It's the end of January!

Time to look over those January goals and see how I did.....

The snow and lots of time off for Tyler turned out good and bad, some things we didn't get done and others that we were not planning to do we did. Anyway, on to the list.....

Fun:
  We didn't have friends over, the night was planned and then it snowed, but we did eat out with some friends we hadn't done so with in a while.
   Date/movie night: check, check- actually had 2, one was a movie night with Garyn this last weekend and he sat through the whole Yogi Bear movie without moving
   Playing games: check hasn't been a ton (considering Garyn could play them everyday) but we have played 2-3 nights a week

Clean:

-Finish cleaning desk: check!
-Work hard to get Purple/Ansley's room cleared out: check!
-Stay on top of laundry and basic cleaning weekly: mostly a check, but I always want it cleaner!

Easy Tomato chicken (recipe to follow)

Cooking:
-Freezer Cooking day: no check... :( always next month
-make 2 new recipes this month: check!  made 3 new meals, can't wait to share!
-help Tyler and us to have more options for lunch: haven't eaten out much at all for lunch so check I guess

DIY/Craft:

-Do the little art project I have been wanting to try for the 2 baby showers I have this month: done!
-Work on baby bed: strike
-help Tyler with deck/door installation.....can't wait for this to be finished : strike, the snow hindered this, but we did get started and almost finished the master bath redo

(One of the two baby craft projects)

Teaching/Learning:
-work with Garyn on reading and counting 2-3 times a week: check! Garyn can read all 108 of his sight words and is counting well to 20, almost can get to 30 without help
-work on Garyn's cleaning/responsibilities with his playroom and toys: we are doing well with this, he doesn't automatically do it (will he ever? no!) but he obliges quickly when I say he needs to clean up his playroom and/or put away his cup and dishes from the table

Reading/Prayer:

-Finish "Don't make me Count to Three": DONE! yea! highly recommend to those with children
-Work on adjusting devotion time on weekends and nights I work: fairly well done, missed maybe 3 days/night the whole month
- Make prayer time as a family and on my own a higher priority: better, excited about Emphasis on Prayer study our church is doing, it has been helping more this last week

Budgeting:
-Continue weekly cash flow budgeting: Check! we have jumped leaps and bounds about this, still spent more than budget at times on things that weren't a priority, but it has helped to curb all that nonsense spending
-Use cash only for eating out and grocery: not so much, but stuck well to the budget
-Really try to buy only what is necessary!: check as stated above

Other:
-Bathe dogs if we have a warm enough day and take them to vet or at least make the appt. 1/3 check, had 8 inches of snow at the beginning of the month but the 60 degree Saturday this past weekend gave us a day to bathe the dogs...now just need to make the appt and take them before they are dirty again!
-Make dentists appts for the 3 of us....you don't want to know how long its been since we have been! strike again!
-Make eye doc appt. : done!
-Sale 3-4 items on Ebay: done!

Well, I had felt it wasn't as productive, but it wasn't bad at all. Now on to February!

My babies.....

Being 27 weeks, the reality of a second child is hitting home more and more lately. That may sound odd, cause obviously we were trying and hoping to get pregnant. Plus, we have been through this once and know that the baby inside will soon be outside in our arms growing faster than ever. However, maybe its because she is the second or because it took so long to become pregnant, but I still am in shock at times. I'll think "Wow, I'm the one walking around with a pregnant belly....I'm the one talking about when my baby is due, what I am doing in the nursery, etc......I'm the one that is about to have a boy and a girl at home to care for..."

As she has grown, moved, kicked, gotten the hiccups...I have come to reality that there is a little person inside there with a personality. I have to remind myself, its not just my imagination or a dream. I remember feeling that way some with Garyn, but I took the miracle of pregnancy for granted more than I do now. It was more of just a common event we all go through. I didn't ever fathom the wonder of it and the effect it has had on my life when Garyn entered the world. The significance of Ansley is so much more apparent this pregnancy. Not only that we were unsure if we would ever get pregnant again, but that she will be another dynamic in our family. We don't know her much now but soon we won't be able to imagine life without her. Most importantly, God choose her to be apart of this family and in trusted Tyler and I to raise her!

