tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66794522011-11-27T18:43:22.672-05:00I am a 30-something stay-at-home mother to five kids. They are all under the age of 11. Yes, we chose to have that many kids, no we are not some weird religion, and yes we are done. Thanks for asking! I have been married to my high school sweetheart for over 13 years and have enjoyed almost every minute of it. To hear about the daily antics that occur in my house just start reading!Jodinoreply@blogger.comBlogger14721100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-12412509871640005972008-03-07T14:44:00.002-05:002008-03-07T14:47:38.555-05:00

I have the spring cleaning bug today. Must be from being at my sister's house where it was over 70F one day and always above 40. Because it is well below zero today with the high only getting to 10F. Blah.But my house is getting clean. I dusted and scrubbed and de-cluttered.I have a new technique for cleaning up the clutter. I take EVERYTHING that is not where it belongs that I have collected

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-81483228029335449662008-03-06T10:20:00.003-05:002008-03-06T10:25:21.161-05:00

The days are starting to separate from each other now. The last week felt like a big blur of days. LOLThe kids are off to school today so I am going to sneak into town and have lunch with my husband.I also get to go and register our new car today. That is going to be a hefty check to write. I am thankful we have the money though to do it with.We brought my Mom's kitten home. It is having a hard

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-55950371944041759162008-03-05T23:01:00.003-05:002008-03-05T23:03:43.513-05:00

As you can imagine right now life for me is very stressful. As I got up the morning of my Mom's funeral to get in the shower, I noticed my face in the mirror. Suddenly, at the age of 33, I had a new crop of pimples. Ugh!I have always had pretty severe acne. Thankfully as I get older it seems to be getting better. But stress is always a trigger for me, it seems. I am so grateful to the companies

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-17406423698260311302008-03-05T15:07:00.002-05:002008-03-05T15:11:28.484-05:00

We got home late last night. I am having a hard time going back to life as usual. Partly because of my sadness and partly because of the break we had while at my sister's house.The dumbest things make me cry. I was listening to an onstar commercial on the radio and I started crying again last night.Then we came home and found our front door wide open and all the lights on. Apparently the neighbor

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-32884751395059186312008-03-05T09:36:00.000-05:002008-03-05T23:00:07.524-05:00

Every year as we get closer and closer to Christmas I try to think of cool presents my kids can make for our family.The last few years we had made some kind of photo project. Then after Christmas this year I found out about these custom printed calendars. They are a perfect gift for grandparents or any relative who likes to see your family year round. :)I think we will give them a try this year

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-90978021075743989112008-02-29T22:30:00.003-05:002008-02-29T22:37:54.462-05:00

I have a few minutes so I thought I would pop in and say thank you to all of you for your thoughts and prayers and to answer a few questions.My mom was not sick. This was totally and completely unexpected. We don't know at this time what she died from. She died almost 5 days before my sister and stepdad had someone break into her house. When I got the call they had just gone in and found her.They

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-60312680778022488772008-02-26T19:26:00.001-05:002008-02-26T19:27:39.666-05:00

I got a call at 3:00 this afternoon that my mom has passed away.I am leaving to go to my hometown right now.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-67683000644050513742008-02-26T09:15:00.001-05:002008-02-26T09:16:53.229-05:00

Yesterday two kids had a stomache ache. Today another one is home throwing up.We can really stop acquiring germs any day now.Really!

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-91231498171426283542008-02-25T11:05:00.007-05:002008-02-25T14:51:26.421-05:00

It is Monday. I am here. I survived the weekend. Barely...I got the Tamiflu on Friday about 6 and took the first pill immediately. At that point I was taking two aleve twice a day and it was not making my body aches and head aches even SLIGHTLY better. I was ready to curl up and give in. Then sometime during the night that little pill must have started working its magic. The headache and body

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-65773838501558327802008-02-24T20:35:00.003-05:002008-02-24T20:42:37.728-05:00

We were watching one of those design shows on HGTV this weekend and they had the coolest t.v. console. The t.v. slides down at the touch of a button INTO the cabinet. On the design show they had this in their bedroom. "What an awesome way to hide a t.v. in the bedroom!" I thought. So after some research online I found a page full of tv lift cabinets. I am so totally in love with this one. A t.v.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-41979150970158761002008-02-24T20:33:00.000-05:002008-02-24T20:50:08.575-05:00

After doing some shopping this past week, I am curious as to how many of you are brand-specific when shopping.I mentioned quite awhile ago that I almost never buy brand name anything. But note I said almost.There are some things I am particular about. Like Kraft Ranch Dressing. It is the only one I like (well that and the one they use at Perkins but they won't tell me what that is). And I used to

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-52402396123818150522008-02-24T20:21:00.002-05:002008-02-24T20:26:35.145-05:00

I have fallen off the exercise wagon for the last several months. I had finally gotten my motivation back when the flu hit. I would like to get back to Denise Austin in the mornings but now she only has one show on and it is on at the exact time I need to get up and get moving in the morning. So then started dreaming of an exercise room in our basement. Only our basement is icky. It would involve

