Halloween: Take 4.

Because they don't "technically" celebrate Halloween in Germany....people bend over backwards to compensate for it. We went trick or treating tonight through our friends neighborhood that has a lot of americans and canadians in it, and it was my kids FOURTH time dressing up in a week! They have loved every minute of it, and it has been a lot of fun, but I'm definently ready for it to be over. And so much for my "lack of desire to blog" illness. I seem to have been cured by cute kids in Halloween costumes and the return of my handsome hubby.

Matt took on the responsibility of making Chase look hard-core. He used the face paint he had to use on himself in survival training. Chase loved it. And how cute is our little dorothy?

He's the man.




Matt didn't dress up, so I told our friends he was dressed up as a "party pooper". He decided Edward Cullen was a little more like it. Yeah, sometimes he does inappropriate things....that's why I love him.

IF YOU HAVE KIDS!!

or EVER plan of having kids.... READ THIS POST. Seriously. This is something every single Mom and Dad or even aunt or uncle.....basically everyone needs to be aware of.

Why we love the military...

The base put on an AWESOME trick or treating event for the kids tonight. There was a big trail all the way around the base with fun booths to trick or treat at and haunted houses and hot chocolate and burgers....just tons of stuff. We spent about 3 hours there and saw lots and lots of friends and had lots and lots of fun.


Chase kept telling everyone "I'm a Man-Guy!" ps-trick or treating with a diet coke in your hand makes it waaaay more fun.

Looks like one of those flying mokeys gave dorothy a black eye.



When else besides Halloween can you throw on some red lipstick and not feel like a hooker?

Just a picture

of this boy that I love.


going through a bit of a "lack of desire to blog" slump (I believe that is the medical term for it). I'll have something witty to say in a few days. When my husband is gone....my brain is also, and he has been gone A LOT. So I have been spending a lot time sitting in the corner, staring off into space, drooling on myself.

She's got a black eye...

and she wears it well. We'll just say that the slide can be a bit dangerous at times....and that it's already looking a lot better.






Mommy medical question: You know those little bumps some people get on the back of their arms? Well Hallie gets them really bad on her arms and on her cheeks. I asked the Dr. about them and he said kids usually just grow out of it and there isn't really anything he can prescribe for it. Any at home remedies you've heard about? Sometimes it gets so bad it looks like my 4 year old has acne!

Julie, have I told you lately how much I love you? **UPDATE**

I got a lot of compliments at Church today wearing this flower you made me. Thank you.

And I really love this hat you made...Hallie wears it a lot and people love it! I even had a friend borrow it so she could try to duplicate it.

I always feel super hot when I wear this hat you made. I love how it's just a little baggy.



Now what would it take for me to score one of THESE???

ps- I wish I was as crafty and cute as you are.

**Julie DOES Have an etsy shop and she said she's working hard on making more beanies and will be adding them to the shop now through Xmas!! Here is the Etsy Site: Julie's Etsy Shop!! Now go shopping.

Confessions:

-When I hear Matt's car pull up in the drive way, I close whatever blog/facebook/gap website I'm looking at and run for the dishwasher and start putting away and/or loading the dishes in or out of it. This way when he walks in he'll see how BUSY I've been all day.
-Hallie is a hardcore advocate for dental health. She NEVER forgets to brush her teeth. I'll have her in her bed, about to walk out the door and she'll bust out "I forgot to brush my teeth!" Then I'll try to convince her to just skip it this once and do it in the morning. "But I'll get CAVITIES!" She's so right. I'm so lazy.
-Sometimes if Chases' diaper leakes just a TINY bit of pee....I let it dry and wait for a more serious sitiation to strip down his bedding. This kid wipes out his sheets like 4 nights a week. Got to pick my battles.
-I am REALLY homesick for my family right now. Missing them like crazy.
-During quiet time, Chase takes a nap and Hallie watches a movie. I usually force her to watch Mary Poppins because it's REEEEALY long and I get maximum amount of time to myself.
-My car is always disgusting. Like science project/stuff possibly growing in the carpets kind of nastiness. The kids eat in there and get food everywhere. Chase wipes his nose on the strap of his carseat, milk spills, diet coke gets knocked over, I don't think the car has been washed since we moved here sort of gross. I'm always REALLY embarrased when someone sees it...but I still do nothing about it.
-I'm really good at hiding messes. I have had more than one person say to me "your house is always so clean". I smile, say thank you, and thank my lucky stars they can't see the upstairs where they would find: Chases wet diapers strewn about, dirty laundry and clean laundry piles getting closer and closer to eachother until they combine and all have to get washed again because I don't remember which is which, toothpaste coated sinks, toys galore, my bed which has not been made I think ever, lots and lots of dust, and my side of the bed waist deep in clean clothes which I put on for 5 minutes, changed my mind, then added to my "clean" pile. I only clean the parts of the house people see.
-I only shave my legs if people are going to see them. When I say "people" I mean anyone besides Matt or my kids. During the winter...this can become quite European.
-I drink sometimes 4 cans of diet coke a day. It's just wrong.
-I kind of like being a hermit sometimes and staying in my pjs with the kids and watching movies.
-I WOULD have a hobby, but I feel all things craft make too much of a mess and having to clean up after myself would not be worth having to do it in the first place.
-I have photoshoped (or had Matt photoshop) more than one picture to make myself look skinnier. Especially the first year after each of my kids were born.
-I am addicted to online shopping. I will order jeans just to try them on and send them back. It makes Matt crazy. But there is no Gap here where I can go and try them on!
-I am always sucking in my stomach. So often in fact, it has just become a habit.
-I'm always on the lookout for another kindred spirit. You know, like Anne of Green Gables kind of kindred spirit. I feel like there are so few of them out there.
-I DREAD taking my kids to church. We always go of course, but I hate battling them for the whole first hour trying to keep them quiet and watching Matt stress out until his face turns purple.
-I love compliments. I'm sure this is all people. But when I get one...I'll replay it in my mind over and over and over again. Or if it's on the blog, I'll read it again and again. I know, pathetic.
-I DO NOT LIKE to craft. Again, because of the mess it makes. And all the sharp things my kids can get their hands on. And the paint they can ruin things with. Or the modge podge...I don't even want to think what kind of destruction the modge podge could bring.


