Friday, October 30, 2009

Its a small world

We have a contest at work. A Halloween contest. Since we work in units our units are included in the contest. So the month of October is spent planning and decorating our cubicles representing the theme we chose.Keep in mind whatever theme we choose we also have to dress in costume as part of the overall package. Last year we did Men in Black, it looked a little something like this......





Those are just a few pictures of our decorations. We like to "Handmake" as much as possible. Which is fun but also VERY time consuming. We dressed up as aliens, agents and also an Autopsy Nurse, which was me.

This year being the Disney fanatic that my boss is, we chose "Its a small world"

It looked a little something like this....





Our costumes were to represent the dolls from the different countries. These are just a few.


(Look at her shoes!)


A spirit of America.


There is just one moon and one Golden sun.



South Seas/New Guinea





Scotland


Most of these pictures were taken from my phone so the quality is not very good!

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Pumpkin Carving



Dirty ole pumpkins!
This year has been so much fun getting ready for Halloween with Taylor. We started decorating the outside of the house and I dont think I have ever seen a child more excited then she was. It was priceless. I can still see the look in her eyes and hear the pitch in her voice. It caught me offgaurd. I guess because the last couple of years have been a little uneventful when it comes to decorating for the Holidays. Ofcourse its always fun with the kids but their age really determines the excitement. Coleton has mellowed allot with the Holidays, another sign of him maturing and getting older. He still gets excited and has fun and lets the little boy out, its just not the same. Taylor I guess has been too young to really understand. I didnt realize this until now. When I saw her come to life in the festivities for Halloween this year. You cant help but feed off of that energy.
So, we have had pumpkins in the house for a couple weeks, like the one on our kitchen table. Everyday she asks if we can carve it. Last night she got her wish. Daddy cut the top off her pumpkin and told her to stick her hand in there and clean it out.
-
-
-
-
Uhhhhhhhh
In there........
you want me to put my hand in there?!
HaHaHa needless to say she did it and her hands are probably a little crispy today, after washing them every couple minutes!






Helping Daddy
Mommy's masterpiece!

Daddy's masterpiece.......part 1

part 2

and I realized I have a huge shortage of pictures. I will take pictures of the kids pumpkins. Oooops. Bad Mommy! and Cole was the master photographer, so he didn't make it into any pictures, except for the one of his reflection in the window. THAT is the first time that has happened. Usually Mommy is the photographer so you don't see many pictures of me. Oh and these are all from my phone due to my current cameraless situation. I have to get that fixed.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

They made it

TO........
Awesome job River City Jr. Midgets!
Now its back to 5 day practices......
We play Elk Grove. If we win.
We play one more team (Foothills I think) If we win.....
Then its off to Reno!

Thursday, October 22, 2009

I have issues.....shoe issues


I LOVE shoes. Like most women. I love having a variety of shoes to wear for whatever outfit Im trying to complete or whichever mood I may be feeling. Im in a shoe rut. I desperately need new shoes. The problem is, Im picky. Really picky.
The new styles are starting to grow on me, certain ones are. Certain ones are not. The thing with fashion and styles and the day and age we are in, we are forced to purchase what everyone is "feeling". Its rather amazing when you think about it. The way designers are able to draw us in and the way are taste changes from year to year season to season. Some ways slightly, others drastically. I personally look back at some of the styles I "sported" and think WHOOOOAH why didnt ANYONE tell me?!
When I was pregnant with my daughter my feet grew, sometimes I think a 1/2 size, then there are times where its more like a WHOLE size. At the time it was a huge inconvenience. Nothing I had in my closet fit anymore, and its not like prepregnancy clothes, where you can hold on to them because we KNOW we will be putting them right back on. Huh. We cant put our feet on a diet and the chances of them shrinking back to their prepregnancy cuteness is not going to happen. I do feel that this happens for a reason. This is everyones way of telling us, "You are now a Mom, your styles must change. You must look and act the part." Really Im serious.
So back to my desperation. I need new shoes. New fall/winter shoes. I have a few issues. The first being that Im really picky. Putting that aside.
I want cute tall fall boots. This leads me to the skinny jean factor. They are "In" right now. I swore to myself "I" would not fall victim to the skinny jeans. NOPE. Just not a style that works for me. I dont have sexy long skinny legs with a cute little butt. Since I want these cute tall fall boots, the skinny jeans are growing on me, because that is a style that I like. Some cute jeans tucked into some super cute boots. Now I just hope that I can find some flattering jeans and some boots with wide enough shafts to tuck my calves into while wearing said jeans. Another problem that I have. I have never been able to buy tall boots that zip up, the zipper doesnt make it past my calves. Rather disappointing.

