Saturday, November 05, 2005

Autumn Splendor

I just love Fall here in the mountains. The trees are so pretty every year. Unfortunately, they only stayed pretty for about 2 days once they turned. I guess the weather is getting too hot during the day time and it is killing them quickly. Ahhhh, I wish they would stay these pretty colors year round. Posted by Picasa

Thursday, November 03, 2005

Threesome

Isn't this hilarious?! Hayden was scared of his plastic sandbox lid, so I had to investigate. It was the craziest thing-3 grasshoppers doing the humpty dance, LOL. I have never seen anything so weird! I shook them around, but they refused to separate. Talk about public display of affection ;) Posted by Picasa

Monday, October 31, 2005

Happy Halloween!!!

If you are kidless then you may be wondering what the heck my hubby carved into our pumpkin, but if you have small kids you most likely know that it is the logo for the Incredibles. Hayden was Mr. Incredible for Halloween, so Clayton thought that it would be appropriate. He even strapped it down into the wagon while we went door to door. Our night began by walking over to The Reserve to meet some friends there for a party. We all went walking around the 'hood to gather up some yummy goodies. Hayden did so well! Last year he freaked out and was too scared to walk up to the houses, but not this year. In fact, he went so fast that Emerson and me couldn't keep up. Clayton taught him to say that he had an agenda, LOL. Afterwards, we went back to Shelly's house and had some good eats with a bunch of friends. Overall, I would say that we had a great night. The bad part was walking back home in the chilly night air. Emerson didn't seem to mind though because he fell dead asleep in the stroller.

Thursday, October 27, 2005

This is my latest project with The Scrapbook Stand's November kit. It is a canvas that I scrapped to go into the boys' bathroom. The photos are attached to coaster-sized chipboard squares. They were sanded around the edges and then everything got mod podged. It's hard to see the words in between the photos that say "Good Clean Fun". Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

A sweet photo to share

This photo was somehow retrieved from my corrupted memory card. I took it last week while we were at my Aunt Judy's house. This is my Aunt and Hayden feeding the goldfish and koi in her pond. They did not know I was behind them ;) Posted by Picasa

Some updates

I forgot to mention that Big E began standing on the 21st. I found him standing next to the toilet and you can only guess what he was doing. He was having a grand ole time splish splashing in the water, ewwww. I ran to get my camera, but something is wrong with my memory card. It is corrupted or something, so I don't have a photo. That was a bummer!

In surrogacy news, I had an ultrasound done on Monday and the RE said that everything looked super. I had 12 follicles in one ovary and 10 in the other. We aren't using them, but the doctor checked them out because they are good indicator as to how well my reproductive system is working. I started taking estrogen that evening and I will have an U/S in Atlanta on 11/4. That U/S will reveal how well my body does with the drugs and I have my fingers crossed. This cycle is called a mock cycle. We aren't actually going to do the IVF, but we will go through the motions just to make sure that everything is working optimally.

I have been thinking about working part-time at our new Michael's teaching some scrapbook classes. They called yesterday and I am going to show them some work this evening. Hopefully, all will go well and I will be able to make a little bit of spending money ;)

I used to work for a store in Atlanta (actually Marietta) called The Scrapbook Store. I just got an email the other day saying that they had changed management. I was mortified! I loved Kathy and she was such a great owner. It was upsetting to know that she had sold out. BUT, then I found out that one of my co-workers from there bought it! Chanelle is the absolute coolest gal ever and she will do a great job. I have complete faith in her. I must admit that I am highly jealous of her new endeavor because the store totally rocks! Now I know that I am going to have to make a side-trip the next time I am in GA. Good luck girlfriend :)

Hayden slept in today rather than going to school. I don't know what his deal is, but he wouldn't get up. He slept til 10am! I am guessing that he didn't feel like going since he threw his banana up this morning. Poor guy. Regardless, he seems to feel okay is running around. I hope he isn't coming down with anything.

Saturday, October 22, 2005

Check out Unwrapped on the Food Network!

