Monday, December 21, 2009

Snuggie?

My dad thought it would be funny to buy JEREMY a Longhorn Snuggie for Christmas! Jeremy also thought this was a great present! However, Austin had a different plan! He pronounced it his FOOTBALL BLANK, and intends to sleep with it forever!


Round 2 of the PG Christmas Program...

Madison is a MUCH better performer (if you can see her from behind the giant 3yr old that kept standing up in front of her!!) She LOVES to perform! Her class sang 4 songs, this one you can see her the best! And I'm sure you don't want to sit through all 4 songs! LOL!! Enjoy!



After much anticipation...

What do you get when you put a class of 2 yr olds on stage in front of 100 parents/grandparents/staff? You get ONLY the teachers singing!! LOL!!


Next up...Madison's Performance!

Thursday, December 17, 2009

1 Year Ago Today

1 year ago today...

I had a scar-free neck
I was terrified by that ugly C word
I was headed into what would become a 9 hour surgery
I began this crazy, and LONG process
I was scared, sad, and so many other emotions

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

WE MADE IT!!

WE MADE IT! The kids and I took off for sunny (overcast & humid) Miami on Thursday for my brother's wedding and their 1st beach experience! As you can see from the MANY pictures I posted yesterday, they had a fabulous time! We started off Thursday evening heading to the beach w/the kiddos, we heard the weather wasn't going to be great so we wanted to be sure they got some beach time! Madison LOVED the water! It was a tad too COLD for Austin! He prefered the SAND! Friday morning we were up and off to the beach again, we even had some sun peek out for part of our day! Pa-Pa went with us, and Pa-Pa and Maddie had a fabulous time out in that not so warm water! We built sand castles, and buried Maddie in the sand. It was a all together great time! Friday night was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. The kids did great! Dinner was AWESOME! Hats off to Ortanique on the Mile in Coral Gables! If you get the chance to go, the food was fantastic! (SO WERE THE MARGARITAS!) Saturday brought another busy day, we shopped at Lincoln Road Mall, and had some awesome pizza at Pizza Rustica. It was drizzly, and SO HUMID! Back to the hotel for a non-nap, and getting ready for the wedding! With a slight delay the kids did awesome in their roles as flower girl & ring bearer! Maddie took great pleasure in the dropping of her purple rose petals! Austin walked right with her until about half way down the aisle when he spotted Biddy and took off running! But even that was met with laughter and provided some entertainment! Austin went to sleep during the 1st hymn, a true BLESSING! As the wedding was lovely. We followed it with pictures, then the reception. Note: Please do not provide children in wedding clothes with pasta with RED sauce for dinner! HOT MESS! We made it through dinner then took off back to the hotel. Mommy was tired of refereeing the silverware sword fighting! LOL!! Sunday took us to visit the Jungle Island in Miami. It's a pretty cool place and was easy to do in just a few hours before we had to get to the airport. The kids had a blast here! They saw lots of animals, even a LIGER! The airplane ride home was OK. Austin slept the 1st 2 hours which was AWESOME! But then...he woke up, refreshed and raring to GO! Luckily the people sitting around us appreciated a laughing/chatty child. I guess that is much better than a screaming one! All in all it was a good trip! But Mommy will NOT be traveling by plane with both children, without DADDY, anytime soon!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Miami/Bobby's Wedding

Click here to view these pictures larger

Monday, November 30, 2009

Wordless Wednesday

Pictures like these cannot be completely "wordless"!
Austin trying on his TUX for my brother's wedding this weekend!
Can you think of a good caption for my little "Chippen Dale Dancer"????


I tell you, I may be a bit impartial, but this boy sure is C.U.T.E.!!!

Christmas Decorating

Oh what fun it is to decorate the new Hoffman house tonight, HEY!!
We actually decorated over the weekend but I thought that was fun! LOL!!
We are having a BLAST decorating our new house for Christmas!!
TREE UP, DECORATED = CHECK!






Hoffman Claus Land = CHECK




What is a girl to do who no longer has to give up her only "dining" table to Hoffman Claus Land?
For the 1st time in 6 YEARS, I HAVE A DINING TABLE for this holiday season!
And am just now noticing that I have NOTHING to put ON IT!!
NO CENTERPIECE, NO FESTIVE PLACEMATS,
WHAT IS A GIRL TO DO????

So I'm asking you, my crafty friends, got any ideas for cheap/easy/fabulous table decor??


