Goodbye 2007...

Last year I did a 2006 wrap-up post. I am going to do the same one for this year. Away we go...

1. What did you do in 2007 that you’d never done before?
I am ashamed to say that I can't think of anything AGAIN this year. Very bad

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't usually do traditional resolutions. Here is my No Way list from last year..I think I will do that again. I did an overall good job. The weight thing and the school thing happened, but I just had a kid...give me a break.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
ME AGAIN!

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Thankfully, not this year

5. What countries did you visit?
None...I don't get out much anymore

6. What would you like to have in 2008 that you lacked in 2007
A little more peace with myself.

7. What dates from 2007 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
November 9th...the day our little Evan was born.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Not completely losing my mind. I have had one of those up and down years mentally. Right now, we are good. Very good in fact.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Organization...I can get organized, staying there is the issue.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Sprained my ankle while pregnant. Damn thing still gives me problems on cold days.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Jason bought me my CHI...that is the best thing since sliced bread

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
Jason's...I know this might be hard for some of you to believe, but I can be hard to live with sometimes. I know...shocking.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
No one close to me thankfully.

14. Where did most of your money go?
We have four kids...enough said.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Evan's birth mostly

16. What song will always remind you of 2007?
Honestly don't know.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? 
b) thinner or fatter? 
c) richer or poorer?
Happier/fatter (this shall change)/richer

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Mommy time. I have gotten bad about asking for it, but Jason always attempts to remind me.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Venting.

20. How did you be spend Christmas?
With our families!

21. Did you fall in love in 2007?
I added another amazing boy to our group and of course I fall in love with Jason over and over all the time.

22. How many one-night stands?
Ummm...NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

23. What was your favorite TV program?
Side Order of Life. I loved that show. I hope they bring it back.

24. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
Hate is a waste...same as last year.

25. What was the best book you read?
I didn't read nearly as much this year...kids and all. However, right now I am reading Eat, Pray Love and it is pretty good.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Jack's Mannequin

27. What did you want and get?
A baby.. a healthy family...a bigger house

28. What did you want and not get?
More money than I can count, but maybe next year.

29. What was your favorite film of this year?
Movies? You think I have time for movies? Um..I liked Knocked Up.

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Read about it here...the big 27

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Magic pill that allows you to eat whatever you want and not gain weight :-)

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2007?
Stay at home mom chic...again.

33. What kept you sane?
My hubby...without a doubt! Oh and caffeine...the other love of my life.

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Again not a big celeb watcher...but I have a crush on Chad Michael Murray

35. What political issue stirred you the most?
The fact that if Hillary is president we are all in BIG BIG trouble..mark my words!

36. Who did you miss?
My family!

37. Who was the best new person you met?
AMANDA!!!!

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2007.
God's silence can be a blessing...

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
"Cause every time you hold me in your arms
I'm comfortable enough to feel your warmth" -- Bubbly, Colbie Caillat

The life...

That would be my dad...on the beach. My parents are down in Mexico for two weeks. And yes, I am very jealous.

Random-osity...

Totally random post...

* My mom made my sister in law and me scarves and hats for Christmas. She is so crafty and talented. Aren't we cute?

* I don't *do* New Year's Resolutions because I think they just set you up for failure. But I do have several goals that I would like to work toward this year. More on that later, but one of them is to get back to blogging on a regular basis.

* I make really horrible faces when playing video games...especially Guitar Hero. I have a picture, but I will not post.

* I have recently started watching One Tree Hill reruns. OK so I DVR it and watch it when I nurse Evan. How did I not catch on to this show when it started? It is like 90210 but so much better.

* I need new clothes in the worst way, but I refuse to buy any right now. I need to drop at least one size before I buy anything.

* Evan is already 7 weeks old...WHAT?!?!?!

* Chase is building the biggest and funniest vocabulary. Currently "cool" and "ice" are is favorite words. Oh yes and "poop...shew shew...baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad"

* Austin and Brodie are out of school until the 3rd. Usually we leave them in Lubbock over Winter Break, but this year we wanted to have them home. Today we are going to visit our old neighbors. Their youngest daughter and the boys used to play all the time and they are all excited to see each other. Should be fun.

* Having my fourth child has had one unexpected effect on me. I am turning into a total homebody. I don't know if it is cause it just takes so much effort to get everyone out or what, but I just am not out as much as normal. Hmmmmm...

Home...

We are home from our few days in Lubbock. The trip was good, but too short. Jason, Chase and Evan ended up fighting a cold the whole time.

I have lots of laundry and cleaning to do. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.

Pictures of our trip can be seen here...I wasn't quite as good about taking lots of pictures as normal due to dealing with a baby with a cold.

Back soon with a better post.

Slacker...

