i DO love my boys!

I really love my boys. I guess I am more frustrated at myself, and my own frustrations at them, than I am at them. They make me so happy, and yet at the same time, drive me cRazY! Will there ever come a point that I can make it through a day without wanting to go climb into a hole and call it quits?

I guess when all is said and done, I wouldn't change anything for the world. Especially Parker and Preston. I love their little personalities. I love who they are. And I love being their mother. They do (for the most part) make me very happy. :)

On a side note, my sister-in-law, Ester, got me the MOST adorable corn holders and butter holder. Who would have thought there was such a thing as butter holders? How CUTE is that?

I'm DONE!!

I'm done, I'm done, I'm done. I am finished. I throw in the towel. I'm done.
Today has been one of those days, and I am DONE! The boys are driving me crazy. They keep fighting, they keep whining, they keep crying. They can't play together. They can't not be in the same room together. They have to play with whatever the other one has. They aren't listening to me. (Are you listening to me? Please...somebody LISTEN to me.) Parker broke his tent. He had the most adorable tent that went on his bed, and he broke it. I threw it outside. That was it. I have had it! I'm done. I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!

Oh well. Gotta go finish dinner.

catch-up

So, today I heard somebody pronounce ketchup "catch-up." Is that how most people pronounce it? Where is the "A" in ketchup? It sounded so funny to me. I guess it sounded as funny as when people call soda , "pop" or creek, "crick." Maybe I have been living on the east coast too long!


But, right now, I am going to play a little bit of catch-up. I have not been keeping up to date on things. (Bad, Kate! Bad!)

1. Ben is off all week! Yeah! His schedule is where he works for 3 days, 24 hours at a time, with 24 hours off between each shift. And then he is off for 4 days. He is taking off the first day of his next rotation, so he is off starting yesterday and going back to work on Sunday. I can't complain that I never see my husband.

2. I went to the scrapbooking store today, aka "heaven". I brought Preston with me, and he managed to dump over the entire bin of blue buttons. (When I got home, I found buttons that had fallen in my rolled up capris! Oops!) I got some adorable paper to make the decorations and invitations to Preston's 1st birthday party. Now it's time to get to work!

3. I made bread today. You heard me right! I made bread! From SCRATCH! :) Thank you, Beth, for the recipe! I think it turned out pretty good for my first attempt! Kinda lopsided, but good! :)As you can see, there is only one loaf of bread, which means we almost already ate the other loaf!

4. We had an enrichment activity tonight. I learned how to make lumpia and pancit! The sister did such an amazing job, (she was so nervous, and she shouldn't have been!) and I think I can attempt making these dishes at home now, and I am not even scared!

5. When I got home from enrichment, the dinner table was cleared off, the dishes were done, the toys in the living room were picked up, the bathroom was straightened up, and THE KIDS WERE IN BED ASLEEP! Did I hire a babysitter!?!? Nope! My wonderful husband did it! I don't know how he managed it, but he did! So amazing! Thank you, Ben, you are the ABSOLUTE best!

6. I got a pedicure yesterday! Very nice treat! I think we moms deserve one once a month! Enough said!

7. I am getting ready for my two nieces to come out and stay with me for the summer. I cannot begin to say how excited I am! I AM SO EXCITED! It is exactly what I need to get out of the doldrums! Just about another week and a half to go! :) Yeah!

8.I found this awesome website that has FREE fonts. And cute ones, at that ! I love fonts that look handwritten, because I HATE my handwriting, and this site is AWESOME! So, if anybody else has cool sites like this, let me know! :)

9.Preston and Parker are getting along a lot more! But, if you ever call and talk to me on the phone, it would not appear that way! They both vie for my attention at that point! I guess tonight as Ben was watching them, they were playing so well together that he started to wash the dishes. They were just playing together, chasing eachother around. They got quite for a while, so Ben went to check on them. Not in Parker's room. Not in Preston's room. Not in the living room. Where could they be? Then Ben heard Preston make a noise, it was coming from our closet. Ben goes into our room, the sliding closet doors are shut, and they are both in there. Parker starts to slide the door open, so Ben holds the door so he can't open it. Parker tries harder to no avail, and says, "Uhh Ohh, Preston." (Meaning, I think we are stuck!) Preston starts to cry a little bit, and Ben lets go of the door. Parker slides it open and sees Ben and says, "Daa--dddyyy!"
What silly boys. All of them! I live with a bunch of silly boys. But I LOVE them so much!

