Other Funny Things *November Edition*

Things that have never happened to me at Wal-Mart before:
1. Cashier looks at my cart and says, "Oh wow!"
2. Someone moo's at me from a vehicle as I'm walking to my car.


Ricky changed our home answering machine message to Skeletor voice. Today, he came home and there was a message. It was a telemarketer. All she said was, "Wow....*tries to compose herself for a few moments* This is.....*and went on with her speech* It was pretty hilarious.


Ricky decided to try some dog treats at his parents house. And now he's in bed with a stomachache.


*talking with Mom and Cathy*
Me: "I saw some of my old toys labeled vintage the other day."
Mom: "Well, if you're vintage, what are Jim and I?"
Me: "You're thrift and Jim is antique."


*Ricky opens his netbook*
Ricky: "There is a nerd (candy) stuck in my computer."
Me: "There's a nerd holding the computer too."

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *November Edition*

*pointing to peanut butter jar*
Emma: "It's Tinkerbell!"
Me: "No, that is Peter Pan; Tinkerbell's friend."
Emma: "Peter Pan is Tinkerbell's friend?"
Me: "Yep."
Emma: "Peter Parker is Spiderman."


Olivia: "I want the Batman video game."
Me: "So does Daddy."
Emma: "Daddy's so silly."

*Goes into the bathroom to tell Ricky goodbye as he's getting dressed*
Olivia: "Daddy! Your feet are gross!"
Ricky: "What?"
Me: "Why do you say Daddy's feet are gross?"
Emma: "'Cause they got hair on them! Gross!"

Ricky: "Daddy likes Two Face."
Emma: "I like one face...Batman!"

*Watching Ricky play "Scott Pilgrim*
Emma: "We don't hit girls."
Ricky:"That's right."
Emma: "We hit boys."

*Watching two solo dancers on the Radio City Rockettes Christmas Spectacular*
Emma: "Look Mom! It's Emma and Olivia!"

*from the bathroom*
Emma: "Mommy! They're dangerous!"
Me: "What's dangerous?"
Emma: "The panties."
Me: "Oh. Well, are you okay?"
Emma: I'm okay. They're dangerous!"

Me: "Girlies, you want some hot chocolate?"
Emma: "No, I want hot vanilla!"

*after stuffing socks into her shirt*
Olivia: "I'm Santa! Ho Ho Ho!"

*after noticing that the Elf on the Shelf had moved while she was picking out a movie*
Olivia: "*gasp* He moved! It's magic!"

Emma: "We don't ever poop on turkeys."

Emma: "Olivia, let's punch Daddy!
Olivia: "Okay!"
Emma: "Here's a glove."

*chasing after her sister*
Olivia: "Emma!...Emma!...EMMA [insert last name]!"

Watching the "He-Man and She-Ra Christmas Special" and Olivia keeps yelling that Skeletor needs to be nice or she will spank him.

Em is coloring and Liv is watercolor painting. I leave the room to vacuum the movie room and when I come back Liv is stripped down to her underwear scrubbing paint off her paper with a dishtowel. No part of that makes sense to me.

Emma: "Daddy, I want to paint your toenails."
Ricky: "Sure, after dinner."

*Emma sits down to paint Ricky's toenails*
Emma: "Can I have my nailpolish?"
*I hand her purple*
Emma: "Can I have pink?"
Ricky: *hangs head*

When I came home from Black Friday shopping, Emma told me that she had put candy in my "socky sock" (stocking).

Olivia: "Mommy, where's the fer-mote?"

Me: "Time to get up for school, girlies!"
Emma: *sits up on one elbow* "Look at the window."
Me: "What's wrong with it?"
Emma: "It's dark outside. *rolls over and covers head with blanket*

*Olivia's mad 'cause I took a book away that they were fighting over*
Olivia: *grumbling about how mean I am*
Emma: "Don't say that, Olivia. Mommy's my best friend!"

Emma: "Daddy, you work at Channel 7?"
Ricky: "Yeah."
Emma: "Well, I'm gonna go work at Channel 8!"

*talking about the fire in the fireplace*
Emma: "We don't touch the fire. It will burn my fingers. It will dead me. I don't want to be dead."

Emma: "Daddy's my favorite friend. Daddy's my favorite little friend."

Photoshoot

I've always enjoyed taking the twins to get their photos taken. When they were younger, we would always take them to Sears, but that got to be so expensive. Last year I started at a local gym taking Zumba classes and I met an awesome lady named Kristi. Turns out we're cousins (Small town, y'know...). She owns Allure Photography so I wanted to see what her professional eye could capture that Sears couldn't. And boy, did she deliver!

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *October Edition*

*Watching the Halloween Cat in the Hat and Thing 1 & Thing 2 come on*
Emma: "Look Mommy! It's Emma and Olivia!"


Emma stuck her hand in the toilet of a porta-potty. Her hand is forever uncleeeeeeen!


Emma informed us that she is "Green Lantern Strawberry". She is wearing a Green Lantern mask with a Strawberry Shortcake costume on.


