Stay Away From My Bikini Area

I love the movie Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion.

I watched the movie several weeks ago on cable and meant to post about it but forgot. I just found the draft to this post and started laughing all over again.

My favorite part?

When Michelle leans in to pluck her friends eyebrow and she replies "Stay away from my bikini area!"


Uhm.... Okay?!?!

Cracks me up every time.

A Random MEME

On the Outside

Name: Crystal
Birthday: Christmas
Current Status: Married
Eye Color: Blue but sometimes green
Hair Color: Natural Blond (but it's going darker with each baby darn it!!)

On the Inside

My Fear: Losing a child
My Weaknesses: Snacks, naps, and shopping
My Perfect Pizza: No sauce extra cheese

Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow

My thoughts first waking up: Oh please don't be awake already! I'm still tired... go ask your dad.
My bedtime: Around midnight... although I went to bed at 10:30 the other day and didn't even think about a nap the next day. Maybe there is something to that??
My most missed memory: My Grandma

My Pick

Pepsi or Coke: I'm going to be rebellious and say Dr. Pepper. But if I HAVE to chose one of these, it would be coke.
Single or group dates: I love going out with JUST Shane... but couple dates can be fun sometimes too.
Adidas or Nike: I wear New Balance.... sorry
Tea or Nestea: Neither
Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate
Cappuccino or Coffee: Once again... Neither

Do You

Smoke: Nope
Curse: Occasionally... but never really bad words or the Lords name in vain.
Take a shower: Of course
Have a crush: I fall in love with my hubby all over again every day. Does this count?
Think you’ve been in love: Yes
Go to school: Sort of... I'm currently in between Continuing Ed Courses.
Want to get married: We celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary this week!
Believe in yourself: It's a learning process.... but yes.
Think you’re a health freak: As far as my children are concerned... YES!!! As far as my eating habits are concerned.... not really.

In the Past

Smoked: No
Gone to the mall: Yes
Been on stage: Yes. Concert Band and Church Roadshows... oh and I was in a Nordstroms Fashion Show once.
Eaten sushi: I have. But I only like California rolls. The rest is just too big for my mouth and I can't use chopsticks to cut it in half.
Dyed your hair: I've gone brown, black, blond and then highlights (Oh, and an accidental grey in there somewhere lol)

Have you Ever

Played a stripping game: Probably when I was younger but nothing more than taking off your socks.
Changed who you were to fit in: Unfortunately
Done something your kids will never know about (at least till they are adults): Most definitely.

Age You are Hoping To

Get married: I wanted to get married before I ended my 23rd year. Instead I got married at the end of my 22nd.
Take your dream vacation: Wait... how old am I now????

In a Guy

Best eye color: Blue. Shane has the most beautiful eyes. They have white hairs in the dark blue. Lilly's are very similar except she has a spot of brown in one eye.
Best hair color: I like a guy with NO hair.
Short hair or long hair: Clean cut
Best attribute: Compassion, Sense of humor, responsibility, playful

What Were You Doing (times reflected when this post was written late Monday night, not when it posted)
A minute ago: Fixing my blog header
An hour ago: Working
A month ago: Working
A year ago: Living in a RMH in Denver waiting for the Okay from Noah's Transplant Coordinator that we could go home.

Finish the Sentences

I love: My husband and children.
I feel: very sleepy.
I hate: drama.
I hide: from things I have procrastinated.
I miss: having no debt.
I need: watch what I eat and start exercising.

I would LOVE to see your answers. If you play along, leave me a comment please. I want to come see what you said.

My Kids

I know it's bad form to brag and frankly I don't want to seem prideful... so hopefully being the mommy will earn me a bi this time. But...

I just have to say that my kids are ADORABLE!! I mean it! I keep coming back to my blog just to look at my over sized perfectly sized header.

It has nothing to do with the fact that Lilly is just the sweetest thing and when I laid on the couch yesterday she brought me her special Pink Blanket and a pillow and sang me night time songs.

Or that when Noah saw me after I got home from running errands he gave me about 500 kisses.

Or that when they took a bath together last night they played and laughed with each other.

It's just the fact that they are CUTE!!

Okay... maybe it does have a little to do with their sweetness, and that I'm their mommy and that they love me I love them! lol

Comments?

I am still working on editing the HTML of my blog template. So far, things have worked out quite nicely and I haven't had any major issues.

But.... (there is always a butt isn't there?) (Yes, Leeann, except for mine.)

The two things that are driving me nuts right now are:

1. I can't get the blogger reader link thing to import ALL my subscriptions from Google Reader so that they are linked. So far, it will only show about 82 and that's after I manually added some. It should show well over 100.

2. I can't get it to embed my comment form. The code is all correct (I thought) and I was finally able to click embed comment form, but it doesn't show up. The current comment icon is this tiny thing in the upper right corner of each post. It's so hard to find I just know I am going to lose the already small amount of comments I was getting.

