December 30, 2011

{I picked a good one}

I know that I should be doing my annual ‘birthday post’ since it IS G’s birthday today! I can not believe he is already 9 years old. Where the time has gone I have no clue. It feels like I was just coming home from the hospital with him a week ago and yet now he’s all independent and amazing. I have loved every single second of the last 9 years and I wouldn’t trade those moments for anything in the entire world. He changed my life is so many amazing ways that I could not imagine having taken any other path but the one I did. He, even though he hates it, will always be my baby boy. No matter how old he is and no matter what life has planned for him. *tear* I could cry right now. That boy is so much to me and I could breathe without him. When he was a baby I used to tell him “I would curl up and die without you” and I still remember asking him, “What would you do without your mommy?” the first time and he said, “I’d curl up and die”. Oh there they go..the tears. Damn things.

‘04 Lord I love that boy.


 But I also have to talk about someone else in this post. I try not to talk too much about my relationship with D on here, mainly because I don’t think its anyone else’s business. But I have got to brag for just a minute.


We have been together 7yrs, a month after we’re married it will be 8yrs. Which in todays terms is probably equal to 50 LOL. Obviously I love him. And when I’m asked I can spout off a few reasons why, but the main one? Because he treats my son, like his own. Because not ONCE in 7yrs has G ever been his “step-son” or his “girlfriends kid”. He has always been “his” since we started living together. Always. And now is no different. We are stretched pretty thin this year. D has been working weekends and going to school during the day, he got the opportunity and we decided that in the long run it was what was best for our family. But it makes things a little harder than they would be if he was just working 40hrs a week. So we weren’t planning on spending a whole lot per kid on Christmas this year. We got their lists and tried to get as much of what they wanted on our budget, they ended up with a great list of gifts and were extremely happy. We had gotten pretty much all of the shopping done early, including G’s birthday gift (night vision goggles from bass pro). Well then my grandma mentioned that G had a list at her house too. Everything that was on his list here was on the list there except he added one extra thing to her list..a Nintendo DS. So I talked to D. I asked him what we should do, should we take back the goggles? He said no, just wrap the goggles for Christmas and we’ll figure out how to get the DS for his birthday. So I did. And we did.


Opening.


It can't just be a game bag!


Thanks mom!!


Nintendo Dsi XL Super Mario Edition. He is a happy camper.


And it's because of things like the above, that I love D so much. He didn't have to give up the last of his spending money to make G happy, he did it because he loves him.

December 27, 2011

{Merry Christmas–a day late-}

Christmas Eve:

D and I took the kids to his grandmas house to open gifts in the morning.

20111224111226

20111224111252

20111224111313

20111224113249

20111224111720

20111224115116

 

Christmas Day

G woke me up at 7:15am. Brat.

P1020985 P1020988 P1020995
P1030001 P1030011 P1030022
P1030008 P1030025 P1030020

 

Christmas Day we also went to my dads family Christmas but I was in charge of passing out the gifts so I didn’t get any pictures snapped Sad smile. Oh well. And yesterday we went to D’s dads house but now I can’t find my camera cord! grr! I hate it when I lose stuff! I’ll post pics of that when I find it LOL.

And now, I leave you with this little video I took of Drama Queen. She got an MP3 player from us..she likes it a little.

December 20, 2011

{I heart Hard Candy!}

Rarely (if ever) have I reviewed something on this blog, but I love this line of cosmetics so much that I can’t not tell my readers (hello? Are you out there??) about it! It’s Hard Candy and sold exclusively at Walmart (they take paypal people!).

I have been a Cover Girl lover since I first started wearing make-up and rarely do I venture into another section to purchase make-up. I have always found that most of the other brands are either cakey or just don’t work with my skin (oily..thanks dad!). But when I was wandering through walmart a few months back I saw this line and fell in love with the packaging alone. I thought it was fun and girly. 2 things I enjoy LOL. I didn’t purchase though because it seemed kind of expensive for the amount you get. With 4 kids I try not to spend much on make-up. Which is why I buy CG because it last me forever. But recently I had a pretty good amount in my paypal account and it was burning a hole in my cyber pocket. It occurs to me that I should finally take the plunge and go ahead and purchase this line since I wasn’t going to be able to use the money outside of the computer (thanks for that PNC!). Plus, I’m trying to build my make-up collection for the wedding, since I’m doing my own make-up, I want to know what I’m doing. I don’t want to look like a crack head who went crazy with the eye shadow. Right?

