Wednesday, April 30th

Oh boy, another busy day!!! I love busy though, do not be fooled! Again, we were up early today and headed for Springfield. My aunts had a Red Hat luncheon, and I tagged along with Rowan!!! HEHE Talk about feeling YOUNG again! Okay, kidding...calm down Red Hatters! Well, anyway, we had lunch at The Crown Plaza, and it was delicious! Rowan got worn out mid way, so it was a little rough, but overall he was very well-behaved! I didn't really get to sit down and eat because I was chasing Rowan around the hotel, and it is a big hotel!

I saw my advisor from UIS, Cindy. She is such a sweetie. I told her that I was thinking about going back for my master's, and she told me to give her a call. Apparently, I can earn my master's degree without ever stepping foot in a classroom! I am just not sure we can afford any more school loan debt at this point...and without me working??? I just don't know! Also, I am not sure if I want to get it in education or English, and I have even thought about counseling! I just don't know, so I will be giving this some thought.

We did a little bit of running around town, and I went after a few deals in Springfield. The weather has been absolutely beautiful here today, so Rowan and I did a little playing outside when we got back home, which was around 4ish?

Okay, ALSO, I counter-offered on the house today. I only raised my offer by $2,000.00, so I don't think they will take it...PRAYERS PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The highlight: I got to talk to Jamie today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He called this morning while I was getting ready, right when Rowan woke up...he has terrible timing, bless his heart! LOL It was brief, but hearing his voice is always nice. For the first time, including his last trip to Iraq, I heard fear in his voice. I don't ever let on that I am scared too; I just try to hold strong for him. Please pray for his safety!!! I need him to come home to us, and it is a real concern...okay, enough mushy mushy...sorry! Here are some pics from today, and one from last night in his new jams!

CELEBRATING 500 HITS! WOOT!!!

Today I noticed that I have surpassed 500 hits on my blog!!! How exciting is that? I know it is nothing major on here, but I guess people are reading it huh? I even have "blog addicts", now that is encouraging! Thanks to all of you for continuing to check my blog...I do have the best friends and family a girl could ask for!!!

HERE'S TO 500 MORE!!!!!!!!!!!

Tuesday, April 29th

Today has been a super busy day, and all I can think about is going to sleep...so pardon my blog tonight, it may be jibber-jabber!
Well, we started off early this morning, as I took my aunt to Spfld. to a dental appointment. Rowan and I went to visit Aunt Jamie, cousin Miles, and cousin Graham for the afternoon, which is always a delight! I love spending time with two of my favorite little guys in the world, and Rowan sure has a blast playing with Miles! We had lunch there, and I discovered that Rowan much prefers to eat off of Graham's tray as opposed to eating his OWN food...sorry about that Jamie!
Around 1:30, I went to pick my aunt up, and we then hit Babies R Us, big mistake!!! I had to pick up a few necessities, but taking Aunt Nanny in there is like taking a kid to a candy store!!! She didn't do TOO badly actually. Next, we were mall bound! We made a few laps around, just for the sake of exercise, and then started shopping. I did very well, and only bought some much needed face wash. We also took Rowan on the Merry-go-Round for the very first time, which only made me very dizzy...Rowan didn't much care for the horse, but did enjoy sitting in the swing with us! It was fun, and since I didn't have my camera...shocker...I was forced to use my camera phone...ugh! Anyway, I will post those later.
The mall was pretty empty, so I allowed Rowan to wonder around and get out of the stroller. Friendly little guy, he is! He waved at everyone and was screaming "HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII" to all the old folks wandering around as aimlessly as him...it was cute, and I know it made their day!
Di and I tried to find some clothes for a wedding reception we are attending this weekend, never an easy task with a grumpy, hungry, nap-deprived toddler in tow. Well, needless to say we didn't accomplish too much. She found an ADORABLE jacket that I may have to steal sometime, I mean BORROW...heehe I found nothing of importance.
We finally hit Olive Garden for lunch at 4:15, and didn't leave until 6:30 or so. Rowan napped the ENTIRE time we were there, and woke up a grumpy, fussy, hungry MESS!!! On the way home he screamed and cried non-stop, poor guy! I hit the post office and store on the way home for a few things.
Well, at 8:00, I was out the door again...Wal-Mart bound. I had to get a second car seat for Di's car, and a few odds and ends. I am so tired, Ro is in bed, and we have another busy day tomorrow...
I did hear from my realtor.....................they counter-offered my offer on the house, $12,000 higher than my offer! I am not sure if I will counter or not. I am going to do some praying before I do anything, and your prayers are very much appreciated! LOVES!!!