On October 24th at 9pm, they will be featuring the lady who has the Grocery Game website that I have been raving about. Her name is Teri and I am sure it will be interesting. Some of you guys probably doubt my saving $101 2 weeks ago, so please check it out if you are at all skeptical or curious about the program. If you do sign up for the $1 trial, I would be thrilled to be credited as your referral. I earn free weeks of the list for every 3 referrals I get ;)

I may not be a bee, but I sure do have the hives...

Holy hives batman! I don't know where I got them from, but I can't wait for them to go away. I came home from our vacation like this. Actually, it has gotten worse since I have been home. Ugh! I am suspecting laundry detergent or my facial cleanser. I hope it clears up by next week. I have an ultrasound appointment with the fertility clinic next week. I don't want them wondering what kind of mysterious disease I have, LOL. My Aunt seems to think that it may have come from the foam pillow I slept with at her house. It's pretty old and she says that it has irritated other people before. Regardless, I won't be using it the next time I go home.

Our trip home went very well. The kids had a fabulous time while I relaxed. Mom and Aunt Judy take over the show whenever they are around, so I LOVE visiting with them. Big E ate everything in sight. I am pretty sure that everyone was wondering where in the world it is all going, but let me tell you, I know ;) He had a large bowl of grits, a piece of toast, and an egg one morning. Heck, I don't even eat that much. I think that he is going through a growth spurt (at least I hope that is the case!).

Friday, October 14, 2005

Blah, blah, blah...

I am in a blah kinda mood today. I just want to sit around and watch re-runs of Dawson's Creek all day. Getting dressed is completely out of the question. Why should I put on clothes to go no where? PJs are so much more comfy. We were supposed to meet the MOMS Club for coffee at Starbucks today, but I canceled. I really don't feel like being stuck in a small area with a bunch of kids today. The good news is that the blahs should be gone tomorrow. The kids and I are going home to visit my parents and family. We always have a good time there. My Mom and Aunt are the best 2 people in the world! They help with the kiddos and spoil us rotten with good food. I have only been home once since having Big E, so they are due for a visit from us. Clayton is going to Atlanta on Sunday and will be gone for a few days (which is why I am heading home-I can't stand to be at home alone at night). Joanna, will ya watch our fort for us while we are gone? If you say no, I will bribe you with the promise of treats when I return home ;)

Have you seen the movie National Treasure? Hubby and I watched it last night due to some recommendations for it on 2 Peas. Let me just say, it STUNK! The story line is pretty cool, but the whole movie was bogus. For crying out loud, do you really think that these people could get as much access as they did? Yeah, righttttt. They were able to just walk into many areas that I am sure would be unaccessible for just anyone to walk into. The love story that happened in it was so stinkin' cheesy. I can't believe that Nicholas Cage ever did such a bad movie. In my opinion, it was an adult Goonies. It was so similar that it was ridiculous! Hubby mentioned that the fact that they used the word "treasure" made it all seem so hokey. I have to agree.

Here's a photo of Emerson that I took a few weeks ago. He pulled off his sock and then crawled around with it in his mouth like he was a puppy. It was hilarious! I tried to get it from him and he resisted to give it up. He was so proud of himself, LOL.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005

Check it out-You could be saving a bundle at the grocery store.


