Saturday, April 30, 2011

Our First Garden!

To all my loyal blog followers, I am so sorry for my absence for the last few weeks. I have been in high gear with so much energy focused on the outside of my house that I haven't really had time or patience to really sit in front of the computer and update you guys. Today however, its gloomy, *COLD* and rainy, so what better day to update everyone then today!

The last few weeks have really been devoted to the house and the backyard and what front yard we do have. I have basically been on strike so to speak when it comes to cleaning my house so to speak. I figured, if everyone gets sick and tired (as I do) of the mess, someone else can have the pleasure of cleaning it. For now though, I have used every good day (and some rainy days too) to enjoying the outside to the fullest. With some help of course from my wonderful hubby Jason.

While the kids were gone a few weeks ago, Jason took a Friday off (before Easter) to get the backyard back in shape so not only our kiddos could use it, but the Girl Scout girls and the neighbor girls as well. It was covered with all the trees and branches that we had cut last fall and they needed to go.

This year was the year to get our garden started. I have been talking about it since we bought our house, but this year I decided more action and less discussion about it. I don't know how well it will do, but I am excited to see if we will get anything. The seeds have started sprouting on just about everything except for the melon, so there is a good chance. The kids are super excited as well. They eat me out of house and home when I purchase veggies to cook with, so I figured, if they are going to be eating it, you can't beat any fresher then your backyard! This is what I planted so far:

*Baby Carrots
*Green Peppers
*Cucumbers
*Summer Squash
*Zucchini
*Melon
*Water melon (sometime this week)
*Pumpkins (sometime this week)
*Tomatoes
*Lettuce
*Spinach (sometime this week)

Herb Garden:
*Basil
*Rosemary
*Cilantro
*Mint

The garden is on the side of the house. This is the *ONLY* part of the backyard that gets sun all day long. The pumpkins will be planted in the front yard near the entrance to the door. This will give them plenty of room to spread and grow to a good size. Owen requested the pumpkins so he could have them for his Birthday. Our garden was planted in April and the pictures were taken on Mother's Day 2011
 


I am hoping to keep everyone posted as our garden grows and show you pictures as the summer progresses. Stay tuned!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

9am

Morning already. Blah. Didn't sleep well *AT ALL* last night. I am thinking it was all the iced coffee I drank. Oh well. To late to go back in time now. At least I got a ton of outdoor stuff accomplished, so I can't complain.

I hurt pretty bad this morning. Despite my attempts to not wake up sore. I don't think I have a part of my body that doesn't ache in some way, shape or form. I ended up waking out of a dead sleep at 2:30 in the morning. Oliver was up talking to himself. I knew that it was only a matter of time before he started crying, so I quickly made him a bottle. He settled right back down without issue. Poor boy is coming off of a *MAJOR* growth spurt. He spend most of the day Wednesday, all day Thursday and all day Friday sleeping. He would wake up, cry for a bottle and then fall right back to sleep. I am thinking we are on the tail end of it now, so hopefully we can enjoy more awake Ollie. I am glad it happened when it did, otherwise he would have slept through his first Easter.

Anyways, back on to the no sleep. I was up from 2:30am until about 5:30 this morning. Ugh. I played a few games on my Ipod. Watched a movie, checked to see if my sister was on. Listened to Boo purr so loudly I thought my ears were going to fall off. And lets not forget the hubby SNORING. Ugh. Enough to drive anyone insane. Even listened to the rain and watched the sun come up. I finally decided earplugs were the answer. In the end, I am up, and I am tired. Hubby is still snoozing away of course.

I just finished putting in a load of laundry. Hoping to get the downstairs cleaned by 11am. And the upstairs done by noon. Need to run a few errands, get supper started and work on a few things before the gang comes. Thankfully its not that bad. Sadly, the motivation for the inside of the house has left me. Anyways, I am off. Breakfast is calling my name.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Earth Day and Good Friday

Today was not only Good Friday, but Earth Day. And heck, what better way to celebrate both in today's beautiful weather then cleaning my backyard, front yard, and planting in the garden. Hubby and I worked *HARD* today. Cleaning the entire yard, getting rid of branches and leaves. Planting in the garden, even cleaning out my waterfall. It looks so pretty! I really hope the weather on Sunday brings us clear skies and warm winds. I think the Easter bunny would love hiding eggs for the kids.

