Pics of the construction

Before- this was back in 2004


I didn't get any of the framework unfortunately.
Here's as of today/this minute.
Looking towards where the doorway will be (see the bottom right of the concrete wall) The window looks out into the back.

Other wall- there will be some slanting to the ceiling with attic space in the middle (I think?)

Large front window


Current full house - see how overgrown my flower bushes have become? Everyone who sees them loves them though. They'll have to come out if we restucco the house to match the new room though.


Ian watching out of the window

ICK!!

If you don't know, it's lovebug season here in FL. What are lovebugs? They are these dumb little bugs who love to fly while doing the deed and they are highly atracted to car exhaust so they just swarm on the highways. Of course, when you are doing 70mph, you end up with a nasty mess all over your car and windshield that does not come off easily. It can hurt your paint if left on too.

So we are driving to Epcot this morning and of course, we didn't get out of the house when I wanted to and we hit the beginning of peak time for them to start flying. You can see them coming at you despite them being pretty small and then you hear the splat each time you hit one. Ugh. Windshield fluid does nothing for cleaning them. I tried cruising behind people today which worked for a while but everytime I'd get behind someone, they'd start driving all slow. Don't get behind a semi though, they just deflect the bugs right onto you. So we're driving along and Logan has to pee. Luckily we're only 2 miles from a rest area and we pull in. Lovebugs EVERYWHERE! You had to walk thru a swarm of them. Dh was able to somewhat clean my ws off even though the minute you pull back on I-4, you're hearing splat, splat, splat again. So we're pulling out and I look at the ground on the ramp to get back on the interstate and there's these brown spots everywhere. I jokingly said something about all the lovebugs killed and then we spot them. Grasshoppers. Not little crickets, huge freakin' grasshoppers. I. HATE. GRASSHOPPERS. That's what all the brown spots were. Gross!! Ick!!! As many spots as there were, there were more live ones and they were everywhere near that rest area ramp. Lovebugs I can deal with as I'm walking around. They are just a nuisance, but grasshoppers just give me the creeps.

We made it to Epcot in one piece though and many thousand lovebug pieces came with us. We rode the newly refurbished Mexico ride that now features the Three Caballeros. Ian got to go see his fave characters- Chip and Dale. He's so funny, all he wants to do is give them huge hugs. We took pics of the topiaries since it's the last week of the Flower & Garden Festival. ETA: If you ever get to go to Epcot, go over to Norway and try the School Bread (Skolebrod). It is so yummy! It's this bread with vanilla custard (tons) inside and on top and the outside top is covered in coconut. We split one between the 4 of us and it will def. be a snack next time!

We are thinking about having going on vacation there again in Sept. Just gotta start planning and come up with the cash. I think it turned out to be a good day! I still can't believe my little man is 2. I just don't know how time moves so fast. Here are just a few pics from today.

Capt'n Hook and Peter Pan

Rafiki and Simba

Pirate Mickey and Minnie

Mary Poppins, Ian and I

Bambi, Flower, Logan and I

Ian's fave buddies- Chip and Dale!

Ian's Parties & a Date

We had Ian's birthday party today. My little boy will be 2 tomorrow! It was a good party though. Very low key, just family. We had pizza and I made him the cutest cake. My black icing messed up but noone seemed to care or notice. I ate way too much pizza but it was so good. Ian got some trains and cardboard building blocks from us. He mostly got clothes from everyone else. I really don't understand why people buy him clothes. Not only that, but my mom gave out the wrong sizes so he got stuff he wouldn't be able to wear until a year from now if we are lucky. Ugh. It's stuff that would have fit Logan 6mo ago! I can barely get 2T shorts that fit him and he got 3T and 4T stuff. It's also Walmart stuff. I don't like Walmart clothes. They don't wear well and unfortunately, everything that was bought is so NOT my style. I guess I'll be making a trip to Walmart. Oh and I got no gift receipts either.... insert rolling eyes... (for what it's worth, the giver knows it's the wrong size and told me to go exchange it but gave no receipt) I'm not ungrateful at all just a bit disappointed. Ian doesn't care though. He had a good day despite taking no nap (it never fails, when I want him to take one, he won't and when we need to be somewhere he'll sleep late!).