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-55844178525832687202008-02-24T20:11:00.002-05:002008-02-24T20:14:00.488-05:00

Today it was 45F here! It was sooooo nice. We took the kids to the park to play. While it was wet and mushy it was glorious to get out of the house, feel the sunshine, and watch the kids play and run.While we were there we heard sirens and pretty soon the ambulance pulled up across the street from the park. The kids thought that was rather exciting until they realized nothing happens after the

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-75349584676419753982008-02-23T14:43:00.002-05:002008-02-23T14:48:53.165-05:00

Still sick today. Thankfully I was able to get Tamiflu through my doctor. I was rather skeptical but I took it anyway. I took the first one last night about 6. Sometime during the night my body aches and headache subsided. Then this morning I took another one. I seem to be slowly getting better or at least I am not getting worse. Yesterday morning I felt icky but nothing too bad but by bedtime I

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-86368632272691290982008-02-22T11:59:00.003-05:002008-02-22T12:02:03.298-05:00

It is Friday. Which means all my kids are home thanks to the 4 day week at school. Which means we could be playing games, going to town, going shopping, or any number of other FUN things.But instead I woke up with the flu. I swear a truck came through my room last night and ran me over.And here I was just thinking yesterday how I must have avoided this particular strain because the kids all had

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-75391224988074454232008-02-22T09:18:00.002-05:002008-02-22T12:24:57.183-05:00

It is almost noon and I still haven't gotten in the shower.Not because I am being lazy but because our water heater is on our power company's energy control program. That means they can shut if off whenever they need want to.And lately they have been shutting it off from about 6:45 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.Which isn't retarded. Not all all. Afterall who wants to shower before going to work or school?

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-87455270343542589622008-02-21T13:52:00.005-05:002008-02-21T13:55:04.349-05:00

I need a good book that explains all the things a tweenage girl needs to know about her body, boys, and the birds and the bees.We have had the discussion many times now but I would like for the girls to have a sort of "reference" book to look back at as they get older. I think it is all too much to take in in one sitting.Any ideas?

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-15582175508097451362008-02-21T08:35:00.003-05:002008-02-21T08:56:53.642-05:00

The rules for the "You Make My Day" award, are to re-present it to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know through an email or posting to their blog so they can pass it on. You may get the award more than once, so if you do, consider yourself very loved! So pass it on!!!Here are ten bloggers who I love reading because of

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-10782977302927743002008-02-20T10:39:00.002-05:002008-02-20T13:59:16.549-05:00

Yesterday we took the kids out to dinner. We chose a chinese buffet place.I was so nervous about going because Jack had been having a really bad day. He spent a good 2 hours total in his room screaming his head off. Gotta love those days.But about halfway through our meal a lady who was sitting at a nearby table came over and told us we had the best behaved kids she had ever seen. (I imagine

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-32814158867568883672008-02-19T15:35:00.003-05:002008-02-19T15:39:37.784-05:00

A few of you have asked how Jack is doing.Jack is doing....okay?.....Since the other day when he actually laid down without screaming we have had 3 other times of actually laying down without screaming.The rest of the time he screams. And yesterday he started kicking the wall or the side of his crib in addition to screaming his head off.I am not sure you would call this progress. But at least we

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-52715655883596475652008-02-18T09:35:00.006-05:002008-02-18T09:51:42.434-05:00

Just Checking in on you... Nuff said... Put 'em up...

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-66221260428668339242008-02-16T23:57:00.001-05:002008-02-17T00:00:03.880-05:00

Holy smokes Billy's work needs to get this for their employee's performance reviews. This year he was due for his evaluation in June. He finished the paper work and handed it in by July 1st, as requested.But he didn't have his actual evaluation meeting until DECEMBER! 6 months is way too long to keep an employee hanging.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-72668030368130377672008-02-16T14:50:00.000-05:002008-02-17T00:17:09.096-05:00

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-59456115176062044862008-02-16T11:31:00.003-05:002008-02-16T11:33:51.065-05:00

Right now I am totally immersed in getting ourselves debt free. It seems to consume most of my energy. I would like to lose weight too but I don't seem to have enough brain power to do both at the same time.For now I am content to watch our debt go down. As that gets easier and starts to flow I will start working more on the weight issue. One goal at a time...

