2 things I am in lurrvvveee with.. and 2 things, not so much

Happy Sunday ya'll! I am sittin comfy on the couch watching the Oscars... ahhh.. lovely!

So there are two things I am completely in love with right now and two things that are driving mama crazy. And since I am a half glass full kinda gal, I will share the things I love first!

First, there is this little baby!

The Miele Terrane Vacuum

How do I love thee, let me count the ways! Now I stalked this sucker on the internet for a good two years before I convinced (suckered) my hubby into letting me buy it. We have five pets so, hello, I needed an amazing vacuum. I've had my fair share of vacuums.. I've put em' all to the test. The wind tunnels, the bagless, hepafilters and even the Dyson. None of them come close to this sucker. There are many reasons why the Miele tops my list. It was my first canister and I am sold on the canisters for sure. This vacuum is extremely quiet, incredibly easy to handle, and does a fantastic job of picking up everything. I love it!

So how did I sucker my husband into letting me buy it.

Well, you all know this little girl.

Bella Louise.

Jamie wanted her so bad. I was not excited about the idea. We already had Max and 2 cats at the time. We lived in our house we just moved from which wasn't big enough as it was. We knew we were getting ready to try and sell the house. So, I made a deal. You get the dog and I get the vacuum to clean up after the dog. He went for it and the rest is history! :)

And second....

The SteamFast 3-in-1 Multi-Purpose Steamer

I can't take the credit for finding this little nugget. My sister called me to tell me about this fantastic steamer she had just bought. She even researched steamers and everything. She said it got great reviews, she ordered it and she loved it. She used it on her hard wood floors. Perfect. I logged onto Amazon, add to bag, done! It came, it sat in the box in the dining room for about two weeks. And I finally opened it. I sent my sister a test message that simply read "I am in love." I steamed my hardwoods the first time while Jamie was out running errands. He came home and said the floors looked better than the day we moved in. Yea!!! I love it because it doesn't use any chemicals, just steam. Luv!!!

So, now for the empty part of the glass. Warning: I am going to sound spoiled, self absorbed, etc.

First, the words "This item will be available to ship after....." Grrr.. You see, the irritating part is they don't tell you this while you have this purdy little item pulled up on your computer screen. You gaze upon the item, you picture it in your home, you think of all the ways you will convince your husband that you really do need the item and then you click "add to cart." And poof, there it is... "Your item will.... " And look, I can accept two weeks from now, even the same month but I have been seeing April ship dates for stuff I am looking out in February. Come on people, PULL IT TOGETHER!!!!

Second, the mud pit that is my yard. This is driving me crazy. Forget that it looks like total crap. I'm over that. These two dogs that are used to being able to go out and do their business whenever they want. Now, when they want *need* to go out, I have to get my boots on, coat, hat, get the leashes and walk the dogs to the empty lot that has grass next door. Now, if I am alone with Hannah I have the pleasure of getting her full gettup on and taking her with me. Today, Bella was apparently wining at the back door so Hannah let her out. Bella was COVERED in mud more than she wasn't. So I made a path of towels that led to my shower and bathed her. That was fun. Or not.

Yes, yes I know. Woe is me.

February is Flying By!!

Is it ever! I won't complain as I cannot wait for spring but I need to get on the ball. We leave for our vacation to Disney on March 5th and I keep thinking it is further away than it really is. Time to get on the ball. I have a hodge podge of pics to share.. so here they are!

One of the glorious things about having my kids 5 years apart is it keeps Lauren young at heart. She would never have these little green army men laying around if she didn't have a younger sister who begged for them at Target earlier that day. Lauren came home from school, found them and prepared for combat!

VALENTINE'S DAY!!

Daddy was working on Valentine's Day so it was just the girls and I. We picked Lauren up from school and we headed to Designer Desserts. YUMMY!! The girls picked out some delish treats (and so did mommy!) We came home, had our treats, watched Charlie Brown Valentine and enjoyed our LOVING evening together! Perfect!

Patiently waiting to go get Lauren from school

Lauren had her friend, Alena, spend the night a couple nights ago. These two are two peas in a pod! They have so much fun together and Alena is super sweet ta boot!

Playing "Just Dance"

Our little ham in the bathtub! She loves to take bubble baths and give herself a beard of bubbles like Santa. She always follows it up with a ho!ho!ho!

back to normal...

Finally. After what seems like weeks of no schedules and complete chaos with the move, everyone getting sick and then the blizzard, everyone is where they are supposed to be today. Daddy is at work, Lauren is at school and Hannah and I are hanging out at home after a grocery shopping trip this morning. Normal. I enjoy normal and a schedule. Hopefully the snow and germs will stay away and we can be "normal" at least until we leave for Disney in 25 days. :)

Snow Day

We, with along with the rest of the country it seemed, received our fair share of snow this past week. After the majority of the snow had fallen we all headed out to play, shovel and snowblow our way out!

we made it and we are alive.. barely

We have finally made it into our new home. Praise be to God! We broke ground in May of 2010 and after nine long months, I thought the day might never come. But alas, we are here. I did convince Jamie that movers was the way to go and thank goodness we did because we ended up moving on the coldest day of the year. I don't really know what the actually temp was that day but it was below zero with windchill. Brrr..... I felt awful for the two young men who were moving all our junk. We moved on a Friday and my sister and her family came up from Indy on Saturday morning and went home Sunday afternoon. They were a HUGE help. Jenny and Mark unpacked the entire playroom and Mark put together three pieces of furniture that were out of the box new and the guest bed. He also hung the shower curtain in the guest bath... I was impressed. They left and my Mom was here Sunday though Friday morning. She, of course, was a huge help. So a BIG THANK YOU to Jenny, Mark and Mom for all your help! Much appreciated!