Ok, so I really didn't intend to get so deep in this post! I just started writing and thoughts came out!

My first baby, Garyn, is not technically a baby anymore since this week marked his officially "3 & 1/2" status.... although he frequently tells me he is and wants to be held like a baby. He loves for me to say "I love you, too, baby" and if I respond with a simple "I love you" he reminds me to say baby. Some of this has started since becoming pregnant but some things were from before. He also likes for me to hold him like a baby and says he is my baby boy.

Garyn is beginning to give Tyler and I attitude when we are telling him something. He has such facial expressions that just make you want to laugh, but you can't. He'll say "Momma, you just sit down and eat your lunch!" after I tell him to. So we are working on explaining what attitude is and who is and isn't in charge.

We are learning he has a competitive streak to go along with his stubbornness. He is still addicted to Wii games. Mariokart has become a nightly family ritual. Also, boxing is high on the list of favorites. And boy he gets so mad when we knock him out, but he can knock us down all day! In fact, he tells us to not hit him or else crying/tantrum proceeds. (above pic is him boxing)

Other times, he has such a sweet loving nature about him. He frequently tells me he is sorry for doing something, usually something that I hadn't even noticed. For example, he will tell me sorry for making a mess while he is cleaning it up. He has become a snuggler and kisser, showering us to the point we have to back away to breathe. He wants to be tickled and kissed frequently, too.

Garyn also has a new friend, baby dragon. Baby dragon entered our family about a month ago. (BTW, Garyn is also reading the last 2 sentences as I type. The only words he didn't know were entered, about and a month....geez can't hide anything from him!) He is from the movie "How to train a dragon" and sometimes there are 30 of them! Baby dragon eats with us, goes to the store, even got checked out by the doctor. Some days, he may only speak of him once or twice and others it is all day. I think it is cute and have heard it is a good sign for them to have imaginary friends. We just play right along treating him as if he were there.

(couldn't get a good pic of the ultrasound pictures but this is her head turned sideways, forehead is to the left)

And then there is my second baby, Ansley, who hasn't made her grand appearance into this world. Right now, she moves frequently, probably once an hour or two. We are beginning to be able to see movements from just watching my belly. She is around two pounds, keeps me hungry, although she is now giving me more and more heartburn that has slowed down the eating. My bladder gets kicked or pressed on frequently! I am getting up at least twice a night now to go to the bathroom. Otherwise though, I still sleep pretty good.

When we last went to the doctor, she was moving her mouth in sucking motions or something. Dr. Brody told Garyn she was sticking her tongue out at him. He thought it was so funny. I haven't noticed her moving any certain time or to a voice or anything yet. But she seems to be having a party in there when she does move here lately. Still mind boggling how she can fit in my stomach and move like she does. God is truly amazing to have designed the whole process of pregnancy and birth.

I still think Garyn is going to love his baby sister. I foresee jealousy when my time is being taken up but for the most part I think he will enjoy her. He is attentive to other babies; being gentle when touching them and concerned if they are crying. Today, we were buying diapers and he asked what for. I told him for Ansley and he replied "Cause he doesn't want to poop in his pants" (we are working on the he/she usage still).  I just can't wait to see what he says when he first sees her. I know that will be a moment Tyler and I will never forget.

So now that reality has set in that there is about to be two babies (one big and one small) that need my love and attention, I am feeling the weight of my responsibilities to prioritize and cherish the days. I already wonder where Garyn's baby face has went and how he all the sudden is acting like a little boy rather than a toddler. Its all part of the richest life that God has given me. I hope to take in as much of it that I can and not keep wishing the days away for the next "thing" I think I need or want to do.

I do know that these babies will always be my babies no matter how much they have grown. I am glad to have many of the moments documented through these posts. Hope you enjoy the updates, too!

Publix steals!

So I had a great shopping day at Publix getting lots of items dirt cheap!