I finally happened upon the primer which I had been wanting to try (Elle says it’s a must in most of her tutorials) for a long time, added that to my cart. And since I have such crazy under eye circles I decided to purchase the Glamoflauge concealer. For these 2 products (plus tax & shipping) it was $17.22! Probably cheaper to just buy it at the store but whatever LOL.

The minute I opened it I went to try it out! The primer is amazing! It made my skin SO soft and my foundation went on so smooth and evenly. I loved it! Then came the Glamoflauge concealer..also amazing! You only need a tiny dot to do your entire eye (which I did). It was awesome! I could still see a little dark but not near as much as without it or with the concealer I’ve been using (which was useless).

My next purchase from them is going to be the eye shadow I think.

But you girls MUST head on over to either walmart.com or walmart store and pick some of this awesomeness up!

{T-minus 4 Days! Are you done shopping??}

We pretty much are! Which is basically a first for us…ever. We are usually scrambling on Christmas Eve trying to finish everyone up. But this year we just have a couple people to shop for this week & none of them are our kids! LOL I like that. We started by shopping online this year, and I kept track of what we were buying with my Christmas List App. I tell you what, for someone who likes to be organized this time of year, that thing was a life saver. Mainly my life because D gets really tired of me realizing the day before Christmas that we have entirely too much for 1 person and not near enough for someone else LOL. It didn’t happen with that app though!

So here is our gift run down for Christmas 2011!

 

T

  1. Laptop (which was a combined birthday & Christmas from us & D’s grandma)
  2. Large DS game case (cause of right now they are floating through out the up stairs)
  3. Watch (this is going in his stocking but he needs one badly to remember to take his meds on time)
  4. Gloves (stocking)

 

Drama Queen

  1. Body wash (stocking)
  2. Books (that I for .25 ea. at Big Lots!)
  3. Claire’s Gift Card (to get her ears pierced)
  4. Color Purse (you color it in how you want. Super cute!)
  5. Ear Rings (Stocking)
  6. Gloves (stocking)
  7. Slippers (stocking)
  8. Monster High Sketch Book
  9. Mp3 Player (she has been bugging us for one forever!)
  10. Slap Bracelet (stocking)
  11. Watch (stocking- also something she has been wanting)

 

G

  1. Bath robe with skulls on it!
  2. Body Wash (stocking)
  3. Bow glove
  4. Night Vision Goggles
  5. Pirate Chest (costumes a split gift)
  6. Walkie Talkies
  7. Watch (stocking)
  8. Gloves (stocking)

 

Little Boy

  1. Imaginex Bat Cave
  2. Body Wash (stocking)
  3. Watch (stocking)
  4. Cape (stocking)
  5. Pirate Chest (split with G)
  6. How to train your dragon movies
  7. Groom & Go Toy Story 3 (a “shaving kit” for little boys)
  8. Jokers “House” to go with Bat Cave
  9. Penguin Set (to go with Bat Cave)
  10. Riddler Set (to go with Bat Cave)
  11. Lightening McQueen Car (stocking)

 

When I look at it all written out like that, I am still short a couple gifts. But I can easily go make them up this week. Nothing big, something small. We also tried to stay on a budget with each kid. And a lot of the Drama Queens gifts were far more expensive than what the other kids got.

But I’m excited to watch them open their gifts. I can’t wait to see their faces on Christmas morning.

So, what did you get your kiddos this year?

November 30, 2011

{I know I'm late}

But HAPPY THANKSGIVING!! It's not my fault!! Nothing exciting ever happens around here and I know you guys get tired of reading the mundane stories that are my world. So that's why I didn't update about Thanksgiving before now. There was nothing to update.

D's grandma went to visit a friend that day so the kids (T, Drama Queen, and The Little Boy) and us went to a friends house to celebrate. It was just our 3 (G was with my grandparents) and their 2. It was fabulous :). His wife had quite the spread and it was so good! Nothing eventful happened though. There wasn't a big family battle or anything because we weren't with family to have one (had we been I'm sure something would have come up lol).

Oh! We're almost done Christmas shopping. I think it's the first year I have ever been this far ahead of the shopping game. I love it. I also have our decorations put up. Honestly, I've had them out since before Thanksgiving. I couldn't help myself. I love Christmas!!

Our cute little tree :) It's so short in this living room. In the trailer it touched the ceiling.


