Friday, June 1, 2012

Celebrating the Baptism of the twins.

Two weeks ago we had a lot to celebrate. Our ten year anniversary &
most importantly the Baptism of the twins. It was beautiful and so meaningful to our entire family. The first on my bucket list of doing milestones with the twins. There will be many of them. Many I never thought that I would be able to experiecne.

Over their isolette I prayed down upon each of them. Anytime at the begining I would hear a beep or a buzz I would feel my heart drop to the bottom of my tummy.  I would reach in and hand hold one of them at a time, always longing for the time that I could hold them and  be with them at the same time. Baby B was never able to be held for very long all the way until the end of his stay. It would just be way to much for him. Baby F would just lay on me and cuddle. He still loves to cuddle. Anyway's, when I would hand hold them I would pray with everthing I had in me, my entier being and with my entire soul. 

One day when both of my boys were having a pretty hard day, a really hard day on this mama. I prayed that I would raise them in a walk and relationship with God. Now until this I hadn't been to great with my own walk with God. It had been a number of years that I had in most was turned my back and walked the other way all together. The reason now doesn't make sense but this is what I thought at the time. I was so overwhelmed with being childless and not having a baby to call my own to hold close and to love was at times to much for me to bare. I couldn't understand why I was the one that couldn't have children when people I know could pop them out like thier Vajayjay was a freaking clown car!  I was angry with God because of that, so hurt and upset that I walked away from all my beliefs. I now know that this is what he needed me to go through to come back.  The first day that they were in the NICU I went to the Chapel at the hospital from then on I was there everyday, sometimes more then once. I prayed one day so hard in that prayer I prayed this:



Heavenly father,
I pray that you will save my babies, that you will show me how to parent and be the best mommy to the two of them. I will remember every second of everyday that you are the one the blessed me with these two precious gifts that only you Lord God could so wonderfuly give to us. I promise that I will raise them up to love you and honor you Lord, I promise that they will be children of God and I will show them by the way I live my life in a way that will honor you lord. Please just save their lives. I couldn't imagine what I would do if they were taken from me now. I don't think I could make it through that great of loss. I don't think you Lord would make it possible to have these babies created from Hubs and I, carried by Chrystal. Bringing famlies closer and truly showing people the great love our family has for one another.
Please Lord allow me to raise my beautiful boys for them to be men of God. They are made to do great things. The first thing I will do when they are strong enough is to have them be celebrated as your children at their baptism. Please Lord just make them live.

In Jesus name,
Amen.


Time past and they got strong enough to start planning their baptism. It is the first thing I did. I didn't ask that God would make them perfect, I prayed he would save them. No matter what they will always be perfect to me. Having them at the NICU made me remember my walk with God. It made me the person I use to be, before I was sick, before I turned into someone I wasn't that proud of. I didn't know how different I was without God or my boys.
Pastor Coe, from Grace Luthern Church  in Port Townsend was amazing to our boys and to our family. The entire service was centered around the boys and their goals we have to all hold them up to. We were so welcomed and so loved. The entire church was so warm and inviting. One thing I didn't know at the time that was going to happen was that we would find a church to call home. We will take the boys to this chuch and celebrate milestones and moments in our lives as a family.  Hub's will have Sundays off this summer so we are going to go up as much as we can to attend our church.

The God parents were choosen for the love they have showed our boys sense even before they were born. Baby F's God parents are Bon & Chrystal. & Baby B is Erin & Allie. The only sister that was left out is Kerry and she is the best Auntie in the entire world. Turth be told my boys have the best Aunties ever. They are so blessed with the family that they were born into. All the love they have for them is amazing. This event made us all so much closer.  I can't wait to cross the next event and milestone off the baby bucket list.
Our Beautiful Family!









Thursday, May 31, 2012

Do you ever want to run away?

I have been feeling like I just need to run away. Not from my family, to my family. Not from my friends but to start fresh, I had a ton of people that viewed my blog. Now the amount of people are down a little bit. Do I let this one go and start another one filled with things I am into now? Do I re-vamp this and go from there instead?

