with the glue all over it and the ric-rac coming off. Yep, told you I'm not too crafty anymore. ;)

11. Sign #23 that Jenna is an only child - You are forced to use the dog as a playmate.

12. OH, did I mention that I have the BEST husband ever???? :)

January 1st!

2012-01-01T21:14:00.007-06:00

Today is January 1st! I love the feeling of a new year and a fresh new start. I'm feeling very optimistic about everything. Here's hoping 2012 doesn't let me down!

For NYE, we had a fun time in Tulsa!

Today Whitney braided Jenna's hair and put cute little ribbons in it. Jenna loved it. I need to learn to braid like this!

Today, JM, Jenna, Whitney, Eli and I all waited an hour just to eat at Cracker Barrel.

Today, we went to Target. I was excited because they still had Christmas stuff left there and it was down to 70% off! (P.S. What happened to the 75??)

Today, we went to a couple of thrift stores. Whitney found this super cute Hanna Andersson dress for her little niece. I do miss my thrift stores and I feel like I'm not as good at it anymore because I definitely overlooked this dress! She also found a few cute White House Black Market dresses for herself too!

Today, we got started on #12 of my 2012 goals! YIPPEE! :)

Today, I'm looking forward to the rest of January. We have a few other fun things coming up that I'm excited about!

Today, January 1st, was a great day! Hoping the rest of the year follows!

12 Goals for 2012

2011-12-30T20:37:00.001-06:00

1. Get a blog makeover. :)

2. Meet more people here. Get involved with something. Volunteer.

3. Do more random acts of kindness.

4. Get my hair done more. Go crazy and get it colored. :)

5. Have people over more.

6. Better cuticles and nails. They are embarrassing and something needs to be done. And you know, maybe I could even get crazier and try to actually paint them something fun.

7. Have 100 no spend days. Yep, days where I don't spend a dime. Can I actually do it??? (0/100)

8. Work on decorating and organizing more. Stop being so indecisive about every little thing and just buy something when I see something I like! Fill up our mantle and built in shelves. Organize and get rid of stuff in the garage and storage closets. Buy a few other things for around the house.

9. Get flowers this spring. Maybe try to spruce up our deck too with a table and pretty potted flowers.

10. Get caught up to date on my blog books. There is really no reason that I can't get this one accomplished.

11. Wear heels at least once. The stiletto kind.

12. Take one family photo of the 3 of us at least once a month.

In 2011....

2011-12-27T16:28:00.006-06:00

1. I kept up with my one line a day journal! (My original post here.) I love this book and it's been so easy to keep up with! I can't wait to be able to now look back and see what I did on the same day last year. So glad I started this. (I also started Jenna's project life book and you can also see that on the post above.)

2. JM finally finished all of his medical training. I've been with him through every step and it was amazing to finally witness the end of it all - the day for years I always wondered if it would really happen! It did! And I couldn't be more proud of him.

3. We bought our first house and moved to a new city! However, our world was turned upside down a week later after putting in the offer on the house, when the tornado happened. We went from completely excited about our future plans to the complete opposite of wondering what we were going to do. Then we visited and got to see the horrible devastation in person - what an eye opening experience it has all been. However, I feel as if I've learned a ton of life lessons through it.

4. We still do not have our baby #2 as well as, I'm not even pregnant. I've been through a range of emotions about this over the past year. It's hard and I definitely wouldn't wish this on anyone. In 2012, we will definitely be pursuing our other options (fertility clinics, adoption...) I just definitely do not feel like our family is complete yet. At least at this point in time, I do feel hopeful that we will get this all figured out.

5. We spent a great week in Florida with Cindy and her family! We had a really great time and I'm hopeful that we can ALL take a trip next year somewhere.

6. Jenna turned 4 and had a great birthday party!

So, these are the main points from 2011. It's been a year full of ups and downs. I'm really hopeful that 2012 is better with more ups! ha! :)

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T19:13:00.009-06:00

Just a few of our Christmas pictures.....

Dropping my aunt off at the airport on the 23rd.

Putting reindeer food out. This was our first time to do this and Jenna loved it. She got it from school, but we will definitely have to keep this up every year.

My mom spent a couple of days with us here. On Christmas eve, we let Jenna open up 3 of her presents and this cute phone was one of them.

Christmas morning. I know, if I was smart, I would have made sure her one pair of Christmas pajamas were washed so she could have worn those.....Maybe I'll get it right next year.

The aftermath of it all. And sad to say, not all of it has even been picked up yet.

AND.....what I'm blogging from now. John Michael got me my very own laptop! Of course, it's an apple product - would you expect anything different from him? He also got me a pink case to go with it! So excited to have my own! :)

And then today, my mom, Jenna and I went out to check the after Christmas sales. I bought this cute ornament tree for our mantle, took it home and discovered that it doesn't fit. Just my luck. I still really like it, so I'll have to figure out another place for it next year. I also got a matching wreath, decorative plate, and some of the basics - like tissue paper, bows, etc....

Anyway, it was truly a great Christmas. This is going to sound odd, but in a way, it kind of felt like our "first" Christmas with Jenna. This year, she truly understood more about what was going on and everything was so magical to her. I wish I could just keep the magic and innocence forever. I've loved experiencing Christmas with a 4 year old!!

Jenna's Christmas Fashion Friday!

2011-12-23T01:58:00.000-06:00

Well, I'm bit sad on this first one, because I thought for sure I had a picture of her full length in this super cute dress. But, never fear, google image search has helped! Anyway, I love this dress. Super cute in my opinion. She wore it with red tights.

Dress: Belk's

And I love that she wore this one 2 years in a row! Remember this one from her Christmas program last year? She wore it as a tunic with her jeggings and boots and a white turtleneck under. I also took the bows off because they kept coming un-done anyway. I'm wondering if maybe she can wear it again next year as a top. And this is what totally makes it worth it to buy cute Etsy stuff!

monogrammed dress: Etsy 2010

I got 2 cute shirts from Kohl's last year on mega-clearance after Christmas. But I remember why I don't like to buy shirts like this - because of our jeans/pants problem. Her other shirt is black and says, "Santa Rocks." I forgot to get a pic of that one as well.

Christmas activities of 2011

2011-12-22T18:49:00.000-06:00

I thought I better blog our Christmas activities, before, you know, Christmas actually gets here in a couple of days. We've been busy! And as I've mentioned before, I'm ready for January! But, I do have to say this is probably the best Christmas ever because Jenna is older and understands more this year and it's a lot more fun!

This was her school's Christmas program. She is still singing the songs in the car and at random times and random places. I keep hearing, "Happy Birthday Jesus, so glad it's Christmas...." over and over. I love it though. After her program, we all went to Chick Fil A (one of her favorite places!)

This is the KC Christmas train. It made it's stop in Joplin a couple of Fridays ago. It started at 4 and I got there at 4:10 and we still had to wait outside in the cold line for an hour and half. Jenna did well at first and then she kept complaining about how cold it was and by that time we had already made it almost to the front, so I didn't want to leave. So anyway, you walk through this train and it's all decorated out for Christmas. It's really cute, but I'm not sure our wait + complaining was worth it for the 10 minutes we were in there. IF we happen to go again next year, I will remember to actually get there BEFORE it starts!

We decided to skip the mall Santa pics this year and we went to the country club with a few of our new friends to see Santa there. We ate brunch, saw Santa, and Jenna did a few crafts.

AND, we also went to Orange Leaf (another favorite place!) to see Santa! She also got to make a cute picture frame there too.

We've had visitors this week. My 2 aunts were here and JM's friend, Amanda, and her boyfriend spent the night with us one night on their route to Arkansas.

Our mall has a carousel and train just for the holidays, so of course, we had to make a special trip there just to go and do that. And since then, we've been back a few more times. :)

The first ride on the carousel. Of course, she chose the pretty pink one.

And this was Jenna's school Christmas party this Tuesday. They wore pajamas and she also got to see Santa there, play games, wrap herself a present, play with play-doh and the little people nativity scene - lots of fun stuff!

Whew! See, what I mean? Busy!!! But, again, it's SO much fun with a 4 year old - Love it and I definitely treasure all of these fun times together! (But, I'm still ready for January.) :)

Happy Birthday Nanny

2011-12-20T21:24:00.000-06:00

I'm pretty sure I blog this year every, so I have to keep it up. Today would have been my grandmother's birthday. I know she would be proud of the person I've become and the mommy I've become to Jenna. I know she would have absolutely loved her. Happy Birthday Nanny.

Random pics + Giveaway!

2011-12-13T20:46:00.000-06:00

My random list is short tonight, but I wanted to go ahead and get all of this up, so I won't get anymore behind than I already am. :)

1. Last week or maybe 2 weeks ago (this is such a crazy time, that I don't remember when anything happens), we had a really fun playdate at Papa John's Pizza. They were incredibly sweet with the kids and each kid got to make their own pizza and then they let them toss dough. Jenna loved doing it all!! Also, that little boy that she is holding hands with is Sam - they are in the same preschool class too.

2. And this picture is here simply because I just love it. She was helping make me pretzels dipped in almond bark. I let her put sprinkles in the almond bark and she probably could have done it for an hour if I let her. Needless to say, we used a lot of sprinkles. :)

3. My mom adopted a dog yesterday from the humane society! He was in a kennel used primarily for breeding purposes and they weren't going to breed him anymore and were going to put him down. So, I'm not sure how exactly he made it to the humane society, but lucky for him he got another chance at life. His name is Happy and I hope he makes her happy! :)

4. And I have a super cute giveaway going on now over at my giveaway blog here. It is for a really adorable set of princess magnets. I think these would make a perfect stocking stuffer too! So go over there and check them out!

Anyway, that's all I got. Told you short and sweet tonight! :)

Christmas traditions….

2011-12-12T18:54:00.000-06:00

Our photos are back to working, so now I need to get caught up on this blog and project life! I have no excuses now! Anyway, I thought I'd share some of our Christmas traditions.

This is our advent calendar. I've had it for a few years but with the last couple of years, haven't had space for it, so we haven't really used it until now. I put starbursts in the doors with the little people. So every day we add a little soldier to the top. (Not sure if you can really tell by the picture?)

The Elf on the Shelf is back. He doesn't really have a name. Jenna said she wanted to name him Brownie but then she will change her mind and she just usually calls him "The Elf." He has been quite the mischievous little guy lately and he's been making so many messes that I'm ready for him to go home! Here are a few of the things he's done - My favorite was the panties on the stocking holders and the drawing on Jenna's face. However, Jenna was not amused by the picture of her. It was quite funny!

I started something new this year! I think I may have seen this idea last year. Anyway, I wrapped all of our Christmas books and bought a few more. I think our count is up to 18 - but a few of those are really baby books that Jenna could do without. So, if you haven't seen this idea, every night Jenna gets to unwrap a book and we read it during bedtime. She loves doing it!