Here is the latest view of my pantry. Isn't it lovely? I will let you all in on a little secret. I have been subscribing to a website called the Grocery Game since the end of August. It has saved me oodles of money since I started. Every week, I collect the coupons from the Sunday paper and then I match them up with the sale list that the GG has for me. You would think that you could just match your coupons up with the sales ads every week, but you would be mistaken if you think that will save you loads of $. This gal has figured out sales trends since 2000 and she knows when a sale is rock bottom and when it is a "phantom" sale designed to trick you into using your coupon before the item hits its lowest price. The first week, I save $40 and I thought that was great. Little did I know that it was going to get better each week. I saved more and more each week until I hit over the $100 mark this past Sunday. My receipt shows that I save $101.69 on my order and I can post a photo if you need me to prove it, LOL. I should frame it! They actually had to call a manager over to approve the transaction because the savings amount was over the expected amount. I was thrilled. I ended up buying $250 worth of groceries for $150. That is simply amazing. I pay the GG $10 every 8 weeks for her list of sales and recommended coupons. It is an amazing deal. She offers a $1 trial for 4 weeks and I highly recommend giving it a go. Now mind you, it is hard starting out because she will rely on coupons from a few months earlier and you won't have them. You have to gather up your coupons each week and after around 12 weeks, you will have all the same coupons she uses. Check it out and see if any of your local grocery stores are offered. I use Harris Teeter. Food Lion is also an option for me, but their coupon policy sucks. They do not double them. HT doubles up to 20 coupons that are $.99 and below. They rock! Oh, I forgot to mention that the GG helps you learn to stockpile so that you won't need to go out and grab something unexpectedly because you ran out. Instead, you end up only buying necessities when they are on rock bottom sale. I heard on 2 peas that it takes a couple of months to build your supply. One gal said that you spend the same amount on groceries as usual your first couple of months, but you bring home almost twice the groceries. She claimed that somewhere between month 3 and 4, you will start spending less and your stockpile begins to stabilize. If you are interested in the GG, check the website at http://www.thegrocerygame.com . Feel free to use me as a referral. I sure wouldn't mind :)

Monday, October 10, 2005

I LOVE Halloween!


Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the changing of the leaves, the smell of Autumn (which is hard to put into words), trick-or-treating, costumes, candy, and my Count Snoopula flag. Last year, we moved into our house on October 1st, so I never got around to hanging my cool flag. You can't see them in the photo above, but I have orange lights around my railings and my front door. I love to decorate and I wish I had lots of money this year to do it. I want scarecrows and bales of hay with tons of pumpkins everywhere. Oh well, maybe I can do that next year. Hayden is going to be Mr. Incredible and Emerson is going to be a froggy. They look so adorable in their costumes. I will be sure to post a photo of them later. I am thinking about taking them to the Picture People for a Halloween photo shoot. We'll see.

Emerson needs a haircut, don't ya think? We are waiting until just before his 1st birthday to chop it. That's the same thing that I did with Hayden. The amazing thing about chopping their hair for the first time is that it makes them immediately look like little boys instead of babies. That's why I wait until they are one. I want to preserve that baby-ishness as long as possible ;)

Thursday, October 06, 2005

I am sick of our kids and me being sick!!!

Ugh. Will the cooties ever quit spreading? Tuesday night, Emerson was running a high fever and he just could not sleep. I moved him into our room so that I could comfort him. It was horrible. No one slept that night except Hayden (since he had his bedroom all to himself upstairs). I couldn't believe how hot Big E felt. He felt like he had a sunburn all over his little body. The Tylenol wasn't working and I didn't know what to do for him except take him to the doctor. Conveniently, I was able to get him in while Hayden was at preschool. The doctor said that he thought some antibiotics would help him and so that is what he got. He seems to be better today and he is beginning to eat again. He slept last night, so that was a good thing.

I have had 6 or 7 sore throats since Hayden brought that preschool disease home with him back on the 12th (yes, it has really been that long!). It isn't a normal sore throat. Instead, I actually develop lots of sores back there. It feels so bad. My throat feels like it caves in and it becomes really hard to swallow. My tonsils double in size. I swear, it isn't a pretty sight to behold when I get it.

Monday, October 03, 2005

I have a LOT to say...


About my new avatar-
I just had to update my message board avatar. I needed a recent photo of me and only me. Usually, my kids are in the photos too. Now you all know what I look like. For you guys who knew me way back when, no that isn't a perm. I know my hair used to be straight, but it isn't now. After I had Emerson, my hair grew in curly. It is the strangest thing, but I am happy with it. Who ever knew you could just one day become naturally curly?