What do you get...

I'm a little behind...but about 3 weeks ago, we get home from school one night, and Madison tells me she would like to draw a picture of her WHOLE FAMILY! Well those of you that know us, know that that is no easy task! She told me she would need a REALLY BIG piece of paper! So I pulled out our roll of butcher paper, crayons, and away she went! What I captured with a angled above my head shot is not even the whole picture! When she was done she told me who each person was and had me write their name next to them! Now if only I could find a frame big enough!!

Get the picture!!??!! LOL!!




Thanksgiving 2009

Another great turkey day for the Hoffman's! We made our 1st stop out in Sunnyvale at Pappaw & Gramma Hoffman's! Pappaw is known for his fabulous koi pond he built in his backyard! The kids had a great time and even an adventure with their cousin Colby!

Next stop Granny Bell & Grandad Harvey's house (Jeremy's mom & step-dad)! Aunt Jordan was brave and tried to make a gingerbread train with all 4 kids! Not an easy task! LOL!! We had a wonderful dinner there and the kids always love to be with their cousins and play!
Jeremy with both his sisters!
I hope everyone had a GREAT thanksgiving! Next post, our Christmas decorating!!


Tuesday, November 24, 2009

thankful

As we prepare to give thanks, I wanted to share what I am thankful for this year. In light of my personal health issues, I have so much to be thankful for.

I am thankful for my wonderful husband! Who knew when I met you almost 15 years ago that I would still be with you now! That doesn't happen often and I am so very thankful that it did for us! You are truly my very best friend, and the best husband anyone could ask for!

I am thankful for my beautiful, fun, spunky daughter! Madison is truly a joy! While I may get tired of the non-stop chatter, and the never ending question asking, you are a pure joy! I am thankful as I watch her turn into this wonderful, caring little person! She loves with fierce loyalty, she cares about others, she loves to play, she loves to "help" with things, she takes great care in being a big sister! She is an amazing little girl!

I am thankful for my wild, rambunctious, loving son! Austin is wonderful little boy! It has been amazing raising both a daughter and a son, watching them grow and change is a wonderful gift! Austin is 100% BOY! But at the same time, he gives the best hugs and kisses! He knows when to be sweet and when to be his rough little self! I love to watch the pure joy on his face when he discovers something new, or spots his daddy when we get home from school, or goes to get Maddie from her class!

I am thankful for my very large, and wonderful family! There are too many of you to go into each individually, that would be one LARGE blog! But I love all of you! Without your support and love I most certainly would not be where I am today!

I am thankful for my new wonderful house! Jeremy and I talk a lot about how now we cannot wait to get home! Those of you that know us well, know we are true home-bodies, even more so now!

With that I say HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!! May all of you have a wonderful day! (And if you want to go Black Friday shopping...Niki & I are planning our TRIP!!)

Monday, October 26, 2009

5 Years with Madison Lee

To My Sweet Madison Lee,
Happy 5th Birthday my baby girl!
I have truly enjoyed watching you grow & learn over the last 5 years!
I cannot wait to see what the next 5 bring!
We have watched you pass all your milestones with flying colors,
you are amazing and sweet, a true joy to be around!
You care about others, you are fiercly loyal to your friends!
You are smart, and funny, and wacky!
You are a wonderful girl and we love you very much!
Now a look back...



On the day you were born, such a sweet face! You were such a
great baby from the very beginning!




Madison's 1st Birthday, you did NOT like the cake! ;-)




Your 2nd Birthday, at a local park! It was lots of fun with family & friends!




Madison's 3rd Birthday at the Little Gym! It was Scooby Doo Theme!
(And you had that left-over black eye from a shopping cart incident!)




At your 4th Birthday party, we shared a party with your very best friend, Evan!
It was a Halloween Costume party!

Happy 5th Birthday my beautiful girl!


Madison's 5th Birthday Party




Madison's 5th birthday is tomorrow, 10/27! My baby girl will be 5yrs old! Where has the time gone? And who is this magnificent little girl before me?
Our 1st official birthday party in the new house was quite a success! Madison was so excited to show all of her friends her new house & "playground" she couldn't wait for the party to begin! We all had a great time!

