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Keep up with our family, find out what's new and exciting with the kids!! Check out our neat pictures and slide shows!! xoxo

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

New House

Okay, so I know it's been awhile since I posted... but Ben has been gone... so I'm kind of... I don't know... He got back from Maine the weekend we closed on our new house. But then it was his dads turn to take him.. so now he wont be back until 7/31!!
So, we closed on our new house on June 26th!! It was awful until the very last minute. It seemed that everyday the mortgage guy called with another problem with the loan!! It was soooo stressfull!! But now it's all over and we have out house. It needs a little work, but it's not bad. It is a three bedroom split entry. One bathroom upstairs and then the basement is finished with a family room a three quarter bath and a den. The backyard is really nice and big!! All fence in and there is a nice deck off the dinning area.
The work we need to do is the kitchen has to be redone, most of the cupboards are falling apart, and then the downstairs bathroom needs to be gutted, it looks like the conner shower unite leaks... and it's just well nasty!! But aside from that it seems to be in good shape!
I will try to make a slide show of the house at some point, but right now I don't have a functioning camera... the only pics I have are the black and white pics the assesor sent with his ppw of the house value.
The neighborhood is really quiet, and the neighbors seem nice, one even cut our grass for us when John (bless his heart) attemted to cut the grass... but he I guess hasn't ever cut grass before and the yard got a very bad uneven haircut!! lol
We are pretty much all settled in the house, just have a few things left to move from my moms house... but for the most part we are done. I just need to put up pictures and stuff...
Our bedroom is yellow, which isn't a color I would have picked but is actually a really soothing color. The boys room is green, real pastely green with stripes of an even lighter green and there is a jungle boarder around the top and the curtains are lepard print with a monkey stuffed animal wrapped around it to hold it open (very cute all window coverings are pretty nice and were left with the house). Right now since they are still littel and like sleeping in the same room together anyways Ben and Brody are sharing a room, and the third room is their play room! Which is nice because then they understand that the bedroom is where they sleep! The play room is kind of crazy colors, green on the top half of the wall and purple on the bottom half of the wall... but it works out well for a play room... I'm thinking about painting the alphabet in white and then some shapes around the walls... maybe.. we'll see. The bathroom is blue, with one wall has wood panneling on it... which isn't my favorite, but at some point I will redo that bathroom too...
The important thing is that the house is sound with our majore problems... it just needs a bit of a cosmetic make over.
It has a nice large dirve way! But only one car garage, which at the moment is acting as our dumping ground for all the boxex I haven't gotten around to unpaking yet..
Well that is all I have to report for now... oh yeah so we figured out what school ben will be going to seems like a good school, it isn't the one for our neighborhood which I'm glad about... but it is still close and it has before and after care... so I've got him all set up to start first grade august 17th... yikes!!

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Ben the Super Star

Okay so Ben had his last soccer game on the 21st of May... he did awsome!! Way better than I thought he would, and he really loved soccer!! I made a new slide show of his last game, so check it out!!
He finished kindergarten! Did wonderful this year, had a few bumps, but over all he got a great reportcard and is ready for first grade after the summer!
All the kindergartners put on this little show for the parents to celebrate learning, it was really cute! They sang several songs that talked about what they learned and recited a poem that said something along the lines of first grade here I come... it was too cute!
On Friday the 22 of May I drove Ben to Ohio to meet my dad who he will be staying with this summer at my dads home in Maine. We meet in Ohio because it was the half way point... still it was a 14 hour drive!!
For my birthday (saturday 23) we took a stroll along Eerie lake shore, ben splashed a bit in the water and we skipped rocks and picked up shells... it was very relaxing thing to do after driving for almost a whole day!
Then my dad and Deb took us (Ben, John and I) out to dinner at Redlobster...
Then sunday we parted ways and my Dad n Deb drove away with Ben headed towrd Maine... uuuggg heart breaking!!!
So now I'm missing him like crazy even though he has only been gone for a bit more than a week... but I talk to him everyday, and he sounds like he is just having sooo much fun! His cousins are there, (Wes's kids) and Maine with it's forests and great nature is a great place for a kid to spend the summer. My dad has a pool too, so that in Bens' eyes is a perk!
Not sure when he will be home, I think my parents are bringing him home sometime in July.... not sure if I can make it till then without my bean!!
My evenings after work are very quiet, almost too quiet! But I'm glade that Ben is having fun and is able to have this experience, and also I think it's important for his relationship with my Dad, as he does live far away and hasn't had much oppertunity to see Ben...
The things we put ourselves through for our kids!!
Well love you all... probably wont have anything interesting to post till the Bean gets back...
Oh but one side note... We found another house, since the loan fell though on the fist house and we didn't get it... It is a nicer house, bigger and cheaper... but we had to get a different kind of loan and now have to come up with 3500 dollars by June 26th... that is when we are supposed to close... so hopefully if we have the money we will be in our new house when Ben gets home!!
When and if we get the house I will post pictures!
xoxox

