The Search is Over ...

The search is over, we found a great price for our airline tickets to Idaho!! God is good! We found a decent price a few days ago and planned on getting the tickets over the weekend. Things got busy, big surprise, and it did not get done. This afternoon, I got an e-mail from Frontier Airlines that they were running a summer special for 3 days. We ended up saving about $350.00. Praise God!! I love finding good deals!! It is a relief to know that the tickets are booked. Now we can start the countdown. I have a weird combination of excitement and nervousness going on in my stomach. You have to hold your breath when you are filling out all the information, and pray that the price they told you is still available!! These websites are tricky. Now, I can start praying that everyone is healthy and happy when we get on that plane. What would I do with my time if I had nothing to worry about :) Thank you to all who prayed! I know this was a gift from God. He always takes care of us!!

The growing family on our last trip! We miss you all!

What Are We Doing Today!!!

"Mom, what are we doing today?" This has been the theme of our house this week. Apparently, my children think during the week of Spring Break, mom and dad have magically turned into superfun parents with an unlimited supply of money. (That would be nice!!) Steve and I have planned a few fun activities to do this week as a family!! I think our children hoped that every waking moment would be filled with joyous fun!! (Maybe Steve and I need to re-read our "Super-Fun Parents Handbook")
On Monday, the kids had friends come over to play. They had a blast!!! They played dress-up, watched movies, raced around laughing and screaming, and they even went outside in the cold to play. It was a day filled with fun, until the friends left. As I was feeling proud of myself that they enjoyed their day, go mom, I hear, "Mom, what are we doing today?" What!!! You just did it!!! That was the fun thing!! It is now over! Now, you can start cleaning up your fun!! That was NOT the response they wanted. Rylee even told me, "Mom, I don't really feel like cleaning up." To which I response, "I really don't want to fix dinner, but I have to. You have to clean, even when you don't want to!!" She was not impressed with my sarcasm!!
Tuesday we took the kids to the Wayne Aquatic Center!! This activity was a home run to the kids. Any chance they get to go swimming is a win win!! Tanner was excited because the kids were excited, but he had no idea what we were going to do. When we got to the locker room to change, he gave me a strange look when mommy put him in bright colored, fish shorts and no shirt. "Clearly, mom is losing it, but the kids seem ok with it. Let's go!!" As we walk him through the red door he is hiding behind dad's leg. When his eyes take in the swimming wonderland, he says, "Wow"! Enough said. The next hour and 1/2 is spent chasing this crazy 2 year old around, trying to prevent a drowning!! He is diving into the water, head first, swallowing gallons of water and laughing the whole time. Going down the small water slide was a real treat!! He thought he was hot stuff!! Steve and I were taking turns watching him and monitoring the other kids. I kept thinking that this is the longest hour and 1/2 ever. Are we done yet!!! It was a super, fun day with the family, but mom and dad were wiped out!! We didn't hear the dreaded question after this activity, but we did hear, "what are we going to eat? We are starving!!" Oh, we can't win!!!
Thursday, mom and dad got away and went to a Piston's Game!! It was so fun. You will hear all about it soon in a future post!
Saturday we are going to the movies to see "Monsters vs Aliens". The kids have been dying to see this one. We are celebrating a friend's B-day, so there will be pizza, cake and ice cream!! What a perfect day!!
I think we passed the test this week, but I know we will soon be hearing the words, "Mom, what are we doing today?"

The Search Is On!!

It is that time of year again, the search for the perfect airline ticket price!! I love it and hate it at the same time. This year I am doing the unthinkable, purchasing 7 round trip tickets!!! How did my kids grow up so fast!! Tanner, the youngest, turned two in October so he now he gets his own ticket. The good news is he doesn't have to sit on my lap and squirm around for hours on our trip. The bad news, another $300 -$400 to fork out!! I need to get a job to cover this!! I propose that the airlines only charge a percentage for kids. For example, 2 yr = 20% 3yr = 30%, you get the idea. It is a wonderful plan, right!! Every little bit would help. I guess that the airlines are thinking that no one else is crazy enough to take 5 kids on an airplane at one time. I prepare ahead of time for the nasty, dirty looks that we receive when we haul our five kids on the plane. I try to keep calm and maintain my Christian testimony. It is hard. Ok, what was I talking about? Oh yeah, the search. For the next few weeks to months, I will spend way too much time on the computer. I look at list of websites and punch in a combination of a few different dates, trying to get the best deal. The hardest part is jumping on the best price that I find. Just a few dollars makes a different when purchasing 7 tickets. So here's to the hunt. May I stretch our dollars to the limit. The search begins ....

My new personal trainer ... personal encourager?

My running buddy!

