Christmas Time

Well December is here and the Not so Perfect Momma has just about had it! Christmas time has always been a huge deal to me, If you remember Christmas Vacation I guess you could say that I am a lot like Clark. I always get these Bigger than life ideas and when they don't quiet pan out I get somewhat bummed.

I tell myself every year that I am not going to "over-do" the Christmas decorations, but once again I did. 10 years ago it would have taken me 1 day to get the job done - this year it was a 3 day ordeal! Remind me to ask Santa for some Icy Hot for my arthritis and a new heating pad for my aching back!

Jeff thinks I am nuts because we have 3 trees, (I tend to agree with him) We have one downstairs (real tree with the hallmark ornaments) and 2 upstairs, (the artificial tree that my parents gave me that we have had since I was 2 (sentimental) and then a smaller tree that I call the "vacation tree" - we only put the ornaments we get from vacations on this tree.

The house is all decorated and things look pretty good but things just haven't been working out like the vision in my head .... Jeff had to work so I decided to take the girls to get our real tree. I wanted to go someplace different so off we went. I got lost and could not find the place I wanted to go but eventually we ran into a tree farm. I said to Abby, we can get a tree that is already cut or we can go find one and cut it. Abby says lets go cut one Momma! Off we go on a 1 mile hike to find that perfect tree, hiking through the mud and cold with Abby and her 3 year old sister, As soon as I find that perfect tree Abby says, "Momma, I'm cold, lets just get one that's already cut! :(

Another problem this year is what to buy the girls for Christmas. I have asked Abby (6yrs old) what she wants and she has said on numerous occasions that she wants a Big T-Rex that will roar in her face and a computer with a high screen resolution. Yes, she actually knows what that is! Caroline is easy... Mickey Mouse and Dora and Diego make her happy. I hate the thought of getting legos, the Toy Story one has 620 pieces!!!!!! I might try and get some of that moon dough, it has to be better than play dough or moon sand! I have gone several places to get Caroline the Weeble Wobble tree house and they are sold out - I have never had this much trouble trying to spend my money!!!

Now the one thing that I have been really excited about is taking the girls to the Polar Express Train Ride. I also got tickets for my mom and dad thinking they would really love it too. Now - I paid big $$$ for these tickets only to find out that they (Mom) don't want to go. I offered to pick them up because they stress over snow and ice.. but No... Do you think my mom would mind too much if I just strapped her to the roof of my SUV like I did the tree??? ;) Just kidding!

Well it is the day after Christmas. (I started this post several weeks ago and am now just finishing up) Christmas was very Good! I Love spending time with the Family! Now I am glad it is over and I will be even more excited when all of the decorations are put up. I am also excited because after spending at least 6 hours trying to put together a doll house with a zillion screws and bolts I can say that this was the last year that Santa is bringing anything that requires major assembly on my part.

I say that Christmas was good and it was... but it has also been a sad 2 days for me. I lost a friend in a car wreck Christmas Eve night and this has just weighed heavy on my heart. I had only known her for 12 years but she left me with some great memories. We use to work night-shift together and shared so many laughs, she hosted my first baby shower, and was just a really special lady that will be missed dearly.

Blogger would not let me load anymore pictures so when I get this issue figured out I will add the pictures. Sorry. Hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!! Thanks for reading :)

Abby did get her Dino and Caroline seemed Happy with her stuff too :)

It would not be right not to share Christmas with the Griswolds :)

Crazy

Well it has been awhile since my last post. Things have been kind of CRAZY with work, the kids, the house, birthday parties, Halloween, and family get togethers ... plus I can't seem to think of anything interesting or worth while to write about.

When I say that things have been crazy- here is a good example - I started getting gray hair when I turned 21 (so not fair!) Anyway, I am what you call a very low maintenance woman. I do love going to have my hair done or to get manicures and pedicures but I just can't seem to find the time and it is way down on my priority list. Right before bed the other night I looked in the mirror and said to myself - "You need to color your hair, It is really bad !" My problem area is right above my forehead... I found a small tube of dark brown mustache coloring so I thought I would just dab a little on where I needed it and rinse it out and go to bed. When I woke up I just about #*@! Picture this... light brown hair with a Black triangle right in the middle of your head. ( Wish I had a picture ) OMG! I had 1 hour to fix this problem before I left for work plus I had to feed both girls, dress myself and Abigail for school, pack her lunch, and walk her to the bus stop. Luckily I had a box of hair coloring but I still was pressed for time. Don't know how but I managed to pull it off.

