FRIEND MAKING MONDAY

I stumbled on this and thought it would be fun to join in!!!!



1. Do you cook every night?
I try to cook every night. Do I get to the kitchen to fulfill my wifely and mommy duties and make it... No. Guilty.


2. What kind of laundry detergent do you use & why?
I use All free and clear for my mr. sensitive of a son. I definitely much prefer the smell of TIDE and also how much better it works.

3. Do you do laundry every day or loads at a time?
We try to get it done as soon as it is made... usually I am unsuccessful.

4. How often do you eat out per week?
Too much. Way too much. And it is never sit down. It is always take out/drive thru.


5. Where do you usually eat out?
Taco Bell, McDonald's, some local pizza places.

6. What is your favorite retail store?
Walmart

7. What's your favorite thing to drink?
Diet Coke/Pepsi, coffee with milk/creamer/cream and sugar


8. Do you take vitamins? What kind?
I stopped after I was done nursing my son but I sometimes remember to take it. I also am "prescribed" oscal... but it makes my stomach upset and so I need to get some viactiv


9. What percentage of the household chores to you do?
85%


10. Do your children do chores? {Or will they, did they, etc}
I need to get better about this. the girls (2 oldest) are supposed to make sure the dogs bowls are filled, laundry is moved to our room for folding, put away their clothes, keep their rooms cleaned and their miscellaneous put away from the living room. I need to chart it out for them


11. Do you go to church?
I was going. I have not found the church that is 100% where we belong. The girls do enjoy the sunday school but there are things about that I am not too excited about. We move next july so I dont want to commit to one church but I do intend on visiting others with friends.

12. Do you have a housework schedule?
No, but I need one!

13. Do you keep a working budget?
NO... we live paycheck to paycheck with one income. Ouch.

14. What do you do at night as a family?
Now we have soccer, scouts, and will be having homework etc. We all eat dinner ...

15. How do you prepare yourself for a new week?
I need to get better at that! Sunday right now is our day to try and sort through things and get things in the yard sale pile to prepare for moving next year!

16. What do your mornings look like?
A MESS! trying to get 3 girls out the door with one super demanding little boy... kind of frightened! My afternoons will probably be even more crazy! Kiley going on the bus to one school, Ashley and Sydney going to another.... oh boy. needing to be at their destinations at the same time and being released at the same time as well!

17. What time do you get up in the mornings?
It will be 7-720 am. I need to get better at all this stuff!

18. What time do you go to bed at night?
too late. I lay in bed reading. I like my quiet time at night.

19. How do you manage all of the paperwork that floods into your household? {bills, school work, magazines, ads, etc}
I have piles of things EVERYWHERE! I am getting better at filtering through but I worry that I might need something so I save it... and it all piles up. I need to go through our old file cabinet. I need to do a lot of things! I think NAP time for CJ is going to be my super cleaning time....

20. How do you keep your household organized? {calendars, charts, etc}
I have a calendar that I carry with me everywhere I go. I have to. too many appointments. Too little time. I need some charts though. Any body have any templates that are good?

Five Question Friday

I am joining in again for the five question friday held here.... hop on over and join the fun!

1. What is your favorite Holiday and why?

I have things I like about every single holiday! I guess I would have to say Christmas. It is just a magical time of year. The past few years the holidays have been less than pleasant due to our children being ill on the holidays. Last year my kids had conjunctivitis on Halloween, and Stomach flu on Christmas AND thanksgiving.... I love that my children all still "believe" (YES we do Santa around here) ... I love the joy they get when opening their gifts, I love the decorations, I love the enthusiasm in my husband when he is decorating the yard and planning how he can make it better the following year. this will be our last year decorating our awesome pine tree in our side yard. I love spending time with my family when we can. It is just awesome to celebrate the birth of Christ... and the messages we receive during the holidays at church.... everything about it is incredible!

BUT I do LOVE HALLOWEEN! The stores are filling up with all the orange and black and purple! SO AWESOME!