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Let the WAITING begin

I met with the new surgeon yesterday. She was GREAT! As much as I truly adore my ENT surgeon that did my 1st major surgery, I wish I had this doctor from the beginning. She was cool as a cucumber, not afraid of my massive scar and even more massive history. She was collected and very well educated, she explained things in a way that I completely understood, she even drew pictures! That being said, it would have been nice if my other doctor had sent her all of my medical records BEFORE I arrived so that we would not be wasting her precious time, or mine for that matter. But I guess when you collectively have a TEAM of doctors they can't be bothered with exchanging paper! Seriously, that's another rant for another time though.

Now we will wait. As I have learned, having multiple doctors, means having multiple answers, and having the diagnosis change. This doctor, without reviewing my complete medical records, says her 1st diagnosis is to hold off on surgery at this point. To that you say, but you have cancer!! This I know. But apparently due to the size of these 3 lymph nodes (less than 1cm each), and the massive amount of scar tissue that I obviously have in my neck, she would prefer to wait. We will monitor their size every 6 months. At some point they will have to come out, but not now. When they go back into someones neck for a "reoccurance" (which I kept correcting her b/c mine is NOT a reoccurance!!) they do a procedure called "plucking" so much for crazy medical terminology, it is exactly what it sounds like. They simply go in and pluck out whatever lymph nodes that are diseased, and any others in that same chain of nodes. Well, that is a little more difficult to do if the lymph nodes are less than 1cm in size, and if you have significant scar tissue, they won't be able to see them. So now we wait. I'm not sure what is worse, walking around knowing that there is cancer inside me, or having another surgery? I think I'd rather have the surgery and get it over with. But that is my opinion and my opinion doesn't count for much in this aspect of my life. I am under the control of doctors, I now have 5, 6 if you count my OB/GYN (who just about cried at the sight of my scar, i absolutely adore him!!) The new surgeon said I fit the bill for Pappillary Thyroid Cancer to a T, young woman, mid 20's-early 30's. It also occurs to me that that bill also fits most of my friends!!! I do not wish this disease on anyone, so that I say CHECK YOUR NECK! You know your body better than anybody!! A great resource is www.checkyourneck.com!!

Now my next post probably won't be until after Madison's birthday party this Saturday, a much more FUN topic!!! I can't believe I'm about to have a 5yr old!! (WHO CAN READ!!!!) Yes, I am a proud Mommy!!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

I took the easy way out!

The kids have been BEGGING for their halloween pumpkins. But what does a Mommy do with a almost 5 yr old and a 2 yr old, they cannot "carve" pumpkins, nor to they enjoy WATCHING Mommy carve a pumpkin. Last year Madison painted hers, well who wants to let a 2yr old loose with paint, I would have green walls! So this year we took the easy way out! We bought this little kit from Wal-Mart for $3.50, it included the plastic pieces for 4 different pumpkin looks! As Austin would say "TA-DA" here are our pumpkin Kitty & pupkin Puppy! They now live on our front porch! We still have the makings for a pumpkin Piggy and another Doggy!


On a side note, for those of you that are interested. I'm passing along my JCPenney discount for this weekend only!!
Below is a link that will allow you to print a shopping pass to receive 20% off. This is the opportunity for me to share my 20% discount for one day in stores, Sunday, October 18th, and two days online, Sunday, October 18th and Monday, October 19th. This coupon can be used in the store, the internet, or catalog shopping. If you shop in the store, you will need to print the coupon, if you shop via JCP.com, you will have to put in the coupon code when you check out, and if you shop via the catalog you will have to give the customer service representative the coupon code when you call your order in. Happy Shopping!!! The holidays are just around the corner…

http://jcpenneyem.com/a/hBKzXHTAlU$WKB7vGJ-AoBYROfr/coupon-0
And if you are wondering, Home Goods has put out their Christmas decorations!! O.M.G.

Monday, October 12, 2009

Not Me Monday - The Good Version

What if I was good today...
What if I was so good that everyone went on their merry way this morning with fresh homemade pumpkin pie bread for breakfast (with a drinkable yogurt for the kids)!
What if I put Madison's favorite outfit in her dance bag so she would be excited when it was time to dress for the day!
What if I packed clean nap stuff and put it in each child's cubby 1st thing this morning, rather than doing it tonight when there is more time!
What if I remembered to bring a new package of pull-ups to school for Austin,
and they only had to remind me 1 time!
What if I even got to work an extra 10 minutes early!
What if I already had dinner planned, all parts of it purchased,
and ready to make when I get home!
What if I already posted a new post this morning, complete with pictures!
In an effort to sometimes seem like I am pulling it off, today I actually DID!!
Then I got to work...UGH!!

