Brought to you by the letter C...coupons, crafts, cars!

It's been a quiet couple of days.

So, let's talk coupons. :) I admit it. I'm a couponer. Definitely not an extreme couponer, but I do carry a binder around...LOL! I coupon very regularly, and it's so cute, because now when my girls want something, they'll ask if we have a coupon for that. :) Gotta start the money savings tips, while they're still young. Anyhow, a couple of friends and I have started a coupon club. We rotate through everyone's house. We meet once a week, and get the little ones together, while we're there, have lunch, chat, and cut coupons. :) I actually forgot my binder at a my friend's house, and drove over there to get it today (left it there yesterday), just so I could have my coupons...it's our life line. Yes, it was worth it to get it...I have a shopping trip I need to make tomorrow! Anyhow, our get togethers are a lot of fun, even though we're getting together over little newspaper clippings. I must say, I love my coupon friends. :) Are you in any 'cool kids clubs'? My friend, Heather, and I were talking about learning to knit. We were thinking about maybe starting a group to knit together. :) I'm so not crafty, so I need someone to tell me what to do, and then I can tweak it a bit from there.

However, I am happy to report, that I did have a crafty moment today. I took the girls to a ceramic painting place, and had them get crafty. I can't reveal what they made yet, because I don't have pictures to show off their awesomeness in all it's glory. But, when I pick them up next Thursday, you better believe there will be pictures. :)

A couple days ago my husband's car decided to 'go out'. He gets it to the mechanic, and he says "clogged converter, $1200" YIKES! We have put so much into the car, already (it's a 99 Honda CRV), so we decided to try to get rid of it. We called a salvage guy, and he made us an offer, but I told him I was going to also list it on Craigslist. Holy Batman! Within 5 minutes of listing the vehicle, we had probably 15 people call. I eventually marked the post, as PENDING, and was still getting offers and calls until 10pm last night. Then, while I was out, I got another 7 voicemails regarding the car, and 4 emails. It's been craziness. But, I'm happy to report the car has been sold! YAY! Now, we need to think about where to go from here...thankfully, he is using a company vehicle, until we decide which way to go. What a relief though!! :) Wonder what we'll get next!

Oh me, Oh my!

So, Kenna, my 2 year old, has issues saying the first letter of some of her words. She has the hang of CH, because her sister is Charly, and S sounds are easy, like Sissy. But, the wretched K is just not working. So, my Kenna, is now known as Enna. :) That's cute!

Well...Kenna LOVES to wear sunglasses. She thinks they are magical, I swear. She has some with blue lenses and some with green, and some that are regular sunglasses. So, one day, we're out and about, and she starts freaking out, because she wanted her sunglasses on. Low and behold, this child cannot say the first part of the word glasses. Imagine glasses - the GL. Oh my! She just said "Enna's Asses!" Well, we're in PUBLIC, so I start repeating her, saying Kenna's glasses, hunny. You have to say GLasses! She just keeps yelling ASSES, like she's calling all these people around her names! Hurry escape! RUN! Months later, and we now have basses. I'll take it! LOL!

Well...I have one better than that! We were in Orlando, over Christmas (as you know from my catch up post), and we decided to take the girls to Disney World. Well, my husband has talked and talked about the castle, calling it Mickey's Castle. Miss Enna was SO excited! She talked about Mickey and Minnie for weeks before we actually left for the trip. We are driving into the parking area at Disney. And, for those of you that have been there before, know there's a large 'gate' that you have to pay for your parking. So, we're in one of the lines, and above the 'gate' there is a scroll that goes across the entire road, with Mickey and friends, and a picture of the castle. I guess she thought that was all we were going to see, because once we got through the gate, and were zipping to the parking lot, she starts screaming! "No Daddy, No! Mickey's Astle!" That's right, say it out loud, now! ASTLE...be careful not to put an H sound in there, or you've jumped into a 'bad word'. Well, my husband immediately starts busting out laughing! He keeps getting her to say it, and laughs harder and harder each time she says it! Then, my 6 year old turns to him, and says "Daddy, you only think it's funny, because you think she's saying a bad word!" LOL! That only makes my husband laugh harder!! Well, 2 months later, it's still Mickey's Astle! And, she'll proudly announce that she went there, to anyone listening! LOL! However, even though we really need this kiddo to get the C/K sound down, it's still funny!!

