not so lucky

The sick bug has hit us all. All of the cleaning and sanitizing just to do it all over again today. Chad came home Monday after work saying that he didn't feel so well. About an hour later, he was running to the bathroom. I asked mom to keep Gabe one more night just to keep him away, but she called at about 10pm saying that he had just gotten sick. I felt so bad that I wasn't there to comfort him. She brought him home a little before 6am on Tuesday, and he got sick as soon as he walked into the door. He finally laid down and rested all day. Then it hit me. Wow, I was out all day yesterday, and I am still not feeling 100% today. Chad just left to go back to work, and I am hoping the boys keep bouncing back the way they have.



I am bummed that I think we are going to have to miss out on any New Year's Eve festivities with family tonight, but I haven't even been 24 hours symptom free yet. It looks like we will be spending it at home with the BRAT diet.

A sick bug

A nasty tummy bug has hit Graedon, and we have been busy washing towels and sanitizing as well as praying that this thing doesn't get to all of us. So far we have been lucky, but now it is just a wait and see game. Luckily, he was only bad for about 8 hours, and he is now his snack-eating, happy little guy self. Gabe is at my mom's, and he enjoyed a "Bolt" movie date with her yesterday. Chad is back to work, and Graedon and I are catching some more "Little Einstein" shows today. I will also be trying to finish up some non-sick laundry and getting the house back in order. Sorry I haven't been able to get my Christmas posts up yet, but it is on my to-do list for this week. Have a great day!

mErRy ChRiStMaS eVe

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVE, and yes I was yelling that! I know I have been absent from the blogging world for a few days, but I have been caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season; shopping, get-togethers with friends and family, wrapping, and just spending some time with the family. We started last Sunday by having Christmas with my dad, and he got us as a family and Wii! The boys love it, especially Gabe. We just played a few rounds of tennis. I can't wait to get Mario Kart.

We stayed the night last night at my in-laws, and we all opened presents together this morning. There are 4 grandsons-Bryce (age 8), Gabe (age 5), Isaiah (age 4), and Graedon (age 2). It was a very energized group of little boys, but it was so much fun. I have to make a mental note to get a picture of all of them with their Mamaw and Papaw tomorrow while we are there for Christmas dinner.

We are packing up now to head to my mom's to have Christmas with my mom, Aunt Darla, and my brother and his family. It is so great to be close with family and to get this time to spend it with them. Merry Christmas everyone, and I promise to be back with a great picture post soon!

SnOw DaY!!

Today is our first snow day, or maybe it should really be called an ice day today. No school for Gabe, and I think we are just going to settle in and stay in our jammies and drink hot cocoa. I will probably do some wifely and motherly things like laundry and tidying up around the house as well. Bah humbug to that!

I have so much left to do to prepare for the Christmas holiday. I am still not done with my shopping, and it is getting harder to find the time to get it done. And then there is all the wrapping that is goin to consume my nights in the next few days. Oh well, that is part of the season and I love it!

Here's wishing everyone that has a snow day today, "Happy Snow Day!"

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's 47th birthday! I have been blessed with a great relationship with my mom. We are very close, and she is probably the only person besides my hubby that I talk to or want to talk to on a daily basis. I can count on her for anything, and I know she will always be there for me. It is so hard sometimes to put into words what she means to me. I just know that I cannot imagine a day without her in it. I love you mom!

Say Cheese

This is the best face ever, chocolate dirtied and all. This is Graedon's "cheese" face, and I think he uses it in every photo I have of him. Well, maybe not every photo, but pretty darn close. He is all personality, and I love it. His daddy would say that he gets his "cheese" face honestly from his mommy. ;-)

Side Note: We made another Starbuck's hot chocolate run this evening after dinner. It just makes me happy to see them drinking some warm goodness from a red cup with a lid. They look like little men.

I LURVE my scrappy friends

Just a quick note to say "I love you girls!" I had a great night with a group of my really good friends who came over tonight for our Christmas Scrap. They are an awesome bunch of gals, and I am so very thankful to have them in my life. Thank you for your friendship!! Love you all!

OuR FiRsT GiNgErBrEaD HoUsE

Sorry the pics are out of order, but here is our unveiling of our first gingerbread house ever! They had so much fun making the house and of course eating all of the candy. Below is Gabe with the finished product. I would have to say he spent the most time decorating it, Graedon spent the most time eating the candy, and Taylor was done after the first 10 minutes.

They were so excited to start decorating the house. It was the perfect project for them to work on to keep them entertained while mom and I were busy making candies.