Emma: "Daddy, Olivia got a sad face today."
Ricky: "Why's that?"
Emma: "Because she was scribble scrabbin'."


Olivia: "It's EVIL!!!"
Emma: "That's not evil. That's a Pop-Tart."


*Liv comes to me from watching "LarryBoy and the Fib From Outerspace"*
Liv: *shows me empty hands* Look, it's my friend The Fib."
Me: *pretends to take a bite from The Fib*
Liv: "NO!! He's my friend! He's not a cheese puff!!!"


Em & Liv: "Ahh, Bats! It's bats!"
Me: "Girlies, go run in there and tell Daddy, 'We can't stop here, this is Bat Country!'"
Em and Liv: "*indistinguishable*BAT COUNTRY!!!"


Emma: "I'm wearing Daddy's underpants."
Me: "What?"
*Emma pulls up Rapunzel dress, revealing Ricky's Pac-Man boxers*
Me: "Well, okay then."


Olivia: "Mommy, I can't find my Sweet Hearts."
Me: "Emma, share the Sweet Tarts with your sister."
Emma: "Okay." *to Olivia* "That'll be 50 dollars."


Olivia: "I wanna see The Super Friends at the superhero store."


*In the car this morning*
Me: "Emma, what did you learn in High-Hat?"
Em: "'A'. 'Ah'. 'A' is for monkey."
Liv: "No, 'A' is for apple and alligator."
Em: "In High-Hat I tell a story about a monkey.
Liv: "Emma, I love you. 'A' is for apple."


*in the car*
Emma: "Mommy, look at my mustache."
Me: *turns to see where she wiped snot across her upper lip*
Me: "Gross."
Me: *turns around a second time to see mustache gone and her mouth making a chewing motion*
Me: "EMMA! Don't eat your...ugh, nevermind."


*From inside a big cardboard box*Ricky: "Are we in a hobo house?"
Em and Liv: "Yes."
Ricky: "Are you hobos?"
Liv: "No, I'm Olivia."


Emma: "I'm cold."
Me: "Okay, let's get dressed for school then."
Emma: "No, I need a blanket."
Me: "No, you need to get dressed."
Emma: "No."
Me: "Do you want a yellow light this morning?"
Emma: "Yes."
Me: *glares*
Emma: "No."


*Abby the cat is sneezing in the living room*
Emma: "The cat is sick."
Me: "He's okay, he's just sneezing."
Emma: "He needs a doughnut."


Olivia: "Get me some more water."
Me: "What's the magic word?"
Olivia: "Pocus Pocus."


Olivia: "I'm Superman-Girl!"


Olivia: ""You wanna go see Spooky-Do?"


*As heard from the living room while Ricky checked on Emma in the bathroom*
Emma: "Daddy, come see!"
Ricky: "Ew, ew, put that away!"


*Emma comes out of her room with a princess wand*
Emma: *flings wand forward* "Magic! Magic!"
Me: "Don't you mean, 'Magic Missle'?"
Emma: "No. Magic! Magic!"


*Olivia comes out with a mouthful of cake*
Me: "Olivia, did you ask for that cake?"
Liv: "No."
Me: "No more cake."
*A little later*
Liv: "May I have some cake please?"
Me: *looks at her*
Liv: "It's my birthday."
Me: "No it's not."
Liv: "It's Pop-Pop's birthday."
Me: *looks at her*
Liv: "Sammi's birthday......you're birthday...Happy Birthday Mommy!"

Happy Halloween, From The Batman Family

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *September Edition*

Olivia: "Daddy wants 'fah-zon-yah' for dinner."
Emma: "Yeah, daddy wants 'buzz-on-yah'"
Me: "Well, alrighty then."


*stall tactic #124 tonight*
Emma: "Mommy, I need to go potty."
Me: "Okay, go."
Emma: "Mommy, I poop in the potty!"
Me: "Good job!
Emma: "Come see!"
Ricky: *laughter*


*As I was getting their cough medicine this morning*
Emma: "Two girlies, one medicine."


Emma: "Mommy, I need to go to the hospital."
Me: "Why's that?"
Emma: "I need to buy some vanilla ice cream."


*Kiddos came home with a free kids meal from Loco's certificate*
Me: "Look girlies, you get a free kids meal."
Olivia: "Wow! I get to eat dinner!"
Me: *facepalm*


*Emma's block tower fell over and broke*
Emma: "They exploded!"


*Emma accidentally hits Olivia in the mouth while playing*
Olivia: "Mommy! My body!"


Me: "Look girlies. Look what I bought today."
Emma: "Thor!"
Me: "Yeah, that's right."
Emma & Olivia: "Put it on!"
Me: "You wanna watch it now?"
Emma and Olivia: "Yeah!!!"


Emma: "Daddy lives at Mommy's house."


*I bring Olivia a bowl with animal crackers*
*She looks at them and puts her fist in the air*
Olivia: SCORE!!!


