What's New? ~ 11/2/12

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

Here's what's new with me this week:

...It was the best of weeks.  It was the worst of weeks.  Seriously.  If we were actually meeting up I would tell you everything so that it would help me process so I want to do that here also.  I'll get the "worst" out of the way first so I can focus on the "best".

...Monday night our little section of our little town had mandatory evacuation due to possible major flooding.  My street isn't called River Drive for nothing!  It was about 10pm and the girls and I were already settling in for the night.  Of course, Doug was working second shift and not here!  Then, the phone started going crazy and the ambulance was riding all over the neighborhood announcing that there was a mandatory evacuation.  I threw some clothes on myself and the girls and hit the road to my Mom and Dad's house up in the hills and called the hubby at work to tell him to meet us there.  Quite nerve wracking but, Thank God, the levee held the waters back and there was no flooding.

...I would also let you know that I've been very upset for the past few days.  One of my cousins suddenly and unexpectedly passed away on Wednesday.   He was only 26.  I remember holding his little fingers and helping him walk when he was just a baby.  I can't say that I was close to him after we got older, but it is still so very upsetting.  As a mom, my heart just breaks for my Aunt and Uncle.  So, I've been struggling a bit this week.

...Now, to lighten things up.  Did you notice my new header?  The lovely Sinead at Sinead in the Sun made it for me.  What do you think?

...I started 30 Days of Gratitude yesterday.  If you'd like to join in, it would be quite easy to catch up at this point.

...We added some new products to the shop AGAIN this week!  We are on a roll :)  My Shop widgit is on the sidebar.  We have all sizes between Newborn and 12 years and can even make an adult size if requested :)

Rudolph!

Clarisse!

Pooh! 

..And because I promised last week to share with you some pictures from the costume parade, Kaylee's Jr-Sr High Dance and Trick-or-Treating, here you go:

My Laken is the little Pink Kitty.

Kaylee before the dance.  She had me straighten her hair.  I don't know if the hubby is going to survive the teenage years.  He wants her to go back to being princesses.

My two kitties before T-or-T.  We had a nice afternoon walking around our little town and seeing all our neighbors.  Not to mention the candy...

...Oh, I also started my membership at the gym back up on Wednesday.  So, I must bid you good-day and go try to work my butt off.  Quite literally :(

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?

What's New With You ~ 10/26/12

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

Here's what's new with me this week:

...There is a lot going on between today and tomorrow!  This afternoon my Kindergarten Girl will be having her Harvest Party at school which includes a Costume Parade around the school grounds.  She picked a cute, cute kitty costume.  I can't wait to go see all the kiddos dressed up.  I'll post pictures next week.

...This evening 7th Grade Girl will be going to her first "big kid" dance.  Sigh....  How did I she get so old?  The dance is being hosted by the Cheerleaders and is a Costume Dance.  Surprisingly, Kayle also picked out a cat costume.  I was shocked that she wanted to be anything even remotely near the same as her little sister!  She wants me to fix her hair before the dance.  I might cry :(  My girl is growing up...  Again, pictures next week :)

...Tomorrow afternoon is our town's Trick-or-Treat from 2-4 pm.  Instead of candy, this year I bought a bunch of Hugs to sit out.  That's right, I said "sit" out.  We take our kids out and about, so I usually just put a bowl of candy on a chair at the end of the driveway and trust that 1 kid won't take it ALL.  lol

...Do you remember me telling you that my cousing and his wife are having twins?  Well, here is how Michele announced it to the Facebook world:

Isn't that just too sweet!?!  BTW, the first picture shows the big-brother-to-be, Carl.  lol

...Uggh...  I have to tell you about this.  I had my post-op clearance appt with the Gyno on Monday.  I went, sat in the waiting room for at least 30 minutes, was called back, got undressed and was in "the position"  (you ladies know what I mean).  Then the nurse came in and said that the Dr. was called to the hospital and I would have to reschedule.  Next week!  I was beyond aggravated!  I am so ready to put this all behind me.

...We took Laken to her appt. with the Pediatric Dentist on Wednesday.  She has some cavities in her baby teeth that need taken care of.  She's going to have it done at the hospital because they put her under anesthesia.  I admit that it makes me nervous.  The Pediatric Dentist is so busy that the first available date to have her teeth fixed is March 14th!  So that is when we are scheduled for unless there is a cancellation.

