Tired, exhausted, and sleepy

Here's what I did today. This is pretty typical of every day. Except today I spent alot of money, sorry babe...

Up at 6:40- make breakfast and two lunches, get 4 kids out the door by 8:15.

8:15 to 9:30- get ready for my day: shower, hair, makeup, etc. I also had a Lean Cuisine for breakfast. Not sure why? Nothing else sounded good.

9:50 to 12:30- meet my friend Erin at Kohls. Got a call from the school nurse 10 minutes after arriving at Kohls. Hayden had a nose bleed and needed clothes. Thanks for covering for me Jon. From there we went to Linens-n-Things, Old Navy, and Staples.

12:30 to 1:30- Erin heads home, while I continue shopping at Bath and Body Works and Albertsons.

1:30 til 1:50- drive home while eating lunch in the car. What? I was starving. (I had a chargrill sandwich and a Diet Coke from Chick-Fil-A)

1:50 til 2:30- read mail, check email, and watch a show about twins.

2:30 til 4:00- get Hayden, drop off a gift at a friend's house, tour the YMCA, and go to Walgreens. Get a phone call while at the checkout at store and Chloe's friend Bailey cut her leg on the bus, she is bleeding BAD and is going nuts. Normally I am ALWAYS home when the bus comes but Hayden was taking 8 years to pick something he could spend his birthday money on. Chloe ended up flagging down our neighbor and he drove Bailey to her mom's work.

4:00 til 6:45- make beds, wash 2 loads of laundry, feed all of our pets, take out trash, pick up Chandler, make dinner, help Hayden with homework.

7:00 to 8:30- Institute class

8:45 til 9:30- back to the store. This time it's Target for Oxy Clean for Hayden's shirt and a birthday card for my brother. Somehow 2 eye shadows and a Diet Dr. Pepper wound up in my cart....

9:30 to 9:50- drive home

9:50 til 10:20- eat my version of dinner: Diet Dr. Pepper with 1/2 a cheese sandwich, grapes, and some baked Doritos.

10:20 to present- blogging and reading the news while watching Dancing with the Stars.

I have left out about 15 phone calls. Which occurred during almost all of the above.
I am about to pass out, but I need to wind down, so I am blogging... I am fixing to help Jon shave his head, (saves on haircuts). Then I am gonna check homework, lay out school clothes, and take a bubble bath. I'll be lucky if I get to bed by 1. Really lucky.

Special Field Trip

Today my mom and I headed to Dallas on a mission. We went to Moon's bookstore, so I could get new scriptures. I have owned 2 quads in my life, and just felt the need to get new ones. Part of my "back to church makeover" I guess you could say. The first set I bought for myself back in 1994 with my Deseret credit card. Who knew such a thing existed? I maxed that card out that very same day. I bought me, Kelli and Amy all mini quads in 3 different colors. I had mine until 2001. Which is when I befriended a girl who had been in an abusive marriage and had been inactive for many years. She was trying to straighten her life out and we ended up meeting in a class we took at church together. So, for some reason I felt compelled to give her my scriptures! My maiden name was engraved on them and I didn't think to keep them, not sure what was going on in my head... especially after I bumped into her months later and she told me how she had them re-engraved with her name. I never even thought that was possible. I would almost give anything to have those back. I don't even remember her last name. It might look kinda silly if I tried asking for them back anyway. Hopefully they have helped her throughout the last several years. My mom was kind enough to get me some for my birthday about 5 years ago, even though I never read them much until this year. They have helped me through this past year, and are in perfectly good condition, but I still really wanted another mini set. I just think they are beautiful. So, today I got a burgundy one. My old mini quad was green, which I would have chosen again, but they were sold out. And, I wasn't leaving the bookstore without new scriptures. I am seriously loving them. They are so nice! And, can I just say how awesome the bookstore is? I wish it was closer. I would be there at least once a week. We finished the day at Goff's burgers, which was really good. And, not on my diet. So, I had lettuce and Diet Coke for dinner. Seriously.


aren't they pretty?

In less than 2 months!

I did this little collage just to show the change in my face. I am shocked at the difference in my chubby cheeks. The first picture was taken 9/24/08 and the second one was taken 11/12/08. Go Ash!

 

*yes, you have seen the 2nd photo before, but I am wearing the same sweater as I am in the first. So, I'll probably always wear it for before and afters, at least until it no longer stays on...