Monday, April 27, 2009

Soccer



Two Thursdays ago Ben started soccer! The first practice/game was awesome! He did great he made three goals! He was so utterly proud of himself! Then last week he still did very well, but he was pretty bumbed that neither he nor his team made any goals...
But it's just micro soccer and they don't keep score anyway! Ans every one of them will get a trophy at the end.
They took pictures last week, and of coarse I planned on not spending more than 20 bucks on soccer pics but ended up forking out a lot more, I just get so excited about stuff like that, especially when he really enjoys it.
He likes soccer a lot better than basketball! He really wanted to try baseball out this summer, but he will be gone to Maine with my dad for a month or so, so he will have to try that out some other time!
Other than that not much is going on... we had to give up our pup because he barked and barked all day I guess and someone complained three times and so it was the dog or get evicted from the apartment, which we couldn't have happen because we only had like a month and a half left and at that time we were trying to get a loan to buy a house so we couldn't have that bad mark...
We found a nice little house, and thought we had the loan stuff all settled and were all ready to sign on the house on the 15Th, and they weren't ready... so then we were "ready" to sign on the 20Th... and again something wasn't ready yet.... so then "most certainly" the 22... ohhh but no then it was well we aren't really sure when we will be ready with all the documents to sign on the house we are having some verification issues with the underwriter... so we still haven't signed on the house and now we are going to have to put all our stuff in storage if they haven't gotten it all sorted out by Wednesday as we are supposed to be out of our apartment by Thursday!! What a pain!
Anyways... needed to vent! We acquired two cats just recently... Ben loves them, John isn't so keen on them... he said he wanted to get another dog latter when we got a house, but I don't really want another dog because they are sooo much work and no one helps me... these cats, named MO and ISIE; were going to be taken to the pound... so I decided to save them, they are less than a year old but they are both fixed/spayed and have had their shots and declawed.... so I couldn't help myself I had to take them... But I think the fact that they are sooo self sufficient is making John like them a bit more... they don't have to be walked or fed really(they have an automatic feeder) and their litter box I clean... so he doesn't have to do anything except play with them sometimes... their favorite thing is this stupid laser light they will chase it around the carpet for the longest time!! LOL
So anyways I suppose I should get to work! I will make another post when and if where get the house! So everyone cross your fingers for us!!
Love to everyone!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Ben is such a BIG Boy

Okay so yesterday was a big big day!! So there I was having a conference with Benny's kindergarten teacher... and all she really had to say was good stuff!! She boasted about how sweet he was, even if he had trouble focusing at times... Then the big question that has been pressing on my mind. Do "we" think he is ready to move on next year to first grade??? "Oh of coarse, there is absolutely nothing that would indicate to me that he couldn't handle it" said his teacher... Sweet, in your face to all those who told me he was too young to start kindergarten, and that he would probably end up doing two years....
So then we go home, I'm already feeling a little bit weepy so to speak because my little guy is just getting soooo big!! Kindergarten will be over May 20, and then he will be off to spend the summer in Maine with my dad without me. Which I was thinking when I showed him on a calendar about how long he would be gone (which will be more than a month) that he would be a bit apprehensive about it, but he's not he thinks that it will be the "greatest adventure ever" lol...
And then next year first grade already?????!!!!! This was just all too much, he is just too big!!
So then we get home from our parent/teacher conference, and I notice that he has not one but TWO loose teeth!!! And to top it off the adult teeth are already half way up!!! Seriously talks of first grade and loose teeth in one day? Well anyways we wiggled and wiggled one tooth and then finally with a mighty pull of some dental floss the baby just popped right out; it actually went flying across the room!!
He was thrilled!! He couldn't stop laughing, bloody mouth and all the thought it was awesome. I made him rinse his mouth and chomp down on some cotton for a bit... but the second it stopped bleeding he proceeded to call people... He had to call his dad first... then his grandpa Steve.... and all his other grandpa's/ma's... he was soooo proud of himself!!
He put his tooth under his pillow last night and was thrilled to see that the "tooth fairy" had brought him 3 bucks and a bunch of bakugon tattoos!!
The only thing that makes me sad is that that other tooth is just about ready to fall out and he is going to be gone all weekends at his dad's and I'm afraid he will loose it this weekend and I wont be there.... but at least i was there for the first!!
Time flaps by in the blink of an eye, so we should treat each moment likes its the most precious gift ever!!
Love you all
xoxo

