ABC Meme

Found this on one of the blogs I frequent & thought it was kind of neat...

ABC, Easy as 123 ~


A is for age: mid-30's

B is for burger of choice: bacon cheesburger

C is for what kind of car you drive: Ford Windstar

D is for your dog's name: not applicable!

E is for essential item you use everyday: currently, it's my computer; when I'm not pregnant & it's not broken it would be my coffee maker!

F is for favorite TV show at the moment: Lost

G is for favorite game: Apples to Apples (played for the 1st time the other day)

H is for HomeState: Ohio

I is for instruments you play: flute & piano

J is for favorite juice: pineapple or pomegranate

K is for whose butt you'd like to kick: not so much a particular person, but how about those who smoke in their cars w/ their kids in the backseat?

L is for last restaurant you ate at? Boston Market w/ Casiondad

M is for your favorite Muppet: Kermit the Frog

N is for Number of Piercing: three per ear, although I don't wear earrings very often anymore

O is for overnight hospital stays: Currently at 3 w/ childbirths; will be 4 towards the end of the summer

P is for people you were with today: my munchkins

Q is for what you do with your quiet time: Read or nap

R is for biggest regret: can't think of anything at the moment - everyhing that's happened in my life is for a reason

S is for status: happily married, SAHM

T is for time you woke up today: about 7:30

U is for what you consider unique: each one of us

V is for vegetable you love: red peppers

W is for worst habit: yelling when I'm upset

X is for x-rays you've had: dental, ankle, numerous ultrasounds, CT scan for my gall bladder five years ago

Y is for yummy food you ate today: leftover meatloaf from last night (it actually held together for once!)

Z is for zodiac sign: Pieces (sp?)

What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

The boys & I were just having a discussion on what they want to be when they grow up. The Archangel said that he wants to be a builder. I told him that they could go into the construction business together & have the "xx Brothers Building Company." The Prophet said that he's not sure he still wants to be a builder, but may want to work on the streets making music. I told them that they are only five & seven, so they have plenty of time to decide what to be when they grow up. I then said that I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. The Prophet said, "You're already a grown-up!" I asked if he was sure & gave him a sly grin. Then The Archangel said, "You're a kid for God!"

The Prophet's Gift

Last Friday, Casinodad took the day off work so that he & I could spend the day together. The Archangel & The Princess went to my parents' house for the day & The Prophet went to Casinodad's parents'. His mom was going to bring The Prophet home around 9pm, but called my cell phone about 7 saying they'd need to bring him home early because Casinodad's sister was ill & they were going to take her to the ER. We were still at my parents' so we just left & picked him up since their house was on our way home.

Earlier that day, we had stopped at a tent sale on the way to my parents' house & each of the munchkins picked out a small toy. The Prophet picked out some weird looking robot type toy that lit up & shook when the button was pressed. He loved that toy & talked about it all morning. That night when we picked him up, he said that he had given it to his aunt because she didn't feel well. He said that he told his grandma that giving was his gift from God. We were so proud of him & called my parents right away to share the story with them.

Sunday morning, as we were getting ready for church, my mom called & asked if my dad could use that story in his homily that day. (For those of you who don't know - my dad has been the deacon at our church for over 25 years.) His gift of giving fit right in w/ the readings for the Feast of the Body & Blood of Christ. I asked The Prophet & he said sure.

At Mass later, he was beaming from ear to ear when Grandpa shared his story. The Archangel looked up at me & said, "That's about The Prophet, isn't it? Will he tell a story about me too?" I said I was sure he would sometime. Well sure enough, he ended his homily with the story of The Prophet giving his tooth fairy money to his brother because The Archangel hadn't lost any teeth yet.

Peace, munchesmom

Casinodad's Monster Type

You Are A Vampire

You have a real thirst for bliss, and you consider yourself a true hedonist. And you're not afraid to walk alone in life, if it means getting what you truly crave. You truly enjoy entrancing people. Not to mention the ensuing pleasures of the flesh. Your tastes have been called decadent and bizarre. You usually give in to your temptations, no matter how primal Your greatest power: Your flawless ability to seduce and charm Your greatest weakness: Human flesh You play well with: Werewolves

What Kind of Monster Are You?

