Others Think I Am, but...

SNOB:

1British : cobbler

2: one who blatantly imitates, fawningly admires, or vulgarly seeks association with those regarded as social superiors

3 a: one who tends to rebuff, avoid, or ignore those regarded as inferior b: one who has an offensive air of superiority in matters of knowledge or taste

I the past few days, several people(including, but not limited to Husband and Becca)have mentioned that I am a SNOB. So, I did a little looking into the definition of the word, and I have to say, I don't think I fit it. One, I am most certainly not a cobbler. Two, I walk away from "those regarded as social superiors". That said I have found myself in situations with "those regarded as social superiors", but I do not have a NEED to be associated with them. And Third, well, I assume this would be the definition they would use for me, but I rarely ignore those I feel are inferior to me(I feel everyone brings something to the table), so that takes care of (a) as for (b), if this is the case, I blame my husband for spoiling me and forcing me to drive nice new cars, travel, stay in upscale hotels and eat in fancy restaurants, and that is were my knowledge comes from. Oh and also so from uppity college professor friends:) I guess what they say is true, the company you keep does reflect on you:)


**as it is often hard to "get" tone in print, this is a joke and meant to offend nobody, other than my Husband and Becca:)

We Are Down Three!

This morning we said good-bye to our guinea pigs(anybody that knows me is not surprised to be reading this:) Husband and I talked and for us, as often as we travel, having an animal that can not be dropped off at the kennel is not a good thing. It means having to find someone to come over and care for them when we are away and after having to last minute, beg our 73 year old neighbor to do it, enough was enough. The kids took it well and were happy to see that they were going to live with a nice family with little kids:)

*A side note- I wanted to give the children yet another reason to need therapy when they grow up, and it will be ALL my fault:)

We're Home!

It's official, our vacation is over:( We left OBX around 7:30am to start the long ride home. I could have stayed another week or two, but Husband's work won't pay him if he isn't there:)

We had an absolutely wonderful vacation and cannot wait to go back again. The last two days of our trip were fun, we even got to watch some kite-surfers in the Sound while the sun was setting. Last night after dinner, while watching the wind and kite-surfers, the girls decided to venture into the Sound! I was not going, would not even put my feet on the beach(I am an Ocean only girl:) They loved it! Killi got out and told us how cool it was, she really like when the horse-shoe crab crawled across her feet(Yuck!Yuck!Yuck!).

Here are a few pictures from the last two days of the trip:

Almost Over

Today is the last day of our vacation. I am very sad to be leaving the beach, but I guess all good things must come to an end, and we will only be home a few days before my brother and his crew come to visit. It will be enough time for me to clean bathrooms and go to the Food Store. Next year maybe we can stay for 2 weeks:) Although the kids and I only have a few weeks at home before two week stay at the Jersey Shore, so I guess I shouldn't be so sad to leave:)

I think for our last day we will do a bit of fishing and some beach. We'll put in a good full day before we head back tomorrow. Nothing like ending the vacation with a good long ride with tired kids:)

I Love The Beach!

Yesterday Husband took Declan and Killi Fishing at the Pier, while Maggie and I went to the beach. I cannot seem to get enough "beach time" in. After dinner out last night, I took the kids back down to the beach for about an hour.

This morning we went back to the beach, and tonight we are hoping to check out some plankton down by the Light House, it is supposed to "glow" but we'll see:) I keep asking Husband to let me stay the summer, but he says we have to go home, something about work:)

Here is one of my favorite Maggie pictures from the trip so far:

As Promised, Here Are Some Pictures...

As you can see, the weather has been good and we are having lots of fun. Hopefully I will get some more good pictures today:)

Another Day At The Beach

Well, still no pictures, but we are having a great time. We spent the better part of the day today at the beach; where everyone got abit too much sun:) The kids are doing great in the ocean and everyone goes in regularly except Maggie, who prefers to stand at the shoreline with Bec:) We had an early dinner and then went down to the Light House just to run around and take some pictures( Yes, I know all this talk of pictures and still none, they will come)

On another note, we have only queen beds here and king at home and last night Mag decided she needed to sleep with us so we let her in, but there was very little room and at 6:45am I fell-out of bed and hit my head on the dresser! It sucked! What's worse, is that the sun is so bright in the morning, I have not slept past 6:45am since we got here, and that would be fine if I'd go to bed earlier:)

We Made It!

We all arrived safely yesterday and have been having a great time. We settled in yesterday and started our vacation full-swing today. We spent the morning at the beach, which was perfect(pictures later,I forgot the cord:( Then we came back and had lunch, Bec and I ran to the store, and we spent a little time this afternoon at the pool. We had dinner here tonight which was very nice.