I don't feel like I can leave this completely. I love to write, I love to blog. I love the community of blogging. I loved the direction that writing was bringing me and where it brought me. Now I have to figure it out. I waited to blog untill I got the boys home, then I waited until things settled down. Now I am getting in the swing of things and slowly starting to find my way back to writing.

I never know where I will go or where my writing will take me. I would just like to try and figure it out. I need something that the boys can look back on and read and be proud of me for.
I use to write about great places I traveld to and events I was part of. I want to do this but center this around being a parent. If you read my blog I would love to hear your thoughts.

I have to find a direction and hopefully do it soon. What do you like to read? What would you rather not have to read?

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Wordless Wednesday

I can't wait for out Memorail day BBQ. It makes me feel like its the start of the fun summer times.



Tempt my Tummy Tuesday.

This is the best Recipe, it is easy and great for all sorts of meats. I'm doing a bundle of BBQ sauces for fathers day. Pour it in a mason jar and then cut up a bandana and add a thin rope to tie it all together. This is the first post  that I will post until fathers day. Enjoy!

Sweet and Simple BBQ Sauce.

                                                         Thank you Goole for the picture!
Ingredients
  • 1/2 (1 ounce) package dry onion soup mix ( I use lipton.)
  • 1/2 cup packed Brown Sugar.
  • 2 cups ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 tablespoon liquid smoke.
  • 1/2 teaspoon honey

Directions

  1. In a medium bowl, mix together onion soup mix, sugar, honey, ketchup, liquid smoke and Worcestershire sauce.
  2. Warm up on low.
  3. Add it to mason jar let cool.
  4. add decoration and enjoy this for yourself or that Guy in your life.

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Wordless Wednesday.

We had a Dr's appointment in down town Seattle and we took the time to spend the day with afterward sightseeing a little bit down town Seattle. There is no other place on earth that is more beautiful then that of the Seattle skyline on a beautiful sunny day, The water looks like diamonds dancing on top of it.
The ferry ride back to the Peninsula was breathe taking. I am lucky to live in this beautiful place and call it home.

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Mishaps and advenures in mommyhood.

I use to have the time to sit and write everyday. Being able to go at a moments notice to do these fab hotel reviews and wonderful nights out on the town. Sharing with my readers the places to go, food to try and play and productions to get tickets to and go enjoy. My goal was to always help women in business in the local area and beyond. I thought I was busy then......

Then at the 28 mark of the birth of my twin boys things changed, things became busy but I still had time to write and review. Then after a few months in the NICU baby F got to come home on Christmas eve, the very best gift a mommy could have gotten I was so torn at that very moment I came to understand that no matter what unless my boys were together I would feel torn and missing the other. 

It took a little over a month until Baby B could come home. He had some problems I wont get into it now, but when he did get home having two babies and the trying to do the balancing followed. I thought that I knew it all and boy oh boy I had no idea.

My journey into motherhood was not what the normal way in to which most have babies, the way I did it was what you hear about on the cover of US weekly. What you think Stars do so that they don't gain any weight of have any of that pain that goes into child birth. My story is nothing like that, my dream my entire life was to be a mama, my family knew that and when all the stars in the sky were in the right order and my cousin who is more like my sister decided to help me make my dream come true of having a little person call me mommy!

Lucky for me, I got the best buy one get one free deal ever. When they told us we were having twins my heart about exploded, first with delight and being over joyed, then next fear and self doubt that follwed me around. How the heck could I be a mommy to two babies at once. Piece of cake right?  WRONG! :)

I know this so far:  I'm very very far from being a perfect parent and I have so much to learn. What I know for sure is that this is the life I have always wanted and I'm not the same person I was 6 months ago and I thank the Lord above about that! F&B made me a completely different person, a mommy. How they grow up and treat me will be how they love and treat their families later in life. I can't mess this up like so many things I have messed up in my life before this.
This sounds crazy but I truly feel like I was born the day they were.

I decided that as a blogger who is now a mommy, that I would write more about that. I will still do posts about what is fun and hotel reviews that are kid friendly, how when we plan a trip to Disney on a shoe string budget.  I will tell you of places to eat that don't give you the hairy eyeball if your kid screams or makes a mess on the table or in his pants.  There will be laugter till you cry reading what I am going through, and at times crying until you laugh with me.  I will be painfully truthful of my misguided attempts at doing the best at rasing these beautiful baby boys and not driving away my husband.

