Memories

ever sit and try to see how far you can remember back. i do... a lot, probably more then most. i have these flaw backs of random moments from when i was little, and its funny to me that why these moments are the ones that i remember the most.

like one year for my birthday (i don't know when) i got a pretend washer and dryer and fabric to wash in it and i remember laying across it crying because i did not want to share with my cousin andy and the other kids at my party. only child syndrome.... has to be a real thing right lol.

or i remember planning with my cousins andy and emily in his room at his old house on how we were going to catch santa close. that house stands out in my memory so clear. the basement were we used to play with these tube things and build forts.

another one that stands out is making those pins with my mom that i would wear on my hat to trade with all the other girls there. or making this beach painting with my grandma phyllis where we cracked omen a sand dollar and the doves inside where part of the picture. speaking of grandma phyllis reading Shel Silversteen is one of my favorite memories. i still read his books, and can't wait to read them to the boys when they get a little older.

i remember singing BSB and hanson with my small group of friends at recess in elementary school. or going to the plaza for one of their birthdays and shopping in a limo. funny how times change and people just kind of vanish from your life.

i remember going to washington DC with my grandma and her choir. i had so much fun seeing the sites and being the only one that was able to sleep on the bus :)

another trip that stands out was one of the family reunions for the sheldon side... i remember getting up in the middle of the night and going swimming with my aunt liz and a few of my cousins. or going climbing up really big hills that at the time seamed like mountains to find the coolest rock.

i remember going to the west side family reunion and climbing on top of a barn with cousins i had never met before and playing on this farm. i could not tell you most of their names but i remember visiting sites in fort scott with my grandma and dad.

speaking of dad i remember sitting on the back deck watching the storms roll on by and coating the seconds behind the lightning and the thunder. or catching lightning bugs with all the neighbors grandkids.

i could sit here and just think about it for hours but then it gets me all home sick and stuff. its crazy when you think about it really how fast time flys.

soap box

so in all the 6 years of being an army wife i have seen SEVERAL people post on their personal Facebook pages about hating the military or thinking they ask for way too much in return or a lot of other negative views on the army and all the other branches of the military.  after these posts are discovered they are put onto military support group pages and wives pages to be slandered and hated against. altho i strongly disagree with these negative opinions of the military... they are just that, opinions. these people have the RIGHT to voice those opinions and who are we as wives or vets or active duty members to call these people out and call them bad people. from my understanding (speaking as a wife not a vet or an active duty member) they sign a  contract to protect this country and their citizens. it dose not say protect all those who support you only. by belittling these people how are we any better then they who are slandering the military.


John 8:7 (KJV)
"so when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."



now these people voicing their opinions are just practicing their freedom of speech... with hurtful words.. so if we all respond with hurtful words back... then no one is the bigger person.

DIY housewife

so i said at the end of my last blog id review some of the homemade household items i have made and used myself.

first up is my laundry soup that i make and use. i got the recipe here:

http://beingcreativetokeepmysanity.blogspot.com/2010/11/homemade-laundry-soap.html#comments

if i were to be grading this soup id give it a 9/10
pros
-it last forever. we are a family of 5 and it last me 8 months. keep in mind i cloth diaper so that a load of diapers every other day and 7 loads of other laundry a week.
-there is no fillers so a table spoon does the trick
-no one in my family has had a reaction to all ingredients in the soap.
cons
-its not the best stain remover...so if i have a stain i prey treat it and a tide pin.
-there no smell so i use fabric softener to give my clothes a fresh cent



next I've been making my own baby wipes for over 2 years now.

http://midwesternmoms.com/2011/03/how-to-make-baby-wipes/

my grade for this is 10/10
pros
-i love that there is no alcohol in these wipes like in a lot of brands found in the store
-they are easy to make
-you can use any baby soap so you chose if they have a sent or not

**i do not pull all the sheets off the tube i just cut the tube in half and then pour the boiling mixture on top of the roll in a tall tuber wear container and then after it hat been sitting for a few minutes pull the cardboard out of the middle and then just pull wipes from the middle as needed**



next is a home made carpet cleaning solution

http://clipzine.me/u/clip/64415544372286209693

i was not impressed 5/10
pros
-my whole house smelled like fabreez
-it did clean
cons
-didnt save me any money
-was not any better then store bought brand
-when i made it, it foamed up and made a huge mess in my kitchen



last one is home made fabric softener

http://thefrugalgirls.com/2010/10/homemade-fabric-softener.html

id say 7/10 for this one
pros
-you choose the sent
-easy to make
-decently cheap depending on conditioner chosen
cons
-dose not last long
-the off brand at walmart is more for less money

