It's gonna be a while

We had the walk through for the house. It looks fantastic!! It's so exciting. We then travelled home for Thaksgiving and had a BLAST!!! I was finally allowed to go Black Friday shopping with my Mom and Aunt. I am officially now part of the Ya Ya sisterhood!!! The trip home was heart wrenching as usual. We are now back home and steady packing, cleaning, preparing, you name it, we're doing it. There's so much to do now. I've got pics to post but it's gonna be a while until we're settled enough for me to actually sit down and download. I pray you all have a blessed holiday!!! I'll be back soon!!!

Aggravating but not Devastating.....

Jason and I spent a wonderful Saturday and Sunday with his brother and his wife. Matt and Claudia graced us with wonderful company and delicious food. We spent all day visiting War Memorial hospital, where Matt works, and gallivanting around downtown Springfield MD. We walked all around the outside mall there. Went to a REALLY crowded grocery store and learned how the "city people" do it. Today we went to a really awesome park about 2 minutes away from their apartment complex. It had the coolest park equipment. AJ really loved kicking around in the leaves with his Aunt Claudia or "Audia" as he says it. (I SO wish I had taken the camera!!!) AJ didn't even want "da da" to catch him when he went down the slide, he kept yelling for "Matt, Matt" Only Matt could catch him. Matt played the guitar for AJ so he could boogie down, and Audia played endless hours of "ball" with her new found admirer. AJ was very gracious with his hugs for those two. AJ had a really good time, as did Jason and I. We really appreciate Matt and Claudia opening up their home so we could visit. How great to be able to spend time with family.

THEN, Jason decided that before we went home, he would drive by the new house. OK, no problem. We drove by the front of it and it looks like they've put top-soil on the yard. Looks like they've cleaned up a bit. Still need to stain the brick on the outside and do the landscaping. Then we drove by the side of the house. As we proceeded to drive by something caught my eye. Looked like a splash of something on the side of the house that dripped all the way to the ground. Jason and I were praying it was mud but......it wasn't. It is stain or paint of some kind. Whom ever splashed it, splashed it about 1/3 of the way up the side of the house and it dripped all the way to the ground. Jason got out of the van to check it out and yes, it is permanent. Jason drove up to where our Realtor Tyler works and I went in to speak to him. He has been so wonderful to us. I went in smiling and asked him if he'd seen the house. He said yeah, wasn't it exciting. I responded with a yes, except for the large splash of paint running down the side of the house. Apparently this happened last night or today because he wasn't aware of it yet. He assured me that they are going to take care of it. He was adamant for me to "not freak out" they would fix it, whether that means a little paint thinner to get it off, or replacing the siding" As the header states, it's aggravating but not devastating. To be honest, I did not and am not freaking out about it. I know Tyler will get it fixed and that's that. We have our final walk through in 2 days and we're going to closing in 9. Can you believe it??? This house is just about packed up. I'm going to tackle the bathrooms for the next couple of days and then we're on to the Holiday's!!! I can not believe Nov. is almost gone already. When we have our walk through I'll be sure to take some pics and post em so you guys can see.

Almost Time!!!

My best friend Kisha was up for the weekend for our annual Christmas shopping trip to Hagerstown, MD. On our way home I figured I'd swing by the new house to see if any progress had been made. I went up to the windows on the porch and guess what!!!!! The house was lit up like a Christmas tree!!!! All of the light fixtures are in. The outside ones as well as the inside ones!! The carpet is in. The stairway is in. I even could see the toilet and the sink in the downstairs bathroom. (Yes, Kisha has already informed me that we need to buy GOOD window shades for that particular room) It is so pretty. I can't believe we have our final walk-through in 9 days. Nov. 21. I just can't believe it's really coming to an end.
Seriously though, the closer it gets, the more weirded out I get. It's so exciting in one way and so sad in another. The house we're in now is the house I made a home for my family. We worked so hard to get this place into what we wanted it to be. So much time, effort, money. It's the first house we owned as a married couple. It's the first house I brought my first child into. It's the house that AJ rolled over for the first time, smiled for the first time, took his first steps. It's a house full of memories. I am the person that could stay in the same house for 50 years and feel perfectly fulfilled. I am the big Oak tree that grows strong firm roots. Jason comes from a band of gypsies. They build and sell houses for a hobby. I know that as a wife of a Christian husband, I have to have faith that God is leading Jason to do what is best for our family. It's so hard to let go of that control though. I pray that a life of packing up and leaving is not what we're in for. I absolutely despise packing and moving everything. Jason has always used that phrase that I like to "sit on my egg" Well, I guess I do. I just have so many emotions right now. I can be laughing one minute and crying the next. I dunno, guess I'm weird like that. It's so neat to be able to drive by the new house, but after we look at it, we come home. If I could ask that you all keep us in your prayers. Especially me, that I listen to what God is saying and see what He is doing for our family. Pray that I keep finding the joy instead of the sadness that seems overwhelming at times. I'm still very homesick for VA so I know that doesn't help things. Anyway, I rambled more than I intended to. It helps to talk it out I guess. Thanks guys.

