Back To School

Today was the first day of school for both of the kids. We got off to a very rainy start, but the sun was shining by the time it was ready for pick up :)

Wyatt started Pre-K this year. His teacher's name is Mrs. Hayes. So far so good!!

Abby started 7th grade.. this means Jr. High!! I was so terrified for her, but she did great and had a wonderful first day!

Scrapbook Anyone???

This week I signed up with Creative Memories to be one of their consultants! I LOVE to scrapbook and always have!! I am so far behind though! I thought "what a better way to get caught back up than to sign up to sell it and get the items at a discount!" I am not in this to make any money.. just to buy at wholesale! So... I am offering to all my friends that scrapbook as well, if they would like to order anything, I would love to offer them the same deal! Just let me know :)

A Fun Day At The Park

Monday was a great morning! The weather wasn't too hot and muggy, so Wyatt and I went to the park for awhile. He had a wonderful time running and playing! We had a little squirrel friend come up to us and I think he wanted to play also! We fed him a fortune cookie, it was the only thing I could find in the car for him to eat :)

We will have to go back someday and bring our new "friend" some bread or something!

More Mexico Pictures

I just wanted to add a few more photos from our trip to Riviera Maya, Mexico.. Enjoy :)


The beautiful white sandy beach!

Our resort "Ocean Coral & Turquesa"

Dinner at the Mexican restaurant.

All the flowers were so big and beautiful!!

Private snorkel tour in Puerto Morelos.

Silly face!

One of the four pools.. Awwww :)

On the grounds of our resort.

A view from our room.

Another view from the room.. a sunrise with Jesus!

Dinner our last evening there.

4th of July

We were so blessed with having Jaime off work from the fire station this year for the fourth of July!

It started out to be a rainy day, but we still managed to enjoy a cookout with his family, swim and pop some fireworks in the evening! It was a wonderful day! Happy Birthday America!

A not so good picture of our pretty fountain! I am still trying to figure out the settings on my new camera :)

Wyatt enjoying a cupcake that he helped make!

Ouch! Got a small burn on his tummy from a popper!

Night time swimming is always fun with the lights in the pool!

Not really sure...

I have no idea what he was doing, but it was so funny I had to snap a picture of him!

Gosh, I love that crazy little man!

Camping Party Anyone??

This year for Abby's 12th birthday, she decided she wanted to do a camping party. (which was weird to me, because she doesn't even like to play outside) We bought a tent and some fun things for the girls to do (pink flashlights, silly string, glow sticks) and invited 9 girls to sleepover. We bought a giant cookie cake from the mall in place a cake and ordered pizza for dinner. The girls had a blast! So much that they all stayed awake running in and out of the house until 6 am!! Oh.. and not one girl slept in the tent! (I knew it :)

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!

Braces!!!

Well after going to the orthodontist for the past 6 years, Abby is finally ready for her braces! Here are a couple of pics:

Before:

After:

MeXiCo & Father's Day

Oh wow! So I am so far behind with this blog thing! I will sum it all up..

Mexico was WONDERFUL!!!! We had a blast and it really is like paradise there! This was by far the best anniversary yet! We missed the kids so much, that we were planning our summer vacation with them in Mexico for next year, before we even left! We planned on going to Disney World in Florida for two weeks, but have no changed to a nice family resort in paradise! Can't wait!!

For Father's Day this year, we took Jaime out for dinner to one of his favorite places, "Toby Keith's" and then on to the Cox Center for a Yard Dawgs game! It was a very fun filled evening!

Can't Wait!!

Well, it is almost here.. finally! VACATION TIME!!!! We leave Monday morning for Riviera Maya, Mexico to celebrate our 5th Wedding Anniversary! Woo Hoo!!

I booked this trip for Jaime and I about 3 months ago and time has stood still (well seems that way). So glad it is finally here! I have a lot of things to do to get ready before we can go.

Have to do all the laundry, clean the house, set up the cat and make sure she will be ok for a week without us, finalize childcare arrangements, go over my list of "what to pack" and make sure I have everything ready for that, double check passports, cash and all carry-on items, make out a schedule for the business for next week for Juan and call clients so they will know Jaime will be out of town, oh and again.. go over my list of "what to pack" and make sure I have everything ready!! And on top of all of that I will still need to try and contain myself for the next 2 days, until Monday arrives!

Now that I have blogged about everything I need to do, get done or should have finished by now, I can use this for reference!