I survived

Anyone that knows me knows that i hate going out in public by my self... idk why i just do i like having someone with me. When bretts home i still take at least one kid with me just to have someone there HAHA. well when brett is not here i HAVE to take all three with me and 98% of the time i ask a friend to go with me because idk if ill be able to handle them all. what if the baby gets super fussy... what if jourdon gets in one of his clingy moods... what if kaleb runs off... so much what ifs that could happen.

well today i needed groceries and all the kids were fed and dressed and no time to ask a friend to help... I've been battling with headaches a lot lately so i took some ibprophen and loaded them all in the car. this mama did it and it really was not that bad... kaleb and jourdon and i had small talk all the way through the store and their treat was picking out a toy for the kitty that only cost me 97 cents... WINNING! haha

on the way home dylan started screaming and crying in the car and kaleb sang to him and patted his belly... he's becoming such an amazing big brother and awesome little helper to mommy. Jourdon helped mom put away the food and they have been playing with the kitty and her new toys for a while now.  guess i got this after all

on a side note I've been trying out some new homemade cleaning stuff so that will be my next blog :)

later gators

all hale kaleb

so today has been one lived in an imaginary world for sure. My 4 year old has got himself a crazy good imagination. he's been carrying around a empty sandwich sized plastic baggy and in it as his invisible rainbow babies.... there is one for each color of the rainbow and they all have their own powers. 

Red: his name is Mr. Red and he can stop anyones hiccups and can make anyone free from time out. 

Orange: goes by Mr. Orange and he can turn anyone into a bunny 

Yellow: AKA Miss yellow pants, can fly and grant wishes 

Green: whom we call Greeny, can make candy appear out of no where and make bed time later

Blue: who kaleb refers to as Favorite can make kaleb do what ever kaleb wants to do and has all the magical powers in the world 

Purple: or Mrs Purple, can make ninjas appear when kaleb needs or wants them to. 

Kaleb is the king of his rainbow babies and jourdon is his "loyal subject" -kaleb's words not mine. so all day today Jourdon has been following Kaleb around chanting "all hale Kaleb" 

haha all i can do is sit back and giggle and enjoy their imagination before they are too old and too cool to do so. o to have the mind of a child again. i just love these little boys of mine. 

cookies

Anyone who knows me knows that i love me some cookies... well okay fine i love me some cookie dough! every time i bake i share with the neighbours and brett takes some to work and the guys always ask for more... so i bake huge batches... not to mention i have got cookie monsters that live in my house! GASB! anyway i guess its time to share my cry own recipe that i have made up and changed several times but i finally have gotten the best (in my opinion) chocolate chip cookies! so here is me sharing with you!

Tara's Terrific Chocolate Chip Cookies:

(again makes a HUGE batch)

Ingredients:
4 sticks of butter softened NOT melted
2 cups of sugar
2 cups of brown sugar
1 egg
1 egg white
1tbsp vanilla
2 XL bananas or 3 normal size ones
4 1/2 cups of flour
1/2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp baking soda
1 tsp nut meg
2 12oz packages of mini chocolate chips.

• preheat oven to 375
• cream together butter, sugar and brown sugar for about 4 minutes 
• while the sugars and butter are mixing mash the bananas with a fork in a bowl and set aside
• add in 1 egg and 1 egg white and vanilla 
• after thats ^^ all mixed in well add in bananas 
• in a separate bowl mix all dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, and nut meg) with a whisk, add to wet ingredients 1/2 cup at a time. until all mixed in
• add in chocolate chips
• bake on un-greased pan for 10 minutes (for 1 1/2 inch balls of dough) let cool on pan for about 5 minutes then continue cooling on cooling rack. 

cookies come out a bit flatter then most, but thats the way we like them :) also we chill the dough in-between batches, since there is so much dough if you don't the cookies just don't come out as well towards the end of the bowl

hope you all enjoy 

mommy of 3

Randome thoughts that have to do with my kiddos: does not flow well sorry

i tell a lot of people that "if Dylan was my first baby he would be an only child." or "he's lucky he's cute" the truth is he is seriously cute! maybe i just say that because he is mine. I am not going to say that he'd be an only if he was my first because how do i know that, he's not my first and i still have this feeling that he won't be my last... i just don't have that "my family is complete" feeling yet. 4 just seams like my magic number. with that being said dylan will be 2 before we start trying again tho.

i love all my babies. Kaleb is so smart and full of energy and so persistent. Jourdon is so sweet and kind hearted and he just loves with his whole being. Dylan so far is proving to be his own person and he is the most talkative and thrives on human contact more then the other 2 at this stage. i think its soo cool that even though they all come from the same 2 people that are all SO different.