The little tree in the boys' room. Little Boy broke the stand but he was so upset when I said I had to take it out I just propped it up and left it there. We'll throw it out and get a new one next year.


Stockings; 1 for each kid & 1 for each dog ;). Along with the calender we count down to Christmas with. I've had it since I was little. I swiped it from my mom ;)


So there is my post for today :) Can't wait to post some more as we do all the fun holiday stuff.

November 12, 2011

{A Shopping Adventure}

I have been in such a funk for the last few days. D gave me money yesterday to go shopping and to my surprise I spent it all on things that were needed and 1 Christmas gift *sigh*. I don't know what's going on with me. Actually, that's a lie, I do know what's going on. But it's not something I want to delve into on a personal blog. Not right now anyway. If you're a friend then you probably already know what's going on. Blah. Anyway- on to more pleasant things!

While shopping yesterday I purchased my first actual gift from the Drama Queen.



Pretty cool right?? We actually found it at Toys R Us but I'm linking to walmart. Anyway- it comes with stencils and stickers (2 of her favorite things) and already has the girls (and maybe guys I don't know) drawn on the paper. You just lay the stencil down and design the clothes. She absolutely loves it. Yes, she saw it. She picked it out. Since it was $10 though I told her if she bought it today she had to wait for Christmas to open it, it'd be a gift from her dad and I. She was fine with that. Which was highly unusual for her lol. Normally I don't do that, I'd have went back and bought it later. But we were there and I was in a thank god I'm out of that house kind of mood. So she got it and it's now sitting in a tote under my bed waiting to wrapped and go under the tree :).

We also went to Barnes & Noble where I purchased The Help


Of course I paid $16 for it in the store and you can order it for $9 on the website or go to wal-mart and get it for $12. *sigh* Such is my luck. I'm already on chapter 7 though and I'm hooked. I've been wanting to read it since I saw the trailer for the movie. I can't wait for it to come out on DTV Cinema so I can watch it!

I also managed to introduce Drama Queen to a thing called Bop! Magazine (I think that's that one it was..or it was something like it anyway). I foresee me buying several of these magazines in the future. And I have got to figure out how to hang up the posters they come with *sigh*. I've got a teeny bopper on my hands folks.

I also managed to come up with Christmas gifts for my nephew and niece! I'm going to go the book route :)


This is for my 3mo. old niece. I know that eventually her mommy & daddy are going to read to her (if they don't already) and she is going to love these stories! I know my kids did, hell I still love them.



I have no clue what books to get for my nephew but I'm sure I'll find something he'll enjoy :)

I guess that's all I have to say for right now :)

November 6, 2011

{It has begun}

D came home yesterday and told me that he was going to give me money when he gets paid next to go shopping for stocking stuffers. I got excited! And then he said, "Drama Queen wants a cell phone." I put my foot down. I have no desire to have a 9yr old with a cell phone. But he made his case, he wants to get it for her. We're going to look at plans and see what will work best for her and for us (and our bank account). It kills me though that she is just 9 and already wanting something like this. I was still playing with Barbies when I was 9. I didn't get my first cell phone until I got a job at 18, and even that wasn't mine, it was my grandmas and she let me take it with me to make sure I could get a hold of someone if I had car trouble (which came in handy once since I ran out of gas lol).

She has also been hounding me for months to let her get her ears pierced. To this I did not object. I just never seem to have the time or the cash to take her to get it done. So this year for Christmas I'm gonna go ahead and get her a gift certificate from Claire's as one of her 'under the tree' gifts & some ear rings in her stocking.

I'm actually pretty excited about her getting her ears pierced. I have always said that I wouldn't do it until she asked for it. It just kinda kills me that she is old enough to ask. *sigh* It's hard to believe that she is already 9 years old and a long way from the 2 year old I met when D and I started dating.

I have a feeling it never gets easier does it?

October 28, 2011

{I am not a hunter..}

Or a fisher for that matter, but I do enjoy it once in a while. So when D said that I just had to see the new Bass Pro Shop in the next town, I was not excited about it. In fact, I told him he was on crack and he could spend as much time there as he pleased but I had no interest. I'd been to one years ago and was not impressed. Honestly at this point I'll take any adventure I can get because my life is that boring.

