Sweet Home Kentucky

I haven't blogged for a couple of months because we have been preparing to move to Alabama. Some people are having a hard time understanding why we are moving. It was definitely not an easy decision, especially when I look back through all my pictures and picked these as some of the reasons that I am going to miss Kentucky:

(1) My son Brenden, who is staying behind in Tell City, Indiana. I'm so proud that he has been living on his own and know that he is going to do just fine without me but I will miss him very much.
(2) Listening to Blaine play the violin. I was saddened to learn that he won't have the opportunity to be in Orchestra in Middle School. But we could always pay for private lessons.

(3)Jason's family is going to be greatly missed by us. It has been a wonderful thing that we have had family so close by. I know deep in my heart that they will be there for us when we need them but they won't be just across town anymore.

(4) I finally learned to ski this year, and there isn't any snow where we are moving. Wait.... that's a good thing isn't it??!?!

(5) Riley and I are going to miss Storytime at the library and all of our friends!

(6) I'm going to miss all of my mom friends that I have met over the past 2 years while I have worked part time in Owensboro (including Shannon, Candace, Tamra, Kim, Stacy, and Ana).

(7) I'm especially going to miss our house that is a true labor of love. Jason and I have "touched" every nook and cranny and made it into a home. But I feel good in knowing that the next family will be a perfect fit for it!!

(8) I'm going to miss all of my co-workers, especially my fellow dietitians at Owensboro Medical Health Systems. You have become like family to me!! Not sure how it is going to be to not be working with any other dietitians in my new job.

(9) I am going to miss our church and I'm sure Riley is going to miss it too. This is a picture of the MOPPETTs. I know that we will find a good church in Alabama too.

(10) Going to miss my friends' Courtney and Al Ward. They have been there for me going on 12 years now. What more can I say....

(11) Going to miss Shannon Sanderson, who taught me how to ski and has been a great friend. We are planning an arranged marriage between Owen and Riley-- wouldn't they have cute kids?

(12) I'm really going to miss volunteering with CASA of Ohio Valley. I have been with the program since it began in this county and have served on the board the past 2 years. They do not have CASA in the county that I will be moving to.

(13) I will miss my new friend Kim McCaslin who makes me laugh! I will never forget all the fun times we have had together.

(14) I will miss my friend Stacy Muffler (and her 2 little girls Olivia and Myra). She has been a great inspiration of what a stay at home mom is all about. She is so patient and kind-- I definitely have learned a lot from her.

(15) I will miss my sweet Mattie Lou. She always is good for a hug and cuddle!!

(16) Miss Ellen will be greatly missed. I have enjoyed going to her dance recitals and having her spend the night.

I will also miss Sam too but I couldn't find a picture of him:)

(17) I will miss the playdates with the MOMs Club of Owensboro-- I know that they have one in Fairhope but it just won't be the same.

(18) I will miss teaching Vacation Bible School at Owensboro Christian Church. I know that I will continue to do this in Alabama.

(19) I will especially miss my new found friend Ana! She came into my life just 8 months ago but I feel like I have known her forever!!! And her sweet girls, Victoria and Sofia, will be missed too!

(20) And last but not least I will miss our neighbor kids and all the pool parties!!

Braylabee's Giveaway

There is a cool giveaway going on at http://www.livinglikethekings.com/

To go directly there and find out more click on this link: http://the-royalreviews.blogspot.com/

This lady makes some of the cutest little personalized items that any mom would love to win for their little one, so please check it out!

The first week of April

Jason has been hard at work getting the landscaping done in the front of our house... He stained the sidewalk that we had put in last December, trimmed the bushes, put more rocks in the flower gardens, and mulch around the trees.

