Birthday Pictures...now that our desktop is up and running

Good Morning Sunshine!!

















One year check up with.....

















Doctor Colin

( I know that my living room is a mess...it disgusts me too.)










The PERFECT birthday cake baked by Mommy and Colin. Complete with Big Brother's favorite color frosting and (need I say more) SPRINKLES!!!




" MUST.....EAT...... CAKE......"

The joys of car ownership

Gotta LOVE it when the car is on the fritz.

Of course, there is no one to blame but myself. I've known that it was going to go kaput soon. For a while (about two weeks now) I've been negotiating with it to start. I would turn the key, the engine would rev up, I would have to hold down the gas for a while to keep it running, but eventually she would continue to idle without my help. I kept thinking, "just this one time...I PROMISE I'll get you to the mechanic tomorrow"...lol, well, I think little Miss Tribute got to the point where she didn't believe me anymore. I wonder why????

I watched a friend of mine's little guy this morning while she took her oldest to the Doctor. When she came back she asked if we wanted to go for lunch (an offer that I NEVER refuse, you will soon learn. I HAVE to get my adult interaction somwhere!)

They had already left to go to the restaurant, and THAT is when my dear little SUV decided that she was no longer going to run unless the gas pedal was down. That meant that I had to let my car coast down our driveway and turn in to the road (with NO power steering mind you). I then had to put it in park, quickly step on the brake to get it in to drive, and then faster than you can blink, step on the gas before it idled low enough to cut off. I was SOOO proud of myself when I got it going!!!! I didn't think far enough ahead though, because not a half mile down the road....is a STOP sign. Once again, I had to go through the stop, start, brake, gas routine. I managed to get us to the next.....STOP LIGHT! Oh man...it was such a pain in the ass to get to that restaurant! (See my priorities?? Food before transportation...am I wrong?) THEN, when we got there, I realized that I had to find a parking place (without stopping) that I could pull straight out of. There was NO way in Haites that I was going to be able to do my magic in reverse!!!

I figured that I, along with my munchkins, needed to at least get a good lunch before we headed to the mechanic. Who knew how long we would be stuck there. Luckily it was about 4 blocks away with few stops and starts. The worst part was trying to wait for a gap to cross FOUR lanes of traffic to get to the dealership. The whole time Colin was in the backseat screaming at me about something. Needless to say it probably wasn't one of my "proudest" mommy moments as I yelled back..., "HUSH, I HAVE TO DRIVE THE CAR!!!" Did I mention that this is in the pouring rain too?? Thanks Ernesto!

Can you just IMAGINE how frazzled I was when we finally got there?? Those poor, poor, men in the service department. I jumped out with Landon on one hip and sternly told Colin (my CAR fanatic) NOT to touch anything and stay RIGHT by my side. Somehow, I managed to coherantly tell this man what was going on with the car, and then I proceeded to BEG for a loaner to get home for afternoon nap time. Luckily, he remained very calm, and proceeded to tell me exactly what I needed to hear. "M'am, I can get you home, but I don't think I have a loaner". THANK GOD!!!

So.....some $300 later. We are home. Landon is asleep. Kelly will be picking up the car tonight with a friend's help and I am off to eat some chocolate.

Joseph MacGarvey Olson

Rest in Peace little Angel. You are loved and you are missed.

Carole has posted pictures of beautiful Joey, and more on their precious and all too short time with him. Please keep them in your prayers as I do.

Super Mommy???

My oldest son just informed me that I'm no longer Mommy.

I'm...."SUPER MOMMY!!!"

Lord, I WISH!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY Baby Boy Landon!!!

Wow, yep, it's been an entire year since my littlest man was born. There's nothing like your youngest's FIRST Birthday to give you a harsh reminder of how quickly the time passes. One year ago today, I was holding my baby for the first time, and marveling at how wonderful he was.

