If I make it two years...

...it'll be a miracle.  Sometimes I feel like everytime I post about daycare it's always whine, whine, whine.  My apologies.  I suppose watching 9 kids (collectively) other than your own for the past 5 years has gotten the better of me.  I have strong moments with big highs and very low moments when I feel like I am going to go crazy!  The last two weeks have been more of the later.

I never set out to do this job.  It was created out of necessity to stay afloat while I try to remain home to make sure I get to be with my girls in the most formative years of their lives.  This decision has proven to be the right one despite all of it's drawbacks.  The proof was in an email I received from Kadyn's teacher last Friday which read,

"Just wanted to check in and let you know how much I appreciate Kadyn.  She is a teacher's dream!  She listens well, follows all the rules and is always willing to help.  I often lift her up as a good example and role model.  I hope to get the students assessed next week so that we can individualize instruction soon.  Thank you for everything you did to prepare Kadyn for kindergarten.  She came very well prepared!"

Reading those words affirmed to me that it has all been worth it.  I try to count my blessings as I know things could be much worse and I know my job is the path God has chosen for me.  I have to confess though, I envy mothers who are able to just stay at home and just be....mom.  Yesterday as I ended my day I realized I hadn't worked with Brennan on one thing.  I find such joy in working with the older kids on letters, numbers, etc.  She was just kind of left to fend on her own as I was constantly tending to a fussy infant and a whiny, ornery toddler who gets into everything.

Sometimes I just want to scream to God, "Why? Why? Why?"  Why do I seem to ge the infants who are border line colicky?  Why do I get the toddlers who whack my kid in the head with toys and bite?  Why do I have to get the kids who destroy my house and throw all out temper tantrums.  Why do I get the parents who are in crisis mode with their family lives?   Heck, why can't I just be a stay at home mom and nothing else? Just a chance to enjoy my own children and give them ALL of me.  Just a mom who can take her kid to the park when she wants, a casual playdate away from home, a quick run to the grocery store, a swim lesson or two, or even surprise Dada for a lunch date?  Needless to say, there are days I've feel I've given myself away to other people's children and there is little left for my own family.  It's a very guilty feeling that, if I'm not careful, can leave me feeling bitter and angry.  Let's face it, children of this age are a lot of take and not a whole lot of give.

God always puts me in my place when I watch the news.  Families who have lost their jobs, their homes, their entire lives due to the economy or natural disasters.  The countless broken families.  The single mothers who are trying to do it all on their own.  Who am I to complain because I have minimal contact with the adult world,  been pacing the floors with an infant who refuses to be happy or let me get ANYTHING done, a toddler who won't eat anything I cook and then whine because he's hungry, a daughter who refuses to poop in the potty, a parent who can never seem to pick her kid up on time, my list could go on and on and on and on.  I feel so accountable for each and every child.  I want to give each and every child a 100% every day, but some days it is just impossible because one child steals their time from me at the cost of another.  I suppose I sometimes hold myself to an impossible standard.   I need to stop doing that.  I am NOT super mom!  It's all so very frustrating and exhausting.

Nope, I have no right to complain.  My heavenly father is taking care of me, even if it isn't in the way I'd prefer.  I have a strong marriage to an amazing man.  Wonderful children who I can be proud of and who behave....most of the time.  A beautiful home in a beautiful part of the world.  And the hope of career that I love and can return to when the time is right an the doors are open.

I'm not entirely sure why God has chosen this path for me.  But it is very, very hard at times.  I find myself daydreaming of my old job more and more each day.  No more wiping butts, snotty noses, bouncing fussy babies, tripping over kids and toys, breaking up preschool squabbles, disciplining ornery toddlers,  searching for binkies or things I just sat down that little hands took off with, etc. etc.  Just doing what I love....teaching.  Creating those lightbulb moments for children and watching their faces light up when they 'get it.'  Being around all those other adults who have that same passion and swapping stories.  Man I miss doing that all the time.   

Part of me feels guilty for going back to work before Bren turns 5.  If I get the job I hope to get in two years, she will be 4.5.  However, my heart tells me she will be just fine.  By 4.5 most children are pretty independent and pretty understanding of rules and expectations.  Language is pretty much mastered and an understanding of God and how to have a relationship with him is in place.  These are the big 'must haves' in my book in order for me to be able to leave my child in someone else's care.  These are the things that I want to be solely responsible to teach my children, not by someone else.  So I know that when and if the door opens for me to return to my career happens in two years, I will go ahead and move in that direction.  If not, God help me.