Halloween was fun! It was the first time that Jeff did not have to work so he was able to go trick-or-treating with us, which made my job a lot easier!

The day before Abigail had a dress-up day at school and she wanted to go as Cinderella. She was such a pretty princess! I was at work and right in the middle of a CT scan when I received "The Call" "The Call" that no mother ever wants to get - "You're daughter has had an accident on the playground and we need you to come to the school to see if she needs stitches" I am so thankful that I work right across the street from the school. She did not need any medical attention other than an ice pack but my little princess had a major fat lip!

Before and After

Now that Halloween is over and Thanksgiving is almost here It is time for me to start thinking about Christmas. I Love Christmas !!!! But there is so much work involved and I get so stressed over it. I am doing better this year because I got an early start on buying presents. I still don't really know what I am going to get the girls. I asked my "princess" and she said she wanted a big dinosaur that will roar in her ear and a computer with a high screen resolution (she is 6) my little one just wants Mickey Mouse .... wish me luck!

Things I LOVE (A-Z)

THINGS I LOVE (A-Z)

A - Abigail

B - Babies.. I just love them! Their tiny hands and feet and even their smell

C - Caroline

D - Donkeys - We have 3 mini-donkeys and I love them!

E - Eating out at nice restaurants

F - Fried Chicken - When its done right there is nothing that tastes better.

G - Games (board) - Scrabble, monopoly, Trivial Pursuit...

H - Hiking - one of my favorite things to do.

I - Irish stuff. Anything involving Ireland..

J - Jeff

K - Kids (mine) The sound of them playing outside together.

L - Laying out on the beach with music (Buffet) and drinks (Corona)

M - Mountains

N - New Nike shoes and socks.

O - Ocean

P - parents (Mine) They are the most loving and giving people I know.

Q - Queen (Dairy Queen that is ) Peanut Buster Parfait

R - Rocky Mountains

S - Snicker bars (They are my worst enemy, but I love them!)

T - Tootsies bar in Nashville, TN - Jeff and I always have the best time there.

U - University of Indiana (IU) Campus

V - Vacations

W - Wings (BW3)

X - Xrays - They help give me a paycheck every week.

Y - Youth - Why did I ever wish to be older ???

Z - Zoo (Taking the kids)

Keeping along with the subject of things I love... Our family does not eat out very much. We try and fix the girls healthy meals and like to stay away from the fast food. However, sometimes it is good to let a kid be a kid and yesterday I got the girls Happy Meals. If you have not been to Mcdonalds in awhile they have changed their Happy Meals to always include the apples and much smaller portions of fries. They are so cute!!! I have to admit I was surprised at how many fries made up 100 calories.... Not many!

A-Z (Things I Hate)

I guess I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed today thanks to my beloved TV. I turned the TV on and the first thing I saw was the creepy Burger King Guy! Then I was flipping channels and I saw Nancy Pelosi (scream), then I made it to the E channel and they were doing a Kardashian marathon (seriously), MTV had a Justin Bieber video playing and then my go to channel- the food network, had Emeril Lagasse on and he was humming!!!! I turned off the TV and tried to go back to bed but the more I thought about it the more pissed off I became... Now you have -

Tammy's Hate List A-Z

A - Amazing - This has to be the most over-used word, drives me crazy!! Thank you Jeff for pointing this out to me :)

B - Burger King Clown -

C - Cancer - The worst word I know!

D - Drugs - Since I work in health care I see so much enabling and abuse... It is really going to hurt all of us in the end if something does not change.

E - Emeril Lagasse - I use to love this man with his BAM, but then all of a sudden he can't cook without humming, what is up with that???

F - Food and Fat - I Love food and now I am fat ... so for today I hate food.

G - Gilbert Gottfried - The voice just drives me nuts!

H - Hair - I always have issues!!!

I - Icy roads - I hate driving on ice, I am the worst at it.

J - Justin Bieber and Rev. Jesse Jackson - With Justin, I just don't get it... Jesse?? what church is he affiliated with?? Please just go away!

K - Kardashian family - Again, I just don't get it.

L - Lamb - Have never liked the taste. Yuck!

M - Mice - They will always creep me out!

N - Nancy Pelosi - Just look at her!

O - Obama and Oprah -I use to love Oprah! I am still interested in her "favorite things" (sorta) just wish celebrities would keep their mouths shut when it comes to politics

P - Paris Hilton - All of that money, what a waste!

Q - Q-doba - This was a hard letter to find something to hate... I don't hate Q-doba, but all of their food does taste the same.

R - Rosie O'donnell - If I could just punch 1 person in the face... it might be her.