We started the week by meeting some new friends at the Owensboro Science Museum-- this is a picture of Hailey and Riley. Then on Tuesday I took Riley to Storytime at the Library. Now that Riley is 2 years old she is enjoying the stories, songs, and activities so much more!
On Wednesday Riley and I met Brenden and Brittany at Patti's Resale in downtown Owensboro and watched Brittany try on some wedding dresses. Here is a picture of Riley in a flower girl dress looking at Brittany's favorite dress.
On Saturday Riley decorated Easter eggs with her cousin Hannah. She really enjoyed all the different colors and then putting stickers on top of all of the eggs.

And on Sunday we went to Great Grandad's 84th Birthday party and ate way too much food and spent quality time with Jason's family that were able to attend.

Extreme Couponing

It has been a very long time since I have blogged, way too long, but it's really just not my thing. I thought I would give it another try though. I have several friends who tell me about how they get such good deals by doing "extreme" couponing so I thought that I would give it a try.

I started off by going onto several online sites and printing off some coupons. The first problem that I ran into was that I used up all the black ink in my printer and my hubby had to order some more:( Then when the ads came out Sunday I spent an hour or so looking through the ads and comparing them to the coupons that I have.

I decided last night at around 8 pm to try to go out and find some of the bargains. The next problem I ran into was that CVS closes at 8pm on Sunday. But I stopped at Walgreen's (which is open 24 hours) and purchased Colgate toothpaste for $2.99 and received a coupon for $3 to use on my next purchase. I also picked up a box of Fruit Loops for the sale price of $1.88. Then I went to Target and ran into my third problem which is that our Target is not a "Super" Target so they didn't have most of the items I was looking for. I did buy Dove Men's Deordorant for $2.99 and had a $1.00 off coupon (so I got it for $1.99). The other item I bought was some cereal and I used a coupon but I realized after I was halfway home that it didn't ring up on sale so it wasn't the bargain that I had hoped for.

Today Riley and I went to CVS to try to pick up all the bargains there. And I must say I did fairly well, this is what I got:

Herbal Essence shampoo and conditioner 2/$5.49 (-$1.00)= 2/$4.49

Oral B Toothbrushes $2.99 each (-$.99 each instore coupon) (-$2.00 coupon)(Buy1Get1 free)=

they paid me 0.99 to take them home!!

Glide Clinical Gum Toothpase(4oz) $3.49 (-$2.50 instore coupon)= $0.99

Olay Body Wash $5.99 (-$3.00 coupon) = $2.99

Pantene Shampoo & Conditioner 2/$6.97 (-$2.00 instore coupon) (-$1.00coupon)=2/$3.97

Infusium Leave-in Conditioner $4.99 (-$2.00)= $2.99

Cascade $6.99 (-.25)= $6.74

There are a couple of other items that they were out of, I am planning on returning on Friday which is when they get their next shipment in and then I can use all the instore coupons ($6.48).

The Month of May

Hannah came for a visit the first weekend of the month, she loved playing with Riley.Evan was baptized at Owensboro Christian Church that weekend also.
The kids have spent a lot of time playing outside but this was one of those rare moments when they all wanted to watch the same DVD-- it was Riley's Nursery Rhyme video of all things.
I had a great Mother's Day weekend. On Saturday we went to the BBQ Festival and the kid's had fun while I looked at the booths and bought this cute outfit for Riley. On Sunday after church all of Jason's family came over for a cookout which was great fun!
Riley and I go for walks almost every day and now she also loves to swing out front of the house!
Here is my first attempt at "piggy tails" on Riley, she didn't like it too well but mama thinks she looks too cute!
Blaine and I made his favorite dish-- Cheeseburger Soup-- when he was off from school on Election Day.
Evan had is first baseball game and Riley was the designated cheerleader.
The weather got up to 90 degrees but the pool is still a little chilly at 73 degrees-- Sam Ward came for a visit and Blaine floated around with his broken arm.Grandma and Grandpa McClain came for a visit and spent some time hanging out with us. Riley actually warmed up enough to let them get a picture with her.