Christmas Candy

I will first start off by saying that I know I missed posting yesterday. I have a good excuse. It was Chad's work Christmas party, and we had my mom watch the boys, and Chad and I enjoyed a quiet evening at home together. It was nice. Now, I will let you know that I will post twice today to make up for it! :-)

I am getting ready to head to my mom's to participate in a Christmas tradition that we have had for awhile now. We are making Christmas candies and cookies today. I am even going to start a new tradition as well. I am going to have the boys make a gingerbread house. I am really excited, and I cannot wait to take my first bite of the glorious peanut butter fudge that we make. In the words of Rachael Ray, "Yum-O!" I will post pics of our freshly made goodies later on tonight, and hopefully that will include a picture of a completed gingerbread house!

Current Faves

I thought I would post a bit about what my boys' current obsessions are at the moment. It is so easy to forget these type of things, so it is nice to have them written down, even if it is in a cyber world.

gRaEdon~currently 2 years and 3 months old

*gummi snacks (Fruit Roll-ups, Gushers, etc)

*pizza and marianara sauce

*He loves Little Einsteins. He will sing the theme song at the top of his lungs.

*He is a fan of "night night stars."

*He likes going to Grandma's house.

*He has picked up saying, "Hi, how are you?"

*He is very polite.

*He is a lover of Mickey Mouse and most things Disney.

GaBe~currently 5 years and almost 4 months old

*crafts-cutting paper, using tape, making things with paper, if it involves paper, he loves it

*playing games especially BINGO

*He has an obsession with wanting to make things out of boxes.

*His daddy is his BFF. I don't think he can get enough daddy time.

*He has started to play video games a little more, and he really likes it if daddy is playing with him.

*He really enjoys school especially BINGO day and sharing day.

*He is an Indianapolis Colts fan. He will even watch the games.

Sorry, I fell asleep

Last night I had every intention of posting, but I fell asleep on the couch next to my laptop, and I woke up at 4:30am to finally climb into bed. Needless to say I didn't make my daily or nightly post.

We go to my mom's every Sunday for "Sunday Dinner." We started doing that when my grandma was living with my mom because she was sick with pancreatic cancer. That was over 5 years ago, and the tradition has stuck, even after she passed away. I love that we have continued this, and it is great to catch up with everyone every week. I love that we are a close family.

My mom kept the boys Saturday night, and when we arrived at my mom's, I was greeted immediately by a big hug from Graedon. It was such a warm welcome. I just don't seem to get those too often because I am the one always with them. It is nice for when they miss me. Daddy usually gets that attention, and it was great to be the one that was the center of Graedon's world for that moment. Thanks littl guy!

I need ideas

The woe of Christmas shopping. I am at a lost as to what to get everyone on my Christmas list. I love always getting a unique or fun gift that seems to really fit the person that I am buying for, and it is just kind of hard this year. I don't want to seem that I am complaining, because that is not the case. I feel very lucky the my family and myself included are doing well during these strained economic times that we don't want for anything. It is just hard to be creative this year or to just find that present that you say, "So and so will really like that." It is even like that for my oldest son Gabe. Part of the problem is that he doesn't have that one special present that he wants Santa to bring him. He likes all kinds of stuff, but he just doesn't have that one present that he talks about all the time that he wants.

I really love to go Christmas shopping, but it is hard to do that when you don't have a clear direction as to what you want to get for anyone. Does anyone have any fun and unique ideas that you would like to share! I would love to hear them!

One a side note.~ The boys had a fun day with daddy today. They rode in his truck out to their Mamaw and Papaw's house. They love spending time with their daddy. Gabe says daddy is pretty cool, but it made me feel pretty good that they wanted to call me not even 5 minutes after they left. I guess I am missed when I am not with them. :-)

Nothing at all

Today we did nothing at all. We didn't even leave the house.
It was just a quiet day at home. I finished getting the decorations out and about the house. I even did a little outside decorating on our front porch. It was just a nice day to lounge around and just catch up on enjoying being home. Sometimes we need these type of days to recoup and reenergize, especially after a busy week.

One highlight of the day included day 5 of our advent calendar. Today was a "do something" day. It actually had more to do with tonight. It was a sleepover night. A sleepover night in our house consists airing up the air mattress and all of us sleeping on it downstairs. Gabe actually calls it camping out, but the boys love it, and it is nice for us all to sleep in the same room. It's a little hard to get the boys to sleep at a decent hour. Actually it is pretty impossible, but it is the thought that we are making memories for the boys that counts. We've left the Christmas tree lights on and we are going to sleep by the light of the tree tonight. I am really liking this advent calendar thing. It makes me follow through with fun activities for the boys and me too!