We walked through the front door of this store and it was like we were going into a friggin' amusement park. They had those turn styles greeting you (I'm guessing to see how many people came in) and then the place was just filled to the ceiling with awesomeness. Even the bathrooms were awesome with a traveling theme (vintage luggage around the ceiling and all). There are video games through (which T loved but since he's grounded again he couldn't play them) and a shooting game where they had animals popping up you could shoot at. It was pretty cool.

They also had a giant fish tank filled with cat fish, gar, and a 'dog fish' which I thought was hilarious. They had this MASSIVE catfish in there though, it was probably heavier than the little boy (who was freaking out the entire time he could see any kind of animal anywhere. He wanted nothing to do with them). There was also a candy store with fudge! OMG! I wanted some SO bad but I knew I shouldn't so I didn't even bother lol. I did find wax lips though which thrilled me because I haven't seen them since I was little (shut up! That wasn't that long ago!), and I immediately thought stocking stuffer when I saw them.

Oh! I got a new candle too! It smells like coffee heaven! I can't wait to burn it! And we have decided what to get some members of our adult family for Christmas. I'm pretty excited about it! :)

They also have this adorable little cabin in the middle of the store that's set up high off the ground so you can't actually go in but there are holes in the floor and they put so much detail into setting that thing up! It's amazing!

I really think if you haven't been to Bass Pro you should go check it out :)

After that we went to dinner at Chilli's (because Uncle Bucks in Bass Pro was packed).

In all, it was an enjoyable night. One that I so desperately needed. I felt like I was going stir crazy!

 

October 19, 2011

{Think I'll keep him}

I love D.

I know that should be obvious since we're engaged but seriously, I love him. The gauges in my van haven't worked for a month or more. Ever since he took it on a fishing trip with his bff. So I haven't known how fast I was going or how much gas I really had in a long time. But as of 2 days ago, that's fixed!! I'm so excited! All he had to do was tighten up some wires, so yay!

And as of Monday he hooked up my dryer! Over the summer I hung clothes on the line, and that was fine for me. I have always wanted a clothes line because in the trailer we couldn't have one *eye roll*. But when it started getting cold and rainy (as it does in the fall in IL) doing the laundry started becoming a pain in the ass. I couldn't hang it out if it looked like it might rain and although there were clouds in the sky and I thought it might start soon, I could wait all day to see a drop. Resulting in me not getting any laundry done and then everyone is without jeans or a clean pair of socks. It was seriously annoying. So he finally got it hooked up and I can do laundry regardless of what the weather is like.

Before you ask why he didn't hook it up when we moved in, we have a gas dryer and they had an electric hook up. So he had to drill holes or something, I really don't know. All I know is it was a pain and he didn't want to do it, but he did :).

So yeah, I think I'll keep him for a little while longer ;)

October 18, 2011

{Bet You'll Think Twice}

T got grounded last Friday for his usual BS (fit throwing, back talking, ect) and just got his xbox back on Sunday. He would have gotten it back on Saturday but he chose to sit there and argue with me instead of just doing as he was told, and going to his room.

I gave his xbox back and with it, came new rules. Rules that I had thought out and had planned consequences for. Rules that I do not feel are unfair or make me the 'evil step mother'. I think I am being quite lenient when it comes to this issue. My parents wouldn't have been.

Anyway- before I handed him the xbox to plug back in, I laid out the rules.

1. You are not allowed on any video game system (this includes, xbox, wii, and DS) until 3pm. No if, ands, or buts about it.

2. At dinner time (so around 5-6pm) the games go off but he can still use his xbox for netflix. We don't have a cable box for his room and we're not getting one. So that is how he watches tv up there.

For consequences I am taking no prisoners. If I have to remind him of the rules once, that is his warning for the day. End of story. I'm not warning him and then reminding him of the warning just to warn him again 10min. later.

D went and got T's DS from his grandmas house and all of the games that he could salvage (he doens't

October 16, 2011

{Already??}

G has started telling me what he wants for Christmas already *sigh*. Is that time of year already?? It doesn't feel like it. I'm excited for Christmas this year though. I get to hang lights outside and make my house all pretty :). Weee! *excited giggle*

On another note, T got his xbox back today.

October 12, 2011

{And interview with an Author/mom blogger}


Anna and her girls

Your children's book, The Adventures of Smitty looks magically. Tell us about it.
It's the story of a magical island of little creatures called Smilies and the mischievous little main character, Smitty. He's such a naughty boy. Haha! All the moms and kids I've shared it with have been giving me such a wonderful reaction. I cannot believe it. I have to tell you how excited I am to finally have a life-long dream come true. Writing The Adventures of Smitty was really about finding a story that I would want to read to my children at night. It has to be exciting but not scary so that my two daughters can go to sleep. Basically, I was looking for that perfect blend to read to my kids at night and decided, "Why not try writing my own?"