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-61008514367255626882008-02-16T11:30:00.000-05:002008-02-16T11:36:39.722-05:00

We are now the proud new owners of the GMC YUKON!Yeeeeehaw! It is a beautiful beast of a car. We all fit in comfortably and with room for all our stuff.Too bad the gas mileage isn't a little better.God's timing couldn't have been better though as my van bit the dust on Wednesday night. It is going to cost 900 to fix.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-34195737477214945892008-02-16T11:26:00.002-05:002008-02-16T11:30:16.692-05:00

When I go to the grocery store, my favorite aisle to walk through is the coffee and bread aisle. It always smells so good. I just don't understand why coffee doesn't taste as good as it smells.Not that it stops me from trying it over and over. After all if it smells like irish creme it should taste like irish creme right? But it never does.I have been looking at the new coffee makers online and

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-53760316826405690582008-02-14T14:31:00.000-05:002008-02-14T14:38:06.396-05:00

Jack layed down for the first time EVER at naptime and hasn't made a sound. Usually we have 45 minutes of screaming before he falls asleep.Although I have the little girl I babysit here today longer than usual so I layed her down for a nap and it was sooooooo funny because Jack was eating in the dining room which is right next to my room. He saw me lay her down, tuck her in, and shut the door. He

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-41489557935231537732008-02-14T08:32:00.000-05:002008-02-14T09:27:42.591-05:00

It is sad to me to watch our newest boys as they adapt to a normal life.The oldest came home from preschool with his bag full of valentine's and candy. I told him he could pick three things to eat right away. You would think I offered him the moon the way he responded. So he sat at the table and tried really hard to bite a sucker. Finally he got through and looked at me with big eyes and yelled,

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-38435266200682299892008-02-13T19:19:00.004-05:002008-02-13T19:23:16.114-05:00

I found a car! A 2004 GMC Yukon that seats 9 people! And it is in our price range! OOOOHHHH! I am sooooo excited.We are going to go look at it on Saturday! Cross your fingers and say a few prayers that if this is the vehicle for us we will get it.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-13888441514807958812008-02-13T10:02:00.003-05:002008-02-13T10:12:24.759-05:00

I came here about 10 times yesterday trying to think of something to share with all of you.Did you want to hear about our attempt to get all 120 valentine cards signed and candied so the kids can take them to school tomorrow?Or how I have been working on our mountain of laundry on a daily basis?Maybe you want to hear about how Jack spent his entire day yesterday screaming in his crib because I

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-59391714672638435242008-02-11T11:05:00.000-05:002008-02-11T11:15:44.936-05:00

It's Monday. And the routine here is the same. Chaos, chaos, and more chaos.Last night we took all 7 kids to the store to pick out valentine cards. And of course the candy to go with them. We walked out with 20.00 worth of cards and about 15 in candy. Crazy. I try not to be stingy with the money for holiday stuff like this because I remember all too well what it was like to be a child whose

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-57666126251203477202008-02-09T16:43:00.000-05:002008-02-09T16:57:51.036-05:00

When I hear someone talking about putting wood in a car I think of this: But in today's world it seems everything can be recycled in a more sophisticated manner. Now when we think of wood being used in a car there is this:For the person who has everything or for the person who likes to customize everything they own (like my daughter who has recently learned how to change my desktop wallpaper,

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-6250364414363096462008-02-08T21:50:00.000-05:002008-02-08T22:07:50.258-05:00

I am surprised at how surprised everyone was with my last post. I guess I didn't realize how much everyone tries to hide their debt and financial situation.Part of paying off our debt is being honest with myself. I look at that debt every single day of every single month. It isn't going to go away and the balances are hardly budging every month. Nothing is more depressing than sitting down and

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-3457021543823956372008-02-07T14:22:00.000-05:002008-02-07T15:09:34.830-05:00

I have been putting lots of effort into paying off our bills. Every day I am faced with a choice to spend money or save it to use towards bills.It is not always an easy choice. Somedays that meal out, or that shirt, or those new rugs are way more tempting than saving the money to pay more on a bill we have.And sometimes things that I can't control, like needing to buy 840.00 worth of propane an

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-66091029623973113142008-02-07T12:56:00.000-05:002008-02-07T17:01:21.203-05:00

My husband is a computer geek. Yes, I admit it. If you show him a catalog or webpage with computers in it he knows what all those acronyms and code words stand for. And he knows which is better. He always somehow ends up on the page with the MOST expensive computers with the biggest and best of everything.Me? I look for how much it costs and what it can do. End of story.So I had to laugh when I

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-84975204465519165202008-02-06T16:15:00.000-05:002008-02-06T16:35:11.436-05:00

The doctor was waaaay behind today and so Billy and I sat in the waiting room until 11:00 which was a good 40 minutes past our appointment time.But it wasn't time wasted. Mr. Bill sat and told me all about his 5 year-old philosophies of life. It was funny to listen to him because you could tell parts of what he was saying were things he had learned at school and others were things he had just

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-62030610051593107762008-02-06T12:32:00.000-05:002008-02-06T21:37:23.303-05:00

I was watching one of those "sell your house" shows the other night on t.v. and the realtor/designer gal walks into the master bedroom and gasps at what she sees hanging on the wall.A t.v.!!!!!!!!!!!!! The horror!Apparently it is quite a fashion disaster to hang your t.v. up now. Who knew? (Well of course unless you have a flat screen t.v.) So I was really surprised when I saw a website that

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-8924299692016282792008-02-05T09:37:00.000-05:002008-02-05T10:05:58.966-05:00

A trip down memory lane...