Here is somewhat of a breakdown:
Tostitos Chips $2
2 Juice bottles $1.50 ea
2 pillsbury crescent rolls $1.26 ea
2 pillsbury pizza crust $1.26 ea
2 Pop secret popcorn boxes $1.45 ea
3 boxes Quaker Oatmeal $0.86 ea
3 Dole fruit cups $1.27 ea
Kozy Shack pudding $0.95
Tostitos Salsa $1.47
2 Campbells select harvest $0.69 ea
Avocado $1.69
3 Rotel cans $2.42 for all 3
2 Hillshire farms deli meat $1.83 each
2 Kruteaz pancake mix $.89 ea
2 Taco bell dinner kits $0.85 each
2 J & J guaze pads $0.49 each
Halls cough drops FREE

So with tax that is only $38.26!! Can't beat it!

Latest Couponing Deals....

So I haven't been doing the "This Weeks $60" as I'm sure you have noticed. I don't really have the time to detail it out (and don't think you girls are interested in reading all that anyway!) BUT I still love the deals I get each week and just want to share sometimes. I won't be listing each item price and coupons used but I plan to do some "This weeks $60" again. It most likely won't be every week, either, just those that I am excited about!

Yesterday and today was the first time in awhile that I really planned and prepared for couponing. During the busy Christmas season, I would go to one, maybe two stores, and my coupons were a mess! I have gotten them back into somewhat of an organized state now. It takes some work but I did miss it and had that "Yes!" feeling again about grocery shopping.

This is Bilo and Publix combined. All of this was $31 dollars with tax! I mean 3 juice bottles, Gatorade, cereal, 6 yogurts, 2 packs chicken, 3 muffin mixes and more.......it would have cost at least $50-60 dollars without the coupons and sale prices. Ahhhhh......to restock and feel good about it.

I also went to Aldi, one of my favorite place to just go get those random things you need that aren't on sale (or you don't have a coupon for)....I spent $25 there on produce, chips, dog food, milk and bread, and a couple other things I don't remember.

However, one of my most exciting trips was to CVS yesterday. I didn't take a picture of this either. I did 3 transactions to use my ECBs and got a smart light bulb, jumbo pack of newborn Huggies diapers (40 ct.), 3 small Palmolive dish soaps and 2 Hydrogen peroxide bottles. I spent $8.06 total! The diapers alone were $8.99 on sale plus a $1 ECB. Gotta start saving up for Miss Ansley!

Well, there is my quick $64 spent this week. I went over some but I haven't been spending even $40 lately using up stock so I am ok with that!

Have you found any good deals lately that made you want to hop, skip and jump out of the store?!

Goals: December wrap up and January's fresh goals!

Well the holiday season is over, all the Christmas is up (!), and Tyler is back to work. I have been thinking, "Oh, I'll get that done after Christmas" about organizing, nursery projects and so on. Well now is the time!

First, I would like to share the goals of December that got completed (or not).....

Fun:
-We did have a Sunday School party but unfortunately we were out of commission from the stomach bug so it was changed to another person's house. We missed the party entirely!
-We had a date night, actually the same night I got sick. We ate at Big River and did a little Christmas shopping. I ate a lot within a couple hours and thought I just had indigestion. Well at 2 am I realized the indigestion was the throw-up bug that Garyn had earlier that week! (Tyler got sick just hours later)
-Did attend the Cookie/Dessert swap, yum!
-We went to Rock City
-Christmas was wonderfully white and just perfect!

Clean:
-Cleaned and decorated a lot, throughout, so I feel pretty good about that
-Purple room is still messy
-Desk is much better! :)

Cook:
-Made cookies and desserts!
-Unsure if we cooked twice every week but feel we did considerably better than we normally do when Tyler is out of school (and wanting to eat out constantly!)