Monday, April 28th BUYING A HOUSE!!!

Today was spent searching for a house. I had two in mind that I wanted to look at, one I looked at last week, and the other I had only seen in pictures. So, I made appointments with my realtor to see these two, with full intent of making an offer on one... Well, I ended up looking at another one that I had not even given much thought, and it was everything I was looking for!!! It is a little higher than we had planned, but I went ahead and gave an offer anyway!!! I am so nervous about it, and it pretty much has made me sick to my stomach all day! Hopefully I will know something tomorrow. If the offer is not accepted, I will be okay with it, and I will keep looking. If it is...well, I will be excited and scared as heck all at the same time! Please throw up a prayer for us this evening when you say your prayers; we need them!!!
Tomorrow will be another busy day. Rowan is still awake and I foresee NO sleeping in the near future...long night ahead!

Sunday, April 27th

Today was all about relaxing and spending time at home with Rowan. The weather was gloomy, rainy and overall dismall today, so it really just put me in the mood to kick up my heels and relax, never an easy task around here...lol Rowan was super good today, and we didn't have any major meltdowns over not being able to play outside, which is a major plus!!!

He took one good nap this afternoon, and I thought to myself...hey, why not...I joined him for a nice, long, relaxing nap! Very refreshing, I must say! :-) Those of you who know me well, know that a nap is never included in my day! Even with the nap, I managed to be somewhat productive, did some laundry, and had lots of play time with Rowan!

For some reason, my left ankle started hurting pretty badly this morning. In HS, I was on the dance team and had some problems with tendonitis; I have come to the conclusion that all the running in flipflops yesterday probably made the tendonitis flare up. I have no anti-inflamatories in the house at the moment, so no meds to help with it...it really is sore! For this reason, I tried my best to keep Rowan contained on ONE level of the house for most of the day. All the walking up and down the stairs really started to make it worse...he did very well, and I am quite proud of my little monkey!

Because he was not so active today, I decided that for his bath, I would let him get in the big tub and play around for an hour or so. HE LOVED IT!!! What kid doesn't, right? He is getting a little too brave for my liking; he is wanting to stand up and fall down in the tub, and this frightens me...I KNOW, I KNOW>..,....I can hear my husband already, "he's a boy, let him be a boy! Don't baby him!"...ohhhh, I try, but this is something that could potentially cause major accidents, and I have to draw the line there! It's my BABY we are talking about here!

Anyway, he smells so nummy! I love the bedtime lotion from Johnson's and Johnson's!!! MMM, MMM, GOOD! He is in bed, but not sure if he will go to sleep or not. We shall see!

Weekend!

I didn't get a chance to post yesterday, as we were not home until late. I started the day way too early, at 6:00 AM. I first went to tan, 1/2 price in the mornings! WOOT! Then I met with Julia at the gym, where she kicked my butt once again...though I much enjoy it afterwards! LOL I rushed home, got in the shower, and managed to "get ready" in a matter of merely 30 minutes! Rowan was just waking up, and I had already prepared us for the day the night before; I put our clothes out, packed his diaper bag, and had everything ready to load in the car. Sooo, I gave Rowan a quick breakfast, got him dressed, loaded the car, and off we headed to Virginia.
I was the first one to arrive on the scene...a real feat considering I am the one with a child! LOL Anyway, so we started preparing for the shower, moving tables, setting out the champagne and cocktail glasses, napkins, silverware, etc. Autumn and the girls got there shortly after us, so we started in on the food and signs. Hailey, Roxanne's daughter, is 15 months old, so she and Rowan were playing and having fun while we mommies got ready for the big party!!!
The shower was absolutely PERFECT!!! It went off without a hitch, everyone really enjoyed the "different atmosphere". We didn't want to do a traditional "bridal shower", so instead, we had a cocktail party!!! Everyone wore dresses, and we sipped (s0me guzzled) daiquiris! MMM We had fruit with a chocolate fountain and other fruit dip, creme horns veggies and dip. Because it was a cocktail theme, all the guests brought a cocktail recipe with one coordinating cocktail ingredient in addition to their bridal gift! Autumn can have quite the successful little party at her house now!!! :-) It was really a lot of fun, and most importantly, I know Autumn had a blast and enjoyed getting to see everyone. I believe we had around 25 people show up, which is a record to my knowledge! LOL
So, that was our Saturday. We got home after dark, and I was SO tired!!! Rowan had only a short nap, after a long day...so it was to bed fairly early for us last night.
I will report on tonight in a while, for now I am going to sign off!