I invite you on this journey.


xoxo,
Kingstongirl.

Monday, March 5, 2012

Tempt my Tummy Tuesday!!!

I found this recipe through Pinterest, and found this wonderful website though Herbivoracious.com, it has an amazing group of vegan recipes and I found this one and completely feel in love. I will go back to this site for some pretty amazing recipes. My world is again much brighter with Pinterest!



Pan-Seared Pressed Tofu with Apples and Champagne Vinaigrette
Vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free
Serves 2 as a light lunch or 4 as a side dish
For the dressing
  • 2 tablespoons champagne vinegar
  • 3 teaspoons minced shallot
  • Leaves from 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
  • 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  1. In a small bowl, stir together the vinegar, shallot, thyme and salt. Allow to stand for ten minutes. Drizzle in the olive oil while whisking to emulsify. Taste and adjust seasoning. Reserve.
To finish
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 9 ounces pressed tofu (the kind that is completely firm and generally already brown with some soy sauce on the outside), cut into approximately 1″ x 1″ x 1/2″ squares [note: if you need gluten-free you'll need to inquire about the soy sauce!]
  • Reserved dressing
  • 1 large or 2 medium crisp, sweet apples, cored and cut into 16 slices each (Braeburns work well)
  • 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Flaky sea salt
  1. Place a large skillet over high heat. Add the oil, and when it is shimmering, add the tofu in a single layer. Cook until well browned on one side, then flip and cook the other side. Remove to a medium bowl with a slotted spoon.
  2. Pour the dressing over the tofu and toss. Add the apples and pomegranate seeds and toss again. Taste and adjust seasoning. Divide among serving bowls and finish with generous amounts of black pepper and flaky salt.

Meet Me Monday...

1. Where is your favorite vacation spot and why?
Any vacation spot is my favorite. We've traveled to so many amazing places that truly just to travel to many different places will be my favorite vacation spots. If I had to choose one it would have to be Kalaloch Washington, or Cannon Beach Oregon, I love love love San Fransico and I of course love any thing disney...


2. What is your biggest guilty pleasure?
I have a few things that are my guilty pleasure, reality TV.  It's trashy and oh so bad but I for some reason I love them, that and oh yeah that waste of my time that I can't seem to get away from called.... Facebook.
3. What is your favorite fashion trend right now? Or, in the past?
Currently I lOVE skinny jeans with tall boots. I think it's such a cute look. But I have to say my pinterest wardrobe is so much cuter then the one I have in real life. :)
4. What are your spring break plans?
I have no spring break plans, I have never gotten the reason to do things for spring break, I have a few years to worry about that.
5. What baby names do you hate?
I don't like bible names for baby names, I like a strong name that isn't something you hear all of the time. Being that my first name is one of the popular 70's names and there was like 80 of the girls in my class named after me. I also hate boys names for girls and girls names for boys. I think it is dumb.

Monday, February 27, 2012

Meet me Monday....

1. What's your favorite way to spend down time (alone or with a significant other)?

Wait what? What is this your speack of?  I'm not really sure what this "down time" thing is?  2 very very busy almost 4 month old babies and no sleep,  a part time job, a home, bills, big families,  Yeah...no down time here.

I am looking forward to nighly habits. It's gonna be a walk in the evening after dinner, take our bath, read a few book's, brush toother pegs, pray, goodnight hugs, loves and kisses kind of habits..

However...every so often, we do have some downtime, if I'm alone, I like to cruise the Internet, read blogs, Twitter, etc. With the hubs? Talk, watch a movie, snuggle, dream and talk about the future kind of time.
We had a fun date night. Dinner. We haven't been out to a movie in so long, because we realized, we can't really catch up with each other in a movie theater, so we talked and laughed the other night over dinner and over buying toliet cleaner at Target. :)

We need another date night soon, it makes this crazy mommy feel a little less crazy.....A little.