Bruise of many colors

This update is for my mother. She asks me everyday how my bruise is looking and let me tell ya, this thing is the bruise of many colors. It's nasty lookin. There is still a lump under the skin. Even AJ looks at it and says "ouch" It was so funny the first time he did it. I don't ever recall pointing at one of AJ's many boo-boos and declaring it an official "ouchie". This thing just looks so bad he deemed it an ouchie all by himself. He pointed at it, looked at me and said "ouch". He'll even "kiss it and make it better" (I heart him)
I'm scared to death to run in the house any more. When I run around the bed I have flashbacks that make me sweat! Pee-wee football is not for the faint of heart!!!!! I'm tougher than a tonka truck though, so I guess it will be OK eventually.

Multiple Updates

The house is almost done!!! We went through it about a week ago and they had all the appliances in, cabinets, counters, sinks, floors (except for the carpet). All of it's in. They only thing they didn't have in was the carpet and the stair rails. We peaked in the window last Sunday and the stair rails are in too. They still have to put the gutters up. I can't believe we close in less than 4 weeks. It seemed like forever ago we bought the land. Here's the pic of the house on the outside. I didn't get to take any pics of the inside Sunday because they have locked the doors and our realtor didn't have keys to it yet. Oh well, maybe this weekend. I L.O.V.E. the front porch. Can't you just see the garland with Christmas lights covering the railing??? I'm getting so excited!!!


These pics are mainly for my mother. I called her yesterday in tears because a friendly game of football with my 17mo old ended in this HUGE hematoma on my leg. AJ loves to sit on my bed and throw the football while mama chases the ball yelling "Go go go!! Run Run Run!!!" Well, my dorky, clumsy self ran straight into the chest I have at the end of the bed. It's only been there for 4 years, but I managed to forget about it yesterday and run straight into it. I did a flip over it and landed on my knees. I have never wanted to curse so bad in my life, but something about a toddler in your face saying "mama, mama, mama" tends to keep you from spouting pure filth out of your mouth. It was one of those "just rock back and forth" moments. Just a few hours later, the lump on my leg was so big, you could feel it through my pants. This morning, it hurts to walk. Here are the beautiful pics of my pee-wee football battle scar.(roll eyes)



On a happier note, my 17mo old pooped in the potty Sunday night. He has been looking at me and hitting his diaper saying "poo-poo" for a while now. Sunday he did it but he hadn't actually gone yet. I picked him up, ran to the bathroom with Jason in tow and we sat in the bathroom for about 20minutes trying to get AJ to poop. He was running around the bathroom diaperless. Jason demonstrated twice how to sit on the baby potty and finally AJ followed suite. Unfortunately the first log hit the floor. He was standing on the leg of the walker and before I knew it....plop. I real quick scooped him up and put him on the potty and he proceeded to poop another log.. IN THE POTTY!!!!! We did dances, we high fived, we called G.G., Oma and Opa. Twice since then he has said "Poo-Poo" and in my Olympic style sprint to get my son to the bathroom so we can rip off his pants, undo snaps, and finally take of the diaper, AJ will sit on the pot, gave me a high five and get back up. (roll eyes). Yesterday, he said "poo poo" and went before we could actually get to the bathroom. He hasn't gone today but I've been on Poo alert. We did have one of those false alarms today. Makes for fun stories though. His newest thing you ask?? Froggy has to pee and poo in the potty. Jason taught him these wonderful sound effects and now froggy gets to be privy to them.Here's a pic of froggy tonight in all his glory.

Happy Halloween!!!

