Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours!! I feel like I have so much to be thankful for. To mention a few things.... I am sooooooo thankful for my 2 beautiful and healthy kids. It goes without saying..... they mean the world to me!! I am thankful for my husband, who is also a wonderful Daddy! I am thankful for my family & friends, who I cherish so much! I am lucky to have such awesome friends & family who always stand by us through the good and bad times. Love you all! :)

I am thankful that my husband and I both have jobs during this tough economic time. And I'm so thankful for my daycare provider, who takes wonderful care of our children while we're out working!

I'm thankful for the Hawkeyes and their AWESOME season; Bon Jovi who we'll be seeing next Summer; Mt. Dew which I could not get through a day without; my Honda that gets me where I need to be; my DVR that allows me to keep up with all my favorite TV shows; Gmail b/c I would be LOST without being able to email you all; Holiday decorations that add so much excitement to my kids faces; and.... the giggles & screams that come from my kiddos!

I talked with Bryce about what he was thankful for.... he said, "Jenna, Mommy, Daddy, cookies, our house and Christmas!" :) He's such a sweetie! Yesterday at school he made those little Indian hats, and he asked the teacher if he could make one for Jenna too! I am thankful that he is thoughtful enough to do such a thing! How sweet! Jenna was so happy to get something from Bryce's backpack! She wore it all night and even took it to bed with her!

I'm also thankful for Bryce's school and the positive influence his teachers have had on him over the last 2 years! He's loving school and learning so much!

Jenna isn't quite old enough to tell me what she's thankful for yet.... but if I had to guess, SHOES would be at the top of her list! Here she is sleeping with her snow boots! Yes - her snow boots! She is obsessed with shoes. She has a favorite pair that are brown & pink. She wears them almost everyday... even when her outfit is black!! :) She also has a pair of leopard print boots she is quite fond of and has recently found her snow boots!!

Seriously though, Jenna would be thankful for BRYCE. She loves him dearly and it's fun to watch how they interact. She is also thankful for Mommy, Daddy, all her Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Yvonne, Dora, Doodlebops and cookies & gummies! :)

I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and get to spend time with your family & friends! Travel Safe!

Recipes from 4 Year Olds!!

All of the kids in Bryce's preschool class created recipes to make the perfect turkey this Thanksgiving! Enjoy a few of my favorites! (Feel free to borrow these recipes if you want!)

Bryce - Get the turkey at the store. I think Walmart. Put it in the oven for 20 minutes at 20 degrees. It is 100 pounds. Before you put it in you have to pat it like this, with your hand. Cook the frosting for the turkey in the microwave. When the turkey is done smoosh the frosting all over it. Eat it like this with a fork. I think I want yogurt and pizza with it. Orange juice to drink and fruit roll-ups for dessert.

Sam - Mom buys a turkey from Meijer and you cook it. You cook it for about 1000 feet long at 3 temperature. You cook it with a measuring cup thing, in the stove. When it's ready to eat, you eat it with a fork. There is just us eating. I would have chicken nuggets, French toast, waffles and pineapples with it. A "treat" for dessert and juice to drink. Mom says "IT'S READY!"

Sarah - On Thanksgiving Day we go to McDonalds to eat. They make the turkey with greasy and messy stuff. I think it cooks for 710 minutes long. It's a BIG turkey, about 4 feet long. They put it in a big oven and make it till it turns white. I would have green beans and rice with it. I want Sprite to drink and ice cream for dessert.

Grace - I think I get the turkey at Costco. A smaller one than 100 pounds will be better. I put it in the oven on 5 minutes, on the heat temperature. If it was alive then someone shot it and brought it to the store. I still get it in the oven. I would have noodles and vanilla ice cream with it. I will drink milk.

Hailey - We are going to Grandma's house for dinner, I would help her buy the turkey at Costco. It would be about 5 dollars and no cents. You cut it up in pieces before putting it in the oven. You cook it for about 10 minutes, probably at 8 hot burns. At 8:00 at night it should be done. It has to be brownish. We would have jello, grapes and beans to eat with it. I would have lemonade to drink, and water too. Oh, and cupcakes for dessert.

