Good day, Sunshine!

GO SPURS GO!!!!!

It is FINALLY warm here-82 degrees right now!! I am so happy! I was so very tired of the rain and cold weather. This weekend was absolutely gorgeous. We spent most of the weekend outside. We worked in the yard and had soccer on Saturday. Sunday the neighbors had a barbeque, so we spent many hours over there eating, playing yard games, and just relaxing. We had a great time. The kids were in heaven because the neighbors set up their tent in the backyard. All of the neighborhood kids played in the tent all weekend. I think they only came in for meals and potty breaks.




I was also lucky enough to receive some good mail this weekend.
My sister Erin sent me this sweet little package. I think I have turned her on to the idea of good mail. Now we just have to get her started on a blog.


Rachel sent me this amazing package. The box was decorated so cute! But the inside was fantastic!! She sent me some of here favorite Utah item. My husband is going to be so excited when he sees those cookies. He loves frosted cookies. Her note cracked me up. She said that May 6th is International "No Diet Day", so carb it up, baby! No need to tell me twice to eat carbs. :) Thank you so much Rachel! You made my day extra sunny.

Bad Blogger

I have been a very bad blogger lately. For some reason lately, I feel that I can barely keep my head above water. Things felt a little out of control, so I had to stop blogging/reading blogs for awhile. But I really missed you all. I realized how much I enjoy everyone's blog and how therapeutic blogging is for me. So I am back! :)

Because of my self-imposed time out with blogging, I missed this week's SPT. I will be there next week.

I did not get a chance yet to post some good mail I received from Amanda. Thank you so much! I am using the fairy poem for a bookmark. I love looking at it everytime I pick up my book.



Friday I went to a Purse Auction for our local SAFE center. This is a place that helps women and children who need a safe place to stay if they are being abused. This organization does so many wonderful things in out community. I was so glad I could help out in some small way. I ended up "winning" this beautiful hot pink purse. I love it! I am so proud of myself for stepping outside myself and getting something other than black. I need to expand my horizons.



Ryan had soccer Saturday morning. It was so incredibly windy. Every time we stood up out chair would blow over. The kids didn't mind though. They had a blast! (Notice the hair in the 2nd picture. It is sticking straight up because of the wind.)


It had been raining nonstop here since early Tuesday morning. We have an area of our yard that likes to flood when we get a ton of rain. It hasn't gotten in our basement yet, but that's only because I have been out there three times with the sump pump to suck water out of the basement window. Not fun! I would have taken a picture, but I didn't want the camera to get wet.

Hopefully now I can get back in the grove of things and keep up on my blogging. Can't wait to read all of yours!

Good Mail

Today has been a busy day and I am running out of time for a lengthy post, but I wanted to make sure I posted my good mail. It made me so happy so I wanted to make sure that I properly thanked those people.

I got my Doodlebugs order today. I went a little crazy this last time, but I have some friends' birthdays coming up and wanted to get Ryan's teachers a few things for the end of school. Her products always make me smile! Thanks Kacey! (Notice the cute mailing label)




Jenny sent me a thank you and this wonderful sticker from Chuy's. I am not a bumper sticker person but I may end up putting that sticker on my car. :) Thanks for thinking of me! Hope you ate some food for me.

Donna sent me this beautiful card with a very sweet note! You are a doll Donna!



Carlo sent this sweet card and also sent me a copy of the book "The Devil in Junior League". (Whoops, I forgot to take a picture of the book ) I can't wait to read this one. I am going to be looking for someone to pass this on to when I am done, so the 1st one to let me know, it's yours when I am done.

I am working on my 3's list for tomorrow, so watch out!

SPT Post

on tuesday, april 17th: $100.00 'virtual tax refund'

This week's challenge: The tax man has given you $100 and you must spend it on yourself (not your kids, husband, etc.) What would you spend it on?

I thought long and hard about this one. I am embarrassed to admit that most of the ideas that first came to my mind were way over $100. A new pair of Seven for All Mankind jeans, a Kate Spade purse, a day trip to the spa. Oh well, I guess I will have to wait on those. I have decided that with the money I would update my makeup. I am one of those people who once I find something I like, I stick with it forever. I need to get out of my rut.
A couple years ago when we were in Vegas, I was able to get my makeup done by a professional. The makeup artist used Bobbi Brown makeup. I love it! Now granted, she was a professional, and even if I used everything she did, I would not look like that again. But I really did love the products. I have bought some over the years. It is really not any more expensive than Clinque or Estee Lauder. So with $100, I could do a good job updating my look.