Anyways, its after 9pm. I am finally getting ready for supper. Kiddos will be coming home tomorrow with my parents or we will be picking them up. Either way it will be another busy day tomorrow. If we aren't in the car all day, then we will be cleaning and shopping for Sunday all day. Both to be enjoyable, but tiring.

Night all.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Best of Friends

I never anticipated that Jason and I would be blessed so soon after having Ezme. I thought for sure that we were going to be on hold for quiet some time. Of course my heart ached that we were "done" for the time being. But seeing these two together, makes my heart just melt. There was a reason for this little man to come into our life so suddenly. We might not know what it is just yet, but I am forever thankful and in awe that he did. Look at these two together. Now that Oliver is catching up to Ezme in super speed, people are starting to ask if they are twins. He still has a way to go, but not by much.

Not quiet sure what this face is on Oliver
 


The "Twins" Ezme 19 months, Oliver 7 months
 


Baby Brother admiring his Big Sister
 


Watching Boo together
 

Got Nothing

I have nothing really for a title to my post. I have had all these ideas in my head to write about, but haven't felt ready I guess you could say. I have been working on a piece about Trisomy 18 and all that it means to me for the last few months, but I keep going back too it. A work in progress you could say.

Cannot believe its Thursday already. Both of the babies work up on the "WRONG SIDE OF THE BED" this morning. They are extremely overtired and beyond cranky. Going to be putting them down for a nice long nap in a few short minutes. Hopefully while they are sleeping I can get the last of the kitchen cleaned up (just the floors, appliances and fridge need to be done) and maybe work on the bathroom linen closet. My car is in the shop until later on this afternoon, so if time allows, I might start (and hopefully finish) the curtain order that came to me on Monday. I would like to get them done before Easter and for surely before the kids come home. So today is as good day.

Well, must run, despite a morning nap for Oliver, he is *NOT* a happy camper today.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Free Hair Cut

Yes Please. It wasn't for me, but for Ezme. She needed one BADLY. Her hair just seemed to have gone from short and cute, to long and puffy. Literally. It wasn't growing long per say as just all over the place. I couldn't see her eyes or her ears any longer and she just needed a trim to control everything. So we sat together, in front of Sesame Street and worked on getting it trimmed. Its not perfect, its just too curly and really has no rhyme or reason to it. But at least I can finally see her pretty eyes again. What do you think?

Ezme Before
 


Ezme After
 

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Had Nearly Forgotten.....

Oliver not only has been crawling for the last month, standing up and moving around, but he cut his first two teeth!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I found out completely by accident last week when someone had asked me if he had cut his first tooth yet. I had said to them probably not as none of my kids have never had a tooth pop through much before 10 months old. Low and behold, Oliver has beaten all of his older siblings at 7 months old.

Why do they have to grow up so quickly? Especially this one. He seems to be in such a hurry.

Humpy Dumpy

Today I am going to feel much like "All the kings horses and all the kings men" putting Humpy together again. Only Humpy Dumpy is my house and not so much a cracked egg. I am going to be going, going, going until I crash sometime this evening. Goal today, get the entire house done. Or at least all but the kitchen and bathroom. I will leave those for hubby. Aren't I sweet? :-) Wouldn't want to be the only one having fun.

Here is my list for today. Watch with me as I scratch them off one by one!