2. Are you the kind of person that wants things more as soon as you know you can't have it?

The only reason why that would be a yes is if it was something I had to wait for. I hate to wait hate to wait...did I say that? Did you miss that....hate to wait. Wait for anything.

Waiting is so hard for me the not knowing an answer is the worst.... I really do stress out for the unknown, my head is hard to get to stop over thinking things, I care way to much what others think and I over think every little thing that I have no control of. Hate it. One day I hope I am care free. Now I sit and worry about the boys. My mom said this is what being a mommy feels like. Oh how I love my boys and love the fact that God has graced me with letting me be their mommy. What a great gift I have been given.

3. If you were given $1000 to spend on yourself, what would you buy?

my first reaction would be for me to go and buy the new swing set at Costco for the boys to play with. No they wont be able to use it right now but over time they would be able to swing and play and grow....

SO that really wouldn't be just for me so after then for me I would buy .......

The Nikon D40 camera..I just love this camera and it is my goal to buy this and take a zillion pictures of my beautiful baby boys.

4. Do you ever go out to eat by yourself?

UGH. I HATE eating out by myself. HATE it. Now that I have my i-phone I don't mind it so terribly much, but I still don't prefer it.

I'd much rather eat in my car than have people looking at me in pity because surely I'm so unlikable that no one can bear to even eat with me. If you make me, I will...but it's certainly not something I choose to do!

5. What company would you want to do a blog review for?

I would love to do a blog review on Disney, disney vacations maybe visit all the parks and cruise ships that they own! Now that would be a wonderful review. I think that it would be Ah-May-ZING! I would be able to write the best travel reviews of my life through this company. Also it would be amazing to work for them full time doing anything..........It truly is the best and happiest place on earth.



Friday, February 24, 2012

Feature Friday.................

I LOVE WOMEN IN BUSINESS!!!! LOVE the idea! Love the fact that women do so much for our community, in fact most business owners in our community are women! So each week I will feature another women in Business! This is a great way for you to meet some new creative., wonderful ladies to help support. I will add her beautiful photos once my lap top gets back up and running!  


I did a interview with the next lady I am doing the feature with almost two years ago and we couldn't get over the change. Look back on some of my older posts and you should be able to check and see the difference in her answers then and now. Elaine is a person that is full of love and life! She grew up in Bremerton and stayed true to her roots in this area by starting her own photography business and is raising her two beautiful children here as well. I am blessed to call her a friend here is her new out look on her business. I can not wait to see where she is in another two years! 




1. How long have you lived in the area?
I have lived in Bremerton my entire life... so about 33 years.


2. How much family history do you have in the area? 
My parents are the only ones left in the area. Both of my brothers have moved away and started families, but I have no plans of ever leaving!


3.What is your favorite thing about the area?
I love that you can get in the car and drive 1-2 hours in any direction and be somewhere totally cool. I love the trees, the water, the mountain views, its beautiful and makes great portrait scenery.

4. What would you change if you could about the area?
 I wish there werent so many 'banks' on every corner. And not a real big fan of the nudie coffee stands. (maybe i'm just jealous, lol)

5. What made you start your own business? 
I started a business in 2001 making scrapbooks for others (Scrappin It For You). I have always loved photography, and my husband was really the one who encouraged me to pursue photography.

6. Where would you like to see your business be in 5 years?
In 5 years I would like to be able to support my family as a photographer. To be able to wake up everyday and make a choice to do what I love and support my family would be my dream. While i'm in dream land, I also want to open up my own shop, that is a photographers paradise. There are no camera stores left anymore and I want to change that.

7. What is the hardest part of having your own business?
The hardest part about owning my own business is deciding on pricing. I want to be 
affordable and yet at the same time be compensated for my time and costs. Its a hard compromise. And I struggle with it everytime I look at my price sheet.

8. Where would you like our town to be in over the next five years?
I would like our town to be more supportive of small businesses opening in the area. I think it would be nice for the cities to give tax breaks to small businesses opening up so they can have a chance to survive before taking a piece of their pie.

