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Figured I would try to give this a whirl…emailing my post. Just for kicks. J

I am completely & totally mildly obsessed with blogs.

Tomorrow is going to be great!

Why??? Well, I am glad you asked. Ok, so you didn't ask. But I am going to tell you anyway because this is my blog & I can say whatever I want on here. Ahem...back to the task at hand.

Tomorrow is going to be a GREAT day because I will NOT be doing this...

[cute huh! Nice headset Natalie]

Instead, I will be doing this...




With these 2 lovely little girls...

I am taking the day off work to accompany Olivia & her pre-school class on a field trip to Scoville Zoo. And I got the OK from Miss Cathy to bring Rachel along. It is going to be great! Please keep your fingers crossed for nice weather. I am hoping against hope that my wonderful weatherman Greg is wrong about the forecast for tomorrow. Or at least the rain will hold off until after 1:00.

After we are done with the field trip, Rachel has her 18 month check-up at the Dr. So it will be a day jam packed with lots of stuff. And I cannot wait. I am litterally gitty at the thought of it all. Did I forget to mention, Olivia doesn't know that I am going with her on the field trip. She thinks she will be going to the regular daycare before & after school as usual. I cannot wait to see her little excited face!

But for the time being, I better get back to some more of this...

It’s Inevitable

Monkey See, Monkey Do:

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What to do...

the day you turn 18 months old

(shown in pictures of the lovely Rachel Claire)

1. bang on the screen until your Mama lets you come outside to play

2. Spend some quality time with your big sister & BFF, Olivia

3. Become a little dare-devil & try to climb the rock-wall/ladder on the swing-set.

Lead your Mama to think that you will not be able to do it. And let her take a couple of pictures of you attempting it. Only accomplish to get 3 rungs up before your Mama drops the camera on the ground & grabs you in a frenzy! (I'm telling you, it scared me half to death even though she was a mere 4 - 5 inches off the ground!)
4. Look utterly offended that your Mama didn't have the confidence in you to let you tempt fate by climbing the entire ladder.

5. Go down the slide with your big sister

6. Forgive your Mama for her lack of confidence in you when she decides to give you a lift! Secretly get back at her by pulling her hair.



7. Scream like a wild banschee when the tricycle throws you on the hard brick patio

8. Get refreshed by drinking a big ol' McDonald's Sweet Tea

9. Feeling re-energized by the sweet tea, try to climb up the slide just like Olivia did

10. Decide to go on a joy ride with your 4 year old sister behind the wheel (not really folks, they climbed in when I was cleaning my car out & Olivia buckled them up)

All in all, it was an excellent day! I cannot believe my little baby girl is 18 months old!

I ask you...

What is better than 1 pretty little girl in perfect pig-tails?

2 pretty little girls in perfect pig-tails!

And this is the best picture of the 2 of them I managed to get.

I said "smile" and boy did she ever! I love this kid!

BUSTED!!! We have a cookie bandit on our hands!

Wordless Wednesday (well not really wordless)

Kirk S. Rainey - my 1st cousin on my Mom's side. I love him dearly & he is my Goob! We both graduated from High School in 1999. He enlisted in the Marine Corp at that time & left for basic training about 2 weeks after graduation. Kirk then went on to be a mechanic in the Marine Corp. Then we all know what happened...9/11. Kirk still being in the Marines at that time, was called to duty in October 2002. And it broke my heart that he was unable to attend & be a part of my wedding. However, Kirk served our great country proudly in Operation Iraqi Freedom. He returned home healthy & well. And is still my hysterically funny & dorky Goob!


Earle E. Rainey - my Grandad (Mom's Dad). I also love him so very dearly & miss him very much. He beat the odds & survived being a premature baby born in 1918. He & my Grandmother were married in 1943 . He served our great country during World War II. (I don't have a lot of information about his service - sorry.) He lived a very long full life, Dad to 4 children & Grandad to 11 grandchildren & Great-Grandad to 5 great-grandchildren (at the time he passed, now there are 7 great-grandchildren). He passed away December 18, 2004. I love him & miss him.