Weekend Recap

This weekend flew by. We left Kearney Saturday morning at about 8:30 a.m. to make the drive to Kansas City for my niece's baptism . It is about a 5 hour drive, so we loaded up the car with treats, movies, games, colors, etc. to make the drive as pleasant as possible. The kids were great, especially Ryan. He is so content to look at his Pokeman cards, color, and watch a movie. Alex was pretty good, but thank goodness for portable DVD players. :)

The kids were so excited to see their baby cousin Aubrey who they had not seen since Christmas. Not being biased, but she is absolutely beautiful and as sweet as can be!! Ryan wanted nothing more than to sit and hold her. It was so cute!


Sunday during the 11:30 mass was the baptism. My sister's church did such a nice job. They had us be a part of the entire Mass. We walked in with Father, he gave Aubrey a little introduction to the congregation. We also carried up the gifts for Communion, and then had the Baptism ceremony. Father did such a nice job of explaining every thing he was doing and its significance since my sister's husband's family, who was also there, is not Catholic. It was a very special ceremony and I feel so blessed to have been a part of it as her godparent.

Matt and Kerri (the other godparents and Craig's sister, Craig and my sister Shannon with Aubrey, me and Jim

Craig, Shannon, and Aubrey with my parents. Aren't my parents so cute! :)

Now I am just trying to get laundry caught up and shake this cold Alex and I have caught. Hopefully tonight I can sit down and catch up on everyone's blogs. It was only a few days, but I don't like missing out. :) Have a great week!

Snow in April- Again!

I need to start off the post with a little complaining. It is supposed to snow here tomorrow 2-3 inches. What the *&$#! It is April for crying out loud. We have already had Easter. It is supposed to be Spring. We are going to Kansas City Saturday and this better not keep us from going. I have already had to cancel one trip there. I know a lot of you are in this same boat as far as the weather goes. Is it driving anyone else to the brink of insanity?

Something positive now. I got my stinky, ugly boot off Tuesday!! I am soooo happy! I do have to wear the brace for 3 weeks, but I can wear shoes with it so no big deal. I was able to do the elliptical machine and can do some slow walking on the treadmill as well. No running yet, but hopefully in another month or so.



I took Ryan to Kindergarten Roundup this morning. He was really excited and so was I. The school he will be attending in the fall will have all day kindergarten for the first time. Ryan is ready for all day. He needs the extra stimulation. He gets bored at home in the afternoons. While the parents were having their meeting, the kids walked by with the teacher to go to the library. They were adorable, walking down the hall in a straight line with their hands behind their backs. I can't believe it is time for him to start kindergarten. Where did the time go?


Last, but not least, Hannah sent me this adorable thank you card for a book I had sent her. Notice the cute little ribbon attached to the card. What a great idea!

SPT Easter

for tuesday, april 10th: in your easter bonnet, with all the frills upon it...

I made the mistake of not reading the SPT for the week before the weekend. For some reason, I wasn't very good at taking pictures this Easter. I took some of the kids, but none of me. Maybe it was because of the weather. I am so tired of the cold. At least Sunday was sunny, but it was still cold. I had to put tights under Alex's dress. Just not as cute.

Being Catholic, Easter is a very big deal in our house. We would always get together with my parents' siblings and their children. What I remember most is the Easter egg hunts we would have a my Grandma Bothe's house. It was this big old house with lots of nooks and crannies. My cousin Tracy and I searching all over the house for our baskets and eggs. We always had so much fun.

This Easter was pretty low key. We went to Mass and then my parents, Jim's parents, and his brother and his wife all came to our house for our Easter meal. We had a huge spread of turkey, ham, biscuits, salads, mashed potatoes, and 3 different desserts. Also, Jim's brother's birthday is Wednesday, so we celebrated that as well. We had a very nice, relaxing day. Hope everyone else has a special Easter.

Alex and Ryan finding their Easter goodies


This is the best shot I could get. No one wanted to cooperate.


Celebrating Jim's brother's 25th birthday.

A Little of This, A Little of That

I don't really have a topic for my post today, so I thought I would offer you a bunch of random thoughts and happenings.

*Got passport photos taken today. We may go somewhere at the end of summer, so I need to get them done now. I don't think we will take the kids, but I am getting theirs done anyway.

*Got sucked in by clearance items at Target. Dang you Target! :)

*I am loving our new pop machine. (Yes, we are a little crazy and addicted to Diet Coke at our house.) Now if I could just find a ice machine that makes Sonic ice.


*Got the funniest, laugh out loud, pee your pants card from Jenny today. I miss you Jen!



*Thank goodness the snow has stopped, but it is still horribly cold here. It is just not right that Alex will have to wear tights with her cute little Easter dress.

*Today I asked Alex (2 1/2) to pick something off the floor for me. She looked at me with the most serious face and said, "No, I too busy". Humm, my own words coming back to bite me in the butt?