9. What is your favorite thing to do in our town? 
 Every year without fail, we go to the Kitsap County Fair.

10. What is your favorite Store in town?
My favorite store is Romy's, and Ish.

11. Do you give to any local charities you work with?
I support alot of military. I am a member of Operation Love Reunited and offer to do homecomings, and other portrait sessions with military. I also do alot of fundraisers for different organizations trying to raise money.

12.What is your business motto? 
My business motto is "I'm not your average photographer". And really, I'm not. I do so much MORE than just photographer. I am creative. I love to design. I love to create. I cant help myself. A majority of my business has been word of mouth. I like it that way. It makes me feel like I am doing a good job.

13.tell me anything you would love to share about your business. 
I have yet to find a type of photography that I dont enjoy! I look forward to working with all kinds of people on all different kinds of projects!



Thursday, February 23, 2012

The small look at living at the NICU.

A popular question, with which I still have a hard time dealing with, was, “how are you doing?” I don’t think I’ve ever honestly answered that question to any one other than "Hubs" 



When we got the call that Chrystal was in labor it was all in slow motion. When I saw my two beautiful babies at their start of their 28th week, alive and at the moment I thought that my dreams had all become true. Little did I know that this would be the first few minutes of a nightmare I wouldn't be able to be awaken from for a very long time. What I saw at that time were my two beautiful baby boys! What we were looking at was translucent skin, tubes and wires all over their tiny bodies, seeing them so small not even able to let out a cry. At the time of one of my son's delivery he wasn't breathing and this lasted for minutes. I texted pictures of the babies to my best friends, and close family. With big smiles! I didn't realize how bad this was. I look at the pic's now and truly see I was in Shock and wearing rose colored glasses. 


Taking off those glasses for the first time, realizing that there is no way to describe what it feels like to have an early baby. No new mommy to be or woman ever contemplates the “what if” of preterm labor and birth, or complications. No one tells you of the details of what it would really be like to be in this situation. 


There is a time that you end up with this feeling of fear. Fearful that they won’t be okay…or that something is wrong with one of them, or God forbid something was wrong with Chrystal. Fearful that even a c-section birth would be too stressful on either boy.  Fearful that though the neonatologist said that babies born at that gestational age, that they had a 90 percent survival rate…that maybe one or both wouldn’t survive. They were worried about them because they were both so very small…would they be too small to survive? Would they be underdeveloped? Fearful that Chrystal would think she did something wrong to make this happen. Fearful that she thinks it’s her fault. Fearful she’d think I (we) hated her. Not that we loved her at that moment more then anything ( well besides those two beautiful babies that she just brought into this world.) 


When the time came later that night that we were told that we could now finally go see them. This feeling of being over the moon that you can FINALLY see your tiny babies. On the other side a little like you don’t want to see them because it’s going to be so scary to see them so helpless, There is nothing anyone can say to you when you have to look through the plexi-glass of an incubator to see your baby, or ask permission of a NURSE to touch YOUR baby…or the feeling when you first hold them…the feeling of relief that their okay and they have made it this far, but the feeling that it’s your fault. The only thing I was able to mutter out of my mouth was, “Hi, baby boy, I’m your mommy…I’m so so sorry.” All I could say for a few weeks in the NICU were I am so sorry.....sorry your here and not home, that you don't get to be in the same bed as your twin. it meant not holding them. Holding them would have stimulated them, It made it so they would both burn precious calories that they so needed to have to grow…to regulate their own temperature, to make blood, fat and everything else that they needed. It meant out of all the minutes in a day…at the beginning we held each of them 20.  Each of our babies learned to love us by us doing care…taking temperatures, changing diapers,.taking care of their umbilical cord's. That I can hold each of them by hand hugging them, the only way to touch them is to put your hand on the soles of their feet, and to cup their head. Stroking a preemie like you would a  term baby baby is too much stimulation, and isn’t ok for them, Nurse Amiee told me that this would be what we feel like with a big fever and someone touching us.


The only thing we could do was to pull up a chair and sit. Sit there and stare at them. Being there for us to feel better, all the while thinking that us being there made them feel better. To talk to each other, talk to the amazing  nurses…talk to them through their incubator/ isolette. so that they learned who we were from or voices. This was especially important to "Hub's" and I because they didn't grown in my tummy. So they didn't know our voices as much as they did their Auntie & Uncle and their two cousins. My thought through the first few weeks is that they didn't know who this stranger was talking to them, maybe they wanted or needed their oven's voice to comfort them and not mine. F & B learned affection, love, and security through these things I know that now, and it makes me realize that it was enough to help them strive. 


