Purging.

When we moved I was able to get rid of so much of our unused clothing, books, and baby stuff.

In fact, I had a hard time trying to sell used books! I ended up donating them to the local book sale. However, I didn't even get a receipt! Ugh.

I wish I would have known of a website where the books would have been sold quickly and I didn't have to pay tons of fees.

SellBackYourBook.com looks like a good place to go to find and sell books! Maybe next time....

TV

I really miss my television. For some reason it seems like I just don't have time nor the attention span to sit my fat ass in front of the television.

Then there's this little voice in the back of my head saying "if you have time to sit down then maybe you should go do laundry, paint, and clean the house..."

Shut the hell up, right?

Maybe I'll be able to catch up on television the next time I'm home sick with the flu and Margot has to take off to watch the kids.

Dressed for success!

The last time we went on a vacation we stayed at an amazing five star hotel in Cancun, Mexico. Graem was two years old, and when we walked in the door, we knew we were in heaven!

The staff greeted us in beautiful bright blue uniform polo shirts. The staff were courteous, seemed happy and comfortable in their clothes, and within minutes I had a nice beverage in my hand. You could tell they loved their uniforms and they weren't the typical and frumpy outfits that other hotel staff has to wear!

Typically when you go to hotels you will see all types of uniforms, often they are frumpy and look like ugly business uniforms, and often none of the employees' uniforms match, which often makes it hard to tell who is an employee and who is a guest!

Throughout our stay at this resort it was always easy to find the staff whenever we needed something, because their bright blue hotel uniforms were so easy to spot.

I was so impressed by the polo uniform shirts the employees were wearing, I asked about them. It turns out they were provided by iD by Landau.

iD by Landau's products are quite beautiful and their uniforms are not at all frumpy. They offer clothing for almost every industry. The polo uniform shirts seemed like a perfect and comfortable choice for a resort environment. If you are looking for top notch clothing and a professional way to market your business or organization - look no further than iD by Landau.

Identity apparel offers a great and very easy way to market your business and contribute to quality customer service!

Take it from me, when we walked in the hotel the first thing I noticed was professional look of the employees who rushed to greet us. They seemed happy and comfortable in what they were wearing, and they were dressed to impress which is exactly what they did! Plus, they kept the wonderful drinks coming!

Netflix!

We'll we've rejoined. We're going to try Netflix out again and try the streaming to live television thingy. Margot has it hooked up and ready to go.

First on our list is "Dexter". My friend is in love with it and I've heard other good things from other people.

I'll let you know how it goes...

Burn baby, burn.

These past few days I have been working my fingers to the bone. I sweat like crazy and I know I have been working off some serious calories.

Then I step on the scale.

Up two pounds.

Darn.

Maybe I should just cut to the chase and get some serious help from noxycut. I've heard that it works wonders and it might just need the jumpstart I need to help me lose all of the weight that I need to!

She's SO mad.

Emmy has yet to take a nap today. I'm watching a friend's little girl and Emmy has been pretty excited plus we're out of our routine. Either way...she's in her room throwing a complete fit.

I can't believe this drama is starting and she's not even two yet.

I'm screwed.

Oh man...

I just stepped on the scale after having way too much friend time and let me tell you...it's not good.

I was up.

I lost some good weight while I was having gall bladder issues and I'd love to keep that weight off.

Maybe I should just put out the white flag and look for the best weight loss pills out there.

Then again, I could just do a better diet and exercise.

Avatar...

maybe.

I just got the Avatar Blu-Ray and DVD set at Sam's today.

Let's just say that our Samsung Blu-Ray 1250 model SUCKS. It screws up constantly and I will NEVER EVER EVER buy anything Samsung again. Their tech support speaks little English and they have me resetting the thing 100 times and it never fixes the actual problem!

So unfashionable.

So I must admit that I went to the Flax sale Friday. I'm embarrassed to say it because God knows the clothes aren't the most stylish. However, I think I was able to get some things that were dressy enough for me to wear to work.

I also went to the shoe sale they had going on next door. Let's just say they didn't have prada shoes. No way. In fact, it was your typical Birkenstock, Prada, and Keen selections.

Exhausted.

I've been so tired lately. I really do not know what is going on. Aside from me busting balls on the house trying to get it painted and clean. Then there's Emmy...

