American Girl

Daddies just can't appreciate a store and restaurant built around dolls!! We went to American Girl at the Galleria. They have tons of dolls, doll clothes (and matching clothes for the girls to wear), accessories, books, and everything else that pertains to dolls. They have a restaurant where you get to have your "baby" eat with you, too. If you don't have an American Girl doll, they provide you one to have at the table. Here is the web-site: http://www.americangirl.com/
Just like you doll- the only one that comes semi-close to looking like Jaden:
http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/html/ProductPage.jsf/itemId/113382/itemType/FG/webTemplateId/3/uniqueId/86/saleGroupId/127

Bitty Baby doll that comes close to looking like the girls:

http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/html/ProductPage.jsf/itemId/114208/itemType/FG/webTemplateId/3/uniqueId/95/saleGroupId/129

The girls had fun, but, of course, Jaden was disappointed to be leaving the store WITHOUT a doll. The cheapest doll they have is the Bitty Baby doll for $42. It gets higher than that when you have to buy them outfits and shoes. They are really cute dolls, though. Maybe one day...

Christmas in Corinth, TX

Christmas came early in Corinth. LeCount and I had an assignment at Grapevine Mills on Friday and Saturday (12/7/07 & 12/8/07). While LeCount and I were surveying people at the movie theatre, we needed some babysitters. Grandma Leslie, Grandpa Lyale, and Uncle Kevin watched the girls on Friday. The girls had a lot of fun, but they wore grandma out. Since grandma has a broken leg, she can't keep up with them like she thought she would be able to.

On Saturday, we switched up the babysitters to give grandma a break. Aunt Janet & Aunt Reita (good friends of ours, not actual aunts, but that is what we call them) watched them. When LeCount and I got back from doing our surveys, we hung out and talked with them for awhile. When we were about to leave (about 10 PM), Aunt Reita asked if she could go ahead and give the girls their Christmas gifts, since we might not see them again before Christmas. Jaden has been asking me for about a month now when it is going to be Christmas, and every day, she checks with me to see if it's Christmas yet. So, I told her that Aunt Reita said that it was Christmas at her house. Jaden went crazy with joy!!!! Aunt Janet & Aunt Reita got the gifts out for them, and they tore through the gift bags. Morgan was enjoying the tissue paper, and Jaden liked the cars the best. I think they had about 10 gift bags full of toys and clothes total... Plus a gift for the parents: diapers we won't have to buy!!! And a Walmart gift card that we can use to get a discount on gas (after all of our driving back and forth that day, we used up about $25 of gas, so that was great!!!)

Santa's Village in Richardson, TX

We went to Santa's Village yesterday. Jaden had a lot of fun going to all of the pretend shops. Her favorite part, of course, was Santa. She asked him for a bear. Morgan sat on his lap with her, and she didn't even cry! Morgan sure gave Santa a look, though. She was looking at him like she was saying, "What is the up with your face?" It was too cute!! We went on a Thursday because I thought maybe the lines wouldn't be so bad, but I was wrong. Jaden and I waited in line for Santa for about an hour.

The Marrs came with us, but we didn't get to see them too much during the chaos of standing in all of the lines. Grandma Leslie broke her leg a couple of weeks ago, so she had to spend most of the time sitting down. So, we headed over to their house afterwards, so that we could spend some time with them.

Fun for everyone at Backyard Adventures!

We had fun visiting Wooden Swing today. They sell "Backyard Adventures" outdoor play systems. This was the first time that Morgan has ever been in a swing. She was so excited!!! I guess we'll be making more trips to the park so that she can swing.

Jaden asked Daddy to go down the slide with her. He didn't want to. However, with much prodding from the sales lady and myself, he finally gave into the peer pressure. What a wonderful daddy!!! Of course, it made for a funny picture, too.

These are great play systems, and they are on sale in December for 20 % off (plus free delivery & set up). So, for the low price of approximately $3200 you can go with the basic slide and fort (swings not included). You can always add on to your play system later, or they have financing options available as well. You can have a $20,000 play system in your backyard if you want. Hahahahahaha!! In case anyone is interested- They do come with a lifetime warranty.

I think we'll just stick with what we have, but we did have fun pretending to be interested (as part of the mystery shopping- see other blog below).