And shopping for our angel tree girl - something we started last year. We will always pick a girl Jenna's age. This little girl's name is

Hailey and she requested Tinkerbell. Jenna also loves shopping for others. I definitely don't think she could possibly comprehend what it really means to shop for the Angel tree people, but I try to talk about things like that all the time with her. Every time we pass by the Salvation Army kettle, I also let her drop a few coins in and again try to tell her what its going for. I just really want her to be giving to others.

I'm also thinking we may start doing a birthday cake for Baby Jesus too on the actual Christmas day. :)

Anyway, it's all fun. Kids make everything a million more times fun.

Insta-Friday

2011-12-09T18:38:00.008-06:00

Hello! It's time for another fun insta-Friday!

JM took some photos of a couple last weekend on this plane. This is how they wanted their Christmas photo.

We got our dogs back from my mom's. She had been keeping them for almost a month just because we had so much going on in November.

My first hot chocolate of the season!

We've had lots of fun with our elf. He's been very mischevious this year though. I will have to post some of the other things he's done too.

Our first dusting of snow in this house!

We got to see some long time friends of ours this week. They were driving through on their way to AR so they stopped by for awhile. We got to finally meet their 6 year old little girl and the girls had a blast together!

And this is my crazy little diva today. She insisted on wearing her sunglasses and then she found this gold sparkly purse that she just loved.

We've been super busy lately. I still have a few other things I need to blog too, but our photo drive isn't working right now. Hopefully soon! Anyway, happy weekend!

Reindeer Crunch Recipe

2011-12-07T15:08:00.009-06:00

I'm linking up over at The Larson Lingo's blog today for her cookie exchange. However, my recipe isn't exactly a cookie! It's called Reindeer Crunch, or I've also heard it called Christmas Crack, but for the sake of trying to keep it more family friendly here, I'll just go with Reindeer Crunch! ;)

So here is what all you need - 1 sleeve Saltine Crackers (I think that's where the Crack name comes from and yes, I know saltines sound a bit weird but it actually works!), 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 cup butter, 1 pkg chocolate chips and optional 3/4 cup chopped pecans.

Bring the butter and sugar to a boil. Stir with a whisk.

Preheat your oven to 400. Line a cookie sheet (with raised edges) with foil. (Yeah, I ran out of foil and the ones on the end stuck.) Spray with pam and line up your crackers.

Pour the butter and sugar mixture over the crackers. You can try to spread it out more evenly than I did. ;) Bake in the oven for 5 minutes.

Spread the chocolate chips over and let it sit for just a minute to melt. Once they start to melt, spread the chocolate out. (I think I also used way too many chocolate chips.)

If you want, you can sprinkle on the pecans and push them down into the chocolate.

Put in the fridge to get hard. After they get hard, you can break the crackers up into smaller pieces and store in an airtight container.

I think these are much better after a few hours. They are very addicting and much better than you might think! :) Also, I think it could be a cute little gift since you break up the crackers. I plan on taking them to a cookie swap on Monday!

My first Insta-Friday

2011-12-02T14:18:00.006-06:00

Now that I have my new phone, I'm loving the Instagram photo app. So, I thought I'd jump on the InstaFriday bandwagon and post a few of my pics, since I don't have a Fashion Friday post and there isn't much else going on. Why not, right?? :)

I finally found a rug that I love, but it's too small. I've been on the hunt for months now. I had one main rule in finding a rug - NO flowers! Do you know how many rugs have some kind of floral design to them? ugh. Found this one and I think the colors go great with our house so I'm just hoping maybe I can find a bigger one.

I love seeing Jenna's imagination at use. She was putting her little princessess in the bus here. I need to remember to take more pictures like this.

And I've started teaching Jenna to read! We've only been at it since Monday night and already she has learned a few words! She loves doing it and I'm kicking myself now for not trying to start her sooner.

And an angry Jenna at the bookstore! :)

My fun little Christmas wishlist....

2011-12-01T03:32:00.000-06:00

I should start this off by saying I clearly don't need anything. I would be totally fine if I didn't get anything. I really just want to buy Jenna stuff. But, I thought it would be fun to just make a little list of things that would be fun to have.

1. I still love my Demdaco magnet board. Right now, I love changing out the magnets for the holidays/seasons. So more new magnets would be fun!

2. I've been wanting a new Jenna necklace. You can see the one I currently have here. I want something bigger. The problem is, of course, I want more kids. (Well, at this point just one more would be nice.) So, do I keep waiting to add their names too? I found this one and it's perfect! Besides being almost Jenna's name, it has the "I love you to the moon" which is what we've been saying to each other.

3. And I really don't know why I want one of these because I don't even cook/bake that much. But I would love to try out the new cake ball maker. I tried making them one time, but I failed miserably, so I wonder if they would turn out in this.

4. And these are just clearly ridiculous, but I love my new Ugg boots. They are so warm and so comfy. So I saw these slippers in a magazine and thought about how nice and warm they would be too.

5. And look at this cute Iphone cases! Love the monogram!

See it's all fun stuff, right?!?!?

What would be on your fun Christmas wishlist?

Another set of 10 Tuesday Randoms :)

2011-11-29T11:33:00.008-06:00

1. I'm in a major decluttering/organizational mood. Too bad I haven't done anything about it yet. ha. Today, I scooted all of our junk to this corner of the garage, which definitely doesn't count as organizing, but poor JM has been parking in the driveway while I park in the garage. And now that it's getting colder, it's becoming more of a necessity for him to also be able to park in here for the mornings.

2. My first ever birchbox!!! I seriously think this may be one of my new favorite things! For $10 a month, you get a box mailed to you every month with samples. I got Oscar Blondi protein spray for my hair, a fancy LaRocca sugar scrub, blue nail polish, Klorane eye makeup remover and a Chocolate bar. If you are interested, you can sign up here!

3. Thanksgiving.....Well, we went to Arkansas to JM's parents house. We got there around 11 pm and at around 5 AM I woke up sick. Missed Thanksgiving lunch. Thankfully, it only hit me for a few hours and then by the next day, I was back to normal. However, my brother in law also got sick the next day while we were there and he wasn't as lucky as I was. Anyway, we had one really pretty day, so we took the kids around the circle on their bikes.

4. And when we got back home from Thanksgiving, our house was a mere 36 degrees. I'm not kidding at all. For some reason, JM thought it would be a good idea to turn the heat completely off. He is very smart, but he clearly was not thinking this idea all the way through. Jenna and I sat by the fireplace for a couple of hours. (Thank goodness for it!) Oh, and we also have a tempurpedic mattress and it turned into a brick. We remembered the guy at the furniture store saying not to get it too cold....well, that must have been exactly why! Thankfully, it also went back to its original state once the heat got going.

5. Molly, the dog that we sponsored, got adopted on Saturday. I'm so happy for her. I really hope she is with a good family and they love her and keep her!

6. Jenna had gymnastics today. I asked her what her favorite part of it was. Her response: "getting the candy." They get a piece of candy at the end. Lovely. Glad to know that all money is being spent so she can take pleasure in getting a 10 cent piece of candy at the end.

7. We still haven't put up our Christmas tree yet. I think I'm the only person that really doesn't like getting it all out and decorating. I keep thinking about Jenna though, and she is the reason that I want to put stuff out. I think we may start a few new traditions this year too. (more on that later!)

8. Speaking of Jenna, we've had a lot of good quality time together lately. Unfortunately, my house shows for it, but it seems I either spend time with her or clean up. And well, I would much rather spend time with her and enjoy her now while we have this time together. I think she only has about a year and half til she starts kindergarten! That just seems crazy!

9. I really need a new blog make-over. Actually, I think I need a blog overhaul. I think that might be one of my goals for the new year. I guess I should start making my list now.

10. OH, Was anyone else totally disappointed by Cyber Monday? I don't do Black Friday (never have, probably never will!) and was hoping for something for CM. Nothing. Not one thing. Oh, well. I guess that's probably a good thing though. :)

Happy Birthday John Michael!!!!

2011-11-28T19:41:00.001-06:00

John Michael,
Happy Birthday. Thank you for being an amazing husband and a great daddy. I love you! :)

Jenna's 4th Birthday Party!

2011-11-23T06:59:00.000-06:00

This summer I didn't know if we would even have a birthday party for Jenna. I didn't know if we would know enough people by now to invite. She started talking about her birthday party this summer, so I knew we just had to actually have one this year. And, as it turned out, we did meet people and there were plenty of kids at Jenna's party!

I actually bought the cake on kind of a whim and it turned out way better than I ever imagined too. I loved it. The Tuesday morning before her party, Jenna told me she wanted a Strawberry Shortcake cake. So, I found a bakery that I had never heard of before and it was also located in maybe not the best area either. Anyway, I went in and looked around. Told the guy I wanted strawberry shortcake with polka dots. I honestly had no idea what that was going to turn out and look like, but I think it was really cute! It also tasted really good, so we will be for sure using them again!

I bought a few things from the same seller on easy - Jenna's shirt, cupcake toppers, water bottle labels, thank you notes, and address labels. It was my first etsy experience to be disappointed by the seller and I wouldn't reccommend her again. boo. :(

The party guests. Even Madeline and Michelle came down from KC! Isn't that awesome?? The kids that were there were: Will, Walker, Aubrey, Jenna (from gymnastics), Matthew & Nicholas, Ella, Madeline, and James.

And the fun stuff - the presents! I have to admit that I do love the presents too. Maybe because I only have one kid right now and I try really hard not to just always buy her toys, so I love the new stuff! She got so many great things and we've had fun playing with them all.

After the party, our family came back to check out our house and eat dinner. Michelle & Madeline also came by, and Madeline and Jenna got to play in her playroom too. We ordered take out from Hackett Hot Wings downtown. It was nice to have everyone over finally!

So, all in all, I'd say Jenna's 4th birthday party was a success! :)

10 Tuesday Randoms

2011-11-22T15:20:00.004-06:00

1. Jenna's class today had a Thanksgiving feast. I really do like her school and am thankful that she is in a good place!

2. I'm almost completely done Christmas shopping for Jenna. But, then again, she's the easiest one to shop for! I can't wait to give it all to her!

3. Today marks the 6th anniversary of the tornado. I can't believe it's already been half a year. There is going to be some kind of city memorial going on today at Cunningham park and there have already been lots of news stories about the 6 month mark. It has really put a lot into perspective and made me even more fully aware of just how much I have to be thankful for.

4. Guess who John Michael met the other day?? The lady that we bought this house from! Isn't that crazy? They are moving out of state next month and I guess they just put the house up early in case they thought it would take longer to sell. And speaking of the tornado, another thing to be thankful is this house and how it just all worked out. If they had waited a week longer, the tornado would have happened, and they probably would have delayed putting it on the market and we wouldn't have gotten it. I still LOVE this house and can't really imagine us in any of the other houses we looked at now.

