Hello Margaret......it's me.......Happy Mother's Day....

I'm here I'm here and I know that I have a ton of updating to do and I am working diligently on getting homework done before the weekend so that I can dedicate a bit of time to posting some pictures to let you know how things are going in our little world.

I did want to give a quick high five to all the moms...you work tirelessly, love endlessly and unconditionally and give selflessly. Be sure to take a little time for yourself this weekend to appreciate what a great job you do in raising your family. Look at your children's faces and know that you have done your best. Congrats on doing such a great job raising the next generation to be loving, responsible adults.

For all you Dads out there don't forget about mom, she works hard everyday, and I promise you that in June she will not forget you. Times are tough and maybe a bouquet of flowers and brunch out is not in the books, but how about homemade breakfast in bed and the whole day to herself. Serve her her favorite food and then tell her that you and the kiddos will see her for dinner. You'll be amazed at the gratitude she have for just a little personal time to herself, and you'll get some good quality time with your kiddos. For those who are friends to a single mother, invite her over for dinner and tell her to pick a night/day that she would like some free time and offer to watch her kiddos. There is nothing more valuable the time to yourself, and one of the perks is... it's free. Moms can be better moms when they are relaxed, refreshed and rejuvenated. A little free time to not have to worry about changing Jimmie's diaper or brushing Susie's hair or cooking dinner for 5 people while writing a grocery list and keeping little Tommy from eating dog food is just what the doctor ordered.

Happy Mothers Day!!!

Oh and to my Mom....I think you're the Bee's Knees. :D Love you very much come and visit soon!!

SLACKER!!!

I know, I know I promised to be better about posting but with finishing up Boogie's room, getting loaded up in the big truck and heading down to Florida for pictures, egg hunts, mermaids, and the arrival of the Easter bunny we have been a bit busy.

Boogie's room is finished and has managed to stay clean for the two days that we have been home. With it organized and some of the stuff removed it feels so much bigger now and she seems so much happier in it. I will try to post some pictures of the finished project in the next couple of days and promise some Easter pictures over the weekend. How is that for being better. :D

I am going to try my best to post at least once every few days as I have started back to school and while the quarter seems challenging I do not believe that it will be as stressful as last quarter. The load this quarter is only Audit, Cost Accounting and International Political Issues, nothing to taxing at all (lots of sarcasm there in case you were wondering). So no pictures this time just an apology for keeping you on pins and needles to see what Charlotte's room turned out like. I PROMISE I will get something posted soon...so stay tuned.

Oh and I am also going to try to add a weekly feature as long as the classes don't get to crazy. I will call it "A Lil' Tickled" :D Ponder that one if you will.

My husband REALLY loves his daughter

Please notice that I didn't say that my husband really loves ME. He does I know he does however if I ever asked him to completely remodel a room for me (other then our kitchen, that was a must) he would just roll his eyes say he's not a carpenter and tell me to hire someone.

However..........when it comes to his little princess Boogie he would stop the world an give her the moon and the stars without even batting an eyelash. They are like two peas in a pod, it's cute. Anyway I decided that it was time for Boogie to have a real big girl room, a complete transformation, so we begged mom and dad to take her for a week and the project began. I have grand ideas, and this causes my husband all kinds of nightmares and heartache. So this is what we were starting with:

There is a definate need for some organization. I was very very sad to paint over the mural that my dad did for her before she was born, but I take heart in the fact that we left a bit of a surprise beneith the bead board. :D

So after a day of set back Mudman (husband) and I worked our butts off on Sunday and with the addition of a new fence that my lovely husband felt compelled to build on Sunday as well we made fairly good progress.

Now I never realized that painting took so much time and after two coats of primer, and two coats of paint not to mention 3 coats on the beadboard we had a finished project as far as the paint was concerned but folks that took 3 days. Now lets talk about this beadboard and things that I have learned about 60 year old houses. Our house was built in 1949 just outside of Atlanta, so over the years the walls seem to have settled a good bit and there is not one square wall anywhere in this room, nor are the walls straight which makes placing the beadboard very very interesting. It also makes my husband who is not a carpenter (so he keeps telling me) very very unhappy. However as of 10:30pm last night this is what we had, and I have to say that so far I am pretty proud of our accomplishment.

So this is what we are starting with this afternoon. There are only some touch up things to finish and then the decorating and reloading begins. When Boogie gets back from Florida next week she will have her very own underwater big girl room. I will post final pictures sometime later this week, and my dear hubby will be off the home improvement hook for at least 6 months. :D

Oh God I am one of THOSE parents

So as anyone that I have ever even remotely spent time with till tell you, I love to take pictures. If I could I might have a small camera with an amazing lens somehow embedded into my palm so that I would always have one when I needed it. Okay that might be a bit of an exaggeration but...you get the point. My daughter, god love her, is starting to follow in my foot steps as she is currently following me around asking me to smile and say cheese for her pretty pink princess camera. However more often then not she is the subject of my erstwhile shooting as my dear husband is pretty fast and I have a hard time catching him unaware. I will say that he is getting better and now that he has been bequeathed my previous camera. He's not quite as pictures shy, and every now and then I even show up in pictures. :D

Anyway this past weekend we spent a great day with Nah Nah, Bop and Grandma and well Nah Nah is also interested in that embed little camera, so while I didn't have mine she most certainly had hers...and ....uummmm....a chicken suit, or it might be a duck we couldn't decide. However it was so cute and cuddly and Boogie is so cute and cuddly and two things that are cute and cuddly make super cute and cuddly pictures right...and then throw in a cute and cuddly stuffed rabbit and it's all over folks but the picture taking.