A pick me up

Today was one of those days that made me want to get away and escape. No, it wasn't the kids. They were actually pretty awesome today. It was my dog. We have a 130+lb boxer who has separation anxiety issues. So, when I leave to take Gabe to preschool, I lock him in the basement for 3 hours until I return home. I know he chews on the door and he barks while we are gone, but he has found a new past time. He can open the door now. So, we come home today from preschool and guess who greets us at the front door? None other than Tax the escape artist. Now, it wouldn't have been that big of a deal. Who really cares that he eats the kids' leftovers from breakfast or lunch or that he gets on the furniture. I would actually say that I do, except today he reached a new level. I continue to open the front door, the kids run in, I am struggling to get my keys out of the door, and then I see it. I see it on the floor......I see our fully decorated and lighted Christmas tree completely on its side with ornaments strewn all over! Our dog knocked over our Christmas tree because he was trying to look out the window that it was in front of!

Oh, it wasn't a good thing to come home to. Poor Gabe was so upset. Here he is, a 5 year old coming home to find his Christmas tree that he helped decorate all over the floor. I was upset, but after I threw the dog outside, I inspected it. Luckily, my thoughts of having to take $200 to buy a new tree turned into relief that we just needed a new base. So, I packed the boys back up and headed out to Menards. Nope, no tree base. They told me to try Big Lots. Nope, no tree base. I talk to the husband. He goes to Lowes....you guessed it, no tree base. Finally, he tries Wal-Mart. I think I heard the angels sing when he called and said that they had tree bases! Only $7.50 fixed our tree, well at least allowed it to stand up again. It looks out of whack with crunched up branches and ornaments out of place, but at least it is standing.

After all of the excitement, I was trying to relax when Gabe asked me what was wrong. I just told him that I was having a bad day. Next thing I knew, he brought me the above picture to cheer me up. It instantly made my day so much better! How can you be in a bad mood when you have the love of a 5 year old who draws you pictures of Santa and 2 reindeer flying over our house? I am so very lucky!

Starbucks anyone?

I have an advent calendar going of little boxes with numbers on them, and everyday the boys get to open the box to either find a candy treat or some sort of paper with a fun surprise for them to do or recieve. Today was to venture out and get a hot chocolate together and sit inside and enjoy it. Then later we were all to watch Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer on tv tonight. I ended up taking them to Starbucks because I wanted to enjoy a decaf (I'm trying to be good) peppermint mocha, and they had kid's size hot chocolates. They loved it, and I really enjoyed just hanging out with them. They were very well behaved.

I like having traditions. I like having things I am trying to instill in my boys that they will remember when they are older. I want them to have warm fuzzies one day when they think remember their childhood times. Tonight we read another story from an advent book that I started reading to them last year. Gabe even remembered a story last year about the monster and the cookies. Sure enough, I looked in the table of contents, and there it was. A story about a monster and cookies. I like that he is remembering, and I like that we are starting something-we are starting traditions. Gosh, I love being a mom.

December One

The holiday season is officially upon us. I guess it has been upon us for a little bit, but there is just something about the first day of December marking the start of the Christmas hustle and bustle. It was even more special today when I awoke to it snowing outside. It really did feel like Christmas outside and inside. We've been busy decorating our Christmas tree and getting our decorations out around the house. I still have 2 totes to go through and the outside to finish up, but it truly is beginning to look a lot like Christmas here at the Killion house.

I hope everyone truly had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend. Ours was not what we had expected. Chad and were actually sick, but I was able to make it to my family's dinner an hour late. Chad stayed at home on the couch. I felt really bad for him. He had been talking about Thanksgiving and what he was going to eat for weeks, and then he ends up sick and misses the meal! I have bought a turkey breast, and I will make a small Thanksgiving dinner here for us this week. I know it won't make up for what he missed, but it is at least something.

We are now on the countdown until the man in the big red coat arrives, and I am so looking forward to new traditions and memories to start with the boys. We have holiday parties, birthdays, Christmas programs, great food and awesome family time to look forward to. I can't wait to make hot chocolate, watch Christmas shows with the boys and drive around to look at Christmas lights together. This is such a magical time of the year, and I hope it just slows down a bit for me to savor every moment!