It's funny how the OB uses their little "wheel" to determine your due date, when in all reality you know when you conceived. I KNEW that Landon would come either on the 29th or 30th. They scheduled my c-section for the 30th, thinking that I was only 39 weeks (HA!). I went in to labor around 4am on the morning of my surgery. It was actually kind of nice. With Colin, I had to be induced because of my pre-eclampsia. At least with Landon, I knew that my body could do it on it's own. I also knew that he was "fully baked" and ready to meet us! Thank God both of my boys are healthy and happy. Reading many of the blogs that I do, I am reminded of *just* how lucky I am.

We keep getting the question, "Are you going to try for a girl??". Well, knowing me, we would have another boy (which I would be fine either way), but I just don't know if I want to gamble one more time. Meaning, I know all of the "things" that can happen. We will have to see. As Landon gets older and I see more toddler and less baby, I'll just have to see if my "aching uterus" will over-take my common sense!! It just seems that as I get older, I have less patience, especially for night wakings. I don't know if I have the energy to do it all over again. I know that Kelly is DONE...he can't stand that I'm still "waffling" about it.

I want to post some pics of my happy little guy, but LUCKY me, our desktop is screwing up today. For some reason I can access the internet with Kelly's laptop, but not the home computer. I will edit this post when it's working and put his "birthday pic" in here.

Our plan for the day is to go have a birthday lunch and then go to TOYS R US!!! Colin wants to help pick out a birthday gift for Landon, which I'm sure will end up being a car or train the *he* actually wants. During Landon's afternoon nap, Colin and I are going to bake and decorate a cake for him and we'll have a little family celebration when Daddy gets home.

I still just can't believe he's a year old....... we are so blessed.

Back from the land of Dorothy and Captian Feathersword

Well, we survived the Wiggles concert. It ACTUALLY was a pretty nice time too, believe it or not! They really do put on a fun show for the kids, despite the riduculously priced merchandise and food. ($3.75 for a bottle of water! It must be some pretty special "Aussie" water, Dasani, ever heard of it? hehe!)

I didn't mention this before, but we went to one of their concerts when Landon was just a little squirt, maybe 3 or 4 months old. Colin jumped up and down in his seat (could've been the cotton candy I guess), sang, and yelled like a madman last time around, but THIS time, we had a "refined" little fella with us. He was very calm and sat in his seat like a big boy. Any time I would lean over and sing a song along with them, he would calmly say, "Mommy, stop singing please." Huh??? What happened to my jolly little guy? Maybe he's just getting too grown up for things like that? I must already be starting to embarrass my 3 year old. Tough kid! You're stuck with me for the rest of your life AHAHAHAHA (the evil mommy laugh if you haven't heard it before)!! Here he is, Mr. "subdued" himself. He did say he was having a good time though, so I'll just have to trust him on that.

LANDON, now Landon had an absolute blast. He's hysterical when it comes to music. It must be the fact that he was "grown" on music. While I was pregnant with him, I was singing on the praise team at church every Sunday. We sang contemporary Christian music with electric guitars, bass guitars, and drums...the whole bit. I think he was born rockin'!

He must have thought the audience behind me was just for him because he just smiled and waved every time he looked up there (like a rock star no less!) and just danced away. He even thought that we brought along his own personal groupie. Madeline, the sweetest little girl you'll ever meet, came along with some friends of ours. She is in love with Landon and wouldn't leave his side during the entire concert. I think that Landon is a little enamored as well. Can you tell? I'm going to be in trouble in fifteen years or so!!

One other thing happened that was quite interesting. At the last concert, Greg ( the yellow Wiggle) was not there. They announced that he had flown back to Australia to have hernia surgery and that "Sam" would be filling in for him. Well, guess what happened this time around? Greg, had to fly back to Australia because he had been having "dizzy spells". Sam (the NEW guy in yellow) filled in for Greg at both concerts. Hmmmmmmm. There is something FISHY going on here, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it.

####Missing Wiggle Theory Number 1: Sam has been the "back up" Wiggle for two years now. As he has waited in the wings for his chance, he became more and more resentful to the Wiggles "front man" Greg. One night in Phoenix, Arizona, he seized his opportunity to "fill in" by spiking Greg's fruit salad with rat poison...thus leading to his ultimate "flight back to Australia". They just can't figure out WHY Greg keeps getting sick, but Sam is always ready to step up and fill in. Dum, dum, dum, DUUUUUMMMMM!!