2. Who has been the most influential person in your life?

I would have to say.... my parents and spouse. Without them, I dont know where I would be. They support me when things are bad, they commend me when I achieve, they lift me up when I am sad... they give me advice when I need it. I continue to look to my parents for support and they are there for me without a doubt whenever I need it... I have been blessed with great parents and a wonderful husband. Even when we dont agree, I know they all still love me. Regardless. ALL of them. My husband works hard for our family, does his best to better himself and in the meantime, he urges me to better myself .... I love them all!

3. If you could give up one household chore forever, what would it be?

DISHES GOOD LORD I HATE THEM

4. What is the BEST practical joke you have ever been a part of, on the giving OR receiving end?

Hmm.. Practical Joke???? I dont recall a practical joke... I do recall my mom and my husband (who was my fiance at the time) SCHEMING and getting him to Rhode Island from Hawaii so that he could spend christmas and New year's with me... and attend my sisters wedding. JERKS! LOL! I was SO surprised. They actually did that to me MORE tHAN ONCE.... It was funny because I WAS SO MAD because I could not get in touch with Chris... little did I know he was on airplanes making his way back to see me!

5. Where (or how) did you meet your spouse?

I met my hubby on a blind date that was set up by my sister and her boyfriend (now husband)... January 1998... horrible ice storm. He was scared because all he knew was that he was meeting a rugby player at her parents house! That was a very awkward date.... it was a double date with my sis... I decided a couple weeks later to give it another shot and NOT go to a night club and just get to know him.... we have been together ever since (2/14/1998).... amazing. I knew that night (2/14) that I was going to marry him!

The difference a simple fine tuning can do....

Hurricane Bill WAVES Hello!!!!!

We went to Misquamicut Beach in Westerly, RI to check out the waves from Hurricane Bill. We got more than a show of waves when some really drunk person was being extremely ridiculous in the water causing a whole crew of lifeguards to have to get him out of the EXTREME danger zone to get him off the beach. His "friends" were at the rear of the beach laughing as they watched their friend in extreme danger. It was so pathetic and disgusting all in one. I am hoping the guy made it home safe and really thinks about his actions should he even recollect any of them. you can see how far up the water was coming on to the beach. this was about 1 hour before high tide hit. They eventually told everyone to get off the beach. The lifeguards seemed very edgy and I dont blame them one bit. I dont understand why people have to act ridiculous. Seriously. The silver pole at the bottom of the pic is the edge of the beach where the small boardwalk meets the beach.

My hubby dearest and our sweet son take in the awesome sights and sounds. Nothing like the sound of waves crashing on the beach. Invigorating to say the least. (I need to edit these photos still)

the pictures do not do the event any justice. I wish a picture could portray reality!

Incredible!

Thank you Hurrican Bill for the show!

Just some pictures....

Sydney was so proud of the cucumber she peeled all on her own! They have been having a blast playing on the (NEW) slip n' slide but they get COLD so fast.. as you can tell Kiley was FREEEEEZING
Like I said in my last post, Ashley is loving the thought of going back to school. She is so excited about all her new clothes and can't wait to show them off to her friends. (did we worry about this when we were in 4th grade? I dont think we did...)

CJ LOVES TOOLS... and now he ALSO loves THOMAS the Train...

Bell Family Updates

ME: I am trying to plan to get down to fleet and family service to figure out how I could go about getting some schooling done to become an RN. I graduated from URI in 1999 with a BS in Human Development and Family Studies but I am really drawn to medical stuff. It is all I ever have on TV. Chris always picks on me about having "The Placenta Channel" on all the time. So, I am hoping to find out something about how I can go about getting more education. Chris will be out of the Navy in a little over 5 years... so that is my time frame! Even though we will most likely be moving next July, I want to start getting the ball rolling in my education. (Again!)
I have my follow up on the 24th. I have not been taking my pills like I should be. I keep forgetting and have been trying to tweak a schedule that will work for me and bring me the most comfort. They arent major pills that I have to take. I do still take my Synthroid religiously but I need to put the Os-Cal (cant be taken with Synthroid) 2 times a day and the Prilosec. I have been getting some multivitamins in there as well. I was trying the Synthroid in the morning but it was making me feel like I had a swollen throat. BUT it also could have been a bout of allergies. Who knows, I am more comfortable with taking it at night. I have been anxious about the start of school and how our schedules will work out with the girls being at different schools. I have been at the base clinic over and over for appointments for everyone. I think they should have an open slot just for the Bell Family. I am getting a lot accomplished though. Slowly but surely.

