For Lauren :)

Today...

I'm feeling a bit under the weather. I called in sick to work and am liking that it's 1:00 p.m. and all I've done is brush my teeth. An R&R morning is just what the doctor ordered :) Nath was so cute this morning. He got all ready for school then came to lay with me in bed. He stroked my hair and tapped my forehead, (his little fingers have the perfect amount of pressure for headaches!) I love when he does that. Then he got me one of his stuffed animals to sleep with before Mike took him to school. How sweet is that?

We had another swim meet this past weekend. The kids did well. Enjoy a couple pictures of Nath. I ♥ them.

OH MY....

Goodness!!!! Steelers win and head to the Super Bowl!
You can imagine the excitement at our house tonight :D

Weekend

Hannah had a USA meet in Jenison so we packed our bags and headed up there for the weekend. We had a snow day friday because the temperature was -25! It gave us the time we needed to get ready and Mike was able to get out of work early, so we were able to head up at a decent time.
Hannah had great swims! She took time off in 4 events and kept her same time in one other. It was a loooong meet, spending over 5 hours at the pool on Saturday. Thankfully her two events on Sunday were close together so we were able to leave for home at 10:00 a.m.

Not the best picture but the stands were so packed we had to sit pretty far over.

I have always told the kids that they can only jump on beds in hotel rooms, so you can guess what Nathan did as soon as we got to our room. Here's a little photographic evidence of the boys' craziness!

(yes,he's upside down here)

I'm off to watch the big game! You know, the one where the STEELERS SMASH the Ravens!!!

WAAAHOOOO!!!

So much to write about this Monday that is exciting for me, so I'll share my favorite three. First, and foremost, the Steelers won yesterday! They played the Chargers and it was an exciting game. We've been so frustrated by our quarterback's performance during the season I was nervous for this week. But he came out and looked like the Ben of 3 years ago; confident and strong. They are playing the Ravens on Sunday in the AFC Championship game, and after they win that, it's off to the Super Bowl :)
Second thing: April turned me on to jewelry by Lisa Leonard (i.love.her.stuff) and I check out her blog on a daily basis. A couple days ago she asked for people to submit easy recipes she can make for her family since all of December was a take-out month. She picked MY recipe for White Chicken Chili!! It sounds silly, but it was exciting to see my name on her blog. I hope they like it.
The recipe is:
1 48 oz. jar of Randall brand Great Northern Beans (undrained)
1 jar salsa (your favorite brand)
4 cups shredded cheese (I use sharp cheddar)
2 cans shredded chicken

Into a large pot, empty jar of beans (do not drain first), the jar of salsa, all of the cheese. Drain the chicken and break up the pieces with your fingers. Add to pot. Stir and heat over medium high until cheese is melted and chili is heated through. Serve with sour cream and sliced green onions as condiments if you'd like. This is also really good to scoop up with Fritos.

And for the third thing. Since I started working at school I've gotten to really "know" the kids. There is a boy in 5th grade that is new to the school this year and has some real behavior issues. I would see him in the principals office at least 3 times a week. Well, he and I have really started to build a great relationship and there have been some positive changes in him. The principal and his teacher told me today I am really making a difference with him and they are glad to see him communicate with someone. That really made me feel good. I have a soft spot for this boy, I just don't think he gets the chance to show he can be good.

Happy Monday!

Frustrated

The swim meet that we're hosting tomorrow morning has been cancelled because of the weather. We're supposed to get up to 9 inches by noon tomorrow. This means that all the running around and late nights this week getting ready for the darn thing was a waste of time. I *thought* we lived in a place where people were used to snow. I realize that 9 inches is not a small amount, but shouldn't driving and living in these kinds of conditions be a given if you reside in freakin' Michigan?!?!? ugh.
Now that I've gotten that off my chest, I suppose I should stop complaining and enjoy the unexpected day off. Movies and popcorn (and snowblower) here we come!

1-1-09

Happy New Year everyone!
We had a low-key evening at home last night, ringing in the new year with just the four of us and a sparkling grape juice toast at midnight :) There are times I feel like throwing a huge whoop-it-up party, but then I am immediately happy I didn't when the clock strikes 12:00 and we can all go to sleep.
As for now, we are enjoying the last few days of break, trying to get back into a somewhat "normal" schedule.
We hope you all had a great holiday season, cheers!