That's what I have been with regards to this blog...total slacker. I feel I have good excuses, but really they aren't that good. It seems every time I sit down to write something I am called away by a child. Have you ever felt busy doing a whole lot of nothing? You know, just daily life, but nothing you could really say, "Oh today I had such a productive day." Truth is I have been feeling a little overwhelmed lately. Not by the kids, just by the tasks I need to do and that I am not getting done. Oh well...there is always the new year.

We are gearing up to head to Lubbock for Christmas. I actually am letting Austin and Brodie play hooky from school for the day as well. Today is a short school day and they are going to do nothing but watch movies, so instead I am keeping them home for slave labor. OK, not really. Truth is everyone in the house, but me is trying to get sick. Brodie threw up last night and has a sore throat, Austin has a sore throat, Jason's head is stopped up, Chase is sneezey and snotty and Evan even sounds a little nasally. It would figure! I did get a surprise last night. Jason gave me part of my Christmas early. It was too big to take with us and bring back so he just let me have it. I got a new coffee machine. It is is so cool and perfect for us since we don't drink a zillion cups of coffee a day so there is not waste. LOVE IT! Jason and I enjoyed some coffee this morning!

The boys were very excited that Santa called them last night. I have to type this fast before Austin walks in (since he can read and all). I want to share with you guys the story behind our yearly Santa calls. When I was a kid every year without fail Santa called me. It was one of the highlights of my Christmas. He would call and do the "Ho Ho Ho" bit and ask what I wanted and if I was being good. It wasn't until I was probably 16 or 17 that I found out who that "Santa" was. It was my Big Daddy (grandpa for you non-southerners). He has since carried the tradition over to my kids. I actually got teared up last night when he called to talk to them. SO awesome. Jason even thinks its cool.

So, I feel like I have a million things to share, but my bags are not packing themselves.

I hope you all have a VERY Merry Christmas. I may post a few short posts from Lubbock, but don't hold your breath!

Send them my way...

During this time of year about 4 out of every 10 news stories has to do with something involving Christmas shopping it seems (I totally just pulled that out of thin air...I rock that way). I keep hearing them talk about how much money in gift cards goes unused every year. Thus, scaring people away from buying gift cards.

People...if you don't want your gift card send it to me. Seriously.

I don't understand this. I looooooooooooooove gift cards. Don't get me wrong. I love when people buy me a gift as well, especially when they have put a lot of thought into it. But, I am not the easiest person to shop for. Neither is my husband for the record. I love that gift cards allow me to put money towards something I would not normally buy myself. I just don't understand how people can "forget" to use them. IT'S FREE MONEY TO SHOP WITH PEOPLE!!!

So, if you get a gift card this season and fear that you will not use it, just send it my way...especially ones to Target (cause I love Target almost as much as I love my own kids) and any place that sells over priced kitchen gadgets.

Sonic Addiction...

You know you drop by Sonic a little too often (caffeine fix) when the carhop says, "Hey, we haven't seen you in a while."

Hmmmm....Do I tell her that it is because I have been going in the mornings instead of the afternoons now?

No, look over here....stop it...

Trying to take a picture of all four boys is pretty much impossible. Here are some outtakes from our "photo session" last night.

One month...

The first few months of all the boys lives have always gone by REALLY fast. However, this last month has just flown.

Evan is officially one month old today. He is starting to smile at us and is waking up to the world around him. I am just amazed by all my boys. I am even more amazed that I am not more tired.

It started out a good day...

But...it turned out to be a bit of a pain in the butt day. This morning Jason worked around on some things outside and let the the older boys help him work on his car and stuff. It was good.

This afternoon I made our grocery list, pumped a bottle for Evan and headed to the grocery. I got to the store only to have my phone ring...it was Jason. The dogs had gotten into a fight. You see, one of our dogs, Beau has a bit of a food issue. He will snap about food, but normally Mojo puts him in his place. Today, Beau decided that he just wasn't having it. Leaving Mojo with an open wound on his chest. So, I left the store and came home to help Jason with the kids an decide what to do about Mojo. We both agreed that he needed to go to the vet just to prevent infection if nothing else. Jason just called from the vet's office. They are going to leave the wound open because apparently there is an air bubble in it or something and it will heal better left alone. They are flushing it out and putting him on antibiotics. Beau is outside pouting.

And I thought the kids were a lot of trouble.

It's begininng to look a lot like Christmas...

Our tree is up, the lights are up on the house and it is actually quite chilly this morning. All this has me in the Christmas mood. I love Christmas.

I do not, however, love what the Christmas season does to some people. People get grouchy and insane. I think a lot of it is the pressure that we put on ourselves this time of year. Our kids need the latest and greatest toys and gadgets right? We need to buy all of our "friends" something that will WOW them and make them realize how truly awesome we are, right? We need to bake the perfect cookies to take to that party, right?