Mystery shopping

I have been busy with assignments lately. This is just a mini overview of what I have been up to and what is coming up in the mystery shopping world:

Last Saturday I spent the day in Bonham at the Majestic 6 watching the movie "Enchanted". It was a covert assignment. I had to count how many people attended each show time that day (4 show times total). I also had to somehow not get found out. At first, I thought, "How in the world can I go to a small town movie theatre that only has 6 screens, and nobody notice that I have been there watching the SAME movie ALL DAY!" Well, I don't know how I did it... Mission completed!! "Enchanted" was an average movie. After seeing the trailers, I expected it to be wonderful, but most of the funny parts they already showed in the trailer. So, I give it a C+ (If my opinion is worth anything).

Monday, I shopped Centex homes in Prosper. I had to pretend to be a single person looking to buy a home. That went well... Except... I wish I could buy one of the homes!! They were gorgeous!!! If you are looking for a new home, and want to move to Prosper, you can check out the homes here: http://www.centexhomes.com/Dallas/N46339.asp They have 27 house plans. If you are looking for a one story, check out the model home called Taylor.

Tuesday (today), Jaden and I shopped Tommy Hilfiger. We had to shop 2 different stores (and they require a reimburseable purchase). At the kids store, Jaden got a beautiful holiday dress. At the adult store, I settled on a plain long-sleeved t-shirt.

Tomorrow will be fun for the girls. After jaden's soccer practice, we will be doing a shop in Dallas. We are going to the Wooden Swing Company. http://www.woodenswing.com/

We don't have anything scheduled for Thursday yet. However, Friday and Saturday we will be in Grapevine Mills at their theatre. While we are there, we will also be shopping Kid Abercrombie. http://www.abercrombiekids.com/kids/index.html

So, as you can see, it seems like a full-time job to me. It's fun, and everyday is a new adventure!

Baby steps

These past few days, Morgan has spent a lot of time practicing her walk. Her is a short video clip from today.

Gooooooaaaaaaalllllllll!!!!

This video is from last Wednesday. The coach told Jaden to take her orange ball, and kick it to the other side of the gym. Once she gets to the goal, she is supposed to kick the ball into the net. However, the play didn't go quite like the coach had in mind... Hey, the finished product was the same though! Hahahahaha!!! One point for Jaden!!!

Where's Morgan?

Morgan's way of hiding... You can't see her, right? I have been looking for Morgan for days and can't find her anywhere!!!

Futbolito (Little Soccer)

Jaden started soccer today. These pictures are of her first practice, and that is her coach. There are seven 3 & 4 year olds, so it was really funny to watch. I don't know how much she learned, but she had fun anyway. They dribbled the ball, and made shots into the goal. He taught them to do toe taps and freeze with their foot on top on the ball. Jaden did about 1/4 of what he said. The rest of the time, she was off in her own little world, fascinated with the soccer ball. One day, she may be the next female David Beckham.

The class is run by coach Camilo Ardila and is part of the On The Ball organization. You can find out more information at: http://otbsoccer.net/aboutus.html

Minute Clinic

What do you do if you find yourself sick and without insurance? Well, you could go to your primary care physician. My doctor said the visit would cost between $170 & $400, and they need the money at the time of service. Then, if you need prescriptions, well, it could easily get to $1000 total. I have been putting off going, but I have been sick for 6 weeks. Now, I know I have sinusitis and my lungs hurt really bad. So, I had to go somewhere, so that I wouldn't wind up in the hospital with an even bigger bill.
I went to Minute Clinic. It's a clinic inside CVS. I had never been to one before. While I knew it would be the same service as my primary care physician, and was shocked at the big difference. I was seen by a nurse. No doctors in the house... She listened to my lungs and checked my vitals. She then entered the information into the computer, and the computer told her what to do... Huh??? Well, it is called "minute" clinic, but good grief! I guess I got what I paid for. For $59, I walked out with a diagnosis (sinusitis and bronchitis) and a prescription for an antibiotic. The starngest thing that happened is when she asked me if I had ever used an inhaler. She told me that I had wheezing in my lungs. I told her that my daughter had the machine at home and the Xopenex that goes with it. She told me to use her medicine... Huh? Is this for real?
It was a very surreal experience. Anyone who has not seen the Michael Moore documentary "Sicko", check it out today. http://www.michaelmoore.com/sicko/index.html It is great!!! It is not about unisured people, but underinsured people. However, it covers a problem that we have in America. I had access to Cobra after I was laid off from Countrywide. However, our insurance was so bad that I would have had to pay a lot of out of pocket expenses plus the premium ($1110 monthly for our family of 4). So, I didn't see taking the insurance as an option.