It seems like each night when I lay down to go to bed it takes me a matter of five seconds and I'm GONE.

I guess it helps since Margot snores like a bear and typically keeps me awake if I fall asleep after her!

A little gambling...

goes a long way!

When I was in college I dabbled into a little online casinos for real money. Let's face it, we did not have a whole lot of money and a girl has got to get rich somehow! Of course, I could have gotten a part-time job but that would have been way too hard.

I started out with only $20 and before the day had ended I was up to close to $200. Margot told me that once I had the $200 mark that we could go get a Playstation 2 at the mall.

So that's what we did.

I continued to dabble here and there and never did as good.

We had friends that just got back from Vegas and all they play are sloth machines. They went for more of a vacation but they did end up winning some money. All of which they donated to charity!

Of course, they probably could have just stayed in Ithaca and done online slot machines for real money!

CasinoScandinavia.com offers an easy-to-use website where you can explore the world of online gambling and casinos. In fact, if my real estate gig does not make money I might go back to my days of a twenty-something online gambler. Minus the twenty something...

Saturday night!

Today was so busy. The first thing I had to do was to leave the house because Margot had house stuff that she needed to tackle. So as we're getting ready I get a call from my friend, Jen. She says she needs to get out and wanted to go to Sam's Club.

Of course, I absolutely love Sam's and within an hour we had taken the kids to the park and were on our way!

We bought tons of stuff at Sams and in the next few minutes we're going to watch Avatar on the Blu-ray and hopefully be able to listen to our newly hooked up home theatre system.

Mean and Green

My van is absolutely filthy! I have not washed it in about three months and it needs it. It has cat prints, bird poop, sand, and salt, and mud splattered everywhere.

When I had my van for under a week (it was purchased brand new) I took it to the big carwash in town and one time through - it scratched the heck out of the car. I was absolutely LIVID to say the least. I went back to the place, complained to the manager, and ended up fighting the claim in small claims court.

Now I am thinking about going elsewhere and doing something a little different!

For the past few years we have been trying to do things that are better for or family and the environment. For example, we eat organic food and meat. We also recycle and compost on a daily basis.

Considering my past I am thinking about going with greener car washing too! You never would have thought that a waterless car wash was possible - until now.

EZdetailer waterless car wash allows you to have a sparkling car, save the environment, and stay away from those horrible carwashes that will run the finishes on your car!

Seriously cute.

I know.

Why pay for expensive cable?

I have almost come to the conclusion that we should cut off our cable services. We pay over $100 a month and I think we probably on watch television an hour or two a week.

Lately, what we find enjoyable is to get the laptop, look up our favorite shows and watch them on the television in the bedroom!

Of course, you have to have a fast internet connection and a decent computer. But it is just as good if not better than subscribing to cable and DVR.

Not to mention...it's FREE!

When we lived in our old house I felt so isolated. We were in the middle of nowhere and years ago we couldn't even get cell phone reception in our house!

Our friends Aimee and Bill live in Newfield and they did not have access to high-speed internet or cell phone coverage!

For people that are unable to get high-speed there is now an answer: satellite internet service providers!

MYBlueDish.com offers a full range of high speed internet for just about any situation!

It's amazing to think that we have entered a time and place where you can have fast internet even in the most remote of places!

Lots of therapy awaits!

Today is our day of therapy. This morning I played birthday cake with Emmy for close to an hour. She absolutely loves the Melissa and Doug food stuff. She loves the cutting and decorating the birthday cake and singing Happy Birthday.

She had speech with the new lady and that went really good. I was able to work on some blogging and could tell that they were having a good time in the next room.

Now it's time for the OT to get here and Emmy will get her sensory fullfillment for the day.

Hopefully.

Our next house...

is going to be a new home.

Enough of this "buying a fifty year old house and thinking that we're going to put blood, sweat, and tears into it" idea!

I want to find the perfect piece of land, in the best school district, and choose the perfect house! I would love to be able to look at some open house floor plans.

Right now our house is pretty open and we plan on knocking down a wall or two to open it up even more.

However, it would have been nice to look at house plans and be able to select the one that is perfect for entertaining, playing with the kids, and also have with a nice sized dining area.

