Update #1 - Read FIRST!!

I am still trying to catch my breath from this past week. In some ways, our lives have begun to resemble a realty-tv show, "Unexpected twists and turns! Ready to shake things up! Just when you thought you knew the next step... New surprises every day!"

I will give a brief update picking up from where I last left off (if I can remember!) I will skip the days that nothing really happened :)

Last Saturday (April 5) my mom and pops had a safe flight home to Florida. Tim's mom Anita and her husband Rick came to visit for the day. Anita made cherry pie and we had lunch here at home. Then we drove around looking at campgrounds and they booked a week at the Whipperwool Campground for a week in July. We also booked a Friday and Saturday night to stay in our camper. Afterward, we went to the OC boardwalk to have our favorite pizza and then surprised the girls with Kohr Bros ice cream (their first for the year!) It turned out to be a great day with beautiful weather. Sunday April 6 was a rainy cold day. We went to church then came home to sit by the fireplace. We had game night with the girls and helped Kaitlyn finish her book report (a diarama in a shoebox) about the book "Weekend With Wendell".

Tuesday April 8, I volunteered at the girls' school to hang artwork for their Creative Arts night. It was nice to meet some new moms. One of which is interested in scrapbooking also, so I gave her my email address! Morgan had been feeling yucky and sure enough, we got a call from the school nurse that she had a low-grade fever. Tim came to pick her up and took her to the doctor, luckily she only had a cold (after that wonderful $30 co-pay...) Kaitlyn started her new level at gymnastics and she really liked it. I think it will be better for her because it is more challenging and she has to push herself to continue to excel. Tim got a $55 parking ticket in the mail for parking on the wrong side of the road the day before, while dropping Kaitlyn off at school. :( Since we have moved here, everyone parks that way on that same road, but apparently that day, the police around here were particularly bored and decided to make some quick money (sorry if that sounded sarcastic..eh hem...) I also found out that my very favorite music leader from our church has resigned. He will be done as of the end of this month. I am very upset. As I have posted many times, that has been my favorite part of our church services every Sunday. I LOVE him and his music. I will miss him greatly.

Wed April 9 we went to the book fair with Kaitlyn at school (which I loved!) and then had a rainy movie afternoon after school. Thurs April 10 Tim and I went to the OC library after dropping triplets off at school. Then we went back to the school for their turn at the book fair. In the evening it was back to school for Creative Arts Night. This is where all of the families walk through the school and admire the artwork done by the children in Art class since September. It was actually very nice.

**NOW** the Big things begin!! OK, I'll save them for a separate post!

OK, so here is my new blog signature. I think it's pretty big but I couldnt make it any smaller...

Early Spring Pictures

Finding Peace

Finding Peace - Letting Go and Liking It by Paula Peisner Coxe

Published in 1994. 196 pages.

(I have an older version, its been published more recently.)
Finding Peace


What its about (from amazon): Peace of mind is a place where few reside. It is where you can trust more and worry less, compare yourself to no one, love and accept yourself, forgive the pain from the past and grow from your losses. Filled with carefully crafted thoughts, suggestions and uplifting quotes. Finding Peace is for everyone looking to feel more comfortable with themselves and their situations.

What I thought: I really enjoyed reading this book. In fact, I am starting over, reading it again. It is a small guide with short entries which you can read in less than 2 minutes each. There are 3 main sections: The You of Yesterday (with 11 thoughts), The You of Today (with 24 thoughts) and The You of Tomorrow with 15 thoughts). Each thought includes an inspirational quote as well as a list of practical things you can do to apply this thought to your life (and space to write your own list). There is a lot of helpful input packed into each and every page of this little tiny book.

Date finished: April 8, 2008

Currently reading: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Barefoot

Barefoot by Elin Hilderbrand

416 pages. Published in 2007.

Barefoot


First sentence: Three women step off of a plane.

Last sentence: Or has she?

What it's about (from amazon): Hilderbrand's sixth novel heaps on the trauma as a substitute for realistic connection in this heady mix of beach house, cancer, affair and mom lit. Connecticut housewife Vicki, diagnosed with lung cancer, has packed up her two kids for a summer at the family's Nantucket cabin; sister Brenda, a newly minted high-powered assistant professor, has just been fired for having an affair with one of her students; Vicki's best friend, Melanie, newly pregnant, has discovered her husband is cheating.

