♪♫What are you doin' New Years, New Years Eve??♪♫

So What are you doin New Years Eve?? Love that song by Mr Barry Manilow who is so easy to hate just ask my hubby, but I can't think of New years without think of him and Night Ranger who I remember playing at Dick Clark's Rockin Eve when I was younger.
I am so happy to be bidding adieu to 2009 Hasta la byebye!!
I am also happy because I get to spend the New Year with these besties:
Doing this:


and this
Playing these:
and eating this:
Happy New Year Everyone! Hope you have a great 2010!!!!

13 years of high and lows

Marriage is hard, to suggest otherwise is a disservice to anyone who is considering it or who is in it, but it is so worth it, today I celebrate 13 years of marriage with my sweetheart and best friend, and I can honestly say I love him more everyday, it was however fitting that on our anniversary eve we were fighting like cats and dogs last night! All is well and resolved (i.e. I got my way, because I am usually right!) and today we ARE reminded of how much we love each other and how far we have come. So in honor, I thought I would post 13 of our highs and lows to remind how much work we have accomplished and to remind him (not that he ever reads my blog) how much I love him. Happy Anniversary honey!

Bad news first
1. The Day we got home from our honeymoon, he was let go from his job, and I lost mine 3 months after that.
2. The first 1-5 years of our marriage John had to constantly remind me that if we fought he would not leave me or divorce me, this was not an easy lesson for me to learn.
3. For 8 long months we forgot to love each other.
4. CONSTRUCTION BUSINESS!
5. They day we lost our little girl, this was also one of our highs.
6. Our two different time schedules.
7. John realizing that I am probably the most stubborn person he will ever meet and HE married me.
8. The day I had to watch John betrayed by a couple of his closest work friends. (he forgives, me not so much!)
9. Um yeah, the economy sucks and construction really sucks this is ongoing.
10. Getting used to both of our families has been a real struggle and is ongoing but we love them both.
11. Finding out John's Dad had leukemia
12. Finding out John's Dad's leukemia had returned,
13. And losing him 2 short months later.
Now the HIGHS!
1. Finding out after knowing each other for most of our lives that we loved each other and getting married 2 1/2 months after our first date!
2. Discovering I was pregnant shortly after our honeymoon, after being told I would never have kids. (don't do the math!)
3. Brody, Catie and Porter enough said.
4. Our first home, however much I hate it, its ours and we have made it ours quirks and all.
5. The realization that history does not have to repeat itself.
6. Falling in love over and over again.
7. The day he turned to me and said "You married me fat why wouldn't I love you the same way you loved me?" .....Plus do you think I would ever want to start over with someone else?? after all the work I have put in, if you left me I would get a dog and call it good!! (lolololol this still makes me laugh!)
8. Surviving the worst twenty four hours of my life and having him there beside me at the end of it.
9. The day we realized that all of our kids are smarter than us!!
10. The day we were sealed for time and ALL eternity.
11. and the day we realized the significance of that sealing and knowing exactly what our little girl looked like without ever seeing her. Our Olivia is waiting for us.
12. The day John started his own business on his own.
13. could be tomorrow..........

Loved you forever, always have always will!

Why we do what we do...

Is it worth it, all the searching for the gift especially when they ask Santa for something different than you and Santa had already discussed? All the wrapping, and the hiding and the stressing and counting, does so and so have more than so and so.. Well when I see some of these faces on that lovely morning I say YES! YES! YES! it's worth it!

The look of the perfect hat!
Cool shoes for keeping tootsies warm!

What prompted this response? Speed Racer sheets! (The best part is I forgot about them and shoved them in at the last moment and 6 bucks at ross!)

The big gift that we "expected a huge response and they just sat there in awe...
Can you guess what it is??

Love it!
Awesome!


Just so you know Santa you can find these at the Clark Planetarium in case you go to twenty stores again??

Couldn't you just kiss that face??

This is...I am too cool to be this excited but I can't help it because after all I am still a kid!!!

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and that the faces you got to see were just as wonderful!! Happy New Year!!

WARNING!! Sappy, self indulgent post coming up...

I sat down at the computer for the first time in a while, i have been FBing from my phone a lot lately and I just haven't had time. So tonight as I looked over some lovely blogs that I frequent, I was overcome with a feeling of gratitude for the blessings I have. I am usually the queen of negativity and I sometimes dwell on it for way too long, who am I kidding a lot of the time! But as I sit here listening to the kiddos playing together instead of going to bed, my hubby looking oh so proud of himself for the gifts he bought me himself. (he is a really good shopper!) Gazing at my Christmas tree that I love and my blanket from when I was a little girl wrapped around me. Even though I don't feel great, I feel grateful, for a grandpa who is spending his first Christmas in heaven in a while, and the love that he left behind to my three little children, he was not perfect, he had flaws but he did do something AMAZING!! He was and is a wonderful grandpa to my kids and I miss him, I miss him for them.
This time of year can be so sad for so many people but I need to remember my blessings, need to remember how many things I have been blessed enough to love and care for. I love my family, I adore my children, I have the best friends and my best friend I love more everyday and I cannot imagine my life without him five days after Christmas we will Celebrate 13 years together!! I have a sick twisted ritual that I check off my list every year we are happy together its something only a child of divorce would understand, but the thing is, I cannot imagine being happier with my hubby. We have our challenges and trials but we are solid and I really didn't know if that was possible for love to be like this.
I wish all of you peace and happiness during this season, I wish you hope, wish you small celebrations of tiny happenings and comfort in your own skin. I wish you love. Merry Christmas Everyone! And when your tired and you can't sleep, count your blessings instead of sheep and you'll fall asleep counting your blessings...(White Christmas)

Have you seen this?

I have not been feeling the spirit of the season much, but the other night my mom called me and said what was that guy in?? She made me turn the channel, (on a side note I am that girl I can usually tell you exactly what that guy or girl was in movie, tv show etc, tons of useless info knockin around my brain, hence the phone call) So I turned the channel to kbyu and this concert was on and I proceeded to watch this song and was a blubbering baby by the end, and I was oozing with Christmas Spirit when I was done. Enjoy!! Merry Christmas

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

10 Random thoughts from inside my brain...

Just thought I would share these things that have been banging around my brain lately, and I do mean banging my head is killing me right now.
1. Dear Syracuse residents PLEASE learn how to drive in a round about its not that hard
2. I worry sometimes that when I get old some of the thoughts that I sometimes think, I will actually do! (i.e. telling the people up the street that if they are going to pay money to have people put up there christmas lights don't ruin it by putting clashing lights on their handrail) I know it shouldn't bug me but it does. '
3. Why do I always feel better when I have pretty toes?
4. Does everyone jump into their jammies as fast as they can or is it just me?
5. shhh...I kinda of have a little crush on kid rock (I know ick!! but I'm just saying..)
6. I hide people on facebook when they cuss, even though I have been know to cuss myself! What a hypocrite!
7. I really love the smell of butter cooking on the stove.
8. My hubby is the best guy, really don't deserve him!!
9. I have really good friends, even when I go into my shell and ignore them, they are still my friends. That's love!!
10. Even though I have been sOOOOOO struggling with my testimony I realized that I do have one and that it is really strong and I need to work on my accepting his plan and stop trying to force my plan. It doesn't work!
Happy hot chocolate days to you all!!