View out my Window

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Digital Piece a Day in May Free

Snap and scrap will be giving away a
Free kit -Get a piece a day on their blog starting 1st May.
Http://www.snapandscrap.net/blog/

Here is the preview for the kit:

My Best Friend

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Color Purple

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Success

What is your definition of 'success'? Do you know any 'successful' people who inspire you?

Success is when you achieve something you have been striving to accomplish for days, months or years. It can be something so little for example:

• your children pick up after themselves
  
• your children put on their own clothes or shoes.
  
• you potty trained three toddlers before age 3.
  
• you get out of the house on your own with three toddlers that you never thought would be possible.

Who are successful? Triplet Moms. The ones who have children older then mine and they survived. They give me hope that I too will make it through the terrible two phase. They are also a great source for advice because they have gone through the trying times I deal with every day.

My Boy Justin

I did this layout for another Creative Team Call. This one is for Weeds & Wildflowers. They supplied the kit called WW_GoingWest. You had to use all the elements in the kit. This is what I came up with. Wish me luck. More information below.

Perspective

Cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow....
For babies grow up we've learned to our sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs...
dust go to sleep....
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep!!!!

Author unknown.

Cookies

What's your favorite cookie? Do you make it? Does someone else? Do you buy it?

There is this one cookie that I make during the Christmas holidays that I love. It is made actually with saltine crackers, butter, sugar and chocolate chips. You melt the butter on the crackers and then sprinkle the chocolate chips on top and freeze. Then crack it into bits of pieces. It is so yummy. The recipe was actually given to me by my aunt.

Our Tree

This is the tree in front of our house. This tree blooms beautiful white flowers in April. When May comes the flowers die and the tree goes back to being green for 11 months.

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Creative Time When?

Is there a time of the day when you feel most creative?

Unfortunately, I don't have a choice when to be creative. I tend to do all my scrapbooking late at night after the kids go to bed. I will occasionally scrap during the day but the majority of the work is done in the nighttime. Sometimes I will stay up to 3 am depending on what I want to get done.

Challenge Submission

Credits:
digital freebie set by Karla Marano. Here is the information about the challenge.


Click here to get the freebie.

Fulfilled Life

Spend 5 minutes writing about your advice for having a fulfilled life.

Go! What can I write in 5 minutes about having a fulfilled life. Let's see. My first advice would be to set a time each day when you are off duty. Since I am a SAHM my days can go 24/7 and then I don't get any me time. So each night I set a time where I stop working! What I mean is I stop cleaning the kitchen, stop doing the laundry, stop vacuuming, at that particular time each night. I am off duty when that clock hits that hour. Then I do my me stuff. That's when I check e-mails or do my digital scrapbooking. Yes, there are nights well most nights that I am up way late because I want to get things done for me creatively. When people ask me how I do it, my answer is stay up late and just do it! You can scrapbook if you really want to just set a date and time for it. Also set up a goal. I have a goal of how many pages I want to get done. My total pages last year was 400 so, of course, my goal for this year is to beat that total. Again the only way to achieve this goal is to set time to scrapbook each night. Scrapbooking is the only thing that really keeps me happy with my life. It's my therapy to keeping sane. Time is up!

Sale Extended till April 21

Sale extended until end Saturday to get a 30%discount on this kit!
You can get it here:








Here's 2 layouts I did using the kit that's on sale.

oops wrong Bird

Okay, I found out this morning from Nancyr that I put the wrong bird's name on my layout so here is the correct layout with added information about the Robin in my journaling.

Think of one person in your life. Then pick a song that you think 'fits' them.


Well that is pretty simple. It would be my husband and the song would be by Cherish called Unappreciated.