My 40th Birthday

I will never forget my 40th birthday! It started when Riley woke me up at 6:17 a.m.-- Blaine had overslept for school so I had to wake him up and rush him out the door. Then the fun began. Riley was not in a very good mood at all, she did not want to eat breakfast, and she also did not want to play with her toys. Instead she wanted my full undivided attention and she wanted me to take her outside. I did get her to take a shower with me and then I got us both ready to leave. Riley also was in a foul mood in the car and fussed all the way to Mammie's house-- I ended up yelling at her, which really made me feel even worse. I was also frustrated at Jason because he was not home yet from work when I needed him. But Mammie saved the day by taking over the job of keeping Riley occupied on my birthday.

So then I decided to go to the tanning bed for a few rays, and Panera Bread to get a bagel and coffee from Brenden. I was then on the road to Evansville for my Spa day at Head Over Heelz Salon. I arrived at 10am and started my spa day with a Hot Stone Massage. I was really starting to think I was jinxed when all I could hear was construction equipment during the first 20-30 minutes-- come on now, isn't a massage suppose to be relaxing, how can you relax when you hear "BEEP, BEEP, BEEP" from a machine backing up over and over and over again. But at least the last 60 minutes were relaxing.

Next I received the most unforgettable facial-- at some points I thought she was scraping all of my skin off but overall it was a very good facial. My skin on my face feels amazing now. In the middle of the facial though she excused herself because someone knocked on the door. Before I could get mad I realized it was because Jason had went shopping and bought me a new dress, shoes, jewelry, and perfume and dropped them off at the spa. (Here I want to add a side note that Jason had worked 16 hour days the last 2 days before this and had only gotten about 3 hours of sleep). Anyway the lady doing the facial was so impressed and was telling everyone there what a wonderful man I had for a husband. I think that all of the significant others of the spa employees are going to be in big trouble now!

Anyway next thing I had lunch that was brought over from Biaggi's-- it was an awesome Club Sandwich and chips and bread/oil--- a lot of carbohydrates. The best thing though was the fact that my co-worker, Angela, brought by a card and bag of white chocolate dipped pretzels. It made me cry with happiness.

After lunch I received a Hot Stone Pedicure and that was very relaxing also. Then I sat in the sauna for a little while and took a shower and put the new clothes on. Jason had also arranged for someone there to do my makeup and hair. By this time it was almost 5 pm and when I walked outside Jason walked up with his suit on looking so handsome:) He had me follow him in his car to Cavanaugh's Steak House that is next to Casino Aztar. It is a very fancy restaurant that overlooks the Ohio River. We sat down and Jason ordered us a bottle of wine. The waitress had just opened the bottle when Jason got a phone call that changed our plans for the night.....

It was our neighbor, Nancy, calling to say that Blaine had been racing to the trampoline and tripped and fell on his arm causing a very bad break. Jason had Nancy call an ambulance to transport him to the hospital because he was worried that his condition could change or that something could happen if Nancy or Brenden tried to transport him. (Blaine was actually being "babysat" by Brenden but had been playing outside). So at this point Jason and I get in our separate cars and start quickly heading for Owensboro. When I get in the car I realize that I am just about out of gas so we had to stop and fill my tank up a little. Also I received a call from my friend, Courtney, who was wishing me a happy birthday, needless to say I was hysterical and so she ended up going to the E.R. in order to check on Blaine. While I was driving I received phone calls from the ambulance service, Nancy, and the E.R. nurse. And of course I had to call our babysitter Mammie, who was still watching Riley, and my mom, and my best friend Jene. By the time I got to Owensboro my cell phone battery was dead. So Jason headed home to get the chargers, and I headed to the E.R. When I arrived Courtney had left because Nancy and Brenden were there and they wouldn't let more than 2 people be in the room at a time. When I walked in the room Blaine started to cry and say that he was sorry that it happened on my birthday. Nancy said that Blaine had been so brave and that he really loved talking to the EMT named Roger (Blaine says that he was a sniper in the Army). I then had to answer a trillion questions and then Jason arrived. They finally got an IV in but it wasn't working very well. Next thing was that Blaine & I went to have his arm x-rayed. Then they gave him some Dilaudid and Zofran and he started saying some really funny things. There was a "crazy lady" across the hallway that was quite interesting too and because of her there were 2 security guards outside Blaine's room the whole time-- he said that he was important and needed security.