5. I'm getting so excited about the new Teen Mom coming on in December. Can't wait for more baby mama drama! Can't wait to see what Crazy Jenelle has been up to!

6. Have you all heard of Birchbox? I just signed up and should be getting my box soon. Anyway, you get a box of 4-5 beauty samples delivered for $10 a month. I will have to update later and let you all know what I got!

7. I feel so behind in a lot of things lately. I still need to blog Jenna's birthday party pics. I need to order prints for my Project Life book. I need to make a grocery list for next week. Add in the laundry, housework, getting Christmas decorations/stuff out and situated and everything else, well I just can't seem to keep it all up lately. I think I'm ready for January when things always seem to slow down.

8. This picture was just emailed to me today so I thought I would share it. It's the dog, Molly, that we sponsored on Jenna's birthday. You can just see how sweet and loveable this dog is just from the picture. Jenna asked about her today as we drove by and wanted to stop in and go see her, but we couldn't today. We may have to go back later and visit her and see if we can take for a walk. :)

9. In the car, we've been listening to one of Jenna's CD's for a couple of days in a row now. She's had this for awhile but I've never really listened to the lyrics until just the other day. There is one song that goes something like this, "Mary Ann McCartney went fishing for some clams...But she didn't get any...All she got was influenza...All she got was influenza....(repeats). And then there is another song about Mrs. Murphy's chowder. One of the lines goes something like this: "The doctor died and they embalmed him right away in a bowl of Mrs. Murphy's chowder...." UMMM....OK??!? Totally weird to me.

10. I have another fun giveaway up on my other blog. It's for everything you see here. :)

Jenna's Fashion Friday!

2011-11-18T07:45:00.000-06:00

Woo-Hoo! Back with another edition of Jenna's Fashion Friday! I'm honestly loving her little clothes again. I think I went through a little stage last year where I just didn't care as much. Well, there has been so much cute stuff out lately that it makes me excited! :)

Owl - polka dot outfit by Crazy 8. I actually kind of bought this in pieces which is something I never do. I got the tights first because I thought they would be cute with her birthday outfit. Then the skirt went on a sale promotion. And then when we went to St. Louis, there was a new C8 store opening and they were giving $10 off coupons so I bought the polka dot long sleeve tee and the owl sweater. I love this all together though! (Boots are from Shoe Carnival - although the pink uggs that I've been eyeing would totally be much cuter.)

Horse tunic from Hanna Andersson. We don't have much HA but I've always loved them too. The great thing is that with most of their clothes you can usually get 2 years wear out of them because of their sizing. Jenna is really into ponies so I knew she would love this and she did! (Have I posted this one already?) Jeggings are Target and same boots as above (although another outfit that would be cute with pink uggs- like how I'm totally trying to justify getting them?)

And I'm not sure what kind of crazy pose this is, but this was after church on Sunday. Everything from Gymboree. Tights have cute little flowers on the side that you can't really see. Dress is kind of a thin corduroy.

And yesterday because she was just being so silly with my shoes. Cute, comfy, and warm outfit from Carter's.

My new life-changing iphone 4S

2011-11-17T05:22:00.000-06:00

A couple of weeks ago, I got the new iphone 4S thanks to my sweet hubby for pre-ordering it! So, I've had it a couple of weeks now and just the other day I told him how life-changing it was for me. I do believe JM may have rolled his eyes at me and muttered something about me being dramatic?? Something along those lines....

But, people, c'mon!! This is what I had before I finally crossed over into the world of smart phones. This!! A pink motorola razr. I do believe I got it when I was teaching first grade. This was THE phone - 6-7 years ago! Anyway, it was always a good phone to me. It did what it was supposed to - I could call and text. And let me tell you, I became a highly proficient texter on that thing. I can even proudly say that John Michael couldn't even text on it! :)

So, here is my list of why it is so life-changing for me! And I'm sure this list will probably grow too.

- First of all, Siri is absolutely amazing. Siri is my new personal assistant, didn't you know?? It's a program on the phone that you can talk to and she will answer you back. I've actually used this way more than I ever thought I would. It's especially good for texting and driving. You can tell her what to say and she will either send or read your messages. It's also an easy and quick way to set up reminders. She can also search the web for you, get directions, add things to your calendar... Siri is completely worth it.

- It saves me money! I've been able to just show a few coupons in the store instead of having to print them out. No more wasted paper, either! Seriously, I think that is totally awesome. There have been a few times I've been in Hobby Lobby and I've kicked myself for not having the 40% off coupon - well, not anymore!!

-instant entertainment for Jenna. We have her games and netflix on it. She absolutely loves it too.

- instant entertainment for me too!! While waiting on her at dance or gymnastics, (or whatever), I can easily entertain myself. That makes me happy too.

-And the texting is a million times better! Not only that, but I can actually send and receive pictures so much better.

- Always have a camera with me. Well, I try to keep my other one with me, but sometimes I forget or the battery will go dead. And well, I should also say my razr had a camera, but this one is way, way, way, better. Plus I now get to experience the fun of instagram! I just need to learn how to get my pictures out of iphoto into my blog and picasa. Anyone know?

So, now clearly, you all can see how truly life-changing this phone really is for me, right???? ha :)

Jenna is FOUR today!!!!

2011-11-15T17:56:00.007-06:00

Oh my gosh. I have a 4 year old today. I honestly can't believe it.

So, on Saturday, we had a fun birthday party at a bounce house place (pics to follow soon.) But today was her actual birthday.

I love that I can display all of her cards now. She got the photo balloon from the bounce house.

After school today, I thought she should have a fun afternoon. Our first stop was to the humane society. I was thinking it might be a fun idea to start a new birthday tradition of helping someone/something out every year. (She still got lots of presents from her party too.) But, she loves big dogs and I've been wanting to sponsor a dog, so we did just that today! I'm not sure she fully understands the concept of these dogs not having a home, but I kept trying to tell her that we were going to help this dog, Molly, get a new home. And actually, this dog probably would have been perfect for Jenna - incredibly sweet and loving, but she needs a big fenced in backyard and has a ton of energy, (and oh, yeah, we already have 2 chi's!) Actually, there were so many other dogs there I could have also taken home with me. Anyway, so maybe this will start a new birthday tradition. :)

After that I asked her what she wanted to do next. She wanted to go to the new park with the bell. (The new Cunningham park) Oh, I should also mention that the weather today was really nice. High 60's!! That is a first on her birthday! The last 3 birthdays in KC have always been cold! I remember it snowing on her first birthday.

And we had an early dinner at Chick Fil A. She ate ALL of her chicken nuggets (which never happens), her fruit cup and drank all of her chocolate milk. Maybe now that she's 4, she will actually eat??!?
And I just thought I'd make a list of a few other things so I won't forget how she is at this age:

*She wears a size 4/4T. Pants and jeans are still hard to fit her. I think she actually prefers her dresses and skirts with tights anyway, so that works for us! Wears a size 9 in shoes.

*Not a regular napper by any means now. She falls asleep in the car still a lot. Sleeps with us most nights and every now and then has nightmares (I think) in which she cries out in her sleep. Also fights sleep a lot, but once she settles down and just gets quiet she will fall asleep. (This part reminds me a lot of a certain other someone in our household.)

*Loves all things girly. Loves dress up, art, and baby dolls. Loves her polly pockets, lalaloopsies, Disney princesses, my little ponies, and Hello Kitty.

*Still very social and friendly. Pretty much has the same personality altogether has her Daddy.

*But still loves books like me!

*Still loves to cuddle and is very sweet. Lately, she's been telling me, "I love you to the moon." (Or the stars, or sky, clouds, sun.....) Always melts me every time.

*Doesn't eat much at all. Favorite foods are mac & cheese, pb & j, grapes and strawberries, crackers, ham, applesauce, noodles,bread, and just about any junk food.

I can't believe 4 years have already gone by. It is true what they say, "they grow so fast..." I miss my baby Jenna, but I love the stage she is also at now. She is so fun right now. I absolutely love being her mommy! Happy Birthday Jenna! :)

St. Louis weekend

2011-11-07T20:47:00.010-06:00

We got to go to St. Louis this weekend because JM was asked to participate in the filming of a new commercial for St. John's hospital! I can't wait to see if he actually makes it on there! Now, he can add actor to his list of many, many talents! :)

Anyway, after he got back on Friday night, we went to check out a drive through animal park that was really close to where we were staying. We mainly saw deer and bison. We went back on Sunday and people were passing out flyers at the entrance trying to get people to keep the park open. There was a sad comment in there about how the animals would be sold to the highest bidder or given to zoo's. Sad, because this seems like a neat place.

On Saturday, we had to do the touristy thing and go to the arch. John Michael took some wonderful amazing pics of the arch, but he told me not to use his good ones. ha - Hopefully, maybe he will post some later with his logo on there.

So, we of course, decide to go up. I had no idea what it was like, but I wasn't thinking it was like this! You get in where those little doors are and there is a small little white cube with 5 little seats. You can kind of see out from the cracks of the door. Really odd - wish we had a picture of the inside, because I'm sure this explanation isn't all that great.

Us at the top. When you get to the top, you can get out and stay as long as you'd like. There are tiny rectangular windows you can look out at.

We also went to a mall while we were there. This is by far the coolest indoor playground mall area I've ever seen. JM stayed with Jenna here while I looked around.

They also had a carousel. Poor kid misses her old carousel back in KC.

And they also had a whole store just for Hello Kitty! Crazy!! We told Jenna she could pick out something and her choice out of the entire store - a $1 piece of candy. Not going to argue with that. She also got a free hello kitty headband (think Burger King crown type) that she wore to Wal-mart today.

On Sunday morning, we decided to go back to the animal drive through park. They also had a bird section, but they were closed the first time we were there. This is me doing something totally not like me - letting the chickens peck the food out of my hand.

We just so happened to have come on a good day, because it was "fall camera day" so JM was of course in his element. They were letting the birds fly back and forth to the workers here. JM also got some fabulous pictures of an owl, so I hope he shares those too!

Anyway, it was a neat little vacation. Here's hoping JM becomes famous. :)

Project Life: September 2011

2011-11-07T17:02:00.007-06:00

Ok, I feel like I'm so behind on everything lately. Here is September 2011 of my project life book.

August 29-September 4 - (wow, this really feels like forever ago!) Jenna's open house at school, the tag from the bear from school, going to see Daddy's new office for the first time, playing at Maccaroo gym, and CFA.

September 5-11 1st day of 3 yr old preschool, 1st dentist appt, driving with mommy (pretending), taking moon pictures with daddy and Jenna's standard happy face she drew on her first day of school.

Other side of this week - 1st day of MOPS, the 9/11 flag ceremony here, my story about where I was during 9/11, and Prairie days festival.