More prayers for an Angel

Please keep Carole and her family in your thoughts and prayers. Joey was able to meet his Mommy, Daddy, brother, and sister on Friday, but went to heaven shortly thereafter. My heart is breaking for them. I am a woman of faith, but there are many things that happen in this world that I do not understand. I don't think I ever will.

TOOT, TOOT, Chugga, Chugga, Big Red Car!!

Wow! I have been a "busy little blogger" today haven't I??

I just thought I would sign on and let you know about the EXCITING afternoon that we have planned....can anyone guess from the title? Yep, we are off to see the WIGGLES...whoo HOOOOO!! (How amazingly sad the things that can get me all in a tizzy!) LOL!

I think the boys will enjoy it, at least I hope after the $80 + dollars we spent on this (GULP!), they will. I was up until 1:30 am, so I'm a little tired to be taking on this adventure today. At least Kelly is getting off of work early to help out.

SOOOooooo, wish me luck as we venture "up town" to battle all of the Friday afteroon traffic and find a reasonable parking place so we can lug our two children PLUS all of their stuff to the coliseum. I'm off to locate a book bag to hold said "stuff" as soon as I log off. This will be interesting!!

Pictures and a synopsis of our outing soon to follow!

OH...did you NOTICE that I figured out how to link things...I'm SO darn PROUD of myself!!! It only took me about two months to find that little button up there!

On a less selfish note

I have been, and continue to pray for Carole, Joseph, and their family. No words can describe what they are going through, and I'm sure no words can help. Hopefully, just knowing that people are lifting them up to God in their time of sorrow can ease the pain just a little....


Natalie Grant - Held

Two months is too little
They let him go
They had no sudden healing
To think that providence would
Take a child from his mother while she prays Is appalling

Who told us we’d be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We’re asking why this happens
To us who have died to live?
It’s unfair

Chorus:
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we’d be held

This hand is bitterness
We want to taste it, let the hatred NUMB our sorrow
The wise hands opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow

(Chorus) ...
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we’d be held

Bridge:
If hope is born of suffering
If this is only the beginning
Can we not wait for one hour watching for our Savior?

(Chorus)
This is what it means to be held
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
And you survive
This is what it is to be loved
And to know that the promise was
When everything fell we’d be held

Prayers for Carole, Joseph, and their family

Okay, so I'm a dork and I don't know how to set up links yet but...please check out Carole's site:

http://thejourneyfromhere.spaces.live.com/

Her unborn son, Joseph, (scheduled for c-section delivery tomorrow morning) has been diagnosed with aRight-sided Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia. Basicly, all of the organs that were to have formed in the lower half of his body during gestation, have formed in his chest. This has severely stunted the growth of his lungs. Ultimately, this means that he cannot breathe to live once he is born. She is going to the hospital tomorrow for what should be (and will be) one of the most joyous occasions of her life, yet with what the Doctors have predicted, it will be horrendous as well......

Carole, I pray for you to have the strength that you need to make it through tomorrow, and the days and weeks to come. I pray that if you feel you cannot go on, that God will hold you up and keep your face looking towards tomorrow. I pray for Joseph. I pray that you have time with him even if it's only minutes (hopefully much longer, God willing), to be able to tell him the things that you have wanted and waited to tell him for nine long months. He will and does know the love that you have for him...he knows that you have been fighting for him his whole life. You are an amazing woman.

God be with you and your family, and with your Angel now, during his flight "home", and forevermore.....

I.....hate.....the grocery store.

Tired Mommy...

Hungry Kids...

No Patience (that goes for all THREE of us!)

I....Hate.....the grocery store.

Enough said.

Has it really been a year???

