Birthday Party Etiquette

So Sunday we had my daughters birthday party she invited about 10 kids of her choosing. Most of the children I knew in one way or another, so I didn't anticipate any surprises. Boy was I wrong!

The party started at 1pm and the ids started to arrive about 5 minutes of 1. The first child to arrive was a child whose parents I had met once before at their daughters birthday party. They said their hellos and stood around a bit till some other children showed up. The mother then came to me and said what time should I pick up Amy** (**not her real name) oh 3:30 should be good I said. All the while thinking she was going to pick up her husband and her daughter. Oh no! She and her husband left! Now I am not sure about all you moms out there but I am not sure that a pool party is the best party to leave your child unattended at, maybe it's just me.

So the kids proceed to the locker room where young Amy announces she doesn't have a towel (only a cover up) and doesn't know how to swim. Ok now the thoughts in my mind are racing. These parents left their child with me whom they have only met once in passing AND their child doesn't swim??? WTF

Other parents were appalled and I must say I was too. Thankfully the pool we chose had a decent shallow end where the kids played with the dumping buckets and water geysers. But if these kids which most all knew how to swim were to have moved to deeper water that could have spelled trouble. Mind you this is a public pool with lifeguards and many many other kids.

The parents came at 3:30 to pick up their child, the child took off from the party room were in once she saw her parents and my husband rushed after her to make sure she was Ok and that her parents were truly there. He said he casually said that he was unaware that Amy couldn't swim and that they were leaving her unattended at the party. He said they both gave him this blank stare as if to say of course we would leave her.

Needless to say I have made a mental note and I will not allow Lauren to ever be unattended with them. What are your thoughts were the parents out of line or am I totally over reacting?

Happy 7th Birthday Lauren

To my precious 7 year old daughter

Words cannot express the joy you bring to my life, you make me want to be a better person and you have taught me the true meaning of a mothers unconditional love. I hope I can lead through your childhood journey to adulthood and that you come from it a strong independent woman. I love you with all my heart and cherish the day you came into my life! Happy Birthday Lauren !

My sweet Lauren turn 7 today, we celebrated by having a pool (indoor) party for her and her friends yesterday and she had a blast, today she is celebrating with her entire class during lunch with the cupcakes I dropped off before heading to work. I am amazed each and everyday how she is growing before my eyes!

17 weeks ....Baby Number 3

The bun in my oven is cooking just as it should, however it seems I put a little too much yeast in my recipe since I gained a whopping 5lbs this month! I need to remove that feed bag from around my neck and get back on that tread mill or I will have gained 50Lbs by the end!

I was able to hear the heart beat and that always brings a huge smile to my face. So since another month has passed I will post a belly shot of me at 17 weeks.

Yup I know it is starting to really pop out there! Just think what I will look like come August!

Sunday night...... getting ready for the week

The weekend flew by as it usually does, I was able to get a lot done and find some time for me which is unusual.

My college basketball brackets are kicking butt, I am number 2 in my pool of 100 people! Not bad for a chick huh? I so do love this time of year!!!!

My google reader looks like it is about to explode (724 unread blog posts), I plan to do some much needed reading tomorrow once I get back from my OBGYN/baby check up. I am sure things are fine but I always worry. Last week was a rough week for me and my blood pressure was a little elevated so I am hoping for a lower reading tomorrow.

So I am still here and I promise to visit all my bloggy friends tomorrow!

MWAH!!!!

Struggling a bit......

As I have written before I have good days and bad days as far as this pregnancy goes today has been a bad one. Actually the last couple of days have been bad ones emotional not physically. Several woman who write some of the blogs I read are pregnant one lost her baby on Monday and another had a pretty scary 24 hours after a Dr. sent her for tests, thankfully all seems to be going well for her now. Last night a friend who I used to be very close to lost her baby at almost 19 weeks.

I am struggling today because she and I have not been close for quite some time for many reasons some selfish, some not. She recently reached out to me via one of the many social networking sites out there to say hi and say she was happy to see that I was doing well. We exchanged some emails back and forth and she shared with me that she was pregnant with her first, and I shared with her I also was pregnant. She was very excited to start a family and seemed genuinely excited and happy for me as well. She was due 3 weeks before me. We had not exchanged emails since as I don't think either of us was ready or in some respects willing to rekindle the friendship that once was. We were jsut contenet in touching base.