It fits me!

You Are a Werewolf

You're unpredictable, moody, and downright freaky. You seem sweet and harmless, until you snap. Then you're a total monster. Very few people can predict if you're going to be Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde. But for you, all your transformations seem perfectly natural. Your greatest power: Your ability to tap into nature Your greatest weakness: Lack of self control You play well with: Vampires

>http://www.blogthings.com/whatkindofmonsterareyouquiz/">What Kind of Monster Are You?

Yep, that seems to fit me these days! My hormones seem to be out of control w/ this pregnancy so Casinodad never knows what kind of mood I'll be in when he comes home from work. I've gone from loving & caring to total anger to downright sobbing at times. The tiniest things can set me off & I don't like myself changing so quickly. I used to say that one of the kids had a Jekyll & Hyde personality - now I know where it came from!

Have a great week!
Peace, Munchesmom

More of a Bargain

Went to the other consignment shop today & what a great trip it was! First of all, we dropped off our items. It was going to be about two hours so we ran a few errands. When we got back, I decided to look around the store first for the items I wanted to purchase. After about 45 minutes & some excellent behavior on the munchkins' parts, I took them up front. They offered $46.50 for the items they wanted. Wow! That was much more than I expected. The 14 items I wanted to purchase (2 pairs of shorts for The Princess, 2 T-shirts for The Archangel, 2 pairs of shorts & a T-shirt for The Prophet, & 7 outfist for Baby #4, including a Christmas outfit for him) came to $34 - I got money back!!! On the way out, the munchkins saw a video that we used to get at the library. It is no longer there so I told them I'd buy it for them, since they were so good (& it was only $2).

I think it helped that one of our items was a Classic Winnie the Pooh crib bedding set. The other shop didn't take bedding unless it was a specific brand. Why, you're asking, did we sell a crib bedding set when we have another baby on the way? Well, this time around, we don't have the space to set up the full size crib. We have decided that Baby #4 will use a travel size crib that my parents have. It will fit perfectly in the second closet we have in our bedroom. Yes, we're putting him in a closet, but we're taking the doors off & I will be putting up wall decorations for him. Once he's a bit older, we'll get bunk beds for the two older boys & move the baby to their room or move all the boys to the master bedroom & we'd take the next largest room. We put a lot of thought into this & really feel this is the best we can do at this time. With the housing market the way it is, there's no way we'd be able to sell the house at the moment.

Peace, munchesmom

What a Bargain!!

After we had the Princess we thought we were done. In an effort to reduce clutter & make some money, we sold or gave away most of the baby clothes we'd had, keeping only the really adorable ones we couldn't part with. Now that we are about to welcome baby #4 into our household, we're realizing that he will need something to wear. I went through a bunch of the Princess's outgrown clothes, filled up a kitchen size trash bag & took them to a local children's consignment shop. They will pay on the spot for the items or give you a bit more in store credit. I opted for the store credit. They only took a handful of the items & offered me $12.50 in store credit. For what they took I thought it was a fair deal. After the store credit & a $5 coupon I had, I only had to pay 20 cents for the clothes I picked out. Not bad for six baby outfits, two of them still in their original packaging!

Next stop will be to take the rest of the items to another consignment shop & do the same. It's in a different area of town & is a different store chain, so hopefully they'll take some also. I don't (& didn't) expect to sell all of the items we had, but any little bit helps!

Less than three months to go before my due date & I feel huge already. This pregnancy has definitely been the toughest on my old body - taking into consideration the fact that I already have three munchkins under the age of seven, I'm working two days a week, & I am a bit older than the last pregnancies. I have big spider & varicose veins on my right leg. They don't hurt unless I'm on my feet for too long. Also, I don't know if my stretchmarks can stretch any further. I have one that is a bit sore. Is it possible to have stretchmarks on your strechmarks?!?!?

