thanksgiving

i know, i'm behind. but i thought that i would post a few photos from thanksgiving! it was so great to have my family join us!! here we are @ Fazoli's!1 haha!! we got a little burned out of leftovers and went out!!! (BTW, i have no idea why this is posting like a link?)

(l-r) my sisters BF (jason), my dad's stepson (sam), MAC, my dad (Pop), my dad's wife (candy), my Hubby, my sister (Auntie shannon), Me and Baby J.
Auntie Shannon and Baby J- she's the best Aunt!!

MAC the Photographer took this photo of me and my dad!

Pop, MAC, and Baby J

it was a fun and simple holiday! baby J was only a little over a week old so we kept everything simple. but it was great to see our family!!!

new photos

my sweet baby j- sleeping with his Boppy. i'm sure this was taken during the day! he loves that boppy!!! he would sleep like this all the time if i let him!!! i have resrted to putting him the his bed just like this- but only a couuple of times!!

i have totally enjoyed reading about everyone's Christmas traditions and general goings on!

ALAS, we have nothing to report!!! Having Baby J the week before thanksgiving was pretty much THE even of our holiday season! we did manage to get our tree up BEFORE the baby got here and that has been the extent of our decorating!

all of my energy has been spent trying to get some sleep. Baby J seems to hit his peak between 2 & 5 AM- OY!!! in general he is a good baby- he is just genetically predispositioned to being a nightowl!! AUGH! anyway- here are a few photos of my boys!

MAC loved taking photos of Baby J- we managed to catch him with his eyes open!

it was 70 degrees here yesterday!!! augh! BTW, that is a 6 mo. onesie that tankmeister is wearing!! i'm afraid the poor kid has my family's bird legs!! i'm really hoping that the "chaps" brand of clothing runs small- cuz we'll be in trouble come summertime if he can already wear 6 mo clothes!!!

Baby J LOVES to watch big brother MAC

sweet boys!

return to the land of blogging...sort of!

hello to all! sorry for the long absence. the lack of sleep doesn't really allow room in my brain for blogging!! but i thought i would give a BRIEF update. (MAC is in the bathtub..soon to be a popsicle i'm told.)
life is good. we welcomed sprout/baby j on tuesday nov 19 @2:54 pm. it was an interesting experience!!! i will NOT go into ALL the gory details....here's the readers' digest version:
i went into labor around 230am...and stayed in bed till around 500 ( i wasn't POSITIVE i was in labor)...around 6 it was obvious i was in labor.....we got to the hospital @ 730. they promptly took me back and checked things out....the nurses' eyes got HUGE and she told me she thought she needed a second opinion because she thought i was @ 9cm!!! sure enough i was!!! haha!!!! so they kind of panicked and got me to a room really fast. they thought that they would break my water and we would have a baby. not so.....around noon the baby had STILL not dropped and we were getting NOWHERE!!! they started talking c-section. they tried a few other things first....and @ about 215 they said "C-SECTION!!!!"....so my little watermelon was born @ 254. he weighed in at a WHOPPING 9 lb 4.2 oz!!!!! so the reason for c-section baby j was STUCK!!!!
anyway, he has been a very sweet baby. he only cries when hungry....which BTW seems to be ALL the time. his little clock is a little bit off....he seems to be a night owl like me (poor kid)...hopefully we will get out of that soon. MAC has been a HUGE helper and LOVES to give the baby kisses. he is anxious to be able to teach the baby SOMETHING...he'll have to wait a little while. here are some photos.

he began to eat the bandage on his arm!!
he arrived wanting to eat!
are you beginning to see why he got stuck?

Proud Papa!

MAC helping me feed Baby J!

All of my boys!

so it took having a baby to get MAC to willingly smile in a photo!! who'd a thunk it!

The first time MAC got to hold Baby J- think he was excited?

MAC loves to give kisses!!

Baby J returning the favor ;)

Mommy, MAC, and Baby J- one day i'll learn NOT to take photos w/out makeup!!!

My newest little angel!

hope you enjoyed- i'll be taking more photos in the coming days. hopefully i'll remember to post them in a somewhat timely manner!!! luv2ya!

update

thursdays dr. visit went just fine. since, i know all of you guys were anxiously holding your breath. my BP was normal. but my feet and hands are still "puffy"...i wouldn't go so far as to call them "swollen" . as usual, baby J's heartbeat was nice and strong....he apparently doesn't like the doppler- he has kicked it the last two visits!!! haha!!! the poor nurses have to start their counts over each time....kinda funny!! an indication of his personality perhaps?? heaven help me!!!! so i return on wednesday--we will see what the BP is then.

hope you guys have a great few days!!

Not much to report

SORRY! we have been very low key the past couple of weeks. just working around the house, getting ready for Baby J to arrive, etc.

