A hiatus of sorts

I have neglected my blog the last little while. But that's only because my mom was in town visiting and I was having too much fun with her. And of course there's always the morning sickness factor which continues to be a part of my EVERY DAY life. Today is one of those bad sickness days. Blah! Anyway, just wanted to address my absence and say I should be back to posting soon. Happy Friday everyone!

Haircut Saga

I've had severe hair trauma since moving to my current location. Trauma, because I don't have a hair person here. I don't have someone I trust to do my hair. I think a good hair person is an essential in life. I had a good hair person for a very long time. Heidi, one of my best friends, did my hair for the longest time. And she always knew exactly what I wanted even when I didn't know what I wanted. I could just mumble a few phrases like, "I need more. . .and I want something different, like. . .and I want. . ." No, I don't think I ever provided more information than that. She just seemed to know what would work with my hair and it always did. Even better, she would come to my house to do my hair. Isn't that great? I think all stylists should make house calls.

Anyway, so I grew my hair out for three years and finally decided to do something with it. However, since I moved far, far away from my favorite hair person, I didn't have a hair person. But I rationalized that any hair person should do because after all, they all go to school and have to pass those tests and get licensed. Any hair person should do, right? Well, I was so wrong! I went to a little place up the street. No fancy salons for me! I can't stomach paying $60 for a haircut and $100 for highlights. Anyway, I went in, told the girl that I wanted a few inches off and some layers. My hair, when I went in, was midway down my back. When she was done with me, it was to my shoulders. Did we some how miss the part about A COUPLE OF INCHES!?! I even pointed and showed her how much to cut off and how much not to cut off. I guess when you pay $10 for a haircut, you get a $10 haircut.

I went home and tried to make it work, but it was awful. The layers were all choppy and uneven and I hated it. So two weeks later I went to another place up the street. I explained to the new stylist, in great detail, the trauma I experienced during my last haircut (hoping to instill in her the dire need for her to get it right!) I decided to chop off those ghastly layers and go for a cute bob. (I use to keep my hair short all the time and really loved it) Luckily, she understood what I was trying to communicate and my hair turned out cute.

I decided later that I really like myself with long hair more than short hair, so I am currently growing it out. (That last haircut was 10 months ago). But I really needed a change. My hair has been so flat and lifeless. So, off to another little place up the street. (Yes, there are at least three, wait, no there are four hair salons up the street from me.) This time (as in Friday night) I went with pictures and very specific instructions. I wanted highlights and body. I wanted to keep my length, but give a little more umph to my hair. And I think I found a new hair person. She was very patient with me as I explained what I needed and wanted. And I like my new haircut. It's different than anything I've ever had. I have highlights and layers and umph! And if I had anymore energy to spare, I would post a picture. But I'll just have to do that later. While it doesn't beat having my hair person come to me and not charge me an outrageous sum of money, I think that I have found my hair person and hopefully my hair trauma will be minimal now!

A different look at Mary Poppins

I think this is funny.

Wallowing

I've been wallowing in my nauseous misery for the past few days. (In case any of my avid readers were wondering!) I'll try to do some posting tomorrow. Until then, I will go wallow some more. Blah!

Babies Laughing

Isn't this so cute and funny!?!

All day sickness

I've had it pretty easy with my pregnancies. I don't get really sick and I've never thrown up. I have been nauseous, but nothing too bad. I was never sick at all when I was pregnant with Sophie. Well, it hit me on Tuesday. Blah! Why is it called Morning Sickness when it happens whenever and can last forever? I have been nauseous, constantly, for three days now. It really puts a damper on anything I try to do. There are varying degrees of my nausea (there have been a few times when I have hovered over the toilet) but it's constant. And I don't like it! I can do things in the morning for short spurts of time. But my afternoons are completely wasted. The only thing that makes me feel somewhat better is to lay down. On the bright side, I know that compared to others, this is nothing. It's just something new to me and I am adjusting. Man, I thought I had everything down!

In other random news. Can I just ask what in the world is up with American Idol? I mean, who is voting? Don't get me wrong, I think Sanjaya is a cute kid and all. And he certainly can sing better than me, but come on! He just doesn't have what the other contestants have. He has no volume or umph. Why is he still on the show? Why? Okay, stepping down now.

