To Cut or Not to Cut...that is not really the question

I need to cut my hair.  I am not a long hair person and I have never been a long hair person.  I keep trying and keep cutting. :)  Here are some ideas I had.  What do you guys think?  Which one would work on me?  I am looking for no fuss, no muss!  If you have any other ideas, I am open to suggestions. Thanks!

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Please comment with your choice # or a pic of your choosing! Thanks!

"I Don't Like Saturdays"

You guessed it, Jenna strikes again!  

Me: "So I think I will take you to get your hair trimmed on Saturday."

Jenna: (In her sing song voice) "Saturdays, Saturdays, I don't like Saturdays."

Me: "Why don't you like Saturdays?"  

Jenna: "Cause I can't go to school on Saturdays."

Me: "Jenna, it makes Mommy and Daddy sad when you say you don't like to be home and have family days."

Jenna: "I know, but I see you everyday Mommy....every morning!" 

She's got a point, I guess.... 

My own Groundhog Day

Unless you live under a rock, you know what I am talking about.  For those of you who DO live under a rock, thanks for coming out and checking out my blog. Here's the short version...you wake up everyday and everything is exactly the same.  

I don't even know which day is which anymore.  Wake up, drop older two off at school, hang out with younger two, put younger two down for a nap, pray they sleep long enough, pick up older two, make dinner, put girls to bed, go bed and start all over again.  

I was catching up with an old friend from high school a few weeks ago and she asked me, "What do you do for YOU?"  I couldn't answer that cause I don't know.  Does this blog count?  Yeah, probably. But what else do I have?  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being able to stay home with my girls and watch them grow up and I LOVE being able to have this bond with my niece and nephew but I need more Jackie time. I need a break from Mommy/Aunt Jakie.  Ok, now that I admitted it, anyone have any ideas?  Suggestions?  I am open to ideas.  Remember, my time is a bit limited.  

50 Things That Make Me Happy

So as I stated in my last post, I wanted to make a list of 50 things that make me happy.  Here goes...
1. My husband
2. My daughters
3. My family
4. My friends
5. Hearing Emily say "Mommy"
6. Hearing Emily say "No."  I know this one is weird but the way she has been saying no is so cute.  
7. Sleep.  More importantly, when my daughters sleep well, I am one happy mommy!
8. Watching Jenna and Emily play together.
9. Watching Matt play with the girls in the backyard.
10. Snow!  Yes, I know most people hate snow but I love it! I think it's beautiful and relaxing...when I get to stay home and watch it, of course.
11. Singing!  I love singing and I am super happy when I am doing it.
12. At Last by Etta James.  It's our wedding song and whenever I hear it, I smile because it brings me back to that wonderful night.
13. Giving gifts...I love seeing the joy on the person's face when I've gotten the gift JUST right.
14. Cooking...I know this one may come as a surprise but I just love it!  It makes me so happy to be able to put a bunch of things together and make something delicious.
15. American Pie by Don McLean...brings me back to our ZBT days and always makes me smile.
16. The look on Emily's face when I come in the door....priceless!
17. Hearing Jenna sing...she's the next American Idol people!
18. When Jenna really "gets it" when we are having a conversation.
19. Taking pictures...I love capturing moments that matter and even some that don't.
20. Looking at old pictures. I love to see how much the girls are really growing.
21. Watching football with my husband.
22. Pizza!!!  I love pizza and could eat it 24/7/365!
23. Blogging....I love being able to "talk" about things that come to my mind. Since the majority of my day is spent with toddlers, I need someone to talk to and blogging lets me do that.
24. Catching up with old friends.
25. Reading...it's my quiet time.
26. Swimming
27. Musicals...RENT, Les Mis, Miss Siagon...love them all!
28. Choirs....Concert Choir was one of the best times of my life (so far) and I miss being a part of a choir.  Hearing them now just makes me happy.
29. Christmas time.
30. Christmas Eve...all of my family being at my parents house, seeing the anticipation on the girls' faces, A Christmas Story on TV for 24 hours!!!  Need I say more?
31. Accomplishing a task...love being able to check things off of my to-do list.
32. Holding a sleeping newborn
33. Hearing Jenna say "I love you mama"
34. Cuddling with Emily and Jenna
35. Having an uninterrupted dinner with my husband.
36. Jenna cleaning up after herself and Emily.
37. A clean and organized playroom.
38. Baking! Cookies, cupcakes, cakes, brownies...love making them all!
39. Cake decorating...as much as I stress about it and as hard as it is sometimes, I love doing it because I love seeing the finished project.
40. Movie Theater Popcorn....the more butter the better.
41. Getting a new haircut/style...always makes me feel like a new person.
42. Getting flowers, just because.
43. Hugs
44. A long hot (quiet) shower.
45. Bedtime
46. A pedicure
47. Family time
48. Fitting into an old pair of smaller jeans.
49. Smiles
50. Paying it forward