Matthew - Get the turkey at Walmart. It is 19 pounds or 20 pounds. We'll put it in the oven. it is too hot for me so my Mom will put it in with the eggs. When I put my hand there it is HOT burn hot. When our screamer goes, it tells us it is burning and we have to take it out. I think I will have pasta with it and juice and water to drink. We can have ice cream sandwiches for dessert.

School Days

Bryce got his school pictures back and I thought it would be cute to compare them to mine and Cory's when we were his age.

In this picture, I am 5 and in Kindergarten. Bryce is 4 and in Preschool. Cory is 8 and in 3rd grade. (He has about 16 rubbermaid totes in our basement, most of which are full of baseball cards. When I found this one I stopped looking... I will update if I find a younger one!)

So... who does Bryce look like???

Here are bigger photos of each of us. Boy - the quality now vs when we were little has changed a bit! But it's still good ol' Life Touch!

This picture of me is a little blurry. I can't figure out why it won't scan nicer. It doesn't look like that in person. Oh well! You get the just of it!! :)

Cory is also a cutie! He was laughing at this haircut though!! :)

Pink Power

I'm sure you've all see the new breast cancer screening guidelines put out by the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF). I'm still picking my jaw up off of the ground. I cannot BELIEVE that after all of the fighting that organizations such as, Susan G Komen and National Breast Cancer Organization, have done to spread awareness and get women (and men) the testing we need.... that THIS is now being "suggested" from our government. Hell - even the NFL football players were wearing pink to spread awareness!

I am not a political person... you all know that. But this really has me riled up! I am passionate about spreading breast cancer awareness, fighting for a cure and getting women the mammograms that save their lives.

I read on abcnews.com that a yearly mammogram costs $125. I realize that when you multiply that by the number of women in their 40's, this could save a lot of money. BUT what kind of message is this sending? That women in their 40's, who are most likely mothers of young children, are not worth the $125?? Is this the start of rationing medical care in the US? I am not liking it. I guess it's all about the money now!

The American Cancer Society has not changed their guidelines. They are still suggesting we start yearly mammograms at age 40. Thank God!

Cancer.org gives these stats...
Age 30-39 - chances of breast cancer are 1 in 233.
Age 40-49 - chances of breast cancer are 1 in 69.
Age 50-59 - chances of breast cancer are 1 in 38.
Age 60-69 - chances of breast cancer are 1 in 27.

I guess for some reason the US Preventive Services Task Force believes that 1 in 69 odds are not that bad. Hmmm. I disagree. And I am quite angered by this whole scenario. The Susan G Komen website has an article called "Making sense of the new guidelines". They said we should react "calmly". I guess we have to have faith that the right people, organizations and doctors will fight for us to continue to get the screening and tests we need.

I know there are a lot of false positives given by mammograms on women in their 40's. But personally, I would much rather have the false positive, a few more tests, and a week of stress before finding out it was nothing -- than having breast cancer go undetected until it is in the later stages and chances of survival were slim. Did you know that these tumors can DOUBLE in size every 6 months!?!? (Sigh...) I'm getting worked up as I'm writing this! ;)

When I worked for the bridal magazine, I volunteered with the Brides Against Breast Cancer event. It's a bridal gown sale. All of the gowns are donated by manufacturers, stores and former brides. (Our good friend Amy B actually donated her dress when I was working the event!!! -- YOU ROCK AMY!) All of the proceeds from this event go towards granting a wish for a terminally ill breast cancer patient. The reason I bring this up, is that the majority of the wishes being granted were going to women in their 30's and 40's. Moms.... just like me and you!

If it comes right down to it, I will pay for my $125 test each year!! I hope you will too! Keep spreading awareness and fighting for a cure!! PINK, PINK, PINK!!!!