The sleepless nights thinking of how they were doing…the eagerness to be next to them even though we couldn’t hold them much, truly there are no words for it. We turned our world upside down and moved down to this amazing place that is called the Tree house where you can live until your babies are sent home. We stayed here for almost 65 nights, it wasn't home but it was better then driving the almost two hour drive one way to go home. 


The first time you see your baby turn blue because they are so small and early that they haven’t learned to self regulate is the worst heart wrenching feeling. The good news is,  that the bigger they get, the less often it tends to happen, and the more used to them you become. It gets to the point that spells don’t phase you, and how to stimulate them to breathe again is second nature. The beeps and alarms of the NICU become normal, and you can tell what each one means by it differing tone. The higher pitched and faster it is, the worse the reason. Being in the NICU was the worlds largest rollercoaster ride I have ever been on in my life, in trapping my family and close friends on this ride with us, times when things go great and then it starts to go backwards before you know it your four steps back. They would go off the Cpap then back on, transfusions, PICC lines out and back in, feeding tubes out and back in, Oxygen on and back off, with one baby when he came home he came on that and a monitor for his heart after a while it went off for now. 


I sat one morning looking in at one of my babies while the other one was in the room next to us and the only thing I could do was break down and cry.... The nurses held me as I cried these nurse's & the girls at the front desk became my best friends and family, my rocks. I would have never made it though all of this without them. 


So many times during the stretch of being in the NICU was spent crying, it was the only thing to do. Curl up and cry. I spent a great amount of time alone, Hubs had to work and I didn't feel like being social at the Treehouse, sometimes all I could do was to Just cry. Just let it all out. I had to stay calm to try to keep the people around me protected, not wanting to let anyone else carry this feeling. There were many,  many tears built up. They still a few months later come though from time to time. 


On their one month birthday they were doing well enough to be taken upstairs to the ICN, the next step to going home.... I was pushing it because in my mind going upstairs we can go HOME! Well then I realized the most of my nurse friends would no longer be with me by my side. 




Check back next week for the rest of the story.





















Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Wordless Wednesday......

Cute idea!
This was found on pinetrest!!! Love this picture and will need to find time to take a picture like this of the four of us. 

Tempt my Tummy tuesday

Well Tuesday is fun because Monday nights I make the meal I plan to share with you all. My memory card was deleted and I am told not to use it for a while so your going to get pictures that I get from photobucket or google search for a little while. The card is full of the babies pictures. I can only hope that they can be recovered like many people have told me. It truly has made me feel so sick to know I deleted their pictures of their first four months. 


With that being said here is what I tried to make yesterday. You all know how much I loved quick crock pot recipes and now with the babies and all the time I don't have I find the time to do one big meal plan on Sundays to set us up for the week with my lovely crock pot!  I hope you enjoy this recipe.


Beef Bourguignon



  • ½ cup flour
  • 1 pinch kosher salt
  • 1 pinch pepper
  • 5 pounds beef chuck, cubed up 
  • EVOO. 
  • 2 onions, sliced
  • 1 cup mushrooms, sliced ( I used cream of mushrooms and that seemed to work great! 
  • 1 cup fresh parsley, minced ( I have mine frozen so just pop it out of the ice tray! )
  • 6 teaspoon minced garlic ( Again done in ice tray in freezer) 
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 2 cups white wine ( 3 buck chuck from Trader joes works great) 
  • 1 1/2 cup beef broth ( I use trader joes) 
Directions
  1. Mix the flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge beef in flour.
  2. In a skillet placed on stovetop set to medium-high heat, heat oil and sear beef on all sides.
  3. Add meat and remaining ingredients to Crock-Pot® slow cooker. Cover and cook on Low for 4-6 hours 
Serves: 6-8 Size: 6-7 quarts 

Friday, February 10, 2012

Meet me Monday...


