Been a while...

I've had it pointed out to me that its been a while :o) Lots has happened in the last two months, most of it not wonderful, but all of it strengthening our faith!

Rick got laid off from his job on October 23rd... and while we knew it was coming, it hasn't been easy. It took his employer three WEEKS to finally send his severance package, which was taxed like it was a bonus... so almost 25% taken! Ugh. But it came, and we're thankful... it will help us pay one more month of rent. :o)

Since Rick has been home, its been pretty nice... personally, I LOVE being around my husband 24/7 (and no, I'm not being facetious!) He's been helping me with the girls' schooling and we've been getting little projects done around the house! Last weekend, we took the spray paint we used on the ceiling fan and we painted our kitchen chandelier... it just looks very cohesive now! And pretty! :o) He's also been helping with laundry and dishes... THAT is so awesome! There is no downside to him being home, but there is a downside to the layoff... NO ONE is hiring! We're waiting on unemployment to kick in, 4 - 6 week they say... hopefully 4, we need it to pay our space rent/mortgage! :o)

A good thing that has happened is we have joined a small group at our church, not quite a Bible study, just a group. :o) We've met some really wonderful couples, and they all have kids! That kid part is wonderful, so often we meet people and they just can't handle kids or kids aren't invited or whatever... now the girls come with us and all the kids hang out together! LOVE IT! :o) Its been wonderful having people pray for us, and being able to pray for them... we've had a lot to pray about! :o) We're working on an idea for serving our community as a group, with our kids, too... I can't wait!

We've also had quite a bit of snow over the last month... very fun! We got something like 18 inches a few days before Halloween! It was mostly gone BY Halloween, but some was hanging around... it was funny to see the jack-'o-lanterns amidst the snow piles :o)

Almost done (check out the snow! LOL)

Our house & our pumpkins!

For Halloween, Kiera was a pumpkin spice princess (basically a go-go dancer with an orange wig!), Emmie was Mickey Mouse (made for her by her Aunt Kathy) and Abigael was Little Red Riding Hood... all very cute costumes! We went trick-or-treating by ourselves this year, it was different, but still fun. A good time was had by all, and the kids got LOTS of candy! :o)

Emmie as Mickey Mouse

Kiera as a pumpkin spice princess :o)

Abi as Little Red Riding Hood

Just before Halloween, Abigael celebrated her THIRD birthday! I can't believe my baby is 3!! We had Rick's parents over for a dinner of lasagna and then her Auntie Manda, Uncle Richard and baby cousin, Gianna joined us for cake and presents. Her Aunt Kathy & family couldn't make it because the kiddos had H1N1 (but all are well now, praise God!). :o( I made Abi's cake this year, mostly :o) I took an angel food cake and then filled it with a cannoli filling and topped it with a whipped cream 'frosting'... YUM! :o) Abi got some cool presents, too! It was a very happy day! :o)

Our church band decided it was time to make a Christmas CD, so we got to go to an early Christmas concert... very fun! We go to Crossroads Church (north campus), its about 5 minutes away... and we love it! We found our church the weekend we got here and we have never left! We are blessed to have Billy Sprague as our worship leader, and he is just amazing. The whole worship team is amazing! I enjoy watching them play/sing... you can just tell how happy they are to be up there, it just makes my day to watch them! Every Sunday is like a mini rock concert with some amazing worship songs! Love it! We are so spoiled :o) They sing this song, Beauty & Awesome. Rick and I love it and I want to share it with you... enjoy! :o)

And my dad came to visit!!! That was SUPER COOL! We hadn't seen my dad for so long... it was so neat that he came for a weekend :o) We took him into Denver & Boulder, but mostly we hung out and enjoyed his company! The girls absolutely ADORED him! Abigael was happy to cuddle with him, as were the big girls... I was just happy to have my dada around! :o) I didn't realize just how much I missed him. And on a selfish note, he brought me a TON of pictures from him & his siblings growing up... THAT was super cool, too! My dada was one good-looking kiddo :o)

Me & my dada

My dada , Emmie & Kiera in Boulder

Abigael & Grandpa

Grandpa with Emmie & Kiera

So that is pretty much how we've been... we've had good and bad days, with mostly good winning :o) And for that I'm most thankful!

She's just goofy that way...

Abigael will be 3 on October 17th. Honestly, I'm surprised she's still alive... not because I'd have killed her, but because she seems set on doing it herself! :o)

We're talking about a girl who has tried to drink dry erase board cleaner and Pledge Multi-Purpose cleaner. A girl who has eaten A&D ointment, Desitin and gummy vitamins (but I caught her after only 2!). A girl who drinks anything within reach including soda, coffee and plain ol' water (thank God we're not drinkers!). A girl who climbs up and down her sisters' bunk bed ladder, and has fallen off said bunk bed. A girl who used to run into the street, but thankfully now runs AWAY from the street when she hears cars coming! She's just goofy that way...

So, she's also starting to talk... a lot. Seems to be a genetic thing. I'm a talker, my girls are SUPER talkers... watch out future boyfriends/husbands. LOL

Today Abi comes into my room telling me she had a 'bloo bloo'... she'd cut herself on a pencil. How does one do that? She's just goofy that way...