Emma: "I want Makatos."
Me: "You want to eat at Makatos?"
Emma: "No, I want to eat makatos" *points to tv singing about avocados*
Me: "Ohhhh"


*The kids are reaching a new low to stay out of bed*
Olivia: "I need a drink of water"
Me: "Get in bed."
Emma: "You tuck me in?"
Me: "Get in bed."
Olivia: "Kiss and hug."
Me: "Get in bed,"
Emma: "Daddy, I need metal!"
Ricky: "I got this one. "

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *August Edition*

*I sit down on the couch to watch some tv after the kids are in bed*
*knocking on bedroom door*
Olivia: "Mommy!! I can't find my boobies! Where are my boobies??!"
Me: "They're right there." *point to her shirt*
Olivia: "Oh. Okay." *gets back in bed*


Me: "What are you doing?"
Olivia: "I'm Daddy! *in deeper voice* It's bedtime. Get ready for stories!"


*At Speech today a larger man came in with his daughter. Not unusual, since we've seen them all summer*
Emma: "You're a big guy! You're too big for that chair!"


*Ricky picks up Emma after walking in the door from work*
Emma: "You just hugged my poop, Daddy."


Emma: "Daddy, I'm gonna come sit with you. I need a doughnut."
Ricky: "Are you going to go to the store to get your doughnut?"
Emma: "Yes."


Me: "What movie did you girls just put on?"
Emma: "Iron Maiden"


Olivia: "Daddy! Where's my boobies??"


*Emma comes in wearing cupcake pajamas that she wasn't wearing last night*
Emma: "I'm a cupcake!"


*At 7:50am this is what I hear*
Emma: "Mommy! Wake up! The sun is up!"
*And then I hear "Pebble and the Penguin" on in the living room.*


*Last night after dinner*
Emma: "Mommy, I want a brownie."
Me: "Did you eat all your dinner?"
Emma: "No...yes" *shifts gaze to floor*
Me: "Did you eat all your dinner?"
Emma: "Yes."
Me: "Are you lying to me."
Emma: "Yes."


*During prayers on the phone with Mom*
Mom: "God bless Mommy and Daddy"
Em and Liv: "God bless Mommy and Daddy."
Mom: "God bless Emma and Olivia"
Emma: "God bless Olivia and Batman."
Mom: "God bless everyone"
Olivia: "God bless everyone, and Superman."


*Watching a preview for "The Hunchback of Notre Dame 2"
Emma: "Is that the "Fox and the Lamb?"
Me: "No, that is not "Fox and the Hound."


Emma: "I hear funder Mommy."


*Watching "Oliver and Company", the poodle Georgette introduction song*
Olivia: "Is that you Mommy??"


Me: "Emma, do you need to being everything you own with you?"
Emma: "Yes."


Me: "If I hear Daddy's drawer open again, you're both getting kicked out of our room."
Emma: "No, Mommy! Don't kick me!"


*imitating Bugs Bunny*
Olivia: "Mehhhhh, what's up Jack?"


Em always finds excuses to come out of her room. Tonight, I have to admit, was the best.
Em: "Mommy, I want Olivia to lay down with me."
Me: "But she is sleeping. Let her sleep."
Emma: "But I want my sister."
I go into their room and Liv is awake this time and Em asks if she can lay down with Liv. Liv says No. So she asks again, this time it's a yes. Em crawls in bed with her, gets comfy, gets in Liv's face and say, "I love you sister!" And they hugged.

Home Management Binder

Another thing that I have been stealing from the organizing blogs I have been reading is a "Home Management Binder".

While cleaning out my craft room the first day, I came across almost all the tools needed to make my own HMB. Every person's HMB will have the same basic elements but will be tailored to the specific home needs. Here's the links that I used when researching the binders:

Clean & Scentsible: Organize Everything-Family Binder

I Heart Organizing: March Challenge: Project "Household Binder"

Love to Save: THO: Home Management Binder

Flashy Sparkles: Home Operations Manual- Complete

Organized Home: Suggested Dividers for a Household Notebook

I used those as inspiration for what I wanted inside my binder. Then I went here to get the printables to fill out in my book.

Life...Your Way Printables

Before printing I filled out the information that I knew. Then I put them in the notebook. Any time I need to change information, I write it on the pages. I'm planning on re-typing and printing once every 6 months or so to update all the information. I still need to print the address forms but the rest of the books printables are complete to me.

Two days later and it has been a giant help.

Clean, Clean, Clean!

It is amazing what reading things on the internet can do for motivation. I never realized how reading certain blogs would motivate me to get things done around the house. I always figured that wasting time on the internet was just that, wasting time. But lately I've been checking out organizing blogs. Seeing how all these people are cleaning up their spaces has got me wanting to do the same thing. So I did.

First, two days ago, I started with my night stand. After finding some books stuffed in there, that turned into me going through my bookshelf in our room. On the shelf I found some of Ricky's things so I had to go through his night stand. I left the top drawer of his alone since that's the one he uses the most for all his random stuff. I'll get him to go through that another day.

