Who knew???

Last night at choir practice, we all split up into sectionals. They had all the sopranos stand in a circle and sing the same verse from High On a Mountain Top, over and over again. Like 20 times. As we sang, the director and our section leader walked around and listened to see which voices were 1st sopranos and 2nd sopranos. They would stand like a foot away from us with there ear right at our mouth. Very intimidating. I think they felt there were way too many 1st sopranos and we didn't blend well together. Anyways, in this choir I have been a 1st soprano, which always surprises me. In my heart, I'm an alto. I was sure after they listened to me, I would be bumped down to a 2nd. So I sang and sang, and they kept moving women to one side of the room. My side was getting smaller and smaller, but I kept singing, knowing they would grab me at any moment. And then it was over. Out of our original 20 1st sopranos, there are now 9, and I am one of them. I don't know why this floors me. I can hit the notes and everything, but I feel like I'm a big faker. I guess there is no denying it now. My name is Betsy Batman and I'm a 1st soprano!

Weak

You know you've been sick when cleaning ONE bathroom is pretty much all you can do in a day. I just finished disinfecting my bathroom, after spending the weekend visiting it frequently. Midway into cleaning it, I was really sweating and feeling like falling over. But, I persevered. I finished 1 out of 3 bathrooms. I don't think I will get to the others till tomorrow, no matter how bad they are. I'm pooped!

Badges

Last night was the Cub Scout Blue and Gold dinner. At the dinner they are giving all the award the kids have earned.




Jonathan finished with his Bear! He received that badge and now can work on getting arrows until his birthday in April when he becomes a Webelos.



Isaac earned like 10 pins and received his Webelos badge. He also crossed over the bridge to become an 11 year Scout. No more Cub Scouts for him.



Good jobs Isaac and Jon.

(Terrible pictures of me, but I had to put them in.)

New Trick

I was sitting in the family room, watching TV, when I looked over and saw this...



Yes, that is Gavin on top of the table. If you recall a few posts ago, I predicted he would be on top of the fridge soon. This is pretty close. Crazy boy!

Bane of My Existence Part 2

After rereading my last post, I feel like I was a bit harsh on the Mustang. For all its flaws, it has a lot of pluses. First off, the reason it is here at all is so we don't have another car payment. The car before this one was a beautiful Audi A 6, and I loved to drive it. But no matter how much I loved that car, I really love not having a car payment.

The mustang wont be ugly for much longer. The interior looks awesome. That part of the car is pretty much done. All it needs is a headliner.



The exterior would have been done already if I hadn't asked to have the money go to other places. Instead of painting the car, we got a new couch, and now a house. So the car keeps getting put on hold.

All the car needs to be very cute is the back quarter panels replaced and a paint job. Then I'm not allowed to give it a bad rap.



It really isn't a bad car. I shouldn't have said I hate it. But it is stinky!!! The stink has gotten less over time as Andrew makes certain adjustments, but it always will have that muscle car smell. I'll make sure to post pictures when the car is done.

The Bane of My Existence

I just wanted to let everyone get a look at one of the things I do not enjoy in my life.



Isn't it lovely. I hate having this ugly car in my driveway, and in the garage where its fumes permeate the house. Some days I come home and the whole house smells like gas. I hate it.

I will say that the car has potential. Once it gets its paint job, maybe I wont be sooo embarrassed by it. But right now, it is really ugly. If your husband isn't a car guy, lucky you.

House

This is the house we are looking at building. I really like the lay out and it can give us 6 bedrooms. We really need them. It will be about 3500 sq ft. and about a 1/2 mile from where we live now. What do you think? We are looking at signing at the end of the month. It takes about 6 months to build. Yippee!!




We will add a closet into the den which gives a another bedroom.



We are doing the extended loft option and putting a bedroom at the end of it. We also will put a closet into the bonus room. Those will be very large bedrooms! So exciting.

***Update: We signed papers today. We are building it. HOORAY!!!

Balloon Surprise

What do you do for your loved ones on Valentines Day? I'm not really into this holiday, but some years I'm better at it than others. This year I put balloons all over the house for the kids to come home to from school . Andrew and I aren't really doing anything for it. Our house has been too sick. Maybe next year we will do better. Who knows? Maybe Andrew will surprise me with something after work. Anyways, Happy Valentines Day!

How I Miss You!

I have waited to say farewell to you until I knew I had the strength to say goodbye for good. I fell in love with you when I was a little girl. I would order a chicken nugget Happy Meal with a diet coke. The love affair continued to grow to the point that I was drinking about 6 cans a day. That doesn't include what ever I'd order from the drive thru. It was getting to the point that I was craving you too much. Almost like a stalker. I knew what I had to do, and I knew it would be hard. I had to say goodbye. So I'm off you. Completely. No pop at all. Not the caffeine free version. Nothing. I do have to say though, I'm saving a lot of money. But I digress. Goodbye DP. I will miss you!!!