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-47655571551581918762008-02-04T12:49:00.001-05:002008-02-04T23:15:01.613-05:00

I. have. three. kids. home. sick.T. H. R. E. E.***Edited to add: It would appear we are passing around Influenza A. Becca, who did go to school today, said the teachers were all talking about it. We are dealing with sore throats, fever, cough, stuffy noses. Mr. Bill also coughs till he throws up but he has always been this way. He doesn't deal well with snot running down his throat.***

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-15489079803044119212008-02-04T10:52:00.000-05:002008-02-04T23:09:15.683-05:00

As the tax year wraps up I have been hearing all kinds of tips and tricks to lowering the amount of taxes we will need to pay by donating to charities.While I know there are many charities out there that are needing help and money, I am always hesitant to give to most of them.Then I heard about Car Angel (http://www.carangel.com/). Car Angel is a non-profit company takes cars as a donation, as

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-68680700929869108752008-02-03T16:21:00.000-05:002008-02-03T16:22:39.650-05:00

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-29402102624032157422008-02-03T10:37:00.001-05:002008-02-03T10:43:43.151-05:00

1. I am thankful that we got to go ice skating this weekend. The neighbor girl babysat Jack for us so we could go and have some fun. I haven't been on skates since I was 9 so it was a whole new experience for me.2. I am thankful we have finally gotten Jack's screaming under control. He seems to have figured out that we mean what we say now and that every little thing is not worth throwing a fit

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-20110570517286066732008-02-01T15:58:00.000-05:002008-02-01T16:34:55.167-05:00

First off, let me just say this:OMG! I am glad you all do not do our grocery shopping. 1400.00! Are you kidding! Eeeeek! I would pass out if ever I spent that much on food in a month. Ye gads. Also perhaps I should have mentioned that I feed four girls who eat like birds. Small petite birds. And I also should have mentioned that we don't buy any processed, boxed, or premade foods. Well okay we

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-43117717175445516812008-01-31T10:42:00.000-05:002008-01-31T10:45:09.996-05:00

***THIS IS YOUR LAST DAY! Leave your best guess before midnight. Scroll down for new posts!***Are you curious as to how much money a family of 9 spends on food each month?Well I am here to let you in on our family budget. :)But first you have to guess how much you think we spend.Here is a picture of the receipt from my last trip to the grocery store. Megan, who is 4'4, is holding the receipt.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-57941841313301505052008-01-31T09:54:00.000-05:002008-01-31T13:56:57.057-05:00

Thank you all for your prayers and words of wisdom for us about Jack.I started this week with a new tactic for when he starts his screaming fits.I don't give him any warning but when he starts screaming I pick him up and take him directly to his crib. I tell him, "We don't scream to get what we want. I will come get you when you are done." And I leave.The first day we did this probably five or

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-56422062602613387402008-01-30T22:45:00.000-05:002008-01-30T22:55:05.661-05:00

It is apparently that time of year again.Time to go prom dress shopping.I have been hearing ads on the radio, seeing them on t.v., and watching them all over people's blogs.I love seeing the beautiful prom dresses in the stores. When I was of prom age my Mom was more interested in saving money than buying me a dress. Eventually I ended up borrowing a dress from a friend of my Mom's. And while it

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-90503508850372712972008-01-30T11:25:00.000-05:002008-01-30T15:00:31.647-05:00

Okay, I have a yeast infection. Sorry if that is TMI. But I am dying. I get a yeast infections a few times a year. No big deal. Usually I can just wait them out because they don't get too bad.But this one! OMG! I made a run to the drug store last night in the frigid cold because I could not stop the itching and it burns when I pee it is so bad.The box I bought is the one dose medicine but as I am

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-70253877993727949322008-01-29T14:07:00.000-05:002008-01-29T14:12:03.498-05:00

Today when I got up it was -15F.The wind started blowing and it now officially feels like it is -45F.We shouldn't even be able to measure temperatures that cold.Brrr....

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-84682684666110798522008-01-28T21:39:00.000-05:002008-01-28T21:43:50.024-05:00

99% of my regular shopping is done at Walmart. It is not because there isn't a wide variety of stores around me. It is because everything I could need or want is there.Well almost everything.At Christmas time I decided to get my husband the "ultimate" gift. I just had to find a little red nightie in the women's lingerie department. What I discovered is that Walmart has a very small selection of

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-81469186120016077292008-01-28T21:35:00.000-05:002008-01-28T22:09:32.613-05:00

Shhh! It's nappy time. Helping to make the brownies Teenager in training Testing our Christmas jammies.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-46234549413293868362008-01-28T21:32:00.000-05:002008-01-28T21:37:41.314-05:00

Continuing with my debt-reduction theme for the year I have been checking into other insurance companies for our life insurance. We currently have the basic term insurance that ends when we are 60-something. My ultimate goal is to get it moved into whole life insurance so the rate does not continue to go up and we are covered until death-does-us-part.I have been asking for a life insurance quote