Sorry to get all crazy on you guys.... I don't want you to think I'm starting to follow in my husband's footsteps with all his political tangents. :) My next post will be about happy, cheery Mommy things!! :)

(Note: My husband just told me that the government has "retracted" their guidelines. Apparently it caused some bad press... you think?!?! Sorry - I missed that piece of news. I am going to keep this post up though b/c I feel very passionately about this and I am afraid they will do this again in the future. )

Special Gifts

My favorite kind of gift is one that the kids make! I love sitting down with Bryce after school to see all of the projects he has brought home! Today I was surprised with a gift he made for me (and Daddy). Bryce made this special candle for us for Thanksgiving! It's so cute and I LOVE it! We'll make sure to burn it over our Thanksgiving dinners!

100% Drama

I found this pillow and couldn't resist. It describes Jenna to a T!

Jenna quickly fell in love with the pillow and it has been added to the MANY things she takes to bed with her! :)

Jenna saw the ENT today. Guess what!? The other doctor was wrong. Both tubes are still IN! She had a massive amount of wax build up. He dug the wax out, while I used my full body to hold her down! I guess both tubes are a bit plugged up, but he said both ears look clear! YAY! He gave us some ear drops which should clean the tubes out and said he doesn't need to see us again until January. Great news!! Now we just hope the tubes will last until Spring!

Marvin the Elf

When we got home today, there was a package waiting for us on the front porch. It was for Bryce & Jenna from Santa!!! The kids were so excited to open it!! Inside we found a letter from Santa and a book called "The Elf on the Shelf". The letter explained that the Elf was sent from the North Pole to watch Bryce & Jenna. Every night when the kids are sleeping, the elf flies back to the North Pole to report to Santa about all the good & bad things they did that day! When we wake up in the morning, the elf will be in another location in the house. The elf sits up high and CANNOT be touched. He will lose his magical powers if he is touched and he will not be able to fly back to the North Pole. Santa let us know that the elf had probably already arrived at our house!?!?! WHAT!!! :) So we quickly ran around the house trying to find him. It took awhile, but Bryce found him sitting on top of our clock!

As we were looking, I kept asking Bryce and Jenna, "Do you think the elf is really here??". They both would say "Noooo". Bryce seemed a bit hesitant about the whole situation until we found the elf. I think he was scared as to what this elf was going to look like and what he was going to do!!! haha! Jenna was quite afraid of the elf for about 20 minutes after we found him. She just sat in my lap and starred at him!

We read the Elf on the Shelf book and found out that we were supposed to name our elf. We thought and thought and thought about it, but Bryce eventually decided on the name Marvin, as in Marvin McNutt!! :)

Bryce had question after question about Marvin. How did he get in our house? We decided he must use his magical powers and snap his fingers to appear in the house. How did he get on the clock? We think he must have flown b/c there is no way he could have jumped that high! Will the same elf come to our house everyday? Yep! Marvin is ours for many years to come! Why can't Marvin talk? Well, that's one of Santa's special rules. Marvin can only talk to Santa and other elves. He can hear everything we say though! Bryce asked Marvin if he would bring Rudolph when he comes back tomorrow!! :) I told him I'm sure Marvin will ask Santa, but I think Santa needs Rudolph's help at the North Pole until Christmas! :) I could go on and on with all of the questions.... it was a really cute hour that we spent talking about Marvin! I will always remember it!

Marvin will have WONDERFUL things to tell Santa tonight when he heads to the North Pole. Even Jenna seems to kind of understand, "The elf is watching"! Bryce picked up all of the toys by himself without whining at all! :) I am wondering if Santa would like to send an elf over all year round!!

This is such a cute Christmas tradition and I'm so happy to be starting the Elf on the Shelf tradition with Bryce & Jenna this year!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Happy Birthday to my Grandma who is 80 today! You are very special to us and we love you so much!!

Wish Lists

It's that time of year! Christmas is just around the corner and everyone is starting to SHOP, SHOP, SHOP!!! Our family always likes to have ideas for the kids. My two lucky little ones have 3 sets of Grandparents, a set of Great Grandparents, a Great Grandma, 3 sets of Aunts/Uncles and even Great Aunts/Uncles who like to buy for them...... and we can't forget Santa! He needs a list too! So.... this equates to my kids being spoiled rotten!!