After cleaning those three areas, I went to put things in my closet and I realized that there was a lot of space in there that I was covering up, mostly by my wedding dress. I still need to get in there and replace she shelf that literally fell out of the wall last year, but I still managed to make a lot more space even with it gone. The dress got moved to the top shelf and things just got moved around from there. Between our two closets I made plenty of room for more clothes that I expect to buy since I'm losing weight again. (I told myself I was only going to weigh myself once a month, but I gave in and did it the other day 187lbs. That's a 13lb loss so far!)


The closets put me on a roll. Next came our bathroom cabinets. I had a ton of lotion that had been given to me as gifts. There was some in there from 2003! I will say that no matter what the fragrance says on the bottle, after a certain period of time all lotion will start to smell exactly the same, gross. I was only able to salvage about 6 bottles. 2 of which I kept and I plan on giving away the other bottles to anyone that wants them.

Later that night I got started on my craft room, aka Giant Clutter Room. I got 4 plastic bags of stuff out and vowed to continue on it again. Which I did today. I got a construction grade garbage bag of things taken out today. I re-organized all my fabric too. That took forever. I do need to get more baggies though. I love putting things in baggies so it helps to have a full stock of them. I managed to put everything that's left to go through in the center of the room, so the next time I get in there I should be able to get it all finished.

-Britney Marie

Thanks, But That's Enough Poop For Now.

I figured by the time my twins were 4 years old I would be close to if not finished with cleaning up after them. And by that I mean poop. Lots and lots of poop. Baby twins are basically poop factories, which I expected. What I did not expect was to still be cleaning that much poop 4 years later.

For a few days, a couple weeks even, both girls were completely potty trained. I carried around a couple pairs of underwear in my purse just in case, but the wipes stayed home in the diaper bag hanging by our back door. I never expected what happened over the past two days.

Two days ago I saw the bathroom light on and both kids were nowhere to be found. I could hear chatting from the hallway so I went to check it out. I found Olivia completely naked and bent over with poop all over her backside. And Emma had a handful of wipes getting ready to take care of her sister. I wish I could have snapped a picture at that exact moment because their faces were priceless. I thanked Emma for helping her sister but told her that I should take over from here. She proceeded to delegate what I should do next, doling out the wipes.

Later that day, I found Liv in the twins bathroom covered in poop. She had tried to take care of it herself, which is commendable, but not well executed. It was on her nose, on her chin, on her feet, in her hair, everywhere. All I could do was just turn on the water and give her a bath.

Yesterday, while chatting on the phone with my mom, I found Olivia in the back bathroom trying to clean up her apparent accident. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but this was the 6th time that day that we'd had this problem. I get off the phone to deal with Liv. When I get out I notice that the twins bathroom light is on. This means that Em is currently in there. Not expecting much, I go back in there to make sure she's remembered to flush, which she consistently forgets.

I found her with the majority of the toilet paper roll in the toilet, another handful in her hand covered in poop, and the soiled underwear STUCK to the side of the toilet. Not to mention the little poop foot prints all over the floor. *sigh* The rest of the afternoon was spent cleaning the bathrooms.

I realize that my bathrooms aren't the cleanest, but you'd think my kids would just tell me they want me to clean it instead of spreading poop around. Seems easier my way, but what do I know?

-Britney Marie

Start And Stop

I have opened the New Post page several times only to not have anything interesting to say so I close it again. I find it harder and harder to find the words I want to post.

I've had a rough couple days. I think it stems from a lack of sleep and the children fighting constantly. As soon as Ricky gets home I want to go to our room, keep the lights off and just sit there for a while to calm down. I feel like I spend the majority of my day disciplining the children and cleaning up after the destruction zone they create. 'Course the reason I feel like I do that is because that's exactly what I do.

I love my kids, I do. I enjoy spending time with them and watching them grow up and I miss them when they are not here, but to have to spend 24 hours a day (it seems like) cooped up here with them is making me crazy! They just got into the back-talking stage and ever other word out of their mouth is "No" or "I don't wanna..." or "My sister did this..." As an only child I never had to deal with things like that. I'd like to think that if I had a sibling that these daily squabbles wouldn't bother me like they do, but not being used to it makes it really frustrating when they fight. I know it's what kids do, and I know it's what siblings do, but I just wish they wouldn't do it all...day...long.

Today has been easier. Whenever they start to fight or argue, I have them sit on opposite ends of the couch. Emma is already on "yellow light" today for back-talking me and not listening, but at this point yesterday, Liv was on yellow and Em was on red, so I see improvement. I'm also taking things a lot slower today.I made pancakes for breakfast and cleaned the kitchen, then took some time for myself and played some "Plants vs Zombies". The kids love to watch me play, so their time-out time wasn't spent whining, but watching me play. Win-win, I guess.

Right now, they are eating a snack in our bed watching "Enchanted". Emma seems to love that movie, she picked it yesterday and today. I'm going to take this opportunity to straighten up the living room and maybe have a snack myself.