Who says that a mom of 5 kids can't afford a personal trainer. I even have more than one!! I know you are thinking, "how spoiled". The best part is that I get their advice and services for free! There is one down side to all this, they have limited experience! Kallie (7), Ry (5), Emma (3), and Tanner (2) are more than willing to help out mom when she is getting ready to workout! The other day I was on the floor doing an ab workout that was kicking my butt. I must have been grunting and groaning more than normal because the girls kept asking me if it hurt. I smiled and told them yes, but that means it is working! Emma looked up at me and said, "mom, just don't do it!" Seems like good advice at the time, but I knew that Jillian Michaels (Biggest Loser coach) would not approve, so I keep pushing!! I response with, "mommy has to do this to get the fat off." "Oh, yeah," she says!

Rylee decided that she would give it a try, so she got on the floor and joined in. She says, "look mom, I am doing it! I am great at this!! I have big muscles!! This is not hard at all!!" I did not quite have the heart to tell her that she was not doing it quite right! I just smiled and said, "way to go, girl! You rock!" A few days later, I am doing a yoga routine and Rylee says, "Mom, I am so proud of you!! Your fat stomach is all gone! Look mom is it all gone!!" (I was doing table! Mental note: table makes me look like my fat stomach is gone) A few moments later I was doing boat and she comes over and pats my belly and says, "oh no! it is back, mom! Your stomach fat is back!!" I had to laugh, which messed up my move, but it was so cute!!
Today, my son Tanner woke up from his nap and came downstairs to find me doing that same ab routine!! He says, "what doing, mom? what doing?" I told him I was working out and I would be done in a minute. He hears, "come over here and jump on mommy so that this ab routine will be harder!" I am fighting him off, and trying to get done. I was sore from running, so this was not pretty, people!! I kept telling him it was hurting and he would come over and give me a hug and say, "it is ok, mommy!" It gave me just what I needed to finish. Thank you son!! I always love to get hugs. He was so concerned for mommy and I think was a little confused why mommy was doing this if it hurt!! I was wondering the same thing!! Oh yeah, I am trying to get the fat off!!! I guess I will continue to workout with my personal trainers and encouragers!! A healthy lifestyle will be a good example, right!!! I guess I better not give up! My trainers will be disappointed.

Finally, Some Sunshine!!

Finally, I am seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. Spring is coming!! I have had quite enough of winter, thank you very much!! Winter sickness has been plaguing our house and it hit again a few days ago. Two out of the five kids were sick and two more were coughing!! When I awoke yesterday to sunlight streaming into my window, I had to smile!! Thank you God! You always seem to know just what I need. In typical Saturday fashion, we had to run errands and go get groceries. My goal was to go running and enjoy the warming weather. At 6:15pm, we were heading home and I was running out of sunlight! Thanks to daylight savings time, (the only good thing) I had until about 7:45pm. I rushed home got changed and headed to the park. This was my first run since November. I usually take a short winter break, so I don't freeze to death!! I felt great!! My legs were strong, my knees felt strong, but my lungs were screaming, what are you doing! You are killing me!!" (See, even my lungs are dramatic) I slowed down a bit to catch my breath, but then told my body to suck it up! I was going to run the 2 full laps and I was not stopping! My time was a little slower, but I finished, feeling great!! It was worth it. I got my workout in, it was quiet and peaceful, and I got to enjoy the beautiful sunshine!!! What a great finish to my day!! Today, I am a bit sore, but it is worth it. This week it is going to hit the mid 60's. I will definitely find time to run this week! Welcome Spring!! You have been missed!

Puzzle Mania

After breakfast, I was sitting quietly reading my runners magazine, when Tanner came downstairs carrying a puzzle. I had to laugh because of the struggle with which he was grasping this puzzle. Out of breath, he tries to tell me something. I use my decoding mommy skills and soon find out the problem. He had a wooden puzzle piece in the right spot, but not at the right angle. He was fired up. He was asking me, "what's broke?" I told him that he had it right, he just needed to twist it. He fixed it and then left with a smile. On the way back to his room, he turns and says, "welcome, mom." Which in toddler, means "your welcome, mommy." (We are working on being polite) I followed him to his room and got on the floor and watched him play puzzles. With every piece he placed in the puzzle, he would raise both hands in the air and cheer. It was precious!! It is so fun to watch my kids growing and learning new things. He was filled with pride. He said, "I did it!!" It was also a good time to practice our colors and numbers. We talked all about dinos and even made some dino sounds. It was fun!!! I love to play with him.

We did it !!

The Lady Wildcats did it again!!! They beat the Plymouth Eagles in overtime in the first round of regionals. It was a very exciting game. The team came out a little flat in the first quarter, but once again their defense gave them the boost they needed. They took their time and ran the plays. They worked together and used each of their strength's to make the team stronger. The girls hit a wall with their shots in the 4th quarter, but hit shots when they were needed. A huge crowd of fans were there cheering them on. It was exciting to see the support that the girls received. Thank you, Wildcats, for your hard work and your character as you play. You are a joy to watch. We all look forward to Thursday's game against Cardinal Mooney. Let's go Blue!!!