I could go on and on and on, but I think I've done enough internet confessing for one day. Now go and feel better about yourselves. :)

This beautiful girl.

I was driving home from soccer practice with Hallie today and postitioned my rear view mirror so I could see her. She was just gazing out the window watching the world go by. As I watched her I was totally struck by her beauty. I know all parents think this about their kids. I looked at her perfect little nose, big beautiful chocolate brown eyes, pretty lips, wavy blond hair, and I knew. I knew at that moment we are in for one HECK of a ride through the teenage years, because this smart, happy, fun little girl....is also drop dead gorgeous. (I'm allowed to think these things...she's mine!)

Wanderlust.

My good friend Kelly has wonderful travel blog called Wanderlust! She's doing guest spots on her blog interviewing people about their travels and asked me for a little info about our Greece trip. Check out her blog here!

Happy Halloween!

pretty spooky, right?

THE stack.

This stack of jeans has been sitting in the top of my closet for 5 years now. I have looked at them every day for those years. They are the jeans that I wore when Matt and I were dating (and a few years before that). They have pretty much not fit me since then. From the moment I got pregnant with Hallie the weight started coming on. Then the year after her birth I did a pretty good job at dropping the weight...but not quite good enough to get back into these jeans. Right after Hallie turned one, I got pregnant again with Chase. The fat pants came back out of the closet and back came the chub. I would cry, look at the stack, cry some more. I would tell Matt on a daily occasion that I felt fat. He would roll his eyes, tell me "You ARE NOT fat" and go on with his day. This must have been pretty annoying for a husband to hear his wife saying everyday, but he took it well. He also told me regularly "There is a BIG difference between fat and pregnant" or "There is a big difference between fat and just had a baby". And I would press forward, the stack of jeans always in the back of my mind.
You might be wondering why I didn't just throw the stack away. I felt like that would be admitting defeat. To throw away those pants would be to say, "I will never wear this size of pants again". I couldn't do that. I would no way admit that to myself.
Today (after months and months of avoidance) I stepped on the scale. My mouth dropped open. I weighed 1 lb less than I did when I got married. I ran for the stack, took a deep breath, stepped in front of the mirror, and started putting them on one at a time. Not just putting them on, but zipping them up and buttoning them. HAPPY DAY!! Then I would do a little spin in disbelief. They fit. Every single one of them fit. Today, on this very happy day, the stack has come out of the top of my closet and joined the rest of my daily wear in my dresser. They look so happy there.

My refuge.