-Britney Marie

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *July Edition*

Emma to Olivia: "I'm not Strawberry [Shortcake], I'm LarryBoy! I crush you!"


Each girl is on an opposite end of the couch for time out at the moment. Emma is taunting her sister.
Emma: "Olivia, get up. Do it! Do it!"


*after putting on her new black shoes*
Olivia: "Look Mommy! I've got tapping shoes!"


Emma: "Mommy, I want to paint Daddy's toenails."


Emma and Olivia: "We want to watch 'Pedos and the Penguins!"
Me: "*snickers*"


*After putting on her Batman ghetto cap with her Easter Sunday white dress up hat*
Emma: "Okay, I have to go to work."
Me: "Alrighty. Where do you work?"
Emma: "At Grammie's house."
Me: "What do you do at work?"
Emma: "Feed the ducks."
Me: "Wow! That's a nice job."
Emma: "Yeah, I know."


*the kids are playing pretend*
Olivia: "Moono! What are you doing?"
Emma: "I'm not Moono. I'm The Batman!"


Emma: "Olivia's fighting me. Emma's angry."


Emma: "Oh Daddy...I got my baby..."
Ricky: "What's your baby's name?"
Emma: "Hailuh. Hailuh Baby."


Every time Emma gets something taken away from her by me, she always gets Olivia to get them back. For example, I just took Emma's cookies and candy away for her kicking her sister.
Emma: "Olivia, get mommy to give me back my stuff."
Olivia "Give Emma back her stuff!!" *punches me in the leg and runs off* "How's that Emma?"
Emma: "Uh, not quite."


Emma just stuffed her plush Backpack (from Dora) with everything she could find, from books to Veggietales plush to candy. She had me help her put it on and her blanket around her neck. Then she looks at me and says, "I'm ready to see Ms. Marilyn. And I'm ready to see Grammie."


Emma: "Mommy, I watch 'Pedos and the Penguin'"
Me: "Yeah, I don't think that's right, Em-Em"


Emma: "Mommy! I poop a big girl!"


*from the bathroom*
Olivia: "Look! Another poop. He's swimming!"


*after seeing the frozen hamburger meat on a plate to defrost it*
Olivia: "Mmm, mmmm, yummy! My favorite!"
Me: "Your favorite is frozen hamburger meat?"
*thinks for a moment*
Olivia: "No. That's gross."


Me: "Emma, what is in your hand?"
*Emma shows the plastic microphone*
Me: "Don't hit your sister with that."
*Look over to see Emma riding her sister like a horse and hitting her in the head with the microphone*
Me: "*sigh*"


Me: "Emma, what is your full name?"
Emma: "Uhhhmmmm..."
Me: "Emma...Leigh...Gravatt."
Emma: "Emma...Lee...Toofat."


Emma: "Mommy, have some 'coffee'."
*uses a spoon to shovel it in my mouth*


*talking to her blanket*
Emma: "This is Mommy. He is a girl. He's my friend. *smiles*"

The One Where I Explain Things...

Today was supposed to be extremely busy but it turned into a napping/movie day.

Ricky and I went to bed a little later than we wanted to last night, 12:45am instead of 11pm. And we both got up at 7am. He had to get a shower for work and I had to get on the phone with DCF (Department of Children and Families). We have been receiving food assistance for the last 6 months since he is the only one working. I've looked for jobs, but it really makes more sense for me to stay home with the kids right now. There are no positions around here that my degree of Criminology would be useful for and if I went with part-time at Hobby Lobby (like I was thinking) then I would basically be paying for the daycare for the kids over the summer/afterschool and then what's the point? We still wouldn't have any extra money for things.

I keep being told to get a job in the school system, probably because I was a sub for a year when Ricky and I were engaged, but I really don't want to do that. First of all, to be a teacher I'd have to go back to school and that is another option we don't have. And if I did subbing, we'd still be stuck with no money for the summer, 'cause subs don't get paid if they don't work. Not sure about paras, but I really can't stand most other people's children so it's really not a good fit for me.

I have been having non-stop problems with getting our benefits together. It was great for the first 6 months, except for the phone-call interview. It is almost impossible to get through on the phone lines.

At the end of May we were supposed to re-certify online, which I did. Then I received paperwork on June 6th, saying that I had until June 8th to get my phone interview done. I checked the mail late on the 6th so that day was gone 'cause they were closed when I tried calling. I tried again all day on the 7th and never got through. Finally, I was able to get through after calling over 20 times and being on hold for 45 minutes. The whole interview took about 10 minutes. And she said all I needed to do was fill out the income form and mail/fax it back by the 16th.

Well, that week Ricky had a cyst on his backside that he decided to lance himself. Long story short, it got infected and he had to get it taken care of at the Urgent Care clinic and missed some work. Specifically he missed the deadline for turning in the papers. I was told one time before that if you miss the date you still have 30 days to get it in before you lose benefits. So when he went back to work on the 20th of June he faxed it in.

