My how time flies...

Wow- 5 months since I've been here, huh? Yikes. Well what has happened since July? Umm, I am still working 2 jobs, Scott is now working for SD Achieve doing maintenance. I have no idea what job he had in July, if any. This job is his 3rd in like 2 months, but this one he seems to like, so that's a plus. Said job did put him in the Emergency room once though. 6 stitches and 2 broken teeth, but all in all very lucky! The first semester of the school year is almost over. Haley made the transition to middle school with ease. Hannah is doing great as a 4th grader and Will, well Will seems older every day. I can't believe he is almost old enough for kindergarten! AAAHH!

Haley has been taking Karate since this summer. It is so nice to see her in something active and enjoying herself. The weird thing is that she gets really frustrated when they don't correct people for doing the moves wrong. I know! She has made it to an orange belt already and is testing for her green belt this week!

Christmas season is in full swing-I feel very behind and un-ready. But, alas, Christmas will come whether I feel ready or not. I am pretty excited that I took a few days off of both jobs and Travis and Robin will be here with the kids!!! I think I am finally at the stage of life that the holidays are more about enjoying myself with everyone around me and less about all of the hustle and bustle. Too bad my kids (and hubby) probably don't see it that way. I would have been perfectly happy to just take a few days off of work and not have the tree and presents, just some quality time with my family. Maybe working so much has made me appreciate the time we are together more. I know I still fuss about a clean house and getting things done, but I really do enjoy snuggling on the couch watching a movie or sitting around the kitchen table playing a game. (yes, people still play board games)

Well, I suppose it is time to start getting ready for tomorrow. Maybe I will actually start updating this silly ole blog again! Kind of nice to take a couple minutes to document life's little things!

Thursday already?

I can't believe the week is almost over already! Yesterday finally started to feel like a vacation. The kids and I hit up Target to look at school supplies, went out for lunch with Scott and then convinced him to take a few hours off and hit the pool with us. Even Will started jumping in to the deep water from the side of the pool. He is still not too sure about getting his whole face wet, but he was doing pretty good considering this time last year he didn't like water deeper than his knees!

Today is going to be a day of quick house cleaning, lawn mowing and getting ready to head to Rochester for the Meyer family reunion. I am looking forward to meeting a lot of Scott's family, not so looking forward to sleeping in a "cabin" that has no bathroom and is all bumk beds. We are sharing said "cabin" with Amy's family, so sleep may not be easily found with that many kids in one room! I would love it if we could all head up to the Mall of America on Saturday, but I think everyone is planning to do that tomorrow and we won't get there until sometime tomorrow afternoon. Oh well, not like we have money to shop with anyway- just like to wander the mall for the fun of it.

Well, better get started on my day. I am hoping to get the house cleaned in like an hour - don't really want to spend my vaca time with a vaccuum!

I'm on vacation, right?

The last 2 days have been so busy it doesn't really feel like vacation, but I guess I would rather have it that way than sitting around doing nothing- that really isn't me! So, what was accomplished on day 2 of staycation 2010?

Clothes were brought to Once Upon A Child (most of them also brought back home), went to the zoo for a bit, went to one store to look at school supplies and realized we had no idea what we neeeded, home for lunch, pool for an hour, Haley to the dentist for 2 cavities, drove across town to drop off papers at accountant (don't ask), Haley to karate (that one wasn't really me- her friends picked her up and dropped her off), supper, soccer, couch time finally at 8!

See- sitting still isnt' really my strong point anyway!

We don't have too much planned for today. I am planning a library trip and a swing by goodwill to get rid of some stuff. It's super humid already this morning so maybe the pool again this afternoon.

I tried to take a couple pics of me and the kids at the zoo. Not an easy task - I don't do a lot of the "taking my own picture" thing. The kids thought I was crazy- nothing new there, though!

