I love it when they play together without fighting!!!

It isn't very often that they play together so nicely. Sometimes they start out playing nicely, but they wind up fighting a few minutes (or seconds) later. They played with the kitchen yesterday. This really made me smile because Morgan thought Jaden was so funny. She laughed so hard that she got the hiccups. I wish I could have more moments like these in my day!

Ask, Try, and don't be scared

“If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If you don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step forward, you're always in the same place.”
—Nora Roberts (b. 1950), fiction author

Believe It Or Not

I am going to start this post with 2 bits of Believe It or Not info, and then, I will tell you about the pictures. This afternoon, Jaden said, "Mommy, two of my teeth hurt." I asked her which ones hurt and why. She showed me her bottom two teeth & WIGGLED them back and forth!!!! I thought kids were 5 or 6 when they lost their first teeth... But, then, again, Jaden did have ALL of her teeth by the time she was 6 months (so maybe they have been in as long as they are supposed to be). That means Morgan probably won't lose hers until she's 6 because hers came in late.

The second believe it or not moment happened this evening. We were getting some groceries, and I was loading Morgan into the car after the shopping trip. Morgan looking up at a sign and said, "Look, Mommy, a heck-a-gon!" I looked up to see a hexagon. Hmmmm... creepy. She is only 2, but she amazes me every day.

Now, I have been working on getting a couple of the rooms organized. The old toy room is now the master bedroom. I am still working on the girls' room. They were sleeping in a queen bed together (which I now have in the old toy room). Now, Morgan is in the Dora toddler bed that Jaden used to use, and Jaden is back to the twin bed that she used to use a year ago. They are still in the same room together, but much less likely to injure each other with their erratic sleeping habits.

If you decide to fly a kite, watch out for your sister

Morgan got tangled in the kite's tail

Making Brownies

Money Saving Tip #13~ Buy a warranty/service plan

Sometimes it seems that warranties cost too much to be beneficial, but it really depends on the product you are buying. For instance, anything that my girls will be using, I would like to get a damage guarantee. That way if they damage it, I can get it fixed or replaced as needed. Also, items like computers, large tvs, other big electronic items, appliances, etc deserve a warranty. Of course, check out the warranty that you are purchasing in depth to make sure you are fully covered for everything that you want to be covered for. If you shop at some of the same stores for certain items, you will already know their warranty info. A good place to shop for all of those items that I mentioned is Best Buy. They have a no lemon guarantee. We purchased a 52" HDTV in September 2005. In February of this year, it started smoking. We called the Geek Squad to come out and look at it. They said that they would have to order a part, but that RCA was very bad about sending parts in a timely manner. The repairman said that if we did not get our part within 15 days, we should call them back and use the no lemon guarantee. The part was on backorder with no ETA> I called at the 15 day mark. They processed the no lemon claim, and now we can go to the store and pick up our brand new replacement TV!! This is almost 4 years after purchasing our original TV. A new similar TV would have cost us $1,500!! For more info on Best Buy's guarantee:

http://www.geeksquad.com/services/content.aspx?id=2005&menu_id=495

Playing on the porch

It rained the on the whole drive to Grandma Frances' house (5 hours away). The next day, the girls wanted to play outside, but it was cold & muddy. I let them get their winter coats on, and then, told them they could only play on the cement part. They had fun anyway.

Playing with Grandma Frances

We spent the weekend with Grandma Frances. We all had a great time. Jaden and Morgan just love Grandma Frances' reaction to their teasing. This time, they decided that they would trick her by asking her which hand a ticket was in, and then, switch hands, so that she always picked the wrong one. She playing along, and got them both laughing.
Grandpa Bonnie and Uncle Damon came by for a little while, too. They brought a bike for Morgan (last year's Christmas present). When we get it put together, I will post that later.

Being Silly

Jaden decided that this "hair" (that I used when I made custom dolls) matched daddy, and since he doesn't have any hair... She wanted him to wear it. She thought it was so funny, and LeCount humored her for about 30 seconds before he took it off.

I have been reorganizing the house, and I have containers everywhere. Jaden decided that she could fit in one, and she said she was taking a bath. Morgan found this headband that had been packed away in a box. Now she is a "printheth" (princess).

Cute Bulletin Boards

Grandma Leslie made these for the girls to put in their room. I hung them up, and then, the girls chose which pictures they wanted to put on their cork boards (from the stack that I had on hand). Jaden's is the red & Morgan's is the black. They look perfect in the room, and I think they turned out sooooo cute!

