MOM!!! RYAN'S IN MY BED!

every morning after the kids and i have breakfast, samantha and ryan go play in their room so that i can have some ME time and so that i can take a shower. samantha has always done a good job of babysitting ryan and keeping him happy during their hour of play time. she knows to keep the door shut so he doesn't come find me or go downstairs. but every now and then while i'm in the shower (which is very close to their room) she'll open the door and yell something at me that is usually irrelevant. for example, yesterday she was listening to the radio and opened her door and yelled "MOM, THERE'S ALMOST ONE MILLION PEOPLE WITHOUT POWER," then slammed her door. then two minutes later she opened the door again and yelled something else that i can't remember. then slammed the door again.

well today when i was in the shower i heard her yelling something at me. but it sounded a little frantic and i couldn't understand her. so i was yelling back at her to come in the bathroom and tell me. she finally came in and yelled, "MOM!!! RYAN'S IN MY BED!!!"

now normally this wouldn't be a problem, but samantha has a loft bed -- the mattress is taller than me! i don't know how, but apparently ryan climbed up her ladder and by the time she realized it he was up so high that she couldn't get him down. so i yelled back at her to "GET UP IN YOUR BED RIGHT NOW AND MAKE SURE RYAN DOESN'T FALL OUT!!!"

needless to say i showered very quickly and was thankful that i didn't hear any loud thuds or screams! and from now on i think i'll put her ladder up!

these pictures were from 2 years ago when she got her bed. and to think i was afraid of having a 3 and a half year old up there!

4/52 photo challenge

this week's photo challenge is WATER. and while i could drive all the way to minnesota in hopes of another photo opportunity like this,

or while i could capture water in motion,

i decided to go a whole 'nother route and take my picture of water while being submerged in it. well, while having my hand submerged in it! i used ben's waterproof camera (that he got at the auction-- nice find!) to snap these fish-perspective pictures from inside our fishtank!

ryan, ben, samantha, and our one of our angels.

i never thought it would be so hard to steady the camera in water. it's a little challenging!

another angel, samantha, ryan, me, and two gouramis. i obviously didn't take this picture, so ben got to play in the water too!

next week's category is sports. click here to see all the picture of the week categories for the whole year. it's not too late to join in.... just take your picture and post it! happy photographing!

we're not in kansas anymore

here's a couple lot of pictures from our trip last weekend. we got to drive through kansas for 7.5 hours, but it really wasn't as bad as it sounds. there were parts of it that were really pretty... i just didn't get pictures of that part!

our hotel room was really nice -- no ugly bedspreads here!

the bathroom was sadly bigger than ours at home...

and wouldn't it be a waste of money if you didn't get to bounce on the beds?

samantha was thrilled beyond thrilled when she opened the drawer and discovered that "THEY HAVE GOD'S HOLY BIBLE IN HERE!!!!"

she made a new friend!

jeff and shawn... the reason for our trip!

shawn's triplets -- savannah, gretta, and aaron. savannah and gretta were awesome babysitters. i wish they lived in kc!

the calm before the storm.... if you missed that story, click here.

overall it was a good trip. and thanks to the storm that is our son, the kids slept great on the way home!

thankful thursday

today i am thankful for all the men and women who are serving and who have served our country.

this past weekend our family took a trip to garden city, kansas for a going away party for one of ben's good friends. jeff is being deployed to afghanistan and will leave his family for 13 months this coming sunday, february 1st.

besides family members that have served before i was born, jeff is the first person that i personally know who will have fought overseas to defend our freedoms. it is a huge sacrifice on his part, and not just for him but also for his family. i wouldn't be able to do it, so i thank God for those who can and are willing.

thank you jeff, you are in our prayers.

tuesday tip

my sister becky shared some great tips on her tuesday tip post today, so i thought i'd share mine too!

the other day i saw on tv that you could substitute healthier ingredients in your recipes to cut down on calories and fat. so today i googled it. i found some great websites and some great ideas for substitutions. i wanted to try it right away, so tonight i made healthy brownies. ok, ok... healthier brownies!

of course i used a betty crocker mix, but i substitued applesauce and egg whites. you can use applesauce for half of the oil and 2 egg whites for 1 egg. so instead of using 2/3 cup of oil i used 1/3 cup of oil and 1/3 cup of applesauce. and instead of 2 eggs, i used 1 egg and 2 egg whites. (if you make substitutions in a recipe cut the baking time down. i baked them for 20 minutes instead of 24.)

when i took them out of the oven it was hard to tell if they were done by just looking at them. i think the applesauce made their appearance a bit more uhh... spongy! but i inserted a toothpick and they were done.

the consitency was more cake like --- next time i think i might use just 2 egg whites. but they still tasted great! and by substituting ingredients, i cut out 80 grams of fat and 700 calories! also, fyi, 1 egg has 210 miligrams of cholesterol which is 70% of the daily value. an egg white has 0. yes, ZERO mg of cholesterol. food for thought!