Gonna be a LONG one!!

First of all I would like to say a big HUGE THANK YOU to Anne for my new header!! LOVE IT!!


And now for our BIG REVEAL!!! It's Extreme Bathtub Makeover - Hoffman Edition!!


BEFORE...SO BLAH






AFTER!!! MOMMA GOT A NEW BIG GIRL TUB!!!

And my little people needed to test it out!!

Can you see the size of that tub??? WHAAA HOOO!!!

I managed to sneak in 2 tubs yesterday!! LOL!! Doesn't take much to make me happy!!
And for those of your who enjoy crafts, I would like to highly suggest you go to Calloway's Nursery and take one of their classes! These things sell for $40-$70 each! But you can take the class and make it yourself for like $25!! If I do say so myself it's a pretty cute centerpiece!! And don't tell anybody, it was SUPER EASY!!
(And yes those are REAL pumpkins, even the funky grey one!)


HAPPY MONDAY!!

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Well...

I'm not really sure how to start this post. I hate to be Debbie Downer and all. But we found out yesterday that my cancer is not gone. This is not "new", this is not a 2nd round, this is some leftover that was missed in the 1st surgery. A month or so ago I went for a ultrasound of my neck because, for those of you that have seen me, I still carry a lot of fluid under my chin/neck area. We did the ultrasound to see if they could tell why. In that ultrasound they discovered 2 lymph nodes that looked "suspicious". There's that dam word again. So they sent me to a specialist to get a ultrasound-guided biopsy, not fun. Yesterday, Jeremy & I met with my endocrinologist to go over the results. What they discovered was more tumor cells in 3 lymph nodes in my right neck. Now on to what I am viewing as the positive part. #1 - There is surgery involved, but never again will it be as big a surgery as the 1st. This one is called a micro-surgery, with a special surgeon. #2 - They can use my last incision, but the new one will be MUCH smaller! #3 - Micro-surgery results in only 1 night of hospital stay for observation!! #4 - There will be more radioactive iodine, but this time my new endo says NO to the locking me in a hospital room making me crazy, but more check in to a hotel. This time I will not have to spend 2 weeks off of my thyroid meds, which was really what made me nuts, but I will have some thyroglobulin shots (which will cost my insurance company a fortune but I do NOT care!) then I will have the RAI (radioactive iodine) and go hide out in a hotel for 5-7 days. I will have to be on that dreadfully AWFUL low-iodine diet again, but that is just par for the course.

I'm not really upset. At this point I'm not really sure WHAT I AM. I'm viewing this as leftover from the 1st surgery, NOT a reoccurance. That is helping. I will update as more information is given. I go to see the new surgeon on the 20th to get my PLAN.

Monday, October 5, 2009

WHEW!

We made it, we are still breathing, and everything is MOVED! Things are beginning to take shape at the new house! We are waiting on internet installation, which has been a royal PAIN! Let me tell you about Grande Communication, apparently we have moved to the black hole of internet where Grande is the ONLY company that services our neighborhood. So far I am less than impressed! More on that later I am sure.

But on to bigger and more FUN things! I have been a busy little bee for the last 5 days! Kitchen = DONE, kids bath = DONE, living room/master/kids rooms = in progress! LOL!! I've begun hanging pictures which always makes things more FUN! But now I am quickly realizing that bigger house means MORE stuff is "NEEDED"!! LOL!! I find that all my things that FILLED the old house to the brim, now merely scatter around the new house! But I'm working it! I've hung some pictures (if you've been to my house you know that I LOVE pictures!!) we've been to IKEA, that was dangerous! Madison needs shelves, desperately, we took advantage of all the built-ins she had at the old house, now it's very clear that she has too many "babies" and more crap than 1 kid needs! Austin's room is taking shape nicely, if you can manuever around all the cars/balls/toys to do anything in there! He's really enjoying the new house! We took this moment to transition Austin into the "big boy bed" again and he took to that like a champ! He goes right down every night about 830 with no issues (KNOCK ON WOOD!!) They played on the new "playground" all morning Saturday, it was great! Madison is scared at night and doesn't want to sleep in her bed! UGH!! So we're working on that! So far we are truly LOVING the new house! The drive in to work today for the 1st time, while long, was not too bad!

House-warming party will be coming soon, probably early November, by the time we get settled!

Happy Monday!

Thursday, September 24, 2009

I am in L.O.V.E!!!