My craftiness in all it's glory...

For those of you that really know me, you know I'm a very logical person. Creativity does NOT come easily. I try and try, but it just does not happen. It stinks, but it's who I am. Well, I decided that since I'm home with the girls, I'm going to continue to push my crafty meter, into new territory, and get moving on some cute projects. Well, that wasn't working...so I joined pinterest. What a fabulous concept!! It has really taken my craftiness to a whole new level. :) And, I don't have to figure it all out for myself, just tweak someone else's idea. :)
I made a menu board this week. It was so unbelievably easy! I went to Michael's craft store, armed with my 50% off coupon and my 25% off frames coupon...not sure which one I'll need. I go all the way to the back, and find a cute frame, is a collage frame. I find one that has black frames (like the art I have framed in my kitchen), and it has 8 frames. It's PERFECT! I saw it, and swear I hear everyone in the store break out into "Hallelujah". The best part...it's 50% off! It was originally $29.99. So, now it's only $14.99. YAY! I get that and some scrapbook letters (so I can label each frame, to know what day of the week it is). They are also 50% off, so they're only $3.49. YAY! I finally get up to the counter (the line was so long...they must have been having an awesome sale, because I haven't seen that many people in that store, since Christmas!). I get to use my 25% off coupon on the frames, because it included sale items, so the $29.99 frame is now only $11.24. AWESOME!
So, I get home, and decided I wasn't going to wait to do this, because if I did, it wasn't going to happen. So, I get crackin'. I go upstairs and dig through my scrapbook pages. I found some cute striped papers...same pattern, 4 different colors. And, I find some cute flower papers, same pattern and same 4 colors as the striped stuff. Cute...spring is on it's way, and these are definitely spring colors. Alright...so, I cut the papers into a 4 x 6 size. On one page, I printed "The Menu" on the front of it, and framed it. First frame done...and super easy. Next, I took each of the papers, and my scrapbook letters. I abbreviated each day of the week (Mon., Tue., etc) and attached one 'day' to each sheet. Then, I framed them in the order I wanted them. Ta da! It's perfect! I hung it up, in my kitchen, above the table. Then, I took my dry erase marker and wrote on the glass, exactly what we're going to have each day.
The one thing I love about this project, is that I can change the papers out, with the holidays, and seasons. It was so easy, and super effective. Now, it will help ease any 'what's for dinner' woes. It also will help in my couponing. :) Yes, I am one of 'those people'. If I know what I'm making for the week, I can keep an eye out for coupons, and sales. :) Woo Hoo! It's a win win! I'm very excited. Hopefully, I can keep this craftiness up, and post all my projects. :)

I must say, as the cook, Friday is my FAVORITE day! :) Happy craftin' everyone!

I'm gonna try this again...

Phew! It's been a whirlwind couple of months. I am so far behind on my blogging. So much has happened since my last post, in July.
Where to start...

Charly started 1st grade! She was so excited because she found out over the summer that her Kindergarten teacher was now going to be her 1st grade teacher. :) We just adore her teacher, too, which certainly makes it a LOT easier on us. :)

Charly's 1st day of 1st Grade!