emotional mommy day

So yesterday, Gabe woke up kind of grouchy, and I just assumed that he was still tired because we caught the little boog still up at 11:30pm watching Lady and the Tramp in his room when he should've been sleeping. I mean, who doesn't love Lady and the Tramp, but not at 11:30, and not when you're a child needs 10-12 hours of sleep. So, he's grouchy and kind of laying around all morning. He's kind of hateful when he talks to me. He doesn't like the bacon I fixed, and he's telling me that it hurts his belly. So, it doesn't put me in the best of moods with him.
Well, then chaos consumes our household. Gabe is now at the kitchen table working on his homework for school, and he's whining about it. Chad's brother stops by, so that makes our 120lb boxer dog go crazy, and that sets Graedon off to be loud. It is so loud and crazy at that moment, and I feel Gabe's head, and he is burning up. My foul mood with my son instantly turns to worry mommy mode. Well, I make the chaos worse by telling Gabe that I think he has a fever and that he probably wouldn't be going to school. Oh my goodness, the wrath of a 5 year old awaiting Bingo day at school comes rearing his head out of my son. He is beside himself, and he doesn't want to miss Bingo day and the treasure chest of toys. I get the thermometer, and as soon as I can get it in his mouth, it immediately registers 102. My boys aren't fever kids. I kind of freak, and call my friend who is a nurse practitioner. She says she will see him. I start piecing his symptoms together: fever, upset stomach, he's achy because he is saying his knee and wrist hurts, he didn't eat his breakfast, and that is his fave meal of the day. My grouch 5 year old is a sick guy.
I take him to his appt. with my friend, and she rules out his appendix. I didn't even think of that! So, I am thinking she is going to tell me it's just a stomach bug, and give me some medicine prescription, and we will be on our way. Oh no, she says she wants an X-ray. An X-ray!! I was kind of dumbfounded for minute. Well she continues to explain to me that she thinks he is constipated and that is what is causing his belly to hurt. She wants the X-ray to see how full he is. Okay, I can do that, but still, my little guy has to go to a hospital for his first ever X-ray. (Is it bad that at one point I was a little bummed that I didn't have my camera to take his pic?) Anyway, she continues to tell me that his age is the age that kids can learn to hold it, and then they realize that when they need to go it will hurt, and will hold it longer to the point that they can't go. She says that kids are sometimes sensitive with the whole potty training stage, and I tell her that we had started having him wipe himself, and that he didn't like it. She says she bets that is what started this. I felt awful.
So, we head over to the hospital, and we fill out some paper work and head over the radiology. He even has an admittance band for the hospital.

They take him back and tell me that I can wait where I was. I am assuming that I couldn't go in the room because I had Graedon with me, but I felt awful that he had to go in without me. My Gabe was such a brave guy. They came out and said he was an excellent patient and that he laid very still for them. We were on our way home to await a phone call for his results. It was waiting on my machine by the time I got home. He was full all the way to his lungs! So, we had a prescription for an enema and some powder that we mix in his drinks. Let me just say that I am so thankful that my mom was here to check on all of us, and to be my support and instructor with the enema. Gabe was a trooper. He did awesome. It did what it was supposed to do, but he had to throw up as well. Immediately after, he said his belly felt a lot better. Poor guy.

A few phone calls later of people checking on him, a crying emotional release for me, and another round of ibuprofen for his fever, I headed out for this:

We played until time for bed. Now, all I need is a treasure chest of toys for him to choose from for when he wins.

I laughed out loud.

"You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you Hear what I'm saying!?! We had to wait ALL WEEK for cartoons, you little dirt-bags!"

Thank you Loni for posting this and making me laugh for the day. I needed it.

I'm tired

It has been one of those days (acutally the past 3 days), where all I want to do is curl up in some comfy clothes, a big blanket and just sleep with the TV on. I am chilled and tired, and I just can't seem to get enough sleep. I know I am a night owl, and I have a tendency of staying up too late, but my goodness, I feel rather exhausted. I hope I am not trying to get sick, and that my late nights are just catching up to me.

In other news, Chad and I have begun looking at house plans and land to possibly start the process of building a home. We're really excited and just kind of stunned that it is a reality that we could build our own home. It definitely is just in the "thought process" stages as of now, but hopefully it will start happening sooner rather than later.

I've also been busy getting some fun Christmas projects ready for me and the boys to do together in the next week. Gabe is really excited. He loves crafts, especially anything with painting or taping. Hopefully Graedon will cooperate well. He's getting better at having more patience and actually trying to do what you want him to. We'll see how it goes.

Have a happy week everyone! Hopefully I will get my energy back soon.

Our Top Ten-Feeling Scrappy Challenge

Over on the Feeling Scrappy blog, there was a great contest to complete a layout about a person you are grateful for or love. You were to list 10 reasons why you feel the way you do. I decided to construct my layout about Chad (my husband) and my relationship. Check it out below.

Halloween Stuff

So, I have neglected to post about some of our Halloween activities. Things are always a little crazy around Halloween because my birthday falls on the 29th, and we always take time to all get together with my family. This year was a bit different because I had to take Graedon to the doctor twice the week of Halloween. Just a bit busier than usual. All-in-all, we had a great Halloween.


We usually get together the Sunday before Halloween and do our annual family pumpkin carving. This is one of my favorite things to do. It's just fun and messy, and they always turn out so good!

Gabe trick-or-treated as a vampire with a purple face. He says it's like the vampire from Scooby Doo. My niece Taylor went as Miley Cyrus, not Hannah Montana. And here is Chad sporting a sweet stash.

We also trunk-or-treated with our church's kids club, and Gabe went as Darth Vader and Graedon would only wear his kitty cat ears. I had a few Halloween themed shirts for him, so he wore his glow-in-the-dark skeleton one that night. He actually fell asleep on Halloween night so he didn't get to trick-or-treat that night. He loved it though!