Well, we took AJ Trick or Treating for the first time this year. He had a BLAST! I bought his scarecrow costume from "One Step Ahead" and it came in about two weeks ago. I tried the costume on and was so happy he liked it. Because AJ has to wear a hat like daddy, he didn't mind the "costume hat" at all.

The day before Halloween, AJ and I pulled the pumpkins inside and we carved one of them. Too much work with a toddler but I HAD to have at least one carved pumpkin. Anyway, AJ was my big helper and helped me to gut the big one as well as draw on his baby pumpkin with magic marker and highlighter. The child doesn't want crayons. No, that's too silly. Too childish for my kid. He wants the big guns. He did, however, wait until I was looking down, carving my pumpkin before he took the highlighter to the inside of his beloved kitchen cabinet. I almost had a stroke. 409 is my hero! It is my all time favorite cleaner. Thankfully, the skillful art came right up. (whew, breath a sigh of relief!)







GG came up to be with us for his first "Trick or Treat" outing and we all had so much fun. AJ HAS to be with his G.G......ALL THE TIME. He would only come to me or Jason when we were at the door getting ready to ring the doorbell. After he got his candy, he would reach for GG again. I'm tellin you, that child is getting lead in his behind. He's a heavy little thing anymore.






We went trick-or-treating in the new neighborhood this year because I thought it would be a good oportunity to meet our neighbors. They were all so WONDERFUL!! Everyone we met was so nice and I've actually already met another mother who has a 17mo old little girl. We have already discussed play dates and everything else. I can't wait! I'm going to take pics of the new house soon. We're down to the count down! Only 4 more weeks until we close!!!!

Sling Shot

I finally figured it out!!!!! I figured out how to download this video! It only took me ALL DAY! This is a video of Mikie and I in Myrtle Beach. This was his first time doing the sling shot. I've done it before with my mom. Excuse my loudness. I didn't realize I screamed the whole time. Watch Mikie's face on take off, it cracks me up. You can tell it completely took his breath away. We had a blast!! I think it said we pulled 3 G's. Now all I have to do is convince my husband to do it with me. Enjoy!!

Pumpkin Patch

This past Saturday we took AJ to the pumpkin patch for the first time. I'm not sure who has more fun on these outings, him or me. GG was able to come up for the festivities so she went with us. We had a blast. AJ helped to pick out his pumpkin, was able to pet the billy goats (now GG and OPA are threatening to buy him one!!!), go on his first hay ride, and walk on the "hay maze" for little ones. We had such a good day. I'll post a few pics here but the rest as you know.....are on Snapfish. :)
After we left the pumpkin patch we went to a little fair up the road. It was "Middletown day" It's a quaint little town that was trying to raise money for restorations for historical sites and such. We went, ate some hot dogs, AJ had his first pony ride, and AJ watched the live bluegrass show. That child was FASCINATED with the live band. It was only three guys. One played the fiddle, the other a banjo and the other a regular guitar. I was going to take AJ to see the firetrucks but he couldn't take his eyes of the musicians. I guess the kid gets it honest. We had to sit on the hay stack and watch the guys play until they were through with their set. AJ never took his eyes off of them. It was the wildest thing to watch. We had a blast.

AJ and Daddy walking side by side. One of my favorite pics



AJ "bonk bonking" the pumpkins



AJ, Mommy and Daddy on his first Hay Ride.



AJ loved the Hay Ride but he would not move away from his Daddy. He knows Daddy will keep him safe...



AJ petting the Billy Goats. He cracked me up. He wanted to give them kisses like he does Moose. They kept trying to eat him!! Too funny. AJ finally succeeded in giving one of them kisses though. He was happy after that.



AJ and GG. Best Buds forever....



For some reason this pic came out grainy and it's one of my faves. AJ and GG are looking at each other while GG leads the way on the hay maze. It was so cute!!



AJ on his first Pony ride. He had a death grip on GG's shirt. Don't you just love the little helmet???



AJ is going to be a little scarecrow for Halloween. I can't wait for it to be delivered to the house. Yes I am one of those dorky moms. I have always loved watching the little kids come up to the house all decorated in their costume. They have such a good time. I really get irked with the older kids though. If they're in costume, it doesn't bother me. I just don't want them knocking on my door for free candy when they can't even dress up and have fun. Last year it was so hot, AJ was dressed just in his costume and nothing but a diaper on underneath. We had all the windows open and sat outside on the porch while we handed out the candy. Hopefully this year it will feel like Halloween.

