OK.  Is anyone out there as obsessed with this as I am?

I have been entering the HGTV Dream Home Sweepstakes for about as long as they have been doing it.  No lie.  I sent in 100 postcards for the first drawing they did back in 1997 (yes kiddies - that was before we could enter these things en masse by using that brilliant online form).  The 1997 prize was this gorgeous Log Cabin in Jackson Hole, WY.

You want to hear something embarassing?  I entered it because that's where Harrison Ford lives.  And yes, I was entertaining delusions of meeting him and having him fall madly in love with me and living happily ever after in that HGTV log cabin.

Ann if you're out there - I know you remember fueling that madness the way that good friends do.  I think you may have even addressed some of the envelopes.   And for that, I will love you always.  :)

I don't know why I still enter that dang thing.  But still I try -(Side note:  I did not win that log cabin in 1997) definitely not for the same reasons.  I am much happier with Dave than I am sure I would have ever been with Mr. Ford. (No offense Harry.)

Every January 1st I look at that form with giddy anticipation.  I set an Outlook reminder to enter every day (though now days I am lucky to enter a couple times a week), and then I drool over the house on TV and on the website.  Then, I watch as someone else gets awarded the fruit of my labor.  LOL

Oh well, such is life.  It's all in good fun.  And it's free.  Let's see...  What shall I do with a house in Vermont...

Since I can't sleep, I thought I would write a little in here...

Dave is out of town, and I can never sleep well when he isn't here.  He'll be gone for two weeks.  No he's not TDY.  He is in Dallas.  For the Super Bowl.

And he is getting paid to be there!

That guy is soooo lucky when it comes to stuff like that!  LOL  He is working is butt off though.  I love talking to him every day and hearing about his day.  This is only the pre-event week, so I can't wait to hear about all his experiences during the hectic week of, and on game day.  He doesn't get a seat at the game, but he gets to be in the stadium to watch the game.  How cool is that? 

The tickets to this game are ridiculous!  I can't believe they are going for $2000 each!  The hotels (if you are lucky enough to find one) are gouging people's pockets.  I read somewhere that to tailgate and watch the game OUTSIDE the stadium costs $200.  Wah??  I think it would be an awesome experience, but I couldn't pay that kind of money to do it.  I'll just live vicariously through Dave I guess.  I am stoked that he gets to do it though.  It's a Bucket List item for him (though he'd rather it be the Giants playing).

I am even more stoked that he doesn't have to pay money to do it!

Triple stoked that they are paying him!  LOL

Today was a slow day (for both him and I).  It felt like it just dragged on and on...  Hopefully tomorrow won't be so bad.

I better get to bed and TRY to sleep or I will be hating life in tha AM...

If you read this blog, you know that most of my recent posts are Wednesday Hero posts.  I don't get a whole lot of time to write any more, but I do want to post those without fail.  Today is a little bit different.

I wanted to post a Monday Hero post about our dear friend, MSgt Brent Chadick.  Brent is my one of my husband's best friends.  His wife is one of my best friends.  He left yesterday on an 8 month deployment.  I don't want to post too much about his upcoming whereabouts, but do want to ask a very important favor. 

For those of you that are the praying sort, please pray for his safety.  Pray that his beautiful family will be OK and get the support they need in his time of absence.  The kids and I are praying every day for them.  His wife Lisa is a trooper and a tough cookie, but I know how she is feeling.  Every day is going to be something different.  We'll be there for her and the kids.  But prayers and support in abundance are always a good thing.

I am proud of the job he is doing and of his and his family's sacrifices.  They are true heroes.

Yep - the weather has been crazy this year!  We left Cheyenne, Wyoming in a blizzard last October only to wake up this fine morning in Louisiana to this:

The kids were so excited to have a snow day today, plus a 4 day President's Day Weekend...  We've had a fun day at home.  Now I hear it is snowing near my hometown in Florida.  Crazy weather eh?

We have been contemplating closing off the patio and making it a Sunroom or sorts (actually an office)… We love this house, but really miss having an extra room. It is really strange how this house has more square footage, but because of the layout, we lost some office space. We have more living space but the dedicated space for our computers and my scrapbooking stuff is sorely missed.

That being said, we LOVE this house. It is everything we ever wanted in a house: my dream kitchen, his gorgeous wood flooring, a master bath suite, a great back yard…The backyard has a porch that already has a roof and 3 sides - we've been wondering how much it would cost to enclose it and recapture some extra square footage?