not me! monday

how ingenius of mckmama to start the week off with not me! monday. head over to her blog to join in and to read what everyone else has not been doing this week. well, after you read mine of course!!

this past week...

i did not give samantha the day off from school last monday just because i had so much stuff to do around the house (and so many blogs to read). and i did not use "it's a holiday" as an excuse.

i did not procrastinate on all my household chores on monday which did not result in my giving her the day off on tuesday. and i most certainly did not record in our school book that she had 4 hours of history since that's how long the tv was on with the coverage of the inauguration.

after doing all the dishes (by hand!) and cleaning off all the counters i did not step back, admire my work, and think to myself "man, i should do the dishes every day." that thought was not followed by laughter for about three minutes!

we went on a trip this weekend and stayed at the hampton inn. when we got to our room ben did not spend 15 minutes inspecting the work. he did not find ceiling paint all over the walls, an awful job on the sheet rock in the bathroom, caulking all over the tile in the shower and too much more for me to write. he then did not procede to take pictures of everything that was wrong with the room, because if he did a job like that he'd be doing it over.

on that same trip, ryan did not wake up screaming the whole night while we were at our hotel. ben did not drive him around for a while, and when he would still wake up screeming i did not take him to walmart at 4:30 am to go shopping. i did not buy orajel and tylenol, i did not drug him up, and i did not sit in the lobby for the remainder of the night to let him sleep on the couch instead of enjoying our hotel room.

when we got home last night i did not drug ryan up again to make sure ben and i got more than the 2 hours of sleep we got the night before!

what did you not do?

3/52 photo challenge

the topic for this week's picture of the week is show us your town. it was a little tough for me this week, as i didn't have my car. ben's car is sick, so he's been taking mine to work everyday. and by the time he gets home it's getting a little dark to take pictures of my town.

so i'm gonna cheat. i took these pictures this past summer, thus the green grass and trees. sooooo.......

...ladies and gentlemen, i introduce to you my town, kansas city, missouri.



i hardly ever see the city. we live in a nice residential neighborhood north of the city. i feel like i live in one of the suburbs, but my address still reflects kansas city as MY city. i took this picture from the top of the tower in the next picture. the tower is the country's only world war 1 memorial.



kansas city is know as the city of fountains. i may have already mentioned this in an earlier post, but rome, italy, is the only city with more fountains than kansas city. this is my favorite fountain down on the plaza, the j.c. nichols fountain.



well if i actually would've done this right, without cheating, you probably would've gotten pictures of walmart and target, because that is the essential part of my town!

hey! why don't you do a picture of the week?! this next week's topic is water... have fun!

baby boy bed head

ryan usually doesn't have bed head, so i definitely had to snap some pictures today. apparently he napped hard! but what's a little bed head when you wake up this happy?!

mmmmm..... i love this little boy. boogers, bed head, and all!

thankful thursday

i don't think these pictures need any explanation, but i'm not one to not say anything!

today i am thankful for sunsets...

all these pictures were taken somewhere in minnesota. so i don't know if i should be thankful for sunsets, or minnesota sunsets! the first two were on our way to grand rapids on december 23, 2008.

this...

...turned into this in a matter of 10 minutes.

these pictures were taken from the car on our way back to kansas city on january 2, 2009. ben pulled over on the side of the road to let me capture this photo...

then he pulled over about 90 seconds later when it turned to this!

as we were coming into the cities the sunset got super beautiful. it almost looked like the city was on fire. this is the only picture i got though, because buildings and highways were in the way almost immediately.

i don't know how anyone could not be thankful for a sight like this! what an amazing God we have, to be able to create something so spectacular!

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the LORD is to be praised. Psalm 113:3

what are you thankful for today?

presidential prayer team

i heard about this website while i was listening to klove tonight. it is as important now as ever to pray for our new president, our nation, and our troops.

http://www.presidentialprayerteam.org/

the website has presidential prayer requests each week or you can have them sent right to your inbox.

you can also adopt a troop in prayer.

http://www.presidentialprayerteam.net/adopt_our_troops_in_prayer.php

I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. 1 Timothy 2:1-2

that would be "vows...."

samantha got married the other night. her cousin was the maid of honor and her stick horse was the groom. she needed someone to do the ceremony, so she asked me, "mom can you do the wows"?

she MUST get that from her dad, because when he was 9 he was the ring bearer at his sister's wedding. at the rehearsal when the minister said it was time to say the vows ben asked "A, E, I, O, U??"

hear ye, hear ye

big announcement.... (no i'm not pregnant!)