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-31681987354104739342008-01-27T13:34:00.000-05:002008-01-27T13:48:07.230-05:00

This weekend we took all the kids (plus 4 extra) to a motel in a neighboring town to do a swim/sleepover for Becca's birthday.I was aprehensive about how Jack would do while we were at this sleepover but didn't want all of the kids to suffer because he has not been properly trained in the ways of the world. So we all went.Saturday night went great because we spent 90% of our time in the pool.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-89734887798857911152008-01-27T13:28:00.000-05:002008-01-27T13:33:05.530-05:00

I have been reading a lot of websites geared towards gaining financial freedom.One tip that almost all of these websites have in common is their push to use coupons when shopping to help save you money.I have to admit I am not a big coupon user. If I have one that is for something I buy regularly I will use it if I remember it when I am shopping. But for the most part I don't use any coupons.I

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-60661498275161909372008-01-25T22:09:00.000-05:002008-01-25T22:17:47.535-05:00

When we remodeled the downstairs bathroom...well let me back up a bit...When we made a bathroom downstairs out of what formerly was the walk in pantry (I use that term very loosely here) we planned everything down to the light fixtures. We decided to go with recessed lights because they would provide a good amount of light and we could have light not only above the vanity but also above the

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-62253762018220733852008-01-25T10:49:00.000-05:002008-01-25T10:58:51.499-05:00

Here are the final two questions for Ask Jodi:Vegas Princess asks:What is the hardest part of your day?For me the afternoon is the hardest part of the day. I am a morning person so I have lots of energy in the morning and can get a lot done. By mid afternoon I am tired and dragging and then the kids all get home from school and have oodles of homework to do.What do you wish you had more of in

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-62012183720640590252008-01-24T21:50:00.000-05:002008-01-24T21:56:11.178-05:00

I was talking to one of my friends the other day and she mentioned that she intended to buy a new mattress and boxspring with her income tax return. I laughed and said that is something we should probably do too since our bed is well over 11 years old.I had to hold the phone away from my ear as she screamed something about bad backs and bugs and allergies.She started telling me all about the new

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-6061842351857949792008-01-24T21:45:00.001-05:002008-01-24T21:47:33.979-05:00

I have a new favorite blog. I was doing some 80's searches and ran across this blog: Life in The 80'sThey have a list of 80's toys, 80's t.v. shows, 80's movies, and other 80's related stuff.Looking through all this sure brings back memories.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-64317635978273907792008-01-24T21:38:00.000-05:002008-01-24T21:44:34.081-05:00

I have worn a watch off and on for most of my adult years. I started this in high school and then it would break or the battery would die and it would be weeks or months before I got a new watch.In high school (I am going to show my age here) we had to have Guess watches and then the Swatch Watch came out. Do you remember those? They were sooooo cool! I think at one time I had 3 or 4 that I wore

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-5078355930552945282008-01-24T10:03:00.000-05:002008-01-24T10:27:46.927-05:00

Allie asks:Do you like sour cream? Love it! A little too much probably.Have you ever tried sword fish? No. I have had most fish but not this one.Do you keep your eyes open when you kiss? Depends. :)Ripple or plain chips? Ripple if I eat them. I am not a big chip fan.Are you adopted? Nope.Do you knit? No.Are you right or left handed? Right handed. Do you get "alone" time with your husband? Not

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-80359506342435466452008-01-24T09:55:00.000-05:002008-01-24T10:02:51.839-05:00

Yesterday I ran some computer parts to town. While I was there I stopped at Taco John's for lunch.As I sat eating my lunch a guy walked in the door. He was dressed very much like Vanilla Ice was in the 80's. I had to chuckle as I saw this teenager sit down for a job interview with the manager. That certainly isn't how I ever dressed for a job interview no matter how casual the place was.I was

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-90371100341881370032008-01-23T20:43:00.000-05:002008-01-23T20:44:24.147-05:00

This picture pretty much sums up my day. Not full of food though.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-35605771980680031082008-01-22T08:57:00.000-05:002008-01-22T09:16:44.190-05:00

Ready for day two of answers to your questions? Here we go:JG didn't really ask but rather stated:Well since you live in South Dakota, I am curious on what your stance on abortion is.I must say my first thought was, what does living in South Dakota have to do with this? Does living in South Dakota have an impact on how I think about things like abortion? Hmmm. At any rate this is one of those

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-16198178523685544952008-01-21T12:49:00.000-05:002008-01-21T13:07:59.958-05:00

This is too much laundry. I nap..you finish it.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-50234667922345461712008-01-21T09:52:00.000-05:002008-01-21T10:24:44.786-05:00

Okay, here is our first installment of ask Jodi.Let me just say first how much I appreciate all of you taking the time to ask a question (or two) and making this game so much fun. I got a good giggle out of some of the questions and others really made me think.So without further ado here is question number one by Chris:Are you going to have more children?Well Chris, the short answer is no. The