He also had a party with his friends from playgroup on Friday at the park. He did get some toys there so at least he got something fun. LOL He was worn out!

Logan keeps asking when his birthday is. Ian had 2 parties and now Monday we are going to Epcot on his actual birthday and all poor Logan keeps saying is "It's his bday again?!" Poor baby. His Abuela (grandma) did buy him a toy so he wouldn't feel so left out today. He loves playing with the building blocks as well. He'll be just fine.

Pictures!! Sorry they are so small. My blog gets all messed up if they aren't. :(
My big boy on the big slide.

Birthday Boy





On a seperate subject, dh and I got our first "date" day in over 4 years on Saturday. Woohoo! We dropped the boys off at my BIL's and went to the theater to see the new Pirates movie. The last movie I saw in the theater was Cars way back when (last summer?) and that was just Logan and I. It was nice. We were even able to hold hands. Awww. No strollers, no holding the kids' hands, no holding kids at all! It was a long movie and my butt started to hurt but it was good. Don't drink a lot during this movie. LOL It's like 3 hours long. I liked the movie but Jack wasn't the same "drunken", funny pirate from the 1st 2 movies it seemed. I love his mannerisms and I didn't see as many. I'll just have to watch again I guess. :) For anyone who hasn't seen it, I won't spoil anything but you have to stay and watch the scene AFTER all the credits run. There are a lot of credits too but wait for it. That was the end of date day as we had to get the boys (can't leave them too long, BIL may never watch them again LOL) and clean the house for today's party. I'm hoping to do it again though. It was nice to get out with my hubby!

Just venting

I really dislike my sister sometimes. She has problems. Marriage problems, money problems, boyfriend problems. Yes, I said boyfriend. She's shacking up and divorcing her dh. That's not so much my business except she's (or the bf is!) keeping my nephew from his family. He hasn't seen his dad, us or his grandparents. Today he was supposed to come to Ian's bday party. My mom was picking him up and bringing him over. Logan was glad to hear he was coming and now I have to tell him he's not. My sis called and told mom she couldn't get T out of bed this morning (mind you the party isn't til 3pm). Mom asked if she could go by and pick him up at home. Oh no, K (the bf) might not LET you have him. HELLO??!!! Whose child is he?? My mom called me to tell me and sounded like she had been crying. I really hate what my sister is doing to our family. It really sounds like K is very controlling and is destroying my sister's relationship with all her family. This isn't the first incident. My parents have bent over backward for her. Everything they do is for her and T. Do you think my sis gives a hoot? Doesn't seem like it. The only time my sis calls mom is if she wants something. If mom calls her, she has to leave message after message and finally get mean to get a phone call back. I just don't get it. I feel really bad for T. He LOVES his grandparents. They are the stability in his life and he doesn't have that now. There are no grandparent laws in FL but man I wish there were. I wish my parents could take her to court to see him or even get custody. She isn't a bad or unfit mom, just stupid and immature.

I vowed to dh today that if anything were to happen to us I'd never do that to him or his mom. I'm blessed to have dh.

It's our 8th Anniversary!

Has it really been that long? It doesn't really feel like it. We're not doing anything really special, maybe going out tonight for dinner with the boys. We wanted dh to get off work today but it was a no go. Oh well. Maybe on our 10th anniversary we'll get to do something really cool.

What he got me...wow....everyone knows he spoils me. I don't ask for these things (ok, I did drool over the Coach purses) but he knows I like pretty things and he always comes thru for me. When he came home for lunch today, he had Ian bring me a bag. Inside was a GC for a portrait session at Studio One to One which includes a framed 8x24 and 5 sheets, unlimited enhancements and touchups to use however I want. Funny thing is I was thinking about booking the Studio for Ian's 2yr photos and some pics of the boys together. Now I think we'll do some family portraits. He also got me a gorgeous diamond bracelet (tennis?). Wow. I don't think a picture can even do it justice.
He's harder to buy for. But I got him what he wanted which was speakers for his PC. Not just cheapo speakers, but speakers with a subwoofer and bass control. LOL Nothing says love than a booming sound system for his computer.