DIY/Craft:
-Did get the downstairs bathroom finally finished painting wise!
-Upstairs bathroom has progressed closer to being complete but still has 2 things that Tyler needs to do
-Made Lorna's memo/photo board for her room and painted her name like she asked for (funny thing about this is that I posted to pic of me painting her name on Facebook and a lot of people thought I had changed Ansley's name to Lorna)
-Did not get to the advent tree :(

Teaching/Learning:
-Garyn can now count to 20 and knows almost all 108 of his sight word cards, however we didn't work at it as much as planned, but I am happy he is progressing :)
-Did lots of teaching about the true meaning of Christmas and Garyn seemed to understand whose birthday it was and wanted to sing "Happy Birthday" to Jesus a lot.
-I felt I was better about the internet but it is a goal I continually need to work on

Reading:
-I am happy to say I am 2 chapters away from finishing "Don't Make Me Count to Three". I knew once I picked it back up I would dive right back in. I will finish this month!
- We did many Bible family times and discussions, but didn't keep up with the Jesse Tree devotion. It was hard for Garyn to understand, so we read some of the Christmas story verses and books we had.
-I have gone up and down with my devotion time, as always. Working nights shouldn't be an excuse but it is mine. At night, when Tyler wants to go to be at 9:30 or 10, and I am not sleepy, it is the best time for me to do my devotion. But when we stay up later (we have been up past 11 almost every night!) and when I work, the devotion time unfortunately gets cut. Its a work in progress constantly......

Budgeting:
-Its going a lot better, we have planned out where $ needs to be spent more and more throughout the year and month.

Other:
-I had fun with decorating this year, I like making the holidays more special for us and mainly Garyn by having the decorations up.
-I started by procrastinating with the wrapping......but once I started it was all wrapped within 2 days and I decided it wasn't that bad. In fact, our cat opened a present and tried to open many more so it was better that I didn't have to contend with him all month!

OK! Now to the new ones for January!

Fun:
-Have some friends over for dinner
-Date/movie night
-Play more games as a family with Garyn (he got several for Christmas)

Clean:
-Finish cleaning desk
-Work hard to get Purple/Ansley's room cleared out
-Stay on top of laundry and basic cleaning weekly

Cooking:
-Freezer Cooking day
-make 2 new recipes this month
-help Tyler and us to have more options for lunch

DIY/Craft:
-Do the little art project I have been wanting to try for the 2 baby showers I have this month
-Work on baby bed
-help Tyler with deck/door installation.....can't wait for this to be finished

Teaching/Learning:
-work with Garyn on reading and counting 2-3 times a week
-work on Garyn's cleaning/responsibilities with his playroom and toys

Reading/Prayer:
-Finish "Don't make me Count to Three"
-Work on adjusting devotion time on weekends and nights I work
- Make prayer time as a family and on my own a higher priority

Budgeting:
-Continue weekly cash flow budgeting
-Use cash only for eating out and grocery
-Really try to buy only what is necessary!

Other:
-Bathe dogs if we have a warm enough day and take them to vet or at least make the appt.
-Make dentists appts for the 3 of us....you don't want to know how long its been since we have been!
-Make eye doc appt.
-Sale 3-4 items on Ebay

Whew! I am tired already just writing/reading all this. But excited to make progress to achieve my goals for the month!

And some baby progress....
Today, I am 24 weeks! Can't seem right, but moving right along. She moves a lot more and is higher up. Although, she is kicking my bladder more often making me have to go to the bathroom frequently! Garyn is still talking to her a lot, but won't stay still long enough to feel her. Tyler feels her often, and loves to check up on her daily. Just have to work on getting everything ready for her now!

Christmas Snapshots

We had a great Christmas, were able to get everywhere in the snow, and I got a new camera so there are lots of pictures!

Christmas Eve began with making cookies for the neighbors and to take to family functions.......

 As we do every year, the Vesper service or Christmas Eve service starts our family time with Tyler's parents. Then we have snack/ finger foods at their house before opening presents. Stephanie's family joined us this year for a little while and we enjoyed that change up a lot!

Then we began opening presents.....note that this is before I got my new camera!

 Garyn got the new Buckaroo game, Dragon movie (How to Train a Dragon), leapster and games to go with it, and some trains. He kept saying "Another one for me!"

 Tyler constantly has to borrow saw horses and ladder from his dad, so he got some new ones of his own. Following tradition, he had to go on a scavenger hunt to find them around the house.

