Snow day . . .AGAIN???

Day 22: Yes, folks. Day 22 of my extended Christmas break. I think I might go crazy. Better yet, I think my children may go crazy. We have been stuck inside because of WAY below freezing temperatures and outside looks like this:

These are things that have amused me so far in the past 3 extra days of staying at home.

1. Playing referee between Hoss and Little Joe (and this time Little Joe is not Josiah).

2. Calling all my teacher friends that go to my church and letting our kids raid the gym for two hours.

3. Take random pictures of my kiddos at home.

I call this "Josiah discovers the invention of the fork."

This one is "Hidden Taylor avoiding naptime."

4. Dance in my living room to the Beatles. Yes, the boys danced with me. (See, I am going crazy. I'm letting everyone know that I dance in my living room. Most people won't admit that.)

5. Made random comments on Facebook and updated my status more times than I do in one month.

6. Blogged. . . .and blogged some more.

7. Watched the news to see if I actually get to go back to work at all this season. My money is on "no."

8. Watched a movie on iTunes that Brad would never watch with me. 17 again isn't that bad and I did laugh a few times.

9. Searched the internet for random recipes. Nothing really sounded that good.

10.Did the laundry, washed dishes, cleaned up the living room and repeat. Everyday. Its a vicious cycle.

11. Reminding myself (and those around me) that I love snow and I'm not going to complain about it. In fact, I even turned off the news this morning because I was tired of listening to people whine about how cold it was outside and how treacherous the roads are. Please find the good news!

Guess what? I have at least one more day of this wonderful stuck inside weather. I think I wouldn't mind so bad if I was a stay at home mom who lived in a bigger house and I did this everyday, but when I have an "escape" to work and I can't go there, it just makes me a wee bit on the loopy side. If you see me anytime soon and my eyes are glazed over and I have a delirious smile on my face, you will know just how stir crazy my house has been in the past 23 days.

I'm sure if you check Facebook you will find out how day 23 went. I'm sure I'll post another status update.

Plans Wrecked

So, I was going to write a birthday blog yesterday. I had the boys down for a nap and my computer up and running and then I get a phone call from Brad. "I've had a slight fender bender, I'll call you with the details later." I wait a few minutes and he calls back. "I can't get my driver's side door open and there's stuff hanging down from underneath. I called the tow truck, you need to come get me." So, like the numbers on the calendar, my plans changed. If you want more details about Brad's slight fender bender ask him. But, for now I'm going to write what I was planning to write yesterday.

The Bucket List(that would have been my original title)

Its the end of the decade, which means I only have one more year before I enter the tridecade(I'm avoiding that dirty thirty word if you couldn't tell) of my existence. There are lots of things that I want to do in my lifetime and if you know me you know I'm all about writing things down. Everything needs a list. So, here are the things that I have done and/or plan to do at some point in my life. Feel free to help me out with any of the following.

1. See Garth Brooks live in concert(DONE! Thanks, Garth, for coming out of retirement and letting me have a floor seat).

2. See a live panda bear in person. (DONE! Memphis Zoo was awesome.)

3. Get my writing published. (The blog doesn't really count for me. I want some of my stories published in books. I want my name on a book on a shelf at Barnes and Noble. So, we will see how that goes.)

4. Live in a four bedroom house with a fireplace, basement, and garage. (Oh, yes, that will happen soon. I'm bound and determined to move into a bigger place.)

5. Loose the rest of my baby fat that seems to be hanging on for dear life everyday. (I would love to squeeze into my "pre-Taylor" clothes at some point in the next year.)

6. Have another baby. At some point. NOT ANY TIME SOON SO DON'T GET YOUR HOPES UP! (I'm still trying to figure out how to only be pregant one more time, but have 4 kids. The only thing that I can come up with is twins and that just sounds painful).

7. Find the perfect part time special education position so I can stay home more.

That's it,my bucket list.

Happy New Year. Enjoy your black-eyed peas, if your into that little tradition. I prefer to indulge my other taste buds with Mexican and Italian food.
And, my birthday plans weren't totally wrecked. Brad took me to the Plaza for a movie and dinner. Yes, I said that right, even thought it sounds odd. We saw The Blind Side and then ate at M&S Grill at 9:45. We walked into our house right at the stroke of midnight. So, my birthday wasn't ruined at all, just rearranged.