I have been perusing websites and trying to get ideas about how to go about enclosing it and then making the outside covering with insulated vinyl siding vs. brick due to cost.  Vinyl siding sure has come a LONG way - there are some really attractive options out there now.  I saw someone in our neighborhood who had a sunroom installed on their brick house, where the outside wall is white vinyl - it looked really pretty.

There are so many other things I would love to do for this house (especially to make it "greener").  I would love to replace the windows with vinyl replacement windows or some other type of energy efficient replacement windows.  I would love to replace the water heater with a tankless water heater system.  And when I am feeling really industrious, I dream about finishing out the attic...  Dave thinks I am crazy with all the home projects spinning around in my head...  He thinks I watch WAY too much HGTV.  But hey, a girl with a tool belt can dream! 

My family watched the Super Bowl last night just as many American families did.  Even though I was secretly hoping for Peyton Manning to do well (I am a huge fan of Peyton even though I am a Giants fan and root for his little bro), I was glad to see the Saints get their first Super Bowl win.  Newly transplanted in the Shreveport area, it was really cool to see all the Saints pride during the football season, and to see that pride swell once the Saints made it in to the big game.

The people in this area have been excited to say the least!  All the kids at my youngest son's school wore their Saints pride on Friday.  A neighbor painted a HUGE fleur de lis onto his yard.  There have been flags, banners, and all kinds of decor all over the city.  When we were saying good bye to our guests last night, we had to laugh...  We opened the front door and heard the neighbors hooting and hollering and shooting off fireworks - awesome!

But one of the BEST things about the evening?  This:



We had to rewind this commercial over and over again - we laughed so hard.  The kids laughed so hard.  Even better?  This commercial wasn't made by a high priced, fancy ad agency.  It was made by a regular Joe as part of the Crash the Superbowl Contest by Doritos.  I had no idea, but all the other Doritos ads that aired during the Superbowl were also the contest winners who won cash for their ads - how fun!

Those of you out there with film making skills should get on it for next year!

Here it is, January of the new year almost over and I have slowly been working towards my fitness goals for the new year.  At first, I told myself I wasn’t going to make any new year’s resolutions this year, and in a way I haven’t.  I really hate calling them that because I don’t have a great track record at keeping them!  Getting myself back into shape is always at the top of my goals list no matter what time of year it is.
However this post at Twittermoms really got me thinking (i.e. feeling guilty) about being kinda lax about setting specific goals for myself this year.  So, I am going to sit here and hash them out.  “On paper”.  This way I can hold myself accountable.  So…

These are my top 5 goals for getting fit and healthy in 2010:

1.  I need to set myself up on a CONSISTENT workout schedule. This is number one.  In my crazy day, my workout will ALWAYS be the first thing to get cut from my To-Do list.  I have to stop doing this.  I need to make time for my workouts instead of just squeezing them in here and there.

2.  I also need to be able to track my workouts in a consistent manner so that I can see (and be motivated) by my progress.  Consistently.  I see a pattern here.  I need to be consistent. I know this goal will keep me motivated.

3.  Eat out less.  We usually eat out once a week.  It is almost never a salad that I order.  It is usually something like pasta, bread, beer.  Yikes.  I need to east out less.  A lot less.  I can't be trusted to order a taco salad at a Mexican restaurant so it's best I not go so much.

4.  Focus on strength.  I really want to get buff.  Not like Lou Ferrigno buff, but I want to be proud to wear a tank top with nice, defined biceps.  I did it before, I can do it again.

5.  TAKE CONTROL of what I put in my mouth.  Take control and be accountable – even if this means I have to carry around a notebook in my purse and keep a food journal.  This worked for me before – I just got lazy about it.  For a few years.  Yikes.


You know what I really want?  This:

I REALLY REALLY want to get this Your Shape Wii Game.  I think this awesome tool could really help me with goals 1, 2, and 4.  I love that it has a video camera that projects you doing the exercises on the TV.  It is like having your own personal trainer!  Being the techie geek  that I am, if it is an electronic way to keep my workouts on track, I know I will use it (and have fun doing so).

Any tools I can use to help me are well worth it - I need all the help I can get!  Wish me luck!

Yes it can!

I have always loved tools and technology that makes managing my life easier.  As a military wife and mother, my career has always had to be flexible, adaptable, and most of all - portable.  I need tools that meet these needs.  I need small tools that pack a huge productivity punch.  The perfect solution?  Winning this:



I want an HP Mini 311!