The kids have been doing a great good getting along, nothing worse than home, maybe a bit better:) The husbands, Bec and I got to spend some time after dinner out on the deck together, and that was nice:)

I am hopeful the rest of the trip will be as good as the beginning has been:)

Ready To Go!

The only things left to pack are the pillows and the children:) Then we're off! We are all very excited so I hope the monsters sleep tonight.

I can't wait to get down there! I hope to have lots of beach pictures to share.

NOTE TO SELF: READ INSTRUCTIONS!

Oh My! I made myself very sick with one of my new meds. I was given a very strong anti-inflammatory to help with the pain from gout, but I took it without reading the instructions and it says very clearly to take on a full stomach with a full glass of water and you guessed it, I did neither. So, now it is 2 am and I am sick as a dog and the shoulder pain would have been easier to deal with than this:( I am not sure how to make it better. I think I will try crying now!

The Countdown!

One more day left before we leave for the beach! I am mostly packed, only a few last minute items like pillows and blankets for the kids, to go. Tomorrow I will drop off the dog and clean out the car, so come Saturday morning we will be good to go. I week of relaxation and fun! I have three books to keep me busy and hopefully we'll see some sun and get some time on the beach:)

A New Toy!

I wanted to be just like Becca, so I too got an iFlip video. It is so much fun! Here is Declan's first Oral Book Report:)

A Night Out!

Tonight Husband and I spent the evening at the State Department for a formal cocktail party in Honor of the Foreign Defense Attaches. We got to get all dressed up and hang out with lots of men in uniform. It was a work event for Husband so I of course had to be on my best behavior and not cause any international incidents(which I often do:) The Secretary of Defense was there, so that was pretty neat and it really was interesting seeing military uniforms from over 100 countries. The food wasn't awful either, so that was good. I do have to say that it was not as good as dinner at the White House though(they clearly have a better chef there:)

Bec kept the kids and when we picked they up, she had 4 of six asleep(only Haven and Declan were up) Things seemed to go okay there except for the rug burn on Declan's face were Bec threw him to the floor:) Really, he fell:) Thanks Becca!

Not Getting It...

The second day didn't start much better, 7:15am I got out of bed.

Rise and Shine!

Today is our first day of summer vacation. Maggie missed the memo. She got up at 6:45am. Hopefully our second day will start later:)

Happy Father's Day

This post is to my wonderful husband!

Husband,
I am so happy to have you as my partner in life. There is nobody in the world I would rather spend my life with. As it is Father's Day, I would like to share with you how incredibly proud I am of the father you have become. I remember when I was pregnant with Declan, how scared you were to be a father. And after his birth you barely touched him for fear you'd break him(and I wouldn't let you:) With the birth of Killi you became a bit braver and may have even fed her once or twice:) And once Maggie came along you became a pro and changed a diaper or two:) And now with a 6,5&3 year old you take them out alone go to movies and even travel with 2 of them alone on weekend trips. Your confidence as a father grows everyday and you are so good with them. Seeing them wait at the door for you after work makes me so happy. Their excitement to see you reinforces how much they love you and how big a part of their life you are. Making it to all their games and school events. Trying so hard to balance work and home and always putting them first, even when you have to go into work at 5am to do it. Thank you for being the father of my children.

You are a great dad! And You have worked and continue to work harder than any father I know to be the best Dad you can. The kids and I are so very lucky to have you in our lives.

Thank You. I love You. Happy Father's Dad!

Love,
Emily

Answers

Where to begin. I guess I'll start with the fact that we had a wonderful doctor's appointment for Killi today. And that she had Saturday appointments was great and that we got in so quickly was another plus. After three and a half years and countless doctors, I finally think we may have found some answers. I hope this doctor was right and that Killi is on the right track.


Other than the doctor visit, we didn't do much. We are all pretty exhausted and not feeling great. The stress of the appointment caused a migraine and blurred vision for me and Maggie has been "off" all day. Declan even ended the day in tears. I am hoping that it is nothing more than exhaustion, as I need healthy kids for my beach trip:)

An Awesome Day!

What a wonderful day we had. First, Today was Declan's last day of school!!! We are all very happy about this(and his final report card was good:) Not only was it the last day of school but it was also an early out, so after school we headed to Busch Garden with the Kelley's. What was great was that everyone got to go(both Husbands! This NEVER happens). It was such a nice day. The kids were great and everyone had a good time(I think:). Our ride home was even nice. The kids watched a movie and husband and I got to spend a nice ride talking. It was really a great day!

I can only hope that our vacation in a week is half as nice as today was.

*I did get to go on The Roman Rapids and was in the seat that got soaked, but Bec didn't stay much drier and then had to endure the Log Flume and got a second soaking:)

Hmm......