Oh HomeGoods, you sneaky little store! You've been sitting at the corner of MacArthur & 635 for some time now! I have driven past you on numerous occasions! I have never allowed myself to enter! UNTIL, TODAY!!!
And I would just like to say O.M.G!!!! You were filled with all kinds of wonderful finds! And the very best part...CHEAP!!! WHAAAA HOOOOO!!! I just bought a huge, beautiful, glass hurricane, can you guess how much it was??? $12!!! Can you say SCORE!!!! I realize it is silly to be this excited about a store! But seriously!
Now everyone run off to their website to find the closest location to you and go immediately!!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Oh Sweet Husband

This post is in honor of my sweet husband! (Who BTW does not read this blog!!)

Packing:
Jeremy- "Honey, I will help you pack today! I'll go pull the rest of the pictures from the wall and put them on our bed."
Anna - "How about you put them on the kitchen table, it's easier to wrap/pack them from there."
Jeremy - "Ok sure!"
Goes around the house pulling pictures off the wall, pulling out the nails and putting them in a cup, placing everything on the kitchen table. Takes the stuff from the top of the china hutch that I couldn't reach. All the while I am in Madison's room...the black hole of all the world! I manage to wreck shop in there! I pack the remaining things on her shelves. I clean up the "bucket shelf" and reorganize her toys so they will be easier to pack/move at the last minute. I go through her closet and pull out items that are too small to give to the women's shelter. Rockin out to my IPOD and cleaning away!

So someone tell me why said items are STILL sitting on our dining table? The ONLY "table" in the house to which we must be able to EAT!

Anna - "Honey, why did you not wrap and pack that stuff?"

Jeremy - "I'm not good at that part."

SERIOUSLY!

Friday, September 18, 2009

Change, is it good or bad?

For some people, they LOVE change! Change it all! I am NOT one of those people. I do not like change. For whatever reason. And as I sit everything is changing!

Yesterday it hit me like a ton of bricks! I went and visited our new day care yesterday. Now don't take this the wrong way, it was a nice school, and I being the over protective parent that I am would never send my children someplace I wasn't comfortable with, not for ANY reason. But I am so focused on what I am losing by leaving the Peanut Gallery, that I cannot see all of the good in the new place. The new director probably thinks I am completely C.R.A.Z.Y! We toured the school, all decorated in their latest theme of "Comic Book Characters", straight with Bugs Bunny's Rabbit Hole, and a full size Incredible Hulk on the wall that Austin will LOVE! We went to her office to talk about their policies and so on, and what did I do, I sat there and CRIED! My 1st meeting with this woman and I am CRYING! WTH is wrong with ME! Am I completely NUTS? I'm in a perfectly normal day care, with excellent teaching philosophy, with highlights on theatrics and performing, PERFECT for Madison! And I am CRYING! Again, I do not like change. The Peanut Gallery has been a HUGE part of my life for the better part of the last 15 years. I worked there myself, many years ago, but from that I still knew most of the teachers when we started Madison there about 5 years ago. I trust them COMPLETELY, with the most important people I know! I trust that they love my children, they protect them, they educate them, and most of all they genuinely CARE about their well-being. I KNOW THAT, without a doubt 100%! I know that because I know THEM so WELL! And no matter what I do, I don't have that at a new school. You can't recreate that level of trust. So I tell myself, I know this change will cause some emotional discomfort to my kids, but in the long run I think they will like it, but is it worth it? Is it worth the financial savings, is it worth the convenience, is it worth it?

In all my craziness I am sending in Biddy for her review of the new school too! Just to be sure that it is just my own fear of change that is driving my current opinions and observations. We are talking about the 2 most important people in my universe after all! I want to be 100% sure this is the right place for us! This day care that "accidentally got into show business" as they call themselves. They are loosely montessori based, they have "performance" class daily, they are active in The Colony city events, our beloved Ms Cheri the traveling dance instructor teaches there as well. My boss's grandson has gone there his whole 6yrs of life, and she loves it! I'm pumping myself up here people! :-) And they do offer cameras that I can watch from my desk all day if I so chose!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Packing.