40 awesome things I want to do in 2012

1. Build a snowman family. (Mother Nature didn't allow for this one!)
2. Tell knock-knock jokes with the kids.
3. Go ice-skating. (Mother Nature's fault again)
4. List 50 things that make me happy.
5. Write a thank-you note to someone I appreciate.
6. Organize my photos.
7. Surprise Jenna and Emily with balloons and streamers in their bedrooms when they wake up on their birthdays.
8. Examine a snowflake with a magnifying glass. (Yet again, I blame Mother Nature) ;)
9. Do something entirely unexpected on Leap Day. (Does getting a Stomach Virus count? Why yes, yes it does!) :(
10. Prank my girls on April Fool's Day.

11. Go TV-free for a whole day.
12. Decorate a shirt with "puffy" paint.
13. Crank up the music and dance. (We do this one a lot in our house)
14. Plan an elegant dinner party for Jenna and Emily.  Serve milk in martini glasses.
15. Bake some cookies for an elderly friend or neighbor.
16. Declare a backwards day: eat breakfast for dinner; start the day with bedtime stories.

17. Bait a hook and go fishing.
18. Sing my heart out. (Do this one EVERYday in the car!) :)
19. Delete all those spam emails that keep clogging up my inbox. 
20. Call an old friend and catch up.
21. Count the stars on a clear summer night.

22. Watch the Macy's Fireworks in person!
23. Ride a few roller coasters.
24. Catch fireflies and let them go.
25. Construct an impressive sand castle.
26. Press wildflowers in a book.
27. Just laugh. (The kids help with this one...everyday)
28. Squirt your kids with water guns.
29. Fill 100 water balloons and prepare for battle.
30. Drive to a new town and explore it. 

31. Go to more Rutgers Football games.
32. Picnic indoors on a rainy day. 
33. Go apple picking.
34. Organize a low-tech family game night.
35. Laminate a colorful fall leaf.  Write the date on the back.
36. Get lost in a corn maze.
37. When Jenna is home sick, I will read her as many books as she wants.(Unfortunately, we have had many days to do this one) :(
38. Make a handprint turkey with Jenna and Emily.
39. Praise Jenna and Emily for something.

40. Take a family trip to DISNEY!!! (Happening in Dec!  Can't wait!)

What is with the goodie bags?

I know it will come as a shock to most of you, but it's been about 25 years (give or take a few years...take, please) since I've been in preschool/kindergarten but I haven't lost much of my memory yet.  I can not, for the life of me, remember ever getting goodie bags when a classmate had a birthday.  What I do remember was said classmate's mother sending in cupcakes/munchkins and maybe sippys to celebrate the birthday.  Jenna's birthday is in November and the last two years she's been the first birthday of the new school year.  Her first year, I brought in some munchkins and was able to be there when they celebrated.  This year, I bought cookies and sent them in for the class to share.  Well, it seems I am the uncool mommy!  Apparently, I didn't receive the memo about full blown class parties...some with balloons and all!  Some parents are bringing in full sheet cakes, bunches of balloons, presents for the birthday child and goodie bags for all the classmates.  WHAT!?!?!?!  So now we are expected to throw our children 3 parties...one for the family, one for the friends and one for the class?  I'm sorry, but I am sticking with the old school way of celebrating a birthday in class.  Unfortunately, I feel like my children will be the ones to suffer. :(

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They Like Me...They Really Like Me!

I have been accepted to Top Mommy Blogs.com!!!  Blogging was just something to do to pass the time but I am really getting into it.  To be accepted to Top Mommy Blogs.com is awesome!  It is a viewer voted website that has all Mommy Blogs on it.  I am among a very wonderful group of bloggers and I couldn't be happier!  Please take a moment to vote for me!  Thanks in advance!!

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Potty Training...FAIL

Emily - 1, Mommy - BIG FAT ZERO!
We were doing so well!  Emily went on the potty 4 times yesterday morning and we were rocking and rolling!  Well, I made the mistake of letting the kids go into the playroom and she had 2 accidents in there.  I put a diaper on her for nap and was hoping for a fresh start after nap.  She didn't go on the potty once after nap...she went on the floor 9 times and on me 3 times! 10 times of that was within a matter of 10 minutes.  I totally thought I was being punked!  I decided to take a break and start fresh this am.  When I put a diaper on her, it was FULL within a matter of minutes.  She woke up with a FULL diaper and went on the potty. YAY!! We were off to a great start.  We hunkered down in the kitchen again ready for a full day of going on the potty.  I had to leave to take J & C to school so my uncle came to sit with Em.  She had an accident but ran right to the potty to finish.  Ok, I can handle that.  She went one more time on the potty and I was convinced we were going to get it right today.  Well, egg on my face.  She proceeded to have 3 accidents within minutes of each other and that was it.  I think she still might be a bit young and I don't want to push her to do it.  She will be ready when she is ready and, I know, she will let me know when that is. 