**UPSTAIRS**
*Clean Master Bedroom/Organize Sewing Room (Area)
*Clean kids rooms, organize toys, wash bedding
*Finish Laundry, Fold, Put Away

**DOWNSTAIRS**
*Clean Kitchen, wash cabinets, finish dishes (Jason), wash floor
Clean out Fridge (Jason and I)
*Clean Living Room
*Clean Dining Room
*Clean Bathroom, scrub toilet, shower, sink, tub(Jason)
organize linen closet, wash Floor
*Wash Windows
*Wash Floors
*Vacuum through house

**SEWING**
*Curtain Order

**MISC.**
*Make an Appointment for Chloe at groomers
*Make an Appointment for Car (Oil Change, and Yearly look over)

Sunday, April 17, 2011

So Quiet

We left this morning at 8am to take the kiddos up to Portland to meet my parents. They are spending yet another fun filled week in the great ol' town I grew up in. Odd, I hated every minute of living in that small confining town, and they think its the best place on earth. Go figure.

This week is jam packed for me. Not at all the "Vacation" one might usually take with half the family gone. Nope, this week is a week of getting things done. I am planning and hoping to get a bunch of things done around the house. Cleaning, organizing is of course on the agenda. But outside work as well. Goal 1 was to get the garden worked on. I planted a bunch of things. I don't know if any will actually grow, but its fun to see non the less. Tomorrow is all inside work. Start at the top and work my way down. And then hopefully the rest of the week can be spend working on getting the yard up and running.

I will post a HUGE list of all that I am hoping to accomplish while I am 3 down this week. So stay tuned. Until then, Miss you monkey's terribly. But I know your having fun. Every time I call, your too busy to talk to me. *HUGS*!!

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Today's Agenda:

*Clean Car
*Laundry
*Dishes
*Pack for Kids
*Clean upstairs, organize toys, wash *ALL* Bedding
*Hair Cuts for Olivia, Owen and Ezme
*Birthday Party from 2-4
*Wash Car seats
*Trip to Target for wrapping paper, new car seat for Oliver, formula
*Rake 6 bags of leaves leaves
*Clean downstairs, organize dining room and living room
*Clean bathroom
*Wash Windows
*Wash Floors downstairs
*Vacuum through house
*Clean Master Bedroom, organize sewing room

I am sure I will be adding to this long list throughout the day. My goal is to get as much done as possible since we will be gone all day tomorrow and Jason is back to work on Monday. It's 9am already and I am on a roll!

Friday, April 15, 2011

Score

Today I managed to get a full day's worth of yard work in. Which means, that hubby and I can easily finish the backyard and porch ourselves in one day! HURRAY. I have to say, it looks fantastic. I just pray for some good warm weather next week so we can finish it up before Easter weekend.

Of course there is plenty more that I want to do. But the bulk of it is finished. On a roll. Heading to bed early in the hopes I can wake up early and start all the inside things that need to be done. Laundry, packing, cleaning. I also want to try to swing haircuts for all the kiddos as well. Owen and Ezme are looking rather bushy these days and could use a good trim. Olivia's hair is getting long, and a nice haircut and thinning out would do her some good as well. Hopefully I can accomplish that all before a birthday party we have at 2 tomorrow!!

Night all.

Let the Weekend Begin

Friday, already? Can't seem possible. The days are just flying by so fast. Makes me sad how quickly the year is going already. Makes me sad to see the summer fly by before it even starts. I am hoping we will get plenty of Daddy time this year. Trips to the Zoo, the park, the Ocean, biking, all on our agenda this summer for sure.

Sadly, the weather is a bit colder then I was hoping for today. I am going to attempt to go outside and do some yard work, but lately the cold has really done a number on my hands and feet. I am feeling really bad today as I spend most of my day yesterday cleaning the front yard and digging in the dirt. I wont push myself for sure, but who knows, I might just get it all done!

I took the morning to call some local garden places to find the price of delivery for Mulch. I want to lay this in the backyard around the kids playground area. Sadly, only one delivers and they are the highest price. At least delivery is free, so I guess it rounds itself out. I am hoping to get this all done before Easter next Sunday so Mr. Easter bunny can come and hide some Eggs for the kids. We will see.