S - Spam - The food product and mail form.

T - Texting while driving - Hate it! If I was a cop I would be arresting people left and right!

U - UK Basketball coach John Calipari - Yes I am an IU fan! But he buys his players, he cheats and the man has zero integrity!

V - Vodka - Goes back to my college days :/

W - Welfare - I could write a book on this subject. Quit looking for a hand out and get a damn job!!!

X - X Factor - Again, another hard letter... but I guess I can blame this show for taking Simon Cowell away from American Idol, I really don't think the show will do well without him.

Y - Yanni - I am sorry but he is just a turd!

Z - Zumba - I have no rhythm, I can't dance, therefore I can't zumba.

God Bless the Teachers

The other day I was riding in a school bus with about 20 kindergarten kids, 2 teachers, and 8 chaperones. It was the first field trip of the year and we were going to an apple orchard and pumpkin patch. All in all it was a fun trip but on the bus ride home I could not stop thinking about stuff....

I need an aspirin, My head is killing me!

Our teachers are way under-paid!

Why is Everything sticky?

Being a bus driver would suck!

My mom and dad were saints.

Wish we could have toured the winery too.

Lunch time is not fun with so many needy kids!

I wish I had a dollar for every shoe I tied today.

Did I have this much energy as a kid?

The Octomom is a nut!!!

Kate plus 8 is a nut!!!

I Hate noise!!!!!!!!

The bus ride home seemed to take forever! It wasn't until I over heard 2 boys fighting over who had the biggest pumpkin and then watching as several apples rolled down the aisle that I smiled because I almost decided along time ago to become and teacher... There has to be a place in Heaven for all of the really good teachers out there! God Bless you all!!!

Corn Dogs, Cotton Candy and Crap

This weekend in Salem is our towns Big annual Old Settlers Days. Every year we seem to miss it because of vacation or work and this year is no exception... I have to Work.

Friday night they have what is called -Friday Night on the Square, Jeff had to work but I decided to take the girls myself.

What was I thinking???

First of all I was tired! I had just worked 10 hours and I had to get up very early the next morning to work a 12 hour shift. But, I wanted the girls to have a good time on a Friday night... plus I heard that the Lion's Club fish sandwich was pretty good ;)

While we were there I ran into several friends that I had not seen in awhile which was great talking to all of them ! The girls wanted their faces painted so thats how we started out. After that we just started to walk and then some lady came up to us and asked the girls if they wanted to go on a scavenger hunt and if they did they would win a prize (CRAP!) We did lap after lap around the town square searching for the things they needed ... My purse had all kinds of "crap" hanging out of it that the girls had collected along the way and when we had finished each girl got a 50 cent water bottle. I swear I would have paid $50 to have just bypassed all of the "hunt" But, the girls had fun and that is what is important, right??? Now momma wanted a fish sandwich. Both girls were hungry and the Fish line was way too long so we ended up standing in line for 30 minutes for corn dogs and cotton candy.

At this point I could not have been more miserable... I was pushing one of those cheap baby strollers where one wheel would not roll right, my purse was packed to the limit and I was trying to push the stroller with one arm and carry a drink, corn dog, and cotton candy in the other and then the girls balloons were hitting me in the face so I couldn't see and then all of a sudden I roll-over a corn dog with only 1 bite missing. Then I hear Caroline start crying... You guessed it! I gave her the rest of mine and some cotton candy and she was Happy again. Momma, on the other hand was not too happy... I was sticky, tired, and still had to try to make it 4 blocks to the car and then get them home and get the paint off their faces. UGH! They both loved all of their "crap" so I guess thats a good thing.

2 very happy - face-painted-sticky girls!

Men are from Mars!

Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus

Until I got married I never gave this notion a thought. I waited until I was 34 to get married and lived "Happily" alone with my beloved Siamese cat for 12 years after graduating from college. I say "Happily" because for the most part I was happy - I loved being able to come and go as I please, the TV was all mine, the bed was all mine, and most importantly... the house was just the way I like it, - CLEAN! However, I did know that I did not want to end up the old maid cat lady! I wanted a life partner and someone to raise a family and grow old with. I really had no idea how different men and women really were. I always considered myself a "tomboy" ~ I loved sports and always had a good time with the guys so I figured an easy transition, WRONG!

The other day I had just finished cleaning the house. I took a shower, I was in a great mood (the house clean mood) and went to the kitchen and I swear I wanted to throw the toaster at Jeff! He had fixed himself a PBJ sandwich and the entire counter top was a mess... jelly smeared, toasted bread crumbs all over, and the peanut butter and jelly were left out along with the knife he used. Now not in a million years would I ever do that. The problem is he just does not get it, he has no clue why I would be upset over that...