So I am now that parent that dresses their little monster up in silly holiday costumes and forces them to pose for photos that will live on to eternity. I know that my evil deeds may one day cause hours of therapy when one of these cute pictures somehow makes it into a yearbook on a senior page,but just have a look at this cuteness.

Now you tell me, how could I resist? :D

Boogie I am sorry in advance and I promise to help pay for that therapist if you ever need one. Matter of fact I just remembered that you have three Converse Aunties that are therapists so since you are well covered, I think that I might be able to find a little rabbit costume too. Hhhhmmmm......

Uuummmmm I'm back

So I have found that working a full time job, being married and having a two year old while going to school full time is a bit of a challenge. I'm in week 10 of a quarter that has included Governmental and Non-Profit Accounting, Advanced Federal Taxation and Descriptive Statistics, and it is only by the grace of God that I have made it. There was a minor melt down when on top of regular class work two 10 page papers were due. However my loving husband sensing the the rope was rapidly coming unraveled loaded up the 2 year old and headed out for the lake alone with a two year old in a small boat all day long. He might be a saint but don't tell him.

So now that finals are right around the corner I am giddy about all the free time that I will have for two whole weeks!! Except that I have them planned to the hilt and there is still that whole job thing. :D However the end is in sight for this quarter and only two more to go then I will be well on my way to a CPA. This is actually a little laughable as I am not the math type but hey it works and I can still do the artsy stuff so why not.

Anyway I will try to be a bit better about posting you know like more then once every nine months and I'll get some pictures up too.

Spring is coming, enjoy the day!!

Blogging is a full contact sport

Well not really but I have figured out that blogging takes practice. The more your do it the better you get and right now I am not so good. Sooooooo blogging resolution to get on here and type more often. I can fit it into my schedule, somewhere. :D

Lots of developments in life at the moment, and not enough time to ponder them all. Soooo to go ahead and break my resolution I will have to blog about it later. I'll give you an outline though.
I. Husband lost job so we have gone from 120,000 a year to 41500 for the time being, things are tight at the moment.
II. Performance week for me which means I get up at 5:30am go to work and get home at 11pm.
III. Homework is stacking up from school because of performance week, and midterms are next week
IV. Trying to find time to get ready for Berlin in 10 days. This means more then packing as I will be out of the country and leaving my husband with Charlotte. :D

Soooo when I find a little time I will go into more detail. In the mean time use your imaginations to think what daddy and 18 month old Charlotte will be up to while mommy is out of the country for 7 days. I may be horrified.

My Perfect Spring Break

Well as of this weekend I finally feel like an adult. What brought on this realization that my teenage and college days are behind me? I finally got a weekend all to myself (a rare feet that more husbands should allow their wives to experience) and what did I do? Did I party it up with all my gorgeous amazing single friends at a local night club? Nope. Did I hang out with friends at a comfy local bar? Nope. Did I use my freedom of time to have an all night girls blow out with fondue and movies. Close but nope. I chose to spend my entire 48 hours of solitude and unrestricted free time....cleaning the house. *Choirs of angels singing Allelujah from the heavens*

I have found myself in the ranks of mothers that work full time and take care of their kids and husbands when they get home, and by 9pm, once everyone is taken care of are too tired to worry about the dishes in the sink or the clothes in the hamper, or that their loving oblivious husband has tracked half the back yard in on his boots. With three dogs (the puppy is still with us) two fluffy cats, a toddler going at full speed and a husband that works construction the house usually resembles the aftermath of at least a category 2 hurricane. Soooooo with great glee and expectation I found myself giddy as a 16 year old getting their first car, this past Friday. With unabashed joy and loving I fought Atlanta traffic (even allowing a couple of other commuters to join in my breavity by allowing them to merge in front of me without tailgating or blowing my horn) to go home to an almost empty(2 dogs, 2 cats) house.

It was great, Jon and Charlotte were happily on their way to spend the weekend at the farm in Vidalia, and I was all alone.... I think that I even heard crickets. *Bliss* I indulged in not having to cook dinner and gorged my self on Guacamole and chips. *Joy* I slept till 9:30 (oh the lord be praised) on Saturday morning, and then, Ha ha ha, read in the recliner with no interruption till noon. *Nirvana* Then the cleaning began. Full of child like energy and the need to see things clean and sparkling for the first time since October 2006, I attacked with the speed of a lioness on the hunt. It still took 4 hours to completely clean the bedroom, but it was done and I checked it off my list. This went on for what seemed like days never faltering honed into a cleaning machine. The momentum never let up although there was a slight pause to go shopping and have Chinese take out with my fabulous friend the belly dancing dentist. :D

By the time Jon and Charlotte rolled back up into the yard tractor in tow the house sparkled with nothing less the ethereal purity, smelling of sunshine and spring breezes. Ahhhhhh. It was my perfect weekend a weekend of nothing that had to be done and everything that I wanted to get done. My perfect Spring Break!