Happy Easter!

I'm kind of late on the bandwagon, but happy easter any way!! I hope you and yours had an amazing day filled with family and love.

What did you do for Easter?

We tried out a new church this morning that's conveniently across the street. Shawners has gone to VBS at this place before and I was bowled over by how comfortable he was as he is hardly ever comfortable in new large groups of people. He says, "I like this church the best. I loved playing tag in here." and "I like these seats. I like these comfort seats." I caught him smiling and paying attention the whole time (whilst folding paper airplanes out of index cards). He was so excited to run out and get the gift bag with goodies in it that they had mentioned. He opens it and says, "It's a big muffin." It was a loaf of banana bread.

Afterwards, we had brunch at Iron Cactus with my sister, her husband, and her three boys. This is the first Easter we have spent with family, besides when we lived in California. I thought of the idea of going to my favorite meal ever together, brunch, and made reservations at Iron Cactus, which has the best brunch buffet in Austin, three weeks ago, and have been so excited about it since. It was just as pleasant and wonderful as I had hoped. It was also very special, as one of my nephews is getting married in June and it will likely be the last meal we will have all together with just the nine of us.

After brunch, Brando slept for two hours on the couch while the boys and I sat next to him and played with the silly putty they got in their Easter baskets and egg hunt this morning. Who knew silly putty could be entertaining for two hours. He loved that we quietly played next to him while he napped.

This evening, we went to watch Rio which was cute, then, ended the evening with a cookie cake Shawners had picked out and candles for Brando's birthday.

It was a pleasant sort of day.

A Boys' Birthday Wish List

Brando doesn't often assert what he wants to do, except for watch TV shows and movies, a BIG plus in his book. So for his birthday I told him my gift was NOT planning anything -- not even formulating plans in my head like I generally do. Oh, I did formulate plans, but didn't expect us to stick to them like I normally do even when they're just in my head. Boy, am I glad I didn't plan anything as it would've entailed absolutely none of these! Here is his birthday weekend wish list he just dictated to me (FINALLY! I've been asking him for weeks - I guess it took him til today!) that makes me laugh out loud (in a he's-so-cute way):

Biking (not in this weather)

Barton springs as an alternate (my idea)

Listen to loud music

Hang out with mar and tim

Hang out with boys and me

Go to town lake

B and I do something

Do something photog oriented - photo walk

8000 worth of photography equip - 4k cam & 4k computer (with him knowing this is completely ridic)

Enjoy weather by pool

See movies - even vegetative movies at home, entire day of firefly or LOTR

Sit down and play oblivion and beat the damn game

Good thing he has a three day weekend to actually do some of them!

Life as I Know It

As I've been adjusting my blog and making information more up-to-date and easily accessible, I've come across old posts which have left me reflecting on where my blog has ventured along with me the last five years. My boys have grown up on this blog. From our days of toddlerdom, to home-schooling, to ventures through private school, and now public school. We've gone from the days of yore where we had nothing to do but fill our days with adventures to the duck pond, to the park, to Sea World, and fun trips. Reading over these posts, I feel a bit nostalgic for those days.

My life now is filled with three amazing men (okay, one's still working on the man part, but he's sure got the amazing boy part down) whose lives have grown individually outside of mine. 

One is a manager at a bank, a photographer, an amazing lover and husband, does almost everything in the house, amazing travel and adventure partner. One is a boy scout almost to first class,

a volunteer, a leader, involved in youth group, loves to text when he can get a hold of a phone, builds web-sites, creates movies, creates Power Point presentations. One is an excellent communicator, creative solution maker, lover of all things animals,

organized as much as an adult, creator of new spaces exactly to how he prefers them, runner. All these things I mentioned are things that weren't there five years ago when I started this blog. Who knew those lazy, fabulous, wonderful, precious, quality days of yore would lead to the amazing men I have in my life today? My heart bursts simultaneously with pride, love, an ache for the simpleness of those days, and an awe for the complexity and fulfillment of todays days. The men in my life surround me with amazingness each day, and though it no longer is captured in a photo of a precious hand reaching out to feed a duck, or a curled up sleeping baby on a pillow, or toddling little feet running to check out the newest sight, or eyes searching to find the airplane in the sky, it is reflected in the choices they make, the wonder of possibility in their eyes, the moments and the art they create, and the effect of their presence on others. Boys, I am SO proud of you. All three of you. You continuously blow my mind in every wonderful way possible.