September 12-18, First dance class, trip to Discovery center in Springfield, visit from Jessi and her kids, fun with Ella at Maccaroo gym, a bit from the Veggie tales cd

September 19 - 25, First bike, trip to Fayetteville, daddy date day

September 26- October 2 - Kindermusik class at the library, gymnastics, week in review

Jenna's school Halloween party

2011-11-01T20:46:00.002-05:00

I'm already behind on posting our Halloween pics, so I thought I'd just try to post a few that are on my new phone. :)

Jenna's school put on a really fun party for the kids and parents. They had a parade, sang songs, played games, and of course ate lots of goodies!

EHM's move that bus reveal day!!

2011-10-26T18:31:00.009-05:00

At 1:00 this afternoon, Jenna and I went to the Extreme Home Makeover's reveal. When we got there, I heard it was only going to be 30 more minutes. Ha.ha.ha. We stayed until 4:15, in the same exact spots, standing, and me holding Jenna for the majority of it, and we never actually saw the REAL reveal. We saw lots of practicing with even stand-in families. We probably chanted "move that bus" about 10 different times and I thought it was going to happen every single time and it didn't. It was neat though to see what really goes on though.

Anyway, I stood across from this white house the entire time. I had a really good spot, so I wasn't about to move. I even got to stand by the news camera man and a reporter.

I had such a good spot that the cast even stood right there in front of me for the longest time. We got to listen to several of their conversations with everyone and I heard the camera men telling them to do a "hug and herd" meaning hug them and move them where they should be for the cameras.

And.....another place Jenna has taken her nap. Except this time, while I'm grateful that it provided me with a bit more time to stand around and watch, my back and arms are so sore from holding her for so long. She was so sweet and patient the entire time. She maybe only had 5 minutes of getting impatient and crankiness the entire 3 hours we were standing in the same exact spot. Even the news reporter commented on how good she was being. I treated her to McDonald's after we left. :)

And another picture of Paul. I think this guy is probably the nicest and most personable out of all of them. He took time to sign a few things and he even chatted with the kids. And of course, he took his picture with me too on Saturday! He got in a little feud with one of the production guys and he started telling all of the kids not to go into tv production.

And when I thought that maybe this was actually going to happen. The family starts to get off the bus and Ty welcomes them off.

The family and all the media - You would think this is the real deal. But nope, they made them get back on the bus. I'm guessing this was all for editing purposes because they were being told where to look and to look with anticipation and then where to look again....

And the couple that was on this bus got married at Disney while they were there!
Can't wait to actually see it!

Joplin's Extreme Home makeover, me & Paul DeMio, and lots of other pictures!

2011-10-23T10:05:00.014-05:00

This is a bit longer than my average post, but yesterday we had such a busy, fun day!

The first thing we did was go to the humane society. They were having their furry fest. At the same time, Paul DeMio from the Extreme home makeover was there and they were also doing lots of filming! I got my picture with him!

And I just put Sophie on this little agility course. I turned around and I had absolutely no idea that we were being filmed. They shot so much stuff though that I am doubtful this little clip will actually make it into the show. But, I was in the background a lot, so if you watch, you may see us there!

They had dog races for small dogs under 15 lbs. I entered Max and he won 3rd place! He won against another dog and then he got to race again and came in 3rd! Sadly, he probably would have won that last race too, but the other dog was a little bit bigger but Max was trying so hard. It was really cute. (I didn't enter Sophie because she never runs AT ALL.)

This is Max with all of his 3rd place loot! He actually got a lot of stuff! In the little bag, was packed with a couple of different chew toys and bones and misc. stuff. Seriously, isn't this such a cute picture?!?

Afterwards, we went and put the doggies up. They were exhausted from their outing. We headed downtown to the Ocktoberfest that was going on. John Michael participated in his first yodeling contest! (Sadly, HE didn't win that day but his little chihuahua did!!) LOL

Jenna got to do lots of fun kid activities. She is pumpkin bowling here. She also got to go on a train ride, get some candy, and jump on a trampoline.

And then after that, we got on the shuttle bus to go watch the Extreme Home Makeover in progress. I think we both decided that the burgundy/green rock house behind us on the corner was our favorite. I really like the rocks on it. That is the house that is the firefighter's and they have 4 boys.

Later on, they did a moment of silence. Everyone stopped working on what they were doing. The fire truck raised a big flag into the air. Everyone gathered around. We could not hear what they were saying/filming.

Here they are filming Michael Moloney.

There is Paige in all the pink. (That white house is going to a lady that had 2 of her children killed by the tornado.)

And if you look really, really, closely, you can see Ty in the blue plaid shirt.

When we got on the bus to go home, we saw this - They are also helping to re-build Cunningham park. (That's the park right across from the hospital.) This playground structure looks so much fun and like something that Jenna would love to go play on! They are also doing a really neat basketball court too that we saw.
Anyway, that's it. That was our long, but really fun day!

(And p.s. I think that this Joplin 200th episode of EHM will air on January 20th.)

Espn's Joplin OTL video special

2011-10-18T20:40:00.003-05:00

Well, if you know me, you know I'm most definitely NOT a big football fan. But, ESPN did a special on the Joplin High School Football team and the tornado and it is really such a GREAT video that I think everyone should watch!

Also, this coach said he moved here in February. He said he had people ask him if he regretted it after the tornado and he said, no, more than ever he knew this is where he should be. Amazing. That is that same story as I mentioned in this post with the preacher. And again, it reminds me of us.

Also, the video above is just the preview. To watch the whole thing, click here. (It's only like 20 mins or so.)

Tomorrow starts the Extreme Home Makeover here!

Great Wolf Lodge weekend!

2011-10-18T09:48:00.008-05:00

We went on a little weekend getaway trip to KC this past weekend and stayed at GWL again!

We didn't get there until closer to 9, but they were having this awesome dance party when we arrived. We took our stuff up to our room and stayed until the end at 10:30.

Jenna loved spinning around with Daddy!

There was a hula hoop contest which Jenna loves to TRY to do, but she hasn't quite figured it out yet. I used to love to hula hoop (and I'm still pretty good at it!), so hopefully we will have to start working on her skills.

And this is my crazy party girl. I would have thought she would have been exhausted by the time we got there but she was going crazy having fun and dancing all around. Oh and see that group behind her - there was a large group of tweens/teens there on Friday night. They started playing Kris Kross will make you jump...jump....(yep, remember that one??) and all the kids started screaming and they knew the song. I was thinking about how that song came out when I was probably their age and I suddenly realized I was officially old. They also played Michael Jackson's Thriller and Soulja boy's Superman song and all of the tweens knew those too. Seriously, I guess I am really old now.

Lots of fun swimming on Saturday!! Jenna absolutely LOVED it. On Saturday morning, Jenna and JM went to the waterpark and I went to the mall and to check out their new Nordstrom Rack store. Geesh....it's a good thing that I don't live there anymore with the NR store. Lots of cute stuff.

Later that Saturday evening, The Rich's came to join us. We all went to the waterpark again and Anna had a sleepover with Jenna!

This was Saturday night's Story time / Dance Party in the lobby area. It was much more crazy busy on Saturday! Jenna and Anna didn't make long into the dance party this time. They were both exhausted and ready to go to bed, so we didn't stay as long.

On Sunday, we met up with Madeline and her parents at the fun McDonald's! I love this random picture that JM caught of them chatting on the floor.

After McDonald's, we walked around Legends for a bit. I had to get my Legends fix in too! We bought them little $1 mirrors from Forever 21 and that's what they are showing us in the picture.

It was a great, great weekend! :)

Jenna's Gymboree Fashion Friday!

2011-10-14T15:43:00.000-05:00

I know….I skipped myself last week. I didn't feel as if I had anything worthy to post. Not sure I will continue doing this for me, but I do like it doing with Jenna's outfits!

These are a few things she wore this week that I haven't posted. They are all from Gymboree and I bought them with my gymbucks so that's why they are kind of from random lines.

It has still been so hot here and it's getting hard to figure out what is ok to wear and what's not. However, I think this little dress on her is perfect for these kind of weather days. I bought the matching tights but again, it's just been way too hot for that. And I know it's not a very good picture at all, but the sleeves have polka dots and a little pug dog at the bottom.

She wore this yesterday to school. Thankfully it was a little bit cooler here. Not sure I completely love this one on her, but she really likes it, so that's what matters. The dress has little cupcakes on the top and the sleeves and leggings have roses on them.

This is what she is wearing today. Not sure what this pose is all about, but at least she still likes to pose for me. :)

Anyway, I also think that these dresses and leggings sets are perfect for her. I'm not sure I'll even bother trying to buy her anymore pants/jeans this year because they just always fall off of her. Unless maybe we get a few velour type bottoms with the elastic band.

Also, I think I will take a break from this until November. I think I've posted just about all of her fall outfits!

(Don't forget to go enter my Scentsy giveaway!)

Weekly Randoms!

2011-10-13T18:43:00.002-05:00

1. Yesterday we went on a playmate to the Tulsa Aquarium with our new mom's group. Afterwards, I went to the mall so I could kill some time before I was able to go see Whitney! At the mall, I ran into Trisha and Kyle and their twins! Fun day! I miss Tulsa, but after driving there, I realize I really like living here in a small town without all the traffic. ha, ha! :)

2. So Thursday mornings have become my "Go To Target alone" day. Well I still love all of the owl stuff everywhere. They had the cutest new owl shower curtain, but it's too late since I've already bought the other one. And plus, our bathroom has the yellow walls and I don't think this one would have matched as well. Ok, whoa…running off on a tangent here…Anyway, I was sad because of the super cute shower curtain and then I saw these plates! I *HAD* to get them for Jenna. Are these not the cutest???

3. A couple of days ago, we went to Wal-Mart and Jenna ran and sat down in front of the pumpkins outside and said, "Take my picture!" Um…sure, ok! :)

4. I have a fun Scentsy giveaway up on my other blog. This awesome plug-in is just ONE of the things you will receive. You will have to go here to check it all out and enter! :)

5. I'm so happy that fall tv shows are back on! Particularly The Office, Parks & Rec, Grey's Anatomy, and Private Practice. - which by the way all happen to fall on Thursday night. Couldn't they have spaced them out just a bit?? Anyway, NOPE we did not get cable. :) But, John Michael has a mac mini which in easy terms is like a computer hooked up to our living room tv that we've been watching them all. And I'm seriously wondering why anyone really pays for cable anymore at all?? Just about everything is online. We also still do the netflix instant streaming. We just finished watching all of the mad men seasons. And seriously, if you haven't watched it, go and watch it! That is a better show than I ever thought! And I think our new show together to replace Mad Men is going to be The Wonder Years. I used to love that show.

6. My cuticles are looking very embarrasing. It's mainly just on one hand though. Does anyone have any great products that I should go out and try??

7. Jenna's new phrase is "I'm so sorry. It's all my fault." She says it so sweetly that I think she knows exactly what she is doing to me.