Wendy's Staycation 2010

Hi! Well it seems it's been a while again, oops! Even missed blogging about another b-day. Haley turned 11 on July 3! Can you believe it? 11! For some reason though her turning 11 doesn't bother me. I think it's because most days she seems older than that anyway so 11 is no biggie.

So our family is definitely one of the "staycation" families due to money issues. I took this week off of both jobs mostly just to hang out with the kids and to give Scott and Colleen both a break from all the day to day running with them. Yesterday was certainly filled with "running". I went for a run, had a haircut in the morning, got my oil changed, helped all 3 kids clean out their closets so we could see what was really needed for school clothes (really not too much - yay!), took the girls to "super duper training" at the Wellness Center, took Haley and Will to the dentist (Haley gets to go back again today to have 2 cavities filled), Scott took Haley to karate while I made supper, went to Hannah's first summer soccer game (she rocked), came home and finally sat down at around 8:00!

Today should be a little less running- need to go thru all the clothes that was pulled out of closets yesterday so I can try to bring some to Once Upon A Child- might as well try to get a little cash this week too! Thinking about taking the munckins to the zoo this morning. Gonna try to get in maybe an hour at the pool before Haley has to go to the dentist, she also has karate again today and Hannah has another soccer game. Ok- so still quite a bit of running to do, but should have play time in there too!

Well, I suppose I should get started on the clothes so that when the girls get up we can start play time!

Hannah's 9!

My sweet little Hannah turned nine yesterday. One of her presents was a day with mommy. We went to a spa for facials- a first for each of us. I have one word to describe the experience "AMAZING". I haven't felt that relaxed in a long time. Of course they put us thru the whole skin analysis thing and turns out I could use a new face, but that was no surprise!

After the facials we went to Nucci's for lunch where we both proceeded to eat our gelatto first! Hey that's what birthdays are for!

We went shopping for the perfect birthday outfit and after quite a few stores we finally found it at Gap. Hannah also decided she wanted a birthday haircut. Facial, new outfit, new hairdo. I think she did pretty darn good!

We had a family and friends party for Hannah last night. It was 85 degrees and 90 mph winds. Ok, maybe not 90 mph but it could just as well have been. It wouldn't have made it any mroe difficult to do things outside. Burgers, hot dogs and a cookie cake!

Oh yeah, and presents. This is Haley's response to the Carrie Underwood tickets that the girls and I will be using for the December concert:

All in all, a good day for a wonderful girl!

well, well, well

Seems it's been a while since I have taken some "me" time to blog. Oh, who am I kidding? My only realy "me" time is at 5 am and I use that to get some excercising in. I have been running every morning- at least when it's not raining or blowing 40 mph. I am making it 4.5 miles at least 3 days a week, haven't made it 5 in a row yet- there is either an early morning meeting or I have worked 2 nights in a row and just can't push myself to go that far, or, I don't know, one of another million excuses I am sure I have already used as a way to slack off. I just wish that it was helping me to look better. I will admit, I do feel better on the days that I run, but it sure would be a bonus if it would help my pants fit too!

Well, it seems I missed blogging about Will's b-day. That's right, my baby is 4! I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to admit that I don't have a baby anymore. He is the cutest, funniest, craziest little guy you have ever met. Sure, I might be prejudiced, but if you spent a day with him (especially on one of his "on" days) you would certainly agree. I took the day after his b-day off of work to spend with him. We went to the zoo, played pirates at the park, met up with Scott for lunch and then just went home and played. Days like that sure make me yearn for being a stay-at-home mom. But, alas, that is not in the cards for me.

And now, believe it or not, Hannah is going to be 9 tomorrow! What? Seriously, where have the years gone? I look at pictures of the girls when they were 2 and 3 and it doesn't seem like it was that long ago. Everyone always tells you to cherish the time when they are little because they grow up so fast. In the back of your mind you are thinking "well, duh I'm going to cherish the time", but I don't think I ever really thought I would sit and wonder about the things that I may have missed or the times that I could have done something more memorable with the kids. Believe me, I really do have those times. Especially now with working more and spending the time I do have at home trying to keep up with the "grown-up responsibility" things. I am taking tomorrow off to spend the day with "peanut". I have made us facial appointments and then we are going out for lunch and shopping to find her "b-day outfit". I can't afford to do the kind of shopping that I would like, but I do try to get the kids one really cool outfit for their birthdays.