About The Scrapbook Stand-
You guys need to check out TSS. We are having a contest to win a free kit right now. Get on over to the message boards and register to win. The details can be found here: http://www.thescrapbookstand.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=718&highlight=

About my recent scrapping achievement-
I got an email last week inviting me to join the design team for Good to the Last Crop. I am so excited! The website and kits R-O-C-K!!! There were a lot of girls up for it and I am so glad that they chose me. If you want to check out the site, go to http://www.goodtothelastcrop.com . One of the other gals that made it, Alexis, is also on The Scrapbook Stand's design team with me. She is an awesomely talented gal and I am so happy to work with her :)

About the surrogacy and Atlanta-
Ok, everyone keeps asking, so I will just post all the details here, LOL. This past weekend went fabulously, for the most part. We went to Atlanta to get some medical things done for the surrogacy. I loved the clinic and the appointment went very smoothly. Clayton and I both had bloodwork done to make sure that we aren't diseased and then I had an ultrasound. The doctor checked out my ovaries and was able to see 19 in my right one and 11 in the left one. She was concerned about the size of my eggs. She asked if I had any assistance getting pregnant with my 2 sons and I told her no. After that, she said wow and that she couldn't believe that I conceived naturally. Apparently, it is rare for eggs to be as small as mine are. Oh well, we aren't going to be using my eggs, so it doesn't really matter anyway. Oh, I forgot to tell you all how squimish Clayton got when he saw all of the photos of babies conceived through their offices. Most were of twins and triplets!

Later on, our intended parents took us to a fantastic restaurant called Oceanaire. They had the best fish and mashed potatoes I have EVER eaten! We had a great time. I can't wait to help them bring a new baby into their happy home :)

About Bon Jovi-
Tickets for the Charlotte show went on sale Saturday morning and I forgot to get on Ticketmaster at 10am. In fact, I remembered it when we were away from the hotel. By the time I would get them after that, the seats would be really bad. Ugh! I was so upset. The good news is that their Atlanta show hasn't gone on sale yet, so I am hoping to get good seats for it.

About my fabulous hubby-
After leaving Atlanta, I was very upset. The Bon Jovi thing made me sad. Clayton surprised me by stopping at the Mayfield Dairy on our way home. They have a really cute gift shop and lots of good ice cream there. Heck, it was really cheap too. We were able to get a single scoop in a cone for $1. I got birthday cake and Clayton had the Reese's cup. Let me tell you, they were both really good! Clayton knew exactly how to cheer me up.

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

It came, it came!!! I am now a proud iPod owner :)


I am now proof that you really can get a free iPod. I got mine today and it is already charging. It is a 20MB color screen one that retails for $299 at Target. It is amazing how easy it was to get! I can't believe that they do next day shipping through DHL. Anyway, now that I have this little baby in my hands, I am now working on getting a few more toys. Check out my links on the right for the free XBox 360, iPod Nano, and iPod Shuffle. You are able to sign up for each one, but you cannot cheat and make up referrals to complete the requirements. Your referrals must complete 1 offer each and they have to have a unique IP address, email, and mailing address. They investigate all of your referrals once you try to order your free goodie. If you cheat, you don't get anything. I want to thank all the people that signed up under me for referrals. I hope you all are well on your way to earning your iPods. If you are interested in signing up for one of the freebies I have posted, click on the corresponding link in my right column of this page. Complete the required info. and then complete one offer. Right now, you can try a $.99 trial of Rhapsody (music website). That is all it costs. I did it for my iPod Nano requirement and it was super easy and instantly gave me and the referrer credit. I canceled it before the month was up and they didn't give me any trouble at all. There is also a Blockbuster movie delivery trial that is super easy to do. Heck, I had been meaning to try it out, so I signed up for it for my Shuffle referrer. That one is unbelievably easy to cancel (you can do it on the web). I decided to stay with it and not cancel because the service is fabulous! I think that you can still do this offer for free instead of $9.99 if you enter a code (USATODAY9).

Anyway, I hate to sound like a commercial and like I am using my blog to sell you something, but we are talking about *FREE* goodies that would otherwise be expensive. I think that everyone should know about this incredible deal. It is amazingly easy and the rewards are fabulous!

Monday, September 26, 2005

I am so S-O-R-R-Y!!!