Here is Gabe as Darth Vader again for his school parade. It was kind of fun that he had 2 costumes. He only had the Darth Vader one because it was a one piece, and I got it so that he could have black pants for his vampire shirt and cape to go over. He liked Darth Vader so much, that he wanted to wear it for his school Halloween party and parade. I was happy that I didn't have to paint his face purple for the school costume, so it worked out great that I had bought Darth Vader.

Here is his class. They have some great costumes, and it is just fun to see them all dressed up.

I will also add that we have so much candy that it is ridiculous. I cannot believe how much they got. Does anyone need any?

History has been made.

I was moved to tears last night while watching President-Elect Obama make his speech. We have come so far. Our country needs change, and I truly feel this man is that change we need. I do not understand why people feel that our country is worse off now that he is our leader. I do not understand why people are afraid. You have to have faith; faith in our country, faith in us as a united people, and faith that God has a plan. I do not know how Obama will be as a President, but I do have faith that he is a good and Godly man, and that God is in charge.

I am no expert on politics, and I will never claim to be. I am just one small voice, but I am hopeful and encouraged by Mr. Obama, and I feel that he is hearing the small voices. Please, no matter your political views, view him as a man that loves our country and as a man who is fighting to do good here in America. Educate yourselves in his plans and policies, and support our leader!

You can find a link below to his speech last night in Chicago. Please listen.

http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/stateupdates/gGx3Kc

Yes We Can!

No matter your political views, it all comes down to being a united people. I am so proud to be an American at this very moment, that we can overcome our history's past and make a play for our future. There will be change. We can have change. We have made great strides as a country this evening, and I am looking forward to the next 4 years. I have hope! I am inspired, and I am encouraged. Thank you to all who voted, and please continue to do so! Stand tall and be proud that we are the greatest country in this world. We can continue to be the great country that we are! Yes we can!

Colts vs. Patriots

Chad and I will be seeing this team in action today at Lucas Oil Stadium at 8:15pm! Are you ready for some football?!?!?! We are so pumped!

Randomness

The Rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you Jayne.

2. Post the rules on your blog (this is what you are now reading).

3. List 6 random things about yourself.

4. Tag 6 people at the end of your post.

5. Let each person know they have been tagged and leave a comment on their blog.

6. Let the tagger know when your entry is up!

Here are six random things about me:

1.) I love taking baths over showers. My husband thinks that is weird and even a bit gross because he says you sit in dirty water. I can't help it, I must like sitting in dirty water.

2.) I passed out in a restroom at the Beef House just North of here. I was there with a student council seminar my senior year of high school. I was heading to the bathroom when I hiccuped, and it really hurt. I walked into the bathroom with my friend Libby, and I began having tunnel vision. I thought I said my friend's name, but I think it came out as a mumble. Next thing I know, I wake up on the bathroom floor with a horrible headache, and I didn't know where I was. There was another girl leaning over me and she told me not to move because I was bleeding. I busted my head open on a paper towel dispenser. Well, the storry gets kind of funny. You see, the Beef House has awesome rolls! I mean, probably the best rolls I have ever had. Libby and I had just got done stuffing rolls into our coat pockets. An ambulance was called, and they took me out on a stretcher and put me in the ambulance. My coat was brought to me as well, and it smelled of Beef House rolls. The paramedics knew they were in my coat pockets and they just laughed at me.
After a bunch of tests, they found out that I have a heart condition. I have to take medication to control it, but essentially, my heart will be so fast that it can cause me to pass out. Before anyone worries, I am doing good, but it has been a tough 10 years to really come to terms that I have to take heart medication the rest of my life. It's also hard to be the youngest patient at my cardiologist's office when I go.

3.) I have to wear tight socks. I cannot stand loose socks, like when they start to hang off at your toes and you walk around with a "sock tongue." I hate that. The lines have to stay on top of my feet and they have to be tight fitting.

4.) I have an obsession with office supplies. I do not allow myself to go to stores like Office Max or Staples. I can't take it. I have to have new pens, paper, a planner, some kind of supply. Pens are usually my downfall. I even have a hard time in Wal-Mart. I guess scrapbooking has taken the place of that obsession at the moment, because I always seem to purchase a new scrappy embellishment when I am out.

5.) I was law school bound after my undergrad, but I was 6 months pregnant with my oldest son Gabe. I knew after I graduated that I would take time off to raise my family. I am very blessed that Chad's job supports us so that I can stay home with the boys. I still want to go back and either attend law school and enter into adoption law, or get my masters and pursue being a professor of legal studies.