...We added two new items to the etsy shop this week.  My shop link is on the sidebar:

Turkey Bird

Cabbage Patch Doll 

...And last...well we can't NOT talk about the weather!  Who is ready for FRANKENSTORM????  Better stock up on the bread and milk, all us East-Coasters!

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?

What's New With You ~ 10/19/12

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

Here's what's new with me this week:


...First I would tell you that I feel blah today.  Just blah.  If I still had a uterus I think it would be that time of the month.  I kept my ovaries so I still have the hormones to deal with.  Sorry, TMI!!


...The girls are home from school today for a Teacher In-Service day.  They took full advantage of staying up late last night and sleeping in this morning.  I also slept in which might have something to do with me feeling blah.  Now I'm hitting the Dr. Pepper to try to get some motivation.


...Speaking of my surgery, it has officially been 6 weeks!  Yay!  I'm feeling great and have started upping my walking distance.  I started with 1 mile for a few days, then 1.5 miles and now I'm at 2 miles.  If I could just get my eating under control.  Stupid sweet tooth!


...Last Saturday my cousin, Steph, played in a 3-on-3 basketball competition.  It was organized by a local girl for her senior project.  All the proceeds went to Make-A-Wish Foundation.  It was a lot of fun to watch Steph play.  It had been a while since she had played any sort of competitive sport and she said it was a wake-up call.  I told her I get those wake-up calls too, but I just hit the snooze!


...I can't believe I'm typing this but I read my first Christmas book of the year already!  It is called "A Merry Little Christmas" by Anita Higman.  My review is due October 30 or I probably wouldn't have read it so soon.  It happened to be the book I was reading for Dream Cast Thursday.  Here's who I picked to star in the movie:

Ginnifer Goodwin

Greg Kinnear

...Oh!  I reached 800 followers just yesterday!  So exciting!

...I'm having a giveaway for a 365 day devotion by Joanna Weaver called "At the Feet of Jesus".  We studied "Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World" at a women's seminar a few years ago.  Click on the book to go enter:

 

 ...I've been thinking about my Christmas list lately.  Mostly due to reading a Christmas book already!  Anyway, a Goodreads friend gave me a link to a very interesting idea called "The Jesus Gifts".  The idea is to give 4 gifts that represent the gifts that Jesus received.  I think we're going to do this for the girls this year.  There is a little poem to go along with the gifts to make sure your kids realize the significance:

Gold, we give a gift of enduring worth

Frankincense, a prayer reaching God above

Myrrh, all the wonders of life on earth

Swaddling Clothes, surrounded in your parent's love

...And last, I've been having fun this week with another of my book giveaways.  The main character in the book is in the Witness Protection program and had to change her name from Deidre to Annalise.  As part of the entry, I'm asking for the participants to tell me what they would change their name to.  So fun!  They've said everything from Bunny Snow and Princess Carabo to Haylee and Alexis.  So, I've been trying to think of what my alias would be.  It is just too hard!  So, tell me.  What would your Witness Protection name be?

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?

What's New With You ~ 10/12/12

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

Here's what is new with me this week:

...What a morning!  It started off fairly normal with the kids whining about getting up for school.  My youngest was complaining about a belly ache but that is her go-to complaint for trying to talk me into letting her stay home.  I gave her a drink and the "you're OK" speech and we set off for school.  I helped her out of the van and was putting her backpack on her when..........SPEWWWWW!  In the school parking lot...  Needless to say, she came right back home with me.  She grabbed her blankie and is now curled up on my bed fast asleep.  She didn't even take her shoes off.  Poor kid.

...Last week, Alissa gave a homework assignment to come up with a list of 5 words that I would like to be used to describe me/my blog/brand.  I came up with my list fairly quickly and I look forward to learning more about branding.

