Getting Busier and Busier All the Time~

It's been a while since I've updated. I think sometimes that I forget to breathe when I'm so busy. I have fallen way behind on my school work, but I will make it up. I have to keep pushing on, because I have invested too much time, effort, stress, and money into this degree. I am 75% of the way to graduation. We have Cady & Autumn every day again... like last summer. I have really enjoyed it. We have gotten to do a lot of really fun things. Last night I took all four girls to the circus while Kevin was working. I had a blast just watching their little faces light up. They were so excited the whole time. They even joined in with the rest of the crowd participation yelling things at the clown :) The best part was when I sprinted to the ATM, so the girls could ride the elephant during intermission. Autumn was terrified, but I got on with her and then she had a blast! Tball has been taking up the majority of my time lately along with housework.
Kevin and I finally started remodeling the bathroom. It's very exciting, but we are already on Day #4. A very long and drawn out process. Hopefully tonight he is not missing any pieces for the plumbing and we can get the vanity put in. That has been our goal since Sunday night... haha! The girls and I went to Lowe's yesterday and picked out the ceramic tile for the floor. I really can't wait until it is all finished. It is going to look GREAT!
The girls are all enjoying summer vacation. Autumn's last day of school will be tomorrow. I give it another couple weeks until Kya starts missing her friends. Funniest story of the week:
I had the four girls in my car yesterday. The heat waves coming off of the highway looked like there were large puddles ahead. The girls were going crazy over this. So I started telling them to tell me when we hit the puddles. When they yelled "NOW" I hit the bar to squirt up windshield wiper fluid. They really thought we were splashing through puddles, but they didn't see the water on the ground. Aria says to me, "Mommy... are you like Alex from Wizards of Waverly Place?"

A Beautiful Memorial Day

Finally... a Memorial Day without rain. It was absolutely gorgeous today. The girls had so much fun playing outside. We took them fishing yesterday, and Kya did an awesome job. She sat there next to her pole so patient and just waited for her fish. Kevin got the yard cleaned up a bit more today. The weeds are really starting to take over. There's still a lot of work to do inside and outside of our new home. It's already May 30th, so I'm guessing we won't have the landscaping finished and the bathroom done by June 1st. :) Oh well... we are working on things as we can. We are quite busy these days. Between work, school, the dogs, the girls, and teeball... I am surprised we can even keep the house clean! Kya has her last day of school this week! Then she will be officially a first grader. That depresses me. The girls are all growing up way too fast. I am just glad that we got to spend this amazing weekend with all of them. The extra day off work was definitely needed! Autumn's skin is looking so much better. I let her wear shorts today, but it's not cleared up enough to wear flip flops yet. She has done a great job this weekend of not scratching, and she seems much happier. Aria was quite a little snuggle bug this weekend. I am cherishing these moments as much as I can. I know it won't last long. Cady and Kya developed some mad skills for jumping off of the swing set. Haha! They were having so much fun doing that for hours today. They get really high and then sing a little chant before they both jump and dance in mid-air. Everything else seems to being perfect. I love my husband so much, and I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful family.

Yay! Teeball is Here!

Teeball is finally here! We have had two practices for each team. Our first games are next week. I am so excited. I have had a blast so far coaching these two teams. Last weekend, Kevin and I got to go fishing for the first time this year. We went to Pollmiller, and it was really relaxing and fun. The weather was gorgeous, and we caught four fish. Nothing keepable... but at least we had fun. I went to Quincy for work yesterday, and there were severe thunderstorms and tornadoes all over the MidWest when I started to head home. It was very scary, but I made it home alive. Everyone remained safe. Kya, Aria, and I just finished making mints. It was their first time, but it was a lot of fun. I love spending time with the girls. Nothing major has happened recently. We got some flowers planted in the front, but we haven't finished the bathroom yet or started on the vegetable garden. Kya and Autumn are both almost finished with school for the year. Then it will be officially summer vacation. It would be really nice to have one of those! I have been working on starting my own business. I still have a lot of money to save, and a lot of research to do. I am guessing that it will be at least 6 months to a year before anything gets going. Well that's all I really have for now... until next time! :)

First Day of HEAT!