I have not posted on here in forever, it seems. Trust me, I haven't fell off the face of the Earth. My whole family has been sick over the past couple of weeks and I have been slack about updating the ole blog. I just haven't felt like it. It only seems to have been a bad cold, but it has been a rough ride for us and the kiddos. Hayden has been the worst. He has been out of school for a long time(until today). Last Friday, he refused to sleep and complained of his ear hurting. We let him sleep in our room and the poor thing didn't go to sleep until 3am! We went to the doctor and got Hayden some antibiotics the next day. He seems to be feeling a LOT better now and he finally returned to school today.

Unfortunately, our friends(the Wolfes) had a birthday party on Saturday for their daughter Carson, but we weren't able to go. I hated to miss it because it was her first and the kiddos would have had such a fun time.

Good news-We will be taking off for Atlanta on Friday. Our surrogacy journey is finally going to the next level. We will be visiting with the intended parents and the fertility clinic. I will get a saline ultrasound and some bloodwork done to make sure that I am healthy. Clayton will also have to have bloodwork done to make sure that he doesn't have something horrible (like HIV) that could be spread to me. I think that he has forgotten about that, so I am not going to remind him until we are there. He gets kinda squimish over having anything to do with needles. Good thing that he never had to hunch over and hold completely still while having a *SUPER HUGE* needle stuck in his spine for an epidural :P Heck, he had a hard time even being in the same room as me when I had it done, LOL. Anyway, we are hoping for the best. I hope that I am completely healthy and capable of doing this. I want to do it so badly. My dream of being a surrogate began when I was pregnant with Hayden, so I have mulled over it for years. I just want to give the gift of life to these wonderful people. Wish us luck!

The boys will be staying at home while we are gone. My Aunt Judy and Mom are coming up to babysit. Hayden is so psyched!

Sunday, September 18, 2005


Ahhhh, I just love the swing ride. Posted by Picasa


The ferris wheel Posted by Picasa


Hayden caught a fish Posted by Picasa


Hayden driving a truck Posted by Picasa


Austin and Hayden Posted by Picasa


Poor Emerson was dying of heatstroke at the fair Posted by Picasa

Ugh! Yucky disease has taken over our household!

Well, it has been a while since I updated the old blog. Sorry about that, but we have all been sick lately. I caught it hard-core from the kiddos on Thursday and Clayton finally got it today. Yippee.

Here's a recap from the past couple of days:

Thursday

Tracy and Austin came over to our house so that they could ride with us to the mall. We were meeting our friend Angela for a little bit of shopping at B. Moss. I watched Angela's 4 year old (Kaitlynn) and Hayden at the kiddie play area while the other moms went shopping. Naturally, Hayden decides he has to go pee shortly after, so I have to round up the two of them plus Emerson and the double stroller to go to the bathroom. We waited outside of the family restroom for ten freaking minutes! Both kids were doing the pee pee dance and I was about to kill whoever was in there. Some custodian walks past me and tells me that I can go to the regular restrooms. Yeah right. How in the heck do you suppose I am going to get the double stroller, all of our belongings, 2 toddlers and myself into a stall, hmmm? This bathroom that he is referring to doesn't even allow enough room for me to turn the stroller into it. What a nincompoop. Besides, if I really could have went to the regular bathroom, I WOULD HAVE!!! Anyway, the door finally opens up to the family bathroom and a mall employee comes out. It specifically says on the door that mall employees are not to use that bathroom. UGH. As mad as I was, I am surprised that I kept my mouth shut. I just couldn't say anything to the guy because he was old and was really slow. I felt bad for him, but I know that he could have used a stall in the men's room. Why can't people just follow the rules?

We had a birthday party for Sage at Chuck E. Cheese after lunch. The kids had a great time. Hayden loved spending his "money" (tokens).