This year I decided to try to find a Wish List website to keep everything straight. Let me start by saying this..... I LOVE online organization. I love my Google Calendar and anything else that helps me stay organized online. If you come to my house, you may notice it's not QUITE as organized. I try. But it's hard to keep up with it all. My online world though.... now that's organized!! :)

I've done the Target lists, etc in the past, but I wanted something that let me add items from multiple stores and didn't make people feel required to buy at a certain store. Something that would let each gift giver mark an item as "bought" after the purchase they just made in a store. I also wanted to be able to create a separate list for each child. I searched and searched and searched for the right website. I signed up for about 6 different Wish List websites, played with them and decided it just wasn't exactly what I was looking for. I was seriously considering building my own Wish List site!!! ;)

I stumbled onto www.WishPot.com. This site has just about everything I was looking for.

Both of my kids have their own wish list. I can add items from ANYwhere on the web. In fact, you install a cool little WishPot button in your browser and as you're surfing Target, Walmart, Toys R Us, Amazon, etc all you have to do is click the WishPot button and it will pop up and ask you which list you want to add it to and whaaa laaa.... it's added to your list! It's seriously SOOO easy and convenient!

The lists show a picture of the item listed, the price, it gives you space to write a note (such as "Size 2T") and a link to the website where you originally added it to your WishPot. You can give your items a priority... such as "I neeeeeed it!!", "I really really want it", "I want it" or "I wouldn't mind having it". Then the people looking at your list can search by priority, price, etc. All great features!

After someone selects what they are going to buy from your list (or after they get home from buying it), they can come back to your list and mark the item as "Reserved". This will give the item a tan background and let everyone else know that someone has already got that item. PERFECT!

There is one downside to this site though.... you do have to register in order to see which gifts have been reserved and to actually reserve a gift. This bothers me b/c it lets anyone see the list without being logged in. And unless you know what you're doing, you may think that none of the gifts have been purchased. :(

The registration is very easy... only your name, your email address and a password you make up. Very simple. And I have not received any SPAM from them.

So there you have it. This post was probably WAY too long to just talk about a silly Wish List website. But like I said at the beginning... I do love online organization!!!!! I posted this b/c I thought some of you may be looking for a way to organize your children's Holiday Wish List as well!

If you would like to see how the WishPot website works, email me and I will send you a link to our lists so you can check it out! :)

Have a great weekend and GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No Repeats Please!!

The past couple days Jenna has woke up from her nap SCREAMING. And when I say screaming, I mean SCREAMING!!!!! And not just for a minute or two.... no, no, that is not like Jenna. She carries on for 30-40 minutes!! (I am NOT exaggerating.) When she did it on Saturday, we kind of wrote it off as "one of Jenna's fits". Of course, we were all frustrated by the time we got through it, but just figured it was Jenna being Jenna! When she did it again today, we started to get concerned. She flailed her body around and cringed every time we touched her. She rolled around on the floor in pain. She cried, cried, and cried some more. We kept asking her "what hurts". Of course, she was screaming so loud, she probably couldn't even hear us!

In case you're wondering, YES, all of the neighbors can hear her! But they all "know" Jenna too! :)

We started to get worried. What if something was really wrong with her! We decided to take her over to urgent care. (They are almost to the point of knowing our vehicle as it pulls up!!) Bryce was still napping (I have NO idea how he sleeps through it), so I took Jenna and Cory waited here. Of course, by the time I got there, she had settled down. I decided to take her in anyways. I was getting concerned something was wrong. So I walk in and the receptionist asks me if I need to see a doctor. I said, "Well - I don't know." I told her the whole story about the flailing, the screaming, the cringing. She kind of looks at me and says, "so basically she was crying after her nap?!". Giving me an attitude like are you seriously wasting our time with this!?!? I felt this big (holding my fingers about an inch apart). I didn't know what to do. I was about in tears myself. I just wanted to make sure she was ok, but I also understood how silly it sounded that I was taking her there, basically b/c she was throwing a fit!! I was not trying to make a big deal out of nothing, but this was out of character.... EVEN for Jenna!