A few days later I received a letter saying that I never did my phone interview. So I called and after half an hour of waiting I finally spoke with a really nice lady. She told me that she did find in the computer where I had done my interview and she was unsure as to why they said I hadn't done it. So, she sent in an email saying that it needed to be fixed. And then I told her about how we had faxed the papers in a few days late. She said that it wouldn't have mattered if we had sent it in on time because they were so backed up that they still hadn't started filing the papers that they received on the 15th yet! She then told me to call back the next week to see if our faxed papers had been filed.

That night I received a phone call from the local DCF office. She said that she had received the email from the nice lady and that the best thing to do about the faxed papers was to bring them to her office on Monday (this was Friday). So I got her information and planned on doing just that.

I get to the office on Monday and it is packed. And you can tell that everyone that works there hates their job. And they don't care if they help you or not. Y'know, 'cause they hate their job. So I get up there and tell the lady at the desk what's what, and she tells me to take this yellow paper over to another lady who is directing people into different rooms. I do that and she tells me that the lady I spoke to on the phone, and wrote her name down doesn't even work there. No one by that name does! At this point I'm getting really angry 'cause seriously, WTF??I go back to the window and give her the faxed papers and tell her to just give them to who they need to get to and then I go home.

A few days later I receive two letters. One says that we have been approved for assistance again and another that says our account has been suspended! I immediately tried calling but again, it was after-hours. At this point, I'm freaking out.

To Be Continued...

The Gym and Laundry

Tomorrow marks the day that I return to the gym. I'm excited, and yet not so much. I am really not looking forward to getting up to be at an 8:30am class, and I'm even less excited about getting the kids up to go with me. But it needs to be done, and if I don't I'll wish I had gone. So it's time to just stop complaining and just do it.

I should probably weigh myself before I go, but I don't wanna be depressed before going there. But I probably will anyway.

There is a giant pile of laundry boring a hole in the back of my head. I better get on that.

Britney Marie

Bullets

Gah! I do this every time. It's been so long since I've posted. But in my defense, it's been a long time since I've done anything really worth posting. Guess it's time for a Bullet Post to get caught up.

*Girlies The girlies have been out of school since May 20th and that has made it very difficult for me to do much. They've been quite well-behaved for the most part, but I had gotten used to being able to go out and get my errands done in a timely manner, go to the gym, and even get some crafting done throughout the day. Not so much with them at home.

*Gym Speaking of the gym, I haven't been in months. And I really miss it. I pay for the child care there, but it just seems like more trouble than it's worth to get the kids up that early for class. They've been letting me sleep in which is really nice so I've kinda been taking advantage of that during the summer break. I could go during the afternoon classes, but the childcare fills up so fast for those that I'd have to get there before all the classes and do them all, which is a bit much now.

*Weight I have been able to maintain my weight-loss fairly well. I bounce between 189-193 which is still under to 200lb mark I was at, so that makes me happy. I still haven't been able to see 187lbs at all yet, but I'm confidant that I will once I get back to the gym.

*Dentist Today I have a dentist appointment for a cleaning. So not looking forward to that.

Like I said, not a whole lot going on over here. I mean, we do stuff, but not much to really post about.
-BritneyMarie

Funny Things My Kids Have Said *June Edition*

Olivia: "I wanna play Hide N Seek."
Me: "Okay, go play with Emma."
*from the other room*
Emma and Olivia: "1-2-3-4-5! Here I come! *giggles*
Me: "Okay, that's just not going to work."


Every time someone gets killed on "1000 Ways To Die", Olivia tells me how messy the death is. Each one gets a different description.


Olivia keeps asking to watch "Messy". Turns out that is what she calls "1000 Ways To Die".


*In the car when bringing Olivia back to Chick-Fil-A to meet Emma*
Liv: "I wanna see Grammie."
Me: "Do you miss her?"
Liv: "Yeah"
Me: "Do you miss your sister?"
Liv: "Yeah, I miss Emma."
Me: "You going to give her a big hug when you see her?"
Liv: "Nooooo. A big kiss!"


Olivia: "I want a skateboard."
Me: "You want a skateboard for your birthday?"
Olivia: "Yes. I want a Spongebob skateboard."
Emma: "I want a Princess skateboard."


Emma just asked Ricky what color his pee is. *sigh*

Captain America

About to take the kids to school and then head to Zumba. I seem to keep gaining weight back. Not really sure why, but I need to figure it out before all the hard work I've put in is ruined.

Oh, and a bit of awesome...A few days ago I showed the kids the trailer to the new Captain America movie. And ever since then, all they can talk about is how they wanna go see Captain America. It's both awesome and annoying at the same time.

-Britney Marie

Down With The Sickness

Ugh. *cough* I swear, ever since Ricky came home with sickness given to him by a coworker's kids our house has been a revolving door of sickness. Now all four of us have coughs, runny noses, and scratchy throats. I seem to actually have it the worst of everyone which is unusual. What really sucks is that it is Spring Break. So the kids are home. I guess it's kinda good because they don't have to miss school because of being sick, but it sucks for me because all I want to do is go back to sleep and all I keep hearing is, "Mommy! Juice!"