That night, Tracy and I took the boys to the fair. Tracy's brother, Alex, came along too. Everything was going well until I felt dizzy, nauseous, and had a headache beyond belief! I didn't know what was going on. Tracy took the boys to ride several rides while I tried to rest on a bench. She said she knew that I was sick considering I hadn't even asked for a fried twinkie or Snickers bar yet, LOL. The smells and noises were killing me. I felt so guilty because I wanted to see Hayden enjoying the rides. This was his first year doing so. He was too chicken last year. I decided to go to the first aid station to see if they had any medicine. I got some motrin and a water. Thankfully, I began to feel alot better after that and was able to function again. I didn't ever feel good enough to get something fatty and fried, but I did get me a key lime pie slice on a stick. It was frozen and dipped in chocolate. Can we say "yummy"! Check out my photos above.

Friday

I kept Hayden out of school again today because I was incredibly sick. My throat was on fire and I couldn't even swallow my own spit. It was horrible. The kiddos were better, but I took a major dive into sickdom.

Saturday

Not much to say about that day except that we did nothing but hang around the house.

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

The Cold Bug Has Struck


Poor baby Posted by Picasa


Those have to be the most matted eyelashes ever! Posted by Picasa

Eeeeeeew, GROSS!

Oh my, both boys seem to have caught a bug on Monday. Hayden had a fever that evening and didn't sleep much that night. He kept waking up crying. Clayton found him in the sunroom, fast asleep on the couch, Tuesday morning. I guess he wasn't comfortable in his bed. That day, I made him lunch and got mad at him for not eating it. He said his tongue hurt and I ignored him. Later, Clayton discovered that Hayden's throat was bothering him. Then lunch-time made sense to me. No wonder he refused to eat and said his tongue hurt. I am so ignorant sometimes! Well, Big E's eyes were caked with goo this morning. He looked so pitiful. I already have him pumped with Tylenol and hopefully he will be fine tomorrow. Hayden is staying home from school today just in case. He seems to be feeling 100% better, but I just want to make sure before spreading the disease to his classmates.

Saturday, September 10, 2005

A New View On My Hobby


I do not know what has come over me lately. I just want to scrap all the time! I rarely ever feel this way, so I am riding this wave while I can. My style is changing to an even simpler one because I am sick and tired of trying to make every page publish-worthy. It has been a long time since I have submitted anything to the magazines anyway. The last publication I had was in June for the Simple Scrapbooks special issue: Scrapbooking Secrets using Simple Schemes. I believe that was the last time that I had sent anything in for a call. It just doesn't mean as much to me anymore. I have had 16 published layouts by Creating Keepsakes, Simple Scrapbooks, Leisure Arts, Memory Makers, Paperkuts, and Scrapbook Trends. That doesn't include the book that I just did for Lark Books. That one was funded by Michael's and should be out in 2006. I was the papercrafter for the book. I am not sure what the title will be, but it will be all about weddings. Anyway, I am not meaning to go on and on about my scrapbooking publications. I just need to remind myself of all of the accomplishments I have achieved. Now that I have done that, I am going to let it all go (for the most part). I do not need to be published any longer to feel the validation that I am an okay scrapbooker. From now on, I am scrapping for myself and my family. I may submit a couple here and there if there happens to be a layout that is a perfect fit for a call, but I will not make layouts especially for submitting. There is not enough time in the world to keep up with all the magazines and books any longer. I am burned out and I realize now why I haven't scrapped much this summer. The fun was taken out of it. It was work rather than a hobby. The Michael's book was the straw that broke the camel's back. I had 10 weeks of deadlines and each week a bunch of projects would be due. Sometimes, I would stay up until my hubby went to work the next morning just so I could get my stuff done. I had never felt so exhausted in my life! That book really hurt my desire to scrapbook for myself. Now that it has been said and done since July, I have rested up and I have a new outlook on my hobby. Who really cares if I get published again?
I am currently on 2 design teams-The Scrapbook Club and The Scrapbook Stand. Both are fantastic monthly scrapbook kit clubs that send me goodies every month to play with. I love the gals that own them and they are wonderful to work with. There are a LOT of gals that would give anything to design for these 2 clubs. They are both well-known and highly talked about clubs that produce magnificent kits each and every month. Subscribers stalk their mailboxes each month around delivery time and write about it on their respective message boards. The excitement on these 2 sites is phenomenal! I am so proud to be a designer for them. On The Scrapbook Stand, we are working on choosing a couple of new designers to add to the team. The try-outs were astounding. I am so glad that I am already on the team and am not being judged amongst the talented auditioners ;) Being in their shoes really stinks. You can be an A+ scrapper, but not make the team because the competition is so fierce. There are limited amount of spots to fill too. The thing is, I need to remember that I am lucky to be a part of these teams and that not just anyone gets to be in my position. That should be enough validation for me and it now is. If you want to check out these 2 sites, see the links in my right-hand sidebar.