Potty Training time for Emily

The time has come for Emily to be potty trained...at least that is what I am telling myself.  I am SO done with diapers.  Yes, I know R is still in diapers but I only have to change her 2-3 times a day...that I can handle.  :)  Plus, we got the wrong overnight diapers and Em is soaking through her clothes every night (2 times last night) and I am done with all the extra laundry too. I know, that doesn't seem like a reason to potty train an almost 2 year old but I am giving it a shot.  I am using the same method with Emily that I used with Jenna.  It's the bare bottom method and it worked wonders for Jenna.  The first day was HELL but the 2nd day was heaven (she even took a nap without a diaper) and she was fully potty trained in 3 days! (no diapers for nap or bedtime!) :)  Matt's sister-in-law had trained our niece and was my go to mom with potty training.  I remember calling her after only 2 hours of training Jenna, ready to give up.  She assured me it would get better and it did! :)  Ok, so we are less than 2 hours in with Emily and she has gone on the potty 2 times already!!  WOO HOO!! My only concern  is the whole keeping her bare bottom for at least 3 months.  It's cold out there! We will see how it goes. So far, so good..keeping fingers crossed!

Google that sh**!

I love Google!  I do!  And I'm not even getting paid to say that. :)  I wish I had Google at my fingertips at all times because whenever I don't know the answer to something or need to find some information, Google is my go to search engine.  Matt always laughs at me because whenever he asks me a question about something my answer is, "I don't know...Google that sh**!" :) Come to think of it, I SHOULD get paid for this!

MDE Vacations Update

So I emailed a nice email to the company letting them know of my experience.  Received an email today with a "coupon" for a 5 days/4 night vacation in Orlando.  Of course, they must think I am a total idiot because it requires I take a tour or listen to their timeshare spiel (haven't I listened to enough of their spiels?) or pay $498 to forgo the tour.  Come on now...like I wasn't going to read the small print?!?  This isn't over mde! 

'Tis the Season for Scammers

Now, I don't necessarily know that MDE Vacations is a scam but it's one of those "too good to be true" things.  Matt received a phone call this afternoon from MDE saying they had a wonderful promotion to offer him with a trip to Orlando.  Of course, being the wonderful husband that he is, Matt gives the woman permission to talk to me....whadda guy!  I got on the phone and listened for about 20 minutes to this chick explain the great promotion she had for us.  I am sure she was reading from a script because she took few breaks and just kept the information coming.  I was taking notes the best I could and was planning on asking her to send me the paperwork on this wonderful promotion.  When she finished and explained how much this wonderful opportunity would cost us, I asked her if I would be able to speak with my husband and call her back (since she informed me, in the beginning of her spiel, that they only call once to accommodate all of the lucky people to get this promotion.)  She put me on hold to see what she could do for me.  Then comes Robert, one of the promotional directors, on the line to lower the cost of this wonderful promotion and include another cruise (that's 2 cruises people!) as well as Companion Airline Vouchers (cause how else can we get to these wonderful places?).  That sounded great and I asked Robert if I could possibly call him back after speaking with my husband and he said "what's the issue?  Isn't he there right now?".  I really didn't feel like discussing this with some stranger on the hold.  As I was explaining this to Robert, he hung up on me while I was mid-sentence.  I did not appreciate that.  I called the phone number on the website that Robert had given me when I asked for this wonderful promotion in writing and had to leave a message. Apparently they are a "green" company and do not do mailings. Another one of the Directors called me back within 20 minutes which I really appreciated.  She told me Robert is an exemplary employee and would not hang up on anyone, we must have been disconnected.  I told her she should go back and listen to the recording of the conversation that Robert and I had (which he also told me when I asked for the promotion in writing) because I know when I'm hung up on and I didn't appreciate it.  I told her that Robert, the exemplary employee, did not even know the license number of the company when I asked him for it and he was annoyed when I asked for it.  She said that was a Directorial thing and he has only been a Director for a few months.  All she had was a bunch of excuses and was making me feel stupid.  I explained we would not be taking her up on this wonderful promotion and requested we be removed from their database. Beware of MED Vacations!!  We filled out an entry form at a Somerset Patriots games back in July and the small writing on the back (who reads the back of those things) apparently said they would be calling us. This is sad too cause it WAS a great deal! ;)