HousePlansandMore.com has a great website where you can look at tons of plans for your future house. They even offer cabin plans!

The website is so easy to use and you can search using your specifics in a database and come up with the PERFECT house!

Next time we get the idea of moving I am seriously going to look on this website and buy the plans. I know exactly what builder we will hire.

Now I have got to keep my eyes open for the perfect piece of land!

The never ending cold.

I swear I have been sick for months.

I have this hacking cold, terrible runny nose, and drippy throat. I keep thinking that it's allergies because I've been on antibiotics and I was on Claritin D and neither have touched it.

I don't want to go back to the doctor because at this point i feel like they're going to give me more medicine that I will forget to take.

When will spring be over and summer be here?!?!

Beauty school dropout!

Of course, that is not my style. To drop out...that is.

One of my friends is a Cosmetologist and I am constantly amazed at how well she does financially! She also works as an airline attendant for American Airlines. When she doesn't have assignments she goes right back to her Cosmetology background and ALWAYS has a job waiting for her!

I think she might have gone to a Cosmetology school in Kansas, where she was raised.

These days I have been looking at going back to work. I wrestled with the idea of doing real estate and getting my license but maybe I should look for a back up plan in case that does not work.

RegencyBeauty.com offers Cosmetology school in many different areas and they are an industry leader.

Damn washing machine and dryer.

So we purchased a new washing machine from Home Depot. It was a Maytag Bravos 750. Supposedly, one of the top of the line washing machines and was priced at around $1,000!

You'd think it'd be a nice one, right?

WRONG. Total piece of poo.

It broke within three days. I'm not joking. Serious error messages and when I tried to was our new comforter it totally ate shit and died forever.

I had to break the door just to get our comforter out!

Anyway, I put wet clothes in the dryer and that broke too.

Margot's downstairs fixing dryer now and Home Depot is letting us use the loaner until our new one comes in.

UGH....

Help on the blogfront!

I have been blogging for about five years now. Over that time I have documented three pregnancies, two babies, three cats, one dog, and two houses. I enjoy blogging and it has really been a good way to express myself and keep in touch with friends and family.

For a while our website was a means for us to share pictures of kids and it allowed our family to see pictures without them waiting hours to download them via email!

I remember before kids we had "pet pages" and posted photos of our animals.

These days I am always looking for ways to promote my websites. I am on quite a few link exchange boards and that really helps to get the word out. I also make sure to leave regular comments and I always try to write quality posts.

The one thing that could use a little help is finding a better service for my web hosting. I go through a service that is free and let's just say "you get what you pay for".

With that said, I have paid for web hosting in the past and I am not sure I see much difference and more and more often I realized that the page was offline and the support offered was poor.

That is why I am glad that I came across a website that offered web hosting reviews. It seems like these days there are so many different options and typically I just go with the web hoster that spends the most money advertising and not necessarily the best available!

The website WebHostingFan.com is an easy to use site that ranks the websites and can really help you figure out what web host works best for your website needs. Even if it means paying a monthly cost - if you are a big blogger like me - it is money well spent!

The colors!

So I'm pretty excited to be coming upon the fun rooms in the house where I can go a little crazy with the colors!

In the girls room I am going to go with a bright green for the room. It's called springtime and I hope that it will give them the brightness that the room needs! It has sliding closet doors and I've thought about painting one pink and one purple but not sure that I'm going to go that crazy. Plus, paint is expensive!

For our room I'm going to go with a nice blue accent wall where our bed is. The other walls will be a bone color.

Then for the bathroom I'm going with a light beige - almost brown color. I figure it will tie in the ugly blue/black shower together without us having to do a bathroom renovation!

I miss our old house.

There are times when I really miss our old house! I miss the fact that we had put so much time and effort into the house to make it the "perfect house."

I could sit down and watch a television show without having to focus on the two large holes on both sides of my tv!

Our house was also extremely energy efficient. We had a new Carrier furnace and new low-e windows that were beautiful.

I know that in the future we will be looking for Energy saving and plan on taking advantage of some of the tax credits that will be rolling out towards the end of the year.

I just took advantage of the NYS appliance swap out and purchased all new home appliances! I was able to get the $500 from NYS and an additional $300 rebate from Maytag.