Things I Love About My Husband

*He grinds enough coffee beans to fill up the entire ground coffee bag when he makes coffee, and cleans out the entire coffee maker, which make it super easy to make myself coffee when I do, and are two things I never do for myself.

*He shows up for school meetings unannounced, gets there before I do and saves me a spot in the front, easing my stress of arriving a few minutes late, and leaves me grinning from ear to ear at how silly proud I am that he is one of the few Dads there.

 

*He tells me I look adorable, or beautiful, or hot, or sexy, out of the blue every day.

 *He knows technology far and beyond what I do, replacing a monitor on our computer, replacing the fans in his laptop, letting the middle school counselor know people can get updates from her site emailed to them via an RSS feed on her site, and keeping our neighbors from using our internet and slowing it down.

 

*Having a techie in the house is incredibly sexy.

 

*The other things I love about my husband: my boys, him, and me! 

I didn't even realize it before I finished this post, but his thirtieth birthday is coming up, so this is the perfect post to commemorate the day. Actually, it doesn't *quite* do it justice, except for the last point. Happy birthday, honey, I love you like the flowers love the sun!

Happy Birthday Teddy

We have been through so much together in the short nine years we have been married. 

Owning a home, living in mini suburbia, living on a low but sustainable income, moving to Cali, working for my Dad, living with someone, having money to blow and blowing it, moving across country again, living in an apartment, no steady income for two years, then a steady income that almost makes it but not quite, working three jobs, having our first vacation evAH.
 Not to mention having children turn from babies to toddlers to pre-schoolers to kindergarten to middle-school in that time.
I like to think we've come out on the better end, and have learned so much more because of it, and love each other all the more. I love you all the more, any way. 

I love that you're my man, I love that you're turning 28, I love ALL the things you do - from your sexy manness, to the laundry, to getting the boys ready, to family outings with us, to going to work every day, to the little things you do to make me smile like buying me a stuffed lion, a flower plant for your birthday, or being goofy in the shower. 

I love vacationing with you, I love being with you. I'm so glad you're my husband, and so proud of you! My 28 year old man.

Flying High * Flying Low

Flying High

*Applying for my FAFSA and being told by the financial aid office they don't need any verification and she can tell by the code on my acceptance that I will be getting some of the P*LL grant

*Brando leading in the top two for sales in his district

*Doing Ry & Genie's engagement portraits in downtown Aust*n and seeing Genie clap with glee upon seeing them

*Having a full day of leisurely pleasure for Valentine's Day with Brando and I

*Grocery shopping on ad and spending $110 for two weeks worth of breakfast, lunches, and dinners for four

Flying Low

*My car freaking out this morning by beeping at me and then, my trunk not opening. Then, this evening my gas cover not opening when I have only 40 miles of gas left (enough to get it to the shop).

*Brando being told he's being moved to another branch. Just as busy, but still, some normalcy and consistency would be nice.

*Brando coming down with whatever bug Shawners has had the last few days.

Money

From Savvysugar.com with notes by me:

"It's bad news for retailers, but good for financial health. Cash is making a comeback as the preferred method of payment. Online retailers are particularly troubled by consumers shying away from their credit cards, and according to the founder of Consolidated Credit Counseling Services Howard Dvorkin, "With credit cards, consumers spend 30 percent more (on purchases) than with cash."