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-55202326095259393092008-01-19T21:54:00.000-05:002008-01-19T21:56:56.795-05:00

Thank you for all the wonderful questions!I will start answering them on Monday so if you haven't asked me what you have always wanted to ask, run to this post and leave me a question. You have less than 24 hours.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-18812464818969340242008-01-19T21:33:00.000-05:002008-01-19T21:38:32.625-05:00

One of my goals for this year is to become more financially educated. That means I need to figure out what the heck stocks and bonds are, what our 401K is and how it works, and other ways we can invest our money and make it grow.I have tried reading websites and articles but most of the time the jargon is so technical that I can't understand what I am reading. I have thought about hiring someone

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-90318117080189022332008-01-19T21:31:00.000-05:002008-01-19T22:47:02.741-05:00

This new bed you bought the dog for Christmas... Is very very comfortubuhls...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz... Go way now pls k thnx...**Ignore the date on the pics. The camera is wonky and likes to have whatever date it wants on the pictures now. I need to figure out how to turn the thing off.**

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-38043303768596208222008-01-19T21:26:00.000-05:002008-01-19T21:31:44.019-05:00

We used to own a blue Plymouth Voyager. It is the most family-looking family van available. After we owned ours for about 3 years the transmission went out. Of course it couldn't happen while we were backing out of the driveway. It happened as we were pulling out of the parking lot at the store 30 miles from our house.We managed to get it in the shop and get it fixed but it cost more than the van

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-62161138459581689522008-01-18T09:25:00.000-05:002008-01-17T21:32:35.087-05:00

Let's play, "Ask Jodi"Since I am tired of hearing myself babble I am opening up the floor to those of you who read here.What are the rules of "Ask Jodi"?They are very simple:Ask Jodi a question. Any question you would like. Do you want to know what I had for breakfast? How I manage life with 7 kids? What color my bedroom is? What political party I am registered under? Or how I feel about abortion

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-23804730455103082222008-01-17T09:52:00.000-05:002008-01-17T09:55:15.374-05:00

There are days when I get so much spam in my email that I imagine the servers are sputtering smoke trying to keep up with the overload.But today, as I was sifting through the junk I saw one spam that I wished was for real: Invitation: 4 days/3 nights in Bahamas for toogirls2000@yahoo.comI could really really use a trip to a warm exotic location right about now. The temps here have been in the

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-71238326271656280782008-01-16T13:19:00.000-05:002008-01-16T13:30:30.927-05:00

Well the teacher and parents met. The teacher walked in with a three page agenda she wanted to cover. And she did. She read the things that had been said in the past through notes and comments. Then she read about the child. How wonderful she is but also how meticulous she is. Then she went down the list of things she thinks the CHILD needs to do to make this situation better.Now I understand

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-31580723755210199372008-01-15T14:19:00.001-05:002008-01-15T14:27:40.196-05:00

Remember when you were a kid and you would drink a glass of koolaid and then walk around with a koolaid mustache for days? Apparently Koolaid noticed too because it isn't what it used to be.Megan, my 10 year old, has been begging for blue highlights in her white blond hair for months now. At first I psssshawed her because she is ten and blue hair is not really cool like it was in the 80's. But

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-53811115238224024132008-01-15T14:13:00.001-05:002008-01-15T14:18:17.729-05:00

Now that a new year has rolled around the media is hitting the advertising hard. We are seeing ads for weight loss much like we see the election ads come voting season. Personally I get rather frustrated at the amount of time and money companies are throwing at us to get us to buy their product.But there are some ads I have been seeing a lot of lately that are interesting to me. Those are ads

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-88312372758296654562008-01-13T12:03:00.000-05:002008-01-13T12:29:04.577-05:00

I read this article in the news and again in Merritt's blog.Bascially the article states that ADHD is just a matter of maturity of the brain. And that it will get better as the child ages. And that early parenting can add to the problems of ADHD. You can read the details for yourself.Here is my deal. I have a daughter with ADHD amongst many other acronyms. But we opted at the age of 4 to treat

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-38463874441099045482008-01-10T14:16:00.000-05:002008-01-10T14:31:02.143-05:00

As we drive to the school everyday we pass corn and bean fields. This time of year the cows are left to forage in the corn fields so we pass many cows as they chew their cud.Jack and the little girl I babysit both are fascinated by cows and so each time they see cows they yell out, "Moooooooo!"I just take it in stride since we do this daily.But the other day Becca stayed home sick and so she

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-70371816912574331182008-01-09T15:08:00.000-05:002008-01-09T22:32:08.492-05:00

My life is so exciting today that I am going to give you the play by play:At 1:45 the repairman for my BRAND NEW washing machine knocked on my door. (Well okay he didn't knock. I saw him coming and opened the door for him.)At 1:45:30 I escorted him up the stairs and instructed him to take a left and then another left to the end of the hall. He mumbled something like, "Gotta love these old houses"