I turned 31. A few weeks later, my 3rd daughter, Daphne Elizabeth, was born on October 29, 2011. I was induced at 8am, on October 28th. I had 2 easy labors prior to her, so I thought she'd be an easy labor as well...err! I was so wrong. Well, okay, I was right, but it was a LOT of waiting. She had been low for the last 4 weeks, and then on the day of her induction, she took flight, and was way high! The doctor actually thought at one point, that she had turned, and was breech. She wasn't...just high. So, we spent ALL day and night waiting for her to lower herself, so we could get this labor on the road. That night, they said they'd try one more time, and if nothing happened they were going to stop the pitocin, and start in the morning. So, my Mom and Sister left. Well, apparently it started working, b/c at 340am, I sent my mom and sister a text saying "They just broke my water. I'll call when things start progressing." I called my Mom 10 minutes later in MAJOR pain, screaming "the baby's coming. HURRY!" She was born at 3:58am. She was 7lbs. 6 ozs., 19 inches long, and 4 pushes. My Mom and sister got to the hospital 30 minutes later. Sadly, they missed her birth...they waited all day with me, and when they went home things really got moving. But, she's here now, and we couldn't be happier!!!

Welcome, baby Daphne!

OK...next. Three weeks and one day later (November 20th), Kenna turned 2. We had a Mickey Mouse themed birthday party, since she just adores Mickey and Friends! She is becoming quite the little ham!

My Kenna!

For Christmas, we drove to Orlando, to spend the week with my in-laws! I know what you're thinking. You are thinking we're crazy driving to Florida, from Kentucky, with a 6 year old, 2 year old, and 8 week old. But, my parents were kind enough to get 2 headrest DVD players, so the big girls had movies to watch the whole way there. And, everyone did amazing. The first night we stopped in Atlanta. On the way back we stopped in Knoxville. We had a fabulous time! We took Charly and Kenna to Disney World, while Daphne got to spend some much needed time with her Nana. We just HAD to meet Mickey and Minnie Mouse. When we walked around the corner to them, and Kenna saw them, she just started waving, and clapping. She was so excited to meet them! She was in heaven, when Minnie gave her kisses!

The infamous castle picture. :)

 

The family meeting Mickey & Minnie

OK...moving on. The new year came! YAY to 2012!! My husband turned 35, on Friday the 13th (of January). My husband had to work, so I decided that I was going to make a trek back to Pennsylvania (where I grew up) to go to my Grandparents 50th anniversary party (my Mom's parents). When we got to our destination, I found out that my Grandpa (Dad's father) had unexpectedly passed away. He was 89. It was one of the saddest days of my life! So, now, I was not only in PA for a celebration of 50 years spent together, I was also there for the loss of my Grandpa. It was a hard day! My Pap (as we all referred to him) will forever be in our hearts. RIP Grant R. Derrick.

After coming home from Pennsylvania, I had less than one week to get ready for Charly's 7th birthday! We had a cupcake themed party (since she's just so sweet!), so we decided to have the girls decorate their own aprons! We held the party at Michael's craft store, in their Party Room! It was so much fun watching the girls! They had an absolute blast!! I can't believe my 1st baby is now 7 years old! Where have the last 6 years gone!?!?! Happy Birthday, Charly Reanna! January 26th!

My Charly!

The decorations!

 We are almost caught up!! Two weeks later was my brother in law's birthday (Feb. 6th)! We celebrated by going to Cracker Barrel for dinner. YUM! Happy Birthday, Daniel!! Two weeks after that, brings us to last night (Feb. 18th). We had a dinner to celebrate my Mom's 50th birthday! A great time was had by all. It was my Mom, and her 14 most favorite people. :) Glad to see I made the list...LOL! Anyhow, after dinner we all decided to go back to their house to continue the celebration. Little did my Mom know, my sister and I went over to their house earlier, when they were out, and decorated for a surprise party. :) My Dad ho-hummed, and had to make a stop, to give us a chance to all get to the house before them. :)We were all set up, and when they got there, ta-da...a party. :) She was so excited! It was a fabulous night!! Happy 50th birthday, Mama!

A picture wall, of my Mom through the years!

Her cake!

The centerpiece...candy from the 60s!