Agenda for today is to get whatever I can done. I need to get the kiddos packed and ready to leave on Sunday morning. They are going to stay with my parents for the week!! Wish they didn't want to go this time, but they have fun, and I can concentrate on getting things done here on my end.

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Today I.....

Enjoyed this beautiful weather to the fullest extent. I *FINALLY* cleaned up the front part of the yard. Cleaned the side of the house, planted a few new plants, put some mulch down, cleaned out my flower beds to get ready for the new coming plants in the next couple of weeks. Swept like a crazy person every piece of dirt I could find. Threw stuff away and organized anything I could get my hands on. PHEW!! It feels so good. And best part, my front yard doesn't look like a crazy person lives here. Such a good feeling. The next big job I would like to do is get the front yard painted. Paint the trim work of the house including the brick foundation, all the wood around the windows, flower boxes, front door and shutters. Sick of the green. This house needs a new fresh look. I also want to figure out how to make the stairs to our home more inviting, put up a wooden fence on the side of the front portion of the house to cover the metal wire fence and lets not forget the planting. Might even add a few new window boxes this year. NICE!!

The *BIG* job is the backyard. That will be a huge weekend project that we are hoping to do in the next few weeks or so before the heat wave hits. After we cut down the trees back in October, we never really put them out for the trash to collect so they have just been sitting there in the backyard in piles. That will be our biggest job on top of raking, cleaning the porch, laying new grass seed, getting our waterfall/pond ready for the summer. And of course getting the whole backyard ready for new plants. The biggest job will be the playground area. I am going to be putting down mulch this year to cover the entire area. This is for two reasons, to add a little cushion for the kids while they are playing and too add some color to what usually is a dreary part of the backyard. With all the shade from our neighbors tree, there isn't much color in the back portion of our yard. We also will need to work on getting the fence up so our neighbors behind us can stop letting their dog come into our yard. It's driving me NUTS!!

It's after 8pm. I am totally wiped out. Between girl scouts, cleaning house and working on the yard, I am officially ready to hit the hay. Hoping for a good day tomorrow, might be able to get a few things done on the backyard.

Melt my Heart

As I was putting Ezme and Oliver down for there afternoon nap, Ezme snuggled up to my face and said "love you mommy" completely out of the blue. Ahhhh, melt my heart. Just what I needed to energize my soul for sure. Love that little girl!!!

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Can Good Karma Run Out?

Can good Karma run out? Honestly, because folks I am beginning to think it does.

I am seriously thinking that any good Karma I had stored up, saved, what have you, has officially run out. Call it bad luck if you want, either way, its true. The last month or so has been the ultimate worse.

I truly feel something is attacking myself, my family, my husband and I am rather tired of it. Tired of feeling hurt, sad, emotional. Tired of things just not seeming to come together despite mine *our* efforts in trying to change things. Tired of going through daily life wondering who is mad at me on any particular day. Bad news seems to be running rapid these days as well. I almost went an entire day on Tuesday without having anything go "wrong". Of course, that didn't happen. I value myself a good person. I try hard to be nice and honest with those around me. I give my all in anything I do. Just maybe though, I am just not doing a good job. Who knows.

I am just wondering when things will get better. If they will get better. It seems the past year has been extremely stressful and since the start of the New Year things have just seemed to have gotten worse and not better. The feeling of "stuck" comes to mind. Where do we go from here. I am a doer and go getter and I am finding it hard to be stuck in "limbo" all the time. I wake up with a positive attitude every morning knowing its a "new day" but something seems to squash that reality and end that good feeling rather quickly.

So tell me, does Good Karma/Luck run out? And if so, how in the world can I get it back. I know I shouldn't complain, so many other people have it rough right now, so maybe, maybe my luck and compassion went to those who need it more? I am thinking out loud, feel free to chime in.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Monday

My husband, god love him, let me take a much needed time off from cleaning my house. I just had to get away so to say from the massive chaos of laundry, dishes, cleaning toys in the worse way.