See you in '10.

Christmas is over?

Yes, Taylor, Christmas is over. I know it may not seem like it, but you had 5 Christmases in 2 days. Whew! I think we are all still recovering. Our family is so blessed to have so much of our extended family close to us. We are also very blessed that almost everyone decided to get Taylor and Josiah new toys. Now, where do we put all this new stuff?. We convinced Taylor that it was okay to get rid of some of his toys that he never plays with and we got rid of a few of the baby toys that Josiah no longer plays with. I refuse to get rid of a lot of little baby toys due to the fact that everyone I know that gets rid of all their infant/newborn stuff gets pregnant right after they give all of their stuff away. I'm not ready to make that commitment, yet.

All in all, we had a good Christmas and Taylor finally got into the whole Santa thing. The best part of the Santa festivities is when Brad played Rudolph out the window and Taylor's eyes got big as saucers and did not say a word. He wouldn't even walk to bed. I had to carry him. He usually stays up for a little bit and looks at books, but Christmas Eve night he stayed tucked in staring wide eyed at the ceiling and did not move a muscle. The next morning, he walked into the bedroom and sniffed. I asked him what he was doing. He said," Do you smell that?" I said," What?" He said, "I smell presents. Come on, let's go check." And so began our Christmas marathon house hopping. We are all still recovering. Only to do it all again next year.

A "Moo"ry Christmas

Taylor made his debut in the preschool choir on Sunday night. He was quite a little showman if I do say so myself. Apparently, he is going to be a microphone hog. He stood in front of one microphone and pretty much held it the entire time. If someone would get too close to it, he would every so kindly push them back to their spot on stage. He was very excited to be on stage. He would sing and dance with the music. He just couldn't stand still. Definitely his father's son. He was also little Brad when we were all lined up and ready to go into the sanctuary and he announced "I need to go poo-poo." He had to wait until the last minute to tell me that.

Taylor and the rest of the preschool choir were the animals in the nativity scene. He was a cute little cow if I do say so myself. He is also the only boy in the preschool choir and the girls think he is pretty hot stuff. So much that one of the girls who was dressed as a camel decided to pull Taylor around on stage by his horns on his costume. Her dad personally apologized to Brad and I on facebook for "marking her territory." We thought it was hilarious and hope that someone has that on video!

As one era ended, so a new era began. Miss Diane who has been working with the preschool choir for 20 years finally decided to pass on her baton to my friend and I. So, for the next year or so, I will be helping with the preschool choir. Pray for me! This could be a daunting task considering I told myself I would never teach kiddos that little. Of course, I also said that I would always be taller than who I teach and look how far that got me.

Twenty Nine Years and counting

No, I'm not talking about how old I am, but that's awfully close. (I still plan to ride out 28 for another 3 weeks.) I am talking about a Christmas tradition that started the year I was born. The first Sunday in December is Christmas tree day every year. Ever since I was born(and before that, according to my mother), we have gone to Schmitt's Tree Farm in Holt. We take a hay ride up on the hill to the Christmas tree forest and then go from tree to tree until we find the perfect tree. This little tradition just started out with my mom, dad, sister and me. Now, it has grown to include two husbands(my sister's and mine. We're not Mormon), and 5 little boys.
Taylor was finally old enought to know what was going on. He brought his chainsaw to help Daddy cut down the "perfect tree" as he called it.

Here he is in action:

Josiah wasn't quite old enough to get the full effect of walking in the forest. So, he got hauled around in a sled, instead.

I'm pretty sure the one thing we will remember this year is the cold weather attire Josiah had on that morning. He was fighting a cold and I didn't want him to get any more sick in the cold weather. So, I put him in his winter coat, snowpants, scarf, and mittens. We stood him up and he fell right over because he was so bundled up. Pa rescued him.

He was definitely warm, but immobile. I couldn't resist and had to video his attempt to get from point A to point B while we were waiting for the tractor.