Until then, I try to hang on by a thread each day and count my blessings.  It's hard, very hard.  Glad I am getting away this weekend.  My batteries need recharged for sure.

She already gets it

Yesterday as I was strapping Kadyn into her carseat I reminded her that Monday was a school day and she would have to make sure to get to bed on time.  She said,

 "Man, I wish we had one more day off."

Jeff and I laughed quite a bit at that comment.  Only a week and a half in and she gets it.  Every person who's ever gone to school or worked a job has probably said that.  She totally gets it.  Although she still enjoys school, I'm pretty sure it's safe to assume the newness has worn off.

A New Normal

Kadyn has officially been going to school for 5 days at the end of today.  I think we have settled nicely into our new routine.  She is now able to get up on her own, with her alarm and get ready for school all on her own.  The only thing I do with her is fix her breakfast, hair, and pray with her and for her each morning.  She LOVES school.  Each day she has something fun to tell me about school and seems to be making friends nicely.  She has now changed her favorite part of the day from riding the bus too......making new friends.  I love that!

Bren and her daycare buddy play as if Kadyn was never here.  I was worried about the dynamic between those two for no good reason it seems.  My new little guy who is 16 months old had a rough first week, but seems to finally be adjusted and is pretty easy to care for minus the teething.

My new little baby is a firecracker!  She has quite the little temper.  There is really no in between for this little gal.  She is either hot or cold and you never know when she's going to switch to hot, it happens suddenly.  She has never really fallen into a schedule, so this week I decided it was time to get her on more a consistent routine. I'm hopeful this will start to alleviate some of the mystery crying.  Man that kid can cry loud!  There are many days my nerves are just SHOT from her.  Because she's so unpredictable and so loud, it's not uncommon for her to wake the others during nap time with her sudden outbursts.  Kids who don't get full naps in are cranky kids.  Cranky kids, make a cranky Mama.

Part of my training her involves teaching her to self soothe.  There is just NO WAY I can tend to her every second of the day doing what I do.  At some point, every child in my care has to learn that they will get me in turn as I do carve out time for each one of them to do something special with m, but self play and entertainment is part of being in daycare as I have a lot of needs to be met and they can't all be met at the same time.  A hard lesson for an only child.  It's not only a healthy lesson for them, but necessary for my survival.  A stressed out Mama makes for a cruddy daycare provider.  Good news is, I got this little gal young, so I can start early with how it works in my house.  She's a little slower to learn than my girls were on these lessons, but at least I'm seeing progress and that is encouraging.

Needless to say, there has been a lot of crying going on this week from little gal since she isn't getting her way.  However, we are making progress.  Today when she threw her first little fit, I took her straight to her crib for a cool down period.  It took her about 2 minutes.  That's a new record.  She's learning.  Even at 4.5 months children can learn a little control.  I keep thinking about all the tantrums I will be saving myself down the road and that keeps me going as letting a little one cry can be heart wrenching.  It worked with my girls so at least I know it is possible.

Anyhow, it's been a stressful couple of weeks, but each day gets a little easier. 

First day wrap up

We picked Kadyn up from her first day at 4:15 on the top of the hill.  She complained of being hot and sweaty and needing to use the bathroom, so I didn't get much out of her until we got home and settled.  She said she "kinda" made a friend named Kaylee.  Apparently Kaylee came up to her, introduced herself, and asked Kadyn if she wanted to play during recess.  The more we talked about Kaylee, the more she got excited about her.  She also said they sang songs to help learn names, had a short nap time (which she didn't actually fall asleep), learned a bunch of rules, had an afternoon snack, two short 15 min recesses, had story time, talked to some finger puppets, and learned the ABC's.  She also learned a new days of the week song which she sang over and over for her Kama and Papa on the phone. 

Apparently, a little boy did walk in on her when she was using the restroom in their classroom.  He didn't wait for his turn and did get into trouble for this.  She wasn't the slightest bothered by it though.  She said no one got in time out.  Apparently, they will be using time outs in her classroom.  She likes her teacher, Mrs. Rettig.  She had no trouble finding her classroom, wasn't scared or nervous, and was very excited to go back again the next day.  She said she didn't even miss her Mama or Sissy.  I'll just chalk that up to her having no time to miss us. 

