They called me outside to “see what we did.”

 
Okay - In case it’s been hard to decipher, I’ve moved some of my categories to different sections of the same blog, moved SystematicChaos over here, moved the kiddos’ blogs to here, made 2under2 it’s own blog, and created AccidentalDesign - a place to show off and hopefully start selling stuff soon (in process of creating my Etsy shop), oh, and a place to swap recipes.
Why?
Because I’m going to try to earn money from ads and selling stuff.  I’m going to try to increase my blog traffic in order to …

i’m pullin’ this here site down soon.  as in, deleting.  today it’s here - tomorrow it’s gone.
but before you readers all-out panic (both of you) know that i’m just movin’ ‘er over to a new home.  that i’ll be inviting you to, of course.  and i’ll expect a house-warming party.
but don’t go deletin’ your links to me.  i’m keepin’ my domain name, just movin’ the blog.  it’s complicated.  but it won’t be when it’s all up and running.
so, that’s clear as mud, right?  i’ll be here.  but i won’t.  i’ll …

YAY!  YAY!  YAY!!
last year’s debacle of a winner that made me hate all that was american idol was made right in last night’s show.  and, yes, i’m well aware of my absolute passion about such an earth changing event such as AI.  and you know what?  if you don’t share my passion on such a deep subject… well, to you i say, “GET WITH THE PROGRAM!!”  i laughed, i cried, i shared the moment with my honey, and then i relived it this morning with my children who were almost …

okay, people, branch out a little!
my children have each posted recently - go give ‘em some commentin’ love!  and a note about their blogs, that i need to include on their site:  they chose the headers themselves from pictures we already had.  they chose the names of their blogs.  when they post they sit in my lap looking through photos i’ve taken and pick one that suits their fancy.  i upload it and then ask them for a title of their post.  then i ask them if they want to …

 
right next to the sink where i see it when i wash the dishes.  my boys found it in the brush that’s by our house.  i’ve left it just as it was when they brought it in.  it pierces my heart each time i look at it.
you see, we got an amazing deal on this house.  remember back when we wanted this house so badly?  while we were waiting during the bidding process on this house we began to ask questions.  why does it all look so new inside?  why …

i am alive and, look, i have a blog. 
okay, now that we’ve established those two pretty important facts we’ll move on to where in the world i’ve been.
last friday we did the full shopping trip like last time.  ran back to the in-laws, picked up our children, ran home put away groceries, and started the clean-up i should’ve done earlier in the week for company.  that company came in and proceeded to help me clean.  oh, the shame.  my husband ran for the hills (went to his friend’s house to …

 
tonight i was lining the kids up for baths and thinking again that i should really do a “how i do what i do” post on bathing in our house, when i got to my oldest child.  a boy.  i went ahead and washed his hair and his feet (flip-flops and the park leave their mark) since i had run a full bath for the others and we were likely going to run out of hot water and definitely out of time before bed for his very own shower that …

melissa noticed that i had a birthday the other day.  i know, i know, i didn’t announce it.  having your thirty-first birthday ain’t nothin’ to shout from the rooftops.  i remember the “thirty-something” show from when i was a kid.  those people on there were old.  and boring.  yeah.  i’m feelin’ it.
however, noteworthy for the day was that my honey made me a surprise “mixed tape” off i-tunes.  he burned ‘em on pink and purple cds.  and he even endured the entire trip to my parents and back saturday listening, not …

actually, it was only a one box cake.  a funfetti cake.  i just squatted (i love that word) down and leaned in really close to the cake and it made it look gi-normous compared to babyhead.
and the icing, well, long story kinda shorter… it started out plain white whipped out of a container and then i needed extra so my honey made up a recipe to add to it.  but it was kinda crazy around here (big surprise) and he forgot and put the egg yolks in it, not just the …

i was just griping to my best friend in st. louis yesterday that it wasn’t fair that she would blanketed in beautifulness, but that we would be getting rain today.
this is what i get for complaining.

my honey went to a new job this morning.  everbody breathe a collective sigh of relief with me.  and pray for him.  that he would make friends.  that he would learn the ways quickly.  that his boss would be a godly man or one that wants to be.  pray that this job would see us into responsibility and new friends.  we’ve been brought low and i know that He has allowed us to be without friends in order to turn to Him and to each other.  may He now bring us to others. 
this has been a …

i watched my oldest son become a little more of a man today. i watched as he stood contemplating the jump he would have to make to cross the creek at the park. he knew he couldn’t just take the bridge. and i knew it was a moment that had to happen. even as everyone else was being loaded into the van and my mama instinct wanted to cry out, “get in the van for crying out loud! we’re all waiting. just jump already, or wade through it, or cross …

(we’ll get back to the moving the site thing later - right now, i want to post this on every site i have.)
i have a friend that posts on the homeschooling site with me.  she posted this message tonight.  i read it and i honestly thought, no offense girl friend!, that it couldn’t possibly be as bad as she described.  but it is. 
just in case you don’t follow the link i will recount her experience and what followed.  because i’m that mad.
in fact, i’ll just quote her and then i’ll …

i know, i know, we’ve been here before.  this time i’m taking a not-completely-non-money-related break.  i have realized that i’m spread too thin at this season.  i will focus more on looking at y’all’s sites and helping with the homeschooling sites.  i will sit and watch cinderella with my kids and celebrate, not just endure, this very busy season of everyone stuck inside and having a 2 year old and an almost 1 year old.  because right now, it’s kickin’ my boot-ay.  and i ‘ve prayed about it and need …

in reference to my spouting off, i have updates.
if you’re a tv junkie, like me, this might interest you.  and here’s how it would actually affect you.

a million reasons i haven’t been here.
nothin’ much to say.  amazing.  i know. 
i actually had a great post in mind this morning something absolutely hilarious that my husband said.  and then i forgot it.  yep.  i’ve tried in vain all day to think what it was, but it was while i was still half asleep trying to fix coffee and so my mind wasn’t working quite right.
i was gonna post on this cool baby play thing we found on sale at toys-r-us yesterday (for $6, people!) but the motivation to …

several of you have asked how we fared in the storms last night.  we were completely spared.  we set up camp in the bathroom where we had an air mattress over us, cleared off the shelves, put our spidey couch and princess chair in the bathtub and i quietly lost my mind with 4 little people with emotions ranging from terrified (my oldest) to absolutely stir crazy (the 2 youngest).  i hesitate to even comment on the insanity of the scene because we are all well and our little plot …

i hate the writer’s strike. 
i want to watch my tv.  i want to watch all these rockin’ shows.  instead, there’s nothin’ on the tube.  nothin’.  and even monday night football is through.  
 i haven’t cared at all about the strike until now.  end it already.  the late nighters shaved their beards and came back without you.  somebody pay them already. 
as i tell my kids - be done now.

c’mon, long-time readers, give me your all-time favorite posts.  they can be anything.  pics.  stories.  old.  new.  funny.  serious.  you get it.  just think back, go through those archives.  especially you people that have been reading for.ever.  you know who you are.  it’d be nice if some of you lurkers came out of the woodwork for this one.  i’d like to put ‘em on my sidebar.  and without your help there’re lots of people (okay, really just a couple) that are new that will never get to see ‘em ’cause …