I bought myself a little present. I got myself Print Workshop for the computer. I have been wanting a program to play around with my pictures and this was cheap and I am not good on the computer so, I thought I'd give it a try. Well, it is not nearly as easy as I hoped(mostly due to my lack of computer skills I'm sure:) Anyway, I will keep trying and hopefully I'll be able to make beautiful things:)

Wish me luck. And if you have any tips, I'd love them.

Thank You

I love the blogging world. It is like people watching only at the computer. I so enjoy reading about other peoples lives and what is important to them and how that is different than my life(and the same). I find I have so much in common with people I never thought I would and nothing in common with those I thought I might. I learn so many things from other bloggers and people have been so kind to answer any questions I have asked, even personal ones.

So, thank you blogging buddies, you have greatly enriched my life(and helped to vastly improve my useless knowledge:)

His Awesomeness...

Yet again I was reminded HOW above myself I married. Today, I received a phone call from husband's College, the alumni director to be exact, explaining to me that they were looking for their "MOST SUCCESSFUL" alumni to sign a recruiting letter or them and that husband's name was at the top of their list! I'll tell you what, it was great for the ego...or so the husband tells me:)

So again tonight I will sit in awe of the wonder that is my husband and think how fortunate for little-old-me that he married me:)



*I am really excited for him, but I don't feel badly about myself, just teasing the husband:)

WOW

It's 2am. I am up. I need to be down. I have a cold. I took cough medicine with codeine.


Me on Codeine = No Sleep

Instead I sit here all spun up and shaky, not able to sleep.

Stupid body, codeine is supposed to HELP the sleep!

GIVE ME MY BALL, I'M GOING HOME!

Does it seem odd to anyone else that people keep picking on me? I am a pretty nice person(until you piss me off:) I realize I am an easy target, but enough already! It is nothing big, not "one" person, just lots of little things that I'm sure are meant to be funny or helpful, but my feelings are getting alittle hurt. I think it is because I have a bunch going on that nobody is aware of. I am usually very open with ALL parts of my life, but every once-in-awhile I decide not to SHARE it ALL and deal with my issues alone or not share every detail of how I'm feeling.

That said, I know that nobody is out to be mean(I hope:)and that I am being a tad over sensitive, but come-on, BITE YOUR TONGUE EVERY SO OFTEN!

Not Enough Time

Weekends are just too short. There seems to be an endless list of chores and no down time. Saturday was Declan's last soccer game, so that's one thing off the weekend list. I'm not sure where all of our time went, but now it's gone and I have four days until Friday!

This is Declan's last week of Kindergarten!!! I am very excited about the last week of school. Summer here I come!!! I'll be at the beach in no time:)

A Real Cold....

I am not feeling well. I have caught Declan's cold. I now Know why he begged to stay home from school every day for a week:) Here I thought he was just ready for summer, but he was really not feeling well. And now I don't either.

And my poor family, I am a big baby when I am sick. At least Husband has been nice:)

Pictures by Killi

Killi Loves to use MY camera to take pictures, Here are a few she took today:





Mr. Guinea Pig





A picture she made at school, that hangs on the wall.





A few of Gus, these are my favorite ones! She did a good job:)

Life's Too Short...

On Wednesday, I got really annoyed at my mom. She said something to me on the phone that pissed me off; so, I hung up on her. I haven't talked to her since(which may not seem like much, but I usually talk to her a few times a day:) Last night when I was getting ready for bed, it occurred to me how silly it was to be angry at her. Why did I care what she said? Was it going to change what I was doing or going to do? The answer is, I really didn't care what she said and have no intention of changing what I was doing based on what she said. I am going to continuing living my life the way I do and make my own choices and I am comfortable with that. I also think that life is too short for me to get myself upset over what some one thinks of me, not even my mom.

And for the record, she really wasn't that mean, I was a bit over sensitive:) And now I am done.

18 Years of Happiness...

On July 2,2008, Husband and I will celebrate 18 years together. Eighteen years, I was 15 he was 18. Who would have thought that we'd ever end up here(I think my MIL is still wishing we didn't:) We've been through so much together as I am sure you can imagine; 18 years of your life is quite long especially when you are only 33 now! I have been able to share more than half my life with the love of my life. I am glad we met when we did and that we have been able to grow and change with each other. I do not feel that we have held one another back, but only helped each other push ahead. We have had good times and bad, ups and downs, but through it all we are still together. On our wedding day, 8 years ago, I told my husband-to-be that he better be ready for this because I was only doing it once. If he said "I Do", we weren't ending this until one of us was dead:) Well, so far so good. Eighteen years and counting!