Sorry about this crazy post, I just needed to type my feelings out. Now I feel better and I will be happier doing what I love to do. The layouts that you see are quick ones that I did yesterday and today. Since my style is less embellished now, I am able to crank 'em out a lot faster :)

Thursday, September 08, 2005


Big boy Hayden on his way to preschool Posted by Picasa


Hayden's new backpack Posted by Picasa

Wednesday, September 07, 2005

First Day of Pre-School

Today, Hayden suddenly became a big boy in my eyes. I walked him to class and hung up his little book bag on his peg that had his name tag above it. It felt so weird. When he walked through the classroom door, he bolted for the blocks and that was the last I saw of him before leaving. Tears welled up in my eyes as I walked away. My little boy was finally a BIG boy in every sense of the word. Now that he is potty trained and going to school, he seems to have matured a great deal over the summer. I wasted the next 3 hours chatting with some gal pals in Black Bear (local coffee shop), walking Big E around downtown Hendersonville, and then waiting in Clayton's parking lot at work (I was picking him up before Hayden so that we could all go eat lunch together). I got to his classroom before they were dismissed, so I peeked in. All the little kiddos were sitting at a table and they looked like they were having fun. Hayden saw me and was excited that I was there. His teacher, Miss Gail, told him it was time to go home and he didn't even put up a fight. She just picked him up and handed him over. He was so happy that school was so much fun, but he was tired. I am SO glad that he likes it there. The school is wonderful and the teachers are fantastic. He is going to have such a great year there :)

Monday, September 05, 2005

Thanks to all my free iPod referrals!!!

I just found out that I earned a free color iPod. I got the 20GB one with the color screen. I saw it tonight at Target for $299! It sure will be nice to get it for the $1 trial offer of some stupid entertainment discount program I signed up to do for 7 days. Now, I am on my way to earning hubby an XBox 360. His old XBox has seen better days, so out with the old and in with the new. The XBox offer works the same way as the iPod offer did. I signed up for a month trial of Blockbuster movies by mail as my one obligation to get it. The fee was supposed to be $9.99, but I used a code (USATODAY9) to get the first month free. Essentially, the XBox won't cost me a penny because I plan to cancel Blockbuster as soon as the month is over. I love these marketing schemes! If you are interested in doing the same thing, click the link in the left column to get started. There is a whole article written on the legitimacy of this marketing company in one of my posts below. Check it out if you are skeptical. Come on, I need 8 referrals this time ;)

Friday, September 02, 2005


The view from the outside of our living room window, LOL. I took this photo last Monday. Posted by Picasa


Asleep in the Ultrasaucer-isn't that thing supposed to entertain him? Posted by Picasa


This was taken today. Posted by Picasa

My Poor Little Guy

Emerson is a human sloth. The poor little guy will fall asleep just about anywhere. If you put him in the jumper, he jumps himself to sleep. If you put him in the van, he falls asleep within 5 minutes of your trip. If he is playing in the Ultrasaucer, he just can't keep from dozing off. I don't know what it is. That kid could sleep just about anywhere. Actually, I bet he got it from me. I have been known to sleep during violent winds/thunderstorms in campers, on a bleacher at a Nascar race when I was little (not that I minded, LOL), in cars with my head between my knees (and yes, I WAS sober every time I did that!), and during movies at the theatre. I guess my slothdom has been inherited by my youngest.