She ate mini corn dogs, cheddar crackers, apple wedges, carrot sticks, and chocolate milk.  I was a little let down on their selection of food for the kids that day and her choice in milk.  We had a discussion about making better choices for milk and she agreed to just drink chocolate milk on Fridays and white milk on the other days.  I also decided that I will be packing her lunch on days like mini corn dog days.  She was hungry as soon as she got home even with an afternoon snack the school provided.  That's not typical for Kadyn to get hungry at 4.  For the most part, the lunches look pretty decent, but I'm not crazy about some of the choices.

Her favorite part of the day......riding the school bus.  Glad I let her do that for her first day.  She thought the stop sign that goes in and out with flashing lights was really cool.

Today, her second day, she was up and at em' all by herself.   Within ten minutes she had woke up with her alarm, dressed herself, and brushed her teeth.  That's my big girl!

Kadyn goes to Kindergarten

Kadyn,

This morning you stepped on the bus and I cried.  I could hardly stop to tell the bus drive my name as she introduced herself.  I cried so hard, in fact, that your little two year old sister said, “calm down Mom” as I crawled back into the van to drive back home.  Watching you climb on that bus for your first day of school was as exciting and hard as I expected it to be.

You were eager and excited to “ride the bus.”  Last night as I put you to bed, you were literally bouncing up and down at the thought of riding the bus this morning.  You were so adorable in your first day of school outfit with your pretty little bun on your head that you specifically requested I do for you to complete your look.  Your pink back pack was on your back and already you complained of it being too heavy despite there only being a few papers and a box of crackers in the back for your class. 

I was so proud of you for being so brave.  Most kids may have wanted to have their parents drop them off to school.  It is all new to you and unfamiliar, but you were more than willing to take it all on by yourself.  I guess I raised one confident little girl.  I’m so thankful for that.  I remember being shy and scared much of my childhood years anytime I was thrust into a new situation. It was an awful way to live being scared to take on new challenges.  But not you, you face them head on.

I cried because when I got home, there sat your bowl of half eaten oatmeal, your empty banana peel, and your empty “tuby” (as you call it) of yogurt.  That messy face that always needs wiped was not in the chair behind it.  That little voice that is laughing and squealing all over the house with her daycare buddies is gone.  The house has a weird quietness that wasn’t there when you were still here.

I cry because I know your sister will miss you.  Your buddy Sean will miss you.  Heck, even the new baby I watch will miss you.  You were in love with that baby and were so helpful to me always trying to entertain her, play with her, feed her, etc. 

I cry because I’m so stinking proud of you.  I send you off knowing your ABC, 123s, how to count to a hundred, how to read beginning words, how to do simple math problems, how to make good choices about food and nutrition, how to color, cut, and glue. I send you off with a passion for learning and discovering new things.  I send you off with a respect for authority and the peers around you.  But most importantly, I sent you off knowing and loving the Lord.  I told you this morning if you were to feel scared or lonely to remember you have four people with you, God, the Holy Spirit, Jesus, and your guardian angel.  We went on to speak more of how your guardian angel might be feeling on this day as this will be all new for him/her too.  You enjoy speaking of such things.

We prayed in the van before you left.  I asked God to cover you in his blood, to protect you, to help you surround yourself with good friends who will be positive influences in your life, to help your day be blessed and for you to enjoy your time at school and be eager to return, and to help you make good decisions.  When we finished you declared you wanted to do a little prayer of your own in the back of the van.  Sigh!  Did I say I am proud of you?

I cry because for the first time in your life, I am giving up control of you.  You aren’t leaving for good, thank goodness.  But for the bulk of your days, you will be surrounded with kids and adults who I have no control over. I feel I have prepared you for this to the best of my ability.  I pray that all that hard work and all those long talks of how to behave and think will pay off.  I pray that God will keep you close under the shelter of his wings gently whispering words of guidance and that you will heed his voice.  I pray that  you will seek his voice, and when you don’t, you will accept his correction and learn from it.  I expect you to take some hard knocks along the way, but know this is necessary to mold you into the person he desires for you to be. 