Things have been quite busy around here for our family. Kevin has been working a lot of overtime, and it seems like there is something going on daily. I have a coach's meeting Thursday night for teeball. So I will be coaching two teeball teams and a soccer team. This is while also still working full-time and going to school. I'm exhausted just thinking about it.
Of course the spawn of Satan has created more drama for us recently. Autumn's skin has been so terrible, and last night she was taken to the ER. Now the person who caused her skin to become that bad in the first place is keeping her and won't let Kevin have her. So you can only imagine how frustrated he is right now. I really wish all of this would just stop. It is way too much stress to deal with. We just want to live a normal life and have a normal household. Of course, with irresponsible and immature people surrounding us it's almost impossible.
Yesterday, the weather was amazing. 80 and gorgeous! I took Jasmine for a walk, and then Kevin and I took Braylon for a walk when he got home. Now today is in the 90's! It is the first really hot day of the year. I won't complain though. I really dislike the cold and the snow. So I will take this. Even though the thermostat says 84 degrees in the house. That's what popsicles are for! :) Kevin's birthday was Sunday, and that was also Mother's Day. He got me two new charms for my Pandora bracelet. The girls' birthstones! Very pretty!
Well it's closing time. Have a final project to finish. Funny story to close the night!

Aria: Mommy look! My teeth are covered in brown from eating puppy chow.
Me: Nope! They still look all white to me. Now you need to take your pearly whites upstairs and get ready for your bath.
Aria walks into the foyer and looks around for about 10 seconds and then returns to me.
Aria: Momma, what's a pearly white?

Haha!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls...

Well... second week in a row we have had to ground one of the girls. Tonight: Cady! She was really bad at school today. Not listening to the teacher, turning on the lights and messing with the kids during nap time, etc. I write all of this now, so that I can show the girls some day :) Haha! The scary part though... when I asked her why she was bad at school today, her response was, "Because I wanted to be bad. Sometimes I want to be bad and sometimes I don't. So what?" I had no response. I figured it's something her dad can talk to her about. I don't know how to handle that much attitude. My only response was, "Well then when you FEEL like being bad... then I am going to FEEL like taking all your nice things out of your room and throwing them in the dumpster." I had nothing else. I really wish they had a manual for quick responses. I'm not used to that. Usually when I ask Kya why she did something wrong, the response is, "I don't know. I will be good tomorrow Mommy." SUCK UP! Lol.. just kidding. I love her to death! Easter dinner was really nice with my family. It didn't matter that it was a week late. The girls and Draydan had a blast on their Easter egg hunt. I had so much fun having Brenna over to the stay the night before. :) Then she entertained us all on Saturday by crawling underneath the deck to get some batteries that Autumn dropped. She looked like an inch worm. It was hilarious and on video! Definitely a family moment we will never forget! The doctor told me today that I need more exercise to sweat all of my adrenaline out. He said it would help me relieve stress. I told him that my mom and step dad got us a Kinect for the 360, and I would just do that. Haha! He thought I was joking so I said, "I seriously have no time to work out. The Kinect is going to be the best way to get me up and moving and sweating. Unless you want to count all the housework I do and chasing kids." He said that either of those was fine. :) Kevin put together the swing set that Mom and Jason bought for our yard. It looks great! Now hopefully this weekend will be nice enough to get some of our yard work done! Let's cross our fingers...

A side note for history to look back on some day: Osama Bin Laden was killed yesterday in Pakistan. I hope that the families of his victims have found peace and closure with this news. Thank you to our brave soldiers who have fought and died in this war to find him and bring justice to our country. God Bless them all!

Funny Quote:

Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway.

Rain, Rain, Go Away!

I swear every day lately has rain in the forecast! Tomorrow is sunny and 69, but other than that... every day has a chance of rain. It's really a downer! :( Kya got in trouble twice today at school. She lied to the lunch lady, because she wanted juice to drink. She told her she was allergic to milk. She didn't predict that the lunch lady would ask her teacher later on. Haha! Then later the teachers noticed there were two students missing at recess. They found Kya and Spencer inside the classroom. They had apparently decided they didn't need to join the rest of the class for recess. So she was grounded for the first time ever tonight. No television and no snacks. She cried for over an hour! We have been waiting patiently (well Kevin has been patient) to hear back from MedicalFinancing.com. If we are approved, then we can set up an appointment to get Kevin's vasectomy reversal done! I am overly excited, and I really am thrilled that I'm getting closer to being able to have a baby with my wonderful husband. I just hope that the financing goes through. It might take us a very long time to save up $8,000! Since last weekend, nothing has been done on the bathroom or the yard. We just don't have the time. Work all day and then homework all night for me. Don't forget all of the little ones as well! I had a chance to work on the housework last night, and instead I just slept. I really needed it, though. Well that's all I have for tonight! Until next time...

Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.  ~Elizabeth Stone

Easter 2011

Well Easter was different this year than most for us. We did not have the girls on Easter morning, so we colored eggs and did a basket hunt a few days early. The girls had a blast, and we have video footage of Jasmine covered in orange dye that she knocked off of the table! Lots of family fun! Next weekend we will have my whole family over for a late Easter dinner, because Grandma and Grandpa had to cancel Easter dinner this year. Lots of people in the family feeling ill lately. I hope everyone gets better. :) We are still working hard on Jasmine's house training. Puppies are sometimes more work than children. She is almost 4 months now, so she should start getting better. I really hope so! Kevin took me out for my birthday this weekend. We ate at Buffalo Wild Wings, and it was just as yummy as usual. Naturally I love that place since buffalo chicken is my favorite food! :) Then we spent the rest of the night out on the town.  I also talked Kevin into performing "Ice Ice Baby" with me karaoke! It was a lot of fun. I think we got our dancing fix, and we probably won't be pulling a late night like that again for a long time! Before we headed to dinner, we stopped by my dad's house and visited with him and Renee for a couple hours. It's been a long time since we have done that, and it was great! I love staying caught up with my parents and actively involved in their lives. I love my family very much! Since the last post, we still haven't gotten any further on our remodeling. Kevin has cleaned out the garage, but other than that we still have a long ways to go in the next month. I'm hoping to have the bathroom done, the landscaping in the front done, and the living room painted by the 1st of June. That is the new goal I have set, and I will feel much better if I can stick to it! Well not much else to update at the moment. I hope everyone had a great Easter!
Motivational quote:

If you want to succeed in the world, you must make your own opportunities as you go on. The man who waits for some seventh wave to toss him on dry land will find that the seventh wave is a long time a coming. You can commit no greater folly than to sit by the roadside until some one comes along and invites you to ride with him to wealth or influence.
John B. Gough

Where Did Spring Go?

So here we are in the middle of April, and we have been experiencing 40 and 50 degree weather. I am really missing that beautiful, warm weather we had a couple weeks ago. It definitely lifts the spirits when you know you can walk outside in capris and a tshirt, and feel the warmth of the sunshine! Kya's birthday party was a hit this weekend. We had some awesome friends and family here. I was especially excited to see Scarlett, Damon, and the kiddos here all the way from Des Moines. We don't see them often, but it is always a treat! Kya seems to really be enjoying her new vanity from Grandma & Grandpa Thompson. It's hard to pry her from it :). I am working on a list of things I would like to get done with the new house before June. I want all of our landscaping in the front yard finished, the living room walls fully painted (3 walls to go), and the bathroom remodeling project completed. We have 85% of the items for the bathroom... just need to find the time and purchase the rest of the drywall and ceramic tile. I can't wait to see how the yard turns out! I have created my own little blueprint design, and I think it's going to look beautful! Kya has her cast on for one more week. Aria graduates from 3-year-old preschool in 3 weeks. Cady will be finished with preschool and headed to kindergarten very soon. Quote for the night:

Feelings of worth can flourish only in an atmosphere where individual differences are appreciated, mistakes are tolerated, communication is open, and rules are flexible -- the kind of atmosphere that is found in a nurturing family.
-- Virginia Satir

A Simple Introduction...

Well... apparently the world doesn't read Xanga anymore, so I have found another blog home. My friend, Melissa, has a very neat blog of her family using this same tool. I thought this would be a neat way to keep my family and friends aware of what's going on with our family. We currently lost an employee at Pepsi, so there has been a lot of changing going on. I don't even know exactly what work I will given on a daily basis at this point. It is very stressful, but with the help of my friends and family I am getting through it the best way possible. Kevin is now a supervisor at Centre State International. It is going pretty well, but it is a lot more responsibility. Kya's broken arm is healing well. She has two weeks left until the cast comes off. I am sure she is going to want everyone to sign her new one this weekend at her birthday party. She is also in the process of taking some IQ tests, because we need to work on some new placement with her at school. She is very advanced for her grade and age. Aria is excited to become a Lil Falcon next year at West Burlington. She has enjoyed her time with Miss Abby at Next Step Christian Preschool, but it is time to move on. She is playing soccer currently, and she gets a little more into every week. Still working on the shy thing. Cady is going to begin kindergarten at Sunnyside Elementary next year. She has already taken part in kindergarten round-up and seemed to really enjoy it. In my opinion, anything is a step up from Head Start. I just don't feel they are doing their best for her. Autumn's food allergies are still causing her skin to break out. It would be nice if people would stop giving her food she is allergic to when she isn't at our house. But... what can you do? She will be attending her final year of preschool next year. I can't believe how old they are all getting. Autumn was just slightly over one year of age when I met Kevin! Well there's just a quick update for tonight. I will end with a funny story from one of the girls:
4-13-11 Star: Aria
It was a beautiful morning outside. I dressed both girls in dresses, adorable flats, and did their hair. Aria grabbed her Tinkerbell sunglasses from Florida as we left for Burlington this morning. Once we were in the car, the conversation went like this ~
Aria: Mommy can I stay with you today?
Me: Honey, you know I would love that, but I have to go to work. You also have to go to school today.
Aria: But Moooommmmmmyyyyyy! With this dress, these silver shoes, and these sunglasses, I look too cool for school.

Thanks for reading!