I am sitting here trying to digest the fact that my youngest son, my baby, my "stinkerbug", my Landon....will be a year old a week from tomorrow. Gosh...it went by so quickly. Even today my little man actually pitched a real FIT when I took something away from him that he wasn't supposed to have. ( I didn't think a D size battery was an apporopriate toy for my little guy!) I will attribute that to the excellent teaching of my 3 and a half year old (Landon is a very fast learner!)

It's amazing the "rock" and "hard place" that I, and probably ANY mother at all, find myself in. I look forward to the milestones... sleeping through the night, rolling over, sitting up, sleeping through the night, the pincher grip, the first solid foods, sleeping through the night, crawling, pulling up...Oh, and did I mention sleeping through the night?? (Landon chose NOT to do this until he was a full 10 months old.) Yet, I cling SO unbelievably tightly to that sweet, cuddly, "baby-ness" that only exists when I child is under a year of age. I will miss SO much the snuggles. I think the absolute sweetest feeling in the world, is to have your newborn fall soundly asleep on your chest. I actually cried when I realized that Landon was too big to do that anymore. Those sweet and quirkly little "jerks" that babies make to sounds in the environment. Reflexes that disappear in mere months. Those amazing little smiles and giggles that babies who are even too young to smile make, as your holding them lovingly in your arms. Maybe this is why I haven't *pushed* to wean Landon from nursing. When I look down at him...I still see that 8 pound 4 ounce baby that we welcomed to the world almost a year ago. It's gone far to quickly for my taste.

I'm afraid that I pushed forward too aggressively. Did I miss much as I looked for the next milestone? Did I miss much as I yearned for adult company, rather than that of my child/children? Did I wallow in what I felt was a pit of lonely, misery and miss the sweet, innocent and fleeting company of my baby? I hope not. I have very sweet memories...but I do have difficult ones. MOST of which are directly related to him not having slept through the night for 10 months, but really....even some of those late night feedings and wakings were sweet. Just me and my baby. I'll never forget the night I tried to let him cry it out (LOADS of fun, let me tell ya!), and when I finally gave up and walked in to his room, he was standing at the side of crib and said, "mama". My heart melted and boy did that "mommy guilt" kick in!

I think Landon is probably our last. It's hard to type that. I will miss my baby, just like I miss Colin as a baby. I hear there is so much to look forward to though. I just need to remind myself to live in the HERE and NOW. I want to remember these days sweetly, and more importantly, I want my kids to as well.


Happy Birthday my little man!!! You are a blessing, and there are many days that I don't feel worthy to be you or Colin's Mommy. Sometimes I can get so caught up in my "stuff", that I don't step back and look at how lucky I really am. I'm doing the best I can kiddos. Never doubt how much your Mommy loves you....always!

What to DO today?

As a SAHM, I think one of the questions that I really CAN'T stand more than anything is: "What are we going to do today?" As I sit here typing this, the weather is overcast and BLAAAAHH. Will it rain? Do I pack the boys up and try to go to the park, or will we all end up a soaking, soppy, wet mess? Do we go to the mall and let them play in the GERM infested children's area with other kids who, unbeknownst to them or their parents, are carrying the current nasty virus that is going around? ( I hear it's Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease this week...nice. Blisters on the hands, feet, and in mouths along with a raging fever). I do carry my antibacterial wet-wipes, but Lord knows I can't possibly wipe down everything, even though I DO try!!

If you are ever in SC and you see a Mother that looks like a crazed lunatic wiping tables, chairs, high-chairs, and two little boys' hands incessently with small wet-wipes, it's probably me. Just so you know.

So...after all of that, What ARE we going to do today?? Let me know if you have any suggestions!!

Ever had a can of soda EXPLODE...

....in your freezer?? Well, it's amazing how the entire top of the can came completely OFF, and the power at which it exploded has coated EVERYTHING in there ( I mean EVERYTHING!!) with frozen, frothy,diet, caffeine-free, Dr. Pepper.


What a way to start my Monday. It's still in there, I just can't bear to open it and start cleaning it up right now (Although, I did make sure to take pictures for your viewing pleasure) .

This feels more like a Tuesday job to me....

I have to write about this...an ACTUAL NIGHT OUT with ADULTS!!!

