Instead of uploading some pictures from the last few weeks, I will just talk about nonsense. I find I blog more when I am trying to avoid something, today it is all the cleaning I need to do. I have started the laundry so that is something.
It is the middle of September and I am MISSING the beginning of Autumn. It makes me a bit sad. It is my favorite season.
At our house we have a ton of kids books. We LOVE Kevin Henkes!! I think we started with Lily's Purple Plastic Purse, we love to interchange our kid's names in a lot of the books, Emma for when Lily's teacher got married like Mr. P in second grade and Owen and his blanket for Jake...ok, so the Absolutely Perfect expression we got it from one of his books. So I am trying to make myself not get too terribly sad about missing Autumn time here in the south. I am going to list a lot of the things I think are ABSOLUTELY PERFECT!!!

The way Henry (yep, I think I wish we called Nolan by his first name) LOVES his baby sister Maggie, and he is really into baby dolls carrying them around and packing up his sparkly purse to take to the store. It always makes me smile!

great shoe sale at Watermelon Patch!!

Pink Lemonade with sprite, Shirley Temples, and cranberry juice with lime!

Matilda Jane

Orange

cool fabrics, chenille, vintage tablecloths

Anna being so excited at the orthodontist yesterday, she has not been that happy in awhile. as a side note, we found out she is missing 3 permanent teeth, anyone else with that??

A great online sale 75% at fgmnk!! TEA collection! a miniboden $50 credit for filling out a survey!! I love kids clothes!! I used to love Gymboree, but now after having quite a few things fall apart and that there is too much to choose from, and EVERYONE else wears it. I no longer am an avid fan.

Emma Grace collecting bugs and lizards.

Jakob singing all the time

central Air

finding a great new pizza crust recipe

Williams Sonoma kids cookbooks

pink lemonade cupcakes

really good tomatoes, and basil too

my new side bangs, which of course you only see if I don't wear my hair curly, so not too often

Toy Story 3 is coming out

the possibility of HN getting out of diapers SOON

Philosophy products

MK satin hands

flavored tortillas for wraps

Havarti, smoked Gouda (really any cheese) and bread

paninis

YBB, Zumba

being able to fit into some clothes that I used to couldn't

that having a large family in MS is not quite the freak show it was in PA

Bumble and Bumble products

my new sewing machine

Hobby Lobby with ribbon that matches the fabric

NordicWare

texting during the day with Chris

getting my grandma's very old art deco punch bowl and old handmade wooden biscuit bowl and rolling pin!!!

Any big mixing bowls, yelloware

baking and cooking

visiting with family

getting a good night's rest

a book that you just can't put down AND love the ending

laughing so hard it hurts

a good cry when you need one

waking up and being happy, not wanting to put your head under the covers.
I am glad to having more of the happy days lately.

I just saw this, CUTE! I think these sandwiches would need to go in a bento box.
herehttp://funkylunch.com/

Only TEN days until we close on our house!! Yippee!! I am fairly confident it is a sure thing, but you never know. Since my better half caved and got cable...I am hooked on that HGTV, I love that Real Estate Intervention show. Our second realtor Rose, was like that guy Mike...we hoped we would make some money on our first home and were emotionally tied to it. She said if you want it sold, lower the price. It worked.

We bought it at the height of the real estate bubble...put a lot of money into it, but selling it after the bubble burst. Well, I am thinking in most cases people are sometimes even lucky to sell their home (we have friends who have had a house on the market for over 1 year), and to break even that would be lucky too, but just not the case :(!!! So many people have loved to share their real estate experiences and all I am thinking if it was not in this market then ZIP IT UP!!!

On the other hand, it is possible for us to get a great deal on something now. We are not ready to commit to that now, though I hate renting a home. I do not like anything out there . Needs to be PERFECT to spend good money on. SO we are looking for land and will build unless we find something close to perfection.

Maggie got her first tooth two days ago!! She finally crawls like a real baby, no more army crawl. She is cruising around the walls and tables and gets so amused by her big brothers.
The kids are getting more adjusted to things, as I am. Think we are getting into the groove of the never ending chaos of taxing around to different activities, homework, playdates, etc etc. Having a lot of kids is BUSY!!! BUSY! BUSY! BUSY!!