6.) I have a weakness for chips and dip. I don't buy chips because I can literally sit and eat a whole bag in 2 days if they are in the house. It isn't as bad as it used to be since I have done WW and tried to eat better, but I get excited when there are chips and dip out to consume.

I don't think I have anyone to tag. :-) I think everyone that I would tag has already been tagged.

29 on 29

Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday to me, Happy Birthday dear meeeeeee, Happy Birthday to me! No seriously, today is my birthday, and I love my birthday! I've grown up always knowing that my birthday was a special day to celebrate me, and I love that, and I want to have my boys know that their birthdays are special days as well.
Normally, I will get together with my mom, and we usually travel to somewhere for some shopping and a good lunch. Well, Graedon had a different plan. I took him to the doctor yesterday because he woke up with a fever and telling me that his ears hurt. So, I took him in, and the doctor made me feel like I didn't know what I was talking about. He looked in his ears, and then looked at me and said, "His ears are fine and to just treat the fever with tylenol." He also said to not let the fever last longer than 5 days. I left there with a sick feeling in my stomach because I knew that he had an ear infection. My boys don't get fevers for no reason. So, all night he ran fever, and was so sad and lifeless. I couldn't get it to break. So, neither one of us got any sleep. So, I got up this morning, and I called my friend that is a nurse practitioner. She said she could see him today, and you know what, he has an ear infection. My poor
Graedon. He was sick, and I knew it, but the pediatrician just blew me off. I want to call and let them know about it, but I am just not sure what to say. Got any ideas?

Anyway, my birthday started off a little rough, but I am a mommy first, but by lunchtime, I was out at the Olive Garden with my mom and the boys. We did a little shopping, and then made it to my birthday dinner at Tokyo Japanese steakhouse. It was delish! It was a great ending to my golden birthday. Thank you to my awesome family that celebrated with me today! I love you all, and I wouldn't want to celebrate any other way. Below are a few pics at the steakhouse. One more year until the big 3-0!

Just have faith.

Hope is the anticipation that the outcome will be good.

Worry is the anticipation that the outcome will be bad.

Faith is the anticipation that whatever the outcome, it will be for our good.

The cold nights are upon us.

It is getting a wee bit chilly around here lately. Gabe was hanging out on the floor, and he looked at me and said, "Mom, I'm cold, get me a blanket." Well, I proceeded to tell him to get his own blanket :-), and then I asked him if he wanted to build a fire with me. He was so excited. He's such a good helper when it is something that he wants to do. So, we built the fire together, and just enjoyed the warmth and glow from it all evening. We had a nice warm evening at home, and I am looking forward to the chilly nights and warm fires later this week.

I'm a Winner!

Thank you Simple Scrapbooks. I had entered into a drawing for a mini-album giveaway they were hosting, and I was picked! My prizes came today! Now, I need to decide what to use them for!

52nd Annual Covered Bridge Festival

Sorry I have been absent from blogging this last week, but I am happy to say that I have been busy. I've been busy getting my shop on at the Covered Bridge Festival. It is an annual festival in it's 52nd year. Parke County, IN hosts some awesome historic Covered Bridges, and the festival centers around these bridges in a few different cities/towns. Some of my faves are the Bridgeton Covered Bridge and the Mansfield Covered Bridge. The pictures below are from one of the 3 Covered Bridges located in Billie Creek Village. My mom and I took Gabe and Graedon there on Monday, and we are looking forward to attending Mansfield on Thursday. I am hoping to get some great shot of the bridge by the creek and maybe some of the mill.

The Covered Bridge Festival is 10 days of awesome food, crafts and vendors ,and too many yard sales along the highways to even count. It is a way to see God's beauty in the changing leaves. You don't know what kind of weather to expect; either cool and sunny, hot and humid, or cold and rainy. It's always unpredictable, but it is worth it. It is the start of the fall season here in Indiana! I look forward to it every year, and every year I go at least 3 or 4 days. Sometimes I can even get Chad to go. I'll let you know if I succeed this year.

The NEW Feeling Scrappy

Feeling Scrappy has just launched a new "challenge" blog. They will be posting all kinds of things to inspire you. There will be challenges, free teaching days, scrapper highlights, cooking tid-bits, a bit of weekend fun for you every week, and there will also be prizes. In fact, they are giving away a Tim Holtz prize package to a lucky person who enters the contest by leaving a comment on the new site. So, head over and check them out!

7 Years Together

Chad and celebrated our 7th wedding anniversary with a night of pizza and bowling with the boys. Let's just say that it was a night of a screaming 2 year old who wanted to bowl before eating, and then a crying 5 year old who wanted quarters to play video games before we left. Chad looked at my during one of the many meltdowns and said, "It was your idea to bring them." Oh well. Chad and I actually went out together to Tokyo Japanese Steakhouse on Saturday when we had a baby sitter, so we did get to celebrated a bit by ourselves.