Casinodad has been a great help. He's been getting things for me when I need them, making sure I rest as much as possible, & just been great at taking care of me. He's such a wonderful man & I am truly blessed to have him in my life!

Another Birthday!

The Archangel turned five on April 18. Wow! I just can't believe how fast these munchkins are growing! We had family over for cake & ice cream. This year we went w/ a festive style cake for him. I used a white cake mix & spread colored frosting overtop, following that up w/ colored sprinkles & balloon shaped candles. For added decor, The Prophet loaned him a couple of his knight Legos. Now, for the color of the frosting...I saw on the cake mix box that you can add a Kool-Aid packet to a can of frosting for color & flavor. What a neat idea! So, I let The Archangel pick out his flavor - Tropical Punch. Okay, now here is where your color skills come in - when you add a red colored Kool-Aid mix to white frosting what color do you get? Oops, it's pink...for a boy's birthday cake. So, I added a lot of red food coloring. Still didn't get a complete red, but it was not so pink anymore. Once the sprinkles & other decorations were on it, it wasn't too bad & he really liked it. Tasted pretty good, too!

He got a lot of really nice gifts. He's starting to get into Legos more, so he ended up getting four different sets that he was very pleased with. My parents got him a neat child's laptop that he likes to use, especially when in the van. He also got some activity books, which he really loves, some books, an umbrella, some games, & clothes. Overall, I think he really liked his birthday presents & the time spent w/ the family.

Also, a big event for him was signing up for his own library card. I know the library lets them sign up at a younger age, but I decided that five was a good time for each of the munchkins. He was so excited & couldn't wait to check out his books using his very own card.

His five year check up at the doctor's office was quite an ordeal. He was due for not one, not two, but four shots! He's not one to like them at all so he cried throughout most of his appointment & wouldn't cooperate w/ the doctor. Usually when there are two or more shots, two nurses come in & do them at the same time so that they go quicker. He is also a kicker, so we had the two nurses giving the shots on either leg, another holding his legs, & I was holding his arms while trying to comfort him at the same time. Wow!

Happy Birthday to my Little Man!

The Week of Field Trips

Since last Tuesday, we have taken three field trips. The first was a trip to a local working historical farm with our homeschool group. They had a special program for homeschoolers to celebrate Earth Day, unfortunately, we didn't get to stay for that portion as The Archangel had his five year checkup at the doctor. We did, however, get to walk through the house, see lots of farm animals, take corn kernels off the cob & grind them up, swing & play w/ old fashioned wooden toys. The munchkins had a great time other than The Archangel's constant complaints about the smells. He has such a sensitive nose.

Two days later, we took a trip to the zoo with a friend & her children. Our zoo membership expired yesterday so it was nice to have one last trip using it. Our first stop was the aquarium, one of my favorites. I just love to watch the fish swim around. It's so peaceful, even w/ the chaos of children all around! The manatees are in the building next door to the aquarium. Usually I like to see them too, but this time the water seemed to be quite cloudy & only one of the manatees could be seen for just a brief time. From there we had lunch then went to the boat ride. I had never been on it before & really enjoyed it.

Overall, the munchkins had a really nice time, other than The Princess getting tired & cranky towards the end. The Archangel & my friend's daughter held hands as they walked through the zoo while The Prophet & her son skipped around together. Our local zoo has undergone so many changes since I was a child & there's always something new to see.

Yesterday, we met my sister & her kids at our local Kroger for a grocery store tour. A family friend works there & when I told her that I homeschooled the munchkins she was so excited & said that she gives tours to school groups. All the kids got to "clock in" to be employees for a while. They got to see so much: the storage area in the back of the store, the dock where items are delivered, how the bailer worked to crush cardboard boxes, & lots of other stuff. At the bakery, they each received their own hair nets & aprons. They were even able to be cashiers & check out some items. Once done, she asked if everyone liked the items they were scanning (fruit snacks, alphabet cookies, pretzels, & juices). Of course they all did, so she told them that she had prepared little snack bags for each of them.