8. Ok, that's all I got. Go enter that giveaway! :)

Jenna's birthday photo session

2011-10-11T13:51:00.000-05:00

About 2 weekends ago, we decided to do a photo session so that we could get some cute pictures for Jenna's birthday invites. John Michael got some great shots and honestly, Jenna was being so un-cooperative at times, I can't believe some of these!

I will keep the "offiical birthday photos" a surprise for now, but here are just a few of my other favorites.

I'm so thankful that John Michael has such a passion for photography. He just keeps getting better and better at it too. And also, I have to brag and say that he participated in the Joplin photo walk and just found out that he got the award for the best photo! And this is his second time to win that award! 1 time in KC and then here!! :)

Pumpkin Patch class trip

2011-10-05T14:18:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, Jenna's pre-school class took a trip to the pumpkin patch. John Michael was able to go with us, so all of the cute photos are courtesy of him. :)

I love this one! I think this one might be cute to print out and have around as a seasonal kind of picture.

Jenna's class. And obviously, I must have missed the "buy the green shirt" memo. At least she was wearing orange I guess - but I also feel bad because it's not a pumpkin or halloween shirt. Oh well, not like that kind of stuff REALLY matters.

Passing around the pumpkin. Glad she gets to see the inside here, because I hope it'll be a long time before she's wanting to actually carve one. ;)

And going on the hay ride. Parents were not allowed (I guess due to space), so it was kind of funny because there were maybe 20-30 people standing in a row taking pictures of their kid on it.

Our family shot. :)

Joplin's Extreme Home makeover pep rally

2011-10-04T20:34:00.011-05:00

We've had a really busy day! This morning Jenna's class went to the pumpkin patch. John Michael took some really cute photos there, but they are still on his camera and all, so I'll have to blog them later. Afterwards, we had gymnastics and then Jenna and I went to the Extreme Home Makeover pep rally.

Also, here's your warning. These pictures are bad. I'm not sure what all happened here, but I don't think it was my night to take pictures at all. But, I didn't have my own personal photographer there, so I had to rely on myself and I definitely felt this was blog-worthy. ;)

At first everyone was gathered out in the parking lot. They had cheerleaders from all of the surrounding schools do cheers, the Joplin band, and another band performing.

The Culvers shake and one of the Chick Fil A cows.

Jenna loved the cows! She seriously kept going over there and wanting to dance with them. And I know, she's not even looking at the camera. :( I tried another picture and I that one is even worse.:(

She also definitely enjoyed the free Culver's chocolate custard! She loves chocolate! (Can I just say I definitely prefer vanilla over chocolate!) And again, not a good picture. She also has some kind of cold/allergies going on and you can see it her face that she didn't feel 100% good.

So after all that, everyone went in the church and sat down. Right when it started she fell asleep. Slept the entire time from about 6:30-8:00. Thank goodness, not sure she could have made it there just sitting there listening the entire time. Anyway, add this to her places where she's fallen asleep.

Okay, I *think* this guy was one of the exec. producers. See, again, horrible picture. :(

This was the design team. They are all the ones that are in charge of actually decorating the houses and planning them out specifically for the family that will be living them. This will be the last show for the girl on the end that was talking.

And these are all of the project managers. They are from different states. I'm not completely sure if they are actually working for the show or not, though?

They also had the 2 location managers get up in talk. I didn't get a picture of them, but it doesn't seem to matter much with my stellar photos anyway. They are the ones that are in charge of where things go - like where to park, where the rv's and trailors go, where the stuff goes that you don't really think about too much.

Also, you can kind of see some guys sitting on the back on the steps - Those are all the local area builders.

We also watched a couple of slide shows about the families and the work that goes on. I'm sure if you all have seen the show, you know just how touching it all is watching that.

A few fun facts I learned too:

1. The original name was supposed to be Space Invaders. Really!??! Their first house was going to be some doctor out in LA. They started demo'ing and filming and then they realized that really didn't have any story to go along with it. So, another guy (producer maybe?) went out driving and found out about a family with a 5 year old girl with leukemia and they were in need of fixing up their house. It hit him that they is what they should film about. So, anyway, the doctor was generous enough to let them out of their contract and they went over to the other house.

2. They really only have about 106 hours or 4.5 days to actually build the house.

3. Ty works on 2 shows at once. He does the filming for the beginning and then flies over to another location and starts their filming and then flies back to the original location to end the show.

4. Joplin will be the 200th episode which is quite monumental for a tv show.

5. They are going to air this in 185 other countries!!!

I applied to volunteer but won't know for a few more days. If I don't get to volunteer, there is a spectator section that I'll go hang out in. :)

Anyway, I'm really glad I went, even if I did turn out with not-so-good pictures to show you all. It was very inspirational and it makes me really proud to get to be a part of this. The church pastor talked for a little while too. Turns out, he moved here around April 24th I think. After the tornado, everyone kept asking him if regretted moving here. He said no, absolutely not. I feel the same way. :)

Jenna's mini boden Fashion Friday!

2011-09-30T15:23:00.002-05:00

Yippee! I love doing Jenna's Fashion Friday's! :)

Up today is Mini Boden. I love the uniqueness of it all and now that we are in a smaller city I definitely don't want her to look like all of the other kiddos.

First up is the Rainbow Shirt with the heart patch denim trousers. It's hard to kind of see but the rainbow had different layers of fabrics sewn together. This girl loves her rainbows! I love the jeans because they have a tie string instead of a button at the waist. However, they are a still a bit big and I'm just starting to think I should give up on her wearing jeans this year.

Jenna also loves purple and doggies so I knew she would have to love this combo! These purple jeans are the same as the denim ones above.

And Jenna and I are both really loving this one. The first day I got is she immediately put it on and left it on for the rest of the day. She even got something on it so I had to wash it before she's even gotten a chance to wear it out. I wish they made something like this for me because I'd probably wear it too! The jeggings are from Target. I'll also probably make her wear boots with it, but I just let her put these "alligator shoes" on for simplicity right now.

Also, since Kelly's Korner post is about kid's clothes, I'm going to link up there. So, if you are coming from there, I do this every other Friday with my daughter. I've also posted about Gymboree and Naartjie. These three places (Boden, Gymboree, and Naartjie) are my absolute favorites right now.

Now, with those places said, I should also say that shopping is something I'm good at. (not good at much, so I'll at least take shopping!) And by that, I mean I've learned a few things.

1. Boden - They used to have this absolutely wonderful program called Refer a Friend and I racked up a lot of credit there. I still had some and I think all of these 3 outfits above only cost me around $25 because of that! Way back in 2009, I blogged this post about shopping at Boden.

Also, Boden is a good resale value on ebay and there is even a facebook page now where you can sell and buy Boden.

2. Naartjie - Oh, I miss my store. I've had to become an online shopper now mostly. One thing I've learned about this is that every Tuesday they have Treasure Tuesday and they list a couple of things for 40% off. That usually equals out to free shipping plus or minus a few dollars depending on what it is. They also have a few other really good sales throughout the year and if you are lucky to have a store nearby, you will find good sale stuff all the time. Naartjie is also a really good reseller on ebay right now too.

3. Gymboree - Never, ever, ever, pay full price at Gymboree. Everything in that store goes on sale and it usually doesn't take too long either. I've found a ton of things that are equal to or less than what I'd pay at Target for something. Here is also another post from 2009 that I blogged about shopping at Gymboree.

Right those are my 3 favorites, but they can change at any point. I also love Target for cute cheap clothes too. If you want to learn more about a certain store, than just pay attention. Stores become routine in the way they do their sales and it gets easier. :)

Weekly Randoms!

2011-09-29T15:25:00.006-05:00

1. I took this picture of Jenna at gymnastics on Tuesday. Do you see her? She's about to do a flip on the wedge. You know, at first, I said I didn't think she was all that into gymnastics, but now I'm realizing it's because of the different places. The Kansas City gymnastics place was FAR more advanced than this place, however, this place seems more fun and less serious and Jenna seems to like it better here. And while I have absolutely nothing against the other place, I'm glad Jenna is having fun now. However, she also really likes dance too, so if we ever get to where we have to pick one or the other, it might make for a difficult decision.

2. I took this picture while driving (Yes, while driving - don't worry, no one was around.) Anyway, I was driving to take something to JM at the hospital (errr....actually, really, his nice trailer.) I noticed they have done a ton of clearing off the land and now the only thing I really see are power lines everywhere. This is obviously not the best picture, but you can just see straight down for a couple of miles and it just looks like rows of power lines. Oh, and also some of the shredded trees.

3. Jenna wanted to wear her crown out yesterday, so I let her. I figure this is one of those pick your battles type of situation and this isn't worth it at all. So, she wore it to her Sonic playdate, Target, and JM's office.

4. I love walking in on Jenna playing and using her imagination. She's at such a fun age right now. She told me she was the doctor and they were all sick. I asked her what was wrong and she said they all had "holes in their teeth." (Ummmm.....I might have been to the dentist last week for fillings.) I guess it stuck with her.

5. Yesterday, I made 2 of my Pinterest recipes. These were super easy and something fun Jenna could help with. They are pretzels, Hershey kisses hugs, and candy corn. You put the hershey kisses hugs on the pretzels and put in the oven at 170 degrees for about 5 minutes and then put the candy corn on the top. After that, you stick them in the refridgerator for 10 mins to set. They are really good.

6. Jenna's newest favorite thing to watch - Our wedding video. She can work the downstairs dvd system all by herself now.

7. Can you believe it's almost October? I really can't. Yesterday's high was supposed to be 91 and it felt like we were back living in Texas. I hope that October gets cooler!

8. I'm participating in my first big Consignment sale - Rhea Lana's. Today was drop off day and I really had no clue what I was doing. I hope it goes well, because I still have tons and tons of baby stuff to get rid of, so I could be doing this for awhile. (No, I didn't get rid of much baby stuff this time around - just a few little things. I'm still hanging on to that little bit of hope that I'll need it again soon.)

9. Oh, and speaking of October, I still don't have a costume for Jenna yet. It's starting to stress me out. Last year, I could put her in whatever I wanted and she didn't care, but this year, she has an opinion! I think she wants to be some kind of princess, but we are going to have to make a decision soon!

10. Also speaking of stressing me out is Jenna's upcoming birthday. Again, this year is so much different than she was last year. This year she keeps talking about her upcoming birthday party. She's been talking about it for months now. This year we have to have a real party. I wish I was one of those people that loved to plan cutesy birthday parties, but I don't. Just not me. Anyway, it's about 6 weeks away and I feel like I should have it all decided by now, but again, I don't. I know she doesn't really care about the details anyway and that's a good thing for me! :)

Daddy Daughter day!!

2011-09-25T19:48:00.008-05:00

JM and Jenna got to spend some quality one on one time today. Here they are before leaving the house....

She chose Sonic for lunch, and obviously, because she could go play there.