So, please... if you feel the urge to comment, DO! Just click the number (which is usually a 0 lol) next to the comment bubble. It's in the upper right corner.

Man... I sound really desperate for comments don't I??

Never mind, don't answer that.

***UPDATE***
I figured something out. You have to click on the post title to have the embedded comment form show up. So this works good for links (such as from readers) that will bring you directly to the post page and not the home page. If you come from the home page... you still have to use a magnifying glass to find the comment link in the corner.

I DID IT!!

I setup a new template design for my blog!!

I can't believe I finally did it. As you can tell, I'm not completely done yet. I need to add some gadgets and fix some links but the basics are all there.

My previous design was special to me because I made the whole thing myself. But it started to feel too... home made I guess is a good way to describe it. Hence the change.

I've wanted a 3 column template for a while and I like that I can change the whole color scheme for holidays etc. without having to redo my whole template.

My new header I made myself though. I thought it reflected my theme better. Since it's several pictures (memoirs) of my family.

So... what do you think? Any (nice) suggestions to make the layout or template better?

A Man With Morals

Have you ever worked for someone who you didn't trust? Who didn't have the same work ethic as you or was lacking in integrity?

Well... it wouldn't be this man.

Kim Robinson is a Utah Business Owner who, out of his 140 employees, has had 7 men deployed to Iraq on active duty. By law, he is only required to hold their jobs for them. Instead, he continues to give them full pay and benefits.

He is being awarded the highest civilian award given by the Department of Defense to employers.

"I appreciate what they're doing for me. They're over there fighting for the freedoms which I enjoy. I feel that I can give them something back in return," Robinson said.

Now, here is a man with morals. He not only deserves this award but our thanks and our respect as well.

It sure is nice to have such a wonderful news story to blog about.

Read the news story about Mr. Robinson (and check out the comments while you're at it).

Another Secret I Can't Keep

Have you twittered yet? If not, you should. It's fun. Maybe I like it because I can get and receive text messages all day to see what people are up to. But I also like sharing new things or ideas as they happen. It's also kind of like a mini blog as I can update it on the fly right from my phone.

Anyways. . . if you follow my Twitter or have seen it on my sidebar I twittered about my new carpet cleaner.

Now, this isn't a paid or sponsored post. But I have ALWAYS loved to share good things I've found with my friends. It's like the one secret I can't keep.

So, of course I have to tell you about my new carpet cleaner.

You can adjust the amount of cleaner it mixes with the water, it has a built in heater to keep the water extra hot, and it has 12 rows of cleaning brushes for a good scrub. AND it has Scotch Guard in the cleaner so it repels stains and keeps the carpet manufacture warranty intact.

I love it!

Now I can clean up spills, accidents (both pet and toddler), brighten the traffic areas and deep clean as needed.

It paid for itself in one cleaning. Considering the cost to have someone come out.

Having an immune-compromised kid makes this a must... but honestly, I wonder why I waited so long. Every mom would love it.

And follow me on twitter, you never know what awesome thing I might mini-blog next. LOL

Are We Living In Fear?

I recently read an article in the RD written by a mother who allowed her son to take the subway in Manhattan home alone from a shopping center. It was the first time I had heard about it but from what she said, her story has really hit a cord with people and she has been on the Today show and numerous other shows talking about the experience.

In the article, she talks about how parents live in fear today. We don't let our children out of our sight, they can't walk to the park or a friends house alone, and we definitely wouldn't allow our 9 year old son to try and find his way home using the subway in the middle of NYC (to clarify, her son asked to do this and she agreed).

Her opinion was that by living in fear we are preventing our children from having experiences that we had when we were children. Her reasoning is that not as many children are kidnapped by strangers as we seem to think or that the media implies. We should loosen up and stop sheltering our children (this was my interpretation of it, you might want to look up the article and see for yourself).

This really has had me thinking about it all weekend and NOT because I agree with her.

I think it's sad that times have changed and this world (including our neighborhoods and cities) are not as safe as they once were. Do I let me children out of my site for even a minute when in public? ABSOLUTELY NOT!! And it's exhausting. But I can't tell you how many times I have seen a suspicious person hanging around the toy section and they just happen to hurry out the door alone as soon as they realize I am WATCHING!! I'm not saying something would have happened... but it could have. And for some people it does.

I learned growing up that Yes, there are things in this world to be afraid of. But that doesn't mean you have to live in fear. It means you do all you can do to keep yourself safe and then leave the rest up to God. For instance; as an invincible teenager... (catch that joke??) I still didn't walk down dark deserted alleyways and put myself in precarious positions.

Its the same being a parent. Should we lock our kids inside and never let them experience the wonderful things of this world? No! That wouldn't be doing them any good either. But, I will NOT allow my children to go out alone (or even with a friend for that matter) until I feel their age, maturity level, and the situation is suitable. Will I let them go over to some random friends house when I don't know their parents? No. Not until they are old enough to handle situations that might arise. Will I take my eyes off of them for even a second while out in public? I try so very hard not to.