BMX birthday

Even though he isn't quite 7, we went ahead and celebrated Hayden's birthday yesterday. Of course we had it at the local BMX track. We did it early since we will be in Oklahoma for the BMX Grand Nationals (biggest race of the year) on his actual birthday. And, after weeks of warm weather, it just had to turn cold and windy just in time for the party. It was the kind of cold that seems to go right through you. It almost seems difficult to think straight when you are out in that crazy wind. But, we survived. We had to park two SUV's in front of the food/cake/present table to stay warm and so nothing would blow away. Most of the kids divided their time between the bounce house and the race track, as did some of the adults. That was the only way to stay warm. We managed to have a decent time in spite of the wind and for sure Hayden had a blast. I had a hard time getting him to get dressed today, he was in pj's most of the day playing with his new toys. I want to thank those that came to join Hayden on his special day. We sent out 25 invitations and not a single kid from his class came, which is disappointing. But, what can you do? Because of the crazy wind and supervising the festivities, I didn't get very many pictures. I am posting the important ones: Hayden, presents, cake and me trying out the track for the very first time.


awesome cake, it was sooo good



Hayden and one of his new presents



funny present, we are gonna have a blast with this one



me on the gate, I was scared...



me, riding the track. My butt is huge! If I continue to ride on the track maybe I can shrink it?

Holy Freakin' Cow!

Although at this rate, it's gonna be holy freakin' some other animal that's not fat...

So, I am super excited. And rightfully so. Because, I just did my weekly weigh-in and I have lost 20 pounds! I never would have believed it possible that I could lose 5 pounds, let alone 20! This helps motivate me so much, I have been in a slump lately and I was scared I wouldn't be able to keep this up. But, after this morning I am truckin' on. I know I still have a loooong way to go, but I am super stoked. Seriously, I am gonna have a cheesy smile on my face all day long!
Just wanted to share. Yay me!

Ashley Jessy Raphael

Back when I met Jon (in 1994) I wore glasses about as often as I do now. Which is usually first thing in the morning, before bed, and if I'm sick. Mostly I wear my contacts. Jon still to this day teases me about the "giant red glasses" he swears I wore back then. Actually they were brown tortoise shell and they weren't that big... Anyway, he would always tell me I reminded him of Sally Jessy Raphael. Now, for those of you who don't know who Sally is, she was a talk show host in the 90's who was remembered as much for her red glasses as she was for her cheesy show topics. Well, fast forward to this week when I went to the eyeglasses place looking for new glasses. I went in looking for frames, three different times and came up empty each time. So, I took backup in the form of Chloe, I really needed a second opinion. I must have tried on 50 pairs, and still nothing. So, the salesgirl goes to a stash of frames in a drawer and pulled out this red pair. I was very skeptical but tried them on anyway. Honestly, I would have never chosen red frames if I had gone in alone. But, after trying on several pairs for about 4 customers, Chloe, and the salesgirl I ended up ordering the red frames. (They made me do it). I just picked them up tonight. What do you think? Tell me, really. I think I can take it...



** If you tell me I look like Sally Jessy Raphael, I am gonna cry. For reals. Any resemblance stops at the red hair and glasses. You have been warned **

Just another crazy day...

So, if you read my blog on a regular basis you know we have had our fair share of weird illnesses, broken bones, etc. Well, today has been no exception. Chloe woke up with her eyes swollen shut! She had a few small bites near her right temple and on her shoulder. So, we went to the urgent care clinic since it's quicker and closer. And, they aren't sure what she's allergic to, but they are fairly certain that whatever bit her, her body didn't like it AT ALL! Not only did she get a big shot in her butt, she also barfed in their sink. Lovely... I have her home now, dosed up on Benadryl and hopefully she'll be all better soon. I, on the other hand am on a mission to rip apart, search, and scrub her room (especially her bed) to see what the culprit is. If it's spiders I am setting fire to her bed and then we're moving back to the 'burbs. I will keep everyone posted. Gee, I didn't think I would have anything to blog about today. I have included a picture of her today and one a month or so ago, just so you can see how dramatic the swelling is. Keep in mind that it has gone down considerably.

Nearly 3 hours after waking up, swelling is half what it was

 

What she's supposed to look like

 

P.S. Don't ask me why, but she is always saying she wishes she was Asian... now, she has changed her mind. I told her the swelling was from too much time on the computer, she halfway believed me.