Prayers Please....

I'm not even sure how many people actually read my blog. For those of you that do, I have a huge favor. We found out Sat. night that a lady I work with, her grand-daughter was in a horrible car accident over the weekend. The baby girl is 5 years old. She was visiting her daddy in NY and they were going to visit some of his friends when he passed over the yellow line. He and the guy he hit were killed instanly. This baby girl had both of her arms fractured as well as her pelvis. She was in ICU and they weren't sure how bad the injuries were. As of yesterday, they were taking off the c-spine collar and pulling her out of ICU. Her CT scan of the head was negative...Praise be to God. I understand that physically, she is doing pretty well, sans the fractures, however, mentally she is really struggling. She is 5 years old, so she is old enough to know what happened. I'm not sure of everything that she can recall but it breaks my heart thinking she saw her daddy take his last breath. Sam and her mommy are still in NY. The lady that I work with is keeping the little brother here and trying to keep things as normal as possible for now. I will post further updates as I recieve them. Please just pray for the whole family. What a terrible loss, tragity and scare.

The second prayer is for the Weigratz family. I grew up with Danielle but his younger brother, 27 years old, Russell was also in a fatal car accident. He was on life support and they had his funeral this past Monday. He has a wife and two small chiildren, 2years and 1 year, that he has left behind. He was a Richmond City Police officer. Please just pray that the Lord can grant this family the peace that passes all understanding right now. The more prayers these families recieve right now, the better. My heart just breaks for them.

As a human being, I am selfish. I pray that the Lord watch over Jason daily as he travels daily back and forth to work. I pray that He encamp his angels around the car and help to guide Jason to work and back to me again safely. This is a prayer I say fervently. Daily. Nightly. I can't imagine the loss these families have encountered. I just pray that the peace that only God can give is granted them. Thanks guys.

What life is made of.....

This past Monday, to me, is what life is made of. Jason was off for Columbus Day. He always wakes up first and gets the coffee going. Sometime later, AJ and I woke up. I didn't even have time to go to the bathroom or brush my teeth because the first words from AJ, every morning, are "Da Da?" Normally the response is "Da da's at work today baby", but this morning I hugged him and said "da da's here! Wanna go see him?" AJ jumped up ready to go. We didn't brush our teeth, potty, or change the first diaper of the day. We made our way down the hallway to find daddy sitting on the couch watching TV, drinking his coffee. AJ absolutely LOVES it when we are both off and at the house. He went straight to his dad and I was able to go get my cup of coffee and start fixing breakfast for us. After a morning of just spending time together, Jason went to cut the grass. Normally this is my task but I just wasn't feeling it that day. Jason goes outside to do the infamous poopy scoopy and he took his little man with him, who faithfully followed his daddy around the yard as he raked up Moose's excrement. I stayed inside in hopes of getting the bed made, laundry started and the kitchen cleaned up. Jason had finished his first task and was bringing AJ inside and the poor boy started freaking out. He wanted to be with his daddy. I changed out of my PJ's and took AJ back outside so we could watch dad mow the lawn. AJ, ever so faithfully watching his dad, had his own lawn mower out. He would lean up against the fence and just watch his dad go round and round. Dad would make his round and as they crossed paths, they would raise their right arm to each other in a "Right On" kind of way. Of course, daddy had his hat on so AJ had to have his on too. We had to watch daddy mow and weed whack the whole front and back yard. AJ wants so bad to push that big lawn mower like his daddy. He wants to be big so bad. Little does he know, in a few years, he will be pushing that mower with the best of us (wink, wink) Anyway, after we mow and weed whack, we always sweep off the walkways. AJ just can not stand the fact that someone has a broom and he does not. I told Jason I was going to run up to the dollar store and get AJ his own broom. I found a very skinny, light weight broom but it was still the regular height. Jason was able to take his Chinese saw and cut it in half and the two swept the walkway together. Dad and son. Side by side. AJ decided at some point that his hat wasn't good enough, he had to wear daddy's hat.









As we were putting the equipment in the shed, Jason picked AJ up and let him push the mower all the way inside. AJ just thought he was something. After we did the yard work, I gave AJ a bath and put him down for a nap. Jason changed the oil in the car and ran by the grocery store. I finally was able to shower myself. I did have to go into work Monday evening for my 4 hours but all in all, it was a wonderful day spent with my two favorite men. To me, this is what life is made of......