Growing Up

Well, both of my babies last day of school is tomorrow! Wyatt had his Pre-School graduation and awards on Tuesday and Abby had her 6th grade awards today. I am so proud of both of them!

Wyatt received an award for "The Love of Glue". His teachers said he just loves to roll his glue stick all the way up before he uses it, then smashes it down onto the paper. No wonder I have had to buy extra glue sticks for him throughout the year.

He also received an award for "Best Sense of Humor". He can always make you laugh and he loves to laugh himself!

Abby received an award for being on the Principal's Honor Roll. This is far from a first for her! She is such a smart girl! So proud of her!!

It is so amazing to me how the time flies! They grow up right before your eyes!!

Back 2 School

Well it's official.... I am a college student again! After some serious thinking and a lot of praying, I have decided to finish my degree in Radiology! I only had one class to finish, before I could apply for the program, or so I thought!

I went to talk with my old advisor today, and to enroll in my "last class", and she informed me that I will not only have to take that one last class, but I will also need to re-take another class due to the time restriction on my transcript! BUMMER!! So after talking with her in detail and enrolling for the fall semester, I decided to not only take these 2 classes, but also to re-take another class to try to better my scoring sheet.

The Radiology program admissions is based on a scoring sheet. They will take your highest grade for the prerequisites that are required, your compass scores, ACT scores and there are a few other areas that will give you a few "extra" points (i.e. if you have worked in a hospital for a number of years, have had experience taking x-rays or in the radiology field for a number of years, etc.) good thing I have had some experience in both taking and developing x-rays in the past, as well as working in the radiology department at Baptist Hospital. I still need to improve my scores as much as I can!! Last year there were only 12 slots to fill for the class, with 2 alternates chosen and there were over 70 applicants!!

It is kind of exciting the more I think about it. It will be good for me to get my head back in the books! ha ha

Pre-School trip to the Zoo!

Last Thursday, Wyatt's pre-school went to the Zoo for their year end field trip. I took Abby out of school this day so she could go with us. The weather was perfect and the animals were all out and active. We had a great time!

29 days and counting!!!

Only 29 more days till we leave for Mexico! Yahoo!!!

I starting making a list of things that I need to pack today. This way I won't forget anything, and I can see what I need to purchase ahead of time.

Man, seems like you pack the entire house sometimes just to go away for a week!

Well, the weight loss thing is still going... slowly, but going! I am not about to give up now! I have lost a total of 10 pounds.. thought it would be more by now, but I guess I am just impatient??

Still walking/jogging my 1.6 miles everyday, unless it is raining or Jaime is on duty, then I get on the Gazelle and work out. Lifting weights and doing crunches (trying to do 200 per day)!

Jr. High already??

Well, last Tuesday we went to tour the Jr. High School and pre-enroll for next year! I can't believe my little girl is already old enough to be in Jr. High.. heck, I can't believe I'm old enough to have a child that is old enough to be in Jr. High!! Where does the time go???

It was actually the first time that I had been inside the old school that I hear is in so much disarray. It really isn't that bad. Yes, there are some areas that need improvement, but it is actually quite interesting to see all of the old architecture.

We listed to the school councilor talk about the school and the class schedules, then it was off to the cafeteria to fill out enrollment papers. Here is what Abby will be enrolled in as of now:

1st semester elective: Spanish I
2nd semester elective: Life Skills

She will also have all of the normal classes, but will be enrolled in Honor's English!! I am very proud of her for her choices. She is such a smart girl and has a very bright future ahead of her! I know she is going to do great in school and in life.

Oh.. and she and her friend Kassiday, are going to be the "water girls" for the football team!! They are going to have a blast with this!!

Are you kidding me?!?!

Ok.. so when Jaime and I get a chance to actually get away, without the children, and go somewhere really special, there is like some really crazy thing that has to happen... AKA SWINE FLU!!!!

Are you kidding me!!! Not only is it affecting everyone in the world, but they are saying it stems from MEXICO! They are urging all Americans to NOT travel to Mexico, unless absolutely necessary.

I sure hope all this blows over in a month! Oh.. and we have yet to receive our passports in the mail! This trip is not going in the right direction so far... sure hope it improves :)

4lbs. Down!!!

Just an update...