....my sister becky started a blog!

so go check it out, leave her a comment, and add her to your blog list. bottom line, show her a little blog love!

http://www.theswansonsix.blogspot.com

not me! monday

it's not me! monday again - time for free therapy! it feels so great to admit the things that you've done but would rather not tell... and it's even better to read what others have not done - it makes you feel a little bit more normal! so without further ado, here's what i most certainly, positively, absolutely did NOT do this past week!

i do not leave bags of garbage by the back door for about 5 days before i take them out. and this week i definitely did not learn my lesson when i finally took out the trash...... one of the trash bags did not have vomit in it (from our sickness the week before) and that vomit most assuredly did not leak out the bottom of the bag, leaving me with another pukey mess to clean up.

my teeth are not so bad that i did not chip off half of my molar. and if that really did happen, it was certainly not while i was eating mashed potatoes.

i did not clean up the house (most of which was my husband's mess) while i allowed him to play games on the computer after he said he was going to help "in just a minute." i absolutely do not reinforce negative behavior. :-)

and i did not just minimize my browser when he walked by the computer because i didn't want him to see what i wrote!

my son does not suffer from constipation so much that i literally had to squeeze poop out of him this week. (oh, and please don't tell me to add fiber to his diet, give him apple juice or pear juice or water, feed him fruits and veggies and stay away from dairy. that's all i've heard from my pediatrician for the past year!)

i did not neglect to wash any dishes this week. we are not out of cups, we are not out of forks, and we are not out of spoons (even though we have service for about 28).

i did not buy something with a gift card at office max and then return it to best buy for store credit, therefore transferring my gift card... nope. not me!


your turn... what have you not done?

hop over to mckmama's blog to add your own post or read what other people have not done!

2/52 photo challenge

what defines you.

this is the subject for week 2 of the photo challenge.

as i was thinking about what defines me, my husband and my children came to mind. my family is so important to me. i love being a wife to the most wonderful husband, and i love being mom to the two most adorable children.

but the more i kept thinking about what defines me this past week, the more i thought about my identity in Christ. while i love my family and it's great being a wife, mom, daughter, sister, granddaughter, niece, and aunt, it is so much better knowing that i am CHILD OF GOD!

But as many as received Him, to them he gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in his name. John 1:12

because i believe that Jesus died on the cross for my sin, was buried, rose again, and have asked Jesus into my heart as my Saviour, i have been born again as a child of God.

i can't think of anything i'd rather be defined as!

headlines

have you ever watched jay leno? we don't usually watch the show, but when we do my favorite part is when he does headlines. if you haven't seen it, it's real headlines, ads, etc., that are so crazy you wonder how they ever made it into print.

so here's my version. while searching for some items on ebay tonight i couldn't help but notice this ad for dermatage on the sidebar:

less wrinkles in only 60 minutes.

seriously? look again at the before and after photo. does it also let you go from 70 to 35?

and i love how they wrote under the photo "simulated imagery. results not typical." really? awww... i thought it was real....

so then my curiosity clicked on the ad just to see what else they'd say on their website.

try the full 1-month supply of dermitage anti-aging system free for 14 days.

huh? how do you try a free full month's supply in 14 days? double dose? because i'm certainly not paying for my free month's supply on day 15...

have you seen anything funny/crazy/weird lately? please share!

thankful thursday

new beginnings. second chances.

it's great to start a new year, isn't it? it gives me a fresh feeling. like i just cleaned the whole entire house and it's spotless. it's a spring morning and there's a nice warm breeze blowing through the window. it smells fresh and new. it's invigorating.

(if only that would actually happen -- at the stroke of midnight, the start of a new year, that my house would clean itself. man that would be nice. but i digress.)

with the wonderful feeling that comes with a new beginning, this new year got me thinking that i don't have to wait 365 days for that newness to come around. every day i get to start over again. God, in His graciousness, has allowed me to start every day fresh with Him. it doesn't matter what i did yesterday, last week, or last month. every morning that i wake up God gives me a new start, a second chance, to live my life pleasing and honoring to Him. of course every day i fail, but God doesn't. His mercies are new to me every morning!!

Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Lamentations 3:22-23 NIV

not me! monday

it's been a while, but i'm back and ready for not me! monday. click on the picture to join in on the fun or to read what hundreds of other people have not done this week!

i was not excited last monday that i lost 4 pounds after having the flu on sunday.

on thursday when ben got sick with the flu i did not contemplate how to catch some of his germs so that i could lose another 4 pounds.

i did not go for three days with absolutely no makeup. and if i did i certainly wouldn't have gone to the store on two of those days. and it wouldn't be like me to totally enjoy it and consider not ever wearing makeup again.

i did not find myself fighting urges to take belongings out of peoples' shopping carts while they were mindlessly looking at something and not paying attention to their cart just to teach them a lesson. (seriously, there are so many times that i see carts with purses, infant seats, etc. and the woman [99% of the time] is about 10 feet away looking at something else.)

and i definitely do not get so annoyed at people who leave their carts in the middle of the aisle or just in the way that i sometimes purposely run into their cart with mine.

i did not leave my messy house uncleaned this week even after i was feeling better, because i'd much rather clean my house than play peggle or watch the office with ben. and i didn't start power cleaning last night so that we'd have a place to do school today. and i am not sitting here waiting for mckmama to post not me! monday instead of continuing to clean!