What I thought: Well...decent story line, a bit depressing and drawn-out. I enjoyed the characters for the most part. There are no chapters, the book is just divided by months (and it occurs over the course of one summer). Some things I found interesting: Vicki (mom with cancer) keeps a running list that she calls 'List of things that no longer matter'. Helped to put things into perspective. Also there were many references to the areas in PA that I lived most of my life (Royersford, Bryn Mawr) because the author is from that area. Vicki & Brenda's mother describes women as divided into one of 3 categories: Big sisters, Little sisters or No sisters. She then goes on the describe how each of these types of women mother their own daughters. Extremely interesting to me, as I fall into the category of 'No sisters' but I have 4 girls who are sisters to each other. hmmm... On page 355 (toward the end) Vicki writes a touching letter to her sister Brenda which brought me to tears. Overall I would probably rate this book about 2.5 or 3 out of 5.

Date finished: April 4, 2008

Currently reading: Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

Possibly my loooongest post yet!

Sunday March 30
Tommy arrived by 8:15am and went to the 9am church service with the girls and I. It was so nice and refreshing to spend time together with him! After church, he treated us to brunch at IHOP. We went to the Hamilton Mall so I could check out phones at Verizon (my contract was up 6 months ago and it is time where they give me a free phone, but I like my phone so much, I still haven't decided on a new one) and the girls played in the indoor playground.
Then we came home to color, play a game and dance our hearts out in the Living room! Tim came home from his week-long trip around 7pm and he took over with the girls. Tommy and I went for a 30-minute bike ride (with the dog) and it felt so good! We went to bed fairly early, but Tommy was up late doing some 'Homework help' for a special someone! ;)

Monday March 31
Enjoyed more time with Tommy. He helped me sort through some things in my bedroom that had yet to be unpacked. We got to talk a lot and listen to some good music together. He also put some security stuff on our laptops and updated some programs (or something to that affect...) He left in the early afternoon because he had a birthday party to attend back in PA that evening.
My mom and Cecil (Mommom & Poppop) arrived at our house around 1pm. We were so excited to see them and to have almost a whole week to share together! Poppop has lost 40 pounds and it was definitely noticable. He is still on this special diet, with the goal of losing another 60 pounds - for a total goal of 100 pound weight loss! We are all cheering him on! And mom has lost weight as well, although she didn't have weight to lose and I think it is more stress-driven than anything else.
To celebrate their arrival, we went out to dinner at TGI Fridays (Kids eat FREE on Monday nights!) Then we walked around the mall a bit, talked a lot and after putting the girls to bed, we watched some fun TV shows before bed.

Tuesday April 1
April Fools Day! The girls played jokes on us (or tried to at least!) all day long - it was really cute ;) Mommom and Poppop drove to PA for the day so that Pops could meet with his old job (the Post office) and see about getting his job back. Also, they went to visit his mother and met Sean and Holly for dinner.
We got a call from very special friends of ours asking Tim and I to be their son's Godparents. This was such an honor for us and of course something that we take very seriously. (Just to avoid any confusion, I have decided at this time to not mention any names.) We will participate in an official service toward the end of April!
Tim and I enjoyed a quiet cozy afternoon together while all of the girls were in school. We decided to not try to get things done, but rather just sit and talk and spend some quality time bonding! It felt like he had been gone on that last trip FOREVER.
Kaitlyn went to gymnastics and was promoted to the next skill level. She was so excited and proud. It is very exciting for us, as she has only been in gymnastics for a short time so far. All four of the girls continue to do very well and are progressing nicely.
We watched my friend Jennifer's 2 daughters for a bit while their brother went to his Karate class. Our girls love to have them over to play, and of course its nice for us because they all keep each other occupied!
Tim worked on some household projects including shampooing all of the carpets. I love how fresh the house smells after he does this, which he usually does like twice a year. We have a newer Carpet Shampooer which we really like (our old one was crap).
My sister-in-law sent me a picture of their little guy Ian eating rice cereal - so cute! He had the happiest look on his face, little chubber! He is one hungry boy :)
We watched American Idol, of which I was pretty disappointed with the performances. I still love David A, in my opinion he is by far the BEST! And while we watch each week, I am instant messaging my closest friend from college - Colleen! Its fun, we write back and forth with our opinions of everybody (along with our normal chatting stuff). I look forward to our time 'together' each week :)

Wednesday April 2
Poppop drove to PA again to do all of his paperwork for his Post Office job. Tim let me sleep in ... which I soooo appreciate. Refer to my previous post.