Luke 9:48
"whoever receives this little child in my name receives me; and whoever receives me, receives him who sent me. For he who is least among you all will be grate."

dylan might be the most difficult baby, kaleb might be too smart for his won good at times, and jourdon  might get away with murder because of his uncanny way to make you feel sorry for him, but they are little children. and in my eyes children of God, who i hope turn into greatness some day. its amazing to me that i was chosen to be their mommy. i was chosen to raise them, care for them, love them, help mold them. i feel that i really need to focus their life and my own more on church again.

well thats all for tonight with my randome non connected thoughts of mine, its 23:03 and i missed yesterdays blogging so i don't want to miss this one... plus I'm tired <3 good night all!

this was just a reminder to me that no matter what i love my boys ALL of them, and i don't have a favorite no matter what anyone says but i will say that my love for each one of them is individual to them... if thats makes since. i love the all equally but different... i love them the way they need to be loved... if your a mom I'm sure you understand

okay really good night and thanks for reading

june 3rd in history... the day of 3s

the number 3 shows up a lot on this day. not only is it June 3rd but it was 3 years ago that me, my husband, my 21 month old and my 3 month old started our journey of 3 flights to end up in Germany where we were supposed to live for 3 years... our time got cut short and we were only there for 2 years and 1 month. 

i remember the long flight well... kaleb and brett were sitting a row in front of jourdon and i. i was sitting next to a teenage german boy and poor guy had to deal with me nursing my baby every 2 hours though our long flight. there was no tv on the flight so kaleb played on the iPad for most of it, for only being 21 months old he did an amazing job!

after getting there we had a 3 hour bus ride to the post from the airport and then we lived in a hotel room for 3 months waiting on housing. so I'm not so sure that 3 is really a lucky number in my case... altho i loved germany and while i was there could not wait to come home but now that I'm back in the states id give anything to go back! i miss Bamberg so much! 

thats all for today I've got no more 3s to share with you... oh well i have 3 kids now, making for 3 boys  ;) lol i have not blogged since Dylan Ryder joined our family. he's now 4 months old... to bad he's not 3 months old ;) 

okay now I'm really done 

bye bye

day to day

sometime between 07:00 and 09:00 my day starts with either my 4 month old waking up to eat or my 3 year old coming in my room to tell me the sun is up. the morning is normally spent picking up from the evening before and relaxing a bit. By 14:00 lunch has ben served and cleaned up and the baby is about half way through his daily nap. by 17:00 the baby is up daddy is most often home from work and the older 2 kids are outside playing if the weather permits. 20:00 is the older boy bed quiet time and 21:00 is lights out. somewhere between 22:00 and 23:30 me and the baby are in bed .... every day!

being a stay at home mom can start to get so blah... don't get me wrong i love that i know i won't miss my kids firsts and that i don't have to get out of comfy pants if i don't want to... heck i don't have to wear pants if i don't want to HA, but sometimes a conversation with someone that is over the age of 4 is so awesome!

when brett is gone for training or deployment it just dames that the BLAHness of everyday life is amplified by millions! i look forward to him coming home for lunch and when the day is done... i like having someone to tell all the crazy things that came out of my 4 year olds mouth! he's only ben gone 23 hours and I'm already losing it! you'd think after almost 6 years (will be 6 years in 12 days) of him leaving for extended amounts of time id be used to it... it would get easier? NOT it just gets different sometime easier but sometimes harder.

but hey 1 day down is another day closer to him returning home.

take a deep breath

its been awhile sine I've been on here... for many reasons, but I'm back! right now I'm sitter here wondering what insightful awesomeness i can bestow on the few people that might actually read this... HA! at my feet i have a cranky 4 month old in his bouncy chair who is very aggressively fighting sleep and in the back room of my house i have a 3 and a 4 year old asleep. usually to the right os me i would have my husband but yet again the army has told him to be else ware for now.

random thoughts of the day:

after cleaning the back yard today and watching brett mow the grass before he left i can't help but be thankful for my back yard... silly you say? well this is the first back yard I've had sine i moved out of my parents house 6 years ago. so even tho it adds to my chore list i love it!

they say every marriage has the 7 year itch here in about 2 weeks brett and i will have been married for 6 but i have an itch... not with brett but with the army... he's been in 8 years now and I'm so ready for him to be done. too bad we have 12 more years of the army. in 8 years we've done 3 deployments and many many many trainings and field rotations. hopefully this feeling of being over the army passes so i don't have to hide it for 12 years :/

to be honest I'm writing this is help the BFF with her 30 blogging challenge and I've given myself the same challenge as a countability partner for her so here was my 1st of 30... tomorrow maybe ill be more prepared! lol

thats all folks