And, then, there's today! We were just recovering from partying. :) We did NOT drink, but I had two (Charly and Kenna) very wound up little girls, that didn't go to sleep until after midnight. So, they slept in until almost 1030. Daphne, too! She was obviously a sleepy girl too. Well, when she woke up, she did something fabulous. She rolled over!!! What a big girl! 15 weeks old, and she's on a mission to get moving! She's just like her big sisters...go go go! Boy, am I in some serious trouble when she gets moving!

Daphne <3

Alright...so we're current. :) Thanks for making it this far...and hopefully I don't slack off so much anymore. I'll see you all again, soon. :) Goodnight! Sleep tight!!

I know. I know...I'm slacking!

OK...so I have to catch you all up ...I can't believe I'm over a week overdue!

I took the girls to Coney Island (in Cincinnati) on July 5th. My Mom's work has their company picnic there every year, so we tagged along with her. They have a big pool, and a few rides. Charly LOVES going there, and Kenna seemed to REALLY enjoy herself too! When we got there, we started with lunch, that the company provides. Hamburgers and hot dogs it is! Then, Charly was begging my Mom and I to take her to the park area (the rides). So, we headed over to the little kids section. I was worried how Kenna would do with me not there to hold on to her, but when I put her on the first ride (the airplanes) with her sister, she was ready to go. So, off we went to a few more rides. Then, Charly was BEGGING to do the paddle boats, so we went over to the lake. Charly and Kenna got their life jackets on, and off we went. My Mom and Charly did the paddling. Charly insisted that she get to do it with her Nana, which means Nana got quite the leg workout that day. :) Kenna was great, but when we were out on the water, she decided that she wanted to play in the water. So, back to land we went. Obviously, we then went to the pool. Charly was extremely excited. Kenna wasn't sure what was going on, but as soon as we got the pool, she was a happy little fish. She LOVES the water.

By the time we left, they were both worn out! It was an amazing day!!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Wednesday, July 6th, I took the girls to the East Fork Lake. I met my bestie, Katie, there with her 4 kiddos. Shortly after we got there, my other friend, Heather, and her 5 kiddos showed up. The kids had a blast! Thankfully, the kiddos all have a friend or two to play with when we all get together. :)

Again, the girls were both asleep before we got to the interstate. :) You know the girls had fun when they are both snoozing, in the car. :) Again, it was a fabulous day!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Sunday, July 10th, we went to my friend Heather's house. Her 3rd born was turning 7, so we had a birthday party to get to. :) Charly and I ran to Target that morning to get his gift. Yes, we are slackers and waited until the day of his party to get his gift. Charly picked out 2 decks decks, with a DVD, and a GIANT super soaker gun, with a shoulder strap. Thank goodness it came with a shoulder strap, or poor Eric would have had one heck of a time lugging this gun around. :) They had a bounce house, slip n slide and pool set up for the kiddos. I could not keep the girls out of the water...they were having so much fun. However, after Kenna dunked herself, failed attempts at putting her in a baby floaty, and being accidentally dunked, I decided that was enough pool for her. So, we went inside for the rest of the party. Thankfully, the Heather's husband, and Katie's husband were in there to keep us (Kenna and I) entertained. We were there all day, and when it was time to go, neither kiddo wanted to go, and both threw mini-fits. But, before we got to the main road (2 miles away), both girls were zonked. It was an awesome day for a birthday party. Oh, and I have to mention how amazing the cupcakes were! Way to go Heather!!!!! And, Happy Birthday, Eric.

Slip n Slide Fun!

Lots of kiddos in the pool!