Today I...

did 2 posts in 1 day...woohoo! But that is not all.

I am a self-admitted blog stalker. I jump from blog to blog all the time. It's an addiction really & my husband feels that he may some day soon need to stage an intervention. I digress...

Anywho, in my travels through the blog world I came across a few of these posts. And they have all originated with a "tag". Since I was not tagged & came across out of curiousity, I will just start it myself. And hope that some of my peeps follow suit.



Today I...

Ate: a Jimmy Johns sandwich, salt & vinegar chips, and a chocolate chip cookie. Haven't ate dinner yet, but am contemplating Taco Bell - probably should pass on that one though.

Felt: very tired & didn't want to get out of bed. Rachel was up early with Jarrett & got in bed with me - so we were all snuggly & warm.

Listened: to Monster Ballads on the drive home from work & sang really loud!

Watched: 3 episodes of Roseanne on Nick @ Nite - at around 4:00 am (when Rachel was awake)

Loved: it when Olivia told me "we will be good today Mama & I will help Mona take care of Rachel". Makes me feel a little less guilty for being at work & not with my girls!

Hoped: it would be nicer out so I could go for a walk with the girls when I got home from work.

Wished: I could stay home with my 2 beautiful daughters :(

Enjoyed: playing our little game of hiding & chasing the girls from the living room to their bedroom. And

Wondered: how many people just come across my blog like I do with theirs. Probably not too many. Who knows?!

Drank: numerous glasses of water.

Wanted: a KitKat Blizzard, but was promptly & politely informed by my loving husband that I did not need one. And even though I gave him a little glare, I do appreciate him keeping me on point!

Looked: for Olivia's crocs for about 10 minutes before I remembered she had took them off in my car last night.

Tag! You're it!

Leave a comment here if you will accept my tag.

I would love if any of my blogging partners in crime took part!

(*Wendy you are excused - she is enjoying a long awaited visit from her Hubs from overseas! Besides, it's not like she would do it anyway. LOL!)

Weldon Springs - pictures

We had so much fun at our Weldon Springs walk/picnic. I can't tell you how happy I am that it is finally nice enough outside to do things like that. And I am thrilled beyond thrilled that it was just the 4 of us having a lovely family outing. Here are several pictures from the day...

I thought this was sweet. Rachel is growing so independent.
proof that I was there...I need to do this more often I find that I don't have very many pictures of myself & the girls.

Rachel liked the slide, but I had to have Jar hold onto her. He wanted to just send her flying down on her own. I'm sure she would have been fine, but I was scared for her.

Jar showing Olivia that he could go higher than her.

Then the jump! He only could do it once...he's getting old you know!

Daddy & Rachel on the swing. She wasn't too fond of it, but I am sure you can tell that by her face.

Olivia, my little stinker, she was living it up out there!

And I love this one. We stopped to show Rachel the water & the geese. But Olivia wanted to keep on with her walk!

Random Picture Challenge

It's that time again...Random Picture Challenge. Hosted by 4 little men & girly twins.

This week's challenge was:

April 2008 or 13th folder

42nd picture or 4th if you don't have that many

Well, I had that many :)

Here is my little family. Daddy, Rachel, & Olivia! Just relaxing on a lazy kind of day! Rachel is almost 6 months old & Olivia is almost 4.

Go check out all the rest of the fun pictures here

Picnic & Other Random Thoughts

Yesterday, we took full advantage of the glorious Spring day & visited Weldon Springs! We even had a lovely picnic dinner - by "eating fresh" as Olivia said...(which means we got Subway to go.) It was loads of fun. The girls had a really fun time playing on the playground. Daddy even got "into the swing of things" - he seemed like he was enjoying it more than Olivia :) The weather was so perfect. And it felt so unbelievably good to be out in the lovely fresh air. I took tons of pictures but they are still on my camera, so that will come probably tomorrow. Including some pictures of Jar demonstrating the proper technique for jumping out of a swing. He will be thrilled to see that published! MWAHAHAHA (read as an evil laugh)!