Rowan talking to Daddy/ 04-27-08

Friday, April 25th

Today has been a little bit crazy; nothing in particular MADE today crazy, just in general, overall, a bit crazy. Rowan and I have been fighting over naps...he wants to take a late evening nap and stay up until 11:00 - midnight, and I prefer him to skip the nap and hit the sack earlier...this has become an issue here... Today, he didn't get his nap and has been a total bear all evening! ARGH!
I am all ready for the shower tomorrow, after running a few errands this evening in the midst of a thunderstorm and tornado warnings. All is well though, we are home and safe.
This is going to be short...Rowan is still awake and running around, can't blog too much at the moment! LOVES!!!

Thursday, April 24th

Today was productive!!! I went and looked at 5 houses, and I found a couple that I am thinking about making offers on! YIPPEE They are small little houses, but very cute and all remodeled...a BIG plus for me! I don't want to do a lot of work on anything, so I am liking it!
Other than that, not too much...Rowan and I had an awesome evening though. When I got back home, he was a crab and tired. He desperately wanted to go outside, but it was rainy and windy most of the afternoon. So, I compromised and we went out on the deck to play. He started rubbing his eyes, and wanted to sit in the swing. Well, a few minutes into swinging, we ended up lying down wrapped in a warm blanket. I was singing, and he put his little head down on my chest. The next thing I recall, I was waking up to a gust of wind blowing in my face; of course, this didn't phase Rowan though! He was wrapped up all snug as a bug in my arms and covered with the blanky. I took him upstairs, and we lied down in my bed...something I have NEVER done with Rowan before!!! It was a nice little treat for me, though I didn't go back to sleep. I couldn't help myself; I just stared at him in awe and amazement and ran my fingers through his hair. He is just perfect, and I love him so much. I truly never knew that I could love someone so much!!! I know that is so cliche, but moms out there...you know what I mean! In the hustle and bustle of chasing a mobile toddler boy around, I don't often get to sit and reflect on life, and today I had that time and moment; it was truly an amazing experience!
Well, then we went and ran some errands when he woke up from his nap. I had to go to Walmart, and I also was dying for an iced coffee!!! :-) Hey, I need all the caffeine I can get these days, thank you very much! We came home, I fed Rowan dinner: hamburger with cheese, diced pears, steamed carrots and blueberry muffin. He didn't eat much at all, especially the hamburger! I put Rowan in the tub and let him play for a good 30 minutes; usually we just do the sink for a quickie bath, but every once in a while, about once a week, I like to let him splash and really enjoy bath time. We did our weekly grooming, which consists of clipping his nails and toenails and cleaning his ears. Odd, but he really enjoys having his ears cleaned! I bought Rowan a new toothbrush today, and he loves it!!! I think he will be a very high-maintenance kid...he loves to brush his teeth, hair and get his nails clipped...odd, huh? Oh, but he hates me putting lotion on him! LOL
It is nearing 10:00 PM...he is going strong, like the Energizer Bunny, but I am ready to CRASH! Why is this???

ONE MORE THING

OOPS! I thought I already posted our accomplishments today... Well, Rowan had an apt. at 2:30, so we left around 2ish. He was a total hellion the whole time, nothing new. He doesn't do well in strange places!
We arrived back home around 3:20, and Rowan had not eaten lunch OR had a nap...he fell asleep on the way home, so I put him to bed. While he was asleep, I thought it would be a wonderful idea to fry up some hamburger for his meals, make some hamburger patties, prepare some sausage for breakfast, and overall just prepare the meals for the rest of the week...for him. I steamed some carrots too. While I had all this going on, I also made beef stroganof (not sure how to spell this???) for dinner tonight (for him, NOT me). I cut up some cheese for snacks, and THEN I decided...yep, let's go ahead and clean out the refrigerator. So, once I started, I went all out...everything came out of the fridge...everything got inspected, cleaned, wiped down and put back in...in a VERY outrageously organized manner...it's kinda sad. Rowan woke up in mid-freak-out cleaning binge, so up he went, and it was time for lunch. I got him fed, and then we played outside once everything was all done.
Next, we headed out for a nice, long walk! FUN!!! Deeva went with us, but her collar broke mid-way...dangit! I had to put her in the basket underneath the stroller for the rest of the walk, but she didn't mind! :-) LOL
Needless to say, my body aches...I hurt...and I am really tired. So, off to do my exercises now...BYE