Lastly, I cry because you are growing up.  No matter how much I don’t like it or want to stop it, you are growing up.  You don’t need me much anymore.  You can do just about everything for yourself.  Wasn’t it yesterday that I held you in my arms in the hospital and marveled how perfect and precious you are?  How did we get here so quickly?  A miracle in some ways and a relief in others.  My mother wrote a letter for me much like this my first day of school.  Years later when I read it I found myself confused.  I expected it to be about me, but rather it was about her feelings.  ‘I don’t get it,’ I thought.  I do now, Mom.  This day is as much about you, Kadyn, as it is me.  My role as a mother to you has changed a little today.  This will be an adjustment for us both. You too will ‘get it’ my dear when you send your little one off the first day of school. 

So now I eagerly await your return.  Not because I can’t stand living without you by my side each day, but rather because I can’t wait to hear how your first day went.  I hope to see an excited little girl that has a thousand things to tell me.  I hope to see an eagerness to hop on that bus and do it all over again tomorrow.  That would make my Mommy heart happy and assure me that these last five years have all been well spent. 

I love you Kadyn. 

Love Mommy

Proud Dada@

Can't see it, but there are tears in those Mama's eyes.

Mama's loosing it...again!

Man, this is going to be a rough day.  Here come some more tears!  Sniff, sniff!

Simple and fun

One of my biggest challenges at the moment is getting little man to recognize his letters.  I have been working with him on these for almost 2 years now, and he can't get past A.  I saw an idea a long time ago and thought I'd give it a try.  Today was the first day we actually got to do it.  Simply collect as many bottle caps as you can.  Then put a letter on each.  So far we have worked on recognizing letters A-E.  So I labeled 4 bottle caps with A's, 4 bottle caps with B's and so on.  I then spread them out on the floor.  There are a lot of different things you can do with these.  Here is just a few ideas.

1.  Ask your child to find 4 A's and put them in a bowl (not only does it work on letter recognition but a little counting in there too).  Make sure they say the letter each time they put a new on in the bowl. Move onto 4 B's and so on. 


2.   Put out several different bowls.  Ask them to put letters into sequence into each bowl.  For example, in bowl number one they put A, B, C, and D.  Then they put A, B, C, and D into bowl number two and so on.

3.  Two person challenge.  Each person is assigned a letter to find.  The person to find all four (or more if you make more of each letter) wins!

4.  Get out your timer, see how long it takes them to find all the A's.  Each time see if they can beat their old time.

5.  Challenge your beginning reader.  For Kadyn she had to find letters to spell words that I gave her. 

6.  Start working on letter sounds too. Instead of telling them to find 4 A's, tell the to find four letters that make the Ahhh sound.  When they find it, have them tell you what the name of that letter is and then put it into the bowl.

7.  Have them pick out the letters in their name and spell there name.

8.  Make some for numbers too.  You can do number recognition, counting, addition, or subtraction activites with numbers. 

This is such a simple but fun activity.  The kids really enjoyed playing with these this morning.  Hopefully this will help little man get past this block he has on letters.  Bren is doing well for a 2.5 year old.  She can get A-C really well.  She needs a little help with D and E, but I'm pleased with her progress.  We've only begun working on letters with her for one week.  She enjoys doing it and works hard everyday for me.  I don't expect that we will have any trouble as she ages with this.  2.5 is pretty early to start letters, but she's doomed.  She's got a mother who loves to teach!  I can't remember exactly when I started with Kadyn, but it was early.  Now she's pretty good at reading for a kindergartener and simple addition and subtraction problems.  I'm very proud of her.  Would feel wrong not to give Brennan that same opportunity to learn.

Kadyn the artist

Kadyn's art has come a long ways in the last five years.  This last
week, she has been on a role.  If she gets an idea she's off digging out the paper and crayons to put on paper whatever it is that is itching to get out of her imagination.  I have been very impressed with what she has done.  Kadyn always picks art over playing with toys.  She wants to be an artist when she grows up.

                                            This one she created after seeing SuperMan Returns.

This one she created on "Sweet Saturday" the name is because it is the only day of the week the girls are allowed a big sweet.  It is like a weekly holiday in our house.  Kadyn gets VERY excited.

 

 

Ready for Prom....

....11 years early.

Remember how I told you I was on a beauty kick lately?  Well Kadyn has been more than willing to be my guinea pig to try out new hair styles that I've been learning how to do.  Today I did a high side bun.  We made our own flower clips to go in our hair, so now we have lots of pretty things to pick out and put in our hair that go with our new styles.  Today I stepped back and thought, 'Why I may just be able to fix her hair for prom someday.'  Kadyn's hairdo almost looked like she is ready to go to the ball....but we're just going to Walmart.