1/52 photo challenge

somewhere, somehow, i came across this photo challenge that i thought would be fun to do... a picture of the week for one year, with different categories each week.

week one is a free for all, so since we were sick the whole week and i took only about 4 pictures, this one will have to do!

join in on the fun. you don't need a fancy schmancy camera or anything so click here to see the categories then get photographing!

thankful thursday

this is the day that the LORD has made! and in the midst of the whole family being sick and getting over being sick, today i am rejoicing and thanking God for the following:

1. a washing machine that is in my own home. i would hate to take pukey (yes, it's a word according to dictionary.com) clothes, towels, blankets to the laundromat.

2. the stomach flu. what a great way to clean your body out.

3. that ben got sick after he got home from work and not on his way home from work. mostly because he drove my car today...!

4. clorox wipes.

5. these thick, over-sized paper towels that ben got from an auction. seriously, while i've had a huge stack of them for the past three years i've never used them as much as i have in the last 3 days.

6. that the flu doesn't last as long as a head cold.

7. two indoor flush toilets.

8. linoleum, hardwood, and tile floors.

9. lysol. although i could definitely do without the SMELL of lysol. yuck!

10. that we're generally healthy. i think we can suck it up and be sick for a couple weeks out of the year!

happy new year...

we're back!! we had a wonderful trip to minnesota to spend Christmas and New Years with my family. (merry belated Christmas and happy belated New Year, by the way!) we left on tuesday, december 23rd and came back on friday, january 2nd. ben got time off work so he got to come too. it was fun! we were without high speed internet at my dad's house, thus my lack of blogging. however that won't be a problem on my future visits up north as my DAD GOT HIGH SPEED INTERNET! NO MORE DIAL-UP!!! good job, dad! :-)

-----------------------------------------------

i haven't done much since we got home. on saturday we took down the tree and that was about it. it's amazing how long it takes to get unpacked and get Christmas presents put away. on sunday i was sick with the flu. ryan had been sick on thursday before we left so i think i got a bug from him. i slept pretty much the whole day!

monday and tuesday we were all fine until tuesday night. now's the time to stop reading if you don't like to hear about people being sick.....

samantha had a bad tummy ache, but kept reassuring me that she didn't have to throw up. so she laid on the couch for a long time. i rubbed her stomach, got her a hot water bottle, but she still kept moaning and complaining. finally at 10:30 last night she threw up. thankfully she made it from the couch to the kitchen where the floor is tiled and not carpeted! after 30 minutes of cleaning everything up, i got samantha in the tub.

bad idea. she apparently wasn't done being sick and i had to get her out of the tub 3 times. she was so exhausted that she asked me if she could fall asleep while she was sitting on the toilet, holding a bucket, with her hair full of shampoo! after i got her all bathed, dried, and dressed she was sitting in my lap throwing up again and actually fell asleep for about 5 minutes.

**side note: my new years resolution is roll with the punches, be a little more flexible, and not worry about the stupid little stuff (like vomit splattered across the kitchen floor). i tend to get worked up when things don't go the way i expected or when something unexpected happens. i love God's sense of humor because when i said roll with the punches, i didn't mean rolling out of bed the whole night!!**

so anyway, i decided to let samantha sleep in my bed with me, as i would rather clean up my bed in the middle of the night than her loft bed. ended up that was a good decision because she was up every 15-20 minutes from 11:30pm to 6:30am with diarrhea, vomiting, and dry heaves. it was like clock work. she could hardly stay awake and there were moments when she was sitting on the toilet yelling at me because she was mad at me for not letting her sleep on the potty. lol. and at about 4:30am she said something like "i'm gonna be so thin." after 6:30 this morning she was a bit better but just thirsty. she's been hanging out on the couch today attached to her water bottle like it's an IV, watching some cartoons, and sleeping on and off (sleeping in between her moments of delusion, that is. at one point i asked her if she knew who i was and she looked a me weird for a few minutes and said i was a dragon. then she started crying because she couldn't remember who i was. it was cute and sad all at the same time.).

here's to hoping ben doesn't get sick... a sick husband is worse than a sick child. lol!

-----------------------------------------------

i'm sitting here looking at our living room which is still filled with presents and Christmas decorations to be put away. but i figured that could take a back seat to blogging for the moment. so that's my job to tackle for the rest of the week. then hopefully i'll get around to uploading pictures from our many Christmases and our trip to minnesota. but until then i'll leave you with this one....