On Being an Aunt

My sister and I are 3 1/2 years apart. We've always been super close. We have always gotten along, even as teenagers. Okay, there was one fight. One hysterical fight. We both wanted to be in the bathroom and we both wanted the other one OUT of the bathroom. I sprayed her in the eye with hair spray and she punched me in the arm.


The end.


As adults (if you can call us that) we are still super close. We talk most days and now that she is only an hour and a half or so away, we see each other more often.


She has always been so good with my kids. Very calm and natural with them. They LOVE spending time with Aunt Susie. Ask the Little Miss her favorite place to be and she will say, "Aunt Susie's house." (She does have a big, awesome house!)


Aunt Susie had her own baby in September. The most beautiful baby girl. And I learned how amazing it is to be an aunt. There's an automatic "right" an aunt has to have the baby. At least, I seem to think so because whenever that baby is near, I scoop her right up. Sorry, Grandma. I tend to hog her. She is just so sweet, lovable, and kissable. I can't get enough of her.


But does it make me want another one?


Hell to the no.


I love that little baby so much. But I am very willing to give her back to her momma. The nursing? Up multiple times a night? Constant entertaining? Done, done, and done.


Being an aunt is pretty much the best. Plenty of baby loving. A full night's rest. And no sore nipples. Thanks, Aunt Susie. Keep on having those sweet babies. And if you could have twins, that'd be great. One for me, one for grandma. Perfect.

Apparently December is a busy month for me

Ha! Understatement of the century.


December has flown by at warp speed.


I suffered through way too many school days. Our first day of Christmas Break wasn't until December 23. Cruel and unusual punishment is what that is.

Since then, we celebrated Christmas at various places. We had wonderful food, gifts, and spent time with our wonderful family and friends.


Watching my kids at Christmas this year was so fun. Cole tore open each present, shrieked "Thank you!" then threw that gift to the side and started opening the next one.


The Little Miss, on the other hand, opened each gift, shrieked, "Oh my word!" and hugged each gift tightly, twirling around in joy. She savored each one before opening the next. So fun to watch.

While we were watching a cartoon a few days before Christmas, I heard Cole say, "That's okay if they don't get presents. Christmas isn't even about presents anyway. It's about Jesus." But then, on the final day of opening gifts with family, he started bawling when he realized there were no.more.presents. Heh.

We have had several inches of snow on the ground for...like...ever! I can't even remember what it looked like before snow on the ground. When it isn't 5 degrees out, we have been able to get out and enjoy it!



On Christmas Eve, we came home from my sister's house. (The sister with the cutest baby in the world!) As we pulled in the driveway, we noticed a mystery snowman had been built with all of Cole's outdoor toys! How cute is he?!



I love the grain bin hat and shovel arms. A big thanks to our secret snow man maker!

The BFF who moved 800+ miles away from me sent me a Christmas package! It was so fun to open each individually wrapped gift in the box. I squealed with delight as I opened each one which included a beautiful necklace (which is totally me!) a coffee mug (which is also totally me!) toe warmers, chocolate, a new book which I am currently reading and loving (but still in the first chapter) a Southern cooking magazine, and a Southern cheese straw snack. The package I sent her was surprisingly similar! Great minds... :)

I am now enjoying my one full week of Christmas break. I painted the bathroom yesterday. (Loving it!) Today the kids and I shall make a trip to Ikea for new bathroom accessories. I hope to spend tomorrow in jammies playing Wii all day long. That's what Christmas break is about, right?!

We are lucky enough to have a kid-friendly party to spend our New Year's Eve with good friends and family. We will have the annual corned beef and cabbage to celebrate the new year. Is that a widely-known tradition? Corned beef and cabbage on New Year's Day? Supposedly it brings good luck for the new year.

I hope you and your family had a wonderful Christmas!

Thirty-One and Black Friday

If you avoid crowds as I do, then you are probably sitting in front of your computer in your jammies sipping on your second cup of coffee.

Ahhhh.

Now that is how to spend the day after Thanksgiving. Not to mention, it's like 29 degrees here, and who wants to venture out in the cold, getting into a shoving match with crazy people trying to get a $4.00 coffeemaker?!

Insanity, I tell you.

A few years ago, I ventured to the Wal-Mart at like 10 a.m. on this so called Black Friday. I asked the frazzled-looking electronics lady where the $79 Garmin was. She literally laughed in my face.

I guess they had been sold out for awhile...

I prefer to do a lot of my shopping online. As a matter of fact, I just placed a couple of orders on Target and Amazon. And I didn't even have to wait in any lines! And there were no people around bugging me! Well, there was a certain little girl bugging me to put up the Christmas tree...but I can handle her.

If you are looking for a gift idea, I have a suggestion. A Thirty-One bag! I may or may not be an independent consultant for Thirty-One. Okay, I am. And I would like you to order from me. See? No gimmicks around here. Just short, sweet, and to the point.

I decided to become a consultant for Thirty-One a few months ago, mostly to get the super sweet starter kit for just $99. But now, I am kind of loving it. People seem to love the bags and purses as much as I do. And if you know anything about me, I LOVE purses and bags!

My current favorite products are:

*Thermal tote


*Large Storage Tote


*Medium Purse

*Organizing Utility Tote


*Skirt purse


If you'd like to check out the fall/winter Thirty-One catalog, just click here. You can order online by clicking here. And I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

If you would also like to receive the super sweet starter kit for just $99, click here to find out more!