MAC and i did vote yesterday. he was NOT thrilled...especially when i clarified there would be no "boating" involved. haha!! he was VERY well behaved... i was very proud. of course, there was a little girl in line so the were able to run around and play...(our polling place is a middle school gym).

pregnancy update: we are down to the wire. i am feeling good. however, my blood pressure has been elevated the last two check-ups. and after a lovely 24 hr. test...i was informed that my proteins are elevated. so....not good. i return tomorrow for another check up...and perhaps instructions for ANOTHER 24hr test.....after that i guess we will have to see. don't they usually induce when BP is high??? i wanted to be induced....but not too early!!! oY!!! will post an update soon!!!!

does anyone else find this odd??

i just find this VERY strange!!! i know its not the best photo (taken from a moving vehicle). so PLEASE let me clarify EXACTLY what IT is: what is typically used as a cross to drape at Easter. you know the holiday where we celebrate the ressurection of Jesus?? yeah...except these people thought that it would be a GREAT idea to decorate it for Halloween. you know, the holiday where traditionally people celebrate ghosts, goblins, witches, etc. So if you look closely there is a Jack O' Lantern, Frankenstein, and a Skull!! oh! but they did did try to incorporate Autumn by putting those beautiful flowers sprouting out of the top!!! OY!!! anywhoo...any thoughts?

Kung-Fu MAC!!!!!

MAC has really shown an interest in martial arts lately. especially since Daddy has been taking Karate/Judo. he asks over and over if HE can go with Daddy. so we finally decided it was time to look into it.
Last night MAC attended his first Kung-Fu class. we went with Kung-Fu {for now} because it is through a Christian Organization { Karate for Christ}....and it is a small group at a local church...did i mention it is super inexpensive?? yup, it is. MAC did REALLY well. the instructor usually begins kids at 7---and makes exceptions for 5 yr olds. so we were really happy when he invited MAC to return to class. i think he {the instuctor} was very surprised that MAC focused as well as he did!!! i was so proud!!! now i didn't want to be THAT mom....so i didn't take any photos during the class....but he DID demonstrate some of his "moves" for me the other day...while at the aquarium!! haha!!




this is what he does ALL day- around the house!!! he was a little bummed last night because he was the only kids without the suit.....Daddy told him that he had to attend 5 classes before he could get one. so we will see....once thing is certain. MAC slept like a LOG last night!!! suh-WEET!!!!

MAC meets a few critters

The parks and recreation board has "classes" for kids to learn a little about nature. So COOL!!!
the only do it once a month...but it works. this {past} tuesday the topic was "Not True in Nature." (i.e., snakes aren't slimy, bats aren't birds, etc.)
now, MAC was NOT thrilled about "learning about nature"--he mentioned SEVERAL TIMES on the way....and he REALLY wanted to play on the playground. however, he stuck it out....and ended up enjoying things.

Here they are listening to the rules

then she brought out a turtle- MAC began to get interested about.....NOW! they put her { the turtle} into some water and saw that she could swim pretty fast.

Things got really interesting here. a SNAKE!!!! to TOUCH!!! they compared something really slimy {a balloon with soap in it} with the snake....yeah, she wasn't slimy afterall. MAC liked the snake....she was a Cornsnake...in case you were curious. ;)

This guy was pretty cool!!! he kept trying to fly away... they told the kids that owls aren't REALLY that wise...and that they can't turn their heads ALL the way around...{but still pretty far}....he was VERY pretty. FYI, they weren't allowed to pet him....but they were able to "pet" a wing...from some OTHER {no longer living} owl....sad.
they talked a little about Bats. that they aren't really birds, etc. then it was off to craft time. MAC actually participated!!! WOOOOO-HOOOOO!!!! they made a "bat" from a toilet paper tube. MAC enjoyed his...until the googly eyes fell off!! haha!!
MAC DID end up enjoying the morning...and said he owuld like to go back!! SCORE!!!! later in the week we went to the aquarium and learned alot about turtles. he wasn't so thrilled about that day...i suppose there were too many kids AND it was inside!!! haha!!! whatever!

i don't know....

what the gas prices are THERE....but we are LOVING the price here!!!!!

now this was a little out of the way (sat)...and when we turned the corner (after filling up of course)....prices were $.20 MORE ....but yesterday they were this prices everywhere we went!!! SUH-WEET!!!! (just thought i'd rub it in a little!!) haha!!!

Surfin' BOY!!!

yesterday was a fun day. we had a "Beach Day" with some friends from church. it was a GORGEOUS day! we grilled hot dogs and had a picnic and then headed down to the water...and just chilled. :) but then MAC asked Mr.Andy {our neighbor} to take him surfing! which BTW, Mr.Andy NEVER turns down an excuse to surf {to my knowledge}. it was really perfect to take him out.....just enough "waves" to be fun...but not dangerous!!!