After Sonic, he took her to see The Lion King 3D, which was kind of the main reason they went out today. I guess she took her bride doll in with her.

I got this text this afternoon: "Hey Jenna, how did you like the movie?" (from JM) Jenna: "Great, Now let's go to Best Buy." Uh...Does she know the key to her Daddy's heart or what???

After Best Buy, they went to get ice cream at Shake's.

Afterwards, he asked her what she wanted to do next and she said she wanted to go home and ride her bike to the park, so they also did that. Yes, that bike has been a huge hit. I'm getting tons of exercise now! ha! :)

I loved this one of them at the park. :)

I'm so, so, so, thankful that Jenna has an amazing daddy that wants to do all this stuff with her. I also think it's really important that she gets one on one time with him every now and then too. And oh my gosh, can you just imagine what a great day this must have been for her?!? She's one lucky little girl. :)

My Fashion Friday!

2011-09-23T07:46:00.000-05:00

Well, this one is rather boring and I debated if I should even post it, but I'm trying to stick with this idea and see how far I can go with it. :)

I was going to do a run-down of what I wore this week, but it's really nothing too exciting. The weather has been in the between stages of hot on Monday and Tuesday and then today it was cold and rainy this morning.

But Wednesday was a good day! ha! I had MOPS in the morning and wore this.

I love these cardigan style things. Is that there actual name? I really don't know.

Anyway, guess where it's from? Yep, Forever 21.

White tee shirt from Kohl's.

Distressed skinny jeans from the Gap Outlet. (I miss you, Gap Outlet!)

And fun Yellow Box flip flops from Belk's. And even more fun that they came from my Destin trip. :)

And I bought this top at Old Navy. I love polka dots and this is FAR from grey, browns, and that burnt orange color that I blogged about last time! YAY me! ha! Anyway, the only problem is that I'm not sure I like it on me, so I may still take it back soon. But isn't it cute on the hanger, at least??

Stay tuned next week for a much cuter model. ;)

Jenna's first bike!

2011-09-21T20:27:00.003-05:00

Jenna got her first "real" bike today! She chose the pinkalicious one. I think she really liked it because she could put her doll behind her. I mean, what's not to love about that?!? She even found the matching pinkalicious helmet all by herself today in the store. She ran up to me in the toy store and told me it matched, so I obviously, had to get it too. :)

She was so excited about being able to tell her Daddy. He didn't get home til about 7 tonight, so we immediately went outside and let her ride it down the street.

My little girl is getting too big! :(

Just a random picture dump...

2011-09-20T19:43:00.009-05:00

Before I forget, I have a giveaway up on my other blog for 6 boxes of cereal! Go enter here!!

On Saturday, we had rain for the majority of the day. With the exception of a quick Target run in the evening, we stayed home for the day. I let Jenna put on her new Hello Kitty raincoat and boots and just let her go play in the rain. John Michael and I sat in the garage and he took some really cute pictures and this was one of them.

Since we were stuck indoors, I also got the urge to do some organizing and cleaning up. This is the other room next to Jenna's. I have no idea how it got so bad with stuff just thrown everywhere, but that's the way it was. So, I completely picked everything up and found a new home for it besides the floor.

On Monday, the weather was just so nice. More like perfect, actually. Jenna and I discovered a new park that we hadn't been to yet, so we stayed and played for awhile. She told me to get on the swings and that she was going to push me. This kid is just in desperate need of being a big sister.

And then she told me that I should go down the slide and she would take MY picture. ha! I really think she might just really be into photography one day.

I love how the dogs bask in the sun spots. :)

And let's don't focus on me here, but tonight, I got out these super comfy big flannel pajama pants to put on. I turned around and Jenna found the top and put it on. She thought it was so neat that she matched me.
Anyway, that's it! Don't forget to go enter that giveaway! :)

Jenna's Gymboree Fashion Friday!

2011-09-16T16:44:00.000-05:00

Okay, so it's Saturday now, and not actually Friday. But all of these pictures were taken on Friday and once again I tried to blog and then started having computer issues again. I'm secretly starting to think my blog is just mad at me for forgetting its birthday last week.

All of these outfits are from Gymboree's Fall for Autumn line. I have not loved anything from Gymboree like I loved this line in a long time, so I am super excited about this.

This was what she wore yesterday morning before we went out. And yes, I'd say she might be becoming just a bit of a ham for this. :)

And then yesterday afternoon, it started raining so I didn't even bother to try on shoes with any of these. I love, love, love pink and orange together so I could not resist this.

And the personality comes through again......

Jenna had a playdate with a friend last night, so I let her pick out what she wanted to wear, and she chose this outfit!

And she's been begging to wear this dress, but it's still been a little too warm for it. Hopefully soon though...

She's also been wanting a pair of these Skechers Twinkle Toes. So we went to the mall yesterday and I found these for $8 and in her size!! I didn't even think twice - I knew I had to get them! She got so excited because I told her she could have them and we got up to the counter to pay for them and the lady told me the reason they were so cheap is because one of them doesn't light up!! So, I had to still get them. She loved them and has been playing with the ONE that lights up. But now, I feel bad so I see another pair in our future soon. Sigh....

Yesterday, today, and other random stuff

2011-09-16T13:54:00.003-05:00

Originally posted on Thursday, but having some internet issues

1. It's almost Friday?!? Seriously, with Jenna now in school 2 days a week, it seems like our last two weeks have just flown by!

2. My friend Whitney made this cute camera assistant shirt for Jenna. I didn't get a picture of the back, but it looks like it's hanging on a necklace with a heart on the end - very cute details! Jenna LOVES to take pictures, so this shirt fits her perfectly.

3. Yesterday, Jenna and I went to Springfield to a children's museum. It was kind of neat, but not overly spectacular, but I think Jenna had fun so that's all that matters. After that, we went to check out their local mall. However, because of the mall, I'm willing to bet we will do this again. ;)

4. Today, Jessi and her kids stopped by since they were driving through town. Jenna LOVED having them over and showing them her new playroom!

5. Tomorrow we are getting our new king sized bed AND a better mattress. I may never want to wake up and get out of bed in the mornings after this.

6. Jenna started dance class this week. Parents have to sit out in the lobby but they have tv's of the studio's so I got to watch her on that and I think she loved it. I think dance is really going to be her thing.

7. Did you all see the new Missoni stuff at Target? I went on Tuesday afternoon and they had just about everything out. I went again this morning and they had sold out of a lot of it. Craziness. I'm sure all of you by now have read all the stories on it by now and how it's all on ebay, but I think it's a lot of hype over nothing. It's a good thing it's nothing I really just had to have!

8. OH, OH, I almost forgot!! I'm such a bad blogger nowadays - My 4th blogoversary was on Sept. 10 and I didn't even mention it! Poor, poor blog! I was thinking about doing a giveaway, but then just decided not to. However, I do have a un-related giveaway coming up soon on my giveaway blog so stay tuned. :)

9. Jenna's reward jar is about half full now. She has big and tiny pom-pons that she puts in it. She doesn't get the concept that the bigger ones will make it fill up faster. However, I'm about ready for it to be filled up because I think she and I are both are getting bored with some of her toys. I've already started thinking about what I want to get her for her birthday and Christmas.

10. Why is it that I can always get to #10 but then can't ever think of anything else?!?!

Joplin's 9/11 Flag Memorial Service

2011-09-11T17:37:00.009-05:00

We got to be a part of something historic today. The national 9/11 flag made it's last stop in Joplin this morning. I really don't think I've heard much about this, so I thought I'd just write what the postcard says:

"Destroyed in the aftermath of the collaspe of the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001 and stitched back together seven years later by tornado survivors in Greensburg, Kansas, the national 9/11 Flag is a living testament to the resilience and compassion of the American people.

Currently on a journey across America through the 10th year Anniversary of 9/11, the goal of the National 9/11 Flag tour is to display this historic flag at leading venues nationwide, to empower local service heroes in all 50 states with the priviledge of stitching the flag back to its original 13 stripe format, and to inspire 300 million Americans with the flag's rich visual history in order to deepen our sense of citizenship and national pride and bolster the spirit of volunteerism on the 9/11 anniversary and year round. "

This started out at street between what was the hospital and Cunningham park. We got there around 8 this morning, which if you really know me, you know how EARLY that is for me! But, I'm glad I got up and got to experience this!

After the park, there was another service at the local college.

There were speakers from the college, the fire and police dept, the army, and this guy pictured is the founder of the New York thanks you program. He told the story about how the flag has made it all around the different states and how many different people have volunteered to help put it back together. It even has a small patch from it that was around Abe Lincoln's body! They also told the stories of a few of the well-known tornado people and they came up and put in stitches too - they were Quinton Anderson, the senior who lost both of his parents, the woman who lost her 2 kids and husband in Home Depot, and Will Norton's aunt Tracey. They are all also in this picture.

In the very end, they let everyone come and add a final stitch.

On the bottom of the postcard it says, "From one day of terror, 10 years of kindness."

More info also on The National 911 Flag Tour website - www.national911flag.org

My Forever 21 Fashion Friday!

2011-09-09T05:11:00.002-05:00

Well, as much as I'd like to just stick Jenna into a few more cute outfits and post about her, I'm trying to keep up with doing this and including myself every now and then. Also, when I was thinking about what I was going to post, I noticed a trend I had going on that I probably wouldn't have noticed otherwise. I was getting my fall clothes together and noticed I have bought a lot of the same color stuff - light browns, greys, and the orange color. So because of this, I'm making it a point that the next thing I buy will not be one of these colors!

So, anyway, thought I show some of my recent Forever 21 purchases. I am 31 and yes, I love that store.

When it was warmer, I put this top with khaki shorts and I think it looked better with that. But we've had a cool front come in the last couple of days. Find it here.

I just got this top last week and I love it. I guess I was just thinking that the orange-y color is the perfect fall color. Find it here.

Also, the necklace that I wore with both tops. It's from another favorite store - Francesca's. It has a bumblebee, two flowers, and a gold circle in the middle. LOVE it!

And finally, another big favorite of mine lately. Get it here.

And this picture is out of focus, but me wearing it. :)

Project Life: August 15-28, 2011

2011-09-08T16:00:00.000-05:00

August 15 -21, 2011 : Pictures from the Precious Moments meetup, going to KC and hanging out with the Rich's and Madeline. I also included a Gymboree clothing size tag and the size tag from the new Hello Kitty boots that Jenna got when we were with Madeline.

August 22-28, 2011 : Pictures from the KC mom's meet up group playmate, 1st gymnasics lesson here, hanging out with Nana, and lunch with Daddy. I also included a happy face that Jenna drew (her favorite thing to draw!) her "name" in stickers, her class supply list and a Mac & Cheese cutout since she loves to eat that for lunch. (About her name - I left her alone to play with some stickers and came back and found that she got them out all by herself and tried to spell her name. She can totally spell her name just right, but I was missing the N stickers so I guess she decided that the M's would be just fine. Anyway, I thought it was cute because she's never really spelled her name with stickers before.)