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Tuesday of this week, I had to take the girls to Tire Discounters, to get my tires balanced. Yes, I know, oh what fun! But, it had to be done. So, I call and they say "Oh, we're not busy, come on down now". So, I get the girls and I ready and loaded into the car, and we get there. They take my car, and wouldn't you know it, we're suddenly there for what seemed like an ETERNITY! There were 2 other people in the waiting area (obviously not together), and I felt so much pity on them, for having to deal with us...well, mostly Kenna and her monkey screams. :) Thankfully, they were out of there relatively quickly! I apologized to the guy at the counter, multiple times! He was very understanding, and said when he was a kid, he also screamed and squealed...HIS POOR MOTHER! :) Anyhow, with all the people gone, Kenna was running around the store looking at all the tires, and being good...phew. I'm telling you, even the smallest thing, Kenna can make monumental. :) I'm pretty sure the tire guy, Brad, will not forget us for a while...LOL!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On Wednesday of this week, back to East Fork Lake! I met up with Katie and her family, Heather and her family, and this time we brought along another friend, Denise, and her 2 kiddos. It was the perfect day to spend at the lake letting the kids swim and be crazy! :) Thankfully, the day before I bought a beach canopy which totally came in handy for the babies to lounge around in. And, after the repeated 'almost drownings' with Kenna, I bought her a swimmy floaty thingy. It's like a life jacket. And, success...she LOVED it! I also picked up a couple of beach toys, that she had a blast playing with! Sadly, I forgot my camera, so no pictures. :( But, a great day was certainly had by all!
Then, when I got home, I laid Kenna down for her nap, which she fell asleep in the car for some of it. And, I too laid down. I won tickets, from the radio station Rewind 94.9, to see Goo Goo Dolls and Michelle Branch, so I wanted to be rested for that concert. My sister met me at my house at 630, and we were at the venue by 7pm. Got a great parking spot...woo hoo! Walked into the gates and found out they were doing a FREE cookout, provided by Blue Grass (the meat company). So, WOO HOO for free food. When we were finished eating, we grabbed a soda and off to our seats we went. OMG! The seats were PERFECT for us! We were right along the isle, and so close! It was an amazing concert!!! I knew I've seen then a few times, but didn't realize, until last night in talking with my sister, that it was my sixth time seeing them, and her seventh time! We do love the Goo Goo Dolls!!! It was an awesome concert! And, we made it back to the car easily, and even got outta the venue in record time, I swear. By the time I got home, I was exhausted though, and ready for bed. And, I walk into a house of insanity! Brian (hubby) was still wide awake with 2 crazy girls. I swear they were running circles around him. I walked in the door, and Brian went to bed. :) After a few minutes of loving on Kenna, she was ready for bed. So, one crazy kiddo down. Charly finally went to bed at almost 1am. She said she was too excited for vacation to go to sleep. :) I love that girl!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

OK...and now we're current! So, tomorrow night, we leave for vacation. South Carolina, here we come! I can't wait. I know the girls are both super excited for the beach. And, Charly is also very excited to show the family that she can swim under water. This was super needed, and I'm so thankful for my parents, for putting this together for us, and making us spend some time away, and as a family! I appreciate this very much! I'll be sure to take LOTS of pictures while we're gone, and post all about the trip, on our return. :) Have fun everyone, and keep safe!

Celebration time!

Kenna in her red, white & blue

Charly in her red, white & blue

Well, Independence Day was today, obviously. So, we decided to have a cookout with my family, yesterday (Since my brother-in-law, Dan, had to work today). I love summer get togethers with the family! And, this was another exciting adventure. We had awesome food...pasta salad, burgers and hotdogs, buffalo chicken dip, brownie covered in fruit, etc etc. It was amazing!

After everyone stuffed their face, we decided it was time to let the girls cool off. So, we got out the sprinkler! Oh Em Gee! I have never seen two girls have more fun that running around through the sprinkler being crazy. They even got me, Brian and Dan to run through with them a couple times. Well, Uncle Dan didn't really stand a chance. Kenna coaxed him out, and then Charly got a hold of him. :) They truly had a blast! And, we just had fun watching the girls. There's something very special about watching your own kiddos enjoy the same fun you once did as a kid. I loved it!