UPDATE*** I failed to mention that prior to writing this, I haven't had a drink in 3 weeks. I was just waiting to say goodbye until I knew I had kicked it for good.

A Diagnosis

So today I finally went to the doctor. Andrew said if I didn't go he was going to ground me. This bug has been so weird, cause every day is different. One day I'm awful and the next I'm feeling good enough to go to Target.

Today the doctor listened to me and made me go to the hospital to get an x-ray. After he read my film, he said that I have pneumonia.

Who knows how long this will take. I really want to get back to the gym. It is time for a healthy, thinner Betsy. Until then...

Gavin Turns 1!

Saturday was Gavin's birthday. We didn't do anything too big, just the family around to have cake and ice cream. In all the pictures, he sure doesn't seem like he was having too much fun.

Here's A Valentine

Jackson came home from school today and gave his baby brother a Valentine. It was so sweet. I love how much the kids love Gavin. Click on the picture so you can read it.
Happy Valentines Day!

Curly Q

Today Ellie let me play dress up with her. She was such a trooper. Curling her hair took a good half hour, but the end result was so great. I think she looks so cute. I haven't curled her hair since we cut it short. We will have to do it more often.

I've Never Been Tagged Before

A: Attached or single: Taken, baby!

B: Best Friend: Katie, Leigh, and Andrew.

C: Cake or Pie: Can I choose brownie? Or cookie? Fine then, chocolate pie.

D: Day of Choice: Friday. Date night.

E: Essential Item: Lipstick. I am way ugly without it.

F: Favorite Color: Pink, of course.

G: Gummi Bears or Worms: Um....Yuck!

H: Hometown: Portland

I: Indulgence(s): Reading Perez Hilton. I know, naughty.

J: January or July: I should say January cause its my b-day, but I really like the sun, so July.

K: Kids: Isaac, Jon, Jackson, Ellie, and Gavin. I should count Andrew.

L: Life is incomplete without: My family

M: Marriage Date: October 14th

N: Number of Siblings: 2 sisters and a brother.

O: Oranges or Apples: Apples, but they have to be sliced.

P: Phobias or Fears: I fear dropping my kids off of ledges. I know, weird.

Q: Quote(s): A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand!

R: Reason To Smile: Watching Gavin learn a new trick. My boys playing bball and Ellie singing.

S: Season: I love fall. The smell and the crispness of the air

T: Tag Six: Leigh, Amy, Louise, Becky, Jessie, and Tanya.

U: Unknown Fact About Me: This is hard cause I'm an open book. I was born with a hernia which was repaired when I was 4. My intestines used to poke out when I'd cry.

V: Vegetarian or Oppressor of Animal: Bring on the steak.

W: Worst Habit: Eating too many cookies.

X: X-Rays or Ultrasounds: Ultrasound. There is nothing like seeing your baby!

Y: Your Favorite Food: Marsalla Chicken Ravioli

Z: Zodiac: Capricorn

Sick

This week Andrew is in New York, and as it seems to happen every time he is out of town, I am sick. I woke up today with a sore throat, cough and really achy. Luckily I didn't have much to do today. The boys had cubs tonight, but we missed it. Too bad.

I don't think Andrew feels too bad. He doesn't have to pick up my slack. Lucky him.

Hopefully I am doing better tomorrow. I have one more day alone. Andrew gets home around midnight tomorrow.

Look At My Ball

I just bought Gavin this big ball, cause all the ones we had would wind up under the couch. This one will never go under there. Now he can play catch all he wants.

Can You Believe It!

So last night, Gavin slept from 9 pm till 6 am. That is 9 HOURS! Can you believe it. I know, I can't either. I am gonna be a new woman with sleep. Hooray!

Dirty Water

Today, I hopped into the bathtub and started the water. I had my nose in a book and wasn't paying attention to anything but the writing in front of me. When I felt the water was high enough, I go to turn it off and that is when I notice I am bathing in BROWN water. BROWN!!! It was so gross. I have checked the water all day and it still is nicely colored. Scary.

Time For Sleep

Last night I did it! I put Gavin in his crib and made him cry himself to sleep. I have to say that it was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I think I was to the point that no matter how hard he cried, I just didn't feel sorry for him. I am too tired and ready for him to learn how to do it. He only cried for about 30 minutes, then slept for 6 hours straight. That is longer than he has in months. Now for tonight, let's hope for 8 hours.

J J Jumps

Last night we went to J J Jumps to celebrate Isaac's birthday. We had a blast! We had 15 kids with us, doing everything from a zipline swing, to obstacle courses, to bungee basketball.








Happy 11th Birthday Isaac!

New Walker

It's a week shy of his first birthday and Gavin walked clear across the room this morning. I was able to film him going about half way. He seems very proud of himself.

We thought he would do this months ago, but we are thrilled he waited. Stay a baby as long as you can!

Clean Up Excitment

Gavin got so excited to hear the clean up song, he couldn't stay standing!