Tim took the girls to school and then went grocery shopping. That is one of his 'chores' because it is one that I can't stand and he 'kind of' enjoys it. Mom and I spent some quiet peaceful time together for the afternoon. I did the girls' laundry, paid bills (ugh!) made dinner.
After dinner we took a family walk all around the neighborhood. Normally we walk on the bike path, so it was interesting to walk all of the nearby streets and check out the houses, etc. Then we took the girls to the library and each of them loves to pick out 2 books for themselves (luckily we are allowed 10 books at a time!)

TODAY
Mommom and Poppop went with me to take the triplets to their gymnastics class. It was fun for them to see everything the girls are learning and watch them in action. The girls were also fitted for their special leotard for the big show in June. While we were gone, Tim did some touch-up painting throughout the house.

After the girls went to school, my mom and I treated ourselves to pedicures at a local nail salon. It was so nice. I havent gotten a pedicure in almost a year.

I chose a bright pink/purple color - in honor of Spring! It is OPI's Pompeii Purple (PIC)

Then we picked up the girls from school, helped Kaitlyn with her homework, then dropped all four girls off at my WONDERFUL friend Jen's house! She so graciously offered to watch our four critters so that we could have a nice adult evening out. It was glorious! The four of us went for an early dinner at The Crab Trap. After dinner, we went for a drive and ended up in Atlantic City before heading back to pick up our munchkins!
So far it has been a crazy, busy, fun week and unfortunately there are only two more days to go before Mom and Pops head back down to Florida. I will give a separate update about them soon.
Hope everyone is having a fun week and TGIF...
Happy Friday!

B-Complex

Not sure if I had ever mentioned this before, but I am ALWAYS tired. I rarely have energy. I talked to my doctor about it and she said I need to eat right (working on it), exercise daily (started biking and walking) and taking vitamins.
Well, multi-vitamins have always upset my stomach ... terribly. Even when I was pregnant, I had to take chewable Flintstones vitamins and eat Total cereal every day to get my vitamins. Soooo....

Tonight at CVS, I picked up a Super B-Complex vitamin with Folic Acid and Vitamin C. I had done some research online and this is what I found on the Psychology Today website:

"B vitamins are often called the energy vitamins, but they are more like keys that unlock it. Fatigue, irritability, poor concentration, anxiety and depression—all can be signs of a B vitamin deficiency. That's because compounds in the B complex are needed for everything from the healthy maintenance of brain cells to the metabolism of carbohydrates, the brain's source of fuel. Bs are also necessary for production of neurotransmitters, which regulate mood and conduct messages through the brain."

Here is another site I got some good info from about B-Complex vitamins and Energy. I will keep you all posted with how this works for me. In case anyone else suffers from this same problem, I am definitely open to any suggestions of things that may have helped you!

Stimulus Payment Schedule

For full info, check out the IRS website. (includes an online calculator to find out exactly how much money you will receive).

Economic stimulus payments will be issued according to the last two-digits of the main filer's Social Security number.

DIRECT DEPOSIT
Last two SSN digits: Payment will be transmitted:
00 through 20 May 2
21 through 75 May 9
76 through 99 May 16

PAPER CHECK
Last two SSN digits: Payments will be mailed by:
00 through 09 May 16
10 through 18 May 23
19 through 25 May 30
26 through 38 June 6
39 through 51 June 13
52 through 63 June 20
64 through 75 June 27
76 through 87 July 4
88 through 99 July 11

To receive a payment, taxpayers must have a valid Social Security number, $3,000 of income and file a 2007 federal tax return. IRS will take care of the rest. Eligible people will receive up to $600 ($1,200 for married couples), and parents will receive an additional $300 for each eligible child younger than 17.

Busy, Busy, Busy!

I am going through blogging-withdrawal this week! Things have been so hectic and I promise a full update soon.
But I wanted to let everyone know that my mom and 'dad' (Cecil) are up here for the week staying with us. They are actually looking to relocate back to PA, so they have been driving back and forth the past few days trying to get things set up. It is very exciting having them here with us and we are just eating up every second we have with them!
I hope you are all having a wonderful week and I promise an update soon! :)

Ten on Tuesday ~ Week 7

oops I forgot to post my Ten on Tuesday from last week (sorry Catrin!!)

Ten Things I'd Fix in My Home
(if I had the time and money)

1. Replace countertop with granite
2. Install hardwood floor throughout (at least downstairs)
3. Build an addition off the side to add extra rooms.
4. Reface the fireplace with stone (floor to ceiling)
5. Completely renovate/modernize both upstairs bathrooms
6. New high-efficiency heating and air conditioning
7. All new upgraded windows and doors
8. Replace driveway and walkways with brick.
9. Professional landscaping
10. New Family Room furniture

Next week: 10 Favorite Actors/Actresses