After being in the house exactly one week we broke it in Moore style, with puke all over the kitchen floor, and then the couch, and then the carpet. You guessed it, two sick little girls. Lauren got it first on Saturday morning. Hannah followed as expected yesterday. I think Lauren was started to turn a corner today. No more throwing up but still running a fever. Maybe tomorrow....

We are bracing for this big storm they are talking about. They are saying 16-18 inches. Oh my! Jamie is working (of course) and was supposed to get in tomorrow at 1:20 but they have closed Midway airport as of noon tomorrow. They have rerouted him to get in at 11:15am. We shall see. Say a little prayer that his flight gets in and he makes it home safe and sound before it gets too bad.

The girls managed to keep themselves entertained while we were packing up the house.

Hannah crumpled up a bunch of packing peanuts to make "snow" and then made "snow" angels.

Daddy made them a tent out of all the boxes

And of course, playing hair salon!

the many faces of hannah

Hannah is really into making faces these days. You pull out the camera and the faces start! You don't have to do any prompting, her sweet little face changes with each click of the camera.. with her little face squealing "lemme see, lemme see" after each shot.

And she is always willing to give me a cute, sweet, innocent smile at the end. Ahh.. what more could a mama ask for!

11 Step Program for those thinking of having kids

I got this from my sister and thought it was hoo-larious! I had to share!

Lesson 1

1. Go to the grocery store.

2. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their head office.

3. Go home.

4. Pick up the paper.

5. Read it for the last time.

Lesson 2

Before you finally go ahead and have children, find a couple who already are parents and berate them about their...

1. Methods of discipline.

2. Lack of patience.

3. Appallingly low tolerance levels.

4. Allowing their children to run wild.

5. Suggest ways in which they might improve their child's breastfeeding, sleep habits, toilet training, table manners, and overall behavior.

Enjoy it because it will be the last time in your life you will have all the answers.

Lesson 3

A really good way to discover how the nights might feel...

1. Get home from work and immediately begin walking around the living room from 5PM to 10PM carrying a wet bag weighing approximately 8-12 pounds, with a radio turned to static (or some other obnoxious sound) playing loudly. (Eat cold food with one hand for dinner)

2. At 10PM, put the bag gently down, set the alarm for midnight, and go to sleep.

3. Get up at 12 and walk around the living room again, with the bag, until 1AM.

4. Set the alarm for 3AM.

5. As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2AM and make a drink and watch an infomercial.

6. Go to bed at 2:45AM.

7. Get up at 3AM when the alarm goes off.

8. Sing songs quietly in the dark until 4AM.

9. Get up. Make breakfast. Get ready for work and go to work (work hard and be productive)

Repeat steps 1-9 each night. Keep this up for 3-5 years. Look cheerful and together.

Lesson 4

Can you stand the mess children make? T o find out...

1. Smear peanut butter onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains.

2. Hide a piece of raw chicken behind the stereo and leave it there all summer.

3. Stick your fingers in the flower bed.

4. Then rub them on the clean walls.

5. Take your favorite book, photo album, etc. Wreck it.

6. Spill milk on your new pillows. Cover the stains with crayons. How does that look?

Lesson 5

Dressing small children is not as easy as it seems.

1. Buy an octopus and a small bag made out of loose mesh.

2. Attempt to put the octopus into the bag so that none of the arms hang out.

Time allowed for this - all morning.

Lesson 6

Forget the BMW and buy a mini-van. And don't think that you can leave it out in the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't look like that.

1. Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.

Leave it there.

2. Get a dime. Stick it in the CD player.

3. Take a family size package of chocolate cookies. Mash them into the back seat. Sprinkle cheerios all over the floor, then smash them with your foot.

4. Run a garden rake along both sides of the car.

Lesson 7

Go to the local grocery store. Take with you the closest thing you can find to a pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is an excellent choice). If you intend to have more than one child, then definitely take more than one goat. Buy your week's groceries without letting the goats out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even contemplate having children.

Lesson 8

1. Hollow out a melon.

2. Make a small hole in the side.

3. Suspend it from the ceiling and swing it from side to side.

4. Now get a bowl of soggy Cheerios and attempt to spoon them into the swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.

5. Continue until half the Cheerios are gone.

6. Tip half into your lap. The other half, just throw up in the air.

You are now ready to feed a nine- month-old baby.

Lesson 9

Learn the names of every character from Sesame Street , Barney, Disney, the Teletubbies, and Pokemon. Watch nothing else on TV but PBS, the Disney channel or Noggin for at least five years. (I know, you're thinking What's 'Noggin'?) Exactly the point.

Lesson 10

Make a recording of Fran Drescher saying 'mommy' repeatedly. (Important: no more than a four second delay between each 'mommy'; occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play this tape in your car everywhere you go for the next four years. You are now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.

Lesson 11

Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continually tug on your skirt hem, shirt- sleeve, or elbow while playing the 'mommy' tape made from Lesson 10 above. You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a child in the room.

This is all very tongue in cheek; anyone who is parent will say 'it's all worth it!' Share it with your friends, both those who do and don't have kids. I guarantee they'll get a chuckle out of it. Remember, a sense of humor is one of the most important things you'll need when you become a parent!