We finished things up with a very motivated walk around the lake. Its 2 miles & trust me, more physical activity then I have done in quite some time! All part of my "Good-bye Chubby McFat-Pants" program! And let me tell ya, pushing that huge double stroller was quite a workout. The last time I checked, the girls weighed in at 48.7 pounds (Olivia) & 24.6 pounds (Rachel) respectfully. So that is a grand total of 73.3 pounds of kid. Pushing them all around the winding, hilly road really took it out of me. And I admit that I did have to hand over the reigns of the stroller to Jar-O with about a 1/2 mile left. But I felt really good afterwards, all pumped & energized. I think it was the quiet & the fresh air.

I also took some pretty good pictures of Veteran's Point at Weldon Springs. That got me really thinking of & missing my Grandad. I have an email in to my cousin Hillary to see if she can send me some pictures of Grandad. Unfortunately, I didn't get my digital camera until a couple of years after he passed away. I don't own a scanner yet, but I am seriously considering investing in one. Because I have no digital pictures of Olivia before age 3 either.

Ok so now that I am kind of trailing off...I will wrap it up.

good-bye Chubby McFat-Pants

Today is a very important day...not just because it is Tax Day, my friends. It is important because today I make a declaration I SHALL BE FAT NO MORE!!! I am doing this for my kids, my husband, but most importantly MYSELF! I don't want to be fat & lazy anymore. I want to be able to play outside with my kids & not get all winded. I want to be able to fit into a closet full of clothes that right now are 2 sizes too small. I want to be healthy to stick around on this earth for as long as possible. Therefore, I SHALL BE FAT NO MORE! I am going to eat right, exercise, & take time for myself. I want to improve my over-all self. I shouldn't be saying I want to, I should be saying I WILL!

I have a ways to go to my ultimate goal. 50 pounds to be precise. I am going to take it all in stride. And I have wonderful support from my family & friends. My girlfriends at work are teaming up with me & we made a pact yesterday that TODAY IS A START OF THE NEW US! We ARE going to do it! We ARE going to get healthy & fit. We ARE going to reach our goals! Laura, Erin, & Kellie - WE CAN & WILL DO IT!

Easter 2009 (warning lots of pictures to follow)

Easter was so much fun this year! Olivia & I colored eggs on Saturday. She declared "eggs are pretty stinky" (actually I think it was the vinegar that was stinky, but oh well.) Rachel was up dark & early - I say dark because the sun wasn't even up yet. I kept her contained to our bedroom so she wouldn't be out in the living room going through the baskets the Easter Bunny had left. Olivia woke up around 7:00 or so, & was so incredibly excited that the Easter Bunny had actually made it to our house! Here is what was waiting for the girls...

Baskets full of goodies - including a presents shipped from Grammie in New Jersey!

Here is the result - 2 very happy little girls!
Then it was outside to do our very first Easter Egg Hunt at our house! I tried to get a good picture of them ready to search - here is what I got.
Rachel was screaming, Jarrett was trying to get Jersey (the dog) out of Rachel's face, & Olivia was trying to give Jersey a kiss. So I just took the picture because I choose to pick my battles! ha!

Then Daddy & Livie went to church with Bopchi & Tata. I stayed home with Rachel so she could nap before we were off to lunch at Aunt Debbie's. (Where, might I add I brought chicken & noodles that everyone loved!) After the very delicious lunch of turkey, ham, potatoes, stuffing, macaroni, my noodles, rolls, & a quick dessert of Grandma's homemade butterscotch pie & Aunt Diana's sugar cookies (can you tell I was not following my diet! haha) we all headed outside for the big Easter Egg hunt. My niece & nephews weren't there for the hunt, so it was just the 4 kids. Olivia, Travis, Bryceson, & Rachel searching for - um I would say over 200 eggs.

We wrapped up the day with dinner at Bopchi & Tata's (Jarrett's parents). Sorry no pictures from there, but I was pooped beyond pooped by that time.

All and all - it was an excellent day! And the girls were so happy & exhausted!