They are Getting SO Big.

Under Construction

I came home from work today to find my yard and driveway torn apart by three very large construction vehicles. The local utility decided to install some high-speed internet lines for my neighbors by tearing my yard apart. :(

They gave me NO notice. They won't be done with the work until next weekend...AND they won't be putting my yard back together or re-paving my driveway until Spring. ???? I'm SO ticked!!! ERR! This CAN'T be right.

More Sweetness...

Actually it's salty, but yummy non-the-less. :) I'm salivating about the sweetness of Ham & Green Bean Casserole. YUMMO! Enjoy this NOT so low-fat recipe.

(This is kind-of what it looks like - Mine looks better though!)

5 medium potatoes

2 Tbl butter or margarine
1 1/2 cup cubed ham
2 cans green beans
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
12 oz. sour cream
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can French's Fried Onions (Cheddar is best)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash, cube and boil potatoes until tender. Place butter in six pats on bottom of 11x13 baking dish. Drain cooked potatoes and line bottom of buttered pan with them. Sprinkle ham and green beans over potatoes. Mix soups and sour cream together in medium bowl. Spread over potatoes, ham and green beans. Sprinkle top with cheese and fried onions. Cover with foil and bake for 35-45 minutes. Remove foil for last 5 minutes to toast fried onions. Yummo!

Happy Birthday Jarom

(This is the closest to a smile we could get! :)

Jarom turns 5 Friday. We had a party for him on Monday. He is SO funny. Nothing gets him to show emotion...except maybe dinosaurs. Dad gave him a video game thing and he got a bunch of other boy toys. He is definitely ALL boy. :)

Playing Dollhouse with Aunt Rookie

Bug is loving it!

Of course...Bud is playing the super hero on the roof of the house protecting them. :)

I love my cute kiddos. Thanks to Aunt Rookie for coming and hanging out with us. :)

Possibly the latest posting of Christmas pictures this year.

Well they are finally here. The pictures my sister took of us on Christmas Eve and Day. :)

Rookie and Alice came over Christmas Eve to share yummy goodies.

The kiddos were with their dad the entire two week break, which sucked! But they came home for a few hours Christmas Day. :)

Tinkerbell/Storm Trooper Bug.

I'm glad he figured out how to work the transformers because I sure couldn't!

Bug was more excited about Bud's toys...as always. :)

He loves his Lincoln Logs.

Introducing...Shelly Melody Phillips. :) Bug loves her. She smells like baby powder.

It was a nice time.

Harry Potter or Groucho?

You decide. I vote Harry.

My Famous Family!

While visiting my sister and her family in D.C. for Christmas, my mother and the gang were interviewed by NPR about the inauguration. Here is the audio link.

Enjoy!

More Sweetness...

A large portion of what I consider my sweetness in life comes from MUSIC.

Music on elevators, or is that elevator music? Either way, I love it! I love when I am eating out with good friends or family and have a nice mix of music chiming in the background. Music is on in my car whenever possible (talk-radio is another sweetness I will discuss later). I have learned to venture forth into different kinds of music too. I now LOVE jazz, Indian music, and some hip-hop type kids music (Miley Cyrus is the bomb!) and more.

Music has always been a part of my life. Some of my earliest memories involve my mom or sister singing to me. I remember how much I enjoyed singing time at my local church. I loved learning the piano. I loved voice lessons. I sang in the school choir, starred as Wind-Up-Wendy in the school play, and continued on with choirs, musicals, and drama into high school. All of which brought me such joy, release, and friendships. I loved sitting around and singing with high school friends. A good friend and I would play and sing for hours. I never got sick of it. I don't think she did either. I miss some of this more than I know.

Sadly, I gave up music for four bleak years of my life. I made a mistake and subconsciously punished myself by disallowing music in my life. Occasionally I would listen to music on the radio and I even once sang in church, but on the whole I did not have music in my life. It was a horribly lonely and confusing time (not just because of the lack of music). But no more! My music is back.

I love to attend concerts of all kinds (hint, hint...Kathy!). I love musicals and theater productions (I'm going to Wicked in May!). I would love to be in a musical or choir again soon. I love that my daughter loves music and is starting piano. I love hearing her choir perform. I have a piano now and spend a little bit too much time on it daily. But my kids LOVE for me to play them to sleep.