*Jim caught this shot of Alex yesterday. Poor thing, she wants to go swimming so bad. Good thing we are going to Kansas City next weekend and staying at the Embassy Suites. They have an indoor pool.

I hope everyone has a very special Easter! Thank you for sharing your lives with me! I am so blessed.

Can You Believe It!?!

This is what it looks like outside my kitchen. It is not a lot of snow, but what the heck!?! It is 3 days before Easter. It is not supposed to snow in April. It is super cold, too. I have already washed all of our winter clothes, so the kids are just going to have to layer. It better get warm here soon, or I will lose my mind! (By the way, it is still snowing and is supposed to continue tomorrow as well)

This week has been crazy because Ryan's preschool is on Spring Break. I have done a little more yelling than normal and I am not too proud of it. I need to remember that this is a holy time of year and try and be more patient with my children. Now if they could just be that way with each other.

We decorated Easter eggs the other night. The kids had great fun! Alex thought it was the best to stick her entire hand in the dye. They made quite the mess, but it was worth it.


I have received some great good mail lately.
Jill sent me this adorable thank you note. I love it!


My mom hand delivered our favorite chips and salsa. It comes from a little Mexican grocery store in Omaha. It is fabulous!!!! (Notice the price- cheap!)


Allison sent me a package full of goodies from her trip to Hawaii. How lucky am I! Thanks for thinking of me. It help to brighten this snowy day.

SPT Challenge

spt: plays well with others

Here it is, challenge of the week by Lelly:

one of my favorite comments has to be "plays well with others." elementary school social skills speak volumes for the people we will become. were you a shy child? were you the class clown? the social butterfly? do you still identify with that inner child? what are you doing for "play" this weekend?

i know it is tempting for those of us who are moms to photograph how we play with our children. i would love to see how we play with our friends, our neighbors, our siblings. are you having a game night? a date night? a girls morning out for coffee and target? will you go to a party? or a picnic? are you on vacation? do you find yourself intimidated by these gatherings, or do you jump right in and organize them yourself?

do you play well with others?


I have gone back and forth this week deciding how I wanted to do this post. I guess I have always considered myself a fairly social person. I have always been involved in social activities growing up, whether it was sports in high school, a sorority in college, or women's/children's activities as an adult. My husband and I love getting together with our friends/neighbors for dinners, game nights, sporting activities, etc. We have been so lucky since we moved back home to reconnect with many people that we knew growing up. It is so comforting to be around people that you have known for so long. And it is amazing how, as an adult, the age difference doesn't matter. My next door neighbor even babysat me a few times growning up. They are now a couple that we do quite a few things with. They were even at our house last week for cards. We feel so fortunate to have moved back to such a friendly town. For being a small town, there is always something to do. It may not be the fun a person would find in a big city, but we are pretty good at making our own fun!

Jim and I enjoying a Halloween costume party


Jim hanging out with the girls during our night playing cards


My good friend Christie. We have known each other since grade school. My husband and her husband are also best friends (see below).

Jim and his best friend since grade school. I have no idea what he and Ben are doing.



Our theater room where we hang with our friends. We watch movies here (of course) and Nebraska football games.

Okay, technically, these are not self portraits, but I figured they are about me, so they will have to do. Can't wait to see yours!! I know they will be fabulous!

April Fools Joke

It was actually April 2nd, but someone at Jim's office thought it would be funny to "personalize" his car. Reminds us of San Antonio!

Good Food and Great Friends

Saturday night we went out to dinner with 5 other couples to celebrate two of our friends' birthdays, Jeni and Christie. We decided to try the Country Club because they recently hired a new chef. The food was wonderful! My steak was perfect! Jeni had the duck special. I had never had duck before and, I have to say, it was quite tasty. We had such a enjoyable evening. I love long, leisurely dinner with good food and friends (and no children to keep entertained).

Top: Christie, me, Bridget S., Jeni, Reven, and Karyn
Bottom: me and Christie (She has been one of my best friends since 2nd grade. She and her husband set Jim and I up on our 1st date in high school.)

After dinner, two of the couples came back to our house for a bit. One of the couples is thinking about putting in a home movie theater similar to ours, so they wanted to check it out. We then decided to play the Wii. If you have not yet played the Wii, you are missing out. It is a blast!! It kept a bunch of 30 year olds entertained for quite awhile.

Top: Reven and Jeni "boxing"
Bottom: Jim "bowling"

Jim and I finally bite the bullet and bought the elliptical machine we have been wanting. We are so glad we did. I haven't been able to use it yet, but Jim really likes it. It is super smooth and very quiet. I can't wait to start using it. Maybe in a couple of weeks.


Hope everyone has a nice Sunday! Nice April Fool's Jenny!

Blogger finally let me post my pictures, but I had to do them one or two at a time. So painful!