My other issue. I love dressing nice and looking nice and having nice and cute clothes. BUT im a sucker for comfort. I love sweat outfits. I love comfy jeans with tennis shoes and sweatshirts. In the summer I LOVE flip flops. Reef happens to be my favorite brand. So my feet and my legs are not conditioned for heels. I dont wear them enough. Its rather sad. I love a sexy pair of heels but never find myself wearing them. So this leads me to another issue.
Since I love comfort so much I love the little ballet flats (as they are called). BUT I have short legs. Most jeans that I buy stack a little on my shoes because there too long. One of my biggest pet peeves is my pants dragging on the ground. This doesnt work for a short person who has a hard time finding the right length of pants without hemming them. Which I DO NOT do. I know silly right. I just hate spending money on jeans and then have to take them and spend more money to get them hemmed.
So Im stuck with my issues and I really need to get over them. Tennis shoes are no fun in the rain. I KNOW. I spent a whole day at work with frozen little piggies, the shoes may have dried after a while, but the socks stayed wet.

So dont judge me if you see me wearing tennis shoes with a cute little dress. HAHAHA (I promise you I will never do that!)

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

against EG

A couple weeks ago, Cole played Elk Grove in football. It was so weird to be there even on the visitors side. It brought back a rush of memories, I felt all warm and fuzzy. Some of the best years of my life were spent there, and I hope our children have that same experience.
So a little history. Cole is a natural athlete just like his Daddy. Some things come easier than others but with a little effort and hard work they make it look good. :) Cole has dablled in allot of sports finding what he loves. He raced motocross for years and that is where his heart is. He plays baseball and that is where his talent is. A few years ago he wanted to play football, he was curious and he had friends playing and he wanted to be apart of it. He decided that it wasnt for him at the time, he was young and the hardest part of football for him was finding his aggression. He wasnt ready and that was ok. We moved on.
He quickly forgot whatever it was that didnt work for him. He either forgot it or decided he was past it. So he begged and begged and begged and begged us to let him play again. We had "talks" about it and offered our advice and having our own reservations, we wanted to make sure it was something he really wanted to do. Many of you are probably thinking whats the big deal just let the boy play. Which is one of the thoughts we had, but we also knew it was going to be a huge commitment on all of our parts. Conditioning is everyday. Some people say thats the hardest part to get through, not to mention their out there at the prime heat of summer. Cole was fine, he made it through with ease. We also knew he would have to fight for his spot, he was venturing in unchartered waters. He didnt have the experience the other players had under their belts. This was his first year, starting as a Jr. Midget. The other players had experience with the plays, they knew the plays, they just had to learn a few more. Just build on what you know. Cole was starting from the bottom, new plays, new teammates, new sport, new schedule. I dont take commitment lightly, when you commit to something you stick with it, through the good the bad the hard and the ugly. You work it out and move forward. Then you are left with the most amazing feeling of accomplishment. As a parent this lesson is hard. You want to teach your children the value you get from this, but this is something like most lessons, its most rewarding when you experience it. Its easy to give up especially when you have doubts. Cole has learned one of the biggest lessons with football. He decided to embark on this at one of the most trying times for him. Juggling football with two other sports as well as school and life as a kid. My hat is off to him. Football itself is rigorous physically and emotionally. There were a couple times he felt like throwing his towel in. We easily could have let him, but we didnt and he pushed through. He has felt all is hard work pay off. This has been one of the biggest confidence boosters for him. He went from 2nd string offense and some playing time on special teams and his coaches telling him "We need our better players out there, the game is too close", to starting offense and defense and special teams. He has put his head in the game, he studies his plays, he goes to every practice and he is working his tail off and the coaches noticed.
We are so proud of him and all that he is accomplishing and juggling at the moment. School, homework, football, fall baseball, flag football, fishing and every other little thing he tries to squeeze in. It helps us with weathering the storms of these preteen days because man that in itself is a handful.

These pictures are taken from my phone since my camera is broken. So im not able to get all up close and personal. :(




Taylor wanted to be part of the action too. So my years at Elk Grove were equipped with a beautiful muddy mess of a football field, no more......the school has a beautiful turf field now and an asphalt track. (Not so sure about that but whatever) I guess it wouldnt be that bad.
Oh and it was an awesome game! No score until the last 2:45 of the game, then it was a fight! 18-12 we won!

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

A little Rut....



The last week or so I have been feeling a little out of sorts. Our life is extremely busy right now, like really busy. Our week looks like this.

Monday~Work, school, baseball game, Monday night football :)

Tuesday~Work, school, flag football game, soccer practice, football practice, Crossfit

Wednesday~Work, school, football practice

Thursday~Work, school, football practice, soccer practice, crossfit

Friday~Work, school, oh what a night off......aaaawwww

Saturday~Soccer game, baseball game, football game, golf and whatever else we can squeeze in

Sunday~Finally a day off.......lazy day cooking and watching football (ok who am I kidding, laundry laundry cleaning......)