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-10625540205985931992008-01-08T17:03:00.001-05:002008-01-08T17:09:15.164-05:00

A child I know, not my child mind you, is in fifth grade.This child comes home with homework every single night, holidays included. Halloween night was spent alternately trick-or-treating and doing homework.This homework is not a mere 15 minutes of homework nor a mere hour of homework. It is regularly 4 to 5 hours worth of homework a night.This child is a little slower in getting homework done,

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-70773810018241679632008-01-08T07:07:00.000-05:002008-01-08T08:42:15.082-05:00

Jack is on a 'no' kick lately. No matter what we ask him he answers with a loud, "NO!"So the other day in the car the kids were having fun with this."Jack do you have a nose?""No!""Jack are you one?""No!""Jack are you wearing your coat?""No!""Jack is your name Jack?""No!"And then Megan pulls out a pack of gum and says, "Jack do you want some candy?"Jack's eyes lit up and he said, "Jack,

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-47804587394741177542008-01-08T06:28:00.000-05:002008-01-08T09:31:55.413-05:00

I was watching part of Oprah yesterday before my kids got home from school and it was an "Ask Dr. Oz" show.At the beginning of the show Dr. Oz pulled a tapeworm out of a glass jar. A very long nasty tapeworm. He said many people across the globe have some type of parasite or worm and just don't know it.It sure made me want to run for one of those colon cleanse products. But after watching Dr. Oz

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-79453531848080598722008-01-06T16:54:00.001-05:002008-01-06T17:03:24.341-05:00

Things I am thankful for this week: 1. My new washer and dryer. I get so many more loads of laundry done in one day now. It is a beautiful thing to see those baskets empty so quickly now.2. The ability for kids to be quiet. Sometimes the noise level in my house rivals that of a superbowl crowd. But there are times, like last night, as we all sat down to watch Santa Clause 3 that they were all

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-68663690985064557992008-01-04T15:49:00.000-05:002008-01-04T15:56:33.123-05:00

Have any of you heard of this show? It is on Lifetime tonight.I saw a preview of it this morning on our local news and I was immediately interested. They showed a clip from the show where three women are walking down the street and they have a black square over their face with the letters A, B, and C on them. They asked which woman looked the heaviest. Most of the audience picked the middle lady,

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-64233329898376295392008-01-03T22:58:00.000-05:002008-01-03T23:05:19.584-05:00

***Warning this post is waaaaay TMI so if you don't want to hear the personal details of my life go now****The rest of you follow me down here*****Billy went to the doctor today for his consult with the vasectomy doctor.He called me after he got out to let me know how it went. He was half talking and half reading the brochure the doctor had given him.At one point he was reading the part about how

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-38173856549404762312008-01-03T15:52:00.000-05:002008-01-03T15:57:36.787-05:00

Did you all know about this? Holy cow where have I been?Amazon.com has a grocery section! And things come in multi-packages! So I can do bulk shopping without having to go to walmart and be embarrassed as people see us in line with 3 carts of food because one box or can of anything is not enough for a family of 9.And each item comes in individual boxes not like at Sam's club where the cereal come

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-44169516179687830422008-01-03T10:17:00.000-05:002008-01-03T11:50:38.177-05:00

As I took down my Christmas decorations this year I stopped and noticed what we have for wall decor. What I noticed very quickly is that 90% of it is pictures of our family. Which is good except for the fact that most of the pictures are really old.For example I have a grouping with Becca's baby pictures and some random family pictures of us when we had only two kids. The other grouping is of

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-89895771247780944022008-01-02T08:50:00.000-05:002008-01-02T09:38:51.443-05:00

I was tagged by Perri for this one.Here's how it works:Link to the person that tagged youPost the rules on your blog.Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself on your blog.Tag 7 random people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.7 random/weird things about me:1. I like yogurt and bananas

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-19525717071001052762008-01-01T11:44:00.001-05:002008-01-01T12:05:05.972-05:00

Well for the last few years I have been setting some financial goals every year to try and get ourselves into a better position by the years end. Last year's goals are here. I went back and looked at our goals to see if we had made any progress.2007:1. Stop using credit to purchase things. If we don't have cash, we don't need it.(For starters I shredded our credit cards this morning. I almost

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-44045027221697579092007-12-31T10:59:00.000-05:002008-01-02T10:12:43.029-05:00

At 7:50 this morning the dog started barking like crazy. Billy jumped out of bed to see what the deal was.Someone was at the door.That someone was the lady I babysit for. Ummm, hello Jodi, it is Monday. You have to babysit today.Oops. So Billy let her in and talked with her and I jumped in the shower and got ready.Clearly this vacation is going to my head.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-69003352446424267842007-12-29T13:39:00.000-05:002007-12-29T13:49:18.551-05:00

