FINALLY! My dryer died!

I've been waiting for this day for quite some time....our dryer pooped out!!!!! Normally this wouldn't be such an exciting day but we have had our washer and dryer for almost 8 years. We bought it when we first bought our old house and they weren't that great to begin with. Over the years, the washer started leaking and the dryer takes 2 cycles to actually dry the clothes. I just didn't want to buy something new if it wasn't totally necessary. Well, the day has come and we've been saving for these babies! The Electrolux washer and dryer....the one on the commercial with Kelly Rippa, LOL! They are finally MINE and oh, so nice! I'm gearing up for a wash-a-thon. Every sheet, blanket, towel and article of clothing will be cleaned!

Legoland SUX!

We took the kids to Legoland this year on their Christmas break. Don't go there...it really sucks.

The minimum wait for a ride is 60 minutes and it wasn't even THAT busy. We are used to Disneyland where they are really efficient and get people MOVING on and off the rides fast. They weren't even filling every seat and all the rides reminded me of cheesy carnival rides! Irritating! On top of the lines, it sucked because there were so many rules! Every ride had a different height requirement. Along with the height they also had age requirements. Along with the age requirements, they also required a parent to ride with the child. Fine if you have one kid over 52 inches! Not so great if you have 3 kids, 2 adults and no one can ride "alone". Taylor was only allowed on 1 or 2 rides total. Bryan and I had to take turns taking the boys on rides. If both boys needed a parent to ride with them, we couldn't go on the ride at all unless we wanted to wait 2 times in the 1 hour long line. RIDICULOUS!!! Needless to say, we won't be going back....You couldn't pay me to go back! LOL!

Kids had fun but Bryan and I were irritated the entire time. Hated it. We'll stick with our Disneyland tradition....maybe try out Sea World too.

Happy New Year!!!

It's 2011! I can't believe it! 2010 started out a little rough, with my broken foot and the delay in getting my nursing license. It ended really well though! We got out of Casa Grande by renting our house out to some really wonderful people. We now live in a great neighborhood with an awesome school just a block away. I landed my dream job and my family is healthy. What more can I ask for??

We had a New Years get together with some of Bryan's friends from work. Two couples and their children came over to celebrate. This was the first year Arizona allowed fireworks so we went all out at the fireworks stand. LOL! Our neighbors probably hated us that night. It was really COLD so we sat around the firepit and let the kids have free reign of the house and yard. They had so much fun playing and actually made it until midnight! I was surprised!

At midnight we had our champagne toast. Here's to a great 2011!!!!

Resolution- I'm not going to resolve to lose weight or have more or be better this year. My resolution is to learn how to be CONTENT with what I have. My life is pretty awesome and it seems like in the past, once I achieve a goal, I already have my sights set on the next "thing". Over the past 6 years, I've had 4 children, completed school, got a job, moved, bought 2 cars, gone on lots of vacations, gained weight, lost weight, gained weight, exercised, not exercised, made new friends, and lost a few along the way. In 2011 I am just going to enjoy. I'm happy where I am, I'm happy with the people I have chosen to have in my life. My kids are wonderful and my marriage is wonderful. 2011 will be a year of enjoyment!


New years is always bitter sweet though. Nolan's birthday is on January 2nd. I can't believe it's already been 3 years since his birth. I miss him and think of him every single day. He'll forever be in our hearts. I had to work on his birthday and it was actually easier than I thought it would be. Somehow helping out new mommies and babies was very therapeutic for me. It's nice to see new life and be in such a happy place on such a hard day. We love you Nolan! Happy birthday, son.

Christmas!

We had such a wonderful Christmas this year! I was off of work for 3 days straight...since I'm still in training I don't have to work any holidays! That won't be the case next year so we really savored this Christmas.

On Christmas Eve, we spent the day with Bryan's parents and sister. Grandma prepared a really yummy dinner and we just relaxed all day. We sat on around and watched "The Christmas Story" as a family. My boys hadn't seen it before...there's actually some parts to that movie that I regret showing them. Connor still doesn't have a clue what a "bad word" is. In the movie, Ralphie says "FUDGE". The narrator then tells us that he didn't really say "FUDGE" it was another 4 letter word that starts with "F". Connor is still asking me what that word is and why it's "BAD". LOL! The kids were once again, completely spoiled with fun presents. The main gift was their Lego table. We have it set up in our loft, the kids have had SO much fun building. I love it because the Legos don't end up all over the place and we can keep them out in the open instead of stored in the closets where they don't get used.


On Christmas morning, the kids were SO excited to see what Santa brought! It was so much fun to see the excitement on their faces when they saw their surprises. We kind of went overboard! Gifts included the Geo Tracks Christmas in Toytown train set, Lincoln logs, Dora Couch, Pink Cozy Coupe, Fur Real S'mores the Pony, Kitchen, play food, a picnic table, Play Doh, army men, Imaginex Batman, Imaginex Submarine, art supplies, Razor scooters and Legos. I can't help but buy them toys...I think Bryan and I like buying for them as much as they like playing with them! We did all of our shopping on Black Friday so that cut down on the cost dramatically. As for Bryan and I...we exchanged gifts all through December. He bought me Sephora makeup, new boots, a new winter coat, an entire scrubs wardrobe from Scrubs and Beyond and new Danskos. Bryan got 2 pairs of jeans, 2 tshirts, 2 dress shirts, a sweatshirt, a new cell phone and he won an I-Touch from work. We spent all morning playing and then we went over to my sister's house to spend the rest of the day with my family.

At my sister's house, we did things a little differently. We decided to stop buying presents for each other's kids and only do presents for my parents and grandparents. The kids didn't even know the difference! In years past it seemed like we were just exchanging gift cards and money and that's not really what Christmas is all about. Instead we had a wonderful dinner, played at the park, made a gingerbread house, made hand made ornaments, played Bocci Ball, listened to music and spent some good, quality time with one another. They kids just like being with their cousins and I loved spending time with my sisters. Hopefully we can keep this tradition.