Thoughts on Thanksgiving

Here are some thoughts to ponder on Thanksgiving:

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts. No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. ~H.U. Westermayer

"Some people complain because God put thorns on roses, while others praise Him for putting roses among thorns."Anonymous

"You say, 'If I had a little more, I should be very satisfied.' You make a mistake. If you are not content with what you have, you would not be satisfied if it were doubled."Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Hard at work

Hi, everyone! I hope all is well. We have been busy with these work assignments lately, so I haven't had much time to sit down and type. We have been so busy, we have had to put Morgan to work. Hahahahahaha!! Both LeCount and I were supposed to be working today as well, but the assignments fell through at the last minute. I am kind of relieved because I am exhausted, and we will be working all day Friday and Saturday, and celebrating Thanksgiving on Thursday with Uncle Ray and Aunt Sally.

Yesterday, we went to Grandma Leslie and Grandpa Lyale's house. We celebrated a pre-thanksgiving with them. We ate tons of food!!! It was delicious!!! Then, Morgan and Jaden decided that they wanted to play with Uncle Kevin's computer (it looks like so much fun!!!) We also got our family picture taken for our CHristmas cards. I am not going to post it on here until after we send the cards out, though. The picture taking was a nightmare. I think Dad and Kevin took about 50 pictures, and then, we just chose one that was semi-decent. I mean the picture turned out pretty good, considering all that we went through. Good grief!!! I'll post another blog soon.

Two front teeth

I finally got a picture of Morgan's 2 teeth- here you go (see above):

And she's off...

Well, Morgan has really been getting around lately. She is cruising all over the place!!! She also walks while pushing a toy that moves with her. The most fun to see is when she knows she only has to take a couple of steps to get from one spot to another, and she'll let go and walk 2 or 3 steps without support (sometimes not making it). That little rascal has shown that even though she got off to a rough start at the beginning of her life that doesn't mean she can't do everything she wants to do. Jaden started walking at 11 months, but at this rate, Morgan will be walking steadily before her 10 month birthday. Go, Morgan! She is really something!!!
I will try to get a video of it to upload on here, but I can't guarantee anything. I tried this morning, and every time she sees me pull the camera out, she crawls over to me to get her hands on the camera. We'll see...

Need a Laptop

Available for a limited time. If anyone is interested in getting a laptop... You can get one for $399 (and $200 is counted as a charitable donation). It is only for the next 2 weeks, so here's the site: http://link.laptopgiving.org/u.d?dGQlSN_gNuI_RHzdH=91

Fred Claus

I finished my first weekend of open checking for Warner Brothers. That is what I talked about in my earlier post. I had the opportunity to watch the film 18 times!!! Of course, I only watched it all the way through once, and then, looked at different bits and pieces the other 17 times. The movie was great. I think it gets about 4 stars from me. It wasn't perfect, but there were several parts that were tear jerkers and others that were funny. You can check it out here: http://fredclaus.warnerbros.com/ I also saw trailers for movies coming up that I just have to see. Coming up in December- This will be hilarious: http://www.chipmunks.com/ Alvin and the Chipmunks. And coming up February 8th, Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins: http://www.welcomehomeroscoejenkins.com/ And coming out Summer 2008, Get Smart: http://getsmartmovie.warnerbros.com/ Check out these movie web-sites, and tell me what you think.
I will be doing open checks for Fred Claus again this weekend and the next weekend, but I hope to do some more open checks for Warner Brothers soon. Maybe I will get to do the one for Alvin and the Chipmunks.
Talk to you soon!

Work at home

Have you ever thought about working from home? I have thought of it many times, and have tried and kept trying to do things that maybe one day I would be able to stay at home permanently. Everyone who knows me knows about my book business that I started back in 2000. I started it by selling my own books and CDs that I didn't want or need anymore. Now I have tens of thousands of books to sell. However, that only brings in a few hundred dollars a month.