Poppa got a new IPhone from Nana...

Garyn and Daddy figuring out his leapster. Daddy got 2 pairs of safety goggles along with the ladder and saw horses AND he wore them on his head all night!

Tyler, I, and Ansley... :)

Now with booger who was trying to shoot Poppa with the disc launcher

Ansley had a present, too, lots of cute clothes

Nana enjoyed the calender I made for her.....

It was a great night!

Christmas morning we woke up to beautiful snow, about 2 inches had laid already!

 View outside our front door at 9 am

 Garyn checking out his Santa.......
He got his Shake Shake Bridge set he wanted with some trains, a Boz game, and MarioKart for the Wii. Plus he had Playdoh, PJ's, movies, Tag reading system and Cars character hotwheels wrapped. Probably forgetting some too!

The last two years we have made a "cake" or banana nut bread for Jesus' birthday. We sing and blow out the candle. I really like doing this to help us remember why we are celebrating Christmas.

 Garyn and his MarioKart (prior to new camera, ugh!)

 Tyler got a new I Pod since we washed and dried his old one...(it worked for a week or two afterwards but then wouldn't hold a charge anymore)

While we were deciding on whether to drive in the snow to Ga, Garyn played and played with his new trains and MarioKart

Then we made the trek to Georgia for my family and it wasn't bad at all, so glad we took the chance.

 Garyn and Lakelin, he loooves his Lakelin

 Playing with Uncle Josh...

 Food time!

 Grandpa and I

 Granny, who just got out of the hospital 2 days before, so glad she made it and is doing better....

 Aunt Denise and Abbi (and Chloe)

 Presents!

 Uncle Mike and his daughter, Lauren

 Thought these were funny, Grandpa waving and Granny was saying "Put your hand down" BTW this is them with their children, minus my sweet mom who is in heaven now

 Now Grandpa is holding up Granny's hand, she gets so aggravated with him but its so cute at the same time!

 Kids playing outside in the snow!

 And Tyler doing what he does, cleaning and washing dishes. My aunts love him for it, and I love him for being so thoughtful. I told him he didn't have to always do that and he said, "Well then your Aunt Joy or somebody else would have to do it and they've already done all the cooking and preparing".... Melts my heart

And finally we have the day after Christmas Activities....

Josh, Karen, Lorna and Lakelin came down Christmas night and the next day we had Christmas with them and my dad at our house.

But first we had a family snowball fight!

 Garyn was cute trying to throw with all his might

 Aunt Karen

 Lornie, also known as Lorna, and Garyn, she made this black and white on my computer, it looks really cute, too!

 Attempting a family photo, Garyn was ready to go in at this point...

After we all went in Tyler and Josh played for awhile in the snow, they were diving and tackling each other which is more wet and colder than I'd want to be!

Then it was present time!

Tyler got a Carrhart Jacket

Garyn got a Wii game, Cars truck and Cars PJs....

Lakelin with his hat and shirt.....

Lorna with her photo board, I made, to match her new room

And we all got money from my dad, Garyn laid his out like a train saying he had 5 dollars....lol, notice my purple purse and the shoes were from Tyler

Lastly, we had Christmas with Tyler's extended family later that evening. We usually do this on Christmas day but because of the snow, it was post poned one day.

Rachel, the youngest cousin, with her new toboggan. Garyn loves to play with her and she loves to play, too. Although, she is excited about a girl cousin coming!

Garyn got a Bumblebee transformer, and I think I might have been more excited, because it was one of the things on his list (of many) that I never got....

Garyn was worn out after that third day of Christmas activities, as we all were. That day he hadn't had a nap either. Buddy, their dog, was laying in the floor and Garyn just wanted to lay down with him! Buddy would move and so would Garyn, eventually he even asked for a pillow and blanket! But it wasn't five minutes before he was off and running again.

So now the snow has melted and its about to be 2011. I feel like 2010 has melted before my eyes, too. But 2011 is going to be a fun year! Ansley will come and change our lives as we know it now!

Happy New Year to you all!