The Baby Bump

Is it possible to show when you are five weeks pregnant? I've gained seven pounds since I got pregnant. And my pants don't fit anymore. I put on my most favorite pair of jeans yesterday (favorite because they fit perfectly and they are stretchy and comfortable) and well, let's just say that seven extra pounds fills out those jeans to a tight-jean look you don't want to see. Tight in as, "Oh my goodness, how does she breathe in those!" Ummm. . .that's not suppose to happen yet! I have never shown this early. I could understand showing earlier with a second pregnancy, but this is my fourth! The earliest I have started showing was at four months. Did I mention I've never shown this early? Okay, maybe other people can't tell. But I can because my pants don't fit. Yes, I already said that too. I'm just a little confused. Time to pull out the next size pants. Luckily, I have mutliple sizes because I don't like wearing maternity clothing. I have varying sizes because I am varying sizes on my way up and on my way down. Sigh.

Time Out for Me

I went to "Time Out For Women" last Saturday. As in a week and a few days ago Saturday. Anyway, it's a one day women's conference with a bunch of motivational speakers and music. It was absolutely wonderful! I would strongly recommend going to one if you get the chance. It was sold out but my neighbor managed to get some tickets so she invited me and off we went. It was great to go and hear talks geared specifically to mothers and women. And no, I'm not alone in feeling overwhelmed and crazy in this whole motherhood journey. The whole day I felt like every speaker was speaking to me and telling me I was okay and doing a good job. It was beautiful! And the music was great too!

Another cool thing. We got to the conference early so we could get good seats and as we were standing in line a gentleman came up to me and stuck out his hand and said, "Hi, I'm Michael McLean." I was quite surprised, and replied, "Yes, yes you are!". He then asked me my name and said he was happy to meet me. I felt pretty special. Michael McLean was the host for the conference and shared lots of great stories about his music.

Anyway, again, if you've never gone to "Time Out For Women" or even heard about it, you should check it out and try to go. It will soooooooo be worth it! You can learn more about it by going here.

The Distortion Of Beauty

This is an amazing video. And I'm not going to go all postal and get up on a soap box about this. But really, what is real beauty? Makes you wonder what those people in magazines really look like!

Homemaking Meme

As if you haven't heard enough from me for one day! I tell ya, I just get in a writing frenzy sometimes! And then a complete lack thereof all the other times. Anyway, here is a little homemaking meme. ("meme" is just a get-to-know you type of thing. And this one is about how I homemake!)

Aprons – Y/N? YES! I have just recently fallen in love with aprons. They make me feel pretty! I can still wear nice clothing at home and not worry about getting it messed up if I've got my apron on!

Baking – Favorite thing to bake? Bread

Clothesline – Y/N? Nope

Donuts – Have you ever made them? No. We use to have a donut shop though. Does that count?

Every day – One homemaking thing you do every day? Just one? The dishes, make beds, clean the house. . . .etc.

Freezer – Do you have a separate deep freeze? Yes! Although, right now it serves as my workshop table out in the garage.

Garbage Disposal – Y/N? Yes. See here.

Handbook – What is your favorite homemaking resource? Hmm… good question. I guess I read articles and such on the internet. Most of the time I just pull something out of my head and hope it works. And if it doesn't then I ask the women in my life.

Ironing – Love it or hate it? What's ironing? I'm not meant to iron. I haven't ever owned an ironing board. Okay, we owned one for a few months, but then it broke. I took that as a sign.

Junk drawer – Y/N? Where is it? YES!!! I have junk drawers, junk cupboards and a few junk closets. Too much junk!

Kitchen – Color and decorating scheme? My kitchen? I forgot to post the picture. I'll do that later. Anyway, my kitchen has white walls which I wish were (wow, say that five times fast! white walls which I wish were) red. I have generic oak cabinets that I wish were anitque white. I have a fruit theme for my decor, although I am thinking of redoing it. Any ideas?

Love – What is your favorite part of homemaking? The results of my efforts. I love a clean, orderly house. I love fresh, clean clothes. I love a healthy, delicious meal. I love coordinating and decorating my home so that it feels like home.

Mop – Y/N? Yes, well swiffer!

Nylons – Wash by hand or in the washing machine? I have yet to convert to nylons. I haven't worn them since I tried to put on a pair while pregnant with my first child. Don't go there!

Oven – Do you use the window or open the oven to check? I open the door; the window does not give me the view I need.