I haven't been to the gym in like 3 weeks. Fortunately this sickness has kinda stifled my appetite so I've lost another 2lbs. I'm at 188.5 based on our home scale with clothes on. I was that before, but I stopped paying attention to what I was eating and got back to 190lbs (with clothes off) at home and 192 at the gym. Last few days all I've eaten for breakfast and lunch has been turkey bacon. It's been extremely yummy.

I've also been watching a lot of "That 70's Show". It is hilarious. Okay, gotta go lay down on the couch now, beginning to feel delirious.

Olivia vs The Cherry Tomato

After Stomach Flu

Not much new to report over here. All of us are getting over the stomach flu. Today was my first day back at Zumba and it was a lot of fun. I've officially lost 11 pounds since the beginning of January. I'm so excited.

A Day Filled With Zumba

Today I'm going to be taking the kids to ZumbAtomic for the first time. It's basically a Zumba dance class for kids. Ages are supposed to be 4-12, but the instructor said I could go ahead and bring the twins. I really hope they like it and do well. This first session is a free one to see how they do, and if they like it then it'll be on Monday's from 4pm-4:45pm.

Since ZumbAtomic ends at 4:45pm I am considering hitting the gym myself for the second time today at 5:30pm. I guess I'll wait and see how the kids are behaving before I go crazy and assume they'll be okay in the playroom. To be honest, the childcare at my gym leaves much to be desired. But it's all they have so it has to work.

Today I weighed in and I have gained one pound back. I'm really not worried about it since I lost 2 inches off my waist! The other day I went to Kohl's to get some more gym clothes and I was finally able to purchase Larges instead of X-Larges! It's not much but it means what I'm doing is working!

Time to take the kids to dance!

Better To Wait

Sunday night I was all prepared to write a blog post about how much I suck and how I'll be stuck at this 5lb mark forever. But I decided to wait and see exactly how bad I'd been in the last week. So, Monday, at the gym I stop by the dreaded scale. I was fully ready to accept responsibility for what I had eaten in the last week and how little I did around the house to add to my exercising.

I stepped on it, closed my eyes, and saw the number 193. I had actually lost two more pounds! A total of 7lbs might not seem like much in the grand scheme of things, but this has been the first time that I have been able to take more than 5lbs off with just eating right and exercising a couple times a week.

This makes me feel like I can reach 10lbs very soon. Which will put me at 190lbs which I haven't seen in a couple months. Sammi and I have been actively working out and eating right since the first of January, and to see 7lbs gone this month is just wonderful! I would've liked to have seen 10, but I can't complain about 7.

So, if I continue this trend of 7lbs a month, and I need to lose a total of 70lbs then by October I will be my goal weight of 130lbs. Throughout the summer months, I will be at my halfway point of 158lbs which is only 9lbs heaver than I was when I got pregnant with the twins...and I was happy with that weight at the time. I think that weight will deserve a new bathing suit. :-D

Down 2 Pounds, Up 1 Sickness

From Friday (01-21) to Monday (01-24) I lost those two pounds that I had gained in the week before. Not really sure how I did it considering while in Tallahassee on Saturday I ate at Chick-Fil-A and Stake 'n' Shake. However it happened I'm just glad it did.

I'm also not sure how or where I picked up this sickness but I did. My eyes are burning (not all the time, usually when I wake up) my nose is running and draining into the back of my throat which gives me a sore throat and I can't stop coughing. Throughout the day I get headaches and earaches if I sniffle too much. Ugh. This sucks. I've got so much house cleaning to do that I am so far behind on. After dropping the kiddos off in the mornings I've been coming home and just sleeping until 1:30pm.

Speaking of, it's about that time today, gotta go pick up the kiddos.

5 Steps Forward, 2 Steps Back

Today at the gym I discovered that I have gained 2lbs back. While I am not happy about this, I'm not that disappointed either. I'll be happy with 5 steps forward, 2 steps back if I can lose 5lbs again. :)

I know what did it too. While I have been trying to stay within my calorie limit it is sometimes hard to gauge portion sizes for certain foods. Plus this week I have been more hungry than usual. Not sure why that is but hopefully next week I'll be back to normal and not wanting to shove everything I see down my throat.

5lbs Gone...65lbs to Go

I've been bad. Two days ago I ate half a jar a lot of peanut butter and went way over on my calories for the day. And then yesterday I ate macaroni and cheese for lunch with a root beer and finished off the jar ate some more peanut butter for a snack. I was seriously dreading hitting the gym this morning. Turns out, I didn't need to. 'Cause in spite of all the cheating I've done the past two days, I still managed to lose another pound since Friday.