I spend most of my weekend enjoying some much needed GIRL TIME at a local Spa here in Johnston. It was to raise funding for the two Girl Scout troops I currently have. I was so very sad and disappointed that NO ONE, and I mean, NO ONE came. I am so upset. It hurts me that I put together a function that instead of making money for the Girls, we ended up loosing money. So I am donating all my proceeded from "ANABELLE'S ATTIC" until the funds that we had to pay out are recovered. This should just never had happened.

On a little less sad front, I managed to spend a better part of my morning on Sunday just sewing. I put together a diaper bag/everyday bag for myself and it came out BEAUTIFULLY!! I am so proud of myself. I even completed it with a zipper. I will definitely be posting pictures of it sometime later this week. I was hoping to do it today, but Jason took the camera with the card on it. Poo. I even had some left over material to make a matching wipes bag and maybe if time allows, I will make a changing pad to go with it. I made all the pockets on the inside. I just get worried that with pockets on the outside, your more apt to loose something or have someone take something out. So I feel better having it all inside.

Anyways, today I need to clean. Jason tried really hard to get the house put together for me, but just couldn't. So I will go full Kiley Mode on my house later on. My goal is just the downstairs for now. The upstairs can be done later on this weekend or next week while the kiddos spend another vacation with my parents. I wasn't going to let them go this time, but with Owen potty training himself in one day just to go, I can't break his little heart now can I.

Off to the rat races. Lets see what I can attempt by 11 0' clock when I pick up Emma. Then I have to head to Cumberland to pick up Owen. He went with Daddy to work for the morning!

Friday, April 8, 2011

Ezme 19 Months

This cutie is growing up too fast!!
We are having fun right now learning to potty train and listening to the Hooked On Phonics CD (over and over and over again) in the car. She has already mastered the alphabet and is having a great time sounding out the letters. We started it a few weeks ago to help Emma, but Owen and Ezme have taken a liking to it. Way to go kiddos!!

Monday, April 4, 2011

Weekend Blues

I really didn't get much accomplished that I had hoped. I always think big, and then end up beating myself up when I don't get all my "to do's" done. I will say I managed to finish up an order on Friday night that gave me all day Saturday to clean, sew, clean, sew, oh, and clean some more. Which isn't bad at all. I just was hoping to get *MORE* done so to speak.

Sunday Emma-James had a birthday party, so we enjoyed a little bowling and girl talk with the other moms and dads. That was fun. Jason stayed home with the other kiddos and it was just a Emma-James and I. She loves those days, and I do too.

Now that its Monday, its the start....well in my case, end to a busy but easy going work week. Nothing much really going on until the weekend. As usual. I am hoping to get a bunch more things made up. I am thinking of putting myself in the Gasbee Days, craft and art exhibit next month in Warwick, RI. I don't have enough really made up to sell, so I better get a move on. I just hate using up all the fabrics for those "just in case" moments that someone wants a special order.

I started posting things on Etsy today. Just to get my name out there for now. Though I don't think I am really going to like it that much. Doesn't seem my type. But for now, we will see how it goes. I might shut it down after a month. I do have a few prospects of some local stores wanting to carry my items. Maternity and baby stores. So we will see. I still don't think any of my items are as great as some of the stuff I see others sell. I am just really hard on myself.

That's about all that is going on with me these days. Of course there is more, but for now, I will leave you with this.

My "Furry" children Boo (the big black one) and Grace (the calico kitty) all curled up together. Very rare for them to do this as they like each other, but from a good breathing room apart

Friday, April 1, 2011

This Big Boy....





IS FINALLY POTTY TRAINED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Woot! Woot! Woot! I am so proud of him. This was a very hard concept for him to learn. He knew *HOW* to go...but could not seem understand or master the *WHEN* part.

Thank heavens though he finally figured it out. I knew he wouldn't go to College not knowing how to use the potty, but he is over a year older then Olivia and Emma both where when they started going, so I was beginning to have my doubts.

Next up...Ezme. She is slowly starting, but I wont push her either. They all figured it out on there own. I am sure she will be no different.