Lyrics to Cherish Unappreciated

[Chorus:]
I'm feeling really unappreciated.
You takin` my love for granted, babe.
I don't know how much more,
I can take from you.
You don't do the things you use to do.
You don't even say I love you too.
and lately I've been feeling,
Feeling unappreciated.
[Verse 1:]
Woke up this morning and saw your face
And you didn't look the same as yesterday.
I got the feeling that you can't seem to see,
What you want to be.
And lately it ain't been the same at all.
When you're here its like I'm invisable
I still can't seem to see where I went wrong.
Cuz I'm feeling
[Chorus:]
I'm feeling really unappreciated.
You takin` my love for granted, babe.
I don't know how much more,
I can take from you.
You don't do the things you use to do.
You don't even say I love you too.
and lately I've been feeling,
Feeling unappreciated.
[Verse 2:]
Lately our house is not a home
You come in, take a shower and then say I'm gone.
what am I to do
With my heart just leave
But my feet won't move
Today is our anniversary
But you haven't even say two words to me
I'm trying hard to give you another chance
[ these lyrics found on http://www.completealbumlyrics.com ]
But ooh baby I'm feeling
I'm feeling really unappreciated.
You takin` my love for granted, babe.
I don't know how much more,
I can take from you.
You don't do the things you use to do.
You don't even say I love you too.
and lately I've been feeling,
Feeling unappreciated.
[Verse 3:]
Oh when I first met you
I thought you was the most perfect man
That I ever seen
I still don't understand why
You treat me like you do
I use to give into your lust
Now I see the truth
Oh no I don't want to hear it all through
Yea I know I'll still be missing you
But it's not worth the pain
That came from you
You made me feel
unappreciated
[Chorus:]
I'm feeling really unappreciated.
You takin` my love for granted, babe.
I don't know how much more,
I can take from you.
You don't do the things you use to do.
You don't even say I love you too.
and lately I've been feeling,
Feeling unappreciated.
Don't love me no more
Heeey wooo hooo
unapreciated.
I'm feeling unappreciated

Of course, that's the song that is playing on my blog. It's been a bit better lately as he's starting to chip in more.

Stopping to Take Photos of Birds

For my birthday my husband gave me a new digital camera. I've been playing around with all the settings on it and this camera has been lugged around in my diaper bag everywhere. While being a frequent poster at digitalscrapbookplace.com I noticed some layouts from Nancyr of birds that she has taken in her yard. So she was my inspiration for this layout. I have never really noticed birds before so she really opened up my eyes to how beautiful they can be. I looked up the bird at Whatbird.com by the coloring and the location. After looking at about 20 birds from this sight I think that this bird is a Baltimore Oriole. I will share my layout with Nancyr and I'm sure she will correct me if I am wrong about this.

Credits

Daily Routine - Tedious, Boring & Creative

What is the most tedious or boring part of your daily routine/job? What is the most creative?

Most tedious would be the constantly picking up of things from room to room. Every time I turn around there is another toy, a sock, a hat, shoes, a puzzle piece, a doll, etc. etc. you name it I pick it up day after day after day. My main goal is to have at least the kitchen free of these things so there are times when I take the kids wagon and I toss the toys into the wagon as I walk through my kitchen. I find this is the fastest way to get my kitchen decluttered from all this excess. Nothing is worse then stepping onto one of those puzzle pieces that have the little sticks sticking up. Ouch that hurts!

Most boring part of my day would be the folding of laundry and washing of dishes. This is always a challenge. Some days the laundry just piles up. The dishes at least get done every night as I run that dishwasher. Thank God for that invention or they'd never get done.

Most creative part of my day is when we do some type of craft such as coloring or painting. Sometimes we even sing and dance. Every night we also do a 1/2 hour of story time which can be very creative depending on if I have the right type of books.

Favorite Color

What's your favorite color? Describe it. Has it always been your favorite? Why is it your favorite?

My favorite color is PURPLE. It's a very uplifting color. Makes me happy when I look at that color. I think I have always liked the color purple. So much so that I wanted to have my bridal party in that color, however, my mom talked me out of it and I wound up having teal green instead. It is also the color of my birthstone.

Purple is the color of good judgment. It is the color of people seeking spiritual fulfillment. It is said if you surround yourself with purple you will have peace of mind. Purple is a good color to use in meditation.

Being the combination of red and blue, the warmest and coolest colors, purple is believed to be the ideal color. Purple has been used to symbolize royalty. It also symbolizes power, nobility, luxury, and ambition. It conveys wealth and extravagance. Purple is associated with wisdom, dignity, independence, creativity, mystery, and magic. Most children love the color purple. Purple is the color most favored by artists.

Put some violet in your life when you want:

• to use your imagination to its fullest
• to re-balance your life
• to remove obstacles
• to calm overactivity or to energize from depression

CREAT-AUST-OMMY

Make up a word--a blending of two or more words -- that describes your best qualities.