Happy Shopping!

A Void

Did I tell you my best friend/teacher across the hall moved last week? Not only did she move, but she moved 8 hours and 16 minutes away. That's 522.98 miles.

Approximately.

I lived in denial for months. Since July, to be exact. I knew she was moving. We talked about it all. I saw pictures of the new house. I helped her move things out of the old house. And yet when that day came? Her very last day to be the teacher across the hall?

Reality finally set in.

We cried. We hugged. And as she left...as she walked out of that school that we had been teaching in together for more than 11 years...I sat at my desk and cried some more.

It has been a week since she hasn't been across the hall. And it just hasn't been the same. We had a staff meeting this week and I didn't know where to sit. How was I supposed to sit through a staff meeting without being able to talk to her? Or slip her notes? Or roll my eyes about the guest speakers?

And she wasn't just the teacher across the hall. Throughout the course of those 11 years, I got married. We both had kids. We both started blogs. We shared books and recipes. We started hanging out after school. We got our kids together for playdates. We had mommy days shopping and lunching.

We were the best of friends.

We still are.

522.98 miles can't stop that.

And while I am glad her family is settled and together in their new beautiful home, starting the newest chapter in their lives...

I miss her. A lot.

*sniff*

Cheap John Deere Hats

Our friends at Rungreen are having a sale on John Deere hats. There are 10 styles available for only $5.00 each! Here are just a few of the hats available during this great sale that ends this Sunday, November 14!










To start hat shopping, just click here! And be sure to tell them JDM sent you!

My Third and Final (Feeble) Attempt to Win a New Camera

I have been a member of SITS since the beginning. I was the second ever featured blogger and for over a year...the only featured blogger to ever have a picture along with their FB post. I ALSO coined the phrase "SITSmas"...lest we not forget. I don't even receive any royalties from that phrase, which is still used. But, alas, that alone isn't enough to win a new camera from those beautiful divas over at SITS.

So today I shall share with you all my third and final Halloween post in an effort to gain the upperhand in the Canon camera contest.

I give you...the Halloween collage:


And I leave you with the Russian peasant, which I know Tiffany cannot refuse.


And Mama Kat? Have I told you how pretty you are lately?

Love,
JDM

Happy Halloween

SITS wants crafty today as part of Day 2 of their Canon giveaway. Sadly, I have no crafty to give them. This is the best I could come up with.



But I think if I mention how pretty Tiffany and Mama Kat are...this will be good enough.

Just click here for blogging tips, Halloween crafts, and more with those lovely ladies of SITS.

Of Halloween Past

It's hard to believe this is the 7th Halloween since I've been a mom. And as we gear up for a night of trick-or-treating tomorrow night, I thought I'd take a trip down Halloween memory lane. (By the way, as a mom and a teacher, Halloween on a Sunday night blows. Just sayin'.)

Apparently I didn't take the camera along in 2004 and 2006 because try as I might I couldn't find any pictures. I know Claire was a lamb one year, but for the life of me I can't remember any of the other costumes. Oh well...I wasn't going to win MOTY anyway!

Halloween, 2003. Cole was 9 days old. An angel seemed most fitting.

Halloween, 2005. Cole was a chicken. This was one of my favorite costumes ever. His dad wasn't nearly as impressed. Little Miss was a giraffe. Can you spot her? She's the one that looks really pissed off...

Halloween, 2007. Cole was a dragon and Claire was a puppy dog. This was the first year they both really "got" Halloween and we had a great time taking them around trick-or-treating.

Halloween, 2008. Grandma went all out on Cole's costume. I had 2 other costumes for him to choose from, but when I asked he said he had already told all his friends he was going to be a tractor. Grandma outdid herself. It even had working headlights!

Claire decided she wanted to be a cheerleader when she discovered 2 pom-poms in her closet. We even teased and sprayed her hair. She especially loved the tights.

Halloween 2009 proved to be a tough decision on the part of the Little Miss. She had decided upon a dinosaur, which was a pretty awesome costume. And as we took the obligatory pictures 20 minutes before leaving to go trick-or-treat, she burst into tears and said she wanted to be a princess. Had she said anything else, it wouldn't have been possible to make something so fast. But because she really IS a princess, with a closet full of princess dresses, a quick change was made. And everyone was happy.


Cole wanted to be a race car driver, which ended up being very easy. We stuck him in a snow suit and snow boots and borrowed a cousin's racing helmet. Done.

This year? The Little Miss wants to be Dorothy. Does she know who Dorothy is? Um, no. No she does not. All she knows is she has a pretty blue and white dress with matching hair bows. And she is happy.

The boy wants to be a cowboy. But I am sure that will change about 10 times before tomorrow night. Wish me luck!

If you want to see even more Halloween pictures, get some great blogging tips, enter for a chance to win a Canon camera, or just tell Tiffany and Kat how pretty they are...just click here to visit the girls of SITS. And then tell John Deere Mom sent you. Because I really want to win that camera.

Seven Years

It has been seven years since...

*I have slept in past 7 a.m.

*I've been able to sneeze without crossing my legs

*I've thought about only myself

*My stomach was smooth skin

*I've gone anywhere without an extra bag of clothes and wipes

*My boobs were in their original position

*I fell head over heels in love with all 7 pounds and 2 ounces of this beautiful boy

Happy Birthday, my little man.

I love you more than you know.