1. What do you do when you are really upset to calm yourself down?
I start to cry.  Although I have to say and admit that I'm not really sure that it calms me down. I also get mad and real bitch at times. My husband is amazing and I do not know what makes him put up with me and love me the way he does. 

2. Did you go all out for V-day or is it just another day?

Baby_Feet.jpg image by ohiogrl288


Typically, it's just another day. This year, we did what most new parents do, made dinner and tried to talk in between diapers and warming up milk. It was extra special today because we had two amazing little babies to hold and love. I do look forward to next year when we can start many new traditions.... I do see alot of fun things in our little family.

3. Are you more or less productive when Hubs is away?
50s Housewife
Oh so much more, I turn and burn when the babies nap, I have a clear list of when to do what for my chores around the house, I try to keep my house up to the way it needs to be in order of what I expect from me. It's funny I have a few best friends and one that isn't a part of my family tree, she came over the other day and said she was so happy to see my house look like that of one that belongs to a mommy! So now when he is away at work I try really hard to keep it up but now I don't keep it as clean as I use to because I would rather play with my babies or catch up on a few emails or take a nap with them. I never thought that quote of "cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow." now I truly do. 



4. What is your favorite time of day and why?
Gosh...that's a hard one. 
But, I suppose, my favorite time of day is 3:00 when my husband comes home from work and I go back to sleep for a nap, sometimes I sleep till 4 sometimes till 7. It is kind of like working a graveyard when I let the hubs sleep and take the night shifts when he is working. I also love when all three of them are in bed and I can watch my shows, catch up on my blog and drink a nice cold diet coke. :) 


5. What is your go to karaoke song?

80s.jpg image by shavondominique
Ha! 
Soooooooo, my go to karaoke song is usually like a virgin, or pour some sugar on me! I also love anything by good old Niel D....

If I've had Pineapple juice and coconut rum,  I can sometimes convince myself that I sound good enough to belt out any handful of country artists or 90's top 100...but that requires a blood alcohol level that leaves me unable to drive a car or operate heavy machinery and I wind up with a queasy tummy and a pounding headache in the morning along with a ton of bruise's I discover in the shower the next day. Thank God I don't drink but once a year or two. 

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Meet me Monday!!!!!

Welcome to Meet me Monday :)  On Wednesday night. :)



1. Would you rather be on ABC's Extreme Home MakeOver or TLC's What not to Wear?
Well, when Extreme Home Makeover first came on the TV, they came to our little town, it was a huge thing in our town, locals and people that just lived around the area were here to lend a helping hand. A time where a close knit community became even closer. I felt bad for the family that was part of it because I think even now years later people drive up the road they live on and down the dirt driveway just to look at the house. When they were in town for the first year or so after the show was on air, people would stare and point and whisper at them, so to be honest I have to say that I loved that show but now I think I need new things to wear and look my best so i would say What not to wear!


2. Do you have any tattoos?
Yes I do, I have my first one in the one place every girl my age..... in the good old US of A and another one is on my wrist its a awareness ribbon, but I want to have a few more, in the next year I want to get one that celebrates the birth of my boys and want to celebrate my 10th anniversary with my husband. 


3. Do you tell your kids about things you did growing up?
Yes, my parents were very truthful with me so I will do the same thing with my boys. I feel like I was a good kid that didn't get in too much trouble and when I did I came home and told my Mom. I can only hope that my boys love me as I love my parents. 


4. If the traffic signal turns yellow, do you stop or speed up?
Speed up baby! Better watch out I will hit you! :) I don't second guess myself if I am going for it I will just keep going. 


5. What's your preference: chocolate or chips?
How about Chocolate chips! I would say Chips I love milk Chocolate but I have to say that my salt licks of chips especially at my favorite place to eat Masa :) 

Friday, January 20, 2012

Feature Friday..... My good friend..... from Mac Kids..

I love this girl so much.!!! She is amazing and as a fellow blogger I have to say that she is great at what she does for out community. Diane is the kind of person that you instantly feel close with, I know that this is a friendship that I knew at our first time meeting we were going to be close friends for the rest of our lives. This lady is just wonderful and what she does in our community and the connection she has made in our community and encourages other to make within our community is just a little glimpse on how special she is and her love for our little piece of the world is just why I love her and I know after learning a bit more you will too! 
Macaroni Kid answers the age old question, “Mom, what are we going to do today?” 