Where do you begin with a house you've been in for the last 5.5 years. The house where you lived through 2 pregnancies, 2 new babies, 2 toddlers, and TONS of other life changing moments. This house is some what of a constant for me. I lived there myself when I was 4 years old, same as Madison. That was a time of change for me, since that was my mom's 1st house post my dad. It was just me & her. That house was always so cute & small and I always wanted to live there some day. Then almost 5 years ago, I got pregnant. It was an obvious move for us, our soon to be family of 3. My parents had maintained the house as a rental, and at the time my grandfather was living there. So we moved. And now more than 5 years later we will leave. This house has it's faults. But at the same time holds a very special place in my heart for all the special moments we've had there. It's time to move on, to move up, to move bigger. Our family is bigger, the new larger space much more condusive for our family! And so we pack. and pack. and pack.

I started with the linen closet, only leaving out a change of sheets for everyone, and towels for the kids baths. Then I started taking all my precious pictures off the walls. Then I unloaded the "fluff" from the tops of my kitchen cabinets & fridge. I unloaded my china hutch with the assistance of my mother, for hopes that none of my mom & dad's beautiful china would get broken in the move. Jeremy was out of town last weekend while I began the packing process. It gave me time for reflection. And time to remember no matter how exciting the move, I still HATE to pack! Madison however, is THRILLED with the idea of "packing"! But still thinks she should open the boxes back up and take her things OUT! We packed most of the stuff under her cabinets in her room. Of course we couldn't have picked a busier time of year for our family to move. Our September & October are always ACTION PACKED!

This weekend's packing project - finish the walls, Madison shelves, declutter the desk.

I would like to thank Stacie & my step-dad for all of the wonderful BOXES and packing materials that are making this move so much easier!!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Because McKMama Did It...

So must I...here are some of the things I've said around the house in the last few days...

You cannot BODYSLAM your sister.

Did you hit a friend today? Hitting is not nice. Timeout is not fun. It's not nice to hit your friends.

Punching is only for Daddy NOT school!

Why are you watching TV at 4AM?

If you pack all of your toys what will you play with? If you take them back out of the box thats not really "packing" sweetie.

No someone will not just move into our new house because it's empty. It has our name on it so they can't do that.

Daddy is very strong but he cannot just pick up the house and move it. We will pack our things and then move the boxes.

That was fun! Now who else has some?

Monday, September 7, 2009

Future Country Star



Introducing Madison as Taylor Swift!

Future Pop Star


Introducing Madison as Jordin Sparks...it's a Battlefield people! And note the little backup singer!! LOL!!

Please pay no attention to the mess in the background!

Thursday, September 3, 2009

MOVIN' ON UP!!!

IT HAS FINALLY HAPPENED!! A few posts ago, in my pity party, I was complaining about these people and their ridiculous idea of what their house was worth. Well we took a step back. We made a few moves to get us in a better financial situation (I got a new car!) Anne - your advice was GREAT and just what I needed! I let it go that maybe that wasn't the right house for us, we could just keep looking, but not until we both felt comfortable with the financial aspect. And then WHAM! It's like all things aligned exactly as they needed to be, the interest rates started dropping, we got an appraiser to come back with a little better picture of this house that we loved, we traded in my gas-guzzling 4Runner for a more economical Civic, and then we made an offer and held our breath...

AND THEY ACCEPTED IT!!!!!

So if anybody has any boxes, the Hoffman's are moving to Little Elm!!!! WHOOOOO HOOOO!!! We're hoping to take the kids to see the new house this weekend, and surprise them with the ALREADY EXISTING swing set in the backyard! (I mean how perfect can a house be!!) I feel like things are finally looking up for us! We're hopeful to close by the end of the month!

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Talk About Getting Older

As most of you know I have a "blended" family. I have 4 younger siblings, 2 on each side of things. And I would like to point out that my younger siblings are making me WAY too old this year!!

1st of all, my baby sister, Megan, turned 18 on Aug 10th.

Today, my youngest brother, Matt, turns 21.

Next up, Lauren, my sister on my mom's side, she turns 21 end of Oct.

And then comes Dec, and my brother, Bobby on my mom's side, is getting MARRIED!

SERIOUSLY PEOPLE, can we break this up a little bit! I could CRY!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

In a Holding Pattern of Sorts

I feel like I am in a holding pattern, in many aspects right now. I thought maybe writing it all out would make me feel better.

I'm tired of being TIRED. This crazy post-cancer, post-thyroid removal process of getting the medicine right to make you feel like a normal person is the most ridiculous, frustrating process I have ever had the "pleasure" of participating in. Doctors do not listen. They do not seem to care that you feel like crap MOST of the time. They do not care that your neck still feels weird, it's not necessarily "pain", but it is NOT a good feeling. It's pressure, it's tightness, it's uncomfortable, it's ANNOYING. And yes I realize that I am only 8 months post surgery, but COME ON. Being someone that has never had any sort of major surgery/illness this is just too much. Am I glad that the cancer is gone, well DUH, but the aftermath is a hard pill to swallow.

