Another Family Tradition:)

We went to a Pumpkin farm today...

Oddly enough we did NOT get pumpkins...

However, we DID do a bunch of other stuff!  Oh MY did we have fun! 

As you probably know, I'm big into traditions and memories...and sadly, because I can't ever seem to REMEMBER any of the "memories" myself, I have to photograph everything so that I can at least TRY to recollect the event:)  Which is probably why I like "traditions"...or rather...REPETITION!!!

Anyhoo...we always go some sort of apple picking (which I mentioned in an earlier post) and pumpkin patchin' (which I will mention here:)

This year, we were introduced to a new place...I will admit that I wasn't too keen on trying something "new"...but I was ASSURED that I was MISSING something if I didn't go...and we all know that I don't like to MISS OUT on things...

And so, we googled it out and discovered that it was only a mere 15 minutes down the road...so off we went to explore...

((I want to interject here that this occurred after a evening of which noone got much sleep...I'm just adding that because I may or maynot include the whining and constant "carrying" that took place because everyone was "tired and hungry" after about 2 hours...but, I will NOT be discouraged!!! It really was worth every penny...

Italian Stallion and I had attended a work function that did not finish up until around 1 AM...the event was full of grown men sulking over the Buckeyes big loss and me sipping white wine with the ladies as we nibbled on large amounts of sugar...

The girls spent the evening at Nana and Popi's where Little Munchkin was introduced to Charlotte's Web THE MOVIE...this might not have been the smartest move on Mommy's part as we have not finished the book yet and I forgot to mention the ending...We found out later that Peanut had to cuddle my youngest to sleep that night because of the sadness...Lil Munch made to sure to mention to me first thing in the morning, "MOMMY, did you know that Charlotte died...she is DEAD Mommy...DEAD!  It is too sad!"  ))

Okay...so enough about all that...let's get back to that rip roaring fun at the Pumpkin Farm:) 

It started off with the trampoline bouncy thing...I don't know what it was, it was huge and orange and the girls bounced...a LOT!

  Next came the pedal carts...I'm not convinced that it wasn't just like riding a big tricycle...but you put John Deer on something and the girls think it's a tractor...and off they go!

Next we moved on to the Tube Rolling...Daddy came up with a way to spin them while on their knees...he's so cool...:)

And the younger two had to settle for the Banana Bus instead of the zip line...but, they made do:)

It helped that there was also a giant "sandbox" filled with corn kernals...we kept wondering what would happen if they moved it OUTSIDE in the SUN...would it become POPcorn?

The last thing we did was a hayride, but at that point, my body had just gone through a moment where your heart goes up into your throat and think, oh my goodness, I might just lose it...so, I put the camera down for a bit...

Sweetpea decided that since she was tall enough, she could do the Zip line...I'm all about challenging one's self and taking "risks"...but, I think it applies more to MYSELF rather than my children...and to see her so stinkin' high in the air...good grief...and then, watch the video...she literally ZIPPED by!!!

So...that was our morning...and then I headed out for 3 photo shoots...and then I came back home and sat around the firepit while my girls read books and Italian Stallion and I reflected on what charmed life we lead:) 

Thank you Lord:)

Well, YOUR Momma...

do you remember those jokes?  The "yo' momma" jokes? 

It all centered around being able to give the best 'jab' or 'put down'...

They aren't just "jokes" anymore...I think it has turned into a "disease" of sorts...a "sickness", if you will...

I like to now call it the "One up 'em" disease...

I have currently diagnosed Little Munchkin with the "yuck"...

Don't get me wrong, I "catch" it every once in a while...although it shows up in more subtle ways...I like to call it "braggin on my kids" or "sharing a prayer request"...Have you ever caught this "cold"? 

It was out in full force today with Little Munchkin...she had to "one up" her little friend at the zoo today...holy moly...it sounded like this...

"I'm going to hold MY mom's hand with the RING on her finger!"
"I'm going to have APPLES for MY lunch"
"I'm going to ride the LEAD horse on the carousel"

My older girls give it and take it at school too...
"Oh, my mom got me a bunch of pencil grippers...oh, you don't HAVE any?"
"I have a DS and an IPOD and an theater system in my basement...(smirk, smirk)"

What is it in us that thinks that by putting someone else down, by "putting them in their place" that that actually elevates our "standing" in our peer group? 

Ohhhhhh, wait a minute, that would be that thing called SIN right? 

All in the name of "trying to relate" to others...we have to tell the "best" story, we have to be the best (or the worst) just so that we get center stage, we get the spotlight...sometimes it's for the praise, sometimes it's for the pity...regardless, it's a focus on ME! 