Last night she emailed me the news that she and her husband had lost the baby and my heart broke. I know the heartache of miscarriage but I can't begin to understand the heartache of losing a child this far along in a pregnancy.

I responded the only way I knew how by saying how sorry I was for her loss but I can't help but feel I should do more. As I said I used to be very close to this person and as time went on we grew apart. I just hate to see people in pain and the pain of losing a child seems far to great. I pray that her family and close friends embrace her and I will try my best to do what I can from afar.

Happy St. Patricks Day!

It's St. Patrick's Day and I for one am Irish! My maiden name was O'Toole, it was great when I was younger and I wanted to get into bars on St. Patrick's day! These day's though it is about the kids and the kids have a blast talking about leprechauns and pots of gold at the end of the rainbow.

This morning we kept our tradition going with green milk and green pancakes as well as our silly mom and kids family photos, Lauren wanted to make sure the baby got in on the action so she insisted on taking a picture of my belly ! Check us out.

Me and the kids St. Patrick's Day morning

My 2 irish cuties

Jackson digging his hat

My Irish twins (not really but they look like they could be)
Me 17 weeks pregnant showing off the belly!

March Madness is here!!

I love this time of year, I played basketball in high school and I have been an avid college basketball fan as long as I can remember. So I am hosting an office pool and I am participating in a couple others just to keep things interesting. I know, I am a nut and you really are never sure what to expect from me are you? So forgive me if I am MIA later this week, I will be tuned to the Internet and the TV trying to get my fix in.

If you are looking to participate in a pool let me know and I will send you the link, it is only $5 to enter.

I feel like I am walking through molasses......

The idea of walking through molasses would indicate that things are moving slow and in some respects they are in others they are not. I have a whole host things going on in my brain right now to the point I feel like a bit of a crazy person one minute I am up one minute I am down.

Work has been super crazy I am a little over 4 months from the launch of my new division and things are not lining up as I had hoped so I am having to really push people which of course does to make me the fav among colleague, add to that I felt the incredible need to yesterday grill my boss as to when my promotion is coming. I of course totally second guessed myself on the way home as to why I even had the conversation for fear it makes me look like I am whining which I HATE.

Being pregnant has it's ups and downs as we all know. One day I feel great the next I don't, add to that my concern that everything is Ok with this pregnancy it is a roller coaster I would soon like to get off. I don't remember being this paranoid if you will about the health and development of my other 2 pregnancies. I just want the baby to be here so I can stop worrying all the time.

Home life, well it is again like molasses just going through the motions. Dan is not at all happy at his new job and while part of me thought it was just the military to corporate America. It seems to me more then that and I can sense he is just simply not happy however he feels a huge amount of pressure to stick it out for the obvious reasons the economy, not wanted to be a quitter the list goes on and on? Jackson our youngest is putting us, mainly me through my paces seems that everything in his eyes is an negotiation from what book we read before bed to what is being served for dinner. I know this is a phase but Celia our nanny is not helping the situation because she gives in to him ALL THE TIME!

I guess as I look back on what I have written so far it appears as though all in all I am just in a bumming place right now. I am not sure what to do, I know part of it is just life and we all need to deal, part of it though seems overburdening like the weight of the world is on my shoulders. I am well aware that some of this may be the directly result that I have stopped taking my medicine for my mild depression. I stopped because I did not want to harm he baby, I am not risk taker when it comes to medicines and fetal development someone could tell me all day long it would be fine and I still wouldn't want to take meds. I don't even like taking cold meds pregnant. However if something doesn't give soon I feel I will need to go back to my Dr and have a conversation.

Thanks for listening.

Since when does love equal fists to the face???

I don't really voice my opinion on pop culture much when I write on this blog. However the media circus that surrounds this Chris Brown Rihanna issue has really started to piss me off.