It is DEFINITELY still winter!!! Brrrrrrr!!!

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Tuesday was pleasantly mild. As you can see by the dresses that the girls were wearing (we are so lucky to have a grandmother who buys them such pretty, matching outfits!). Wednesday, however, was nasty! It was only 40 degrees, but it was raining & windy. That combination made me feel like I was freezing. It is still raining off and on today, and even colder. That' what I get for saying it feels like spring... Well, it still feels like TEXAS!!
Yesterday was Morgan's first official day in the dance class. She was so excited to be a part of it... While it looks like Jaden is over it. I wonder how it would go if Morgan did the dancing & Jaden watched from the sidelines? She really doesn't seem interested in it any more, but I think it would upset her if Morgan continued and she stopped. Hmmmmmm... Watch the video & see her reaction. Tell me what you think.

Jaden does this one OK (they do this at the beginning of class)


This is a new dance that she is teaching them, but Jaden doesn't seem interested to me. Of course, Morgan isn't doing all of the moves nor is she paying attention to all of it... But, she is two, so I don't really expect her to.

Another good book by Jodi Picoult

I just finished this book last night, and it was quite good. I guess I am getting used to Jodi's style of writing because I wasn't as disturbed with the deaths and circumstances as I had been in her other books. The truth is her books, though fiction, teach you something new each time. Each book has it's own "teaching" focus, and you learn about it as part of reading a good story. For example, in this book, I learned about Alaska, Yup'ik culture, and comic books. The story really wasn't about any of the subjects, those were just things that I learned along the way while reading the story.
Now, I have decided to read her newest release: Handle With Care. I am sure it will be just as interesting. Like I had said before though, her books aren't for everyone.

Are you sure it's not Spring yet?

What beautiful weather! The girls went outside to pick "flowers" for Daddy, while they waited for him to get home from work. Grandma took care of them today while I did an audit, but she came to our home (since the job was closer to us). She took them on a walk, and they even went in the backyard to play. I swear it is Spring!

I am so out of touch

I have realized, though I am taking work as I want to, I am working more now than ever before. I guess because when I come home, my work doesn't end (online reports to submit, book sales, and ebay sales). I am just now sending the "thank you"s for Morgan's party that happened at the end of January!! It is really just so over-whelming. Next week, I was intending to fill it up with work days as well, but I think, instead, I need to take a break. Right now, as it stands, I would have 4 days off... So, if I take those 4 days off, maybe I can get caught up on a few things in the house. Anyway, I know this isn't interesting chatter, but it explains why I am not responding to e-mails & posting as regularly as I used to. Maybe next week...

Morgan's animated scream

This is why I LOVE to scare Morgan!! She is so animated!!! Now that I have this on video, Morgan wants to watch it over & over (and she gets scared every time she hears me scream in the video). Too funny!!

My deprived children

I took Jaden and Morgan out for a treat. We went to Dairy Queen & I bought them each a Dilly Bar. Jaden ate hers up completely, but it was a little big for Morgan. Jaden is 4 1/2, and this was the first time for both of them to ever go to Dairy Queen. They were in awe of the ice cream and cakes, and Jaden said, "Hey, mom, can we come her again some day?" As we left, Jaden asked what the name of the restaurant was, so she could remember to tell me next time that that is where they want to go for fun. It was a hit. I just never thought to take them before. Daddy stayed behind at the house, so we brought him home a strawberry shake. Everyone was happy :0)

Dance class stretches

Jaden always comes up with unique things, and I hate to stifle her creativity... This is what happened the day of her dance class:
Jaden was in the house walking around with a red gift bag (probably one of the gift bags from Morgan's birthday party in January). She was picking up various things, and putting them into the bag. Some of the contents were:
1. a muffin that she had opened the plastic wrap on, but I told her that she couldn't eat
2. a plate that goes to her kitchen
3. a baby toy key chain
There were a few other toys, but I forget now what all was in there. I asked her what she was doing. She said that she was bringing a present to her dance teacher. When we got to the dance class and were getting out of the car, I told her to leave the gift bag in the car. She had a fit!! She said that she couldn't leave it because it was a gift for her teacher. So, I told her, "Why don't you leave it in the car, and we will get her a real gift from the store and you can bring it next time." She said, "But, I want her to have this one."
I know her heart was in the right place, and I hate to stifle her kindness, so I just let it go. She gave her teacher a muffin that had already been open and toys that have already been played with. She was so excited to see her teacher get excited about the gift, so I guess I have to stop thinking about what was in the bag and think more on the gesture itself. She is a very compassionate child.