 After lots of time in the sprinkler, and ripping around with a full belly, Kenna decided it was time for a nap. I wanted to nap with her, I was getting tired, but I managed to keep my eyes open, and enjoy the rest of the time with the family. Being pregnant with baby girl #3, is really quite tiring, if you haven't noticed from past posts. :)

Anyhow, now it's time for the guns! That's right! Celebrating Independence Day 'my family' style! They get the 'adult' guns out, and the guys take turns shooting at a stump, and a tree. After Charly watched for a while, she begged her Pappy to let her get her gun out. She has a 22 rifle. Safety is ALWAYS first, obviously, so she had her safety glasses and ear protectors on and now, she is ready to go! So, she gets it out, and shot at the stump and tree for a while.

Charly is ready to go!

 Then, the guys (Brian and Dan) decided to put a couple soda cans on the stump. They both hit them a few times while the girls were inside. Then, we decide to go outside for a bit. And, Brian's up. He missed every round. As he's walking back to us he says "I hope the house doesn't get attacked by pop cans". LOL! You can't get them all every time. Then, Dan's up. I think he hit 1 can once...good job. Then, Miss Charly begs to shoot the cans. So, again, she gets her gun out, and off to the shooting area with her Pappy she goes. She misses a few times, and then PING! SHE GOT IT! She was so excited! She turned around to make sure we all saw it; she had the biggest grin on her face. After like 3 misses, PING, again! At this point, she hands the rifle to her Pappy, and up to us she runs, for a round of high fives. She was so proud. She even commented how she did better than her Daddy. :) That cracked her up!!
About this time, Miss Kenna is waking up from her nap, that involved a big fat kitty keeping her toes warm. :) My sister's cat insisted on sleeping at Kenna's feet, which was pretty cute. So, back outside we go. This time the guns are away, since they are loud. But, that didn't stop Kenna from trying on and enjoying Charly's ear protection. :) She was walking around with them on, and did NOT want to take them off. :)

Kenna with her Daddy!

It was a great day, and I was so happy to share it with my family! Fun was had by all! And, after we got home, and Kenna was in bed, Charly and I got to enjoy some fireworks too! We LOVE this time of year!!!

The Deck!! Ooh, Pappy's gonna be in trouble!

Well, I'm a few days behind on my postings, but this has been a busy weekend!

On Friday, the girls and I went over to my parents house, to hang out while my Dad was cutting down a very large, somewhat dead tree down. It was leaning over their deck, and he didn't want it falling on the house or deck. So, the girls and I are outback, where my Dad (the girls call him Pappy) is working. We are in the lower part of the yard, on the swing set, when my Dad gets the lift up as high as he can, and slowly and cautiously cuts down the highest branch.
At first it starts of slow. You hear the chainsaw for a few seconds. Then, the creaking of the tree cracking. Then, pause. Then, more cracking. At this point, it has Charly's full attention. Then, crack! You see this giant tree branch swinging downward toward the deck. Kenna is on the swing, pointing at the down swinging tree branch with an "ooooohhhhhh". At that point, Charly begins to scream, in a very worried manner, "THE DEEEEEEEEEECCCCKKKKKK!" Then, boom!
The top of the branch slams down and around on the deck. At this point Charly thinks that the branch broke the big glass table on the deck, and Charly exclaims "Ooh, Pappy's gonna be in trouble by Nana!!!" Because of her reaction, I yell up to my Dad "Did you get the table?" He says "No, but it got the lamp post". Now, the lamppost is in the middle of a pretty large deck. And, when the branch swing down, it snapped off the lamp post at the smallest part of it, and one of the glass sconces shattered, which is apparently why Charly thought he got the table. She was quite happy to hear the table wasn't ruined. :)
Anyhow, my Dad gets the rest of the tree cut down, and cut up...the wood will be perfect for those summer night campfires that Charly loves so much! Well, we had a lot of brush all over the back yard. So, Dad starts gathering it up, to take it down to the woods behind the house. Well, as he has a HUGE pile of brush, completely surrounding him, I say to Charly "Look, Charly, it's a walking bush". Charly exclaims with excitement, "with a head. A human head!!" That girl is funny!!!
Thankfully, the day was quite productive, the girls had a blast, and there were no injuries. :) It was a great day!!!