I am trying to wrap my arms around why a young lady with her whole life in front of her, a career that is white hot and a the support of a half the world would feel she needs or wants to go back to that clown. I wouldn't even consider going back to this jerk of a human being. I would kick him to the curb in a hot second. No boy or man should ever even have it in his mind that after he hits a woman that he will be forgiven and taken back. He not only hit Rihanna he beat the living crap out of her face. (if you haven't seen the picture google it, out of respect for her I will not show it here) The police report gives details of him hitting her while driving, to the point she had blood poling in her mouth spraying onto her clothes and the interior of the car. Nothing says love like a right handed fist to the face over and over again! NOT

HELLO Rihanna.......that is not someone who loves you!!!!! If he did he wouldn't even think to lay a hand on you! I can only hope that someone in Rihanna's camp sits her down and talk some sense into her. She may be an adult but she is not an adult with years of life experience under her belt and she still needs guidance.The message that she is sending to young fans and the women who are currently being batter is the wrong one. She needs to stand up and tell Chris Brown to hit the road and then watch as the justice system applies the appropriate punishment for his crime(s). That to me seems like the most sensible thing to do....call me crazy!!!

Pregnancy and Running

I was really getting into the running gig when I found out I was pregnant. I ran my first ever 10k in October of 2008 the Marine Corps Marathon 10K from that point I was bitten by the running bug! I then ran the Turkey Trot 10K and the Jingle Bell
10K, I was well on my way to bigger and better races.

I am super excited about being a mom again, but I must admit I am a little down about giving up my intense work outs. Before you scroll to the bottom and hit the comment button and tell me I can still work out....I know that!!! See the thing is my heart rate before I was pregnant was higher then normal. I had my doctor check it out and all was fine I am just one of those folks whose heart rate takes off when they work out. So when I became pregnant I knew that my works outs would be drastically reduced since baby can't handle a heart rate above 145. Sadly that is a fast walk jog for me, I have been able to jog a bit on the treadmill but I totally have lost my ability to run outside per Dr's. orders.

So I am a bit melancholy, I still work out though only twice a week compared to my 4 or more time a week. I miss pounding the payment and working up a good sweat and I am shocked to admit I can't wait to get back into it. So I have set a goal for myself, one that may be a little difficult but I think I can do it.

I signed up for the Disney World Half Marathon January 9th 2010! For those of you doing the math that is 4 months after baby #3's birth! See it could be me posing for this picture in 2010!!
I have a plan, hopefully baby #3 cooperates! I have had easy births with #1 and #2, day 2 home from the hospital with #2 I mowed the yard while Dan watched #2 because I "needed" to get out of the house. So my plan is to start working out 2 weeks after baby. I will work my way up to the Marine Corps 10K then run the Jingle Bell 10K in Dec and be ready for the Disney half Marathon in Jan. Anyone want to join me? There are still spots left!!!

Go ahead now you can comment and tell me how crazy I am!

i heart faces.... Elaine it's all your fault!

So I was reading Elaine's Blog when I came across the contest that she entered for Children's Messy Faces at i heart faces.



Well I have a photo that I think epitomizes a messy face as a matter of fact I have it on my fridge and have for years! So I too am going to enter the contact and Elaine it is all your fault! hee hee.

So here is my amateur photo taken several years ago after Dad had been on duty!

Snow day!

We had a snow day yesterday....... finally! After about 3 years of little to no snow we finally got a nice dumping which helped me not to feel so guilty when I decided to stay home and work so I could be with the kiddos. We had a blast outside for about an hour which was all I could stand and I think all they could stand as I heard little in the way of complaints when I said it was time to leave.


Check out our good time!

This is what I woke up to and it was still coming down!

The men of my neighborhood helping me out and plowing my driveway since Dan is out of town on business. I love my neighbors!

Lauren after flying down the hill!

Lauren and Jackson making their way to the top of the hill.

Jackson trying to pick up speed.

Jackson all bundled up and going fast.

Kids... say the most amazing things.

I have to share with all of you what just happened a few hours ago...

This afternoon as I dropped Dan off at the train station for a week long business trip, he opened the back-seat passengers door to give the kids a hug and a kiss good bye. Jackson said "I love you" and handed him a card he had made. Dan shut the door and as he shut the door Jackson yelled "wait I have something to tell you" Dan opened the door and Jackson said "May God be with you Daddy" My heart melted and tears began flow down my face. Dan came to my side of the car to say good bye and said to me "by your reaction I can tell you didn't prompt him to say that," I smiled and said no that was all him. I asked Jackson as I pulled away why he said what he said to Dan and he said because he wanted Daddy to be safe on his trip!

OK I m sure we all have these heart warming stories but for my 4 1/2 year a old to do that unprompted I thought was amazing. I am so lucky to be his mommy!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!