the back door

a month ago i got a haircut. it was a BIG change for me. for the most part, i've had the same basic look for about 8 years. from time to time, i'd do a variation or cut it shorter or grow it longer, but this time my sister in law sent me some ideas. she sent me oprahs makeovers and i have to confess at first i was a little overwhelmed. but she has incredible taste and always looks great. she also always tries to talk me into something new....so this time i took the plunge. funny thing...hardly anyone noticed!!! there were a few people that noticed, but not alot. i got that angled look. you know, the one that is shorter in back than on the sides/front. the front is the same length, but the back is definitely shorter... okay..so where am i going with this? i'm sure none of you out there really care about what my hair looks like. some of you don't even know what i look like!! but... on thursday the kids and i headed to sis-in-laws for the day. they could pla

yes...christmas has come and gone!! it is somewhat sad that it seems to go so quick! we visit with lots of family and see lots of friends and then it just seems to end. this morning found us all staying home, well not quite all, hubby had to return to work. but it has been nice. it is the first day at home since last thursday. whew!!!!!!! but mapboy and princess have played quite happily all day with their new toys, after several threats last night to box them all up and send them away. i know, that is harsh on christmas day and i know they were both a little overstimulated and very tired, but the behavior at bedtime was still uncalled for. anyways...it has been a nice calm day here at our house. mapboy got a scooby-doo video game which he has almost mastered in less than 36 hours. princess has moved her barbie into her new townhouse and even joyfully brought me toys to give away! now that's a girl after my own heart!!!! mapboy found a few items, but not nearly as many

today is my dear friends birthday!! now most mom's don't get to really live it up on their birthdays, but boy oh boy did we live it up today!! the funny thing is how it really wasn't all that exciting, but to these 2 moms it was GREAT!!!! we hired a sitter to stay with the 2 girls here at my place and took off for kohl's! friend had 50 bucks to spend there. well, you had to spend atleast ten and then you got 50 dollars extra. so in reality $60 worth of merchandise for $10. so we took off looking for chlothes. dear friend immedietly spotted a beautiful shirt she new i had to try on. being her birthday i said i'd try on whatever she picked out....well that was all she needed. next thing i knew she had returned the shirt and spotted a beautiful, and i mean it was "beautiful" skirt and blouse. she then found some lovely tourquiose pants and a orange flower shirt to match. i did spot a nice pair of jungle pants and matching shirt in just her size!!

i had rented a muppets christmas carol. hubby loves the story of scrooge, but i don't really care for it. i decided watching it with muppets might be more entertaining and the kids would enjoy it. so last night we ate ice cream and watched the movie. about half way into it, mapboy, age 7, suggested the kermit sounded just like ernie. after listening a while i had to agree. as princess shares her fears about the ghosts, mapboy proudly exclaims it is fiction. impressive eh? so....he explains to her that means that even though the people are real the story isn't. i say, "well, they are puppets. just like on sesame street." silence. hmm...hubby and i look at mapboy who appears to be in great thought. hubby asks him if he knew they were puppets and he just looked at us. WOW!!! i never thought about that. scrooge was played by michael cain so now mapboy is deeply perplexed as to how scrooge looks so real. then i explain that the movie is part human, part puppe

every morning i walk mapboy to the bus stop. of course, like all kids he is always looking for reasons for there to be a school delay. one very rainy morning this fall he asked if we would have a rain delay. i chuckled and said, "oh, rain is not a reason for a delay. just a reason to use the umbrellas!" so this morning when hubby announced yet another 2 hour delay i cringed. looking outside i could see this "winter ice storm" had already turned to rain. so i started reordering my day around the 2 hour delay point. princess and i were going to run some much needed errands and just enjoy some quiet. while in the shower i could hear the phone ringing. when i checked the messages i saw it was from my dear friend. assuming she was calling to see if we wanted to have some much needed girl fun time i returned the call. as she told me of the change from delay to cancelled i about screamed!! this is insane guys... so yes, mapboy, apparently in northern indiana the

for the past 5 days our family has spent way too much time together!!! dont' get me wrong..we love to be together, but we usually have opportunities to get out and see others, go to school, do things outside of these four walls. but not this week.... so when we got the call church was cancelled - hubby and i sighed....it just might be another long day at our house!!!! and with this ice....is there a chance school might be cancelled tomorrow???? oh i just might go crazy yet!!!!!!!!!

...has been closed for about a week now!!!!! yes, while our door is always open this week we have not opened our door to anyone. in fact, when grandma showed up yesterday afternoon we all yelled, "get out!" you see....mapboy spent the night with grandparents last saturday. in the morning they called to say that he had gotten sick in the middle of the night. he spent sunday and monday home and then off to school. tuesday, princess and i did the shopping. wednesday....well. we woke up to 6 inches of snow and a 2 hour delay!! yippee right?? no, i woke up feeling not so great....but not horrible. started through my coffee and decided to just wait. and then princess was bopping around and said "i think i'm going to throw up!" hmm..... so the kids were supposed to do without tv, but by 9 i needed them to just watch tv and princess and i were camped out on the couch.... mapboy got off to school and princess and i spent the day drinking gatorade and eating