You can go home again

A couple weekends ago I headed West to good old Manhattan to watch the KSU/ISU game in Aggieville with some of my sorority sisters. It was some much needed adult time, as well as catching up with friends.

It was very surreal being back there out at the bars. I've been gone 3 years now, and everytime I enter Aggieville it's as if I never left. I'm 18 years old all over again. I expect to see just about everyone I've ever met wandering from bar to bar, when in reality I don't really know anyone there anymore. Tear. I also realized that when you get together with friends to catch up, I truly was back in my 18 year old mind frame. The gossip was unbelievable. Not that I didn't enjoy it (sometimes it's good to feel young again people!) But I've entered a whole new life stage where the most important things are did my kids eat enough? Are they watching too much TV? Does this bump require a trip to the hospital? My thoughts and conversations revolve around these 2 little girls. While just a couple short years ago it was filled with SHE DID WHAT? She hooked up with WHO? So it was nice to get back to that. If even for a short time.

I only got to hang out for a few short hours (seriously it seemed like 20 minutes!) And while I might have been in an 18 year old mind frame, I can no longer drink like that. One more drink and it wouldn't have been pretty. I got home around 7, had some pizza for dinner and passed out went to bed at 8 pm. I'd call that a success!

Here's a few pics from my friends, I didn't drag the ol' DSLR because I would probably have broken/lost it and it wouldn't have been pretty the next day when I realized it.

I could've sworn we got one of the 4 us, but that just means we have to do it again! :)

525,600 minutes

This Mama no longer has a baby. Today is Hadley's first birthday, and it is very bittersweet. These 525,600 minutes have FLOWN by. She now sits face forward in her carseat in the car and is loving every minute of it. She's running all over the place trying to keep up with her sister. NO MORE FORMULA! Hooray! Or bottles for that matter. She isn't afraid of anything. She's a TODDLER. I remember when she was born and how she was such a mama's girl. But that baby is gone. Make's it really easy to think about wanting another one, until I remember LOTS of sleepless nights and trying to give attention to TWO is hard enough!! We'll see, maybe someday we'll get that boy that Daddy won't admit he really wants :)

HaPpY  BiRtHdAy my sweet Hadley Jean!!!!!!!

Movie Review Monday

These 3 have been watched over the past couple weeks, we were pretty busy this weekend so (gasp!) we could only fit in one movie! hehe.

First up: Shutter Island

I was a little apprehensive about this flick at first becuase it seems to me that Leo is all over the map right now. But I ended up loving it! It was one of those where you had to pay attention or you'd miss something, and the ending was awesome. Some avid movie goers may guess it, but still definitely worth your while. It's more of a rent and watch once movie to me, but that's just becuase once you've seen it, the mystery's gone.

Next up: The Last Song

Bah. I have a VERY hard time watching Nicholas Sparks movies, (or books that become movies in general) because I ALWAYS like the book better. (One exception-Harry Potter.. books and movies are equal in their awesomeness). I thought maybe The Last Song would be the exception since he wrote the screenplay first and THEN the book. But I was wrong. Still horrible. First off Miley dear- this part was definitely NOT for you. Go back to Disney please. Or just keep singing I do secretly like some of your songs. Shh dont tell. Second, this movie did not flow at all. It seemed so choppy and just unrealistic and to be honest it was hard to watch it all the way to the end. The only thing that made it worth my hour and a half was the little brother was adorable and of course the Dad. I wouldn't recommend this movie, but would DEFINITELY recommend the book. Tearjerker fo sho, N.S. at his finest. Stick to the books Nick.

Last but not least: Robin Hood

I wasn't entirely excited to see this. I don't generally like movies whose sole purpose is to show is much battle scenes as possible. But I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by this. And I'm not even a Russell Crowe fan. I would say this is definitely a purchaser becuase I would watch it again. There's quite a bit of story to it besides all the brutal fighting.

Happy Monday!