Scary moment!

We had swim lessons yesterday afternoon. Logan is doing awesome. He's swimming like a fish and loves getting thrown into the pool. After his lesson, it was Ian's turn. Ian was ready to go so I was standing with him but not really paying attention and I hear 1,2,3 and Logan pushed him into the pool! OMG! Thom wasn't in there as he was setting the timer again.I seem to remember yelling NOOO and then I was on the ground grabbing his arm and pulling him to the surface. Thom had jumped back in as well. My heart was pounding, my hands were shaking and of course I had nightmares last night. Ian was scared but okay. Thom told me next time I should count 1-1000, 2-1000 but Mommy instincts just clicked and I reacted. LOL We had to explain to Logan that while he was a good swimmer now, some kids (and especially his brother!) are not and he can't push anyone into the pool. Ian is doing very well in lessons though. He now turns automatically back to the wall and is kicking his legs more. He did it several times by himself yesterday including "choo choo-ing"(using his hands and the wall) over to the stairs by himself. I'm so proud of both of them.

I can't believe Ian will be 2 in less than a week! I have 2 parties to plan and still haven't called everyone to come. Oops. I'm keeping it simple this year though with just a cupcake party for our friends and pizza and cake for the family. It still means a lot to do though, cleaning the house, baking and decorating the cupcakes and cake, shopping.... Glad the boys are a few months apart!

What is wrong with some parents?

Why do they allow their children to bounce around in the back of a moving vehicle? Why are they not concerned about their safety? Who's the parent? It drives me crazy and all I can do is shake my head. In an 30mph accident, a 6yr old child becomes the equivalent of a full grown elephant. Would you want that flying at you from behind? Why would you ever put your child at risk like that?

On another note.... I really don't like this time of year. It's time for season & series finales and cancellations. So far, several of my fave shows have been cancelled or the series is over. Gilmore girls is done after 7 years of laughter and tears. 7th Heaven is over. I watched those kids grow up. Jericho, The Class and What about Brian have been cancelled. That's 5 shows on my Tivo! What's next?

Wow!

I just checked my MySpace page and had a message from a girl I was friends with in 5th grade!!! That's over 20 years ago. She even remembered I lived on Clay. Her mom still lives in the same house which is the neighborhood across from mine. The internet is an amazing tool.

What else is happening... I was told today that Logan really only needed one more swim lesson. He has all the safety stuff down. I'm going to keep him in though as I really want it ingrained in him plus he needs to learn to use his arms more. Ian has now had his 2nd lesson where he didn't cry a single time and actually loved being in the water. Thom (instructor) is calling him a wild man now though as he has no fear of the water. Despite the fact he can not swim, he's ready to jump in before Thom says go and readily sticks his head in the water even when Thom is holding him tight. It's an amazing transformation. He was screaming his head off or whimpering for me just a week and a half ago. I couldn't be in his sight at all so I had to hide out in the house and watch from the window. Now he's not always ready to get out. Next step is getting some practice time in. Problem is none of my family has a pool! Think we can sneak into a hotel pool? LOL

Our permit on the new room is finally ready! Yippee! We had more red tape though.Ugh. Our contractor came by today and I had to sign a Letter of Commencement, basically a letter saying they are starting. How dumb is that? I had to go get it notarized too. Thank goodness Mom is a notary. So once he has the paper back in hand, they should start by Friday or Monday. Im so ready for it! We already have decorating plans and even bought a Mickey Mouse area rug. Hahaha! I saw the cutest 3D artwork at BB&B tonight too- it was film reels and the Clapboard for movie sets. Perfect!

Busy weekend ahead- I have a Mom's Night In on Friday and a movie night with some friends on Saturday. We're doing a Forrest Gump theme. How fun! Anyone for some shrimp and Dr Pepper?

Happy Mother's Day!