Well, since being laid off 2 months ago, I have found so many things out there. It is exciting to see that it is possible to stay at home and still bring money into the household. Right now I am really getting into a field of mystery shopping/auditing/stocking. For example, today I mystery shopped Tommy Hilfiger Kids. Not only did Jaden get a new dress that I will be reimbursed for, but they also pay me for my review of the store.

When I got back from that store, LeCount went to Dollar General to do an audit of their trac phones. It only took 10 minutes.

My biggest project is coming up this weekend. I have to go to McKinney's theatre and count heads. It will be grueling because I'll have to see "Fred Claus" about 100 times, but hey, it beats having a Monday to Friday job and paying for day care. The "Fred Claus" assignment is for this weekend and the next 2 weekends. I have to count how many people go in to watch the show (at every show time slot). So, it will be a 12 hour job.

I am excited about all I have learned about work at home opportunities. Maybe I will write a book about it. Hahahahahahaha!!!!! But, seriously, no one ever tries to tell you that you don't have to join the rat race. And, it's ok to stay home with your children. In fact, to me, it is the best way because no one can love your children like you do.

Good night!

The Clean Team

We took half of the day today to clean up about 1/3 of the house. We did cleaning & organizing. A few days ago, I had made a trip to the 99 cent store and picked up about 50 storage containers. Then, today we got busy. I contacted a professional cleaner earlier in the week, and she said that she could come out on Saturday. She is going to come back next Saturday to do another 1/3 of the house (bathrooms and bedrooms), but the last 1/3 we will probably have to do on our own because it is a lot of sorting through boxes. We are going to have to throw away a lot of this and give things to charity. At least we are off to a good start.
LeCount and I worked right along side her while keeping an eye on Jaden and Morgan, but hopefully, next Saturday we will have someone that can babysit them while we clean. Hopefully, by the time Morgan's birthday comes around the house will be spotless, and we can have a big party... Hahahahaha!!!
FYI- If you need someone to clean your house, let me know because Belinda did a great job. I'll hook you up with her!

What's in Mineral Wells, TX?

Well, Crazy Water, of course- you can check it out on this web-site: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/healthsciencetv/stories/wfaa071031_mo_crazywater.1c5da782a.html & this one: http://www.famouswater.com/ They showed this water on the news on Wednesday night. By Thursday morning, Whole Foods all over the area was all sold out. They told me they would have more in the morning, but it is all first come first served... So, I could make a trek (30 miles) to Plano by store opening at 8AM, and I may or may not come out with one bottle of this crazy water... Or, I could make a trek to Mineral Wells (130 miles), and I am guarenteed to pick up a bottle or two.
So, off we went at 11 AM today. We got home from that long trip around 6:30 PM. It was quite an adventure. We came home with 35 gallons of water and 2 liter bottles.
Just FYI, for anyone who may be interested, If you have one of those 5 gallon water jugs, you can take them up there and get them filled. They charge 80 cents a gallon. You can even bring your regular 1 gallon jugs if you want to. However, if you get the 5 gallon jugs they have there, it is approx. $11 for the 5 gallon jug and then 80 cents a gallon. Or they sell the 1 gallon jugs prefilled for $2 a piece.
I don't know how long it will be before we go back because my back is still sore from the ride- I can't even think of going back right now. Have a great night!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

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Halloween

Last night was the first celebrated Halloween for both Jaden & Morgan. I think it was nice that we didn't go trick or treating the first 2 years of Jaden's life. For one thing, she wouldn't have understood it. The other thing, Morgan and she got to go for their first time together.
We took them to the mall. The trick or treating started at 6PM, and we were right on time. There were a lot of kids!! Jaden had fun. She was so funny because people were wanting to put the candy in her bag, but she had them put it in her hand. She would inspect the candy to see what it was, and then, put it in her bag herself. Several times, after getting candy, she would just stand there waiting for them to give her more!!! Then, she would turn to me and say, "Is that for other kids?" I guess she thought she was supposed to get all of the candy. It was a trip!!! Morgan didn't do any trick or treating, but a couple of people gave her some lollipops.
After we made the lap around the mall, we were out of there by 6:45 PM... I know that wasn't very long, but Jaden was happy to have a bag full of candy. Considering I am only letting her have 2 pieces a day, the candy should last her until next Halloween! Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!!!