good morning.

so reason number 29348092348 why i love my children. in the mornings, first i go get aidan. and i sing.

then we go get sawyer. and aidan sings.

then we go get reese. and aidan and sawyer sing.

this is what we sing. loud and proud. wake up and sing. :)

day 9.

Day 9-A picture of your friends

or rather, picturessssss.

we'll just do those who we see most often. ;) and who my kids are besties with as well.

first, we have david. or, "day-did" :) ive known him since, oh, 2004. and we are 2 peas in a pod. he loves my girls, and they adore him back. now in dallas (after spending a few wretched years after waco in the sink-hole known as houston) life is inevitably better. lol





we also have ashley. or, "lashley" :) who ive known since.. wow, 1998? is that right? a long time LOL either way, she's been around for all my kids. and they know her so well that im pretty sure they think she's their bestie.







then there's nathan. or "nason". which is ashley boyfriend turned our friend then kid friend as well :) he's full of fun all the time ;) ive "known" him since HS, but not really until last spring.



we have other friends, obviously LOL i am still searching for that wine pic of amanda w. and sawyer. it'll show up soon haha then that'll be on here too.

we're so lucky, though. i cant imagine not having these people in my life. they get us. they understand that we cant go out all the time, but hey - just come over. they help with the kids if we need them too, they come over a bit early just to make sure they see ASR before bedtime.

we are are blessed.

day 8.

Day 8-A place you've traveled to

lets see.

honduras. roatan to be exact. it could be my favorite place ive been to so far. but it didnt start that way.



EJ and i were on a cruise in march 2008. we stop in honduras and everything takes damn cash. we know this, but still we forget and get off the boat without hitting the atm. its likely we lost all of our cash the night before at the casino on the boat. but i cant be sure.

so our on-island taxi driver takes us to the most beautiful beach there. we get out, he'll meet us in like 6 hrs, we need however much in cash. um. okay. the resort closest to this beach is fresh out of money. oh really?

so we take a water taxi to another part of the island with, likely, another atm. the water taxi driver tells us where the atm is, we thank him and say "wait here. we'll pay you for it" he does, and we head off. i tell EJ im going to shop in this little store for gifts. he says he'll BRB.

um. but he didnt BRB. i walked around that street for hours. okay. im lying. it was prob 30 mins. but since we dont have "world phones" we couldnt call e/o.

so i start up towards where the atm was supposed to be. nothing. i mean, an atm is there, but its obvs broken and EJ is no where to be seen. i walk around, smile at native hondurans, and cry on the street. pacing. i find an american that looks like he was likely on the boat and i just stand by him.

JUST STAND THERE. how awkward.

then i start to think... so, if i dont find EJ, do i get back on the boat? do i stay here in roatan? how do we get home? do i file a police report here? should i finish the cruise?

haha okay maybe not the last one.

FINALLY EJ strolls up with our water taxi guy. who had walked him 10 mins out of the way to another atm. i want to punch him in the throat. both of them.

we go back to the other part of the island and have the best time ever. i drink so many ritas that i puke in the ocean after snorkeling, we eat delish food, buy fun crap, and just have a ball. im not kidding when i say that we picked up realty paperwork on our way back to the boat. we'd move there in 2 seconds flat.

oh, and EJ still has about $110 honduran dollars (thats like 1 billion american. ok. like $19) in his wallet. he just showed me. im not kidding. we are ballers.

day 7.

Day 7-Favorite movies

newsies - um. a musical. christian bale. need i say more?
white christmas - snow. snoW. snOW. SNOW!!!!!
love actually - omg swoon.
van wilder - rawr ryan reynolds. and, well, its hilarious.
centerstage - oh. cmon. its fabulous.

there are dozens more. some im slightly embarrassed about (ahem.fromjustintokelly.ahem) and others, like kid movies, that i would gladly watch with ASR with no problem!

cars
madagascar (1 and 2)
enchanted
over the hedge (a personal fave)
wall-e. omg tears.

give me some time. i'll think of more ;)

day 6.

Day 6-A picture of something that makes you happy



ok. so its multiple pictures. but let me explain. nothing makes me swoon more than how my children are with each other. simply best friends. playing in the rain, making reese laugh, sitting on the couch cuddling in a blanket. i could not imagine life any other way. its the best.

day 5.

Day 5-Your favorite recipes


yeah. um. im gonna have to come back to this. with my mom has a guest writer. LOL give me a few.

eta: okay. here's some quick and easy things i had my mom tell me how to do.

Pot Roast in crock pot.

One chuck roast, size depends on how many you are feeding.

veggies: potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, mushrooms

Put pot roast at bottom of crock pot. Salt and pepper. Put veggies on top. Add one can mushroom soup and one envelope of lipton onion soup. Then one can water. Put on high for about 5 hours. Should be delicious and meat should be fork tender.


Chicken soulvaki

Package of chicken tenders. Marinate them in 1/2 lemon juice, teaspoon of oregano, teaspoon of minced garlic for about 4 hours.

Then put in skillet and cook, cutting the chicken into bite size pieces.

To assemble: One pita bread...(garlic powder and butter both sides) Put in pan to heat both sides. Put on plate. Add some chicken, tomatoes, red onion and I add a few clausson pickles. Top all with tzaitki sauce. (Get it at SPROUTS!). Delicious!


Fajita marinade

1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 t garlic powder
1/2 t onion powder
1/2 t ground thyme
1/2 t ground cumin
1/4 cup corn oil


thanks mom!!! love them!

day 4.

Day 4-Your parents

this one is so easy.

my parents are the best. end of story.

my dad - calm, quiet, funny, the sensitive one of the pair. haha owns his own graphic design advertising company and has had an office in our home for as long as i can remember. loves fishing, building things, watching boring tv that no one else would like except for EJ, and red wine.



my mom - funny, outgoing, sassy, and my best friend. hobbies consist of trying new recipes, going with me to target, and hanging out at the cabin with my dad. sharing a bottle of wine with me might also be on the list.



they love LOVE my children. will watch them when we need/want them to and they have a hundred stories about what fun things they did after the night is over. they got A and S all ready to come see reese -- and the look on their faces in this pic when they came in for the first time just exudes the love they have.



its hard bc i could go on and on. but i will simply say that my 2 biggest supporters/helpers/friends will always be my parents. so here, i'll write a little note to them.

dear mom and dad,
i just wanted to say thank you for everything you do.

thanks for being there when we need you, helping out when we need a boost, and being there just to listen to me (or EJ - you know how he is) vent.

thanks for loving ASR the way you do. they love their nonny and papa so much and constantly want to go over and stay the night, meet for lunch, or just have an hr of playtime. cmon - you love playing tea party, right? :)

thanks for adoring EJ. for treating him like a son. for chatting with him about stuff i dont want to talk about anymore ;) and listening to him vent about work things that i dont understand as a stay at home mom. and for letting him know that he is a part of this family too.

thanks for paying for college. and the dropped classes... and parking tickets... and bear bucks. one day when i win the lottery, i will pay you back.

because of you, i live knowing that things will be okay no matter what. i love you :)