NO! People you are missing the point of the entire holiday. So, I am issuing a challenge to all of my friends. Everyday for the rest of December take 5 minutes to reflect on your life. Try to remember that the latest and greatest toys do not really make your kids the happiest kids. Remember that your friends love you for you, not for the amount of money you can spend on them. Most of all remember the real reason for Christmas. Jesus...He has already given you the best gift and everything else pales in comparison.

Three weeks...

The first picture was Evan at 1 day old. The second picture is at 3 weeks old (I promise he is not that pale...bad lighting).

I can chunk up some cheeks in a hurry on a baby.

I don't have much time to write, but I couldn't let Evan's 3 week birthday pass by without acknowledgement. He is such a good baby. And handsome too!

That kind of day...

As I sat down to write this post I spilled an entire glass of chocolate milk in my lap and all over my desk. It has been that kind of day today...

This week had been going really well. With Austin and Brodie back in school after Thanksgiving break and Jason back at work full time, Chase, Evan and I were getting ourselves on a pretty good little schedule. I have been working on just figuring out how to make everything work. I have decided that adding a fourth child isn't hard...adding a baby when you have an 18 month old is. Up until today things have been going well.

Chase has thrown up today...several times. I will be shampooing the couch in the morning (and the carpet under my desk now). Even before the sickies hit I was having a hard time getting in a groove today. Everything just wasn't gelling together. Let's hope for a better day tomorrow.

As a side note: I took Evan in for his two week check up on Monday. I am continuing the grand tradition of being a super baby grower. Evan has gained two pounds in two weeks. Yes, I my milk is super milk!!!

Lazy Days

This is pretty much all we have been doing lately. Productive I know!

I promise we are alive...

We are just trying to find our rhythm and that isn't always easy. Things are going pretty well. Chase is having some adjustment issues, but nothing that won't be solved once this week is over and I can pick him up again and resume normal Mommy duties with him. We have had people in and out of the house of course. My mom has been here this whole time and has been an absolute angel. She is taking care of everything for me and allowing me to just be with the kiddos. My dad drove his Harley down this weekend and stayed with us to meet the newest addition. My grandmother is also in town visiting, though she has gotten ill and is at my aunt's house, she did get to meet Evan. My mom will be going home tomorrow after being gone almost two weeks. My in laws will be back for Thanksgiving. So as you can see, things will probably be quiet around here for the rest of the week as well. After this week I will be allowed to resume normal activities and hopefully we can start to resume some sort of schedule. Wish me luck :-)

Settling in...

We are all settling in at home. It will obviously be a few weeks before any state of normalcy can be established, but so far so good. Our biggest issue is Chase not understanding why I can not pick him up.

I will keep everyone posted on the goings on as well as letting you all know when I have all the pictures put up...right now I am off to nap.

Come and meet our new one!!!

He is finally here!

Everyone meet Evan Kade!

7lbs 3 oz 20 inches long

Born at 1:26 pm today

Mommy and baby are doing great. Better update coming!

Just about time...

Well....I am here at the hospital. No major contractions, but I am dilated to four so they are keeping me. They will break my water in the morning if it doesn't happen before then.

Right now they are about to give me an Ambien and I am off to dream land. SWEEEEET!

The next update should include details of Evan's arrival.

Night Night all!

Waiting...

It is dark in my house and cold (which I loooooooooove). Everyone is sleeping except for me. I have been having contractions for over 24 hours now, but they are not getting strong yet or regular for that matter. THIS is the annoying part of pregnancy...the waiting. My mom decided to go ahead and come on down so that I can relax just in knowing that she is here when the big event does happen. I hope I didn't call her down here for nothing. I keep getting the comment, "You would think with your fourth kid you would be more sure about what is going on". I realize this, BUT each of my pregnancies and deliveries have been VASTLY different. The funny thing is that Evan has dropped so low that I am having trouble keeping my pants pulled up. Quite funny given how big I am right now.

The plan for today is to walk, walk, walk, walk. Even if it doesn't produce anything, it sure beats sitting around wondering.

(Beckie, we have Internet at the hospital....there will be at the very least an announcement ASAP after the little one makes his arrival)

Quick Update...

Busy day, but I wanted to put up a little update.

Went to my doctor yesterday. I am still 2 cm dilated, but VERY soft. Evan's head is not floating any longer which is surprising since my last two babies did not engage until I was in full blown labor. So hopefully we are looking at having a baby anytime now. I hate this waiting part of pregnancy, but am doing my best to not get impatient.

That being said, I am going to go do some shopping and major walking to try to get some action started!!!