I got up this morning, knowing it was going to be a beautiful day, and after I took the kids to school, I grabbed the ipod and went for a walk/jog... 1.6 miles to be exact! Did it just under 30 min. Then, I went to tan and came back to weigh myself. As of today, I have lost 4 lbs.!!!!!! Not a ton, but it's a start! I started this new "diet plan" last Thursday, so not off to such a bad start :)

Blah.. Blah.. Blah.. Diet Talk

So, just like every year, one of my "New Year's Resolutions" was to get back in shape and lose weight! Everything was going very well the first few weeks... I was eating a lot better, less sugar and carbs, working out and even doing some strength training! I told myself that I would weigh every couple of weeks or so, this way I didn't get discouraged with the up and down of a pound or two that women typically have from a day to day basis. So, after 2 weeks of being on track, I weighed myself and I GAINED 5 pounds!!!!! Are you serious?!?! I missed out on really good stuff and the "real" soda and late night snacks and junk food and and and... I thought to myself, "If I can gain weight by being on a "diet" and working out, and maintain my weight by enjoying the stuff I normally do, than why in the world am I putting myself through this?" Yes, I am over weight, and Yes, I constantly gripe about my clothes not fitting right, but 5 pounds?? I gave up the big "D" thing and returned to my normal junk food eating self :)

So it is now the middle of April and I have been thinking about our up coming trip to Mexico! Once again I have started a new diet and exercise program, hoping to lose a few and tone up a bit before we depart! (even though our trip is all-inclusive and we will probably be eating and drinking the entire time) This time, I am weighing myself every morning and sticking to an eating plan that I did once before I met Jaime (I was thin then!!). I want to give it 2 weeks and see what the progress will be... hopefully not repeating my previous experience!

Why oh why do women do this to themselves?? And why is it so hard to lose weight and get in shape the older you are? I feel that I am more active, you know always doing laundry, cleaning the house, taking care of the kids, the husband, the cat, etc., now that I am older and I don't have to work outside the home. It used to be so easy to drop 5-10 lbs. about 10 years ago!!

I am going to try to stay on track this time..... keeping in mind this is only day 5 :)

Mexico Trip

This year for our 5th Anniversary I wanted to surprise Jaime with a trip to Mexico! I have a friend that is a travel agent, so after talking to her and explaining all of the things that I was wanting to do, she came up with a wonderful place... Riviera Maya, Mexico!! We chose a resort, looks pretty wonderful too I might add, the flight schedule and the days... thought I had everything covered for an awesome surprise... then I remembered that we now have to have a US passport to travel outside the United States! So I thought how I could still pull off the surprise, without him knowing, and get both of our passports. Well after talking to several people with Homeland Security, I realized there was just no way to do it, because he was to be the one to sign for his passport in front of an official! Big Bummer!! Ok.. not to panic.. I still wanted to make this a very memorable surprise for him and tell him in a creative way.

I decided to do a scavenger hunt, relationship style! I came up with a pretty cute, but short (just because I thought it was a cute idea, didn't mean Jaime was going to be all into it!) scavenger hunt with clues that related to us. The first clue led him to the first place we met, the second to the first place he told me he loved me and the third and final was to the Church we got married in. Thank goodness for him... he got them all right!! On the Church door was a note addressed to him telling him how much he means to me and how excited I was going to be enjoying this years anniversary with him. At the end of the note, it told him where we would be going and a few of the details. Everything rhymed and was worded in a way that only he would understand... little things that we say or have said to each other. I was very proud of myself for coming up with such a cleaver idea! Oh ya... he was totally excited!! Oh course the first thing he asked me was, "How much did it cost and how are we going to pay for it?" So when I told him that I had been saving money here and there and it was already paid for, he was even more excited!

We will be going June 8-12... not too long, but just long enough! I am so excited and can't wait! What a wonderful way for us to re-connect with one another! So.. now we are waiting on our passports to arrive to us in the mail, of course I have started a major diet and tanning... and I'm doing a little shopping for our "beach attire" as well :)

Friday Night.. Family Night!!

4/17/09

Friday nights are usually dedicated to family time. A simple dinner, play time and a family friendly movie with the kids. Camping out in the living room floor is a favorite also! (I, on the other hand, sleep in the big king size bed all alone.... it's great!) Not that I don't want to be a part of the "family camp out", I just sleep better in a bed... you know, my bad back and all :)

Tonight we grilled hamburgers, had an Easter Egg hunt (Abby thought we should do one, since it rained on Easter last week), and settled down to watch "Bedtime Stories". Jaime and the kids will be sleeping in their usual spots and I in the bed... hummm I think I feel a little sleepy now that I mention it... Yawn

Good Night!!