Creat-aust-ommy [kre-ait-aust-o-me]

-adjective

1. Having the quality or power of creating.

2. To wear out completely.

3. A female parent.

It took me a while to think of some words for this. I even asked my husband who was no help at all. However, the words that kept popping into my brain were: Creative, Exhausted and Mommy. So that's how CREAT-AUST-OMMY began it's life. I was thinking of these words right before my nap so, of course, the word exhausted popped into my brain at that very time. I'm awake now and yes, I'm still exhausted even after an hour nap. I'm always trying to bring my creativity into my life like even today when we were driving to the spring fling party I was thinking of all the photos I could have been taking along the way of the beautiful cloudy sky or the flowers that were blooming in everyone's front yards. Then at the party I even painted along with the kids the flower pots that were provided for their spring craft activity. Don't forget about the 24/7 job I took on back in 2004 of being a mommy of not only one child but three!

Reading?

Are you currently reading anything that you'd recommend? Or maybe you have an old favorite that you recommend to everyone.


Unfortunately, I have little time to read so novels are so not on my list of things to read. I have only little bits of time throughout the day to read so mainly I read magazines, cook books, self help parenting books on toddlers, journaling and scrapbooking books. These mainly I take out from the library. My novels collect dust on my bookcase. One day I will have more time maybe when the children are in school.



At this very time I am reading Visual Chronicles by Linda Woods and Karen Dinino. It's the no-fear guide to creating Art Journals, Creative Manifestos and Altered books. I'm really enjoying this book. I'm reading it cover to cover 5 minutes here and 5 minutes there. This book I bought from amazon as I thought it was a good book to actually own.


Another book that I am reading and actually participating in is called "Frozen Assets Light and Easy: How to cook for a day and eat for a month" by Deborah Taylor-Hough. Yes, I actually read the beginning of this book and 2 days ago attempted a chicken mini session. Unfortunately, my husband wasn't too thrilled with the recipes but hey, at least we have 6 meals in the freezer for the week and I don't have to stress about "What's for Dinner?" Plus it makes tons of left overs that we can actually have for lunches. My mom didn't think it was a good idea to cook 6 meals at once as it took me all day to do so but all I kept thinking was hey, I don't have to cook all week! Saves me 5 hours of my time later and also will save us money because we have meals already made and that means less times for pizza, McDonalds, and Wendy's. Those places have been a frequent lately. So it's worth a shot to try something new.

Children Book Recommendation this month are:

Rain by Robert Kalan. For the month of April I've been reading books about rain to the children and they seem to like this one the most because they can read it back to me.




What do you Do? by Mandy Stanley. This book is so cute. It's about animals and what they do. Then at the end of the book it asks the kids what do they do? Gets them to think about what they do. Also it's a great book for them to memorize. The other night my daughter Naomi took the book and started reading it to my mom. It was adorable her interpritation of the book. My mom was hystically laughing.

Childhood Pastime

What was your favorite pastime as a child? Did you prefer doing it alone, or with someone else?

When I was younger I loved to write letters. I had many penpals from all over the world that I would write to. I wrote both short letters and very long letters depending on who I was writing to at the time. I looked forward to receiving mail on a daily basis. I even would make my own stationery using rubber stamps or stickers. I think there was a time that I was writing to like 50 people. Some people I would write for years and then others would only be a short period of time. I wrote for many years until, of course, the internet came into my life.

E-mail took over instead of snail mail. So instead of getting mail from the postman I now get hundreds of e-mails that I sift through on a daily basis. My e-mail is like an obsession. It's something I check 2 or more times a day because the inbox fills up so quickly. There are a few people who I stayed in contact with from my childhood years that I used to write by snail mail but now write to via e-mail instead.

I, however, still hate the phone. I'd much rather receive an e-mail from someone then talk on the phone. So glad we have caller-ID because I never have to run to the phone to answer. I have the phone set up so that it rings differently for my mom and my MIL so those are the really only important calls I don't want to miss other than that I usually let the answering machine pick up and they can leave me a message to call them back. I try to call back within the day if it is at all possible. Some days it may take me a day or so because of my hectic life.

Rainforest

Bonnie has this beautiful new kit. It is on sale at
Snap and Scrap for 4 days. I will be making some layouts using this kit in the next couple of days so be on the lookout for them.

Superstitions

Are you superstitious? Does the thought of 'Friday the 13th' make you nervous?

