I wish I had kept this up!!

Boy, I have really great 20/20 hindsight.....  this blog would have been so fun to keep up on.  Almost like the baby books I never finish!!

My Baby is almost 6!!!!

Wow, and Wow!!! My baby Cassandra Laree is almost 6 and It has been almost a year since I posted. I have missed the opportunity to archive some very funny things this last year. If I did make New Years Resolutions a good one to have made would have been to blog more often. I hate the fact that my mother has quit blogging since I enjoyed her blogs so much, but here I have been doing the same thing. Although mine are never quite as enjoyable as hers, but I guess those in glass houses should not through bricks. ( Does that even work here?)

I did not even send out Christmas cards with my yearly picture and letter combo. Sometimes I feel very isolated out here in Chicago area, but the more I feel detached from my family and friends the less I seem to try and stay in contact with them. I think I see a pattern here.? I think if I went to see a professional about my issues they would have a hay day with me.

Now to do a quick catch up for the last year.....
Ashli, is 28 and still living in the Tahoe area, but is currently surfing up a storm in Saun Juan Nicaragua .... she is on her yearly winter break from working for the California Parks District, and instead of snow boarding this year she is surfing. If it has to do with outdoors and adventure Ashli is there! I miss her like crazy and really wish I could see her more often. I really want to make it out to visit her in California sometime.
Brendan, is 23 and living back in Kansas. I missed him before he moved out here, but now that I was getting use to having him around I really miss him. He is doing well and happy to be back. Kansas City is really a nice area to live in and he has so many friends back there. The big news with him is that he asked his girlfriend Ashley to marry him on Jan. 13!!!! I think they are planning on getting married next Jan. 13.

Marc, is now 18 and a Senior in High School. His is 6'5" and taking special classes at a technical school to be a Fireman. His graduation is June 1st for anyone who would like to come to Chicago for his graduation. He is sarcastic as ever but now has someone new to appreciate his humor. Aunt Willie is staying with us when she is in town and she seems to get his humor. Marc is still playing hockey and improving all the time. Last year at spring break is when Marc broke his ankle playing hockey. He had to have surgery to put in a plate and 5 screws in. Now he with have to have surgery to have the plate and screws removed.

Cassie, is going to be 6 and in Kindergarten. She is taking ballet, tap, and hip hop dance lessons. She LOVES to swim. She just earned the special wrist band at Lifetime that shows she can swim all the way across the pool and back without touching the bottom. So now she can go down the water slide and I don't have to be in the pool with her all the time. She is 49" tall and growing!! She learned to ride a two wheeler this summer and if she is outside she wants to be on her bike. She now wants a swing in her room like Bryan and Jamie have in their family room.

Well that is more than enough for this post.... hopefully I will be better about keeping up on this. I am starting a new weight get rid of forever blog. Wish me luck!

Boyfriend???!!!

The other day when I was picking up Cassie from school she announced very excitedly that she has a boyfriend!!! I am thinking, NO!!!! don't let this start this soon. I guess it should have been a clue when she actually blushes when she watches Derick on Dancing with the Stars, or that she names any new toy Twist after the boy on Fresh Beat Band because she "Loves him" that we were in for trouble!
I asked what her new boyfriends name was, but she didn't know, but she was sure he was her boyfriend. I asked if he was a boy, that was her friend? She said YES!, and they are going to get married some day. I asked it he was aware that he was her boyfriend, and she said that he said okay when she asked him..... well, then she said she thinks he asked her, and then she said they just are. Now is when I drop the boyfriend topic thinking she will forget...... Next day I pick her up and she comes running out of school announcing she knows her boyfriends name!!!! So Eric is the lucky guy.... She is 5!!!! What are we going to see when she is a teenager?
The other day we took her to a playland and there were not to many kids there. She was following one little boy around asking if he wanted to play with her, and he just kept walking..... she kept following and repeating... would you like to play with me? Finally when he stopped she asked again ... would you like to play with me and be my friend? He replied, You are a girl.... she then replied , but I am a pretty girl.... and guess what? He then started playing with her! Cassie just does not understand why anyone would not want to be her friend..... I think that is great!

Payback is a Bitch.....

Before I start, I just want to say how bad I feel for Marc.... He has had a really ruff couple of weeks. He broke his ankle and tore the ligaments so he had to have surgery and they put a plate and 5 pins in his ankle. Now he gets to hop around on crutches all day. I think that would be a pain even if you were not 6'4" like Marc is. I keep trying to be aware of things that might get in his way..... but lets face it, I am not on crutches (thank god) and sometimes I just over look things that are obstacles for Marc.
One of the funniest things about Marc being on crutches is that Cassie has now figured out she can out run him!!!! As long as she stays away from the front of Marc and out of crutches range..... she is good. Today she was using one of Marc's favorite sayings on him..... "I am going to kick your butt!" and she means really his butt, since it is behind him. She soon discovered the problem was that is butt is REALLY high! I can see she is working this one out, and he might want to watch turning his back on her.
Oh, have I mentioned how much I can not wait for Marc to get his cast off? I know it is not as much as Marc wants it off but really close.

The Power of a Smile :)

This morning while I was on my way home from dropping Marc off at school, I had a pleasant surprise. I was waiting to turn at a stop light and glanced over at the cars that were turning towards the school.... some of those kids are driving nicer cars than me..... All of the sudden I notice a Black Suburban that usually is dropping off about the same time I drop off Marc (which is now 5 minutes earlier.... crutches DO slow you down) and the teenager in the passenger seat smiles at me! It was such a surprise I was taken back..... You don't usually see teenagers just smile at strangers. As I was smiling the rest of the way home it really made me realize the power of a smile! It took a grumpy old lady like me ( I have only had half a cup of coffee at this point) and made me feel good.
Imagine if you smiled at half the people you see in one day..... You would feel so much better and so many other people would feel better too.
I am going to try this.... I am going to try and be conscious of smiling at everyone I see.... even those drivers that make me insane..... and then see how I feel. I am going to assume that my beautiful smile makes them feel as good as that smile from the teenage made me feel this morning, but I am really interested in how it changes the way I feel.
Well look for updates on this in the future, and feel free to copy me and SMILE!!!