Monday, March 2, 2009

Ben Makes a Pizza

Okay so a week or so ago, maybe two... Ben made a pizza almost all by himself. He wanted to do something fun... and he is kind of in to cooking right now, so I let him go to town.
I helped make the dough, and spread it out in the pan, but he did the rest pretty much by himself. I have to say, it wasn't exactly a gourmet pizza... He used almost three bags of cheese, and maple flavored breakfast sausage, and chunky spaghetti sauce... So as you can imagine it was delectable... lol
There is a new slide show of him making his pizza so be sure to check that out!!
The next morning there was pizza left and I planned on tossing it out, but he insisted on taking some to school to show all his buddies what he made, and he wanted me to take a piece for my friend Julie for lunch.
Poor Julie, but she was a real sport she ate the whole piece... but she couldn't stomach the maple flavored sausage so she had to take that off... But when I told Ben she had eaten the whole piece he had sent for her he was super proud of himself thinking he was truly a big boy and a really good cook... LOL
Well any ways that's it for now... next time he says he wants to make spaghetti and meatballs...
Oh joy!!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

One Step At a Time

Okay so my cus Heather tagged me on her blog to do this... It's taken me kind of a while to get to it... but here goes... Also I would like to call out Sherly, Amy, my Mom, Lauren, Karina and Jules to do this!

Let's see what your music has to say about you...
Here are the rules:1. Put your iTunes on shuffle. Or a Mix CD/Playlist on the computer....
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS

1) IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY? Hey Julie - Fountains of Wayne

2) WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY? Poor Unfortunate Souls - Jonas Brothers

3) WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL? Aint Nothing But Mammals. - Blood Hound Gang

4) HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY? Be Okay - Ingrid Michealson

5) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE? Decode - Paramore

6) WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO? Bad Things - Jace Everette

7) WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? Just Dance - Lady GaGa

8) WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? I'm Yours - Jason Mraz

9) WHAT IS 2+2? Keep Breathing - Ingrid Michaelson

10) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND? Love Story - Taylor Swift

11) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE? My life would suck without you -Kelly Clarkson

12) WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? Piece of Me - Britney Spears

13) WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? The Way I Am - Ingrid Michaelson

14) WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE? Sober - Pink

15) WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING? Stacys Mom - Fountains of Wayne

16) WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? Crazy - Gnarls Barkely

17) WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST? Don't Panic - cold Play

18) WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? Over the Rainbow - Israel Kamakawiwo'ole

19) WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS? So What - Pink

20) WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN? Hot N Cold - Katty Perry

21) HOW WILL YOU DIE? Love Remains the Same - Gavin Rossdale

22) WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET? I Kissed a Girl - Katty Perry (Now that is funny I think that might apply to two ladies I know... hehe)

23) WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH? Bad Girlfriend - Theory of a Dead Man

24) WHAT MAKES YOU CRY? Natural Disaster - Plain White T's

25) WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED? Laid - Matt Nathanson

26) WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST? Soulmate - Natasha Bedingfield

27) DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU? These Words - Natasha Bedingfield

28) IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE? Mercy - Duffy

29) WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW? In this Life - Delta Gooderm

30) WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS NOTE AS? One Step At a Time - Jordin Sparks


That was kind of fun... some of the songs matched the questions pretty well... well that's all for now!
Love and Peace!!

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Chicken Noodle Soup

Uggg.... So ben and I have been siiiiick!! Since last week we have both been snot bags!! It's been awful. I took Ben to the Dr. last week and they said he just had a viral infection and they couldn't do anything for him...
But then Sunday, after me having missed 3 days of work and his fever still holding strong at 104 I decided to take him in again, and low and behold he had strep.... yeah, and I had bronchitis... so then Monday was another fun filled day of sickness for the both of us.
We pulled out the blankies and had tons of Chickie noodle soup... you know as much as I hate being sick it was actually kind of nice, I mean Ben is five now and he is "a BIG boy" so he has gotten less cuddly... but when he is sick "Mommy" is his world!! He needed me again and he was just the sweetest little love bug, cuddling with me and hanging out with me watching movies. And when I made him chicken noodle soup that was just the right temp not to hot not too cold I was "the greatest person ever and he would love me forever and ever"
So despite the fact that I was exhausted and sick my self it was all worth it to be yet again Ben's hero!!
There is nothing like a mommys love when you're not feeling well, so I pay tribute to all the fabulous mothers in my circle!! We are the BOMB let's giver ourselves a well deserved pat on the back!!
A special thanks to my mom who very kindly took Ben off my hands one evening so that I could get some much needed rest... mothers are selfless and kind and always know when they are really needed.... this we should all aspire to!