1.  Christian
2.  Wife/Mother
3.  Homemaker
4.  Reader
5.  Handmade Shop Owner

...Last weekend was Homecoming.  It was really cold but we had a great time.  Saturday evening was "Hyndman's Got Talent".  Kaylee sang in an all girls group of 6-8 graders accompanied by their music teacher on the piano.  They sounded like angels and I cried!  It was beautiful.  This is the song they sang performed by the Londonderry Chorus in 2008:



...Our dishwaser went kaput.  Dead.  Gone.  We are now officially a "dishes-by-hand" house.  Surprisingly, I'm not minding it too much.  That is actually shocking for me!  lol  It reminds me of drying the dishes while my Mom washed as I was growing up.  I've been getting Kaylee to dry and she complains exactly the same way I did when I was her age.  It is scary!  lol

...I joined in a new bookish meme yesterday called "Dream Cast Thursday".  It was so much fun!  Basically, you take whatever book you're currently reading and decide who you would cast for the movie version of the book.  My husband actually helped me decide who to cast.  You can see my post HERE.  If you are a reader, you should join in.  These are the actors I picked for this week.

 ...We got some of the most exciting news on Sunday!  I've saved it for last.  My cousin, Eric, and his wife, Michele, are expecting!  They were up from VA visiting and came to Church on Sunday.  After services, he came over to me and handed me a ultrasound picture.  I think I squealed right there in the Church!  I was getting ready to cry when they told me to wait.  He then handed me another picture and said "This is the other one."  What!!!!!  And then another picture, "This is both of them together."  TWINS!!!!!!!!!  I could NOT believe it!  Even now, just thinking about it makes me want to bounce up and down in my chair!  lol  Eric is only a few years younger than me and we grew up more like brother and sister.  In fact his actual sister is Steph whose little boy, Dex, I have claimed as nephew.  I plan on claiming aunthood with these new little ones also.  And there is a possibility they could be born on my birthday, March 24th!  The doctor is only going to let her go until March 27th so you never now.  Eric and Michele on their wedding day 6/26/2010:

...Today is grocery shopping day, so I have to get out of my comfy clothes for a bit.  My Mom and Dad are going along and they'll be here soon.  Gotta go!

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?

What's New With You? ~ 10/5/12

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

Here's what is new with me this week:

...I had a really weird dream early this morning.  A hot air balloon crashed in my yard.  I frantically searched for the person thinking I would find them mangled but she was fine.  I ended up repairing the balloon for her, making her some toast to eat and off she went.  Weird!

...We have a crazy busy Saturday coming up.  Tomorrow is Homecoming which means my oldest daughter, Kaylee, will be with the band in the parade and line-up is at 9:30am.  Then we have a little bit of time to wander around the booths and visit with old friends before she'll be playing at half-time.  And it is supposed to rain!  Then in the evening, the chorus will be singing in our town's "Hyndman's Got Talent" fund-raiser.  She's really excited!  This is a picture of the band lining up for the Memorial Day Parade.

...The above-mentioned daughter got her top braces put on Monday after school.  We had few days of whining about how they hurt but, thank God, they are feeling better!  I don't think I could go through 15-18 months of that.  Poor kid :(

...I can finally drive!!!!  I hit the 4 week post-surgery mark and the driving restriction has been lifted!  Not driving was one of the most annoying parts of having the surgery.  I'm feeling really good and haven't even been taking ibuprofen lately.  Some evenings, by bedtime, I'm a bit achy and get tired early but I can handle that.  I just snuggle in to my comfy bed with a book.  I go back to the Gyno on the 22nd to hopefully have all restrictions lifted.

...I am feeling good now but over the weekend the whole family felt like crud.  I kept both girls home from school last Friday to recuperate.  Sat/Sun I felt rough and then Doug took it over for Sun/Mon.  I "think" we're all feeling better now with just some residual mucus.  Hate that stuff!

...Being down last weekend and taking it easy means the house has been trashed for most of the week.  I try to tackle an area each day but don't seem to be making any progress.  I look forward to having a whole-family house cleaning and really getting it where it needs to be.  After that I think I can keep up with it now.  I'm still not allowed to sweep or mop though and it REALLY needs it!

...I actually baked this week.  I can't believe how long it has been!  I was baking at least 2-3 times a week.  My plan is to start posting recipes on the blog again.  I want to start using my cookbooks that are just collecting dust on the shelf.  I think I'm going to call it "Cook Booking" and will post on Tuesdays.  Here's a sneak peak at the "Oatmeal Cake" I'll be posting the recipe for next week.