For one thing I was born on Friday the 13th so it really doesn't bother me that it is Friday the 13th. I also like the number 13 as it's my favorite number. However, there are a couple of things that I am superstitious about. For example:

• Spiders: I believe that if you kill a spider you will get very bad luck. So when I see spiders I either leave them alone or I try to scoop them up and transport them outside without hurting them.

• Mirrors: Breaking a mirror means 7 years bad luck. I try not to break any mirrors. I don't even carry one in my purse.

• Nose: If your nose itches then you are going to quarrel with someone. I always seem to have a fight with someone when my nose itches.

• Palm Itchy: I always believed that when your palm was itchy that money was coming. I just searched the web for superstitions and found this true meaning: If the palm of your right hand is itchy, then it foretells that money is coming to you, but don’t scratch it as that stops the money from coming! If it’s your left palm that is itchy, then scratch away, as that means that you'll soon be paying out money. No wonder why I never got money because I always scratched my hand and probably always had to pay out.

• Knock on Wood: Whenever I say something and don't really mean it or don't want it to happen to me I knock on wood. The true meaning of knocking on wood: Good Luck: Knock on Wood - It was believed that good spirits lived in trees, and that by knocking on anything made from wood, we could call upon these spirits for protection against misfortune.
  
  While attempting to write this I found a really cool Superstitions Database. You can search for whatever subject you want and it would give you the superstitious meaning.

TAGGED!

Four jobs I've had
1. Ice Cream Clerk
2. Cashier
3. Legal Secretary
4. Accounts Receivable

Four movies I've watched over and over
1. Grease
2. Beaches
3. Phantom of the Opera
4. A Night at the Roxbury

Four places I've lived
1. New York
2. New Jersey
3.
4.

Four tv shows I like(d) to watch
1.Days of Our Lives
2.ER
3.Desperate Housewives
4.Scrubs

Four places I've been on vacation
1. San Juan
2. Bermuda
3. Florida
4. California

Four of my favorite foods
1. Pasta
2. Baked Potato
3. Twizzlers (pull-n-peel)
4. Potato Chips

Siblings' Day

In honor of Sibling's Day, talk about your relationship with your siblings.

I have one sister. Her name is Cindy. She is 6 years younger than me. When we were little we would fight often. Today now that we are married and have children of our own we get along quite well. We live an hour away from each other but try to talk on the phone daily and once a month we try to get together with our children. We both belong to the MOMS club but in 2 different chapters. So recently we have been trying to get involved in each other's clubs with our children. My sister has one daughter, Amanda who will be 2 years old this month. My children are 8 months older than their cousin. They get along very well when we are together. I hope they remain friends and close for a long time.

Our personalities are very different. We are complete opposites. My sister is more like my mother very upbeat and I am more like my father very laid back. Because we are so different we can clash at times. We did, however, have this very distinct laugh or giggle that was very much the same for the longest time. Once I had the triplets my laugh faded away yet my sister still has that giggle and shows it often. Wish I could get back the laughter in my life I'm working on it.

Credits

My 3 Must Haves

Are there three products in your life that you just love (favorite scrapping designer? a cleaning product that does what it claims? or your favorite restaurant?)? Tell us about them! (Add links and maybe we'll decide we can't live without them either )

1. MOMS Club. At this very time in my life where I am raising terrible two triplets the MOMS Club has been a big life saver for me. I was going crazy being home with the children alone. Now, that I am a member of this club I now have things to do with them almost every day. There are tons of playdates that we can go to and I can actually talk to another human beings besides singing Barney and Elmo songs all day. They even have a MOMS Night Out that I like to attend once a month. It only costs like $20 for the year to join. You get a monthly calendar with morning and afternoon activities. You pick and choose what you want to do. There are regular play dates, parties, crafts, library activities, field trips all listed on the calendar. Plus, I have made a few friends and the children really enjoy playing with other children's toys. They are constantly asking me to go out.

2. Digital Scrapbook Place. I cannot live without this website. It is my creative output when the children are sleeping. I enjoy doing the challenges, taking classes, looking through the gallery to get ideas, and don't forget the shopping. The link I just posted is where I look the most to find out what is new in the store. Some of the designers have challenges where if you purchase their kits and you make a page you receive a posting bonus. Those are really fun because you are gaining tons of digital images along the way. There are a ton of digital scrapbooking websites but this one is the one where I frequently go to. It's my home away from home. Right now I am taking a class on journaling so be prepared to see more journaling on my layouts in the future.