Chris: This man makes me crazy. In a good way! He CLEP'd 9 Credits last week! SEriously?! This man has the elephant brain in this house! He is going to try and get Technical writing done today. If he passes, he will have 12 credits in a WEEK. That is like completing one semester in college in A WEEK.... He even CLEP'd BIOLOGY... WHAT?! GOOD LORD... I am so envious of his brains... but so proud of him. He is hoping to get his bachelors within the next year or so. He has the hard courses left... such as Calculus and what not. He is still really bummed that he didnt make Chief but is already getting his ducks in a row to hopefully make it next year. We should be able to start looking at orders for his next job in October. It will most likely end up including a move to the Norfolk, VA area.

Ashley: Her Lyme test came back negative but she is still having to take Doxycycline for the Ehrlichiosis. She had taken Amoxicillin in the beginning of the summer for the possibility of Lyme when we had removed the tick and she was symptomatic. They never ran blood work. Because her lymph nodes in her head were still enlarged after 4 weeks I had made the follow up appointment with an AWESOME doc who sent AShley for some labs which is where we found out the HGE was still high in her blood... so the antibiotic had not wiped it out. She is so excited about starting the 4th grade even though she is not accepted in to the Magnet school yet. I am hoping the schedules all work out and she can stay put if that is what she decides should her name make it to the top of the magnet school list. This should be our last year here and changing schools mid year is kind of silly. I guess you could say Ashley is our "Easy" one although she is getting that Tween attitude. I just got the book Care and Keeping of YOU from Paperback Swap at the recommendation of some of the moms on the MckForum. She is getting to the age where her peers are talking beyond their understanding and I am going to have to start explaining a bunch of this stuff to her... and most likely Sydney, at the same time. So, we have some reading to do!!! She just finished reading Coraline which was a cool comic book type book. I have to schedule her annual eye exam but I will not be returning to Pearle Vision so I have to look in to somewhere that I can bring them.

Sydney: I have been trying to set up a PPT... The school of course has not returned my phone call. The Neurologist and her Pediatrician recommended I set this up. She will also be meeting with a Sensory Integration person or something like that and also be getting a Psychological Evaluation done. We are also going to be getting her... hmmm... Good lord. Something else. Oh, Speech evalauation. Her report card came back at the end of the year saying she wasnt meeting grade level expectations in several different areas. So, we are going to see what is going on considering the Epilepsy and what not. And of course the year with the horrible teacher. Whatever. I am so confused as to what I should be doing and if it is going to be fruitless at the end of this journey. We will know her IQ! HAHA! So, it wont be completely fruitless. Either way, it is best we make sure everything is ok. If she had a great class this year I bet you we wouldnt even be having this journey! We have the Exceptional Family Member papers getting filled out and we will be waiting for all these other results to come back before we submit them. She wants to go to the Magnet school next year but chances are she will not be at the top of the lottery list before the beginning of the school year. Once again, we will be moving after this school year and dont know if it is worth it to move her mid year should her name come up. Once again, it all depends on the classroom situation. If I am not happy with it, then I would contamplate pulling her regardless of the fact we will possibly move next summer. She is still pretty happy go lucky!! Oh, and she is now also on Periactin for allergies which the ped thinks will work on Sydney's headaches when school starts. She has not complained much of having headaches since school got out.... coincidence? She also takes Nasonex and Singulair... they all have a specific job too which is why the periactin was added. So far so good.... it could make her tired and hungry so she takes it at bed time.