...Oh!  Since I can drive now, my first Thursday Errand Day was spent getting my hair done!  It was way overdue and I had some horrendous roots happening.  I got colored and then decided to have some layers added to my hair but none taken off the length.  My goal is to keep growing it out until at least Spring and then deciding what I want to do with it.

...If you get a second, will you please fill out the survey I created to get a better idea of what my readers like/dislike about my blog?  You can click on the checkmark below to go to the survey.  I'd really appreciate it!

...I'll leave you this week with a picture of my little man, Dex.  I got to spend some time with him on Wednesday evening and I even got a few sloppy wet baby kisses.  This is what his mama wore on him to Church Sunday.  Isn't he just too cute!?!

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?

What's New With You? ~ 9/28/12

 

Won't you come meet Alissa (above), me and the girls for a coffee date,

or in my case, hot chocolate with whipped cream or maybe a chai tea?

 

This is what I'd tell you about my week, dear friends:

 

...It has been 3.5 weeks since my hysterectomy and I'm feeling the best I have yet!  I actually walked to the Post Office and store the other day, which totally wiped me out for the rest of the day, but it did feel good to get out by myself.  I've slowly been adding in my normal daily activities.  I never thought I'd be excited to fold clothes, do dishes and cook supper!  lol  Only a few more days, and I'm on the road again.  First order of business will be a mani/pedi :)

 

...I got the bill from the hospital for the above-mentioned surgery.  Apparently the total was a bit over $13,000!  We were "only" billed $1,100.  Thank God for Health Insurance and HSA's!

 

...We went Monday to the Orthodontist for the consultation about getting Kaylee braces.  He went over what they would be doing and gave us the price:  $3,300!  Our insurance will pay half and the rest is on payment plan.  She better be taking care of those toothers. I tell ya!  We go Monday to have them put on.  Pray for us.  Honestly.  She is a bit of a drama queen.  I can only imagine the whining that is going to take place.

 

...I have been super excited about the new shows starting.  I even devoted my "Its OK" post to them yesterday.  "Elementary" should be on my DVR as we "speak".  So excited!  I'm a TV geek so I will share the Fall TV schedule I found online so that you don't miss any of the awesome new shows that have previewed:  Fall 2012

 

...Have you ever heard of "Fried Apple Pie"?  I hadn't but I saw them mentioned on a blog this week and had to look them up.  They are like a turnover.  I found a recipe, by Paula Dean no less.  Fried Apple Pies!

 

...Speaking of apples, my mom and I usually go to one of the local orchards every fall and get a bushel of apples to make into applesauce, apple butter, and of course pies and dumplings.  Lately we've been getting Fugi's. Gotta get on that soon.  What is your favorite kind of apple?

 

...I'm so excited about all the books I've received for review lately.  I have lots of reading to do, so be on the lookout for some reviews and giveaways ;)

 

...I'm all caught up on my etsy orders for the moment.  So feel free to click on over to my shop and give me something to keep my hands occupied!  We added some great new items this week.  Santa Baby outfits, Angels and Scarecrows!  I still have a Cabbage Patch set to list, hopefully sometime today.

 

...We took the girls to Eat-n-Park Sunday.  Don't you just love their Smiley Cookies?  I think the adults should get one with their meal too.  Don't you?  Isn't that age discrimination?

 

...My BFF (since Kindergarten) called the other evening to check on me.  We debated the merits of Smiley Cookies and apples.

 

...Right now, Jasmine (our york-a-pom) is acting like a little mommy and giving Lilah (our black lab) a bath and kissing all over her face.  They are so silly and crack-me up sometimes, at least when they aren't driving me crazy!  Like, who chewed up the half-full bottle of water all over the couch last night?  Hmm?  Look!  I called it half-full instead of half-emtply.  Does that mean I'm an optimist?!?

 

...The hubby just got home from working night-shift.  I think I might crawl back in bed and snuggle with him for a bit to get warmed up.  It is starting to get really chilly here in the mornings and evenings.  That is Fall in PA for you!

 

...Tonight is Family Movie Night in our house.  Any recommendations?  I need one to watch with the kids and one for after they go to bed.

 

So, how was your week?  What's new with you?