I went to lovely Hobby Lobby and got a bunch of art supplies... paper, charcoal pencils, gummy erasers, pastels, colored pencils, blenders, etc. I love to draw, but have not done any real drawing since well I cannot even remember. college?? when Anna was a baby I was still in school, then we had Emma, and then Chris went to med school, and then I Had a boat load more kids and I have NOT DONE Anything for myself. no time, no money for a sitter. I am pretty much a mom, but who is Nikki??? I am not sure anymore.
I enjoy reading and read a book probably once a month, but mostly just brain candy.
I enjoy sewing, kind of...more now that I have a better sewing machine.
I love to bake, and cook with my kids
I don't love laundry and cleaning but I do a lot of that.
Where is my passion??
I used to draw as an escape from reality, and go into my own little world. Kind of as therapy. I probably should have been doing this the last 11 years.
I am committed to finding out who I am now, if there is any of the artist Nikki left in me. My first attempts were not exactly fabulous.

and I am wondering who has some great lunch ideas for kids??? something funner than a wrap, pinwheel, or sandwich?? by the way if you have not tried Horizon organic strawberry milk, it is great!!! I am also wondering why I ALWAYS misspell have ahve????

Sweet Emma Grace turned NINE last week!!! She LOVES
BALLET
hot pink & zebra print
Sideways stories from Wayside School and lots of other books
playing with Barbies, Bitty Baby, and bugs, worms, and other creepy creatures
(so funny because she is absolutely terrified of dogs and cats (tigers)
cooking eggs
her hamsters Sugar and Despereau
Funyuns
cookie dough ice cream
drawing
horses
shopping
painting her nails
cuddling
science

here she is blowing out her candle. Chris was on call on her bday so we had cupcakes with our Gulfport family that came up and around nine that night had her cute "e" cake.
SHe is having a fabulous carnival birthday party this weekend even with a cotton candy machine.

I love my EG, she has so many different interests and I think that makes her so unique...she can be quite the girly girl but LOVES to play outside and get dirty.

"You can look back, but don't stare.
The best is yet to come."

This week, I had one of the worst days I can remember. It was a bad day for my kids as well. I could have earned the meanest mom award.


I am really trying to "enjoy the journey" more. It is a constant struggle. I feel a lot of guilt and always have, deal with feelings of inadequacy, worry and stress more than I probably need to.

I felt helpless as I hugged my "baby" that is almost 12 years old as she cried about missing her friends and her struggles of finding her place in her new surroundings.

Sometimes there is not a quick fix, no magic fairy dust to sprinkle, no magic wand, it takes time...and there will bad days. But I do know that there will be some good days too.

I am not much on being a testimony sharer, just not. I do know that prayer works. I know that when you put all your ping pong balls (you know the church stuff) in the jar first that miraculously all the beans (LIFE which is busy!!) do fit. We have been praying and praying that our house would sell for months and months.
Jakob asked "mom, why don't you ask that it will sell on a certain day" So I did, that night I prayed that our house would sell that week. The next day the realtor called and said we had received an offer on our house the night before.

Whether or not things will pan out with this sell, I am happy that my children and I could have that wonderful experience.

Chris keeps a jar of rusty old water...he has had it since he was a child. When he was on a vacation, he prayed that it would snow. It did. That water is the melted snow.

No matter how far away I feel from the Lord...I do know that if I pray He will hear me.

I am hoping that as we go through difficult times, that my kids will know that too. They are sometimes a great example to me because I see my girls reading their scriptures more than I do. They have great faith in all things.

It is nice to be reminded of how simple things are sometimes.

here is my new favorite item...the Aden & Anais burp cloth/bib. If your baby is too big to be swaddled by the great gauze blankets, get these. They wrap all around the shoulder, there is no retarded pocket to "catch", but really means just make another mess, and they are soft and lightweight. I LOVE them. you can get them at your local Target. (and the blankets too, if you have an itty bitty baby)

The kids started back to school last week...one of the many changes we are all trying to get used to, going to school the beginning of August and school hours that are too early. I drive them or they would get on the bus when Owls, bats, and other nocturnal creatures are still scurrying around. None of them have come home in tears yet, so I think they may be adjusting fairly well. We still miss a lot of things about Hershey, but are enjoying reaquainting ourselves with some very good friends and making new ones. I am busy with cleaning...whoever loves ceramic tile that is not textured you are CRAZY! I feel I need to clean the floor constantly (though it doesn't always get done). I think some area rugs in the living area with wood floors would help out in my dilemma. In my dream house we are not getting ceramic tile of any kind. I am also busy being a chauffeur to the kids activites which are increasing, and entertaining the littles and trying to enjoying their "creativity" in all forms. We have tried out a bunch of new recipes and when my two boys stop their training for the UFC I will post them.