I feel for you (Part III)

I emailed my mother about my day.  I just needed to vent.  Sometimes talking about my life's stresses makes it a little less stressful.  She replied simply, "I feel for you."  Those words meant so much to me.  I don't want anyone to feel sorry for me, but to know someone feel's for my days woes, just made my day a little more tolerable.  It made me feel a little less alone.  She later went on to explain in another email that she could never do what I am doing now and not many people could.  She expressed that it would've drove her nuts.

I confessed that I have gone nutty on several occasions, but then I reflected on the positives of my situation.  I'm thankful that we can make our bills.  I realize that what I do has provided my kid's a very unique experience that many other kids will never have.  They get learn how to be social all under the supervision of their mother.  When I think of the alternative to what I do, working outside of the home, I know I made the right decision for me.  I don't feel I can regret staying at home to make sure my children are raised right during their most formative years.  I have learned perseverance and to be incredibly patient doing what I do.  I have learned to accept that there will be bad days, but for every bad day, I have a good one too.  I have learned to appreciate that each day is new, and new days bring new beginnings and chances to do things right.  Doing what I do also makes me realize how INCREDIBLY BLESSED I am to have the children I have.  They are truly AMAZING kids. 

All these thoughts stemmed from the simple words, "I feel for you."  So if you know a mom who is having a hard day, remember those precious, powerful words.  It may just make her day.

I feel for you (Part II)

I pushed my alarm back by half an hour because there was no way I was ready to get up for the day yet, and my daycare kiddos were coming a little later than usual this day.  Once up, I got to the business of my day.  Morning was awesome.  The kids were all getting along marvelously, and two of my daycare kids didn't even show until almost lunch, so my work load was lightened significantly. I spent my morning doing dishes and working on deodorizing Bren's mattress.

Then lunch came.  All 3 daycare kiddos were here by then.  Baby's Mama has been having a difficult time pumping enough milk to keep up with baby, so there was concern whether I could make it to the end of the day on the milk I was given.  I knew I could if she fed every 2 hours, not sure if I could make it if she wanted bottles sooner.  Wouldn't you know it, baby started crying for a bottle after only one hour had passed since her last one.  So I spent the better part of half an hour trying different things to calm her thinking perhaps it was something else she wanted.  Caved after half an hour of nonstop crying and had Kadyn give the baby a bottle, so I could help get little man down and Bren down for their naps.  Then had a little freak out session as new little man's Mama hid the diapers in a side pocket in the diaper bag and I thought I was out.  Finally figured that out and got everyone down.

Baby drank her milk in a flash and then it was back to crying again.  I was nervous as my new little guy has had trouble adjusting to napping at my house.  The first day in, the baby woke him with her crying fits and he cried the better part of an hour.  I tried cuddling and rocking him, laying down with him and patting his back, singing to him, nothing worked!  He was so tired, and I knew it.  This set the tone for the rest of this week's naps.  So anyways back to today.  Baby starts crying again and I'm freaking out that she'll wake everyone.  So I spend more time in my room trying to calm her.  She spits up on me, my living room floor, my bedroom floor.  More bodily fluids.  Seems to be my theme for the day!

New little man wakes after only half and hour and starts in crying.  Great!  I decide to wait and ride it out and see if he will fall asleep on his own.  I lucked out.  A few minutes later he's out again.  Shew!  Disaster averted.  Get baby down finally, and then it's a little peace and quiet so I can do crafts and preschool time with the older kids.


The rest of my day was pretty much more of the same.  Very fussy baby and me stressing out about this and that cleaning up more and more messes.  Whenever I could, I tried to work on Bren's mattress.  Tried vinegar water...didn't work.  Tried baking soda paste....didn't work.  Tried the sun....didn't work.  BUT my bleach turned out to be bad.  It smelled like water.  So we'll give it another go tomorrow with a new bottle of bleach.  I guess Bren won't die if she sleeps another night on the floor.

Part III coming up....

I feel for you (Part I)

Today started out at the butt crack of dawn before the butt crack of dawn.  At 4 a.m. little feet waltzed into my room and I heard, "Mommy I dity."  I thought, "Oh no!  She puked."  Last time I was woke that early with those same words, she was covered in puke.  Bleary eyed, we walked to the bathroom.  Once the light was on I was horrified to see my little angel covered in poop.  It was smeared all down her legs, arms, and up her back.  She didn't have diarrehea.  Rather, she just had a HUGE BM and then decided to put her hands in it out of it and roll around in it for awhile before she decided she couldn't sleep that way.  Needless to say, Bren is far from night trained.