Music is and will continue to be a big part of my life. It has saved me on many occasions. I will seek it out always. I hope to discover more styles and venues to enjoy music.

I love the sweetness it brings.

"All men have a sweetness in their life. That is what helps them go on. It is towards that they turn when they feel too worn out." - Albert Camus

* * * * * * *

I read it today, loved it, and put it as my blog header quote. I was looking for a message that would help me right now. This quote was perfect. I needed to remind myself why I am pushing so hard to make life better. I needed to remind myself of the sweetness in my life.

So...I am going to write occasionally about the things that are my sweetness in life. The first (and I'm sure you are sick of hearing about them, but oh well...) are my kiddos.

My children are smart, funny, and independent souls. They were each born with a personality and temperament in place. They have both stuck pretty nearly to these throughout their lives. They have taught me how to be a better person. They have taught me discipline, temperance, and most of all...patience. They have helped me ask the important questions and make my life more genuine and authentic.

My children are SO funny. Every day, one of them says something that makes me roll with laughter. I look forward to coming home to them and spending time listening to their stories, moments, and movie reviews. I love snuggle-time with Bud and listening to his jokes. I love asking Bug what was the best and worst part of her day as we snuggle before bed. I love singing them their songs and that they still request them nightly. I love that I found songs perfect for each of them...and that they love them.

I am SO blessed to have their sweetness in my life. They are my joy and my pleasure. I do what I do and am what I am for them. They have saved me from a crazy miserable life of loneliness. :) Thank you Bug and Bud! I love you. I can't wait to see what you become.

(I thought this was great!)

Schizo Background Girl

Ok...I admit it. I change my blog background too much! I just get bored and I see such cute things out there in bloggyland that I want to change it all up a bit. :) I think I will keep this latest one for a while though because it took me over 3 hours to figure out how to make it all work (margins, etc.).

I messed up the html on this blog. I'm hoping my friend can help me fix it. :) We'll see.

Cute Bug Comments:
2009 Edition

Bug was bathing and Bud asked her a question from the other room. I guess he thought she didn't hear him because he repeated the question louder, and then again even louder. Finally Bug screamed out..."I'm busy...please leave a message after the beep....BEEP!" :)

SNOW, SNOW, SNOW!!

Guess what we did after school. We built a snow-woman. I haven't done this in years! Had a blast. Bug insisted on putting a bow on her instead of a hat. :)

The Newest Edition to Our Family....

Here it is! :) I'm SO excited. Thanks Aunt Theresa!

Kids Are a Joy

One thing is for sure...I am not where I thought I would be at 33...and thank goodness! I would have been lonely and miserable! :) The main reason for my happiness is my beautiful kiddos and the joy they bring me and so many others....so here is a simplified year-in-review of my fun kids lives. Enjoy.

Bug...Finished kindergarten, swam the entire summer, started 1st grade, started choir, had her first concert, is learning to read, excels at math, music and art, had many a play date with her friend Bri, loves to dance and sing to her music and disco ball - "rock out", loves to play games on the computer, started to eat like a pig (she has always been a finicky eater), has grown several inches with growing pains many nights, she is not a little girl anymore. Bug is a sensitive and sweet girl. She is shy, but wants to be a performer. She loves her brother and wants to teach him what she is learning. :) She is so fun to be around. :)

Bud...potty trained without the aid of cheerios...FINALLY, broke his arm and had to have surgery (he was SO brave), swam the last part of the summer away, continued to organize his toys and clothes, excels at his V-smile games and the computer, can work the DVD player and remotes, fixes his own tortilla and cheese (he will not let me help anymore), killed all the bugs in the house when required, learned to recognize and write his numbers and about 10 letters so far, loves to listen to Bug read her school books, loves to cuddle with mommy still (I'm going to enjoy this until he thinks it's stupid!) and fight with his sister, is best buds with grandpa and the chiropractor, and is a good shot (basketball). He is a complete joy!

My "To-Do" List:
2009 Edition

Stop My Damn Potty Mouth
(I said the F bomb in front of a group of students after I slipped on the ice at school the other day...big OOPS!)

And

Read To My Kiddos More
(Bug is struggling with her reading. :( I really want her to have a love for reading. It has been hard to establish a reading routine for her this last year because I was gone so much at night for school. Now I can and will devote much more time to it!)

Wish me luck.