So anyways that has been up with us lately. Ben is doing somewhat better now, but he is still getting over the yuckies!
I'm doing better too, but today I'm just super tired since yesterday I shopped my legs off at the Mall of America...
Julie and I road tripped to Minneapolis Tuesday to watch the Raptors play... it was fantastic, a really nice little "valentines" getaway for the two of us. Best of all I got to see Uncle Eric, whom I hadn't seen in well over a decade!! He looked great! He got her and I tickets to the game and then visit with us for just a bit after. He was just as kind and sweet as I remembered, however he was a "GIANT" anymore... must mean that I am taller, I always remembered my Uncle Eric to be this really tall giant... but those are usually the perceptions of young children, adults always seem so big....
So we drove down there, a six hour drive... went to the game, chatted with U.Eric and then we got into a bit of trouble... because there can never be a "Julie and I" situation with out trouble somewhere in the scenario... :)
And since we were there the next day we decided to go shopping at the Mall of America... that place is ginormous!! I bought a ton of clothes since there is on tax on clothes or shoes there... and also because I had just ruined most of my work clothes because some little boy had put a marker and some chap stick in the dryer... enough said!
The drive back was excruciating... we had shopped for too long and were so tired, we took turns driving and made it home last night about 9.30... But it was soooo worth it, it was a blast!
I will add a pic of Uncle Eric and us when he sends it to me...
That's all for now...
xoxo

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Sleep Over

Okay so Ben had a blast at his sleep over!!! We started off by INSANELY taking the three boys to wally world to get snacks... so we loaded the cart up with all sorts of goodies from chips to candy and juice... and of coarse some mommy snacks like pop and tail mix... And with those three deviants I'm sure what could have probably been a 10 minute trip in and out turned in to a rather long trip into the store... but that's okay, they even thought that was fun...lol
Then we got back to my apartment and the fun began... or more like the bickering, because even though they are best of friends they are little boys and they treat each other just like brothers I swear! He has more toys than me or he took the one I want or I gave him a piece of my candy but he didn't give me a piece of his... good grief... well Jules and I pretty much just let them duke it out in Benny's room as long as there weren't any blood curdling screams or gushing blood we saw no reason to be jumping up and down to monitor them!!
We had pizza for dinner and they had an array of junk food!! Ben said that the best part was that I let him eat all sorts of junk and at bed time I didn't even make him wash his face or even brush his teeth... lol the things that they think are special!!
They were watching tv in Bens room but then moved out to the living room and took over the TV out there to watch a movie on demand out there, one called Fly me to the moon... kind of a cute movie for a movie full of maggots... Eric and Alex went out like lights, Ben was a trooper and was the last to fall asleep at about 11.15... then it was bed time for us girls too!!
Julie and I had a good night too, we managed to do mini facials and our nails, we chatted a lot and even got through the movie Maid of Honor semi uninterrupted!! And in the morning we got through through the movie Over her Dead Body... both really cute chickie flicks!
So it was a good sleep over, and Ben had a blast! Unfortunately Sunday morning he started to come down with a cold and now he is out of commission. Sunday evening he had a fever and then Monday he was barking like a seal... so he had to miss school... much to his dismay... yeah right... hopefully he will be back to school tomorrow!
Well that is it for now.
Toddles!

Friday, January 9, 2009

New Years Resolution




























So here we are in 2009; and it seems that time is just being flushed away so fast! To me it seems that just yesterday I was trying to negotiate my life and decide how to tell my folks that I would be having a baby out of wedlock at the age of just 20... and now here I am 26 with my Devilish 5 year old who last year started kindergarten and is just growing like a weed and changing everyday... and I feel like I should try harder to keep in touch with my family, or at least let people who might care know how we are doing and how wonderful he is and how much he changes on a daily basis. So this is my new years resolution.