At first i thought MAC was going to chicken out...as seen here! he started whining....TC and i knew that if he got over the initial freak out....he would LOVE it!! NO FEAR!!

They headed out to the water....he was still a little unsure....

but then he got on the surf board.....he was liking it at this point!!!

At this point, I was getting a little nervous....how far are you taking him Andy??? {i didn't know there was a sand bar that he was heading toward!!!}

he is probably asking to go faster here!!! hahaha!!!

They were pretty far from the shore....mommy had to swallow a little anxiety. ;) cuz MAC was CLEARLY enjoying every minute!!! he kept asking to go "that way"...as in farther out!!!! and when he would go over a {little} wave...and a slightly larger one would go by he kept saying "OH MAN!!! that one was bigger!!!" there was another one of andy's pals out there {im sorry his name slipped my mind} and they were pushing him back and forth between them....so he could actually ride the waves!!! he LOVED IT!! According to Andy- he is a born surfer!!!

Here they are paddling in.....i think they were out there AT LEAST 30 minutes!!!!

Ridin' the wave!!!

MAC had a blast!!! He got VERY upset with us when they got back to shore and we told him it was time to head home. :( he asked the rest of the night if he could go again... i'm sure that won't be a problem....well, except that it IS october and the water IS getting a little colder....we might have to wait til next summer...but either way...YESTERDAY was fun!!!

Sandcastles! Sandcastles!

okay so there is this huge festival that goes on every year here- the neptune festival!!! obviously, this guy isn't a Sandcastle- he's just REALLY COOL!!!! this statue is about 30 ft tall...and worked into the base are various sea creatures....and he's right on the waterfront. i did grow concerned when MAC said "LOOK! its a statue of God!!!" uh-oh! maybe i should work a little more Bible Study into our routine....you think? haha! We went to the North American Sandsculpting Contest on Sept. 29. which sounds a little lame...until you get there and see some of the "sculptures"....they're AMAZING!!! there are "artists" from all over the WORLD. pretty amazing:

this first one was really kinda weird...some of the "sculptures" had names.....but this one didn't...we figured it had something to do with birth of humanity....hmmmmm..........

this one we thought was wierd-but cute...the title was "you complete me" haha!!! get it?

check this one out!!!! a dragon!!! this is SAND people!!!! can you believe this??!!
there was more to this one...but i couldn't get a good photo....so the lion won out {whatever he was looking at didn't}. if you look closely his eyes are hollowed out....not sure why....but i couldn't do that...could you?

THIS one was BY FAR our favorite!!! it had won the "sculpters choice award."

can you read the writing on the tablet??

this is part of the same one....now do you get it?? its the Wise Man's house and the Foolish Man's house!!! if you look closely {below} you can see the waves and the "foolosh man" tyring to climb onto the sand.

we had heard that this year the "Sculptures" weren't as good as usual! can you believe that? normally the artists have wed-fri to sculpt and then they judge late on friday afternoon. but we had TORRENTIAL rain {and wind} thurdsay and friday. so they only had friday afternoon and sat to work!!! ummmm....WOW!!!

All in all it was a pretty cool {free} sunday afternoon! now why i didn't get photo's of people {my mom would be so disappointed!} i don't know.....i guess i was too caught up in how cool these things were! this will definitely be something we will attend again!

MY WALGREENS TRIP!!!

Alright so i am VERY new to this walgreens thing. but today i felt like i did it CORRECTLY!!! wooo-hooo!!! well sort of- i only did two transactions. :p i had originally planned on 3. HOWEVER, after spending WAAAAYYY too much time, last night, getting man.coupons, store coupons, and register rewards organized- i went online and found the $5/$20 coupon!!! which was FABULOUS!!!! However, none of my 3 transactions equalled 20. so i just did 2- it'll all even out right? right?? so here's what i got:

1st transaction:

Huggies jumbo pack- SALE PRICE---9.99 (huggies products buy $20 get $5 RR)

2 packs huggies wipes- SALE PRICE-5.99

2 boxes nutri-grain- ---SALE PRICE 2/5.00 ($2 RR)

Man Coupons-huggies 1.00

Nutrigrain-$1/2

Walgreens Coupon- $5/20

So i spent total--------20.95

TOTAL Savings: $7.50 which isn't THAT fantastic---but it was a start.

Register Rewards Total $7.00

Transaction #2:

Coffee Filter BOGO-----$1.19

Puffs------------------$2.79

Pert Plus--------------$3.49

Softsoap Bodywashx2- $3.49 ea.