3. Picasa. Since I have been digital scrapbooking I have been using this program to code all my files. It is the best. It organizes everything and is very quick when I need to find something to do a layout. I code everything by color, theme, element so when I need a particular item such as a red background, a red frame, a red tag, green eyelet, etc. I type in those key elements and presto all my files will pop up. If you plan on starting to digital scrapbook this is a great way to start organizing your files. This month I am taking a journaling class and have come a cross a font manager called The Font Thing. I haven't played around with it that much but just having the ability to see my fonts bigger has been a great start in helping me use more fonts then the ones I normally use.

Who Has Time?

Journaling reads:
Did you notice how many books I have of Nora Roberts? Have I read them? No! These books are books that I have collected over the years yet never had the chance to read them. One day I will eventually read again. Favorite authors: Nora Roberts, VC Andrews, Stephen King, Danielle Steel, and LaVyrle Spencer.

Credits

Digital Kit I Created

I belong to Saturday Night Live (SNL) - at Digital Scrapbook Place. Every month they have a theme and you create kits to share with others. This month the theme is wedding and the colors are purples and grays. Find out more about SNL here. Purple is my favorite color and pansies are my favorites too so I couldn't resist making a kit on pansies.

Changes

Spring always means change or growth. Any changes or growth going on in your life?


Well, for one thing, I am in the process of decluttering again. Read my next entry! Maybe, if I declutter and get rid of all this excess my life won't be so crazy, yeah, right? Who am I kidding? But really things would run more smoothly if I fine tuned my organization a little more. I won't forget about appointments. Missed some mothers night outings that I wanted to attend but lost track of days. I won't forget birthdays. Yes, this did happen just recently. I forgot my niece's birthday. I feel so awful about that. I will pay bills on time and not have to worry about the late fees. Maybe even cook meals if only I could preplan! Another major problem here is dinners! I am forever trying to figure out at the last minute what we will be eating. It's never ending problem. My recipes really need to be organized. I have them all over the place! Again more paper clutter! If only I knew what recipes were good and bad. There is a 50/50 chance you will like it once you make it. I like to try new recipes all the time but as I said maybe it won't come out good and then we are starving later. I'd also like to spend more time with my children and try to enjoy them rather than scream at them all day long because they are getting into something and messing up the house.

Are you a Filer or Piler?

Last week we had a guest speaker at the MOMS Club on organization. I was inspired again to get my act together and tackle some of my paper clutter that has been bothering me for quite some time now. Of course, I have other types of clutter but right now I'm focusing on the paper. The other day I bought a new file storage container from walmart along with some new file jackets (never heard of these until the speaker mentioned them at the meeting), and some manilla envelopes. The box I purchased was a stackable container and quite big so it did not fit under my desk that I indended it for. So I decided to just transport the files from the container I already have into this new box and store that in the basement. Start with a fresh new start and empty container.

The container that I was using to file the paid bills into was totally full. So much full that my fingers no longer were able to fit into it and I was getting so frustrated each time I had to file a bill. So for the past 3 or 4 months instead of filing my bills into the existing container I was stacking them up into a pile and putting a rubber band around them. Along with this pile I had magazines, recipes, layouts that I wanted to copy, christmas cards that I recieved from others, books that I had bought and other things that I have printed from the computer. The pile was getting so high that it was now hitting the light switch in the kitchen. So last night I sat down and tackled that pile along with the existing box and started transfering the files to the new box.

I also made up new folders such as one for the MOMS Club. Yes, I was starting to accumulate things from the MOMS Club such as members lists, phone numbers, directions, activity ideas, receipts and other things so now I have a folder designated for all this stuff.

I already had a oranization filing draw on my desk. It consists of 3 draws. One that I put bills that need to be paid, one draw has the business papers and the bottom draw has the paid information. I also have an inbox where I put magazines and mail as it comes into the house. (By the way, this box needs to be taken care of as it's piling high and needs to be emptied). I tried 15 minutes the other night to go through it and didn't even put a dent in it. That's how much stuff accumulates in my house.