Well, I think it is almost bed time. I got a new magazine in the mail, maybe I will go relax on the couch and read for a little bit. :) Have a good night, everyone!

I am such a bum!

1. I haven't felt like blogging.

2. I haven't felt like getting the computer at all.

3. I haven't felt like doing much of anything.

4. I didn't even wish my Mom a Happy Mother's Day. (And it's almost a week later!)

So, right now, I (1.)feel like doing something, (2.) am on the computer,(3.)blogging, and (4.)I am going to wish my Mom a Happy Mother's Day! :)

My mom is pretty much the coolest mom, ever! She is one of the strongest women I know, and as I get older, and now have children of my own, I am in awe of how she raised 10 children. I love my mom very much, and am glad that I get to be one of her daughters. I love you mom! :) I miss you so much, but am very happy that you are serving a mission!

Because of her, here we are:

Much needed Vacation

This past week we packed up the car and headed to the mountains. It was a long six hour journey across Virginia. The boys did very well in the van, and it was so nice to get up there and get some fresh air. The boys loved playing outside, and now that we are back, all they want to do is play outside. Preston included. But, since we have gotten back, it has been very very rainy and yucky, so we have been cramped in the house! Literally!!

All Parker wanted to do was drive the golf cart. Here is his hair blowing as we are going for a drive. He could just sit on the golf cart all day. Or lawn mower. Or tractor. Such a boy!

Preston and Papaw. Preston has such a chubby face!

Preston took a moment to do a photo shoot! What a ham! :)

Ben roasting a marshmallows. He has never eaten S'mores before! (I know, I can't believe it either!) And, he still hasn't. But, I did teach him how to roast a marshmallows right! Gooey on the inside, crispy on the outside! Yummy!

My boys NEVER fall asleep in the car! They must have gotten TOO much fresh air! :)

Preston's first time at Glenny's. Yummy! Glenny's is a diner/cafe that makes THE best biscuits and gravy. What out, Diner's Drive In's and Dives! :) Glenny's got it going on!

Preston liked the gravy, and the yummy hotcakes.

Parker is making a VERY silly face. He is such a NUT!

We went fishing, and Parker LOVED crossing over the creek on the bridge!

Ben fishing and Parker playing with the worms. Isn't it beautiful up there?

The ONE fish that Ben caught! It's a keeper! Just kidding!!

It was a lot of fun getting away for a couple of days. I am so exhausted now that we have gotten back. Maybe I feel like I am still on vacation! :) Maybe I need to still be on vacation! :)

Happy May Day!

I was reading Beth's blog earlier, and I had to smile. I CANNOT believe they have that much snow there on the 1st of May! One of the many reasons why I am happy to live here in Virginia Beach! :)

This morning I went to our book club meeting. Only, I didn't read the book! It was fun to get away and have some adult conversation, and maybe when I do get the time to read it, I will have some more insight into it! (I did, however, watch the A&E version, and throughly enjoyed it.) Our next book is Jane Eyre, and I am really excited to read it again. I haven't read it since high school. And, I promise, I will actually read this one!

I got my swimsuit in the mail today. I am so excited. I love Shade Clothing, and I think the swimsuit is pretty cute! Eek, swimsuit season!! Not sure if I am ready!

After naps, I told Parker we could go outside and eat ice pops. So, this is how we spent our 1st day of May in Virginia:

Ben couldn't believe when he came home and saw two boys in diapers on the from lawn. Oh well, they were having fun!