Woo-Hoo! First month down! I've really loved doing this and it's SO SUPER EASY!!

1st day of school & 1st dentist app!

2011-09-06T19:29:00.000-05:00

We had a super busy day here - 1st day of school, Jenna's 1st dentist appt, and then gymnastics. I'm sure she will be sleeping good tonight! :)

Yes, it was this cold here this morning that I even put a jacket on her!

I had to get a picture of Jenna's super cute pony backpack.

Their theme for the first week is monkeys. She made this cute puppet that will be going on her art wall.

After school, she had her first dentist appointment. I was a little worried because I thought I waited so late to take her, but I just wanted to wait until after we moved. The dental hygenist said they couldn't do much with them anyway at this point, so I guess it's fine. It's just funny because it seemed everyone in KC was taking their kid to the dentist much earlier. I guess different places, are just, well, different. Anyway, I was also worried because she does not like to brush her teeth, but she didn't have any cavities and they said everything looked good! They gave her a sack with a new Winnie the pooh toothbrush, spongebob toothpaste and princess flossers and she got to pick something out of the treasure box. She thought that was pretty cool! She also loved watching the tv!

I like being busy, but I'm about glad this day is almost over! :)

Our Saturday around town

2011-09-03T20:47:00.007-05:00

John Michael was in the mood for some Chick Fil A for lunch so we went there. They just re-opened again on Thursday after building a brand new one from the ground up in only 3 short months! Jenna and I went on Thursday when they opened. The news crew was there and Jenna even made it on tv! Anyway, we are super happy to have it back open and another place to go play!

After CFA, we went to Cunningham Park. This is the park has been trying to win all the money from the Coke Contest. Every Saturday they've been having stuff out there to show their support. Jenna got her face painted and she asked for a princess crown.

It was so hot at the park that we didn't stay too long, so we decided to take Jenna to the really neat Maccaroo gym bounce house type place. Jenna loves this place - but I mean, wouldn't you?!?!

I love this one picture of her posing by the princess. She is REALLY into princesses right now, if you haven't figured that one out. (And yes, that is another Naartjie outfit - even though it was too hot for it really, she picked it out this morning - she loves these outfits!)

And have yall seen this app? JM has been cracking us up with it. :)

After that, we rented a Barbie movie for Jenna and just kind of came home and hung out for awhile. It's been a nice Saturday. Happy Labor Day weekend to everyone too! :)

Jenna's Naartjie Fashion Friday!

2011-09-02T16:13:00.000-05:00

Because I'm obviously in need of some blog ideas and because I love the What I Wore Wednesday posts (but I've failed at trying to do that), I had a new idea! I'm thinking maybe every Friday I can do a fashion sort of post and sometimes it will be about me and sometimes it will all about Jenna! I've been wanting to get more pictures of Jenna in her cute little outfits so I figure this is also the perfect way to try and incorporate that! So hopefully, I can do better at doing this than I can the WIWW posts. ;)

So, one of my favorite stores is Naartjie. Now, luckily it is also one of Jenna's favorites too. She usually always picks out her clothes now and she really loves the Naartjie outfits. My guess is because they are usually very ruffly and they also seem very comfy. So, we are both happy! (Well, I am sad that we moved away from an actual store, but I guess I can always order online.)

I think this first outfit is from their Fall 2 collection and is the retro rose henley dress with the ruffled bell bottoms. She called this her "fancy dress."

This is from their Fall One Collection and I think it is just part of the essentials group. I'm not sure if you can tell too much, but the shirt is kind of angled on the bottom. This outfit will be perfect for preschool!

And oh how she LOVES this outfit! Again from fall one and is the jie jie netting dress with button trimmed bow bell bottoms. Seriously, a purple dress, with a fairy and a bit of a tutu = the perfect outfit for Jenna!!

I should have also mentioned that she LOVES trying on clothes so she thought this was a blast! So, hopefully, we will be able to keep this up! :)

Weekly Randoms!

2011-09-02T15:20:00.002-05:00

1. Geez….I've gone another week without blogging! Again, I feel like my blog is turning into a bunch of random posts lately, but I guess it's better to get something down in our books than nothing at all.

2. We finally bought a new bed! We've had a queen forever and we said one of the first things we were going to buy after we moved was a King sized bed with a much better mattress. JM took this photo in the store - I've been taking a lot of pictures in the store lately so I can look at things later on since I'm so undecisive about this kind of stuff. Anyway, it won't get here until sometime next week. And then, I need to decide on a King comforter….Sigh…But, we are excited!

t F3. Last Friday night, Jenna spent the night with my mom. JM and I went on a date night and went to eat at PF Changs in Rogers. After eating, we just walked around to a few stores. It was really nice and I really think we need to make it a point to have date nights every so often!

4. Yesterday, Jenna had an open house at her new school to get to meet her new teachers. She doesn't start until next week, but I think she is going to really like it there. It's kind of hard to see in this picture, but she has a new ballerina bear on the little tricycle - When we first walked in the door, she got to pick out a new bear. A church in Texas sent a bunch of teddy bears after the tornado, so they were giving them out to the preschool kids. Her bear is from a little girl named Railyn. (Oh, and she was also wearing her panda ballerina shirt that day too!)

5. I've started something new with Jenna. This was supposed to be called the "good choices" jar but I haven't really been calling it that much with her. Anyway, as I'm sure you all can guess - every time she does something good, she can earn a pom pom to put in. If she makes a bad choice, (which hasn't happened yet!) she'll take one out. When the jar is full, we will go to TRU and she can pick out whatever toy she wants. I think it'll be fun and can't wait to see what she picks out!

6. I'm so glad September is almost here! I have all of September planned out for us (M-F), including a new playdate at our house. I'm so ready to get back into some kind of routine with school starting again. And geez…..School starting after Labor Day seems like it takes forever to get here! Anyway, I'm not sure we will do all of our planned activities, but I just like the thought of having something on my new calendar!

7. On one of my last random posts, I mentioned making a new pinterest recipe. Well today I made another one and it was really good! It was Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings and can be found here. Anyway, it is definitely going to be a keeper!

My 1,000th blog post!!!

2011-08-24T19:14:00.002-05:00

Oh my goodness - this is my 1,000th blog post! I thought it would be fun to share a few highlights.

During the course of 1,000 posts:

1. I became a mommy.

2. We moved from Texas to Kansas and now to Missouri.

3. I went through second trimester pregnancy loss.

4. John Michael was an intern, resident and then finally graduated!

5. We bought our first house!

6. The Joplin Tornado happened.

My most popular posts have been:

1. My extended rear facing toddler.

2. Joplin Tornado damage pictures

3. Documenting our everyday life.

4. Anything that has to do with thirty one

Ok, so I knew my thirty one posts were popular, but I just checked and this one takes the cake - Thirty One's new spring summer catalog has had 26,187 page views!

I've had 3,276 comments! (I love comments and I will always try to respond back if I can!)

I've had 122,878 page views.

Well, that is about all the fun stats I can think of to post. I love my blog. I would still do it even if I was the only one that ever even looked at it. I've made two blog books so far (I still have more to do), but Jenna absolutely loves looking through them. I think right now they are currently sitting on my couch because she was just looking through them earlier.

I've also gotten to meet a lot of great people through blogging. It's so amazing how blogging can connect people from all over that would have never even met if it weren't for this.

Everyone out there has a story. I would encourage anyone out there to find a way to document it, some way, some how. :)

KC boards weekend!

2011-08-22T20:30:00.008-05:00

We went to KC this weekend because JM had his boards test today.

On the way there, I got to help out the humane society. They were looking for someone to take this dog to KC and we happened to be going anyway, so I thought it would be a perfect chance to help! Look at this sweet dog. She was so skinny. I didn't get the whole story but she is being transported to a rescue group in Colorado. I hope she finds a great family that deserves her, because she really seemed like such a sweet dog.

And, I know that if you aren't from Joplin or aren't 1 of the 50,000 people on his facebook page, then you probably haven't heard of Will Norton - but I'm just going to go ahead and blog this anyway - He is was one of the 160 that were killed in the tornado. Friday would have been his 19th birthday. He supported the humane society and made a video for them and this is it. It wasn't until after I agreed to volunteer to take the dog that I realized I was helping out the humane society on his birthday. Anyway, I just thought that was kind of a neat little thing. No, I didn't know him at all, but this kid has just made such a big impact on everyone - including me. The news also did a story on his birthday and you can read more about him here.

So anyway, back to our weekend - On Friday night, we went out to eat with the Rich's. After dinner, we took the kids to a park. Amazingly, it was a park that we had never even been to after living there for 3 years! Jenna got to have her first merry go round ride and she loved it! JM and I got on too and I forgot how fast it could go! Jenna laughed the entire time she was on it. LOVED It!

And just a cute one of all us on it.

JM decided to spend the entire day studying in hotel room on Saturday, so Jenna and I tried to stay out of his way the whole day - not too hard to do in KC. ;) Although Jenna and I had fun, we did really miss him and wished he could have come along! :(

So on Saturday morning, we met up with Michelle and Madeline at the McDonald's Legends and then we went over and did a little shopping together. Jenna and Mads both love the Old Navy dog. After Legends, we also took them over to Chick Fil A.

So after that, I met up with Amber and her kids at the mall. Jenna and I probably stayed at the mall from about 3:30 - 8:30. Anyway, Jenna got to do some more playing and shopping. I got her the Ariel doll from the Disney store and she has carried it around all weekend.

On Sunday, I met up again with Michelle and Madeline at Deanna Rose Farm. I didn't really get any great pics of the girls together, but I loved this one of Jenna on the horse.

And then today I dropped JM off super early at his testing location and was able to go to a playgroup with our old mom's group at Little Monkey Bizness. Jenna and Madeline loved to paint there.

Then we went to lunch with Sam, Henry, and Madeline at Fazoli's. It was almost like my last playdate here all over again!
Anyway, it was a nice visit. I'm glad I got to see everyone and do a little shopping. And I'm most definitely glad that JM's boards are over (until the next time anyway!). However, I'm really happy to be back HOME! :)

Weekly Randoms!

2011-08-17T18:39:00.003-05:00

1. On Saturday afternoon, we went to the nature center. They were having some kind of festival. We got there right as they were ending it all. The last thing they had was an animal show and at the end they would let you take pictures with the animals if you gave a $5 donation. So, I thought I HAD to let Jenna do it since she didn't get to do anything there. So, she got to hold a lemur and she thought that was pretty neat! As we were walking back up to leave, we just so happened to run into Jenna's new friend, Ella, so then we stayed longer and that made it all worth it.