As for the mail coming into the house. I've been trying so hard to sort and purge it as it comes in each day. Bills go into the have to be paid draw, business things go into their draw, magazines go into the basket at the door, most of the time I shred and throw out junk mail as it comes in but if I haven't had a chance to look through it then it gets put into that mail basket along with the magazines. I get tons of mail order catalogs as well that I immediately put into the recycle bin. I find if I don't open it up then I won't be tempted to purchase something so into the bin it goes.

I took this quiz at better homes and gardens and it says that I am a piler. My results by Kristen Finello. You tend to be a piler. You find that the maxim "Out of sight, out of mind" applies to you, so you prefer to keep things in plain sight so they don't get lost or forgotten. You're more likely to hang something on the refrigerator or a bulletin board than to put it in a drawer or cabinet because seeing it regularly jogs your memory. Remember: Piles aren't inherently evil -- they can be okay if they are specific enough -- but when a single pile grows to encompass everything from take-out menus to bank statements, things can get out of hand fast. The good news: You don't have to give up your piling tendencies. Instead, make your piles work for you. Individual piles of related materials (all expense receipts to be submitted, for instance) can be kept in nontraditional containers. Consider tools like baskets, trays, cubbies, and color-coded folders -- they'll appeal to your visual side, but also keep clutter at bay. And it's fine to keep important documents and files in your line of sight -- just contain them in a stairstep file or sorter so they're visible but not messy.

I also found this article Purge Those Papers: When to Toss Financial Records
Which important documents you should keep (and for how long)? Which can you toss? We have the answers. by Amy Debra Feldman
Okay, let's face it I am a pack rat. I save everything! However, there are times when I can't find something. I am in the process of giving each item a home to Live by the mantra "a place for everything and everything in its place." If you assign a spot for each paper, you'll know what to do with it. Indecision is a big cause of paper chaos.

Weekly Wrap Up

How about a weekly wrap up and also your plans for Easter weekend.

We had quite a busy week.

Saturday - We did the egg hunt in our town. My mom stayed over the night before so I could take the children. It was a bit hectic and there were so many children at the park. The egg hunt was divided into 4 age groups. They had a rope separating the people and at 10 am they opened up the rope. It was so busy that my children only got one egg each but there were a few children who got many and volunteered to give my children one or two of theirs which was really nice. The egg hunt was over in 5 minutes so very fast. It was really cold and windy. When we got home I colored some eggs and had the children decorate them with stickers while my mom was still around this was an easy activity for them to participate in. Maybe next year they can actually color the eggs.

Sunday - I think this was a pj day. Isn't it funny how there are times when I can't remember backwards. I'd have to check my calendar but I think we just stayed home this day. I try to plan days that we just do nothing. Yes, this is the day that DSP turned 3. I wound up scrapbooking all day. It was a lot of fun doing all the challenges and I got 5 pages done. I especially liked the plopper challenge as it was very fast and since I was scrapping while the children were playing I definitely need fast.

Monday - Swing, Sway Play at the library. The theme was water. So they did a rubber ducky dance with the song from Ernie from Sesame Street. Then they had these swans (plastic) on these sticks where the kids pretended that they were swimming in the lake (Swan Lake) and then after that she took the lake away and they flew in the air catching bubbles. My children always enjoy her classes.

Tuesday - We went to the MOMS club monthly meeting. While the children played with the other children they had a guest speaker on organization. It was very interesting and I kind of learned some things. I so need to get rid of this clutter in this house so my life would be much easier to manage. The one tip that he said was not to buy storage containers until you actually know how much and what you are going to store. I need to get a hold of the children's toys, the paper clutter and my recipes. So much to do and so little time to do it in.

Wednesday - We were supposed to do the egg hunt this day but because it rained we wound up staying home. My mother came and she stayed over night so she could help me with the children for the show on Thursday.

Thursday - We went to see Sesame Street live. My children just loved seeing elmo. We were sitting in the balcony. The tickets were only $12 each but it sure was hard to see. We went with the MOMS club where I organized getting the tickets. After the show we went out to lunch and celebrated my dad's 60th birthday.

Friday - Today we are doing the egg hunt with the MOMs club. I know I need to get moving as I'm running out of time and need to get there early so my children can get at least more than one egg.

Easter Plans - We are going to my parents house and yes my husband is actually going. He promised he'd take the day off. So I'm really looking forward to a family day.