We've had a lot of changes in our life recently, so I want to make sure that when I put my daughters to sleep that they feel safe. I have short chapters because I know how busy we moms are but if you can just sacrifice 5 minutes at night reading to your kids, it makes a world of difference. Your kids will never forget it. And although we're running around the whirlwind of life, our kids grow up so fast, and that time that we'd rather finish watching what happened in our favorite soap opera instead of reading to our kids will never come again. I hope that The Adventures of Smitty and books like it help moms do exactly that.

And it's only 99 cents this week. That's what I love about it. Now, You are recently divorced. How have you been able to continue writing when going through such a change?
Yes, it is by far one of the most challenging points in my life. To see a marriage you thought would last forever to not last forever was difficult for the two of us. I really learned a lot about myself and most importantly, it's brought me closer to my daughters. I think that's what really motivated me to finish this children's book no matter what. When you're going through changes in your life like this, you need something to hold on to. There's a part of you that wants to prove that you can make it, that you will be a success even if it's not with the partner you originally imagined building a life with. I had to keep writing, for my kids. I want to show them that they have to keep strong, no matter what.

We as women, as moms really need to stick together to support each other and our dreams. We're living in an age when I think we're finally realizing, although we want love, the men in our life aren't the answer to everything. We have to stand up on our own two feet and keep going. True love will happen, but until then, we have to keep moving forward. Our children depend on us and we depend on us.

In addition to being a children's book author, you're also a small business owner. How do you juggle taking care of two daughters and at the same time running a business?
Yes, I am a fashion designer and have a retail store. Any type of creativity is what I'm passionate about. That's why writing The Adventures of Smitty was so important to me. Let me tell you, running a small business in today's economy isn't easy especially when raising two girls at the same time. But somehow, it seems someone's watching over me because my dreams are coming true no matter what. To have that many moms glowing about my children's book, means so much to me. And I know my girls are proud.

When do you ever have time to write?
You mean, in between laundry, running a business, chasing my girls around the house, cleaning the house, and flying back and forth fromMiami to New York? Haha? That's one thing I've learned, when you really want to do something, you find a way. Things fall into place if you just go for it and that's what I want to encourage all the moms who are reading this right now. Whatever your goal is, you can do it. Don't let the challenges in your personal life stop you from going for your dreams. Just go for it and it's almost magical how things fall into place.

Where can we get a copy of "The Adventures of Smitty"?
Right now, it's available online by going to: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/94655 You can also visit my website:http://www.AnnaDeskins.com where you can read more about my writing process, my recommendations for other books and my own adventures in Mommyhood.

I'm so grateful for your support and the support I'm getting from so many wonderful moms who dream of writing children's books one day too. Writing The Adventures of Smitty has been such an emotional experience for me, a true journey as I was going through so many changes while writing it. It's truly been a blessing in my life. It, along with my daughters, and that guy upstairs have really pulled me through a challenging time.

Thanks for the interview, Anna. And let's go out and support a fellow mom by getting a copy of The Adventures of Smitty today. I know I will!

October 6, 2011

{Why didn’t *I* think of that??}

G is a picky eater. He gets it from the other half of his gene pool. It drives me crazy. Basically the only thing he will eat is tacos (minus the lettuce), pizza (without any veggies), mac&cheese, and spaghetti (unless I put onion in it). *sigh* So naturally school lunches are a problem. I keep the menu on the fridge and he looks every morning to make sure that it’s something he will eat. Usually there is at least 1 thing he likes. Like today, they have a choice between hamburger or BBQ Pork, corn, & peaches. He will eat the hamburger, corn, & peaches…won’t touch the BBQ.

Because he is so picky it’s also really hard to find substitute things to send with him. It has to be something sort of easy and it has to be something he already knows he likes. Nothing new. The kid is impossible.

So what does any mom with internet access and a knowledge of google do? She searches for lunch box ideas. And look at the golden idea I have come across!

tacocups2

Source

Taco cups!! Why didn’t I think of that?? If there is anything my kid will eat, it’s tacos. He loves them! We’re going to try these gems out and see how they work for him. I’m pretty excited about them myself.

I just had to pass this along.