Too Bad we aren't in Hollywood, I am sure we could get an achievement award for 18 years with the same person:)

A Better Mood:)

I am not as angry as I was partly due to this:


which made me laugh until I cried. Maggie insisted on wearing the shoes and socks out! My mood was also improved due to the fact that my friend and her wonderful husband, helped me get some time without the kids. Bec and I went to get pedicures while Ryan kept all 6 kids(8,6,5,5,3&3) all by himself for over an hour! Sometimes a good friends can help a bad mood:)





Here's a picture of the girls with the Newfie! He may be, no he IS the best dog ever:)

A big giant softy! He is 3 Today! We love him even if he slobbers ALL over us and our stuff;)

Pissed Off!

Alright, I am pissed off and grouchy, and people annoy me. I am a VERY open person and I know that this often invites people to give their opinions, but STOP! I don't want to hear them anymore. Further more, I a pretty sure that if one more person does give me their "take" on something I am doing, I gonna bite their head off(and please remember that I was born and raised in Jersey, and I am mean as hell and LOVE confrontation:) Another thing, I am usually a pretty good sport when I am "picked" on. I am the first to laugh at myself, but enough already! I have been the "butt" of far too many jokes lately. It may be that I am being a little too sensitive, enough is enough.

So, to all of you at there that see or talk to me regularly, tread softly as I may bite or just STAY AWAY!

Bad Weather.

I have spent entirely too much time today in the bathroom with my children. Why, you ask. The answer is because as of 8pm we have been under 3 Tornado Warnings. One of them was confirmed about 15 miles south of us. It is crazy. We Live in Northern Virginia, not Oklahoma or Nebraska, I mean WTF? This is also the third time in a month or so we've had to hunker down in the bathroom. It is crazy. My poor baby now cries every time it rains. Today she had a melt down because husband was at work and not with us during the storm. So far we are all ok here, but it looks like there are more coming. A long night ahead I fear.

A Good Belly Laugh

I forgot to share. I was talking to the Black Sheep tonight and she put Queenie on so I talked to her and she started laughing and so I started laughing, then she started belly laughing, then I laughed until I cried. There is almost nothing better in the world than a Baby-Belly-Laugh, you can't help but to be happy when you hear it:)

A Little Late

So, I got snack together and Declan's soccer uniform and headed out the door. We got to the game and set up our chairs(Husband was not supposed to coach, but the coach didn't show up:) Anyway, husband coached and the girls and I sat and watched the game. The first half went well, they played great. Then half time came and the kids ate their snack that I made, and then it came! The rain Poured! Poured! Maggie was playing on the playground and was so scared when the rain started, because it Poured! So much rain my underwear were wet:) and that is about the worst feeling ever:) We got to the car though and made it home safe and sound! If only the rain had come a bit sooner:)

Is It or Isn't It?

I am sitting here, having just gotten back from the Farm(where we placed another beef order) wondering if it is or isn't going to rain. Declan has a soccer game at 5:30pm and before I head out to the Food store for snacks, I'd like to know if I need them or not. I am seeing the backs of the leaves, and my mom told me this weekend, that my Grandma Schaefer always said the rain was coming when you saw the back of the leaves. She had alot of those sayings and they are almost always accurate. Weather.com has a 40% chance of rain this afternoon, too. So, Do I head to the store and get snack together or not? I can just hope for rain I guess:)

As Promised...

Here are some of the COOL things Grammy got us while she was here:


A new Guitar for Declan for Guitar Hero so we can battle each other, and yes he wins alot:)


A sandbox for the girls. That's what they wanted. It worked out well today, they spent over an hour out there so that I could clean the house:)



New stuff in the bathroom. What better for Summer than a beach in your bathroom! The trash can is a pail:)

And New Bedding in the girls room. Their stuff was getting worn(too much washing:)

And to think we spent less than half our time shopping and still got so much done. I also got 2 new dresses and we stopped by Yankee Candle for tarts:) I wish my mom lived closer, but she doesn't. I love when she visits and so do the kids. Best part of the trip is that she leaves with Husband at 5am so we never have to get sad when we say good-bye, she just sneaks out. I hope she comes back soon, but if not we know we will see her in NJ in July:)

What Fun!

Grammy was here this weekend and we did ALOT. Saturday morning we had soccer games, then lunch with the Kelleys at Carlos, then home to play with the water balloons and sprinkler Grammy brought with her. After that we were off to Fredericksburg to do some returning and shopping, then dinner and home. Sunday morning brought more outside play and another trip to Fredericksburg, Home for lunch, then off to the pool with Grammy and the Kelleys. What alot to do in only two days and lots of new stuff we got!(I will have pictures later:)