Not because I live in fear. But because if something ever were to happen, I want to know I did everything I could to protect them. They are my life, my love, my everything!! I would die before I let someone hurt even a hair on their heads.

We live in a time where children are taken from their bedrooms at night (Elizabeth Smart lives in my town and was found 9 months later less than 2 miles from my house), children are raped and molested by family friends who "would never do anything like that!" and parents blink and then never get to see their precious child again. It's horrible. It makes me sick writing it. But its true. We can't forget that these sorts of things happen. We can't put our guard down.

So for now;

I'll walk with my kids to school. I'll make my house the fun house that all the kids want to come play at. And when I go out shopping, they won't be riding the buss home just to see if they can.

I don't live in fear. This is how I find my peace.

Before and After Our Recent Shopping Spree

Alright... as promised, here are my before and after pictures. If you couldn't tell, Shane and I bought a new couch (or two), a new entertainment center, and two ottomans. We LOVE the way they turned out. LOVE!!! What do you think?

Old couches and the TV on a coffee table.


And the new couches and entertainment center.


And in case you didn't know notice, Baby Signing Time was playing in each picture. I TOLD you it hasn't stopped playing since we got it.

What Time Is It?

It's Signing Time!

Now, you probably know from either a previous post or because you have spent more than 5 minutes at our house, that we LOVE Signing Time. Not only did it teach Lilly how to sign but it also taught her all the colors, how to count to ten, her ABCs, the seasons, I could go on. I went to school to be an ASL Interpreter and I was never able to teach her the way Signing Time does. To say she loves it would be a total understatement.

So when I received an email asking if I wanted to preview the new Baby Signing Time I couldn't say PLEASE fast enough.

It came in the mail the other day and it hasn't stopped playing since. Not only does Lilly love it and ask to watch it over and over and over... but Noah is so captivated by it I don't think he even blinks while watching it. And as I'm sure you know, getting a 1 year old to sit still for anything is almost impossible (at least with this monkey it is).

This show is not only educational, it's FUN! We are already singing all the songs together. I took some pictures to show you just how much my kids love the new Baby Signing Time (and so do I).

Sorry for the glare on this one but it was just too cute to see Lilly signing in this one.

You can't tell, but they are both dancing in this one.

I told you. He just LOVES it. Forget all the toys... He's going to be signing in no time.

Thank you Rachel and the Signing Time family!! We love you all and the new Baby Signing Time ROCKS!!

Very Random Ramblings

I'm sitting here at my desk (I work 30 or so hours from home a week as a Graphic Designer/Advertising Manager/Project Manager) wondering where to even begin to catch up. Do you ever feel that way? You get so behind (this time due to my unscheduled time off with no internet access) and overwhelmed by the ever growing To-Do list that your brain goes into "safe mode" and limits what you can do? (like my stupid computer has been doing all morning)

Okay, so maybe I am a bit eccentric. Most of the moms I know are Super Mom's and if they ever did feel this way I would never know it.

Regardless, here I sit.

I've missed blogging. Even when I don't sit down and do it, I feel a great release in knowing I could if I wanted to. Then having a whole week without that release... well, now my randomness is forcing all the important stuff to drizzle out my ears. Which is quite ironic considering the short time before I had a Blogger Block (similar to a writers block???).

So I thought if I put this random post on here it might make a little room and allow my focus to recenter back on the long list of junk I still have to do. I mean, the kids can't nap forever.

And I only have an hour left. Shane gets home from work at 5 and then we are moving furniture to make room for our latest irresponsible shopaholic purchase. (I'll take before and after pictures)

One last thing... I really am not this bad. I just seem to be fuzzy right now. Sorry.

Of Course. . .

So much for getting to blog. It looks like I am in for another long night of work. So I won't get to post about giving Noah his first clipper hair cut at home or Lilly's first day of Preschool and how when I asked her if she was good she said no. She was naughty.

I won't get to post about how when I asked Shane to watch Noah for a few minutes while I went downstairs and Lilly was in the tub, that Noah nose dived into the tub. (don't worry, this is worth the wait though.)

Well, my graphic is ready to download so I must go. But...

I. Will. Be. Back!

I'm Baaack!!!!

I know... most of you probably didn't even realize I was gone. But I was. My internet connection went to Comc@st Heaven (aka My Hell). After many failed attempts, I was finally able to get it back up and running. And boy, do I have a TON of things to tell ya' all.

But first... I have some work to do. I think Comc@st should reimburse me for the week of unscheduled PTO I had to take last week since I couldn't get online. What do you think?

Oh, and if you are reading this after all this time... thank you for checking back and not giving up on me. I SWEAR I'll make it up to you. I have some fun giveaways planned just to show my appreciation.

Alan Has A New Heart!

Please go visit Noahs Adventure to read about the Wonderful gift that Alan has received today.