Now how can a simple little laptop help simplify my life you say?  Easily.  By putting everything I need in one, little, portable, powerful, 3.22lb package.  With this wonderful little tool I can:

* Blog anytime anywhere 
* Work on my (ever elusive) Masters Degree
* Communicate with my husband when he is deployed
* Keep sane while my kids are hogging the house PC
* Keep my life and business going the next time we PCS
   (ie. the next time the military moves us)
* Surf the internet for fun during my downtime
   (whenever I find any)
* Finish this book while at baseball/football/whatever
   sport my two boys are playing at the time and become
   an awe inspiring fiction writer

Ok.  I have lofty goals.

This beautiful piece of technological goodness can help me achieve them.  Really!  Have you seen the commercials for Windows 7?  You can leap tall buildings in a single bound with Windows 7!  I love that this laptop comes loaded with Windows 7 - I have been dreaming of ways I can use the snap, shake, and pin to help manage my crazy hectic day.  Just look at the way Dara Torres uses hers:





Are you a busy Mom?  Would you like to win an HP Mini 311 too?  HP, Windows 7, and The Mom Bloggers Club have teamed up to give away 3 of these to random comment posters on contest entrants' blog.  Just leave a comment on my blog for a chance to win your very own - good luck!

Do you ever feel like you are at a crossroads in your life?  Do you feel like there are so many options open to you and that your whole future hinges on important choices you need to make right now?  This is what I have been feeling since the new year.  Actually, I have been feeling this since this last military move last October.  My kids are getting older (one is in 2nd grade, the other is in 8th) and my husband's military career are winding down.  I really love what I do right now (and I will still continue to manage DirectSalesMoms.com), but I feel like I need a little more.  I need to figure out what I want out of my life.  My family life is wonderful and I wouldn't change a thing.  However, as a woman and a mother I am always wondering the age-old question:

"What kind of career do I want to pursue?"

Part of me likes the fact that I am a stay at home Mom.  I like being there when my kids get home.  I like being at the ready to help with homework, or get them ready for their baseball/football/whatever sport they are playing at the time.  However, another part of me misses being a part of the workforce.  Being a professional out there in career-land.  I used to be the "go-to girl" at the office.

I was in transition for a while...  I had been pursuing my Bachelor's Degree.  I graduated last August, and now I am trying to find a job to use said degree.  This is probably one of the worse times in history to be looking for a job, much less a career change - especially when the last career on your resume is "shuttling kids to baseball".  OK that's not really what I listed, but still. 

A friend and I are going to a career fair this week.  I am both excited and mortified.  I know I am competent, intelligent, and proficient at many different skills, but I still feel very under qualified.  That feeling really sucks.

I will keep you posted how the job fair goes...

Well here we are again...

The USAF is moving us on what may be the final PCS of David's career... I sit here looking at my half empty, disheveled house and wonder what lies ahead for us. The move is very exciting yet bittersweet. While I am excited to be moving with our best friends (we were lucky enough to get orders to the same base they did), we'll be leaving behind very fond memories of this place and other good friends. Such is military life I suppose.

The movers are coming to start packing us up tomorrow and there is still much to be done today. We close on our new home at the end of October, which means we'll be living out of suitcases for three weeks. The kids think that is so exciting, whereas Dave and I know better. ;)

We are nervous and excited and anxious for what the future holds. But, we are also feeling altogether very blessed indeed...

... and it was awesome. We didn't fly to Paris, or go on vacation (well we just came back from visiting family in Florida); we didn't go all out. We agreed when we first got married that we would give each other the "Traditional" anniversary gifts rather than the "Modern" ones (that was before I knew that I wouldn't get a diamond until our 60th anniversary - DANG! LOL). It has been so much fun over the years looking for the gifts!

Today is our 9th anniversary. So I searched high and low for a "pottery" themed gift? What kind of pottery do you get a guy anyway?? I ended up getting him this:



I found it on Ebay. He liked it - yay!

Pottery? Check.
Sports related? Check.
New York Giants related? Check.

However, about 5 hours after he got it, he dropped the lid and it shattered. I felt sooooo bad. :( He felt so bad. I felt bad that he felt so bad. It was an accident and it is just stuff after all. So I am on the hunt for another one like it. Or at least the lid. Turns out this Cookie Jar is kinda rare...

He got me a really pretty plate that was personalized with our initials and anniversary date. Very romantic. :) I put it up in the kitchen. He got it at PersonalizationMall.com - love that site...