Another difference...

Jeff will spend big bucks on some big boy toy he wants but refuses to pay someone to service the furnace or change the oil in his car. He will risk his life every year climbing around on the roof or sweeping the chimney to save a buck, He is a great cook but does the kitchen always have to look like a war zone when we are eating his dinner? And... there are good movies out there that do not involve war, fighting, guns, and topless women, right? Is a hunting rifle more valuable than a longaberger basket or shoes? I am a member of the NRA and I go to gun shows, auctions, history museums... One day Jeff will take me to the Longaberger factory and the Covered Bridge Festival! I will keep telling myself this....

Don't get me wrong... I am very happy that Jeff is a mans man. He is rough and tough and I love him that way... but he is from Mars!

Rock Stars!

I guess a better title for this would be Tammy's random thoughts on the month of August. I mean seriously where did the month go??? I am no longer working full-time - but for some reason this month I put in full-time hours. It has just been a really chaotic month for me! I guess I did not expect all of the added "mommy" duties that would come my way once Abby started school. There is just not enough time in the day!

The best thing about the month of August is that Jeff no longer has to go online at Diapers.com and put in our order!!! Caroline is officially potty trained :) I wish I would have taken a picture of the closet, but you know when you are pregnant and you are in that "nesting" mode of cleaning ... well Jeff did his "nesting" by stocking up the walk-in closet with Diapers and formula. Diapers ranging from Newborn- 4T stacked to the ceiling along with the formula. What was so funny is that when he needed to re-order he would use a different mailing address to get the 15% off for first time orders ~ I think every family member and neighbor received a box of diapers at some point during our 6 year diaper run :)

This month I was also able to get together with my best friend of 24 years. Sadly, we don't get together as much as we use to because of our busy family life now, but when we do find the time it is always filled with laughs and we do get CRAZY ! We decided to bring the men along and stay in Indy for the weekend. My friends name is also Tammy. We met as freshmen at IU and just had some of the best times together. She is my one friend that no matter how long we go without seeing each other we can get together and it seems as though we were still roomates back in college together and nothing has changed.

My best friend Tammy and Me

Our evening started out with the good stuff.. St. Elmos Shrimp Cocktail and then our Favorite - Pizza and Beer

Our plans were the first night to just go out to dinner and then go bar hopping. Let me tell you - My mind was all geared up to drink like a college kid. Jeff and I were both way over due for a night out and I had a "game plan" and it was to pace myself but -DRINK. I added the pace in there because with having the kids I really don't drink very much at all anymore and I didn't want to be the first one out . To tell you the truth the first 2 beers were good, after that I just wanted a coke. We all ended up back at our hotel and were just going to go in a freshen up (it was only 9:30pm) To myself I was thinking - "man that bed looks good with that big tv" but I was also thinking "geez girl, they are going to think you are so lame - get yourself together and lets go party"

so this is what I find when we go to get them to go "party"

Its nice to know that you are not the only one who can't party like a "rock star" anymore :)

*** Kudos to both of them -because when I said " You guys ready to party?" They both popped up and were ready :)

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Size 2 Jeans !?!

God bless all of the Mothers out there who can put on their happy mommy face and smile and (pretend??) that being responsible for their family and taking care of day to day business is easy and fun. I try not to cuss, but ... Bullshit!!!! I know I am not the only one out there that feels this way. It is not easy and the work definitely out weighs the fun. Why are there so many moms out there that can prance around town holding their kids hands - hair fixed just perfect, lipstick on and not smeared, make-up and clothes just right, - and the biggest thing... they have a huge smile on their face !!! How is this possible???

When I first became pregnant I read so many books, What to Expect When You are Expecting, The Toddler Years.. What to Expect ... I must have skipped over the Books titled - Expect Complete Exhaustion or If You are 40- Lordy Lordy! and Having 2 Girls? Expect it ALL!

I thought that by waiting until I was almost 40 to have a family would be the best thing for me. I wanted to get all of the "foolishness" out of me and wanted to make sure I was READY to take on such a big responsibility. I never in a million years thought it would be so hard and so "all-consuming" (is that even a word?)

