Money is the Devil!

I hate money.  Although, if the gods of fate are listening, I'd still like to win the lottery.  When it comes to having to worry about money though, it truly is the devil.

Evolving Thanks

Its interesting to think back at what I may have been thankful for in the past and how that all evolves and changes as years pass and your life takes different paths.  This year I am especially thankful for the following:

• Josh, a man who loves me pregnant belly or not, with or without makeup, and despite all of my weird habits and quirks.
• My daughter, Joslynn, a spit-fire of energy and sweetness all rolled into a tiny little person whom I love more every day.
• My son, Jackson, a laid-back little flirt who loves smiles, and snuggles and completely tolerates his older sister's antics.
• My family, especially my mom for all of her delicious food that I will put in my belly on Thursday.
• My home, although we are already outgrowing it, it gets the job done.
• Showers--ah, showers.  I LOVE being clean.  I have cherished every showering moment since my return to civilization nearly 4 years ago.
• My bed.  It is so comfortable and lets me rest so well, although I would like to spend more time there.
• My job.  Each day is a new challenge that will keep my mind sharp.  I love the people I work with; they make tough days (weeks) bearable.
• My students.  We all have those fantastic students who see you as a person, who greet you in the morning, say goodbye in the afternoon, ask about your weekend, and wish you well for your holidays--they make my job worth the stressfulness of being broke.
• Tony Horton--he's the guy in my favorite workout videos.  He motivates me and makes me feel like a million bucks!
• Fruit! 
• Laughter
• Smiles
• Hugs
• Dark chocolate...shh!...don't tell Tony.

I don't make pie...

I don't make pie...but I do have two cutie-pies!

I have some recent pictures of my incredibly adorable children!

The headless man with the vacuum cleaner is my husband.  Joslynn has her little popper machine, which she thinks is a vacuum as well.

Jackson loves to smile!  What more can I ask for?

Joslynn thought she'd be cute by hiding half way under our bed--she was right, she is cute. 

More pictures coming soon to a blog near you!

Juggling

This picture represents a typical day when I have both of the kids by myself.  I am usually trying to entertain one while I feed the other; this is just the first time anyone else is around to capture the picture.

Lokelani Kamea

This is my Hawaiian name.

I got a little addicted to quizzes tonight.  I should be reading...

I'm Movin' to Mauritania!

I had Oprah on in the background as I washed bottles and sippee's this afternoon.  Oprah was having a "Beauty" special and it was all about how different cultures perceive beauty.  Well, in Mauritania, when it comes to women, the bigger the better! Women are expected to be overweight.  It is sexy!  And get this...men are supposed to be thin!  Its a complete reversal of American culture.  They said their food is so greasy and sugary that there is no dieting, and you can't even get diet food there!  I'm packing my bags...

Single Mom

Okay...I know that I can't even hold a candle to the actual hardships and struggles that an actual single mom faces, but sometimes (No...many times) I feel like a single mom.  [Maybe it is compounded by the fact that both of my children are under the age of 18 months.]  I love being a mom and fully accept all jobs and responsibilities that go with that job description, including poop, puke, crying and no sleep, but some days are just tougher than others...

My hat is off to all of you actual single moms out there.  You're awesome!

I'm a German Shepherd!

Thank you, for the "Thank you"

I had a great Veteran's Day!

First, some of my homebase kids said "thank you" before Mr. Williams' morning announcement. Then, throughout the day, I had MANY "thank you's" from both students and staff.  The school day rounded off with a great poster with tons of signatures and messages of thanks from my team.  I left work in a great mood and proceeded to go to Applebee's with mine and Josh's parents for dinner.  We (Josh, myself and both our dad's) were given a free entree' because of our veteran status. 

Honestly, a thank you really does make a difference!  This was my best Veteran's Day yet!

So, thank you to my team, my students and Applebee's!

Time

Where does the time go?  Just when I think that I am getting caught up on school stuff (like planning more than a few days in advance), I get behind again.  Then I put off stuff like reading my book club book...uh-oh...

WT at Walmart

I have never pretended to be perfect...and I usually try not to be judgemental, although there is a whole lot of white trash (WT) walkin' around at Walmart, with the exception of Luke M. (whom I saw there this afternoon) shopping for a costume.

Now, you might be asking yourself, "Why do you go there if you don't like the WT?" My answer: its cheaper, and sadly, close to our house. All I know is, I get in there, get my stuff and get the heck out of Dodge as quickly as I can weave through all of the chaos.

P.S. This is my 4th blog of the day! This is certainly a record for me. 100th blog here I come!

Productive Morning

I was on a mission to get some stuff done this morning and I can't believe how productive I was. It feels great to be able to cross so many things off my list, even though half of them were only on a list in my head. Before noon I had already accomplished the following:

• Got Joslynn up and dressed
• Gave her a pre-breakfast snack and milk
• Put away toys and books
  
• Vacuumed the house
• Cut Jack's fingernails
  
• Started laundry
• Changed sheets on our bed and Joslynn's crib
• Organized the kids' closet
• Organized the crawl space, which contains 10+ totes with kids' clothes in them--which I am also very grateful for.
  
• Cleaned the litter box
• Ate breakfast
• Cleaned all of the old food and crumbs out of Joslynn's high chair
• Dusted
• Made an errands list: groceries, Sam's Club, etc...
  
• Cleaned mirrors
• Changed several wet/messy diapers
• Added items to all of our 'Christmas Ideas' lists
  
• Went for a run with Joslynn (who fell asleep on our stroll)
• Showered
  
• Cleaned the stovetop (Its harder to get that junk off than you would think)
• Made Joslynn her lunch
• Put her down for her nap
• Made banana bread muffins
• Ate my own lunch

Now, it is 2:42 pm. I assume that Joslynn will be waking at any minute. I am going to continue with laundry, and run my errands later. Its been a productive day at home. AND, I got to write on my blog 3 times, and even included pictures--I'm so proud of myself.

Damn, I Make Cute Kids!

I finally got around to uploading my pictures on my computer, and realized what gorgeous kids I have!

Don't they just melt your heart?