I had to pull Lil Munch aside plenty of times today to talk about her tone of voice, her heart...MAN, that is hard trying to explain that to a 4 year old...I struggle with trying to instill confidence...a sense of "you don't have to be walked on" in my children...but at the same time, a heart that is compassionate and generous...

I'll be honest...I don't want my kids to get bullied and shoved around...I don't want them to always be last, to always get the leftovers...but at the same time, I want them to WANT to give to others...I want them to put others needs before themselves...UGH...it's like this huge contradiction...and trying to 'parent' it correctly is taking every ounce of prayer and patience and pleading with God for wisdom. 

don't get me wrong...we had a great day...it was fun to see the animals and brush the goats and swat at the bees:)...but, I'm a bit worn out...I find myself struggling with the same things that I'm trying to teach my girls...I crave attention and validation and affirmation...from people...and I don't want to...and I don't want my girls to feel like they have to "show someone up" just to get noticed...

Oh the heart issues...that's where it really matters isn't it?  It's not all about eating your broccoli and watching too much TV...THIS, the HEART, is where the battle lies...

I'm determined friends...I don't know the answers...I haven't figured them out in my own life except to do a lot of apologizing and admitting when I'm wrong...but, I will NOT give up in these precious gifts that God has given me in my girls:) 

Mission Completion!

So, I ran my 5K this weekend at my alma mater:) 

Let me begin by saying that the old corn fields and midwest weather didn't let me down..oh no...nice spitting rain, blowing wind and temperatures in the 30s was JUST the thing to drag my sleepy bottom out of bed at O' dark thirty...it also took about 2 phone calls and a handful of texts while laying in the dark on my hotel bed from fellow alumni classmates to roll me out the door...

I'll be honest...I was cold, we kept the girls up until 10:30 the night before, swimming...because THAT is what staying in a hotel is all about, AND did I mention it was COLD? 

However, my good friend Lori, whom I haven't seen in 15 years said she could rally...and Sara...well, she's not only a running pro, but an incredible encourager as well...

And so, I hauled my lazy bones out of bed, managed to brush my teeth and donned my running attired...adding gloves, an extra long sleeve shirt and earband to the ensemble due to the above mentioned COLD!!!and headed to the lobby to "get the show on the road"...

This is the before picture...if I could caption it, it might say something like: "Yes, I'm absolutely and utterly ridiculous...my eyelashes are already frozen!"

We ran together throughout the whole race...along side Josh who kept our head in the game...my arthritic, cracking ankle keeping time with the pace and I think I complained enough about the wind and the cold to perhaps cause Sara to stealthfully put the volume up in her ipod:) 

She was patient with me throughout...even when I pushed her off the track oblivious to the fact that I was running the wrong way...

We finished strong though...and sat through the winner announcements...I was quite shocked to hear my name called in the 31-39 age bracket...but, I'm more reticent to discuss the fact that in just a few years I will be in the next age bracket...

To be completely fair, I must confess that Sara purposefully held back so that my leg crossed the line first...and Josh, the crosscountry runner extraordinaire...he so could have run circles around us the entire way, but just plugged along! Kudos to CU students!!!

As is to be expected, it took me a longggg time to make a decision on what to purchase with my newly achieved $10 gift card to the college bookstore...but after much thought and  whining "come on Mommy, just make a choice!" prodding from my husband and young girls, I purchased a nice travel coffee mug...And just to reassure you it will NOT take the place of my hard earned 4.0 mug from freshman year!

So...our day continued as I finally got to have a shower...the only "mishap" that I wasn't prepared for, was the fact that my body was so cold that when the hot water hit my body, I felt like I was on fire...therefore, I had to keep cooling down the stream...thus turning my hot shower into lukewarm and hoping that my fingers would bend properly so that I could actually "style my new hair cut" 

It all turned out okay and we headed down to the parade for the morning with Uncle Graig & Aunt Sara and all the girlies...

You know it's cold when your daughter has to hold her gloved hand over her face because she can't handle the whipping wind...

G's Aunt Kathy had us all decked out with personalized bags to stash the candy...and she even got out there in middle to make sure all the people in the parade recognized the line of little girls awaiting their sugar high!

Our parade time was followed by the 15 year reunion gettogether...it wasn't a huge turnout, but it was nice to spend good quality time with the few! 

It was a wonderful day...the girls loved seeing Mommy & Daddy's old stomping grounds...although we decided NOT to show them the "make out" spots...(holy cow, did Ijust admit to that here on this blog?) 

We were amazed at the changes taking place at the university...I remember at one point looking at the "Kids" in the parade and asked, "Are those high schoolers or college students?"  to which my daughter replied as she saw the group coming behind them, "Hey, Mommy are you from the class of 1961?" 

