Shellac'd!!!

I've been obsessed with this new Shellac nail polish phenomenon ever since I heard about it a couple of months ago.  Well, all the hype is worth it!  I got my first Shellac manicure on Saturday and it's the best thing ever.  I guess the big thing is, it's supposed to stay on (chip-free) for up to 14 days.  But, the other cool thing is that it dries instantly....which is really weird to get used to.  It was very odd to be able to get things out of my purse right away without worrying that I'd mess up my nails! 

So, here's a picture that I took on day one (and yes my feet were soaking in the whirlpool when I took the picture - it was a very rare ME day which was great!)  They really look the same today (three days later):

To add to my excitement, I was able to get FRENCH!  All the research I had done online led me to believe that there were only a few colors to choose from and French was not an option.  It is true that there are only a few colors but luckily french is an option!!

I was really just investigating during my manicure.  I wanted to see if this was something I could do myself at home and it totally is - the only catch is I have to buy the special UV lamp that "cures" the polish.  But that would pay for itself after a few uses so I'm okay with that.  Very exciting!!!  Clearly, I need to get out more!!  :)

"Wonderful" Giveaway!!

Megan at "In This Wonderful Life" is doing a  great giveaway - you can enter for TWO chances to win a "Keep Calm" print - they're really cute and, as always, I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I win.  One day, I will!  I just know it!!!

You can check out the site here to pick which one you'd like to win!  I chose the "Keep Calm and Drink Wine"...I love it and "need" it in my kitchen!  These prints are really reasonably priced so I may end up just ordering some soon anyway. 

We had a very interesting weekend.  More to come on that later!!

17 (and a half) Months Old!

Okay, I realize this is extremely late and I haven't posted monthly updates in well, months but here we go:

Sweet Baby Easton, you're 17 (and a half) months old!  What have you been up to lately???

• You weigh 27 pounds and you're around 35" long (not an exact science)
• You wear a size 5 diaper and size 24 Month clothes
• What can I say, you're still a terrible sleeper.  You sleep through the night most nights but I would say 2 or 3 nights a week you wake up at least once.  :(
• You eat like a horse!
• You're saying all kinds of words like shoes, cheese, baby, Momma, Dada, cup, snack, etc. 
• You're very demanding (does that mean spoiled?)
• You looooooove watching Blues Clues
• I think you can count to two ;)
• You use a fork really well for your age but you still refuse to drink anything but lemonade from a sippy cup - we have to work on this b/c you're not getting enough Calcium
• I'd say you're only about 51% Momma's boy much to my dismay but I love you like crazy anyway!

Now, how about those big brothers of yours???

Zachary James, you're 2.5 years old (32 months)!?!  How did that happen??  Here's what you've been up to lately:

• You weigh 28 pounds....a whole pound more than your baby brother! 
• You're also wearing a size 5 diaper and still have absolutely no interest in potty training
• You only wear size 24M clothes (just like your baby brother) - you're such a peanut!
• You're a great sleeper - you rarely wake up when your roommate does
• Your favorite color is red
• You're officially a Momma's boy (finally) and it makes me so happy! 

Brady Boy, you're 4.5 years old!!!  I can't believe it!  Here's what you've been up to:

• You started what will hopefully be your final year of pre-school last week and you're riding the bus this year!  I swore I would never let you do it at such a young age but you LOVE it and it makes my life a whole lot easier! 
• We've been taking a break from speech and OT this summer and you're still doing really well - we need to get you back on track, though because you need to work on your fine motor skills to get ready for the big K!
• You're 100% potty trained now - even at night!  We're so proud of you!
• You go 100 mph 14 hours a day.....you're only quiet and still when you're asleep!
• You're 95% Daddy's boy....but I love you tons anyway! 

Popsicle Light Sabers

I realized last night that the boys (plus their dad) have their first official tradition together.  Whenever they eat popsicles, they all like to act like they're light sabers.  I have no idea where they got this from but they do it every single time and Easton gets so frustrated because he's the only one that's buckled in a booster seat and can't reach his brothers so Brendan usually has to sit down and have a popsicle with him so they can "battle" it out.  It's really cute...and very silly all the same!

Great Giveaway for a Great Cause!

Melissa and Nathan at www.themiddlethatcounts.com adopted their son Iliya from Russia and are raising money to help bring a new brother or sister into his life!  They are doing a GREAT Giveaway on their blog to help raise money - unless you've been through it yourself, you probably have no idea how expensive adoption is!! Just click on the link to give them your love and support! They are giving away lots of great prizes - just click on this link to check it out:  http://themiddlethatcounts.com/?page_id=2370 !!

I'm sure they would appreciate your thoughts and prayers!!!

Blog Hop

I'm *trying* to participate in Jenna's blog hop but I'm not doing a very good job so far!  I've read several new blogs and still haven't commented??  What's wrong w/ me?  ;)

Anywho.....got some somewhat good news today - I have an interview on Wednesday for a job at my #2 choice of hospitals so I'm hoping it will go well!  If I get that job, it would mean I would have TWO part-time jobs for a few months (plus being a full-time SAHM) while taking online classes.  So much for my life being easier!!!

We went to the zoo on Friday.  The night before, Easton decided to give "crying it out" one more try (okay - I decided) and was up for around 2 hours in the middle of the night.  This is the result:

Maybe he'll listen to his mother from now on!  ;)

And, we're back............

So, big changes here! We recently decided after lots of "Mommy Guilt" that it would be best for me to be at home with the boys (rather than paying almost half of my salary to a baby-sitter) while working part-time in the evenings/at night. So....I gave my notice at work back in April. Luckily, they asked me to stay on part-time (mainly from home) in the interim so I've been doing that while looking for a job at a hospital (which is NOT going well.) So, I'm hoping this big life change will inspire me to get back on the blog wagon but we'll have to see. I really want to do it since I'm not good at updating baby books or scrapbooking or anything like that. So, we'll see!

So far this summer we've been having quite a bit of fun. We've had several trips to the zoo. Easton and Zachary rode the Merry-Go-Round for the first time....Brady's a seasoned pro....

The train ride is always a big hit....

And poor Daddy gets to pull the wagon up and down and all around the hot, hilly Cincinnati Zoo!

Which has led to a lot of this....

Quite a bit of this.....

As well as some of this.... We've spent some quality time in the backyard.....

And Brady's been taking swimming lessons....which means Zachary wants to also so we're working on finding him a class....he tagged along last time and got in the pool and floated by himself!!! Quite a big feat for Zachy!

All this activity and Easton still doesn't sleep well! What's up with that kid? He certainly didn't inherit this "problem" from me!!!