Talk about loved, Well... maybe spoiled.....

Had to post these pics of the pup. Moose will be 3 years old next May. She is our baby girl. She was our first baby. We figured we'd give a dog a whirl and if we could feed/water/ and keep a dog alive, we'd be shoe-in's for being good parents to a human baby. Anyway, I was cleaning the house because we had a showing scheduled for the evening. I was running through the house. I had just made the bed, I was dusting, turned around, and this is what I saw.....








She can't lay at the end of the bed....NO, Puh-lease, she has to bat my pillows around just right and curl up right in the middle of them all. She's just a wee bit rotten, ya think??? But I love her so much and she's so much fun to cuddle with. She's a good girl. Even if she does bark too much. We're working on that though. She does make for one heck of a guard dog. NO ONE can come up on our porch or ring the bell without them knowing who's boss around this house.

Squirt Monster!!!

So much has been going on the past few weeks!!!! I'll start with last Friday. My husbands brother was stationed in Germany for approx the last 6-7 years. He married and served 1 year in Iraq. He is currently out of the service but still working for the government. He currently accepted a job in Maryland and is now back in the states for 1 year. AJ was able to meet his Uncle Matt for the first time Friday night. Unfortunately I had to work so I was unable to watch the meeting myself. From what I understand and from what I've seen, the two hit it off very well.



His Uncle Matt decided to teach little man a new trick. He didn't figure AJ was as smart and able as he really is. What in the world did he teach him to do you ask??? Well....he taught AJ how to squirt a squirt bottle. My in-laws use this method (as did we to no avail) as a behavior modification method for their dog. AJ thought it was cool so Uncle Matt showed him how to do it. Less than 24 hours later this is what we encountered.




These are only two pics of a weekend of wetness. We were all given baths as AJ saw fit. He can now squirt that thing all the way across the room. However, here in lies the problem... He now thinks the 409 cleaning bottle, the windex bottle and the bruces hardwood floor cleaner as well as the tilex cleaner are all squirt bottles. THANKS MATT!!!!!

The other thing AJ liked to do is give you the squirt bottle and he would run away giggling and squealing. He liked for you to squirt him too. This is AJ and Oma as they are hiding under the blankets from the big bad mama with the squirt bottle! It was so cute I just HAD to get some pics of this.




By the way, I do not ban my mother-in-law to the couch when she visits. My father-in-law and their lab do. :0) I will post more later but my monster is now awake and calling for his mama.

House

I finally have a little time to download some pics of the new house. This is the house we left when we went on vacation....




This is the house we returned to....







It's really getting exciting now. I even took the camera with me inside when we walked through it the first time and I was so excited, I forgot to take any pictures. It wasn't until we were outside that I realized it. At least I remembered to get the outside pics. We have our first official walk through on Monday. They call it the "pre dry-wall" walk through. They have no idea we're bringing my Father-in-law with us. He's been building houses forever so he knows quality work, or shady work, when he sees it. We're going to be inspecting the plumbing and electrical as well as the actual frame of the house. So far though, from what we've seen, they've done a good job. We just need to sell the house we're in now, and we'll be good to go. I feel in my heart that God is going to allow this house to sell when it needs to though. I'm really praying and trying to give it to God so I don't get all freaky. If you don't mind, just keep us in your prayers. Please pray that the house we're in now sells in God's time and pray that I continue to "give it to God" and keep the heart and spirit I'm supposed to have. There are so many "what-if's" and if I focus on them I get all weirded out. I really have to stay focused right now. I want to have His heart and getting angry, anxious and lashing out isn't quite what he describes as "His" heart, KWIM??

Love you guys!!!!

Some pics of Myrtle Beach

I'm just posting pics on this thread. I've already done the journaling on the post before this one. Enjoy!!

This is the famous Uncle Mikie and AJ.



This is the "priss pot" Sadie Mae just barely putting her paw in the water. She was a trip to watch



My baby girl LOVING the water.



This was our first family pic on Broadway at the Beach



Mama and her Moose



AJ driving his car all by himself ((sniff sniff))



Mr. Independent



Mama and her monster, this is one of my favorite pics



And the last one, this is my favorite pic of the in-laws. It's a side view but I think I'm going to turn in into a black and white for them.



The rest are on Snapfish and I'll be sending out the invites soon.