So I take her in the bathroom, set her on the counter and turn around to get the bandaid & ointment. This is her normal 'booger sucking' position (she's just gotten over a head cold... lots of boogers LOL)... she kind of wigs out and tells me, "No 'niff mama... I no 'niff!" I had to promise her that her nose was safe... she's just goofy that way... :o)

Thought I would share :o)

Morning randomness

It will only be morning for another 37 (or so) minutes, but still enough time for morning randomness before afternoon randomness, right? :o)

First.  I had a bad dream the other night.  Really creepy.  Will NOT even talk about it, so don't ask.  I will tell you two things about it though.  

1.) Paris was in it.  Right, Paris, from Gilmore Girls.  LOL  That information would totally be funny if she wasn't part of the creepy stuff. :o)  (rabbit trail: Was watching GG season 1 the other day and Rory said something was "Hearst Castle-y"... I lived 10 minutes from Hearst Castle!)

B.) I was watching a video for Depeche Mode's song 'Wrong' and it gave me the sick to my stomach feeling I got after waking up from this creepy dream.  Not EXACTLY like my dream, but it was close enough to part of it.  I'm glad I only watched it once, the vomity feeling hasn't diminished my liking of the song!  Phew!

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Yesterday, the girls and I were coming back from Wal-Mart (needed diapers.  Totally need to get Abigael potty trained!!).  In fact, we were home, and I was just putting the car in park in our driveway.

Abigael:  Mama?

Me:  Yes.

Abigael:  I have to go home, mama.

Me:  O-kay.?  Well, we are home sweetie.

Abigael:  Okay.

Seriously, Abi is a strange bird.  Maybe that conversation doesn't sound strange, but it is, believe me.  It is strange because, randomly, Abigael will come up to Rick or I and say "I want to go home."... when we are sitting IN our home.  Sometimes when she has a bad, meltdowny day, she'll start crying and saying she wants to go home.  Rick says maybe its because I'M weird.  :o)  Weird in a way that I can remember things from when I was 2 (a little while back, of course)... like maybe Abi remembers California and she wants to go back to her home in Morro Bay.  Who knows.  Either way, she's a strange bird. :o)

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26 minutes left to the morning!

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Heading out to Golden, Colorado tomorrow.  For those of you who don't know, Golden is home to the Coors Brewery!  And they really do use "Rocky Mountain water"... from Clear Creek, it runs right past/through the brewery!  Personally, I always wondered if they were making that up, but they aren't!  :o)  Golden is quite beautiful, and tomorrow I am finally going to get the chance to GET OUT OF THE CAR to take pictures!! (normally, I get to sit in the passenger seat and take pictures as we drive by places.  Sometimes I get good pictures, other times, not so much!)

Golden is a 'western' town.  Founded in 1859, during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush... interesting, right?  Golden is also home to the '2 hour vacation'.  And while THAT sounds like a quickie, it is really just all the fun stuff you can do in and around Golden.  Seeing how the city is only about 20 minutes from our home, but closer to the foothills, I'm hoping we'll be able to do quite a few of these '2 hour vacations'!  :o)

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Morning randomness has been over for 10 minutes... finding those Golden links turned into a whole lot of rabbit trails! :o)  Distracting, but informative! :o)

Afternoon randomness will ensue after lunch and some vegging out with the girls :o)

I just don't understand...

I've got three girls. (no Chris, that isn't what I don't understand) :o) They're all about 3 1/2 years apart; my oldest is 10, then my middle is 6 (7 in 4 months!) and my youngest is 2.

Somehow my middle and my youngest daughters ALWAYS seem to fight. Now, I'd totally chalk this up to middle child syndrome, since its my middle daughter that picks on the little one... but she was like this BEFORE we had our youngest! LOL

Today, Emmaline (middle) was playing with Abigael's (youngest) Elmo K'nex-type toy, Abigael's hat, Abigael's silo from her Little People barn and her own piggie. All was well, until Abi decided she wanted to play WITH Emmaline. She didn't try to take the toys, instead Abi brought her cow and tried to put it in the silo with Emmie's piggie. Which caused Emmie to have a coniption and push Abi away. Which then caused Abi to scream, loudly, ear piercingly. Emmie then got a time out, Abi chilled out.

THEN while Emmie was in her time out, Abigael picks up the piggie. Emmaline WIGGED OUT!! She actually started CRYING! Goodbye piggie, goodbye silo (another cause of contention).

What I just don't understand is that Emmie does NOT want Abigael anywhere near her toys, to the point where her Dora the Explorer kitchen is squeezed into her bedroom, along with all her other toys that she doesn't want Abi to touch. On the other hand, Abigael's toys are behind the couch in the living room and in the hallway. Emmaline won't share her own toys, and she won't let ABI play with ABI'S toys! She puts them up out of Abigael's reach, freaks out if Abi gets near them... I just don't get it!! She won't share hers, but expects Abi to not be bothered by having to share.

Oooh it just pisses me off. To the point that after THEY start screaming, I tend to start screaming. It sucks.

Anyone got any ideas? Today, Emmaline has been banned from touching Abigael's toys... and I think it sucks having to do that.

And what is even sillier? They absolutely LOVE each other, hugging and kissing... when they aren't trying to kill each other! LOL