Dad Turns 60

Credits

My Daughter Lost her Pants

My mom and I took the children to see Elmo live today. It was their first play and they were extremely excited to see Elmo. The theatre did not have any parking. We had to park in the parking garage located around the corner from the theatre and walk. It was brutally cold outside with very heavy winds. My mother was holding Victoria's and Justin's hand while crossing the main street. When they reached the middle of the street Victoria stopped and refused to go any further and started to scream, "Pants! Pants!." Her pants had fallen to her ankles while my mom continued to drag her across the street. When she reached the corner my mom and I were hysterically laughing. I looked up and even the people in the car waiting at the light were laughing. It was such a funny scene. The children did enjoy the show and continued to ask where Elmo was later in the day.

Overbooked

What do you do when you find yourself overbooked? Are you someone that pushes through and collapses at the end? Cancel out selectively and give yourself breathing room? Or maybe curl up in the fetal position and cry?

At first, I push through and collapse at the end. I try to do everything. I stay up late and some nights I don't go to sleep until 2 pm. Well, that's almost every night. Actually 2 nights ago I had to prepare dinner for passover. I actually stayed up till 4 and got up again at 7 to finish cooking. Did you count that? I had 3 hours of sleep. I don't do that all the time though. Then I still managed to take the children to MOMS club meeting. They had a speaker on organization which was very interesting. He was talking about getting rid of clutter. I so need to get rid of stuff. I think my major challenge now is children's toys and paper clutter. Sorry went on another subject there. Most nights I get 5 hours of sleep. I've been trying to cut back on my scrapbooking and try to go to bed at a decent hour. I also try to only put one activity on the calendar a day for the kids to do. I find if I put 2 activities I get worn out plus the kids get worn out too. Last night because we had company the kids went to bed at 9:30 which is way past their bed time and guess what they are still sleeping. We are supposed to do an egg hunt today but it's raining so they probably will postpone it till Friday. We still will go to an activity play date though. The children love going out and get upset when I tell them nothing is planned. But I do make non planned days as well just so I can relax a bit.

Letter of the Day is "A"

1. Apples. Well, of course, I had to use that word as that's the first thing the kids learn when they are learning the alphabet. Not only that today is the first day of passover and I've been cooking all night meals for the Seder and 2 recipes I made included apples. These recipes I have never made before so I'm hoping they are good. During passover we are not allowed to eat any breads, pasta or rice dishes for a week. We rely on Matzo to replace those ingredients. The recipes that I did make were Matzo Apple Kugel and Haroset for Passover. Haroset is an apple dish that you spread on Matzo. It is a very sweet dish. There were 9 apples total in both those recipes. I feel like I've been peeling and chopping all night.

2. April. The fourth month of the year. Wow, is it really April already? Time sure flies. It feels like January was just here. What am I doing in April? Well, you could not imagine my schedule of activities this month. The calendar is jam packed with fun things for the kids to do. Some of the weekends are free but the weekdays there is something to do every day. Most of the activities will be either play dates or library activities. We also will be seeing Elmo live this week. I already told the kids about this and, of course, they are asking me when they are going. My dad, my grandmother and my 2 nieces all have birthdays in April.

3. Apron. Okay, why didn't I put my apron on when I was cooking? I stained my shirt again. I am always forgetting that I own an apron. The one that I have is from Williams-sonoma and is a mint green color. If only I could remember to wear it while cooking maybe it would save some of my clothing from getting ruined.

4. Accountant. This is on my mind because I mailed my paperwork to my accountant for our taxes on March 1 and I have called numerous times to see if our taxes are ready. Still they are not done. Yes, I'm starting to panic since they are due April 15. I do not like to wait till the last moment that's why I mailed them in early. Okay, now need to think about something else so I don't get stressed out more.

5. Arthritis. I have arthritis in my hands. Yes, I'm in my late 30's and developed this condition. There are times when I can't squeeze my hands for a very long time. My hands start to hurt if I use them for too long. For example: using a paper punch or scissor for a very long period of time can be very painful. There are also times when I can't open a jar because of this condition.