Let us now be rest assured that I will never have to worry about getting a big head or thinking any too highly of myself...thank you dear ones;)

We made it home at a decent hour and are now heading to bed to dream about WARM lands and hot coffee:)  Thank you friends for making new memories!!!

Something New

I tried something new today...

Never did it before...

I've been "nudged" to do it...encouraged even...

I didn't really see a purpose...why would someone inflict pain upon one's self unless there was a true benefit...like, say a baby or...I suppose if you wanted to prevent yourself from getting the flu or something...

But, for "beauty" purposes...naw...I'll pass...

Until today...

I GOT MY EYEBROW WAXED...

Now, for some of you, you'll think I'm ridiculous...you'll think it almost "absurd" that I felt it necessary to poll my friends and ask what pain factor was involved...you might also find it laughable that I felt compelled to tell the "waxer" about my ingenius techniques of using a razor on my eyebrows when they got too bushy...

Some of you might be in my same boat and think, 'who needs eyebrow beauty?'

But regardless of what you may or may not think...I did "treat", and I use that term VERY lightly, myself to an eyebrow-shaping-wax...

And you will be proud to know that I didn't cry or even flinch...This Momma knows how to handle pain!!!  Although I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it wasn't half as bad as I thought and I came home without a uni-brow...woohoo!

My Italian Stallion also foot the bill for me to get a hair cut, seeing as I hadn't had it cut since last February and the Triangle-Bush-Straw-Chlorine Green Ends look just wasn't doin' much for me:)

Granted, I didn't get much cut off...only about 3 inches...but, I did discover something about myself...my reasoning behind not getting a hair cut every 3 months as is suggested...

First off, it irritates me to pay for "beauty" stuff..except for clothes, because without them I would be naked, and we don't want that picture in our heads...

Secondly, when I DO get my hair cut, I want to feel like I've obtained a "change" and not just "maintained" what I already have...therefore, I normally get my hair hacked off and then have weeks of regret because I don't like it so short...one time I had them just trim it and put in a few layers...again, regret over having not gotten a REAL hair cut...

So, therein lies my dilemma...which puts me in the category of waiting it out until I can't stand it and my husband is tired of seeing me in ponytails everyday.  Today, however, I got a stylist that really listened to me...didn't try to push something on me that I wasn't ready for...but also didn't let me get away with my trepidation towards the scissors...

That's it...that's really all I wanted to convey about my experience...just for prosperity sake...My hair is cut...not too short, not super long...my eyebrows have shape...all in a days work I suppose...

The weekend

How was your weekend?  Mine began at around 5am, when my hubby woke up for some reason on Saturday morning and didn't end until...well, I"m still typing and it's nearly midnight, so I suppose it hasn't necessarily ended for me just yet...

I like my sleep on the weekends.  My Italian Stallion tends to tease me mercilessly poke a little fun at me concerning the fact that I enjoy sleeping in when he's home. 

I like to remind him that I birthed his 3 daughters...without medication...I'm going to use this excuse to my advantage for the rest of my life. 

Saturday began with my first 3 mile run...I made it the entire 3 miles without walking OR throwing up...KUDOS TO ME!!!

I celebrated my achievement by downing a big chunk of chocolate and a big coffee when I got home...and then I continued to eat like a horse the remainder of the weekend...HOWEVER, I'm starting 'afresh' on Monday so that I'm ready for my "race" on Saturday...just in case you were wondering...

Holy cow, the amount of food I inhaled this weekend teeters on "gorging" but, I enjoyed every minute of my pasta, pizza, pot pie, Pepsi...and apparantly lots of things that begin with the letter P!

So...next came Sweetpea's soccer game...of which she scored the first goal again and they WON again...They have scored more goals in each game than they did all the last four seasons COMBINED...Italian Stallion doesn't know what to do with himself...he keeps waiting for the ball to drop...but, I'm just going to bask in the fact that they are winning and they're doing happy dances out on the field...

it makes for good pictures...

Then came a couple of photo shoots and some boot shopping for the girls...I won't get into the shopping because we all know how GREAT I am at decision making...so just let your imagination wander, and I'm sure you'll get a pretty good idea of how THAT scenario played out...

Sunday brought with it early service and a GORGEOUS day...We decided to go apple picking and I"m so glad that we did.  I will now share with you the pictures from our day and the lovely pie I made when we returned home...

please note, that as much as it seems the kiddos are completely enjoying themselves playing cornhole and running up and down a hill (and they are) they may or may not have been harboring "bad feelings" toward Mommy & Daddy who were too cheap to let them do the corn maze or the a little blue tractor pull thingy...