Hannah had her first friend b-day party yesterday. It seems weird to think that she is going to be 9 and never had a friend party before, but when she was at Cleveland Elementary, she just didn't really have many friends. We did a luau party theme and 5 girls came to celebrate. It was a nice sized group and I think they all had fun.

Yesterday was also the last game of the spring soccer season. Hannah has been fortunate enough to have the same coaches and players for the last few seasons. These girls are really starting to look like they know what they are doing! They had a perfect season- all wins! I hope that she is on the same team for fall.

Well, that is probably enough me time for now. I am supposed to be working on balancing the checkbook before I head to inventory at Victoria's Secret. Sounds like fun, doesn't it?

Have I given up?

Well, it seems I have given up on the photo a day thing. My computer was out of commission for a couple of weeks so I really lost my mojo there. I also have not been impressed with the pictures I was taking so count that as excuse #2.

I finally got a part time job. At Victoria's Secret of all places. The one interview that I left knowing I would never hear back from them, and that's the one that offers me a job! It's only about 10-15 hours a week and the pay sucks, but it's more than I had before. I am still waiting to hear back from CCHS. I really thought I would be working there by now. They seem to be a little unorganized and slow in the whole hiring process. Working 3 jobs isn't ideal for a wife/mother, but if it helps pay some bills, that's what I gotta do! It would be nice if Scott could find a job that paid a decent wage and I could help him keep the photography business going on the side, but he has had no luck in the job department. So for now, I work as much as I can and hope the bank is feeling generous (yeah, right).

I know it has been a month since I have posted, but I really haven't had anything positive to post and Scott gets mad when I post depressing stuff, so therefore, no posts! I know we aren't the only ones with money problems, but sometimes I feel like we are sinking so far down that there is no way out. See- not positive, huh? What positive do I have to say? We have great families that are trying to support us in any way we can. I know that if we end up losing all material things, we will still have two families that love us and support us. We will still have 3 great kids and Scott and I will still have each other. I guess I am rich in all the ways that the bank/ credit card companies just don't give a damn about!

Well, I am being summoned by the afore mentioned family. G'night all!

Sorry dear blog

Dear Blog,

I am so sorry that I haven't has much time for you lately. You see I have been spending many of my free minutes hunting for a part time job. The part time job is an elusive character. There are many gathering places throughout the internet world to look for one, but catching one is quite a bugger of a deal. I have had a couple of close calls, but as of yet no trophy catch. I have a feeling all of the other hunters out there are experiencing the same frustration as I. Maybe we can all find a herd of jobs out there and everyone will get to have their own! Oh what eutopia that would be! Well, I just wanted to take a minute to explain my absence. I hope you understand. I will make a better effort to keep you informed in the future.

Sincerely,

Me

What can happen in a week?

I see that last Wednesday was the last time I blogged. With my boring life, there couldn't be much to catch up on since then right? With some of the things that have happened in the last week, I sure wish that were true!

Ok so we left off last Wed. I can't think of anything interesting that happened on Thursday (surprise, I know). Friday was a horrible day. We finally decided to take Bandit to the vet to be put to sleep. Haley and Scott spent a good chunk of the morning crying together. When I got home from work Scott and I loaded Bandit into the truck. When we got to the vet Scott decided he couldn't go in, so I had to take Bandit in all by myself. I had planned to just drop him off and say a quick goodbye, but they brought us back to a room and I just couldn't leave him. I ended up staying until after they gave him the first injection to make him sleepy. I did leave while he was still awake. I gave him a hug and told him "don't worry, when you wake up your legs will work perfectly again." I sure do hope he has an endless supply of rawhide and new tennis balls where he is at now.

