Bad Day ... Good Ending

I had a horrible day at work.  I got nothing done, and got more added to my list.  I had to listen to whiny contractors complain and then threaten when things didn't go their way  I was very late picking Tyler up from daycare (and when he gets dropped off at 7 am I tend to start feeling a little bad when I pick him up after 6 pm ... at least he is appeased by a Crunch bar waiting for him in his car seat) And the list goes on and on ..... and then I realized that it was only Tuesday. 

So as I was getting Tyler's supper ready, I noticed this on my fridge ....

and it made me smile (for what might have been the first time today).

I know you are at the edge of your seat wondering what this is .... well .... this was our Valentine's Day card that Tyler mailed to us.  That's right .... his school took him to the post office to mail a card for his momma and daddy.

We got it in the mail and I was so surprised.  He decorated the front and then we opened it up and saw more decorations .... all done by Tyler!

We kept opening and on the inside was the funniest thing I had read in a really long time.  I guess the teacher asked each kid ..... "Why do you love your mom and dad?" .... then they wrote their answers on the card .... well here is Tyler's answer ....

For some reason Kyle and I thought this was really funny.  Not sure if we were envisioning what other kids said ... or if we were just agreeing with Tyler :) 

So the Valentine's card is still on our fridge and it has definitely done its job.  It made me realize that at the end of the day, who cares if work is piled up, if contractors are acting like 3 year olds, or if it is only Tuesday. There are definitely more important things ....

like when we are going back to Disney World?!?!

Working momma

This post is linked to Kelly's Corner - SUYL: Working Moms

I am a working mom.
I have a 3 year old and another one on the way.
I work 40+ hours a week.
I leave the house at 7:00am and am lucky if I get back home by 6:00pm.
My husband works night shift for the local sheriff's department: 7:00 pm to 7:00 am.

My house isn't always clean.  It is usually cluttered!
There are dishes in the sink.
We don't always get home cooked meals.
There have been clean clothes in my living room since Sunday.

BUT ....

There is always time for soccer practice.
For reading books and scratching backs before bedtime.
For sitting on the couch watching Toy Story 3 for the 11th time that week.
And for making racetracks outside on the sidewalk for cars.

My excuse and other things...

So I have been absent lately, like 3 months of absent!  I don't have a good excuse .... I have a GREAT excuse. 

Our family is getting bigger. 

Well right now I am the only one that is getting bigger but we will be adding an addition to The Ostranders at the end of July.  We are super excited.  I have been pretty exhausted lately, with work and everyday mommying.   But the good news is that I am past the first trimester and I am definitely getting my energy back. 

So here I am at 16 weeks .....

The baby is the size of a avocado.

I am already in Maternity Jeans ... still regular shirts.  For some reason my body knows exactly what to do this time and is about 6 weeks ahead of where I was with Tyler (I am told this is normal.)

Cravings:  Dairy ... specifically milk, ice cream, yogurt...

Other happenings....

Tyler finished up his first season of soccer.  I am pleased to announce that in the end we were making it through the entire practice/game without any meltdowns.  This was really my goal.  He is signed up for another season of soccer this spring and I am hoping that we will have even more luck and he actually starts to kick that ball!

I have watched Toy Story 3 at least 13 times this weekend.  The sad part is that I end up sitting and watching at least a part of it each time. 

Until next time ... which hopefully isn't 3 months away!

All I want for Christmas is a .....

So I asked Tyler what he wanted for Christmas ....

"a big blue present" was his response.  This we can work with!

Merry Christmas everyone! 

Our many days of Halloween....

Halloween is over.  I'm a little sad and a little glad. 

A little sad because:
it's now time to put up all the fun jack-o-lanterns
take down the 'scary' bats hanging on the porch
and put up the costumes

A little glad because:
it's time for Thanksgiving
I definitely don't need all the candy around the house

Tyler decided that he wanted to be Jake from Disney's "Jake and the Neverland Pirates".  It's his new obsession.  Since no one makes a "jake costume" it was up to me and MiMi to make the costume (BTW: MiMi is REALLY good at making costumes!)

Our first night of Halloween fun was at Boo at the Zoo.

Tyler as Jake!

yeah ... that is our Mickey bucket!

can you spot him?!

Our second night of Halloween fun was at Crooked Creek Park for their Halloween Carnival.  We met Zack (dressed as Buzz Lightyear) and ran down the Trick or Treat Trail.  Afterwards, we went inside to the gym and ate hotdogs and played games. 

The third night we went Trick or Treating around the neighborhood.  It was fun, but I didn't take any pictures.  Mainly because I am really bad at taking pictures in the dark, so I don't waste my time!

I did NOT .....

This weekend is being brought to you by Not Me! Monday....

I did NOT decide to forgo supper Friday night so that I could eat lots of desserts at our monthly girls night out, which was appropriately titled "Wine / Dessert / Game Night".  I did NOT make some awesome Brownie Batter Chocolate Chip cookies that I  got from The Picky Palate.  I did NOT bring a lot of leftovers home and continue to eat them throughout the weekend.

I did NOT try to hide the icecream truck from my son.  Because sometimes you just don't feel like spending money on overpriced icecream in the shape of Sponge Bob Square Pants.

I did NOT dump all of the clean clothes on a chair in the living room, only to walk back in and find the cat sleeping right in the middle of the clothes.

{This blog carnival was created by MckMama at http://www.mycharmingkids.net/ You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.}


Recipe for Brownie Batter Chocolate Chip Cookies via The Picky Palate ....{http://picky-palate.com/2011/09/19/brownie-batter-chocolate-chip-cookies/}

My 'Fall' to-do list

Tomorrow is Labor Day, marking the end of Summer and beginning of Fall.  And who am I kidding, I am looking forward to Fall this year.  Maybe it's because we got to finish our summer off with an awesome family trip (other wise known as Disney World!).  Maybe it is the anticipation of great holidays like Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas.  Or maybe I am just really tired of the 100 degree days of Summer. 

Whatever the reason, I have already started thinking of what I wanted to do this Fall.  Some of it is fun, some of it not so much but ..... here goes! (in no particular order)

1) Figure out when we are going on our next Disney vacation.

2) Start the family on a modified Dave Ramsey plan.  (if you don't know Dave Ramsey ... google him ... he is awesome). I say modified because he is pretty intense and I don't know if I can go as hard core as him!

3) Visit the Biltmore House (specifically during Christmas).

4) Re-do Tyler's room.  I am thinking maybe a new paint color, curtains, and some vinyl wall art.

5) Go apple picking.

6) Start making and decorating cookies again.  I like to blame the heat ... from outside and the oven.

7) Paint the hallway and put up something to showcase Tyler's 'art-work'.  (The 'art-work' is currently hanging on my cabinets in the kitchen.)

8) Start and finish my scrapbook for our Disney vacation.

9) Clean up the back yard. 

10) Cheer Kyle on as he runs his first half marathon!


Now that the list is written down, that makes it official, right?!