House-hunting is not as "fun" as I always imagined it would be. Find a house that you like, CHECK. Have stupid sellers that think their house is worth WAY more than others in similar size/area, CHECK. Now back to the drawing board. All while trying to find a GOOD, quality, wonderful, and CHEAPER day care to put the kids in. House-hunting on a budget, while looking for a good day care, a good school district, and a larger house that we can all 4 be comfortable in = H-A-R-D. My poor step-dad is stuck with us (he's our realtor) and all our picky preferences, but hey it's our FIRST HOUSE! We want this and that and that.

I really need to win the lottery.

I am having a pitty party.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Austin is 2!!!!

Saturday was Austin's 2nd birthday! The rain held off long enough for a little par-tay at the house! A "splash & sand" bash of sorts! He was SO HAPPY that his girlfriend, Avery, came to his house he could hardly contain himself! Here are some quick shots from the day!

Austin - SPLASHING!!My "sand-pail" cake! YES I MADE IT!! ;-)
Austin "blowing" out the candles

Opening gifts
And the morning after...
My sweet baby is 2, I cannot believe it! He's healthy, happy, and hilarious! He loves his sister, he loves to "fight" daddy, he still lets me rock him in the rocking chair (sometimes), he eats anything you put in front of him, he likes to wear pullups (but not for the purpose of using the potty), he loves to go to school, he likes to swim (FIM as he says) whether its in a pool or the bathtub, he loves all things boy - balls, cars, tooting, he loves to watch "Lightening Queen"! He is such a good natured happy boy! For all of that I am thankful!
Happy Birthday My Sweet Son!








Monday, July 27, 2009

PRAY FOR STELLAN

For those of you who are or are not following...Baby Stellan has taken a turn for the worse! McKMama could use every prayer she can get!!!

http://www.mycharmingkids.net/2009/07/monday-morning-update.html

I cannot imagine being in this position! For that I shead tears for the pain this mommy is going through! What a helpless place to be in. I will go home tonight and hug my little ones a little tighter and a little longer! And we will all say some prayers for Stellan and his family!

Monday, July 13, 2009

What I Love About My 23 Month Old

Yes I said it, Austin is 23 months old, which means in less than 1 month my baby will be 2 years old! How can this be? Where has the time gone? I haven't done this in a while so I thought I would write a post on the things I love the most about my precious son!

I love how much he loves his MOMMY! Oh yeah not to proud to say it, my Austin is definitely a MOMMA'S BOY!! He wraps his little arms around my neck and SQUEEZES in the best hugs! He gives the sweetest little kisses, and LOVES to snuggle with me! I'm sure my days are numbered...

I love how he loves to explore! Whether in the backyard, in his room, or pretty much anywhere, he loves to cruise around looking for trouble!

I love how he LOVES the water! He can just about swim on his own! While at the Rosemeade Rainforest he would walk backwards on the side of the pool (the 10in deep pool) the run, kick one leg back and JUMP in the pool! As if to try to reproduce a canon ball he'd seen! Then laughing hysterically go do it AGAIN, and AGAIN, and AGAIN!!

I love how he loves all things BOY! Balls, cars, planes, trains!

I love his new imitation of UFC fighting! Ok at some point I am probably NOT going to enjoy this, but for now it's VERY cute! He insists to take his shirt & shoes off, and posts up with his little fists in the air! Telling Daddy "I FIGHT!!!" and charging him!

I love his sudden OPINIONS on things! He is suddenly obsessed with Apple Juice and thinks it's the ONLY thing he should be drinking! (which of course it's NOT) He decided he needed E-go (Diego) pull-ups and insists to wear them all the time! And insisted on getting the Thomas the Train potty seat for the potty that he REFUSES to sit on! (Ok I know I shouldn't buy things based on a 2yr old, but come on people I am TIRED of DIAPERS!! A girl can dream!)

Hope all of you are enjoying your summer as much as we are!