Toms of Maine---------$3.99 (this and bodywash were buy 3 get $5 RR)

Softsoap handsoap-----$2.89

Kids Tylenol x 2--------$4.99ea

Tylenol Cold -----------$4.49 (tylenols were buy 3 get $5 RR)

Oral B toothbrush -----$4.49 (4.49 RR=FREE)

fleece throws x 2--------$1.99 (hubby wanted these)

Man. Coupons:

Oral B------------------ $.75 (which means i MADE $.75!!! i think)

Pert Plus ----------------$1

Puffs---------------------$.35

Softsoap BWash----------$1

Softsoap handsoap-------$.25

Kids Tylenol -------------$2 on 2

Walgreens Coupons:

Pert Plus ----------------$2.50 (made it FREE maybe made a penny!! hah!)

Kid Tylenol---------------$1.00

Softsoap Bwash----------$1.00

Puffs---------------------$.89(that was the price!)

Total RR used: $10.00 (i had $3 from last week)

Transaction #2 total SPENT: $18.92

Transaction #2 total saved: $38.66 (WOOOOO-HOOO!)

Total for both: $39.87

Total SAVED $46.16

AND i have $14.50 in RR for next week!!!

(i think that is all correct- at least the bottom numbers are- i now that cuz i looked at the receipt!) Almost ALL of the items i bought were already on sale- so ithink i saved even more than what is on the receipt!!! however, i haven't shopped there enought to know what their regular prices are on what i bought!! that would be fun to figure out!!!

OH yeah!!!! since i spent SOOOO much $$ on pampers products (note the sarcasm)--i recieved $2.25 in coupons from pampers. and i will submit the huggies receipts and receive an additional $1.00 from the "caregivers marketplace"...anyway...i know this was a lot of OOP expense (compared to all you CVS divas)...but myself and the hubby were excited!! because what i saved @ walgreens paid for BOTH of us to fill our vehicles for the week (at least)!!! hopefully, i can get this good at Kroger- but i think that is a LONG WAY off!! haha!!!! hope you all had a happy savings week!!!! luv2ya!

ps. on my trip to Kroger i bought a clearance boquet of flowers for 3.99 the awesome part is that is had a $20.00 on my next FTD floral purchasse!!! how cool!!!!

Amazing Experience

i don't know how many of you have ever been to an "Air Show".....but we were able to attend the Naval Air show, last night. it was amazing!!!! i don't remember what type of planes these were- but the stunts were pretty cool!!! they simulated an "air fight" i couldn't get a good photo- :( but the announcer said that there are times when pilots fly as close as 1 foot apart!!! can you imagine!!!!
my favorite photo!!!

the photo above was pretty funny! the wind was blowing like CRAZY last night....i mean 20-30 mph. so part of the show was cancelled and while we were waiting these geese flew by!!! so funny!! here we had been watching these amazing aerobatics and all of the sudden a flock of goofy geese decide to fly in almost the EXACT flight path!!! the crowd thought it hilarious!!! they did eventually get into a perfect "V" formation, BTW! haha!!
like i said- the wind was pretty crazy!! we were NOT properly attired! i (being a WONDERFUL mommy) sacrificed MY t-shirt that was being used as a blanket- so that MAC could bundle up!!! there were people in sweatshirts and wrapped up in blankets!!! i REALLY need to pay more attention to the weather!!!! i did have the forthought to make MAC wear long pants- though!! {score!}

i don't recall what this is called but our friend David flies one just like it. SOOOO BIG!!! MAC wanted to ride in all of the airplanes!!!
i just thought the paint job here was really cool!!!! its a DRAGON!!!!! if you look closely- there are claws/talons on the wings!!!! Mac liked this one!!!

they also had a night show- where the plane shot FIREWORKS!! so pretty- but not good for taking photos- not with my camers anyway. there was a GLIDER that did the same thing!! it was REALLY pretty! i wish my photos had turned out. they ended the evening with a truck that has been modified with TWO jet engines!!! and he shoots fire works! he ended by shooting up a "wall of fire" probably 1000 feet long!!!! the crowd was amazed!!! this dude holds the world record for the longest "wall of fire" {6000 ft, BTW}

that is how we spent our friday night- how fun!!! MAC and TC were in HEAVEN!! i think TC had more fun than MAC!!! it was so amazing to see, hear, and FEEL the power of these machines and know that they are used to protect our country and our lives!!!! i mean i have seen and heard jets fly by.....but i have NEVER been up close to one...well not while its was in flight anyway. just amazing! they are HUGE!! and OHHHHH are they loud!!! and the pilots that were performing last night are LITERALLY some of the best in the world- a few hold world records for different things! and WE got to go and watch (for free)!!! so if you ever have the opportunity to attend one of these shows GOOOOOO!!! it is worth the experience!!!!