Saturday was spent with Haley at her Lego League competition. Her team didn't win any trophies, but overall they did pretty well. Haley was even interviewed and on the news that night!

Sunday we had a bridal show all day. They seem to be longer everytime we go. Hopefully this one will provide us with some much needed wedding business. It's so hard to quit going when so many photographers are going out of business and so many "newbies" are popping up and you know they won't be around for too long. At least it gets our name out to all of those brides.

Monday- back to work and finally back to school for the kids. After 2 "cold" days last week, I think they were actually excited to go back!

Tuesday- all 3 kids brought home excellent report cards today! I told both girls if they got all A's I would buy them each a book from the next book orders. Well, I owe each of them a book! Yay! Will's first report card wasn't too shabby either. How do you do a report card on a 3 year old anyway?

That brings us to today. Today I took Haley to see the dr. She has been having dizzy spells, feeling really weak and tired and has also had some shortness of breath. All of these things have been going on for awhile, but she never complained of them all at once. They all started happening a little more often and I started thinking about all of them together and it kind of freaked me out. Well, after an EKG, chest xray, lab work and some breathing tests, the dr is thinking asthma. We are still waiting on some of the results, but for now we are going to be trying in inhaler to see if it helps at all. We go back in a month to see if she can get on some oral medications to keep all of her symptoms at bay.

So see, sometimes my boring little life isn't as boring as I would like it to be. Maybe this next week will be less excititing.

Happy Wednesday!

Brrrr! Seriously, mother nature must be in a horrible mood! We already have 20+ inches of snow on the ground and she decides we need another 6 or so today. On top of that, she is kicking up the wind machine tonight and tomorrow's high is -5! Holy cramoly!

So far this week has been fairly quiet. I took Monday off to work at the studio getting some end of the year bookwork done. We changed the business over to a corporation as of Jan1, so there was a lot of stuff that had to be "ended". Yesterday was work all day and come home to have supper, play a little Wii golf with Scott and go to bed. Today I worked until 1 (love my half days) and then went to Ink & Iron to finally get my tattoo. Scott did some trade work for Chad- he did maternity pics in trade for my tattoo! It was 2 hours of pain but I think it looks great and it crosses one of those "I have wanted forever" things off of my list!

Bandit is still alive and kicking- well alive anyway. I think it is time, but I won't push Scott into it until he is ready. I certainly don't want him to resent me for that!

I have been keeping up on my 365 photo project so far- yes, I realize we are only 6 days into the year, but hey- it's something!

Well, sounds like Will is ready to get out of the tub, so better go help!

Welcome 2010

Well, it's a new year and it doesn't seem like I will be any better at blogging every day than I was last year. Oh well.

So what has happened so far in 2010? We celebrated Travis and Robin's marriage yesterday with a vow reaffirmation ceremony and a reception/dance. Haley and Will tuckered out around 10:00 last night. Hannah could have danced all night long. She could be quite the party girl if we aren't careful! Other than helping with the wedding stuff, I haven't accomplished much yet this year. Today will probably be a bust as well. Tomorrow I took the day off of work so I can get some finance stuff done. I have some major headache work to do at the studio and then I need to figure out where to find money to pay our bills- that should be a real fun time!

I think I need to start working even harder at finding a part time job. I am hoping that all the people that got jobs for the Christmas season are tired of working part time and I will be able to find something. At this point, I am not even going to be too picky.

I have decided to try to do the 365 photo project. I put a link on the side of my blog so you can click on it and see how well I am keeping up. So far I have the first 2 days taken care of. I am going to try to keep my camera in my purse so I can take random pics to add.

No resolutions again this year. I always want to lose weight. I always want to better our financial situation and I always want to be a better mom/wife/all around person. No need for resolutions, just hard work!

Well, better get to gettin busy!