It doesn't matter how we spent our anniversary, it just matters that we are still making this committment to each other a great one. We have fun with one another, and I think most of all we are best friends. At the end of the day, I want to share my good, bad and the ugly with Chad. I've been blessed with this wonderful man, and I look forward to our many more years!

Our wedding day, October 6, 2001. What an awesome day it was!
Ocotber 6, 2008. Nice bunny ears he's giving me, and you can see a transformer peeking its way in as well. 7 years and 2 little boys later, and we're still smiling. :-) Love you Chad!

Fun mail and decorations

I came home from running some errands today, which included getting the boys pictures taken, and this was in my mailbox. My 10 year high school reunion is this November. I cannot believe it has been 10 years. I hate to admit it, but I can remember high school so much better than college. I guess I was a geeky high schooler, because I loved my high school years, and I miss it quite often. I miss the friendships and seeing everyone on a regular basis. I had a great friends, and I loved the activities that I was involved in. I am really looking forward to the reunion, so yes, I am a geeky high school lover. Please, let me know that I am not alone in my high school fondness. :-)

While I was out today, I found this cute little welcome sign for only $5. I love it. I am in the process of getting all things Halloween out from storage this weekend. Let's just say that I have just as much Halloween decorations as I do Christmas. Halloween may just be my fave holiday, and it doesn't hurt that my birthday is on the 29th of this glorious month. I'll post some pics of my favorite Halloween decorations after I get them all out. Stay tuned...

A work in progress, Happy October!

So, we undertook remodeling our kitchen this weekend, and things aren't quite done. Our new stove arrived just tonight, so I was holding off on taking some after pics for that. Also, the cabinets aren't painted yet, but it is still a work in progress. Thank you to my brother, Jesse, and my mom for helping out all weekend. My brother was a life savior with demolition of the kitchen and all of the plumbing. Chad did all of the electrical and moving of outlets, etc. My mom and I had the main task of laying the new laminate hardwood flooring. It was a long weekend, but I am loving the results so far. So, here are some pics.

This is the kitchen before we started tearing it out.

Here is the old stove, and we took down the hood and a cabinet that was hanging above the stove.
Here is a pic of what was behind the sink base cabinet. We had to build in a whole new wall there. And you will notice the dishwasher in the bottom left of the photo. We moved that as well. Oh, and half of the floor has been pulled up.
Now, here are some after shots. You can see our new microwave hood and stove to match. Also, you can see that we moved the dishwasher. Sorry that the cabinet doors are missing.
The new sink bas cabinet, as well as new sink and faucet. And I love our new countertops. I hate that I haven't had a chance to paint the cabinets because they seem to blend in with the color of the countertops. Also, don't you just love the new floor?!?!
I will post more completed pictures once I get the cabinets painted.
Also, I wante to say Happy October everyone! Can you believe it is already October 1st? October is my favorite month, and I am very excited for it this year. Here are a few things I have to look forward to:

*My 7th wedding anniversary on October 6th!
*The Covered Bridge Festival!!
*Pumpkin patch visits and pumpkin carving with my family.
*Our 2nd annual Halloween Party on the 24th!
*My golden birthday~I will be 29 on the 29th!
*Of course Halloween! Gabe wants to be a vampire and I think Graedon may be Scooby Doo.

What are your fave October plans?

Paper Popsicles

Hey everyone, you should head over to Paper Popsicles and check out their sale. Take an additional 40% off clearance items! What a deal! There's nothing like shopping online for some great scrapping goodies! While you are there, check out the message boards and get some great inspiration for your scrap pages. I am sure you will love it!

Seriously...

How excited are you?!?! Are you ready?!?! I love this show, and I have been staying up late each night for the past 2 weeks just watching seasons 1&2 just to get my Grey's fix for the premiere. I wasn't one of the original lovers of the show though. I became hooked on the show after the Superbowl; the one with the bomb exploding, and Meredith not remembering her last kiss with Derek. Oh, what a good one. I was hooked from then on! I've got me some good snacks, and the DVR set to record. I am ready!

(Thanks Char for the awesome pic.) :-)

Big Weekend

I have a big weekend coming up, so I hope I start feeling better quickly. I think I will be okay by Saturday, but who knows. So our big weekend consists of completely tearing out our kitchen; cabinets, floor, sink, faucet. You name it, it is coming out of our kitchen. We are redoing the laminate flooring and laying hardwood in the kitchen, dining room, and the formal living room. I am hoping that things run smoothly, and I am so excited to be getting a newer kitchen.

I just feel very blessed that Chad's new job is providing for us and allowing us that little extra to get some stuff done around our house that we have been wanting to do. I am also repainting the formal living room a dark shade of brown, and we are going to hang crown molding and trim in a cream cheese type color. Our house needs a major overhaul, and I think this is the beginning of a very productive fall on the Killion manor. I'll post pics of the progress. In the meantime, I will be painting our kitchen cabinets. Wish me luck!