He also cooked his Gram's Spaghetti (he makes his sauce from SCRATCH ladies!) - this was the reason I married this man. LOL I am making Lemon Ice for dessert, after which we will probably settle down with the kids and watch a movie or something.

While getting the dinner dishes cleaned up we looked out the window and marveled at the snow covered landscape outside. This is definitely our first (and maybe only) anniversary that we will see the ground covered in snow!

We had a nice quiet day at home. I wouldn't have preferred it any other way. :) Happy 9th Anniversary to my darling David...

This was a challenging subject to blog about - especially since one of my kiddos is the pickiest eater ever. Here are my 5 tips for making sure my kids get the vitamins and minerals they need for strong bones:

1. Make sure they take a multi-vitamin daily. They take good old fashioned Flintstones vitamins. Not very sophisticated I know... But they like it and it gets the job done.

2. Make sure they get outside. Since I am not going to put my beloved sons in a tanning bed (LOL) I try and get them outside in the sunshine as much as possible to soak up that Vitamin D. Every little bit helps right?

3. I make sure their meals aren't missing vibrant colors... Green veggies, yellow veggies, orange & veggies... Sometimes a balanced meal can be achieved just by looking at the plate. If there is too much brown or white, then chances are there aren't enough veggies on the plate.

4. I HIDE veggies in things whenever I can. I have a recipe here somewhere for ZUCCHINI brownies. Yes. zucchini. And they are delicious! I will have to find it and post it...

5. I make sure they get enough dairy for the day. I can't drink milk (ooooh my aching stomach) too much so I try and take a calcium supplement. I also buy vitamin D fortified orange juice.

I would love to hear your tips for making sure your kids are getting adequate vitamins and minerals. Feel free to leave a comment!

****

If you have a blog, you can blog about this subject too and enter the "Liquid Sunshine" contest being hosted by TwitterMoms and Wellesse. Just post your Top 5 Tips on your blog with mention of TwitterMoms and Wellesse, and Vitamin D. Then post a link to your blog here.

You can score yourself a free bottle of Vitamin D. I would love to try it out...

This is the first weekend in a long time that we haven't had any plans to do anything... It feels soooo nice. So today, I plan on finishing my homework, cleaning house a little, posting a mini album project I did on my sister Scrapbooking Blog, and then maybe doing some scrapping myself. Right now I am drinking coffee and listening to silence as the family is still sleeping...

As for yesterday's rant, all is alright in our household. It just kinda blew over when he got home from work. I know you are supposed to talk things out, and all that... But I just didn't feel like fighting anymore. You gotta pick your battles. Ah the dynamics of marriage. :)

The photo shoot went really fast yesterday. The photographer was great and I feel like we probably got some great shots there. I guess we'll see (and see what the damage is) next month when the proofs come back. Maybe we should have just got them done at Wal Mart?? I wish we had a Picture People here. That place is awesome. Also kinda pricey, but they take great photos. And you get them in an hour... :)

Anyway, the weekend is wide open so we'll see where it goes. What are your plans this weekend?

You ever see those family bumper stickers that people have on the back of their cars? Those ones that show stick figures of their family? I always wondered what mine would look like, but since I don't like to put any stickers on my car I left it at that - wondering... Well ain't this the cutest??

I swear you can do just about anything online... LOL

So this is us. Except they didn't have my haircut and, truth be told, I can't remember the last time I wore a dress. And they don't have a little Chinchilla icon for our little Eli.

Other than that, this is our family. :) Want to see what yours looks like?

Get your own Family Sticker Maker.

Wow... This is the first year in a loooong time that I am not participating in the madness called Black Friday. Not necessarily because of the current economic climate or anything (I wonder if that is going to affect today's sales greatly?), but because I AM ALREADY DONE WITH MY CHRISTMAS SHOPPING.

I can't even believe it myself!

I usually start shopping in June or July, but I got a really late start this year (September). I got done with the kids' presents (and my husband's) around the beginning of November and all that is left is giftcards for all my out of state family. I promised myself that this year we were going to to checks and giftcards because last year we spent $300 on POSTAGE. Dang.

So here I sit contemplating starting my Christmas cards (which I really should have started in October - ooops). I make them with my scrapbooking supplies and my immediate family has come to expect them handmade. LOL

But I also have a 6 page paper due on Sunday.

Dilemma. I guess I could just sit here and blog or twitter all day...

Better not though. ;)