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Another Busy Summer

Hello kids it's me, yes it's been a WHILE! OOPS!! Our June has been a busy one and I'll update with pics soon I promise! We revamped the backyard, and WOW! My wonderful hubby really pulled it off! I got a new grill for Mother's Day, now all of you that are thinking "Mother's Day = Grill = OH HELL NO" not for ME!! I love to grill so this was a fantastic surprise! With that new grill, Jeremy & Pa-Pa (my stepdad Bob) built the kids a 8X8 foot sandbox! Then Daddy went out and got a gazeebo to put over said sandbox to shade my little babies while playing in their pit o'sand! With that gazeebo I got a table/chair/umbrella set!! WHOO HOO! Then came grass on what is left of our little backyard and wa-la a new transformation! We absolutely LOVE it!! It opens up a new avenue for us to hangout and the kiddos to play and we've done lots of it since it was complete. If you've got a free night let us know we're always up for visitors!! We even have a new hose set up to hose off the pit o'sand when the kiddos are all sanded up!!

And if you are looking for recipes/ideas for your own cookout...let me know!!

We just got back from a trip to Austin to see my dad & family, it's always nice to go to the lake for a couple days! Madison enjoyed the boat and the chilly waters of Lake Austin! And Mommy even had to jump in to get her when she let go of the boat (to grab a wandering styrofoam cup passing by) and the current started taking her away! She of course thought all of this was hysterical! Silly girl! Austin spent his time going "up stairs", which could be said for going upstairs, or going back down, and making sure all the dogs were doing what they were supposed to be doing! Madison always enjoys her time with her "Big Daddy" and runs him ragged! All in all a nice little weekend getaway.

As we prepare for Father's Day I'll get my new pics together and update you all soon!

Monday, May 25, 2009

What Happens...

What happens when you mix a Daddy & a Grandpa (Pa-Pa Brown), some wood, some brakets, and a truck load of sand? Why you get our new 8X8 sandpit in the backyard!! WHOO HOO! The kids have had a GREAT weekend playing in the new sandbox! Soon our backyard will be a great place for all to hang out!




These pics are from their very 1st playtime in the sandbox. As this was literally Austin's VERY 1st sandbox experience, he was walking around saying "OH DIRTY!!" and would NOT sit for anything! Not a problem anymore! He now LOVES the sandbox and making *aka DISTROYING sandcastles!

Maddie's New Haircut

So I'm a week late...he he...times are busy for the Hoffman's! But introducing, with a fabulously cute short hair cut...Miss Madison!!

Yes she has a Christmas tree sticker on her nose, who doesn't play with Christmas stickers in MAY!

Madison is very thrilled with her new swing haircut! She is blessed with that thick gorgeous hair that makes grown women jealous! So this haircut turned out SUPER cute and SO EASY to deal with every day!

Monday, May 11, 2009

Here it is...What You've All Been Waiting For...

What a wonderful Mother's Day gift I did receive, but a little birdie dancing for ME!!

Madison's dance recital just happened to fall on Mother's Day this year (wouldn't have been MY 1st choice, but hey!) This is her ballet, I didn't record the tap, but I hope you enjoy! Nothing like a group of precious girls dancing away!

I'll post pics to follow

Monday, May 4, 2009

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.


Let's see, where to begin...
I absolutely did not start a new (bribery) reward system with Madison using Quarters for good behavior and helping out around the house, after having this conversation with another Mom at soccer practice! (I thought it was such a brillant idea I jumped right on that bandwagon!)
I did not pull the sheets off my big king size bed and allow my small children to jump & wrestle wildly in the new clean sheets, while me & my friend Robyn flew the sheets up & down!
I did not drag Madison all around Old Navy shopping for Mommy, and all the while telling her if she was very good we could go to her section! She did not then talk me into a dress & an outfit for her, along with matching flip flops (and OH Mommy Austin needs some flip flops too!!)
I did not patiently wait for my hubby to leave yesterday morning to go pick up the kids (sleepover w/grandma), so that I could go to the grocery store A-L-O-N-E!!!
I did not wait until the absolute last minute to wake Austin up this morning, dress him half asleep, and take off to school.
Ok that's all the Not Me's I have for now...although my list could grow throughout the day! LOL!! ENJOY!!

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Introducing...

Let me 1st start by saying this is a Mommy approved Haircut! I fought it at 1st, but decided my sweet son would indeed be quite hot this summer under all his beautiful curls. So the whole family went up to the barber shop. Now, before I get the Grandma beat down, yes this is a mohawk, however without gel it simply looks like a little boy short cut. But with the gel he is quite a COOL DUDE!! Check out my baby boy and his summer mohawk!