Kiley: We are getting her ready to start Kindergarten!! I am nervous. I am sad. I dont know if this is what I should be doing but the Pre-K was NOT enough for her. I know she will do ok. I am OK with it if she needs to repeat K next year because of her age or not meeting the expectations for the grade. I am worried about her getting on the bus by herself and crying. I dont want to watch the bus pull away with her with tears in her eyes. I wish one of the girls was also in the magnet school. I could pull her back to the local school but GOSH DARNIT... my kids deserve the BEST School in the District with the BEST teachers in the district. Why shouldnt my kids have the BEST equipped school and the BEST supplies... they have a nurse practitioner on staff, they have to walk every day with their class because it is a Wellness school... MY KIDS deserve it.. ALL of them. I wish there was some way I could get ALL of them in to the school before the beginning of the school year. Calling the schools now is NOT worth it... nobody is there. She has been having warts burned on her fingers which is not fun for her... and we found ANOTHER one on the bottom of her big toe. Grrr. I want them GONE. I dont want her to have anymore. I want the treatments to WORK. Ugh. We go back next week for her third time. First time for her toe.

CJ: He is in the QTEST kid contest for the local radio station and I think you should all vote for him a million times! He is # 102 in the 0-2 year category. I dont know what we would win but Gosh darnit.... whatever it is... we dont care, we just think he IS THE CUTEST! (except when having a melt down and decides to smack his head on the floor on purpose) PLEASE Vote for our little guy! Oh, and his name under his picture is Robert... because Robert is his REAL name!
He is going to miss his sissies when they all go to school. What am I going to do with just him?!
I went and had his exceptional family member papers filled out today for his Eczema and Allergies (peanut).... the doc wants him to go back to the dermatologist because of all the recent flare ups on my baby boy. I also have to get more aggressive with the lotion but he seems to hate me doing it.. I dont have eczema so I dont know if I am hurting him... he seems pretty uncomfortable when I do it and of course using hydrocortizone like it is going out of style isnt so cool either! He is finally getting better at being laid down in his bed to go to sleep without crying like a madman. He isnt too happy when we do but is settling down much better. He is asleep on my bed now for his nap because he was DIAPERLESS this morning. So, it begins!

I hope you are all having a wonderful Summer... mine has been full of medical appointments. As you can tell!!! School will start soon and we have entered the time of "No More's"
Meaning... No more August 11th's in Connecticut. No More 1st days of school in CT.... That is how we will be rolling until next July......

Not Me! Monday...

Hello all! It has been a while since I have participated in MckMama's Not Me Monday!

I dont know that I have so much to Not me about this week.... We will see what I can remember!

Join in the fun and share with us your Not ME!

*I did not grab the camera to take photos of my two youngest in the tub after my son had dumped an entire bottle of shampoo in it. I did not run the water to make even more bubbles for them to play in. The good parent would have scolded them, rinsed them and sent them to bed without their supper.

*I did not request more books off paperback swap that are about the FDLA Polygamist Mormons. I would not read about things that seem so warped to me.

*I did not believe the doctors when they said that Ashley's Lyme test would come back positive FOR SURE.... (Boy was I wrong, or... they were wrong! it was negative, but she was still high for Ehrlichiosis HGE)

*I did not buy my son a set of Thomas the Tank Engine Pajamas at Sears because he had finally made the connection after seeing an episode on TV. I didnt get all mushy gushy about how cute he was when he saw the backpack (which he didnt need) and go on a wild goose chase throughout Sears to find something USEFUL for him. Like the pajamas. I also did NOT take the tags off the jammies and put the shirt on him even before leaving the store.

*I did not cancel a dentist appointment this week FOR ME because I was less than an hour away from the appointment, had starving children from being at other appointments all morning and had already arranged childcare... why would I wait until the LAST minute to find someone to watch the children so I could get my mouth drilled?