2. I got Jenna some of the cutest fall clothes from Gymboree's new owl line. I'm seriously that excited about them and I haven't been excited about clothes for her in a long time! Anyway, she is really into purses lately and she really wanted this one so I caved and let her have it. After Gymboree, I also went to Bath and Body Works and I found this owl plug in that I also had to have. I didn't really realize it until I got home and JM made a comment about me only buying owl stuff!

3. This is our entry way. I've always wanted to have a little separate entry way with a table by the door. We don't have that big of a space so it's been kind of a challenge to find a table that would fit, but I finally found one last week. I love it! (And I know it's not the best pic - hopefully when I finish I'll have to take another picture.) Now I just need to decorate it....Sigh....

4. I'm still loving Pinterest. I haven't had as much time to play around on there lately, but I'm still loving it! Anyway, I did find this rug that I really like and am wondering how it would look in the entry way??? It's on overstock.com but it's sold out right now.

5. And speaking of pinterest, I really love it for the fact that I can have a list of new recipes all in one spot from various sources. I used to try to email myself a list of recipes and the blogs and such, but seriously pinterest makes it just soooo much easier! Anyway, I found this one and it was super easy, JM liked it, and I think we will definitely have it again. It's just chicken, barbeque sauce and pineapples in the crock pot. Now, that is my kind of cooking!!! :)

6. Today has been a huge day for Joplin. Yesterday, they announced where the new hospital was going to be built. This morning they had a get together for only the employees to discuss it and JM went to that. (He's been off for boards.) Today was the first day of school and there was tons of media here today. I was hoping to get to run into Anderson Cooper (don't know if he was really here, but he was here in the beginning.) But sadly, that didn't happened. I only saw a local reporter.

7. And speaking of tornado stuff - On Saturday morning, we went to the park. Jenna started playing with some other little girls in a metal play house. Guess what they started playing? Tornado! The little girls yelled, "There's a tornado coming! Get in the house!" AND then on Monday, I took Jenna to the library. She was playing with another little girl at the train table and this little girl immediately told Jenna that her house was blown away in the tornado and they were getting a new house tomorrow. I'm sure there were lots of elementary teachers today that spent a lot of time listening to these kids talk about it.

8. Did you all hear about the Real HW of OC husband that hung himself??!??! (Well, I think they were in the middle of a divorce?) I feel bad for all of them and I wonder what they are going to do about the new season that's supposed to start soon.

9. Oh, another thing about school starting - I really starting to appreciate Jenna's late birthday (in Nov.) I'm so thankful that she will have 2 more years before she starts real school!

10. Ugh, I was wanting to get to #10, but I can't think of anything else! So, THIS is my number 10! :)

Precious Moments Chapel playdate

2011-08-15T18:57:00.000-05:00

This morning we went to the Precious Moments Chapel for a playgroup. I didn't get the best pictures, but just thought I'd could blog a few because it was kind of a fun little place.

Again, not the best picture, but I just low Jenna is completely posing all on her own with her hands and toe. I think she is getting ready for her dance pictures. ha! :)

The kids all made puppets together. After puppets, the lady read a story and then we went to tour the chapel. We also ate lunch there.

All of the kids posing. The lady that was in charge of this room gave them all each a little stuffed goose to take home.

And again, you can't tell too much by this picture, but far out there is a little house that is private and built only for his grandkids to play with. A lot of people were saying how it was like Rapunzel's tower and I thought that was kind of neat since Jenna really likes Rapunzel.

I think the outside areas will make for a great place for JM to take some nice pictures of Jenna too, so hopefully we will have to go back!

Project Life: August 1-14

2011-08-14T20:31:00.000-05:00

Yippee!! I've finally gotten to work in my project life album that I've been waiting months for!!! I want to blog this, but I'm still not sure if I will just do a once a month or maybe every two weeks. But, I'm so excited that I got to start on it that I wanted to go ahead and share what I have done. I also figure that if anything happens to it that my blog can serve as a backup for it. Oh, and this is going to be for Jenna - I will give it to her when she is older. This would have made a great baby book!

Here is the cover.

The front page. I wished I would have wrote on the two little ones with my sharpies instead of pens. The card on the bottom says, "This is what life is all about." I love that one!

Week of August 1-7. The little pink thing in the middle is a divider for August. There is one for every month and in a different color/design. In here, I have a scribble from Jenna, newspaper clip about JM starting at the hospital, a list of other things we did this week, Jenna's favorite things from shopping with Whitney, a Disney receipt and a little story about the tornado.

Week of August 8-14. Pictures of Jenna and Ella, helping re-build Dr.Knapp's new office, talking to Anna on the computer, playing at the park, Sonic playmate, falling asleep in the kitchen, getting to hold a lemur and playing with baby dolls in the toy aisle. A piece of paper from signing Jenna up for dance, a little story about sitting on the deck with her, and taking her first "real" shower are the three little pieces in the middle.

I'm so excited about this! Absolutely anyone can do this!!! I also have a few different page layouts too, but so far I'm liking these the best. I can't wait to fill it up! :)

Our Thursday

2011-08-11T19:18:00.008-05:00

I know...I'm getting real creative on the title names.... But, I actually carried the camera around today and took some pics.

We had a Sonic playdate this morning with our new meetup moms group. One thing about living here - Right now, Sonic is the only fast food place with a play area. However, it's been between 100-110 degrees for a couple of weeks and it's just been way too hot to play outside. Thankfully, we've had some rain the last couple of days and that has cooled things off a bit.

After Sonic, I went to Wal-Mart to get a few things. Which, by the way, was so nice, because this Wal-Mart was directly behind the Sonic. Anyway, Jenna usually talks me into going to look at the toys so we did. She still loves baby dolls!

And then at almost 5, I was on the computer and I realized that I had not heard from Jenna in awhile. As we all know - Fear the Silence, right?!? So, I went upstairs and still did not hear anything. I could not find her - I checked her room, our bathroom and I may have even walked right past her. I turned around and saw her in the floor. And yes, oh my gosh, the first thing I did was to check to make sure she was still breathing! Anyway, she fell asleep there - I should start a whole collection on places she has taken a nap in/on.

She had a cookie in her hand. I guess she knew she was supposed to stay in the kitchen with it so she did. :)

Happy Weekend yall!! :)

Weekly Randoms

2011-08-10T16:08:00.000-05:00

1. I feel like my blog is just turning into a bunch of random posts lately. I guess it is what it is lately. I feel like we are still kind of trying to get in the swing of things here. But, I've missed blogging lately. And I'm also such a slacker because I've missed doing my 10 on 10 posts too. I actually brought my camera with me today but forgot to put the battery in.

2. My mom, Jenna and I went to Rogers, AR today to do a little shopping. I brought back this fabulous chair from I.O. Metro. Obviously, I'm not done with the area, but I'm so excited about it that I had to post it anyway. I told JM I could just picture him taking photos of a wobbly sitting up baby on it. And he said, he was thinking more of a newborn. Well, anyway, one day you will see this chair again in pictures. But for now, you get Jenna. ha! :)

3. Jenna got to talk to her friend, Anna, on the computer last night. She thought that was pretty neat! She kept wanting to go get stuff to show her!

4. Jenna and I got to go shopping with Whitney this weekend. Jenna has really been a great and patient shopper lately! It's very nice, because, you know, I like to shop. :) I'm so glad I live a little bit closer to Whitney and I can't wait to do this again!

5. JM got to help Dr. Knapp with his new office. That's him with a sledgehammer. Since living here, we've been joking about all of the "manly" stuff that JM has done. From yard work to physical labor, all new firsts for him. hahaha! :)

6. I enrolled Jenna in dance and gymnastics this past week. She is really, really, really, excited for dance. I thought we'd give gymnastics one more shot since we're in a new place too, but I really think that dance just might become her "thing." They don't start for a couple of more weeks - I'm really looking forward to getting into more of a routine with the new school year.

7. Mad Men!!!! Have you watched this show?? Oh my gosh, I've heard so many great things about it, so I thought we should finally try it out on netflix. Well the first show, I really didn't think I was going to like it and JM didn't think it was all that great either. So then we said, we'd give it 2 shows and then decide. After that we were hooked. It's one of those shows where you keep wanting to know what's going to happen next. I think there are 4 seasons on netflix and we are now on Season 2. OH, and I also discovered I could buy a few of my favorite current tv shows!!! So, I will definitely be watching Teen Mom again. Anyway, I still want to go a bit longer without tv - it's just really kind of free-ing and I like that. :)

Anyway, that's all I've got for now. Hopefully, I won't wait another week to blog again. :)

Random Wednesday!

2011-08-03T19:17:00.009-05:00

1. John Michael drove around and took a few pictures of the tornado damage the other day. He has only blogged one so far and this is it. (I told him I don't like this one because it's way too dark for me, but I still think he's an amazing photographer.)

2. This is me driving with Sophie and Max in my lap. Sophie has her arm around Max. I really do think they love each other and look out for each other.

3. John Michael got a gift from the hospital. It had a shirt, a bag, a cup and a nice gift card to a restaurant! This hospital really does seem like a great place to work for.

4. This is a picture of JM's new office starting next week. These are the modular buildings that they have been working on.

5. This is a bad picture but I got these Demdaco magnet boards and put them in our laundry room. Our refrigerator is not magnetic (YAY for that!!!) so I wanted somewhere we could put things. They have a lot of cute seasonal magnets that I want to get and switch out.

6. I got my Erin Condren planner in that I posted about last time. I really do love it. It's a bit heavy and bulky, but I really do like it. John Michael is always on me about putting things on the calendar on the computer, but I think I'm way more of a pen/paper in the hand type person.

7. Can you believe it's August??? It seems like this summer has just flown by! I'm excited about August though because it means I finally get to start my project life album! I think I will try to blog a few pages too as I go though it so maybe in a few weeks I'll post the first of August.

8. Joplin won the McAlister's Tea Town Contest! They are getting $7500 from McAlister's and someone else is matching that amount too. Please keep voting in this Coke contest for a chance to win $100,000 to go towards a park! All of that would go to the park across from the hospital - I can't imagine how nice a $115,000 park would be!!

Sam's Club $25 gift card giveaway!

2011-08-02T15:36:00.002-05:00

I have this giveaway up right now on my giveaway blog. Go there to enter!

Thirty One's new fall 2011 products

2011-08-02T15:35:00.000-05:00

Now that I got in a few of my new products, I thought I'd share some better pictures.

First off, the ever so popular thermal tote (item no. 3000) Shown in the new fabulous brown parisian pop

Next up, the zip up pencil pouch (item no. 3593). Shown in another one of my favorite prints - pink circle spirals.

The mirror compact (Item no. 3337) and the cute icon coin purse (item no. 3400).

And another one of my favorite products - The organizing Utility tote (item no. 3105) shown here in pin dots. This tote is so versatile! It also has 2 mesh side pockets and 2 other pockets on the back.

Don't forget that everything is 15% off for the month of August!

To order, click here.