6. Attitude. "Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day." Author unknown

"If you don't like something change it: If you can't change it, change the way you think about it." Mary Engelbreit

"Life is a shipwreck but we must not forget to sing in the lifeboats." Voltaire

"Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things." Robert Brault

"It's so hard when I have to, and so easy when I want to." Annie Gottlier

ATTITUDE IS EVERYTHING

I have to have a positive attitude to make it through the days. Most days I am treading water just counting the moments to bedtime. Raising triplets on my own is really hard work. People ask me, "How do you do it?" My answer is, "I just do. I have no choice, I just do what I need to do day after day." Most days it is just work. I've been trying more lately to enjoy what I am doing. A hug and a kiss from the little ones or just a smile from their face makes it all worth it in the end.

7. Always

Understanding

Naturally

Terrific

(I saw this on an old coffee cup at a garage sale)

My sister has one daughter, Amanda. My Sister-in-law has both a daughter, Alexa, and a son, Jonathan. I have 2 nieces and one nephew. I see Amanda pretty often at least once a month. Alexa and Jonathan I see less often mainly at holidays.

8. August. August is a big month around here. It's the month that the triplets celebrate their birthday. This year they will be three. Where has the last 3 years gone? The first year we had a big party at a hall with Barney and an ice cream truck. The 2nd year we had a ladybug theme. I actually had live ladybugs for their party. They loved it. I stored them in my refrigerator before the party. Of course, my husband thought I was crazy as I had 5,000 of them in my fridge. I dressed the girls up in red dresses that had black dots on them and my son wore black and red as well. I had made up a pin the dot on the lady bug for one of the games and they had a pinata shaped like a lady bug. In less than 6 months we will be celebrating their 3rd birthday. What theme should I choose? If you have any suggestions please comment because I have no clue at this time. I like to plan months in advance so I can research and get lots of ideas ready for their party.

9. Autumn. This is my 2nd favorite season. Spring is my first because I like the warm weather. However, Autumn I like because of the colors. It is so beautiful to see the trees change colors. Of course, I hate when the leaves fall down and you have to clean them up. I remember as a child my parents always volunteered me to rake. I so hated this job. It could be why I don't like to garden.

10. Always. I consistently have to pick toys up from the kitchen floor. This really annoys me. I will pick the toys up and then 2 seconds later another toy will find it's way into the kitchen. I am at the point where I'm throwing things away because I just get fed up from bending down and putting things away. I continuously ask the children to pick up or clean up and they are always telling me, "No" or don't even move from where they are playing. I just don't know why I even bother any more. I just hate stepping on a toy and hurting my foot. The worst thing I have ever stepped on was their alphabet magnets. They have this plastic handle on them and man when you step on it your foot really hurts.

Make a Wish

Blow out the candles and make a wish!

What did you wish for and why?

Well, there are many things I could have wished for but today at this very moment there is only one thing on my mind. It could be that it's 8:25 am and I just woke up. I have to get ready to leave for the library. We are going to Swing, Sway, Play today. The children love this because they get to dance and use musical instruments. It's a really fun activity for them. Oh, yeah, I forgot to say what I wished for. My wish was for my husband to spend some quality time with me and the children as a family. Lately, he's been working 24/7 and hardly has a chance to bond with the children. It's very sad and breaks my heart that he hasn't been able to bond with the children for the past 2 years because of his work. Victoria now points to every man and says, "Daddy?" I respond with, "No, honey, that's a man. He is not your daddy." They are growing up fast. I still can't believe how they are not babies any more. Where did the time go? My husband works from home, however, we hardly ever see him. My children are always asking, "Where is Daddy?" and I'm always saying, "He went to work." Lately, their response is, "Oh, okay" and then they go back to playing or eating. Last night my husband asked me, "What is your schedule tomorrow?" He never asks me what I am doing. I normally tell him the night before what we are doing. I can't give him my schedule for the entire week because he forgets. I do have the calendar filled with things that I am doing for the week so he can always look there. This time he sounded interested like he wanted to attend with us. So I asked, "Why do you want to come join us?" His normal response is always, "You know I have to work" but this time he said, "I have off and maybe I'll attend with you. What time do you need to leave?" Okay, I was shocked but did respond with, "10:45 am." He then said, "Well, if I'm up that early." I totally will be shocked if he does attend but I'm really not getting my hopes up because then I just get disappointed if he doesn't come. I hope and pray every day that he would attend something with us. Not only to help me out with the children but to spend some quality time with them. He's still sleeping now but it's still early. We have 2 hours before we have to leave so I'm going to make my wish and leave you with a quote.

The future is full of doubt, indeed, but fuller still of hope. - John Lubbock

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