So first I worked on getting it all off her with wipes.  It was a chore as some of it had actually had time to dry on her.  I didn't even want to attempt to clean her clothes so I tossed them in the trash.  Next she went in the tub for a quick bath.  Then I dressed her and put her on the couch to cuddle with her Dad while I surveyed the damage and got to business cleaning.  It was all over her bed and there was some on her pillow, bear, the carpet, and my door jam.  There were even little droppings on her path to my bedroom.  It was......gross.

Got everything cleaned and sheets in the wash.  Unfortunately even though I had a mattress protector on, the smell still went straight into the mattress. Therefore, Bren had to sleep on the floor in a sleeping bag for the rest of the morning.  She borrowed sissy's pillow pet for her head.  I slipped back in bed in a sweat from all the cleaning, knowing that it would take a long time to fall back asleep as I was wide awake by then.  An hour and a half later I was asleep.  The alarm went off an hour later. 

Beauty

I have been on a beauty kick lately. I seem to go through phases where I want to doll myself up and look super girly and other times when I could care less.  I'm in a doll up phase currently.  I have been experimenting with everything from hair, makeup, and clothing.

The first thing I tackled was my makeup.  I've heard a lot about mineral makeup but didn't give it much consideration because I was happy enough with what I was using.  One day it occurred to me that perhaps I would have better luck with breakouts if I had something on my face that was a little more natural.  I did a lot of comparison shopping and read a lot of reviews and decided to go with signature minerals.  There's not  much difference between it and bare minerals really.  I chose it because it had one less ingredient in it and it was cheaper.  Also, samples were free!  Free was super important to me as it can take awhile to find the right shade for your face. Anyhoo...I figured the less ingredients I put on my face, the better chances I have to clear up my skin.  After polling my facebook friends, it seemed mineral makeup was the best way to go.

I love, love, love it.  My skin is much clearer and the coverage is sooo much better than what I was using.  It stays pretty fresh looking most of the day and is amazingly sweat proof and water proof.  I feel so pretty when I have it on.  I am not the kind of mom that goes without makeup, so this was very exciting for me.

The next little I got to change was my wardrobe.  I lucked out when the gal I babysit for brought me a whole bag of nice summer tops and bottoms.  They were very nice brands and most of it fit me!  The best part, manyof them were super girly.  Cute little skirts and tanks.  Perfect to get all dolled up, even if it is only for the kids.  What the heck!  Feeling pretty is fun.

Lastly, I have been growing my hair out for over a year now.  I have had only 2 trims.  I have made huge progress.  Usually by this time I am sick of it and ready to chop it again.  This time is different.  I have made an effort to try all kinds of different styles so I don't get bored with it.  Thanks to you tube, I have discovered things to do with my hair I never thought I could do unless a stylist did it for me.  It has even inspired me to go longer so I can do even more.  Last night I slept with socks in my hair to try to get big pretty curls without the damage of a curling iron.  Plus, it saves me time in the morning curling my hair.  Curls turned out very pretty with lots of body, but man it hurt to sleep on them.  So...the verdict is still out on that one.  Another night I tried twisting chunks of hair and securing with elastics.  That hurt to sleep on too and my hair was crazy curly after that one.  Not a repeat.

Anyways, all this to say sometimes I just love being a girl.  It's fun.

Dada's toy

Jeff downloaded some sort of photo enhancing app on his ipod.  He lets me sleep in on Saturdays and Sundays.  Saturday I woke with a message on my ipod and this is what it was.

Bearded Happy Birthday

A two year old singing happy birthday to her mother with a chocolate beard.....priceless!



My 34th birthday was good.  For the most part it was like any other typical day.  I babysat and Jeff worked. I  got a bunch of sweet cards in the mail and a ton of shout outs on facebook which always makes me feel loved.  Once Jeff and I were done with work we headed out to a Japanese Steak House and had some great food.  The employees sang me happy birthday and served me a piece of cheese cake.  This was Bren's first time that she can remember to a place like this.  She covered her eyes and peeked through her hands when they lit cooking area on fire.  She thoroughly enjoyed her food saying, "mmmm" with each bite.  Very cute.  Later we picked up a movie at red box and headed home.

And that's what 34 looks like folks!