The next 30 minutes or so were rather stressful because some young man came in to put a gown on Blaine and then 2 young women came in with another stretcher and we were asking "What is going on?" and they said "He is going to surgery" (at this point Blaine freaked out and started crying) and we were saying "NO, he is not, no one has spoken to us yet" and so a big, older guy in black scrubs came in and said "He needs to go to surgery"-- (the weird thing is that the guy did not identify himself, I just saw his name badge that said Dr. Dwyer). So the next thing we know is that we are heading to the holding room.

After we were in the holding room the nurse, Kimberly, the orthopedic doctor, Dr. Moore, and the anesthesiologist, Dr. Frakes all were very good at explaining what needed to be done. They were very nice and friendly and put us at ease. Dr. Frakes put in a new I.V. that actually worked and gave Blaine some great medicine that made him feel a lot more comfortable about going to surgery. Blaine basically need to go to surgery to be put to sleep so that they could put the bones back in place and put a cast on his arm.

So at 9 pm Jason and I had a romantic dinner of Subway from the Hospital cafeteria in the surgery waiting room. I called my babysitter to check on Riley and of course she was asleep and was going to have her first "sleep over". At around 10 pm Dr. Moore had talked to us on the phone, Kimberly (RN) had came out and spoke to us, and then Dr. Frakes came out to the waiting room and spoke to us and took us up to a room on the pediatric unit. At 11pm Blaine arrived to the floor-- at this point I told Jason to go ahead and get home to bring the dogs in and get some sleep. Blaine and I left the hospital at Midnight, dropped off his pain prescription at Walgreen's, and then went home and got in bed. It was definitely not how I expected to end my 40th birthday!

Visiting Grandma in New York

I haven't posted in a few weeks because Jason, Riley and I went to visit Jason's grandma in Wappinger's Falls, NY from April 2-8th. (Evan went to visit Mobile, AL with his mom and Blaine went to Indianapolis, IN to visit his dad). Riley had her third trip on an airplane! She did so well on the trip there. We flew out of Evansville, IN airport and had a layover in Cinncinnati, OH and then arrived in Hartford, CT. We spent the night there which I think helped make the day a little easier. We ate at a local restaurant that had awesome seafood and good wine! The next morning we ate at another local restaurant for breakfast-- it was an awesome meal too and the people in Connecticut were so nice. We bought grandma an Easter Lily at the local fire department, then we headed to New York. Grandma was so excited to see use and we were so glad to spend time with her. Jason did several "projects" around the house including repainting and redoing upholstery on her footstool, rearranging her bedroom furniture, fixing her kitchen floor, and spray painted light post. I helped her empty a dresser, washed all the curtains, dusted and vacuumed the floor. But most importantly we spent a lot of time talking with Grandma and sharing time with her and Riley. The weather was great-- it got up to 91 degrees on Wednesday which is amazing for April in New York. One day I went shopping at the local mall, Target, Babies R Us, and Border's Bookstore, which was very fun. On the last day Jason, Riley, and I went to the Hudson riverfront and then to a Tiki bar for a beer. The trip back seemed a little longer because we had to drive to Hartford, CT and return the rental car then catch a flight to Detriot, MI and then fly back to Evansville, IN. It was great to have the time with Grandma Stephens, Jason, and Riley to just kick back and do what we wanted to do, when we wanted to do it.

I must say that even though I miss the vacation this great weather makes it all worth it to be back in Kentucky. It looks like the weather this week is going to continue to be good also.