As we were driving to my SIL's for our Christmas get-together we drove past a lake. I must add that the temperature according to our van at that time was 7F. As we drove past that lake we saw many many crazy people men sitting on the frozen lake with a fishing pole in their hand.Some of them were sitting on nothing more than a 5 gallon bucket. Others had tents and other camping gear and still

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-23633194521296976462007-12-28T14:21:00.000-05:002007-12-28T14:28:12.568-05:00

Grandpa gave the kids a Playstation 2 for Christmas. (Well he sent money, we bought it. Surprise Grandpa!) And we bought the one that came with this new Super Star game. Which isn't really a game but rather karaoke for the playstation.And it is addicting. Billy and I spent all afternoon on Christmas singing our little hearts out. Neither of us could form coherent words or sentences for hours

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-82085819858791407962007-12-27T15:08:00.000-05:002007-12-27T15:12:06.978-05:00

Today I am searching for a little bit of peace and quiet.Because my husband has gone back to work, there are 7 kids in my house today. Did you all know I had seven kids? Because, seriously dude, you should have told me about the extra six kids. It was quite a shock to the system this morning.I have been sneaking off into what I think are empty rooms only to find one or two kids already there

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-27278811664733009682007-12-26T11:47:00.000-05:002007-12-26T11:54:50.529-05:00

My Becca, you are 12 today.12 years go by so fast when you are a Mom. I remember the day you were born so vividly. It is hard to believe that cute chubby little girl is turning into a young lady right before my eyes.There are so many things I can't wait to share with you as you enter this stage of your life. So many things you don't know about this world that you will discover over the next

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-77076712620739826912007-12-25T19:44:00.000-05:002007-12-25T19:47:30.345-05:00

This year has to have been one of the best Christmas Day's ever.We are all sitting here with full tummies. We spent the afternoon playing karaoke on the kid's new Playstation 2. I am hoarse from singing my little heart out (and no I cannot sing well) but it was fun.We have 7 beautiful kids and many wonderful friends and family.I hope you all had a great day too.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-42696468934093883832007-12-24T21:18:00.001-05:002007-12-24T21:19:49.004-05:00

I hope you are all tucked safely into your warm beds enjoying your friends and family.Merry Christmas!

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-12821103996672639212007-12-24T21:11:00.000-05:002007-12-24T21:16:01.809-05:00

I took the battery out of my scale and hid the whole thing under the sink in the bathroom.I am slowly accepting my body for what it is. It is precious to me because it provided me with 4 beautiful and healthy babies. Sure somedays I wish I didn't have stretch marks. And others I wish I weighed about 20 pounds less. But when I feel bad and catch that little voice in my head telling me I am fat or

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-80725472930153540212007-12-24T21:05:00.000-05:002007-12-24T21:10:55.216-05:00

It is just hours until Santa hits my house. Which started this conversation over dinner. Names have been changed to avoid life-altering embarrassment.Kid 1: Mom, how is Santa going to get in our house if we don't have a chimney?Kid 2: We do too have a chimney! I have seen it sticking out of the roof.Kid 1: No we don't! A chimney is big.Kid 2: We do. It is just a really small one. Right Mom?Mom:

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-15902455005496421392007-12-24T21:00:00.000-05:002007-12-24T21:04:52.401-05:00

Well it is official...We have worn out the threats of being good or Santa won't bring gifts. The kids don't even flinch anymore when we tell them to knock it off or Santa will leave them coal.You have no idea how tempting it is to put a lump of coal in each of their stockings to see their faces on Christmas morning. Afterall don't all the parenting books tell you to make good on a threat if you

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-29350499107208872642007-12-21T20:59:00.002-05:002007-12-21T21:07:41.129-05:00

Here is the Christmas card we decided to go with. The cute little gingerbread men at the bottom are part of the animation that Billy made for the parade of lights float at his work. It is adorable! Merry Christmas to all my friends and family! I hope 2008 is a great year for you.

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-78694183946155513692007-12-21T20:37:00.000-05:002007-12-21T20:58:40.785-05:00

Sometimes it is good to label your child's belongings so if it gets lost it is easily returned.Like the 5 dozen or so gloves that we have already had to dig out of the lost and found at school and on the bus. Not to mention the 4 hats I have had to recover after a child claimed that they were in their "backpack" which I have learned is code for "I don't know where it is Mom".So when Megan started

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-68690279249418678042007-12-21T20:30:00.000-05:002007-12-21T20:58:04.317-05:00

Ummmm yeah, the camera is over there people? Really what were we looking at?

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6679452.post-90949467754385644462007-12-21T20:27:00.001-05:002007-12-21T20:33:02.710-05:00

For years I have watched some people close to me drown in the world of drugs and alcohol. It is hard to watch and painful to feel so helpless.It breaks my heart to see young famous people like Britney Spears and Lindsey Lohan get into this nasty world of drugs. I don't think they realize what they are getting into and suddenly they are in so deep they don't know how to get out.The people in my

Jodinoreply@blogger.com0