Edited to add: Not to mention pay an extra 6%-20% in credit card interest on their purchases they've already spent 30% more on than they normally would have. That's 50% more! Unfortunately, they seem to think we'll return to our old ways (see below). Well we didn't spend cash after Sept. 11, but we do now for a very different reason - the credit in and of itself. People who don't learn from this experience will at least will know they are destined for failure when using credit, at least with that amount of money, not in life..

"Americans have usually gone back to ol' reliable cash when the economy is troubled, like after the Sept. 11 attacks. Dvorkin thinks consumers will return to their credit-spending ways when the economy gets on its feet, saying, "It's hard to to teach an old dog new tricks. Consumers have short memories. When the economy turns around, they'll return to the same old ways."

Nowadays every time I use a coupon or buy something I NORMALLY would buy on sale I tell Brando I earned blank percent on my money. So if I use a coupon I got in the mail for a free meal at Pei Wei at a time I would've eaten out any way then I've earned 100% on my money. If I use a $10 off coupon at Bed and Bath on a $20 item I've earned 50%. If it's a $1 they overcharged me on a $3 item that I bring up at the register that's 25%. These add up to real money. With just those three things I've already earned $19 of my money I've already worked so hard to earn, without any banks CD. I'm not even counting the credit card interest I'm earning had I put it on a credit card and been paying that amount. But that's a stupid tax for me any way, and I'm still paying it on the credit card amount we have left!!

I've also discovered something with Brando going out on dates with him lately. If you're nice enough to people to have an interesting conversation with people behind the counter who have been doing the same thing over and over all day you get lots of free things. I've never seen Brando so friendly with people, but he has conversations wherever we go. Totally not expecting free things, but it practically gets shoved in his hands as he hands it off to me : ) .

Stress

Hi. I thought I'd write about STRESS.
Right now I'm learning about being a new mom and new places away from
friends and family at the same time.  There are days when the stress gets
to me and I feel as if I might not be able to keep it up.

My grandma gave me some sage advice when I was in college.  She advised
that, when working with people or having another kind of job that doesn't
have completion, have something to look at and say, I did that and it's
finished.  It can be reading a book about something one wants to learn,
cleaning out a closet,  writing a story, making a piece of jewelry, giving
a party... Whatever it is, we need something tangible we can finish
because people things and some jobs are never completed.  So, finding
myself a bit stressed, I've taken up her advice again.  I've dug out a
how-to-draw book and my pencils and even if it's just a few minutes here
and there, I'm working on my skills and I can walk by and say - I drew
that walnut!  Not only am I feeling less stressed, when I'm with my baby I
am more aware, more present and able to enjoy that moment.

What great advice have you been given about stress?  How do you implement
it?

posted by b

Happy April Fools' Day!

Google is now offering a new free broadband service!

The best part? They totally GOT Brando. Until he realized it was April Fools Day. Me? I kept saying it has to be a joke. I laughed so long and hard that he got took on that. I was saying it HAS to be a joke, and he says in all seriousness it's real. He only realized it was not real by remembering it was April Fools Day right before I went to Google it's reliability. heh Next year I have to do an April Fools joke on him so I can laugh like that again.

Happy April Fools Day!! Did you do a joke this year or were you or someone you know the victim of one?

SOLD

Brando has sold his first listing today (not to be confused with his first home)!! He went to drop off the contract this morning and it should be closed later this month. He sold his first listing before the move in date - before the home was even finished being built!! Wahooo!!! WAY TO GO BABY!!!

Yay! Hubby's First Listing

613 Newport Dr.


Such a GORGEOUS home! He took us out there and wow it takes your breath away, especially the attention to detail and custom touches.

Note the difference between a listing and a buyer: A buyer he takes out to shop for a home and find them one, then writes the contract to buy it. A listing is a home he puts on the market, and a much better way of revenue as all he has to is get it out on the market, and wait for a buyer. At the same time hopefully get some more business in the process of people that don't have a realtor looking at this home, or looking to sell their home in order to buy another. Go Hubby!!!