I'm interjecting a picture of my husbands legs...you all know I have a fettish for feet and legs in pictures...but what you may not know, is that I think my husband's legs are attractive..."sexy" to say the least (can I say that on this family-friendly blog?)  you don't have to agree with me, cuz, I just know it's true, so it doesn't really matter...but...ahhhhhhhh, he's a handsome man...:)

and enough about that...let's get back to the apple picking...

This is me holding up a RED apple because we picked all the golden delicious ones and it didn't really feel like I was REAL apple picking because in REAL life, apples are supposed to be red...especially in pictures...

THERE...RED

Here is where we wrapped up the apple picking and found our way over to the corn maze...and other such crazy expensive activities...this is the point at which Mommy and Daddy ceased to be "cool" for an extended period of time...Not really...the older two "get it"...Little Munchkin just needed to whine a little bit and give us her dramatic rendition of why she so desperately NEEDED to go on the little blue tractor car ride...

I don't take it for granted that my girls take care of one another...that they are sisters first always, but friends come a close 2nd...and I love it!

 here's my pie...I took it outside so I could get some better light...it tasted perfect for this beautiful fall day...

And that's my weekend...I hope you had fun during yours as well!

jean shopping

I went jean shopping this past week. 

I've decided that I don't like jean shopping.  I didn't really like it before I had children...and I can tell you that I DEFINITELY don't like it now. 

Even now, with their "stretchable" fabrics and their new sizing...meaning, "Hey, we know this is your normal size, but we're going to change it to British numbers because then you'll be all confused and feel thinner so you'll buy more"

Here's the deal...they tell me at every store to try to find the fit that is tight, because through the day they are going to loosen up...Listen, after I pour my skin into the leg holes, there is so much overflowing out the top, that NO amount of "Loosening" up is going to fix it...seriously...

so, what's a mom to do?  I'm not wearing dress pants while we paint and I can't wear sweatpants everyday, because let's be honest...the chafing from the fleece balls gets a little much after awhile...

I want to apologize now for any pictures that may be forming in your head...I"m just being honest here...

Not to mention that jeans are expensive...but, being my birthday month, I had ton of coupons sent to me...free starbucks drink, $10 off here, $15 off there...so I thought I'd take advantage of the discounts and head out to the store.  I even brought friends for reinforcement...

What ended up happening was me purchasing a pair of jeans, only to get home and think, "Hmmm, I"m not sure"...heading back to the store and purchasing the OTHER pair of jeans, only to get home and think, "Now, I"m really not sure" ..wait a couple days, "Okay, I'm sure, I'm going to return these."...wait a few more days and wearing them around the house, "Ummm, these are NOT going to work"...heading back to the store to try another style back on and put them on hold...coming home and begging my BFF to come with me the NEXT day to try one more time...

Let's not even mention the fact that I am a HORRIBLE decision maker...I mean...it's just pathetic...

Long story...sorta short...I currently have a pair of jeans...I don't think I should wash them EVER...there is a chance they would change the slightest bit and if that were to happen, I don't know what my thighs would do. 

So, that was my week...it centered around the JEAN...it's really sad...

Here I talk about muffin tops and clothing that looks like it's eating my derriere...and do I even mention the storytimes or the book that Little Munchkin 'wrote' this week? 

I need to definitely come back to that...I just need to get circulation back in my legs...I"ll see you soon!

Fair Day Compromise

The girls didn't have school today...I love living where we do...where school doesn't get in the way of a good education....where funnel cakes, rides, horses, bunnies, projects... 4H dedication, drive and responsibility also play a part in developing a person's character and development! 

So, because of the Fair this week, Monday is designated KID'S DAY and the entire school district is off. 

We look forward to this day at the beginning of the month...we love to go and feed animals, watch friends compete, see the beautiful creations of others (and eat a bunch of fair food until our stomachs ache)...

Today however was a BUST...complete downpour all morning and I just didn't have the gumption to stomp around the fairgrounds carrying a whining 4 year old with powdered sugar all over myself...

Therefore, the girls thought to bring the fair to US...

Every stuffed animal known to man is currently spread around our family room...all categorized by "species"...

I, surprisingly enough, did NOT burn down my house in my attempt to "bring the fair home" by deep frying some yummy funnel cakes. 

 

We got some good ole frozen pizza and Aunt Tina left us some Kettle corn...

We've had a morning of licking fingers, sippin' on some high fructose corn syrup and having some WiiCarnival competitions...

All I can say is that this is SOME way to start off the week...whew...

I may be on a "fry-high" for awhile:)