Houston we have a problem

We're on round 2 of teething, and it is not.going.well. to say the least. Hadley is definitely winning. Round one didn't seem that bad, but it was before she was sleeping through the night anyways so it didn't seem to make a difference. Now that I'm all used to 8 blissful uninterrupted hours of sleep at night, she's decided she needs to wake up at least 3 times. Bah! TEETH! She's already got 6, so she's WAY ahead of Gracen at this age. I'm definitely optimistic that they'll be quick and come in a big group so we can be donezo.

She's super clingy during the day, which up until dinner time doesn't really matter. Breakfast and lunch don't take that long to prepare so I can usually whip those up real quick while Gracen distracts her for 2.5 seconds. But dinner is a whole different story. I can't do ANYTHING (you think I'm joking but I'm not) without her crying at my feet. It's impossible. Even if the hubs is home, it doesn't matter. It makes no difference to her who is doing something else, that's the one she wants. It's lose-lose.

I'm hoping that this stage passes QUICKLY. Here's hopin..

Welcome Fall!

My lovely door wreath I got last year

It's officially fall! And I am so excited. I LOVE this time of year, and all the wonderful festivities it brings. We broke out the fall decor and in honor of this wonderful day I have some apples baking and our house smells delicious!

It might not look delicious right now, but it sure is and it smells AHH-mazing!

Happy Fall!!!!!!!

What's for dinner Wednesday

I'm actually very proud of myself on this dish. Not becuase it's super original, but becuase I just used what I had on hand and didn't follow an actual recipe. 9 times out of 10 I'm by the book following recipes, and I can't just substitute things, I'm not creative in the kitchen like that.

Fajita Chicken Quesadillas- All I did was cook some chicken in store bought fajita mix, layered a tortilla with sourcream, chicken, black beans, salsa and of course tons of cheese. Then I just grilled on the ol' George Foreman, and it was delicious!!

Bon Appetit!

I think they like it...

Every day we spend as much time outside as possible, and they are LOVING this weather (esp. Mom) and of course the swingset!!!

I just love that little face!

Just swingin away

Loves to swing!!

I'd say she's havin fun

She kept saying "Gracens swing!"

we're in trouble! Hadley is not afraid of anything!!

Movie Review Monday

Since my last movie review we've watched quite a few, but I'll stick to 3. First up Clash of the Titans-

I find Greek Mythology somewhat interesting, so this was just an OK flick. Honestly it was lots more fighting and blah blah but it was somewhat educational as well. I wouldn't go screaming to the rooftops recommending it, but if there's nothing else out there, I'd say give it a try.

Next up The Princess and the Frog

I am sad to say that I was highly dissapointed in this Disney flick. I was really excited to see it, and so was Gracen. I felt like the previews for it were really misleading, so perhaps that's why it didn't go on my "have to own" list, but I will say Gracen definitely enjoyed the music and of course the "ribbit ribbits". I do like that Disney is getting back to their "cartoon" roots, but I'm going to need something a little more... princessy next time please!

Last but not least.. After.Life

This was of course a hubby pick, but I wasn't totally against it. Again I was infortunately dissapointed in it. I felt like the previews were misleading as well. We thought it was going to be a thriller, but turns out just some creep-os POV on what dead people are like. And I don't need to see what goes on behind the closed doors at the morticians thanks. This is more of an "artsy" if you will film, so if that's your cup of tea I would highly recommend it for you.

Anyone have any good suggestions on movies to rent? Love to hear em!

Kitchen Sneak Peek

So we're still in the process of painting/decorating the kitchen (i know, 2 months later). There's still much to be done, but thought I'd give a little sneak peek! I'm SO excited for it to be done, and like the color more each day. I think once everythings put in it's place and decorated, I'll love it. But until the big reveal, this will have to do!

Ah I can't wait to see it all put together!!!!