Is it Spring yet?????

Okay, I am REALLY ready for spring. For some reason this winter seems like it has been a very long one. We have been teased with spring a couple of days, but I am ready for it to get here already!!! I know it will probably be like the other years and be gone before I fully realize it is here. I have so much to do this year..... new garden, flower beds, deck for the gazebo and a big garage sale! I need to pick a date for my garage sale and get that done before I have to get my plants in. (Garage Sale is paying for new garden, deck and flowers!) I am also excited to start taking more pictures as it gets nicer outside.... but that is a different Blog....
Speaking of Garage Sale.... I am really cleaning out the STUFF... I will be selling a lot of things from the studio, things we have left from I-Wrapz and as many toys and household things I can convince myself we can live without. I really need a new lenses for my camera and I want to take a trip back to South Dakota, so this will have to be a REALLY successful sale!!! I use to think the new lenses would be the big ticket item, but with the price of gas it will most likely be the trip to South Dakota that is costly.
Well hopefully this will not be my only post for 2011, but my track record has not been the best. We will see how I do at keeping this up..... At least an update about this Garage Sale I have been talking so much about:)

I love being a mom!

It is Friday night, I just got out of the shower, and boy am I beat! Even as tired as I am I will find the energy to go play a game of candy land with my daughter. I need to treasure these moments when she WANTS to be with me. Her highlight tonight is going to be playing a game with Mommy and Daddy. How could I not work up the energy for that.
Marc is 17.... wow, I almost typed 16.... can he really be 17? He is spending the night at Brendan's who is now 23..... Marc would much rather play X-Box with his brother than hang around his Mom. Marc would much rather do just about anything than hang around with his Mom, but I know he still loves me. He just doesn't want to hang out and do things..... wait, I take that back. Last Sunday we had an afternoon out together. We even went to see a movie. He said he would go see it with me in the afternoon, but not at night. No, I do not blame him.... I am sure I probably felt the same way.
Anyway..... thinking about this has just made me think about how much I enjoy being a Mom...... even when I am beat!

Captured Moments

I think that is going to be the colors for my new studio. I have already decided to go with the Shabby Chic decor, and green and blue are two of the main colors I have to work around. I found this while looking for a new background and now I am inspired!!

Merry Christmas

It is Christmas morning and I am sitting here quietly waiting on everyone else to wake up. It was a late night last night, but I still can not seem to sleep in like everyone else. I was not up at 4 like when I was little.... but still here I am. On a regular morning you have to practically drag me out of bed.
I wouldn't think I would be up and excited. This Holiday has not been my best. For the first Christmas I can remember I have not made any Christmas treats, sent out any Christmas cards, or been in a jolly mood. I did not even by anything for Christmas dinner until yesterday after noon.
Even now sitting here it is not like I am waiting all excited or happy. I am just awake.
I think I will go get some coffee.
Merry Christmas Colette......be happy for your kids..... tomorrow is just another day, but today is Christmas.

Christmas Lights

Well I decided to go with the first thing I thought of...... and that was Christmas lights. I really love looking at the lights. Both on the trees and on the houses..... even at the mall. I always think of the Christmas when Cassie was almost 2 and we were driving around looking at all of the pretty lights. She would go OOOOOOOOOOOO, more? She would repeat this over and over again. It was so cute. It was also what I was thinking put in the simplest way.

I don't know where the time is going this Christmas. We have both trees up, but I still need to put ornaments on the big family tree yet. We have some of the outside lights up, but none of the new stuff we bought last year. Dale bought this really cool music thing that syncs with the lights, but he still has not had any time to get it up. He also bought these rope lights to put on the ground so when it snows on them they light up the snow. Well the snow is on the ground, but no rope lights to make it glow. Maybe next year. I bet it is really pretty. I will have to take a picture if we ever do it.

Okay, now one of my favorite Christmas memories. It was the Christmas I finally asked my parents if Santa was real. I need to keep pretending for my little sister Rhonda. I was always the first one up on Christmas. Well actually I would get up in the middle of the night to see what Santa left, since he did not wrap our gifts.....play for a little while, and then go back to bed and wait for the sun to peak up over the horizon. Then I would run through the house wishing everyone a Merry Christmas to wake them up.

Well, on this particular Christmas my sister and I were sleeping in our playroom right next to the family room. I woke up in the middle of the night as usual, but Santa had not been there yet. I hurried up stairs and woke up my mother and told her she forgot to put out the Santa gifts. Then I went back downstairs to wait with my sister, who was suppose to be sleeping, but was waking up. She asked if Santa had been there yet, and I said no, and since my mother was now making noise, I told my sister we had to play a game for Santa to come. I would plug her ears and she needed to hummmmmmm. She did and it worked. Santa came!

I am afraid this Christmas is going to be here before I know it. I have not sent out cards, or made any goodies. I have done most of my shopping (thank goodness for the internet!) I just have to wrap it all. I usually really enjoy that part, but I need to set down and relax and take time to enjoy this holiday season. Maybe sit back and look at it thru my little girls eyes. That just might do it! I will have to blog about all my new outlooks while I am doing that, but in the mean while I really need to feed the little girl.