If you're looking for a way to get an idea of how much home energy you use - check out microsoft-hohm.com. I signed up on the easy to use website and within minutes completed my home profile.

It confirmed exactly what I was anticipating - I should probably look into getting a new hot water heater and furnace. I also found out that over the course of a year I can save $629 by just getting a new furnace!

This summary was just what I needed to make that call and get some estimates! Plus, it's the perfect time to get a good deal on a furnace - in the spring!

RENTED?

Today we had someone come to look at the house for graduation weekend. I was shocked that she rented a taxi just to come and take a look. Bizarre.

She said she'll get back to me tomorrow which means either she has another place in mind or she didn't like our place.


Wench.

Either way...I've got to keep trying to rent our place for graduation weekend!

How old am I again?

That's right...I'm 33.

I still get pimples and I have no idea why! When I was younger I had the oiliest skin. I took a bath every day and for some reason the second I would wake up my face would be greasy.

These days I have dry skin and oily skin and I should probably look into getting acne solutions.

Right now I have a monster growing on my chin and I am sure that it will be at its peak during my next interview.

RIBS.

Tomorrow we are having a nice little cookout. We bought ribs and we're inviting over a few friends. It's been a while since I've made ribs and so I'm a bit nervous and I want them to be awesome!

I've got to look up a recipe tonight because I totally forgot the timing and instructions and I can't remember if I used a rub or just plain bbq sauce.

FOUR RACKS ready to go!

Bad shape.

That's how you might want to define my closet.

For some reason there is a major shortage of clothing. I guess it is because I've been out of work for nearly five years and have yet to really restock after I had Emmy.

Perhaps I should just be a cool mom and go for the hip hop clothing look. I know my kids think I am the bomb when we pull into the school parking lot with Kidz Bop 17 pumpin loud over the mini-van!

TGIF

I'm so glad it is Friday! This afternoon I was able to do the trim work in the hallway and tomorrow I plan on painting and finishing up the hallway.

Of course, we still have FIVE doors that need to be hung and there's no doubt that there's going to be tons of cursing and fighting!

I think once we get the hang of it we should be alright. It's just getting in the groove that is hard to do!

So much for a great family vacation on spring break!

Graem is on vacation this week for Spring Break. You would think that we would have beautiful weather and clear skies. As I look out the window all I see is gray skies, pouring rain, and this morning I saw a male and female duck swimming in one of the water ponds in the back yard!

I've looked at Breezes Resorts in the past and been very impressed! They offer family vacation packages for you and your family to relax and soak up the sun! In fact, I keep looking at the all inclusive vacation packages and I can't help but think that within 24 hours I could be on a sunny beach somewhere sipping on a tasty tropical drink!

If you're looking for affordable family vacations I've heard that Runaway Bay Jamaica is incredible and it would probably be one of our best options since it is not too far from us. L & L went to Negril Jamaica a few years ago and loved the people and the place they stayed at.

Not only were they able to enjoy their family vacation destinations but they got an incredible deal at a five star resort! It is nice to go to a place where you can get a good deal and have top-notch accommodations!

Unbooked!

Today was quite productive. I didn't do a damn thing on my list but I did take all of the books out of their boxes and they are now on the bookcases in the living room.

Never have we been able to see our books and I must say that it feels really warm and fills in the living room!

Margot hasn't seen it yet and I think she's really going to like it when she gets home!

Clay fun!

Our children absolutely love doing art projects. One problem with it is all is that I am not overly creative or artistic.

When Graem came home with clay art dinnerware that she had made at school I was so happy and proud! It was a little cup and it actually holds water and is so cute.

I wish that my grandparents were still around because my grandmother was extremely artistic. She worked on pottery and ceramic dolls. She had such a steady hand and could make most anything absolutely beautiful!

When I was younger I remember standing next to the hot ceramic pottery kilns. My grandmother used to pour molds of the pottery and then put them in the kiln. She made beautiful clay art plates and even goblets!

There's no doubt that she would have loved a place like AMACO/Brent! They offer quality pottery, education, and crafts products.

Maybe this spring break I should pass on the pottery tradition and introduce my children to some crafts and pottery!

Rain, rain....get the hell out of here!

So much for a sunny spring break.

Right now I'm looking out my window and it's pouring. The kids are in the playroom watching a video and I have no idea what to do with them today!