Sick....again

Seriously, I don't think I am going to be 100% healthy at all this fall. Every since Gabe's birthday, I have been struggling with this gunky sinus, cold, allergy type thing, and I can't seem to shake it. It seems that once I start feeling somewhat normal healthy, the sore throat starts again, and I wake up the next day with a full blown whatever this is. I hate it! ARGH!

Oh well, at least I can still type and search the internet and read other fun blogs. :-) I just want to be healthy and enjoy the changing weather and last few warm days with my boys. I also have some majoy home improvements/remodels getting ready to start this weekend, and I have a lot of prep work to do, and I can't do it if I am sick, and then there is my mommy job. I don't get a sick day from that. So, please, if there is some healthy pixie dust or something, I sure could use some!

A cheesecake injury

At mom's last night, I was using the Pampered Chef slice-n-serve to get me a delish piece of cheesecake that had been calling my name. Well, the graham cracker crust was stuck and being a bit difficult to get out. I was steadying the pie platter with my left hand, and working the slice-n-serve under my piece of goodness, when all of a sudden, the slice-n-serve slipped at an upward angle and sliced my index finger almost in half between my first and second knuckle. Oh my goodness, the pain and the blood was not pretty. No stitches as of yet, and the bleeding seems to be under control, so now gauze, Neosporin and a splint are my best friends in this healing process.


It isn't easy at all to type, but I am getting the hang of it, but at least I can look forward to Chad doing the dishes and giving the boys their baths for awhile.


Here is a picture of the culprit.

Weekend project

The boys' room has been what Gabe calls a "baby room" since before Gabe was born. His nursery was John Lennon's "A Musical Parade" and my mom and I had painted the mural on the wall. You can see what the "baby room" looked like in some of the before pictures. So, the boys were at my dad's for the whole weekend, and my mom and I decided to tackle the project of redoing their room. I had been wanting to redo the room in a train theme, but I hadn't found the right type of train that I wanted. I didn't want Thomas, I wanted realistic trains so the boys could grow with the same room. Well, my mom found this great calendar with trains in it, and we framed some of those pictures. We bought shadow box frames and painted them red then distressed them. I think it is my fave part of the room. We got an older twin bed frame that was white, and we painted it red for Graedon's bed. We also painted a little book shelf that was green. I really love how it turned out!


Here is a picture of the mural. I was a little sad to see it go, but I love the results!






Here is the new little boy train room! This shows the little book shelf that now acts as an entertainment area for the Spongebob TV and DVD player and the V-Smile. The train sign is actually a bank that mom got Gabe for Christmas 2 years ago. You can see one of the framed train pics really good here. Also, I got 2 valances from Big Lots fro $3 each. What a steal!


Here is Gabe's bed. I really wanted to get some train bedding, at least some sheets, but I got the Wall-E sets for $4.50 on clearance. I couldn't pass it up.




Here are Graedon's name letters. This shelf is above his headboard. They were painted as a gift for his room at the baby shower that my church had for me. They match perfectly. Sorry I don't have a better shot of his bed. And here is a close up of the entertainment area. Thanks for looking, and a BIG THANKS to my mom for all of her help!!

Here are the boys when they came home and found their new room!

Happy Birthday Graedon

Graedon turned 2 on Saturday, September 6th, and he had a "Finding Nemo" themed party. We had beautiful weather for a few outside games, including a water balloon figth which the kids LOVED! Too bad we didn't have more balloons filled for them to have played all afternoon. (I am making a mental note to have a huge water balloon fight next year).

Here are some fun pictures from our day, including some of the smiling 2 year old. He loved his Dory and Nemo cake that my mom and I made. I think that is one of my favorite things to do for the kids. I love making their cakes, and I hope I can continue to do so every year.






Fun Graedon Facts:
*He is a morning person. He wakes up and gets up first thing. He immediately wants to go downstairs. "'Mon Mommy," is usually the first thing that I hear. He gives me his blanket to carry and holds my hand as we go downstairs.
*He loves his blanket. He reminds me a Linus from Charlie Brown; the way he drags it everywhere.
*Blocks, Play Doh, and choo choos are some of his favorite toys.
*He loves chapstick, and he would eat the whole stick if I let him.
*He likes to steal Gabe's singing toothbrush. He got one of his own, but he will still take Gabe's.
*He's our cuddler. He loves for us to hold him and sit by him. He even likes it when we lay down with him. Right now, he tends to like daddy to lay down with him because daddy will play instead of just make him lay still and go to sleep.
*He's a singer and a dancer. This little guy loves music.
*He loves to give hugs and kisses, and I love to receive them!

Happy Birthday Graedon!