Ok, so it's nearly Monday and Mother's Day is almost over but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway. Today was a pretty good day. Dh let me sleep in a bit. Not that it really mattered, my body just won't let me sleep "in" anymore so I was tossing and turning at 8am. When I finally got up though, Ian jumped off dh's lap and ran to me. He was so happy to see me which has to be the best feeling in the world. Logan ran over to me and struggled to remember what he had to say. LOL After 30sec or so though, he got it and said Happy Mother's Day. He ran to get my gift which he and dh went to buy yesterday. I saw the bag in the car so I had a feeling of what it was. Here it is! I got another Coach bag. Yea! Logan actually picked out a blue one but dh didn't think I'd use it as much with nothing to wear with it. LOL

After cooking breakfast for myself and taking a shower, we went to "steal" my mom's truck. She wanted a system in her truck like I have with subwoofers and amps. She teaches line dancing and now loves the music I listen to that she used to hate when I was a kid. Go figure. So dh arranged it, Daddy took mom out all day and we took her truck. She drives a huge Nissan Titan. OMG it's a beast! I swear it has more/bigger blind spots than anything I've ever driven. There's no way I'd be able to park that truck in a busy parking lot. LOL After we dropped it off, it was past Ian's naptime and boy was he cranky today so he went down, dh napped, Logan played and I watched tv. Nothing special. We went back to get her truck and take it to her and spent a little while with my parents, came home and now everyone is in bed except me. My mom really liked her gift. So that was my Mother's Day in a nutshell. Next up, our anniversary!

Old Flame

I happened upon a MySpace page last night that was a blast from the past. It was the girl who slept with my then boyfriend and got pregnant. I left him shortly after, ended up dating dh and am happily married but it was kinda strange seeing the both of them after so many years. She looks the same as she did then, only older (aren't we all!) and so does he. He still looks as scrubby as he did then too. Ugh. He actually married her which he swore he'd never do (get married in general) and they have 3 kids together. He's still best friends with the same guy too which is nice. I'll admit, I've been curious as to what happened with them over the years. I'd love to see his mom again, she was a nice lady. I do wish them well though. If not for their cheating, I never would have dated dh, gotten married and had 2 beautiful boys. So thanks to them both!

Speaking of flames, I do hope we get some rain soon. The fires up in Georgia are wreaking havoc on my sinuses. The smoke just fills the air here in Central FL. Anytime I'm around smoke, whether it's wood smoke or cigarettes, it sticks in my nose. I have a hard time breathing thru my nose and it stinks and gives me headaches. Even if I'm in the house with the AC running, the smell lingers in my nose forever. It stinks! Literally!

WTH??????

If this isn't illegal, it darn well should be (just looked it up and it is illegal!). While leaving the rec center and turning onto Bell Shoals (and then Bloomingdale) which both are busy roads, the guy in front of me was driving his motorcycle. He wasn't wearing a helmet- dumb but he's an adult and has that choice. That's not my problem, my problem is he has an 8-9 yr old CHILD on the back with NO helmet!!! That child doesn't get to make that choice. He doesn't have the maturity or common sense to make that choice. All I kept thinking was What If? What if he had to swerve and the boy wasn't hanging on tight enough? What if a car hit them? Ugh. I couldn't get the license plate but even if I had, who do you call? 911? I was always taught to only call them in a dire emergency. Grrrr

Is it just my dh?

Or all men? Why is it he can take the garbage out but can NEVER remember to put a new bag in? It's not even the excuse of having no time in the morning to do it, he took the bags out last night! Argh.

ETA: He actually put a bag in one day this week. Wow. LOL

What?!

I was getting ready to head out to Lowes yesterday so dh was watching the boys. It was around 11:30ish I guess. I came out and noticed that dh had eaten lunch (left the dish on the stove) so I asked if he had fed the boys yet. He said No. When I asked why, he said because they had raisins. What?! You didn't feed them lunch bc they each had a box of raisins and you think that's lunch? I was dumbfounded. LOL

one other- the other day someone actually said to me, you only need to see Disney once. Huh? I've been more than 30x I'm guessing in the last year and a half and I still haven't seen or done everything there is to do. I see/do something new every time I go. She actually preferred Busch Gardens to Disney. Whatever! In her defense, she has older kids that can do BG and all the rides. There's nothing for little ones at BG IMO, except Dragon Land which I heard is closed a lot of times. Thanks, but no thanks. We'll stick to Disney until the boys are old enough to head to BG and ride everything there.