Epic East Coast Adventure

2 weeks baby!

2 weeks from today we'll be boarding an American Airlines flight bound for the east coast.  My favorite coast, by the way.

This trip has been a long time coming.  I booked it originally last year but couldn't get the time off of work so I had to cancel.  Rebooking was a hassle (we're not going to talk about the fees for that!) but I found a fare that was comparable and took it.  The trip was originally supposed to be a trip to visit my grandma.  But in order to get the best fare we had to stay for 8 days and I was pretty sure the kids would go crazy at my grandma's house for that long.  {Me too, actually!}

Sooo we've turned it into a trip of epic proportions! We have a ton of friends on the east coast and decided to take advantage of the time we had and try to see them all.  We'll be going from Maine to New Jersey and stopping at most of the states in between.  I'm hoping we'll get to see everyone and I know it means a lot of driving but I think the kids and I will hopefully make our own fun along the way.

Fun places we plan on going?  The Constitution in Boston, Statue of Liberty in NY, and one that we're all looking forward to?  Carlo's Bakery in Hoboken!!  Don't know what I'm talking about?  Think Buddy from Cake Boss.  We love this show.  LOVE. IT. 

Did we miss anything?  Is there somewhere you can think of on the east coast/New England area that's a must see?  Do tell!

What a decade

A lot of things have happened in this last decade.  There's too many to put in one little post but here's a few of the highlights.

~I have given birth to three kids- my own daughter and two adorable little boys via surrogacy.

~I have made numerous friends, lost a few, and kept those who have a rightful place in my life. 

~I bought a home completely on my own (I'm super proud of this!).  {Duh, this isn't my real house but a girl can dream right?}

~I became the first person in my family to graduate college. 

~I decided what I wanted to do when I grow up. 

~I grew up.  {OK, well that one's not really true but I'm working on it!}

But all these great-happy-sad things happened during these last 10 years without someone very important in my life.

This is my bubby and Jordan. It's one of my favorite pics of my brother.

My bubby.

10 years ago we lost him.  There are times when many days go by and I don't think about him and I hate it.  Then there are times when I see him everywhere- I see old friends of his or see him in my sister (they have the same hands, it's kind of freaky!)  I wonder what he would be like today.  I wonder how much my kids would love him... I mean it's a given that they would love him, no doubt, but I wonder if he would be close to them you know?  I wonder if he would still be charming the pants off of people with the deep blue pools of his eyes. The only solace I have is that I know he is with our Father in Heaven doing good work. 

I miss you bubby. I miss playing scratch your back shop.  I miss making you and Rerin do everything for me.  I miss making pallets on the floor in my room on Christmas Eve and trying to go to sleep and then waking up early and trying to sneak downstairs to check out what we got.  I miss seeing you in your jeans- no matter how hot it was outside.  I miss your awful taste in music.  I just miss you.

Today hug your brother if you can.  Or call him and tell him you love him.  Or maybe more appropriately in today's world, text him.  Just be thankful for what you have.

Seeing Red

I was seeing red this weekend.  Seriously.

I couldn't wait to get this puppy in the mail.  My brand spankin' new Target Debit Card!  Now you might be wondering why on Earth I'm so excited to have yet another 4 inch plastic card crowding up my wallet. 

The reason I'm so excited is I'm saving 5% each time I use it!  What what?! That's right, just for signing up for this baby I'm saving money on items that I would have been buying anyway at a store I would have been at anyway.  It's win-win.  Oh and did I mention it's free?  Say wha?  Yep, free. Score! 

Go get one for yourself.  And thank me later.

Working Wednesday

The thing about having a long weekend is that is makes the rest of the week go by fast.  And something else that helps it go by?  WORKING ;)  I subbed again today in a class with 7 students and 3 adults so it was heaven.  I'm not even sure it can be classified as work!  Sadly however I will need to eventually get back to the real world and work in a job that will probably involve working all day. 

But tomorrow is not that day and I imagine that I will be doing a whole lot of this....

What are you doing tomorrow?

Home Tour Tuesday

Ok so this is a little late in the day but I worked a full day today people (more on that later)!  One of the things I'm most excited about with blogging is linking up to all these fun "days" that people host.  Shannon, over at Webbisodes, is the fabulous lady who designed my blog.  She and Daphne at Flip Flops and Pearls host this link up every week.  Fun times.  This week the Home Tour Tuesday is Whatcha Watchin'- show us your TV or family room. 

Home Tour Tuesday

Well seeing as how I may or may not still have a huge Christmas tree box (which works great as a stand for my pump!) and several random straggler decorations in the corner of my living room I will only share a picture of our awesome TV :)

{Feel free to excuse the jumble of cords and random DVR box that's so huge it won't fit underneath. *sigh*}

We were so thankful to Chris and Oliver for the incredible Christmas present of a 50" flat screen TV.  I mean really who sends someone a TV for Christmas? 

And here's a few shots of what's on my DVR.

{Oh I forgot to watch my Vampire Diaries from last week. I'm in LOVE with Damon!}

I started watching Grey's from the beginning (stupid Netflix on Wii, I may never watch my DVR again!) so I have a lot of stuff on my DVR.  Don't judge the fact that I have Toddler's and Tiaras on there... J2 and I watch it together so we'll call it bonding ok?

On to my day, today I was a sub in a Kinder class.  No problem.  It was my first day subbing a class other than the special ed room and it was my first full day of subbing.   I typically make a "milk run" on Monday's but it couldn't be done yesterday so it had to be done today but with me working all day and J1 having a cello lesson after school there wasn't going to be time.  So thankfully my wonderful dad (thank you daddy!) agreed to take it for me. 

I had to get everything ready before school so I was up at 6 to pump, get the cooler packed to ship, get the labels ready, get the pump and accesories ready, pack my lunch (you know take the Lean Cuisine out of the freezer and put it in the bag), get myself presentable, and head to get the dry ice to pack in the cooler.  I had enough time to do all this and stop by Sonic to get a drink on the way to school (with a pit stop to drop the cooler at my dad's) and when I got to school I realized I left the bottles at home!  The pump was with me but with no horns and bottles it's no good.  So I had to wait until my lunch break to rush home and get it.  Keep in mind this was 5 1/2 hours after my last pumping so I was about to burst and channeling some Dolly Parton!  Thankfully I live fairly close to the school and was able to take care of business just as the kids were coming in from recess. PHEW!  Alls well that ends well right?

This evening we made some plans for our "Epic Spring Break 2011" and I can't wait to share more details with you all!

Happy blog day!

I'm so glad you guys found me. 

I've been tossing around the idea of starting my own blog for months now and I finally just decided to take the plunge.  I mean surely it can't be that hard, right? {Someone please remind me of this in a month or so when the newness wears off and I'm having a hard time ok?}

I have been stalking reading a lot of blogs the last few months {because when I'm not job searching what else do I have to do?} and I love that it seems like a great way to express yourself.  Especially when you have more to say than what will fit in your Facebook status!  Oh and speaking of that go find me on FB and friend me there too, if we're not friends already!

I don't know what this blog will come to be- will it be a sanctuary for me to share my thoughts and dreams?  Will it be a haven for me to express feelings that I wouldn't share elsewhere?  Or will it be filled with fluff, you know sunshine and rainbows?  Time will tell but I sure hope you all follow me along the way.

So let's set sail and see where this new journey takes us!