And OF COURSE I have rescheduled... right?

*I am not confused about all the stuff I am trying to get set up for Sydney and her psychological evaluation. I am not procrastinating getting everything all squared away. I am not waiting for the school to return my phone call because they are always so reliable with getting back to parents needing information or appointments(conferences)

Five Question Friday!

Someone had started this on the MckMama Forum and another lady had started it on her blog this week but ended up deleting out the MckLinky... so, if you want to join in, go to her blog and leave a comment! Or, check it out on the MckForum!
Have Fun!

1. What was your favorite wedding gift? Or, if you aren't married, what was your "favorite" gift you gave?
My favorite gift was the wedding itself.... without my parents help, the wedding would have been a visit to the Justice of the Peace once I arrived in Hawaii. I am so grateful that my parents were able to fly my husband's parents out to Hawaii also. And the wedding dress, and the hotel rooms for my family members who were able to get out to Hawaii. It was all just incredible and such a gift to have been able to share the day with my whole family. That was 10 years ago last month!

2. Speaking of weddings, where did you honeymoon, or where would you like to honeymoon?
We got married in Hawaii... does it get any better than that? We had a room at the Turtle Bay Hilton with the package for our wedding but since Family was in Hawaii visiting, we actually spent a lot of time with them! Kind of like a reverse honeymoon!

3. If you had to choose (you know, if anyone would actually be that cruel)...shoes or chocolate?
Oh boy.... Shoes. Oh wait... I dont know... OK... I have the world's ugliest Flintstone feet... So, most shoes would be completely out of the question for me... so, Chocolate.

4. Besides your kiddos and husband (if you have those), what are you most proud about in your life?
I am proud that I was able to graduate college with honors... I was told by a high school guidance counselor to not even bother applying to college because I wasnt going to make it anyways. This is the same guy who was he high school softball coach... I never made the high school team but did play some college softball! So, I am proud. I stuck it out and did it.. and really, it wasnt that hard!!! Now, to go back and change my major and have gone in to nursing... that is another story.

5. And, (since it's raining here...I'm just glad it's not snowing) what is your favorite thing to do on a rainy day?
I like to go to the mall and window shop. I like to hang out at home and blast some music with the kiddos. I love watching thunderstorms... but for some reason they always miss us!

YOUR TURN!!!!!!!!!!!

Hives or Eczema Flare up???

here are some of the pics I managed to get of CJ while he was nekkid running around on my bed.... I was attempting to get some hydrocortisone on them. I dont know what would have caused the major flare up? of whatever it is... I also gave him a bit of benadryl which he managed to fling half of the dose all over the blanket....
what do you think?

I want to always remember this...

Tonite when we were driving back from one of our Walmart adventures the girls were talking about what they are going to name their babies. Usually they come up with crazy non-human names for their babies. Tonite was different. I guess I will tell you the conversation started with us talking about our initials because I saw a car in the Walmart parking lot that had 3 letters which were EGL. Those were my initials growing up before I got married... Erin Gray Lannon.
So, the girls were asking us to say their initials in word form... AGB, SJB, KCB, RCB Jr.... Then daddy is RCB Sr. and I am ELB.
I told the girls that one of them needed to marry a man with the last name beginning with F.... and then name their baby William Thomas.... or, Winifred Theodora... so that the initials would be WTF.... They had no clue what I meant but it really got the ball rolling... for SERIOUS names this time! For ONCE... our grandchildren will not be named Doo Doo... or something.
Ashley is SO funny.... She is DEAD serious that her daughter will be named Sandy. And if she has a little boy, his name will be DANNY!!! ROFLOL.... Seriously?
Cute. She loves Grease and even got a jacket for back to school which is a super soft metallic gray color... which she says is from GREASE.... and not only from GREASE.... it is also like her new favorite singer's coat. Michael Jackson...
Funny Gal..

Tonite, Sydney will be naming her children Zoey... (which would have been CJ's name if he was a girl) or Robert... like daddy and brother.