As we know that I could never keep to a resolution to keep in contact with people on a one on one basis I have decided to start a blog, and I will try to faithfully update it at least once a month. I will send it out to all those that I am in contact with and you can pass it on to those that I am not in contact with if you think they would like to know how Benjamin and I are doing. I love all my family very much from my cousins to my aunts and uncles... I just unfortunately never really had the opportunity to really build much of a bond with most of you and at times I'm not sure I really fell like part of your family, however don't ever think that that doesn't mean that I don't care for each and everyone of you!












So anyway... 2008 was a year... Ben started Kindergarten; he is doing really well. He had a bit of a rough start; as he is the youngest in his class but his teacher was really patient with him and with some persistence and some extra attention he is really doing well now. He also started basketball in December... it's not real basketball, but he likes it, he didn't at first because he thought he wasn't any good but just this last Tuesday he made his first basket!! So he was super proud of himself and it was a super self esteem booster!






Benjamin is a super sensitive boy! But well he is also very DEVILISH... as you can see from the pic, which is from Halloween '08! He was a devil for Halloween... and he was also a skeleton... he usually has two or three costumes every Halloween because he has one for school/daycare then one for trick treat and then we usually go trick treat at the zoo or at the convention center... yes he is a bit spoiled!!






There are a few little girls in his class that he is "going to marry" and his teacher had to have a talk with me because Ben is a "Romeo" apparently he held a girls hand and when one little girl fell down he picked her up and sat her in his lap and kissed her check and told her she would be okay... and that is just "unacceptable"... oh brother!! LOL so we need to teach our children to be nice just not too nice.... but not too mean or then they are considered bullies...






I'm sure parents, grandparents you all think it's very amusing how we children suffer through the lessons of being parents... the greatest revenge, right??? :)












Tomorrow night Ben is actually having his first sleep over, its just with my best friend and her boys... and my best friend Julie with be staying the night too... because her boys haven't ever had a sleep over either... but it's exciting for them!!






They have these huge plans to "stay up forever" and to eat "popcorn till there stomachs explode"






So his room is all set up for camping with tents and sleeping bags and tons of movies and flash lights and comic books... and all his bakogon... which by the way is like his new obsession... bakagon.... to me they seem practically the same as pokemon... but don't say that to him oooooohhhh no, because they are not.... no sirrrrrr... yeahh...






So anyway tomorrow night why the three little monsters take over the latter part of the apartment my girlfriend Julie and I are going to watch chicky flicks and give each other facials and do our nails and stuff...






It's kind of a decompression night after the holidays... Also this weekend my boyfriend John is gone this weekend for guard and he will be gone for about 4 days since he is getting ready to go to Saudi Arabia in February...





This is a pic of him, and also his son Brody who is two and believe it or not Brodys bday is October 10 just like Ben, isn't that crazy!! Ben loves having Brody around! John has him every day for a few hours and then every other weekend... so it works out that I have Ben all week every week and every other weekend so John and I live together, so we have our boys together on the same weekend and then no kids one weekend... which actually is kind of nice!! Gives us a weekend off to our selves!





John is a good man, is is good to me and to Ben, he is a man though, and like any man does to a woman he does drive me nuts at times. But over all he is genuinely a good guy!





Oh yeah one of Ben's xmas presents was a puppy so a new addition to our family was Oscar Bingo... named by Ben... he is a very cute dachshund... he was born on 10/1/8... he is actually a very good puppy... but very puppy... and the whole potty training and biting stage drives me crazy!! But he is soooo cute... it makes up for it!! And he keeps me company!! John when he isn't on guard duty works over nights, so I really don't see him much during the week, so the puppers is my night companion, he keeps my toes warm!! And gives my some kind of raunchy kisses in the morning... :)








I'm doing pretty good, I work at the VA hospital. I'm only a contract worker, I've worked there for there years now as a contract... but at least I have free medical. Which has come in handy recently!! Just a few months a go I had to have emergency gallbladder removal... and for awhile now I have been dealing with chronic headaches which they aren't really sure why I get them, they might be related to some calcification's that they found on my brain last year... but I have to take some pretty expensive medication to keep my headaches to a minimum... so the free medical insurance is nice!! But I'm doing okay... my headaches have been better... recently though they have started to get worse... so I will have to probably have some more test soon... I'm just sort of putting it off because the next step they said if meds didn't work would be a spinal tap and possibly a shunt from my brain to my stomach to help keep the pressure down... because they think that I have something called pseudotumor which is a constant elevation of spinal fluid pressure... They only think that though because I had meningitis in 2005... but for now I'm surviving, and I'm happy!!
























Well that is it for now... like I said I will try to add something at least once a month...



love and kisses to every one!!