Don't worry, Santa. We'll be back next year!

Weekend Warriors

Our weekend was packed with a concert, drums, working out, and some fun times at a Winter Wonderland event. Yeah, I know. I said winter wonderland. I grinned and bared it as we went and had some fun. Luckily, we did not run into Santa Claus. Well, not the "real" Santa Claus as Brad put it. Apparently, the real Santa Claus resides at Crown Center during the month of December according to my husband. Really? I really thought he knew that Santa was fictional. What did his parents tell him?

Taylor got a balloon animal out of it and Josiah got his face painted, which was amazing, considering that lil guy doesn't sit still for more than 30 seconds at a time.

Have fun perusing the pix.

"Cultured"

Some may say that I am not your typical girl. There are several reasons for that.

Example A: I do not like wearing pink, walking through aisles of pink, or pretty much be near anything that has to do with baby pink. I'm pretty sure it makes me nauseous. Reason #1 why I am pretty sure God gave me two boys.

Example B: I'm an outdoors girl. I like to go camping and be outside. I have been camping since I was pretty much only a few months old. I have been in close contact with raccoons, skunks, and several other outdoor creatures. I don't mind living outside in a tent for a few days and would actually prefer it to a hotel room(HINT HINT, Brad. One day, I will succeed).

Example C: I'm a gearhead. I would much rather go to a car show than spend several hours at a mall. Call me crazy, but I enjoy looking at old cars, going to drag races (not funny cars, mind you, but supped up hot rods), and listening to engines. Yes, Dad, I have actually turned down my radio and rolled down the window so I could hear the engine of a Chevelle SS with dual exhaust and a big block engine.

Example D: I avoid wearing dresses like the plague. You think I'm kidding, don't you? When I had to shop for wedding dresses, I told my mom that I didn't want to shop for it, and she could just pick it out. I told Brad I would've been just fine wearing jeans, a T-shirt, and no shoes walking down the aisle. (Most of you know how that battle went.) Reason #2 why God gave me boys. THANK YOU.

And finally, my last confession to make is I'm a bit of a redneck. I can't help it. That's just the way I was raised and I appreciate my family for that. A fun time for me is going to a rodeo, watching bullriding, or watching a demolition derby. And you know what, I am completely okay with that. I can get down and dirty with the rest of those folks. In fact, I pride myself with the fact that I got a black eye from a clod of dirt that was spun from a tire at the derby when I was about 8.

I'm pretty sure this "fault" has helped me be a good mom to my boys. For instance, I have realized that boys get dirty. But, the best part about that is they wash. Who knew? So, its okay if they roll around in the dirt or get paint all over themselves. That just means longer bathtime and more scrubbing behind the ears.

So, my boys are getting their culture in the best way possible, I think. Yes, they still listen to music and go to different fine arts events(Taylor's even in choir at church), but they have also been spectators at demolition derbies, car shows, and rodeos. I'm hoping that by going to all kinds of different events, they won't be afraid to try new things and they will see that boys and girls don't have to live up to stereotypes that are placed on them throughout their lives.

Oh, yeah, one more confession. I do have some "girly habits." I enjoy watching figure skating and gymanstics events. Purple is my favorite color and I like to cuddle. If you still don't believe this, you may want to revisit my "Confessions of a Shoeaholic" post.

Here's a bit of that culture now. We went to the CBR Bullriding event at the American Royal last weekend. Taylor had a blast. Josiah fell asleep. Well, for 8 seconds at a time. That buzzer was loud!

We sat in general admission, but apparently we were destined to sit in the seats we chose. Relax, the name was all ready there. We didn't deface property.

Josiah getting a better view.

Taylor in his "Tuff shirt." Tuff Hedeman is a famous bullrider who has been around for years that was holding the event. If you want to know more about him, I suggest you rent 8 seconds. (One of my favorite movies next to Grease and A League of Their Own.)GO! GO! GO! Eight seconds seems like an eternity when you're messing with a bull.

Rodeos aren't always a bunch of bull. Sometimes, the beautiful Budweiser Clydesdales make an appearance. They're so pretty.

Enjoy the ride!