Monday, February 28, 2005

I'm a Slacker

Wow! I can't believe I haven't posted in a whole week. That puts some pressure on me to deliver something incredibly witty or at the very least to offer something profound, but alas, I've neither.

Travis did get a new job today! Hold on to your seats ladies because you won't belive what he's doing! He's a BAKERY CLERK for Publix!!! My husband is going to have to learn to bake!!! During his interview the store manager told him it was the quickest way to move into management so Travis accepted. He's going to have to continue to work at Ruth's Chris for now so that's a bummer, but we're very thankful.

Before we moved I signed up under Christina to do Arbonne and haven't launched my business yet (I've been a little busy). But that is going to happen in the near future so I'm excited and a little nervous about that. Arbonne is really the only thing I can do and not have to be away from the girls full time. As it stands right now Halle cries when anybody holds her except for me. I couldn't imagine being away from her for 40+ hours a week. The products are incredible so I don't mind representing them it's just the "selling" aspect. I did that with real estate, but I think I'm much more likely to sell a tube of lipstick than a house.

We are very excited about this summer. Shane and Angie want us to go to the beach for a week with them for the 4th of July.

The 4th is absolutely my favorite holiday. I think it's because it's much more low key than Christmas. There's no stress, you just fix a BBQ dinner, watch fireworks with friends and family, and have a great time. It's warm outside so you're not wearing a parka and there are no presents involved. Overall I think it's a great holiday. Ever since Trav and I were married I've wanted to watch fireworks on the beach so I'm very, very excited.

Chloe is a hoot! She has been playing hide-and-seek with Travis this morning. She always hides in plain view, in the same spot and if Travis pretends he can't find her for too long she'll say "here I am". She's so cute!

Amanda is going to a Barlow Girl concert with a friend on Wednesday. She actually met 3 people at church last week so things are looking up a bit for her as well.

Sunday, February 20, 2005

Too Funny!

This has been a very nice Sunday. Travis is off and we decided to take the girls to see "Pooh's Heffalump Movie" and to dinner. The movie was actually very cute with a very nice Carly Simon song that Chloe liked very much.

After the movie we went to Red Lobster for dinner and it was nice.After our meal Travis decided to finish it off with a slice of vanilla bean cheesecake. As he was eating we were talking and weren't paying very close attention to what Chloe was doing. Well, Travis took a bite of cheesecake and all of a sudden got a weird look on his face. He said "UGH, this tastes like...TARTAR SAUCE!!! CHLOE!!!". Apparently while we weren't looking she put tartar sauce on his cheesecake. And as we (Amanda and I) were laughing hysterically and Travis was trying to get the tartar cheesecake taste out of his mouth she put honey mustard and ketchup on as well. Being the thrifty man he is however, he scraped it all off and kept eating while Amanda and I were still laughing hysterically.

The lesson learned here is: when the server pre-busses the table make sure you clear off the 3 year old's condiments as well.

Friday, February 18, 2005

Meals on Wheels

Since we haven't started the church yet, which btw is scheduled for the first Sunday in March, my Dad and I have been delivering for Meals on Wheels. We have met some interesting people and it's really nice to be able to do something in the community. Everyone that we deliver to seems so appreciative and we met one very interesting gentleman in particular. His name is Frank and he lives back in the woods by himself. His wife died 4 years after they moved into the house and he's been alone ever since. But he makes the most incredible furniture. He showed us his whole house full of the things he's made. He made the most beautiful Bombay Chest, a Grandfather Clock, an incredible rocking chair, and many other chests and tables. It really is neat to get out and meet people and be able to minister to them without the "ministry" label.

It looks now like we will not be affiliated with the COG and will be striking out as independant for now. You can always choose an affiliation later. Services will start at Mom and Dad's house and will grow from there.

I have found a new motivation for the excercises that I hate, push-ups, tricep dips, and crunches. It helps me if I say something while I'm doing the exercise that is motivation for me to do it. For example, with crunches I say- bi-ki-ni, trip-to-thebeach, or smaller jeans. It really helps and I do many more crunches that way. I used to just do them until they felt too uncomfortable and then I'd say "whoo, can't do anymore of that"! I'm noticing a difference and am looking forward to a couple of months from now when I've made much more progress.