That makes me feel so awesome. Not that I'm going to take this as a sign that I can cheat on my diet all the time. But it is so great to know that if I do fall off the wagon for a day or to that it is not the end of the world. I think that is a big problem that a lot of people have when trying a diet. They think that if they do badly on one day, what's the point of continuing. And I'll admit, I feel that way sometimes too. But then I just remember how far I've come so far (5lbs might not seem a lot to some people but it is to me) and I don't want to have to lose these same 5lbs over again. I want to add to it.

Two Steps Forward, One Step Back

So, last night I gorged myself on some of the kiddos potty candy. M&M's to be exact. I was having a serious sweets craving and I figured those would be better than eating a whole bowl of ice cream, or worse, cinnamon rolls. *drools like Homer Simpson* Cinnamon rolls...*drools* *snaps back into reality*

With those tiny candies, came a caloric overage. I went over by 177 calories yesterday. I guess I should be mad at myself, but I'm actually not. I don't want this diet to be something that controls my life. If I wanna eat a pack of M&M's I'm going to allow myself to do that. What I'm not going to allow myself to do is eat more than one. I think that by giving in to my temptations sometimes it will let me feel like this is not a diet, but my choice. If that makes any sense at all.

Today I've been especially hungry. Not sure why. Maybe I'm just bored. I have all these crafting projects that I need to get done, but I've been lacking motivation to do them, plus I have all this housework that I've been procrastinating on. I need to sit down and make myself a list of things to do each day and only when I do a certain number of them can I sit down and check on my farm, and mafia, and cafe etc. (Damn you Facebook! And your games that suck me in! *pumps fist*)

I'm beginning to notice that one of the hardest things for me has been the drinking. I want so badly to drink a glass of tea or one (or six) of the two packs of root beer that Ricky brought me home the other day. But those are empty calories that I could be using to, y'know, eat. *sigh* I've actually done quite well in that department so far. I've reached for the tea pitcher and almost poured myself a glass, but grabbed the water at the last second. I need to get some more of those Propel Fitness waters. They taste like Kool-Aid but only have 10 calories per serving. And they break up the monotony of just drinking water constantly.

Tomorrow, Sammi and I will weigh-in at the gym after Zumba. I've almost done it here a couple times, but I'm a little scared to. Usually when I weigh myself I do it right before I hop in the shower in the morning. And I'm usually okay with the number that pops up. But when I get to the gym, I've got my clothes on and while I realize that just by adding clothes it will add a few pounds to the scale, it just always seems to be higher. Like one time I was 193 here at the house and I was 198 at the gym! My scale at home has never tipped over to 200, but the one at the gym did. I don't want to get my hopes up here and see a lower number just to be disappointed when I get there tomorrow. So, I'm going to try and hold out until tomorrow.

I really hope that the scale will be tipped in my favor tomorrow. Every time I've gone there the number just keeps creeping higher and higher no matter what I do. I've been trying really hard this time, and I just want that to be evident in the numbers.

Wish me luck tomorrow!

Another Year Gone By

Here we go again. I swear I don't know why it is so hard for me to keep up with this thing. I'm on the computer constantly, and I used to be so good at writing everything down.

While I don't normally do New Year's Resolutions, this year I have decided that I will have one. I've decided that it is time for me to get serious about losing this weight that has seem to have crept up on me.

When we moved here from Tallahassee I was 154lbs. Monday I weighed in at 200. Not acceptable. I thought that number would never be seen again. The first, and what I presumed would be the last time, was when I was pregnant with the twins. The day I had them I was 210lbs. I thought those days were behind me, oh how wrong I was.

So, this year I have decided that I'm not going to lean on doctors to help me with a pill for a few months, or sit back and wish the pounds away. It is time for me to do something about it. And so far I've done okay.

My new cell phone has an app for weight loss. It is called My Fitness Pal. It allows me to keep track of my caloric intake and exercise throughout the day so I feel more accountable. So far I've been doing okay. I just started that on Monday and I have had a few times where I chose candy when I should have just drank a glass of water, but I think that is okay. I don't want to go overboard with this. If I want a few pieces of candy then I am not going to deprive myself of them. If I do, then I am going to make myself miserable on this diet and not do well on it.

My friend, Sammi and I have started going to the gym as well. We actually started going around October/November (I think) of 2010. We joined The Wellness and Fitness Center and started taking Zumba classes. I love it so much! Unfortunately, around Christmas we missed classes for about three weeks. And I spent that time taking care of sick children and sitting on my butt all day (not eating bon-bons, but I may as well have been). We started back in class this week. We've been attending the Monday and Friday 8:30am-9:30am class.

Today has been a pretty good eating day. I had two scrambled eggs with cheese and five pieces of turkey bacon for breakfast. And for lunch I had four scrambled eggs with cheese. My calorie limit is 1200 and I'm still under it for dinner. That's the hardest part for me. I'm usually okay during the day, but at night when I'm sitting around with Ricky watching The Food Network, all I wanna do is snack. Hopefully all the protein I've eaten today will help, and if I feel the need for a snack I can make more turkey bacon. But I may give in and eat some popcorn...which is better then the candy and ice cream that I am currently craving.