Swingset Update

Hooray! This week the swingset we ordered the girls over a month ago is rearin and ready to go! The Mr. did a great job, and even I helped! I know, me doing manual labor? Ha! Actually it wasn't really that hard, just time consuming since there's so many parts and pieces and screws etc. The girls were SO excited for it to be done, but unfortunately it wasn't completed till it was already dark out, then the next day (yesterday) it rained. Gracen was so sad! Hopefully today it'll be dry enough to play! Since it's already the middle of Sept. (what? where did the time go?!) We want to get lots and lots of use before the winter hits! (Boo I can't even THINK about that right now!)

The finished product! It has a picnic table opposite the ladder, and Gracen LOVES that big slide!! And sneaky miss Hadley can climb all the way up the slide. Eyes on her at all times! At least she can't quite make it up the ladder though, not for lack of trying!!!

Church Jamboree

This weekend was our Church's annual jamboree. The hubby decided to volunteer at it on Sunday, so we decided to wait till then to take the girlies up there. Unfortunately we waited a little too long. It was supposed to be over at 5 on Sunday, and the Mr. was supposed to be there at 3. The girlies were still nappin so I waited with them and was going to bring them up to play in the bouncy houses and other carnival-y stuff they had. But by the time the Mr. arrived just about everything was over! Apparently we need to start planning better considering Friday night's "Huff and Puff" was a bust, and we missed out on the Jamboree too!

All huff and no puff

This past Friday was supposed to be the "Huff and Puff" hot airballoon festival so we decided to take the kiddos to go see em. They have lots of balloons, and they even have ones to take the kids up and all kinds of vendors. Mother nature however had a different plan. We drove all the way over there waited to park were literally out of the car for 2.5 seconds when someone said they cancelled it becuase of the weather. Boo! It wasn't even raining yet! Not much of a show to see I tell ya. Perhaps next year!

Not a happy camper

I'm a little upset with blogger right now becuase I can't figure out how to not follow a blog anymore. I followed the steps it told me, but they still show up on my feed and it's driving me crazy! Don't worry it's none of you who actually read this, it's 2 professional blogs that I just don't dig anymore. I get excited to check my blog to see what you all wrote, but then the only thing that shows up is how re-upholster a chair. Which A) I don't have time to do B) I'm just not that thrifty.

So anyhoo, if anyone out there knows how to correctly do this I would appreciate the advice!!

Good for a Wildcat Victory!!!!

This weekend was the Wildcats home opener and I couldn't have been more excited. Football season is finally here! I looooove me some football, especially K-State. We debated for a while whether or not to actually go to the game, but in the end decided to stay home since our 2 little babes don't exactly like to be held. They prefer to be down and runnin and getting into just about everything. So we settled for dressing up in our purple best and hangin out on the couch all afternoon. Hoping to get to a game at least once this year though! Here's hopin!!

All Hadley's KSU stuff makes her look a wee bit boyish, so I made her wear a headband and snapped a pic as quick as I could, she's like lightning rippin that thing off!

Gracen wanted to make sure I got her flip-flops in the pic. haha. it was extremely difficult to watch my mouth around the kids watchin the game. Gracen would repeat EVERYTHING. There were a lot of "Come ons!" yelled by everyone hehe.

Venus vs. Glitter

Winner? The glitter.


The other day I caught a glimpse of Venus Williams playing in the U.S. Open. And I was not at all impressed by her outfit. I understand she's into fashion and designs her own outfits and blah blah blah. I'm all for freedom of expression especially in clothing. But ma'am you are wearing a dress full o glitter to play tennis. If I was playing her I'd be seriously peeved that I would be getting distracted by her glittering dress. And if I were Venus, I would want to know that I won becuase of my talent, not becuase I successfully blinded my opponent with my dress. Next time, let's leave the flash at home shall we Venus?