Maybe I'll take them to the Sciencenter or the bounce-house at the mall. I can't help but think that other parents are stuck at home on this crappy day thinking of what to do with their kids.

Perhaps I'll call one of Graem's friends and see if they would like to come over for a playdate.

I need an adjustment!

I went to the chiropractor last Friday and it was amazing! Ever since I became pregnant I have gone to Meghan and she knows exactly how to adjust my aching back and shoulders.

With taking on the different home projects, I am in special need of a chiropractic center that knows how to make me feel human again! The worst pain was when I was painting every single day and I got the worst pain in my shoulders and neck. I could hardly move and sleeping was unbearable.

A chiropractor Des Moines that you can trust is Hassel Family Chiropractor. They have been in business since 1997 and have a very hands-on approach to your body and the healing process.

In fact, chiropractic health Des Moines focuses on your body as a whole. They look at the whole picture and really dissect the many things that could be causing your pain.

Going to the chiropractor is such a luxury because it is a bit pricey and insurance does not always cover it. However, when you can not move and need the help of professionals I would be the first to recommend going for chiropractic care! It is money well spent! Plus, you can write it off on your taxes as a medical expense!

Bad day.

Can't talk about it online because God knows the one reader that I don't want reading it will read it and we'll all be in trouble.

Just know it's a not-so-good-day for the other half.

Ugh.

Gold is my best friend!

One thing that never loses it’s value is gold bullion! Even when our stocks are floundering you can always look to silver, gold, and precious metals to maintain their value. Our friend, L, has had gold bullion in her portfolio for the past few years and we constantly compare. Despite the crashing economy - she's always in the black!

I'm sure she's looking for a good time to buy gold bullion with her tax refund money!

US Gold Bureau offers silver, gold, and other precious metals for delivery or they will make arrangements to have your metals stored privately and securely at a bank or depository.

I didn’t realize this but US Gold Bureau is an industry leader. They sell gold in two forms: coin or ingot. The world demand now exceeds the supply demand for gold - which makes it a pretty smart investment

Behind...

I'm pretty bummed that we're so behind on our television shows. when we were in the middle of moving we had to take down the television and so the DVR wasn't able to capture the typical shows that we watch.

I figure I can just hook up online and watch the episodes that I've missed. Hopefully, they'll still be available and FREE!

Beautiful day!

The past two days have been awesome! We've worn shorts and the kids have even been wearing dresses and sandals! It feels like it's summer.

But...

I just looked at the weather forecast for next week and it's due to rain and snow.

So much for having a SPRING break?

Playdate central.

Today Graem was quite the popular little girl! On our way to Emmy's therapy she got asked to go to Ava's house for a playdate.

I dropped her off and took Emmy to Speech Therapy. THEN...we had eaten lunch, gone to the mall, and were headed to my chiro appointment, when Nora's dad called. He wanted to know if Graem wanted to come over for another playdate!

Then this afternoon L and J stop over and Graem played all night!

Now she's sleeping!

Coming together nicely!

So I've finally finished painting the living room.

After going back and forth I settled on doing the fireplace a bright wall and the wall behind the television yellow. I think it looks great and once the sconces have been installed I'm sure it's really going to be the perfect arrangement!

I think the living room is still missing something and it could be two nice and comfy recliners!

I must say that I still haven't found my comfy spot to watch the tele.

I keep trying...

to rent our place out for graduation weekend. I listed it on the local list and I also bought an ad with the Cornell Daily Sun. I don't know why we have not had any hits because I have seen graduation invitations out and about and I know that Cornell seniors are gearing up for the end of the year.

Maybe they have been lost in spring break and it is not until they get back to school that they realize they are in trouble and don't have housing for their folks!

This week's to-do list.

I'm going to keep it kind of simple because it's SPRING BREAK. Damn! That means mama's going to be nutzo at the end of the week!

I'm going to try and paint the hallway this weekend and install new overhead lights in both hallways. Shouldn't be too bad because there are existing lights and so all I need to do is do wire for wire.

The hallway leading the bedrooms is a beast though. There are five doors and since we are replacing the doors we'll need to put the new doors up so that they can get painted too!

Ugh....I guess I'll try to nail out painting the ceiling tomorrow.