Anyway, I just really have a tremendous amount of respect for all of those mothers who can keep it all together and take good care of their families and put their children first and keep that smile on their face :) I know I am a good mom! And I have that smile on my face about 90% of the time... But there are days when we all go out and I have got the girls looking really cute and Jeff is looking good and he will load the girls in the car and we are pressed for time and I am rushing around trying not to forget anything - my arms are full of "kid stuff", my purse is dangling around my neck, I am also carrying my shoes to put on in the car , things are falling out of my hands as I try to get into the car - we get to where we are going and I look a mess and then the first thing I see is a young mother dressed in size 2 jeans with high heels on looking very nice with 2 or 3 kids... and she is smiling! Enough Said!

The Wheels on the Bus go Round and Round...

This has been a very Busy week filled with much anxiety on my part. Abigail started Kindergarten this week! Last year if you would have asked me I would have told you that I was ready for her to go to school... but now I wish I could keep her home with me!

Monday night was a welcome night at the school where you get to see the classroom and meet the teacher. I really liked the teacher, she seemed very nice and very professional, which I really liked. She handed out a notebook that went over a lot of the things they would be doing and all of a sudden it hit me that Abigail was growing up whether I liked it or not... tears filled my eyes! It was overwhelming to say the very least !

Her first day of school we took her to her classroom. She loved it and was very excited. When I picked her up the teacher said she did great so that always makes you feel good. I really wanted to take and pick up Abby from school but she was really wanting to ride the bus. After picking her up and having to deal with all of the traffic and chaos I decided to let her try out the bus. OMG ~ I would have died if my mother would have done this > I followed the bus to school. The bus goes through the country and I just wanted to see the route and to make sure she knew how to get to her classroom from the bus. I am just glad the police didn't come for me! :) Anyway, I am glad I did that because Abby was the last one off the bus and when she got off she looked so lost. I went up behind her and said "Abby - would you like me to walk you to your class?" She

was so Happy!

Today is day 3 of school and I am doing a little better with it. Things didn't start out too smooth this morning... while we were waiting for the bus somehow Abby tripped and fell on her butt and it looked as if she had pooped her pants... I did not have time to run and change her because the bus was coming down the road ... *#$! happens !

Potty Training Day 3

People have always told be that with your first child you always spend more time with them teaching them new things, for example potty training. I will be the first to admit that I have been a major "slacker mom" when it comes to potty training Caroline! Its not that I don't want her to learn... but she is my baby and I guess a big part of me wants her to stay that way. It makes me sad to think how quickly they grow up! I have attempted a few times but she made it clear to me that she had no interest and who was I to push her ;) Last week my mom (jokingly) ??? said that she would be taking her diaper bag with her to preschool.

That being said - Potty Training Boot Camp was enforced!





We are on day #3 and so far she is doing really good! She has no problem with the poop part, but every once in awhile she will forget and have an accident. I guess she is probably about 70 % there. I am proud of her!!! When she does her business she gets so excited and her face gets red with a Big smile and she says "Me big girl now"

Hit by a Mack-Truck ? !

A few days ago we returned from a camping trip to Holiday World. This summer instead of going on 1 big trip we have been taking several 3-4 day trips. One thing I have learned from this is that it does not matter if you camp for 1 night or 10 nights you will have a mess to clean up when you get home! The camper will be trashed and you will have a pile of laundry that will scare you to death!

Holiday World is always a great trip. I highly recommend this park to anyone - Very Clean!! Great water park!! Free drinks!! and overall just a really good place to take the family. The Lake Rudolph Campground is also nice for camping and you can also rent a camper or a cabin, if you have not been you should check it out!

This year was exciting for us because our 5 year old was able to ride all of the rides for the first time :) I wasn't exactly sure what to expect because I had no idea if she would like roller coasters or not ... she loved them!!!!


Now as most of you know things are not always "perfect" Our "perfect" day in the park almost ended in the water park. There are 2 areas in the water park that are like a big play ground (where the big buckets dump water on your head) ... Anyway, Abby was going down the water-slides and she wanted me to come down with her. So Abby went down first and I waited and then I went down. I was zooming down the slide FAST and Abby did not get out of the way and I could not see anything but I slammed into Abby full-force! It took me a few seconds to even find her but my heart had sunk, I knew I hit her hard and I was scared to death. When I saw Abby she was crying a little bit but she seemed to be ok. We were walking away and that is when I saw her leg... OMG it looked terrible!!! She had a large area on her leg where the skin was torn off from the concrete because she was plowed over by her Mack-Truck Momma. I don't think I have ever felt so bad or have ever felt like such a bad mom! My pay backs came quickly because when we were standing in the lines for the rides people would ask Abby what happened to her leg and she replied, " My mommy slammed into me on the water-slide" :(


OUCH