We've become the go-to source for everything Kid and Family in Kitsap County. Parents from Bainbridge to Belfair, Port Orchard to Port Gamble are thanking us. Macaroni Kid is their new secret weapon for streamlining their hectic lives. We help them find out about the coolest events happening in the area for their kids. We scour the internet, the cities, social media, and newspapers, getting up early to bring parents, grandparents, teachers and others the most current and comprehensive event listings. We're helping them save time and money. But most importantly we're helping them to have fun with their family and friends. 

What was there before Macaroni Kid? Well, I can speak from experience. Since my youngest macaroni kid was a baby, I've been trying to find fun (and yes, mostly frugal) activities that were largely local (and only occasionally in Tacoma or Seattle). Back then, I was looking for baby signing classes for her and mommy groups for me. Over time it evolved into more activities with more frequency as I found location after location that had something cool and exciting that would be something great for a child to experience.

So, I found myself searching countless different websites, reading newspaper calendar sections,  grabbing directories at the doctor's office, reading every flyer on every bulletin board I passed, and talking to friends about places they went and fun ideas to do at home. 

Around this time last year, I saw Macaroni Kid national in a publication (it's been featured in “O Magazine,” “Redbook”, and “Scholastic Parent & Child”) and pulled up the website. From the national page, you can choose a state from a pulldown menu and see if there is a newsletter edition for your area. The closest one to Kitsap at that time was South Sound, so I signed up! I also saw the 'Become a Publisher Mom' button and clicked on it. The rest is history.

After several emails (because I had so many questions) to national headquarters and LOTS of thought, I knew deep down that being a MacKid Kitsap Editor & Publisher was an ideal fit. Heck, I was already doing all the work for my own family, so why not share it with others!? Plus, it would put my journalism degree to good use.
I've turned my passion for research and writing into a business. While I still maintain my 'day job' as a non-profit grant writer and (print) newsletter editor and designer, perhaps one day MacKid will be my only commitment beyond home and family. For now, I balance it all because I believe so fully in the vision set forth by the MacKid founders. 

Since the introduction of Macaroni Kid in the Hamptons in 2008, MacKid has branched into hundreds of other communities across the nation. Other mom (and a few dad!) editors and publishers have found the value and extraordinary power of Macaroni Kid.
MacKid remedies a problem. It saves parents time. It's the perfect avenue for organizations seeking to get the word out about their events and programs, and for businesses to make their products or services known to the parenting population in Kitsap County.
Remembering how important MacKid is to so many thousands of Kitsap residents keeps me motivated. I appreciate the feedback I've gotten online and at events from parents, grandparents, and teachers such as: 


"I love macaronikid because I have three young and busy boys and it's awesome to have a place to find activities inside out of the rain!"
-Hannah H., mom of 3 boys


"My favorite thing of Macaroni Kids is that I am a Grandparent and it gives me the opportunity to see what activities are happening best way from me to keep up to speed."
-Gloria C.

Military families, too! Macaroni Kid is the ideal resource for families that are transplanted somewhere new.


"Macaroni Kid has been such a gift to my family! We moved here just 4 months ago. When we get to a new area, we love to explore and see all the sights, but getting here (our first duty station on the West Coast) it was a little overwhelming findings things to do. A friend suggested Macaroni Kid, and now when I see the email, I get excited and begin planning our next outings!"
-Jodi U.

What was the world like before Macaroni Kid? It's like explaining to your kids the difference between a cassette tape and iPod. Either way, you get your music. One is just way more convenient, accessible, user-friendly, and holds more variety.
With one click of a mouse you can answer that dreaded age-old question – What ARE we going to do today?
Macaroni Kid is FREE and you get just 1 weekly email on Friday letting subscribers know the skinny on what's going on in Kitsap. Sign up for Macaroni Kid Kitsap now! 
(when you do tell them Kingstongirl sent you!)
www.kitsap.macaronikid.com