When I have to go to the bathroom, I have to make a run for it and shut and lock the door quickly behind me. If the kids even pick up on the possibility of me heading to the potty, they're right on my heels trying to accompany me to the lou. I need this time to myself. Not necessarily because of what goes on in a bathroom, but because it's my only time alone to put my head in my hands and think. This morning I made a run for it, then sat in the bathroom listening to my kids fight with eachother RIGHT outside the door. They have the WHOLE house to themselves to fight as they wish, but the spot they choose is right outside of my little ceramic sanctuary.
While I was on my (amazing) vacation I thought a lot about my job waiting for me back home. Namely, my two kiddos. I felt like I had gotten lazy at parenting, was letting things slip. Letting bad behavior slide because I just didn't WANT to deal with it. As the week went on I felt rejuvinated and a renewed sense of energy and a desire to be better. Ready to go home and be a different Mom. I wasn't going to raise my voice anymore. Time to cut back on the movies too (Chase is kinda addicted, and rather than deal with his meltdowns at my refusal to turn on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, I've just been giving in). Hallie needs to pitch in more around the house, time for a chore chart for her. I need to have a better cleaning schedual so I don't feel like I'm always WAY behind. I need to spend less time with the computer and more one on one time with each of my kids and with Matt.
So this is the part where we get back to the bathroom. I've been home for two days and sat in the bathroom with my head in my hands. What am I doing WRONG? Why do they have to fight all the time? I was so excited to come home and start over. My goals? They almost immediately started blurring in my mind as the kids started going back to time out, and telling me "NO" over and over again. After just one day I found myself seeking bathroom refuge from my children again. I keep trying to convince myself that it's like this for all mothers and it's not just that I'm particularly bad at it. Sometimes, I'm not so sure though.
It makes the thought of having three of them almost unfathomable. I just can't do it. I'm scared. Sometimes I read blogs of friends who struggle with fertility and I feel so selfish. There are people out there who would do anything for a baby, and I'm sitting here totally able...just not willing. Our faith focuses so greatly on family and the importance of bringing these sweet (sometimes) spirits into the world. Focuses on being prayerful about it. I'm scared to take my question to my knees for fear that I'm not going to like the answer. I guess it's time to do a little self evaluation on selfishness....and see where that takes me.

Greece- Day 7

Matt and I drove about 3 hours inland to central Greece for the last day of our trip to see some Monestaries we had heard a lot about (and seen in an old James Bond movie) that were built up on top of these rocks that stood hundreds and hundreds of feet straight up in the air. They are called the "Monasteries of Meteoro". The oldest monestary started being built in 1382. It was ABSOLUTELY unbelievable to see. I do not understand how the HECK they built these things. There are stairs and ways to access the monestaries now, but there didn't used to be. Someone had to climb this beast of a cliff then set up a rope and pulley system to bring up materials and people. Craziness.


Striking a pose. Entrance to the monestary.

This picture makes me get a little weak in the knees. He's just so good looking.

You can see two of the monestaries on the cliffs in the these pics. There was like, 5 of them.

Another one behind me.

spooky right? Not really sure to WHOM all these bones belong.

Cruising around the monestary.

They made me wear this skirt thing to go inside. Any women who were wearing pants had to wear one over their clothes. No idea why. But I looked real fancy.

Trying to get a little artsy-fartsy with camera.

Look at this beast! The rock just stick straight up out of the ground! Then...there's a monestary on top. I seriously had my mouth hanging open when I saw it.

scary bridge. Very long fall.


A beautiful shot of the town down below.

Greece- Day 6 Parga

How AMAZING is this city!

taking a dip on a lazy day in Greece.

So cool old ruins. We're talking B.C. kind of ruins. Waaaaay old. Matt could tell you the history on this place better than I could (I forget this stuff super fast), but I know it was from around Cleopatra's time period.

Greece- Day 5 Porto Katsiki

We got up at our hotel in Nidri bright and early on Saturday (10 am) and hopped back on our scooter towards the famous beach of Porto Katsiki. It is considered to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. I'm sure you see why. Took my breath away. We spent ALL day here. Laying on the beach, jumping off of things, snorkeling, swimming, basically in heaven.


Porto Katsiki in all it's glory. Halleluja. (Matt says that is how you spell it...I'm not so sure. Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. I mean him.)

Finding my inner Greek Goddess. Or my inner little mermaid. Take your pick. I pick both. I shall call myself "The Little Goddess" or maybe "The Greek Mermaid".

My turn to jump off of something. A little lower than Matt's jumps. Good form, good form.


That's weird...Matt is jumping off of something again. With ALL the guys this time.


ahhhhhh, heavenly.


He just keeps getting hotter as he gets older. I'm a lucky girl.

Hero Shot.

Buying a little honey on the side of the road so my Mom can make me some REEEEALY good Baklava at Christmas time. So Mom, this is a present AND an assignment. :) I look forward to the deliciousness.

Greece- Day 4 Nidri

We rode our scooter to the Island of Lefkada and got a hotel in a town called Nidri for the night. Once we got to Nidri, we rented a boat and went out to explore near by islands and caves. It was a wonderful, adventurous, exhausting day.


Our captain, Matt.

Once I'm done posting from all of our days in Greece, you will astounded if you count up how many pictures I have of Matt jumping off of things. Aparently it's his favorite thing to do.

A cave we went snorkeling in. Pretty sweet huh?

Here's me snorkeling. The water is as clear as pool water. I can't even describe how beautiful.

Layin out on the boat in front of a cave in Greece. Never thought I would say that sentence in reference to myself.

"I believe I can fly". "I'm King of the World!" "I'm on a boat." -we could not agree which quote belonged with this picture. So you get all three.

This is a pretty sweet pic. Yeah, that's my husband. He's really good at jumping off things. That's why I married him. Mad skills.