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Just Stuff

Seriously? It's been since September 1st that I made a post? Oh for heaven's sake. I'll tell you, I don't know what it is, but I just am so busy doing a bunch of NOTHING that I can't seem to keep up with anything.

With that being said, I've got so much running thru my mind that I think I'll just simply make a post about "stuff". Stuff that is on my mind, stuff that I need to get done, stuff that is just stuff.

• Leighton turns one on October 1st. In less than 2 weeks, that is. His birthday party is on the 30th of September and I just can't believe it.
• My daughter is a typical teenager and proves it every.single.day. I have been really struggling lately trying to parent her. I get mad, I cry, I yell, I cry, I talk, I cry, I pray! This too shall pass. Or at least that's what I keep trying to tell myself.
• Tom's band hasn't had too many gigs lately. It's nice having him home, but I miss the money. Honest truth!
• I volunteered myself to help work the concession stand at the 6 home Notre Dame football games. I'm getting "paid" by earning money to put towards Olivia's trip to Washington DC in the spring. The entire 8th grade class goes (about 280 kids). We've already had one game and it was so, so much fun. The next game is this weekend.
• We are finally starting to do some stuff (organizing, decorating) in our basement. Mind you, we've lived in our house almost 10 years and we're finally getting around to it. Yeah, procrastination with a capital "P". I can't wait to post pictures of the room Olivia is helping to decorate. It's her and Tom's music room.
• I absolutely cannot believe it's the middle of September already. The weather and trees are starting to show sure signs of Fall.
• At this time, we're planning on out of town guests for the Christmas holiday. I'm trying not to stress about what needs to be done before that, but as the weeks get closer, I get more nervous. It will all work out, I know it will.
• I spend way too much time on my computer at home. It's like an addiction. There are so many things I could/should do in the evenings but I don't. I think I'm actually lazy.
• I've put on a few extra pounds, but I have no ambition to do anything about it. Now, it's not much, and most probably can't tell, but I sure can. It's just more fun to eat another candy bar then work out. Why do I do this to myself? The longer I wait, the harder it will be to get motivated.
• I should be working, but I'm blogging.
• The more I type, the more I think of to type about. I think I better stop. Yeah, I better stop.

Until next time.....

Simply Awesome-God's Beauty

I love to watch the sun set. We live about 35min from Lake Michigan so it's nice to go every once in a while take it all in. Olivia and I decided to take a spur of the moment trip a week or so ago because we knew it would be awesome based on the day's weather. Boy am I glad we did. Here are some of the many pictures I took that night. It doesn't matter how many times I look at them, I can't help but love them all over again.

Stunning

I love the silhouette of Olivia in this one

Really Beautiful

Breathtaking colors

Partly behind the cloud

Magical

I love how the sun is "sitting" on the water

Olivia's mind blowing creativity

Love her reflection in the water

Splish Splash

My favorite picture of the evening

It's almost impossible to watch a sunset and not dream

Picture Overload - 1st Day of 8th Grade

My beautiful daughter, Olivia.

Traditional picture by the lamp post

A close up (I used the flash so she's a little whiter than normal)

Striking a natural "I'm 13 and cool" pose

First time for highlights. She LOVES them.

Today is Olivia's last first day of middle school. Next year, it's on to the high school. She'll be one of over 3,000 kids. Yeah, that's H.U.G.E.! But, let's not go there yet. We'll get thru 8th grade and then move on.

This morning went very smooth. Olivia got up to her own alarm and ipod. She got ready, had breakfast and let me take pictures. Then, she was off. I did text her once I knew she was on the bus to see how everything was going. I'm sure she was overwhelmed with socializing because I never heard from her. Go figure.

I'm anxious to see how her first day was and read paperwork she'll bring home regarding supplies, etc that each teacher will require.

Here's to hoping the rest of the school year is as smooth as the first day.

A girl can dream, right?

The day before

Well, it's the last day of summer vacation for Olivia. It's the day before school starts. How in the world can my little girl be starting 8th grade? The last year of middle school. I really think time is flying too fast. I say it EVERY.SINGLE. YEAR. and I mean it.

A little later Olivia and I are going to head over to school so she can get her locker set up and take a quick tour to see where her classes are. Although the 8th grade open house isn't until next week (doesn't make sense to me), I feel it's best if Olivia gets a chance to see how far apart her classes are and how much time she'll have to socialize in between. We all know that's the focus of the day, right??!!

I've already asked her to get her clothes laid out and have everything ready today. A little over kill, but it makes me feel better. The less stress tomorrow morning, the better. Her backpack is ready and packed with the little bit she'll need on the 1st day. I know all the teachers will send home lists with detailed items needed, so I didn't buy too much ahead of time.

Over the past couple days I've been "reminding" Olivia that we WILL take pictures by the lamp post before she heads to the bus stop. It's a tradition! She'll be fine with it, but always likes to give me a hard time.

So, the next post I make will most likely be with the pictures taken on the 1st day of 8th grade.

Ready....set...study!

End of Summer

As an end of the summer event, Olivia and I went to a waterpark located about 1hr 20min away. We've been before and always have a good time. It's called Deep River Waterpark and you can get information here.

The day started very cloudy and dreary. As we drove I couldn't help but wonder if we were making the right decision. I knew the weather channel indicated it would be partly cloudy and a high of 84 but I sure was nervous.

Well, within an hour of getting there, the clouds broke apart and the sky turned blue with only a few puffs of white things left in the sky. It did get to the low 80's and was a perfect, perfect day. A great day to end the summer before school starts next week.

Cutie Patootie

I haven't posted any pictures of Leighton lately, but today I'm going to. I'm still babysitting almost every Friday which has worked out real well and is so, so much fun.

In 2 short months we will celebrating his 1st birthday. Time flies incredibly fast.

Leighton is unbelievably into music. It runs in his blood. Both his dad, Ryan and grandpa, Tom play instruments. He's got the beat!!

In addition to crawling all over the place, he pulls himself up on everything and even walks behind his push toy. He has 6 teeth. His 2 bottom arrived in April and all 4 on top (yes, all 4) arrived about a month ago all within a week of each other. Crazy, huh?

He's a messy, messy kid. It's hard to get a picture without something on his face, clothing, body, etc. Yesterday was no exception. Oh well. He's a great baby with a perfect disposition so I can deal with the messiness!

It's alot of fun having a little one around the house again. But boy oh boy is it tiring. Ha!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.