So those are the basics. Somewhere in all of that, I have to feed my family, clean my house, grocery shop, squeeze in orthodontic appts., hair appts (desperately need that), and try to also work out and continue to get back in shape. Its easy to just mindlessly go through each day, but who wants to live like that. As busy as I am and we are, why do I feel bored. I want to pack up my little family and run. Not run away for long, just long enough for a vacation. The need to do this as been nagging at me. Probably because we dont have time for much. We have to tightly schedule everything. In the midst of all of this I have to create a routine for my workout, and its taking its toll. I NEED to workout. I have been trying to go for a run or bike ride after we get home at night, but feel guilty about feeding my family so late and by the time I can go, I dont want to. I have books to read and baths to give. To be successful while dieting it takes allot of preparation, like cooking all my food the night before. Who wants to cook dinner and clean up dinner and then cook all my food for the next day. (I NEED SOME GOOD CROCK POT RECIPES!) Now I see why It was so easy to be bad. So I have come to the conclusion that I am not successful squeezing my workout in at night, its not fair to my family or to me, I want to be able to relax. SO the only option is going in the morning, which I used to do. Wake up at 4:30 to go to the gym. Its difficult in the beginning but then it gets easier, I know it does, I did it, just need the motivation to do it again. Then I come home and get ready and the kids ready and out the door by 7:15. Cole is going to a new school this year so he rides a bus because its about 15 minutes away. It would be nice if the bus stop was in walking distance, no such luck. He has to be dropped off and picked up by someone. So in the morning I pick up our friends boys and take them all to the bus stop. Which is fine because the favor is returned in the afternoon. Thank goodness for that!

So our wedding anniversary was last week, we tried to make time to go out, to celebrate. We couldn't. No time. That was a little depressing. We will though, its never too late. My plan is to take the hubby and run away for a day. There is a hike that I really want to go on at Stinson beach. Its beautiful! Soon we will do that, soon.

Work is crazy this week, I was asked to work overtime on a project that we have to complete. Come in at 6:30 and off at 5, then work some hours on Saturday. As you all know the State of California is furloughed. I wont elaborate on that too much but it has effected us a huge deal and not just financially. My work load has multiplied. Those Fridays off have really been a blessing during this time, Im able to schedule appts that otherwise are difficult, clean my house, do laundry and anything else I can squeeze in. We now have to work the second Friday on this "project" so our desks don't get too behind. Which is not a bad thing because they give us the time to use anytime we want. The pay would be nice but the time off is nice too.

So my plate is full. I guess this is why, Im bored with my healthy food, I don't want to work out, I dont want to clean my house, my kids can just stay stinky (I don't let them but it sounded good), and I feel the need to run and be careless.

I don't like to complain. I don't like playing the pity party. I just needed to vent I guess. It feels good to be real and to be honest. Life is not always easy and fun, it can be difficult and trying. My troubles do not even compare to others and I know that. Its amazing when you see someone struggle or hurt you want to drop everything and help or just be there. It gives our crazy busy lives a new light new motivation.

I love my life. I love my husband and I love our kids. I am blessed and grateful that my kids can play sports and we have the choice to be crazy busy. When I stop and think about it, I feel bad for having these thoughts today, because its not that bad. If I stop fighting the challenges of my everyday I can see that I have a good life. I have enough energy to do alll that's on my list and still read before bed and watch my favorite shows and get a full nights sleep. I can cheat on my diet hear and there and it wont make that much of a difference and I can still achieve my goals. I can push my husband to do the things he loves and take on new hobbies and not lose himself as we all do. He is golfing again and he loves it. He is attending a rigorous workout group (crossfit) and is excited about it. Why is it that he knows what I thrive on (working out) but yet I have excuses and get defensive when deep down I know he is only doing what I do for him. Pushing me a little harder because he knows I can perform.

During all of this. The crazy busy schedule and everything else. I want another baby. I have wanted another baby for a while a long while. I know its not the right time, but will it ever be? I keep thinking its a phase and I will get through it but I dont. I still feel my heart strings being pulled at the sight of every baby and toddler. Its a yearning im having a hard time getting over. Im going to leave it at that for now.

Wow this was long. This is how I feel today. Im not going to type any kind of closing statement. Even know after putting it all out there. I feel good. I feel like I can accomplish so much today. I got a text from my sister in law this morning, "Dinner at my place tonight, I have something in the crockpot and plenty of food" For a second I felt like jumping for joy! Check one thing off my list! HHHOOOOLLAAA!! We will be there. Who cares if we don't get there till 7:30 or we come in waves because of the different things we have going on. Who cares if I still have a million things to do at home. I DONT HAVE TO COOK DINNER! And that made me smile.