Halle is getting cuter by the day. She wakes up smiling every morning and has started doing this squeaky/yell thing when I'm not paying attention to her. I can hardly wait for our friends and family to see her!

Amanda and I will be taking a walk today for our daily exercise. It's kind of chilly, but perfect for a walk in the woods.

Monday, February 14, 2005

Valentine's Day

If you're on a diet you may not want to read this post.

Travis and I went out last night for Valentine's Day since it was his only day off this week - actually it was his only day off in the last 11 days. Anyway, we went to the Cheesecake Factory at the Summit. The Summit is a very trendy, upscale, outdoor Shopping Mall that was built on well, a summit. You can see the Appalachian Mountains in the distance while you shop at Barnes and Noble, Restoration Hardware, The Pottery Barn, etc. It's one of my favorite places to go. Well, I remembered that I visited The Cheesecake Factory several years ago during a visit to Atlanta. I didn't remember much about it except that it was dark and had great desserts so we decided to go to the one here.

Well, I wasn't disappointed at all with the atmosphere, it was very romantic. We had to wait for about an hour for a table but when you're in good company it doesn't matter much. What was a disappointment however was the food. The menu is incredibly extensive, I'd say more like overwhelming. They have appetizers (2 full pages), pizza's, burgers, pasta, chicken, steaks, breakfast, and brunch. Some of the things sounded good, like the burgers, but it wasn't really date food. The pasta didn't come in any combinations that I liked so I settled for a Caesar Salad. I must say that I prefer the Caesar Salad at Sam's Club. The dressing was tart or acidic, I don't really know how to describe it, and the chicken was dry and flavorless. I had the Mango Papaya iced tea and it wasn't great. Trav fared much better with the Raspberry Lemonade and with his orange chicken dish (that chicken was dry too). But the company, conversation, and atmosphere were fabulous. Now on to the desserts...

I chose, drumroll please, chocolate peanut butter cookie dough cheesecake. It was divine! And Trav chose the white chocolate raspberry truffle cheesecake. Again, it was fabulous! We have decided that next time we'll eat somewhere else and go there for dessert and cappuccino. They have at least 30 cheesecake choices and I can hardly wait to try them.

All the food aside, it was nice to have 4 whole hours out by ourselves. I love it when we can spend family time together, and right now that is scarce, but there is nothing like time alone with my husband.

Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Saturday, February 12, 2005

The Flu Part Deux

OK, so I guess I don't have the flu. I'm just achy, dizzy, and don't feel like eating too much. I don't have a fever and still feel well enough to care for children. That really is a blessing because Trav has been working day and night for the last 10 days. He's home for the afternoon before he goes to work at 6.

I think that Chloe does have the flu or some wretched illness like that. I hate it when she's sick. She's got a fever, a sore throat (you can actually see the glands in her neck protruding), and hasn't eaten since yesterday. I'm going to Publix in a little while to get her anything she wants. If you ask her how she's feeling she'll respond (in typical Chloe form) "I'm feeling weally gweat". She's so sweet! When her fever is up she'll ask me to carry her to the couch and hold her, but other than that she's still dancing around unfazed by the illness.

And just a note to my mother-in-law, Travis opened the mints you got him and gave me one. He said he's saving the rest of them until football season! He's so cute!

Thursday, February 10, 2005

The Flu

Well, I think I can account for why my workout was so difficult yesterday and that would be because of the flu. Yep, I'm feelin' it. Fabulous!

In other news...