Pizza – What do you put on yours? I like everything! Well, pepperoni, sausage, green peppers, onions, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese.

Quiet – What do you do during the day when you get a quiet moment? I like to read, either a book or on the internet, or I'll watch a show at night.

Recipe card box – Y/N? Yes, and several papers of varying sizes with recipes hurriedly written upon, along with magazines and cookbooks.

Style of house – What style is your house? Nothing fancy, just a modern two-story home. Four bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths. The exterior is part brick and part siding. The color is a pale yellow with sage green trim (shutters and the door). I always wanted to live in a yellow house!

Tablecloths and napkins – Y/N? Uggg. . .I fail. I don't even own a tablecloth. How un-homemaking is that? I need to do better. Tablecloths are so pretty! And we use paper towels for napkins. Another uggg. I will improve!

Under the kitchen sink – Organized or toxic wasteland? Organized, but needs to be wiped down.

Vacuum – How many times per week? At least once, sometimes twice. (Note: I don't usually vacuum. It has fallen under the "Hubby's Duty" for some reason. I think he likes to vacuum!)

Wash – How many loads of laundry do you do per week? Depends on where we are in the rotation of clothing. If the kids still have clean clothes, we keep going! Okay, ummm. . .maybe 4-5. I should just conquer this whole laundry thing!

X’s – Do you keep a daily list of things to do that you cross off? Sometimes. I know I do better when I make a list and then can cross off my accomplishments. I just need to do it more!

Yard – Y/N? Who does what? Hubby pretty much does the majority of yard work. I'm suppose to keep the weeds down, but I swear they grow unnaturally, in fact I dare say freakishly, fast here!

Zzz’s – What is your last homemaking task for the day before going to bed? I start the dishwasher, make sure the kitchen is tidy, and climb in bed!

A few items of housekeeping to address

I've done some remodeling here at the porch! Can you tell? I also added a shoutbox over there on the right. Drop me a line! (Really, just type me a hello or something. I had another shout box way back, but no one ever joined me in talking to myself!) Anyway, that's all for now.

Of TV and such things

In college, I wrote a huge long paper about TV. The title of my paper was, "The Negative Effects of Television on the Family Structure." It was a ten page research paper addressing the way that TV has changed our world and how it has affected the basic foundation of society, the family. After doing my research and writing the paper I vowed that I would never have TV in my house. I stopped watching TV just before writing this paper and I didn't watch TV for six years.

Well, I still agree with the paper I wrote. I feel like the TV is a huge waste of time and can negatively affect the relationships and development of a family. However, I now watch TV. I have found that at this point in my life it is just something I enjoy. And yes, my kids watch TV. In the chaos that is my life (insert: three small children at home 24/7), TV is an escape for everyone. For the children while I need to do other things and for me when I need to not think, do, or be anything. Right now, I need that. Maybe in a couple of years I will see the "light" again and turn off the TV. As it stands, my TV time is the time of day when I just sit and let myself be entertained. I don't have to worry about doing anything. I don't think about all of the things I need to do and all of the things I haven't done and all of the things I should do. I just veg. I don't think vegging is something that should be done all the time. I allot myself a little vegging time each night. It's my way to unwind and forget about all the worries that come with being a mother.

I have many shows that I like to watch. And thanks to the beautiful device that is DVR, my TV time is fully optimized. We never watch our shows until the kiddos are tucked into bed. So here is the run down on the shows I watch (and yes, it probably is way too much, but I'm enjoying it for the present time):

Monday: Heroes and 24

Tuesday: American Idol and House

Wednesday: American Idol, Friday Night Lights, and Lost

Thursday: American Idol, The Office, and Grey's Anatomy

Now, not all of these shows are on every week, what with reruns, other specials that premier, and the show taking a brief hiatus. And with my DVR I can watch my show when I want and without commercials. Like I said, fully optimized TV watching.

It seems like a lot. I know, it probably is. But I don't watch any TV during the day and in the end, with the handy DVR (never watch TV without it), I watch about an hour and half a day. And I'm happy with that.

Ahem. . .ahem. . .I have an announcement to make!

Baby number four is on the way! And we are soooooo excited! Aren't those feet cute? They belong to Miss Sophie. Anyway, we just found out about being pregnant so we have a long way to go, but still very exciting. It was high time for some new and exciting events around here.