Morgan joins the dance class... 2 years early!

Sorry about the quality of the video. I didn't bring my camera, so I had to use my phone. Now, here is the story behind the video:
Morgan has wanted to be a part of the dance class ever since Jaden started in October of last year. However, the class age starts at 4. The teacher said that she absolutely wouldn't take anyone younger than 4 because the attention span isn't there, and they would wind up disrupting the class. So, every Wednesday, Morgan would copy what the class was doing from the sidelines. Today, she didn't want to be on the sidelines any more. She joined the class & followed everything the teacher told them to do. I didn't have my camera with me, so this is the best video I could get... By the end of class, I asked Tangy, Jaden's dance instructor what she thought about Morgan joining the group. She said< "ABSOLUTELY". She went on to explain that the age group she selected has nothing to do with age and everything to do with attention span. Morgan kept up with everything the teacher did, and did better than most of the class. She is officially a part of the Pee Wee Hip Hop group now, and therefore, will be in the next showcase when it happens. I am so glad she can now participate because she has wanted to be a part of it for so long!

Strange!

Ok, so a couple of days ago I said that there are weird things that go on in the maternity ward... Well, I just have to share this story. I know that the hospital photography thing isn't for everybody. In fact, I didn't use the hospital photographer when my girls were born either. I felt like it was too expensive for what little bit of photos you got. Plus, those $3.99 a sheet offers are always coming in the mail, so I just figured that I would get their pictures taken at a studio after leaving the hospital (maybe a few weeks later). So, I TOTALLY understand when people don't want to do it. I don't have a problem when people decline. I usually have a list of about 10 to 15 babies a day. If 7 of the 15 decline, I am still doing 8 photo shoots. By the way, I should mention, I have a photography cart which allows me to upload the pictures to a computer on the cart. This way, the parents get to see the pictures right there, and we can place the order directly from the hospital room...
This is what happened yesterday. I had my log book with my 13 babies on it. The photographer that had worked the day before had put notes next to some of the room numbers that had said "maybe" to the pictures, so that I could stop back by and check. For one room number she put, "mother wants to think about it. Seems angry?" In I went to this room... They wanted pictures. They did say they didn't have a lot of money, so they wanted to get the smallest thing. I suggested a keepsake, which is $20, and includes 3 photos. I still took care in the photos, making sure that I got lots of good ones. I even got little brother in one. Everything was going well. They loved the pictures, and picked out the 3 that they wanted on the keepsake. Then, the husband told me to hold on a minute. He went outside the room. When he returned a couple of minutes later, he had a nurse with him. He asked the nurse to use her cell phone to take a picture of the computer screen. He wanted her to take a picture of each one of the photos I took, and then send them to his phone. Then, he would print them off. Say what??????? Before any of this could happen, the wife says, "Uh, uh, see, how did you even know she had a camera phone? I think you are trying to be slick so you can get her phone number!" The nurse, of course, did not want to be in their drama and said she wouldn't be able to do that, and she walked out. I quietly shut down my computer, unplugged my cart, and I took off. I don't know what happened after that, but if I were to write down notes for that room on the log book... I would have to say she doesn't just "seem angry"... Good grief!

Laid off or soon to be? Need Insurance?

I just read this today, and so I wanted to pass on the information to any of you who may need it. You can now get help paying your COBRA insurance premium. This would have been very beneficial to us back in September 2007, but it wasn't available then. Insurance would have cost us over $1400 a month for our family of 4. Here is what's new:

However, under the newly adopted stimulus bill, the government will pick up 65 percent of the premium for the first nine months for qualified unemployed workers. To be eligible, you must meet all of these requirements:

•You were laid off between Sept. 1, 2008, and Dec. 31 of this year.

•Your individual or family income for this year does not exceed the cap. Eligibility begins to phase out at $125,000 for individuals and $250,000 for families, and stops at $145,000 for individuals and $290,000 for families.

•You are not eligible for other group health coverage, such as on a spouse's plan or Medicare.

(from www.dallasnews.com)