On the cheap... because I'm cheap

Topeka people kill me. I mean really. If you have kids, you know how expensive just about everything is. And if you're not a parent yet, be forewarned. Becuase of this, I am an avid garage saler and craigslister. Now before you go thinking how yucky that might be, I'm not talking about used clothes or shoes or things like that. Mainly I go for the big toys that if you're lucky you can get at about a quarter of the actual retail price and it's practically brand new. I have found many a great deal in KC including an excersaucer which retail for almost over $100, for $20 that literally looked like it had never been touched. But back to the original point of this post, Topeka people try to sell there crap for basically the retail price and hope no one notices. And this irritates me to no end.

There's a cluster of about 3 houses that has a garage sale all the time, and generally sell nice stuff but at ridiculous prices, last year we bought Gracen an outdoor little tikes slide from there and they were wanting $50 for (which hello it retails for like $70 and you're at a GARAGE SALE) anyways it took me 3 days to talk him down to I think $20 and I still thought that was kind of a lot. Well this morning I learned why they ridiculously price things. I talked to one lady and she said that the other 2 houses both the men, will buy crap from each other as cheap as they can and then try to sell it for more than they bought it for. SERIOUSLY?? You are grown men and you live across the street from each other!! At least try to sell it on craigslist where the other guy can't see you selling it in front of his face. For example Man A acquired this cube climbing slide thing from someone's trash (generally these retail for over $100). He than sold it to man B across the street for $30. Then today man B is trying to sell if for $75! Granted they are expensive brand new but I was only going to offer him $20, and that was pushing it.

Luckily we got a really nice little tikes picnic table today for only $15 and it seats 6 kids. Which is way nice and I thought pretty affordable since Gracen has about a billion cousins and most of the tables brand new that seat only 4 kids are at least $50.

Now on to Craigslist. It seems to be the same thing. People here are selling JUNK and trying to make tons of money off it and it drives me crazy! I seriously wish there was a comment button on it so I could let these scammers know they're trying to get more money for it then I could buy it new! Generally I've had good experiences with CL but yesterday I had my first poor experience.

I found a play kitchen on CL in T-town for $30, it's around $110 new, and this one was super nice. So the cheapo in me asked if she'd take $20. She said yes, SCORE! Well finally she gives me her address and I google it and all that comes up is that a man there was arrested for rape less than a month ago. Creeped me out, and sort of turned me off to CL. Now it might not have been that guy (it was an apt. complex) but still. Maybe this dude lured women there with the promise of cheap nice toys and I can't even let my mind go there. But I mean I would've had my kids with me and it still just gives me the heeby jeebys.

Anyhoo. That's my rant for the day! Happy Friday!!! Can't wait for the KSU game tomorrow! GO CATS!!

Party at Aunt Nanie's!

This past weekend the girls and I headed to KC for a couple days so I could pick up my bridesmaid dress for my sister's wedding. (wahoo! only a little over a month to go!) And can I just say Gracen never wants to come home after we go visit there. To start off Friday morning, Aunt Nanie took her to go get donuts and spoiled her with lots of frosting sprinkles and chocolate milk.

Don't worry, she ate a bowl of oatmeal before hand. The girl only licked the frosting and sprinkles off, wasn't interested in the donut part!

F

Friday morning Uncle Matt had a garage sale, and Gracen was MORE than thrilled to stay outside and play with puppies. Aunt Nanie and Gammy were kind enough to throw her a dance party in the garage!

I love this picture, one of her signature dance moves is some karate kicking

just twirlin w/ gammy and baxter! lookin good nanie!

and this is when they taught her to do the sprinkler, haha i love her face. she was concentrating so hard!!

She is gonna cut a rug at the reception!!!

New bed

A couple weeks ago we finally bought some comforters for the bunk beds. I had an extremely hard time deciding what I wanted. Initially I thought I wanted quilts, becuase I pink puffy heart them, but they are uber expensive. So after much debating and price comparing, I went with simple reversible comforters. And after it started getting a little chilly at night I finally put Gracen's on her bed. Apparently it's not only a blanket, but a great new toy! She literally played in her bed for 2 hours after I put it on it. Good thing I didn't wait until nap time or night time!!