The church we are attending is Kingwood A/G in Alabaster which is about 25 minutes from here. If I was really tech savvy I'd put a link here, but I'm not and I don't feel well enough to figure out how to do it. Where is my husband when I need him? He's at work if you're wondering. Anyway, Kingwood reminds me of Cornerstone because they have similar programs such as door greeters, life groups, a great children's ministry, etc. But they aren't nearly as organized. We enjoy the worship and the pastor preaches very good sermons or he "yells" very good sermons. Since we've been at Cornerstone for the last 4 years we're not used to that and so sometimes I can't get what he's saying because he's yelling so loudly. The youth pastor at the church went to college with Trav and me and we like him so that's a plus. They have a school, daycare, and lots of nice new facilities.

Travis is going to call a manager from Publix on Sunday to schedule an interview. He spoke to him a few weeks ago when he filled out an application and was able to talk to him again yesterday so he should have an interview next week.

Chloe is so sweet! I'm amazed at how well she's doing with Halle around. She has never been jealous and always tries to be a good "mommy". I went to Barnes and Noble the other day and bought a Madeline book for her. I found it on sale and since I know that Trav loves Madeline I got it for her. She loves it! And it's really cool because she appreciates it so much when you read it to her. She'll say "Thank you sooo much mommy for reading Madeline to me."

Halle is truly a joy and I'm so glad she's here. It's amazing and I don't want to jinx myself but for the past few days any time she's tired I've been swaddling her up and just laying her in bed and she goes right to sleep! Neither Amanda or Chloe did that so I didn't even think to try it. But I noticed that she doesn't like to be held sometimes so I tried it and it worked! I love all of my kids and was all set to have a 3rd child that was difficult to put to sleep but I feel very fortunate to have such a good sleeper.

Amanda has made a friend in the youth group that she actually met online first. This girl, Jenny, commented on Amanda's blog (she has 3) and Amanda saw that she went to Kingwood so they met for the first time last night. I'm excited for her to make new friends and hope that she makes more friends in the youth group soon.

Stuff

I remember those last few weeks of pregnancy when I couldn't do much more than lay around and thinking "man I can't wait until I can work out again". There's just something about exercise and the feeling of really being alive, healthy, and strong. All those things that you don't feel when you're 9 months pregnant. I know some folks wouldn't agree with me. For instance, Amanda, during one of our walks informed me that she hates to sweat. I really don't understand that. I don't feel like I've done anything productive unless I'm dripping with sweat; yeah, that's kind of gross. But really I've always been active and I guess I equate exercise with that feeling of really being alive. Maybe I'm the exception rather than the rule though, I know lots of people that hate exercise. I think part of that is because it is difficult to actually "get into shape". Or it could be that if someone doesn't like exercise to begin with but does it anyway and then they don't see "supermodel" type results in just a few weeks then it is discouraging. It's much easier to give up something you don't like.

Anyway, the point is that I can exercise now and I feel fabulous. Today however, kicked my butt. I'm not exactly sure what makes one day more difficult to exercise than others but today was that day. When I say that day I mean it's the day that even though I've done the workout before and even though I've done it when I'm physically tired before today was different. Today was the day that my legs felt like lead, I had no coordination, and it pretty much just stunk. For everyone that has ever done exercise for any significant amount of time I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. The only thing I can think of is a lack of sleep last night. I know I talk about being sleep deprived but for at least a week I've had plenty of sleep. And Halle didn't keep me up last night Travis did. He's been sick - again - with the flu and he kept waking me up. That's the only thing I can think of. Anyway, this is a very long dissertation on exercise because there is nothing else to write about. But for those of you that are interested I can recommend a couple of good work out DVD's.

I like Kathy Smith's "Fat Burning Breakthrough" because it has 2- 20 minute cardio workouts that you can break up over 2 days or do it all at one time. Between the 2 cardio sections it has some weight training so I feel like I get a really good overall workout. The instructor is not too annoying except for the occasional shrill "yeehooo"- that so annoys me.

I also like her "Lift Weights to Lose Weight" DVD. Again, it has 2- 20 minute segments one for upper body and one for lower and a short abs routine.

I have found that doing the weights workout relieves stress even better than the cardio routine.

Life is good. We're going to a new church consistently and Amanda is getting involved in the youth group. More on that later...

Saturday, February 05, 2005

All things Button

Well, it's nice to have a blog so that I can keep our friends and family updated on all things Button but it's also one more thing to feel guilty about when I can't get to it.