I asked her what she thought I should do. She said "well, it's up to you ma'am.". She said that a couple times. I finally said, "we'll see the doctor". We were there. I figured I might as well just have them look her over.

The nurse was great and so much more understanding! The doctor came in and determined she had a double ear infection. He said both ears looked pretty bad. He gave her a script for zithromax and instructed me to see her ENT. He said she has a massive amount of wax build up and her ENT is best equipped to get the wax out and check her ears again.

I felt better knowing I did take her there for a reason. I would have felt dumb walking out of there with the conclusion that she was throwing a tantrum! haha! And I'm glad to have her on some meds to make her feel better!

Last year Jenna experienced ear infection after ear infection after ear infection. She finally got tubes in February. The doctor informed me today that both tubes are out. :(

I am really hoping this Winter will NOT be a repeat of last year. When we go to see the ENT, I will request tubes MUCH earlier this time! I don't want to see her suffer like she did last year. Poor girl!

Hopefully she'll be feeling better within a couple days!

Clock Changes

The clocks just changed back last week. I understand why this happens, I actually Googled it this morning and read all about the history, controversies, economic effects, etc.... I'm not going to bore you with all of those details. But I WILL say this..... I truly think who-ever is in charge of this whole clock changing thing needs to come to my house to get up with Jenna at 5:00am!!! Yesterday she got up at 4:45am.... for the day!! Today, it was about 5:05 or so. This is not acceptable to me. At my house, 5:00 is still considered "the middle of the night"! I am not a farmer. I am a web developer and my morning does not start until 6:15!! I know we are not the only parents dealing with this "adjustment"! I was actually just talking with a friend last night who is having the same problem with her 2 year old. So I'm guessing you're feeling my pain... but I wonder how long it will take Jenna's "internal clock" to realize the change we've made?? :) Again - LOVE her dearly! :)

Remeber When... (boxes)

So I thought I would start a "series" called "Remember When". I'll put new "Remember When" posts up every once in awhile! :)

Remember When.... boxes were the BEST toy around!?!?

Boxes can be.... a house, a bed, a car, a car seat, a bathtub, a school, a store, a library, a hiding spot... and the list goes on and on! Kids can spend HOURS playing with a simple box and find so much joy in it! It's one of those times you look at that "box of joy" and remember all the little things in life that mean so much!!

Little Miss Leopard Print!! :)

I wanted to show you Jenna's adorable Winter gear! I found this coat on eBay a couple months ago for $6.50! It seriously looks brand new! Today when I was at Target I found these matching gloves & hat! HOW PERFECT! She definitely looks like a Princess now!!! :)

Trick or Treat - Smell My Feet!

Giddy Up! This year Bryce was a cowboy on a horse and Jenna was a cowgirl. Bryce changed his mind after I had already bought the horse and wanted to be a power ranger!!!!!!! But adding a holster and guns to his costume sealed the deal as a cowboy!! :) He didn't wear the horse for the majority of the night though. I figured it was one of the last years I might be able to get the kids to match since next year I figure Jenna will have a MUCH stronger opinion on what she wants to be. (She usually has a very strong opinion about everything going on!!!)

She made a very cute cowgirl! Giddy up horsey!!!

And what a handsome little cowboy!!

Jenna was very excited about her bucket and was even MORE excited when she learned that people were filling it with candy!!

We tried to re-do this picture where the sun wouldn't shine in the background, but that didn't work out so well! So this will do!! :)

We went to visit Great Grandma! What a great picture!

Then we were off to the farm to visit Great Grandma & Grandpa.

It would have been nice to get a great picture of Demi and Jenna.... my little drama queen had other plans though. She wanted NOTHING to do with taking anymore pictures! Demi looks so cute & sweet though!!! :)

It's time to put the Halloween stuff away, but Bryce walked out with this on yesterday! He looked pretty funny! Quite the character!