Can you believe it? I know that I can't! I LOVE my boys, but I love them EVEN MORE when I get some quality, adult time away from them. It's weird how that works isn't it? I actually got to have an adult conversation, where I could focus my attention on the person I was speaking to and get an entire thought or STREAM of thoughts out without getting interrupted. My food was warm while I ate it and let me tell you how I thouroughly enjoyed my Corona with two limes!!! It's too bad that I am exhausted having come off of a really rough night with Landon last night, or I would be out shooting pool and listening to a band instead of posting. The poor fella has a double ear infection and has been running some awful fevers the last two days. Not just 100, more like 104 and above! It's a scary thing when someone that little and you love THAT much is so sick. He's been on antibiotics for 2 full days now, so hopefully he's on the mend. I'm hoping he'll sleep through the night tonight because he needs it as badly as I do.

LOL....look at me. Signing on to post about my awesome night out and what do I do? I gush about my baby being sick. I sure do love my little fellas...but I STILL enjoyed my time away! :)

Well, I'm off to bed! Nothing like one beer (can you tell I'm a LIGHTWEIGHT!?) to get you ready for those soft, cozy, sheets!!! MMMmmmmmm.....sleep........

It's ME again...but now you can SEE me!

I wonder how many times I can introduce myself in one blog?? I think this might be the 3rd time out of 4 posts...is this a record in blogland?

So, here I am with my son Landon at the Morten Arboretum in Chicago. Did you think I was a natural blonde? LOL..yep, probably! We were up for a visit with my Dad and Stepmom last week. It was pretty nice, besides being stuck in the house for naps most of the time (NO, not my naps.. THAT would be heaven!) . It was also great because I actually had some adult interaction...imagine that!? At times I forget that it actually exists. It must be why my vocabulary consists mostly of "gooos" and "gaaas", and telling anyone that I need to use the bathroom usually comes out as, "I have to go potty". Nice huh? I'm 33 and, "I have to go to the potty". UGH! My brain is turning to MUSH!

My Dad and SM are working the PGA Golf tourney at Medeina this week. Pretty cool, but it made for an interesting comment from my father. We had this trip planned and the tickets purchased for months now (choosing the week was a collaberation with my Father.) The week before we came up he informed me that he would have to work while we were there. No biggie, he's pretty much a work-a-holic, so I expected that. He went on to inform me that, "He couldn't take 2 weeks off in a row"becuse he was taking the following week off to work the PGA...nice....I'm glad you've got your priorities straight Dad.

There's a WHOLE lotta background on that story. Maybe one day I'll fill you in. I do love my Dad, but it's not because we've got the ideal Father/Daughter relationship. Far from it. He does love the kids and both he and my Stepmom spoil them rotten. Maybe he's trying to make up for his "Dad" years in the "Grandparenting" years. If that's the case...my boys are going to make out like BANDITS!! :)

Helloooooo...back from the land of the lost user name and password!

LOL!! Not that anyone missed me right? Just for kicks though, we can pretend that someone other than me actually reads this blog!!!

So...how are we?? Well, all of my guys are sick, including the BIGGEST one who tends to be the biggest baby (love ya hon, but it's still annoying!) :) Landon has a double ear infection and Colin is taking it like a trooper. Oh..me? Well, I'm sick with the same junk, but no one really has bothered to ask. I'm doin' okay though, just in case you're wondering.

So....I think I've decided to change this up a bit. The first two posts are me...yep, the "brighter side" me. Don't get me wrong. I love my boys more than life itself, but life as a SAHM isn't all roses and playdates. It's hard....and I'm tired. I'm depressed and I'm lonely. I'm longing for adult interaction and something "different", but I'm scared to let that show b/c GOD forbid someone thinks that I don't feel blessed to be here with my boys. I'm tired of putting on the fake smile every day. From here on out, you're dealing with me and all of the crap that comes along with me. I do have my good days, but I'm not covering up the shitty ones anymore...just so ya know.

So, welcome back dear readers!! (hehe!) I hope you don't mind the "new" me....or should I say the real one??