Amanda got a hair cut. You wouldn't think that would be a news worthy announcement but when you're 14 it definitely is. She really has changed so much in the 2 1/2 months since we've moved. All of a sudden her taste in clothes, hair, and accessories changed. She's more of a skater/punk than a preppy girl now. It's exciting to see though. I'm glad that she's trying to find herself and her own style instead of feeling that she has to be like me. Our personalities are definitely similar- ok fine, she's a mini me- but I'm glad that she feels the freedom to be herself or at least fo find out what that is. I'd say she looks more like Avril Lavigne than Hillary Duff now without all that skater/punk rage.

And me- well, other than taking care of the girls I'm working out and trying to find some sort of compromise on a diet. I'm excited that after working out for the last couple of weeks I'm able to use heavier weights and can do more of the hops, jumps, etc. on my workout video. We all know that the first few weeks after having the baby are the most frustrating. I feel like I'll never be in bathing suit shape again, but I'm determined to make it by the 4th of July. We're planning a beach trip with Trav's brother and sister in law. I guess if I post it I can't back out now. If I could just figure out what I can eat. I tried something last week and it really messed Halle up. After I had Chloe I ate spinach and it really hurt her tummy so I just ate peanut butter and jelly for about a month because I was too scared to eat anything else. I really don't want to go back to that- ugh.

Chloe is doing very well and hasn't shown the least bit of jealousy toward Halle. Trav built a "chair tent" for her a couple of nights ago and she loved it. He told her stories about a Chloeasaurus, Chloe Girl- Chloe Girl had to save Larry Boy- and Goldie Chloe and the Three Bears. She loves those stories- I can't imagine why.

Halle is sleeping normally again thankfully. I really don't have room to complain she's been sleeping most of the night almost since she came home from the hospital. She has the biggest blue eyes; I hope they stay that way. She loves Chloe. She smiles and giggles whenever Chloe is around. I think they'll be great friends.

Travis and I are learning lots about patience. For those of you that are wondering, the church is on hold for now. I think I told most of the people that will read this blog about the situation with the pastor from Mom and Dad's former church. Well, it's much worse now and there is a lawsuit involved so that's all I'll say about that. I do know what we came here to do though and when the time is right it will happen.

We are able to spend a lot of time together as a family and I'm excited about what God is going to do.

Wednesday, February 02, 2005

3 AM

3 AM, yes that's when my beautiful little bundle went to sleep for good.

Have I ever mentioned that my husband is a Saint? Yes, I will definitely nominate him for Saint Hood. Travis worked yesterday from 10 am until 11:30 pm (with a small break in between) and then when he got home- after several attempts on my part to get Halle into bed- he got up with her and put her to sleep so that I could sleep. Of course, part of his motivation is that I get grouchy when I miss too much sleep- but it was a Saint worthy deed nonetheless.

Well, Travis has the day off and I'm going to spend time with the family.

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Wow! I forgot

Wow! I had forgotten how stressful newborns are. I like to think I can do everything and pack my days full of stuff. I'm very ambitious- too ambitious really because I can't finish half the things during the day that I set out to. Actually, yesterday the only things I managed to accomplish were 1. working out and 2. buying a work shirt for Travis. I don't know if taking a shower and getting dressed count as accomplishments. They should have yesterday. Halle cried incessantly yesterday. She wouldn't even take a nap except for a few little cat naps while I was holding her. I shouldn't complaing too much because she usually does take naps just fine which for a newborn is unusual (at least comparing them to Amanda and Chloe the non-sleepers). And even though she didn't fall asleep until 11 last night she slept until 6 which is great. I just couldn't do anything else. I was finally ready to go to the store at 6:30 last night it's very frustrating.

Anyway, on the agenda for today is getting a new driver license- UGH! Oh yeah, and grading Amanda's papers, setting her curriculum for the rest of the week, mall walking for PE, and hopefully finding some time for Chloe. I'm determined to not ignore my "middle child".