Say Yes To The Dress

I know I said I would update everything yesterday but plans changed when my son decided to puke all over his room and I had to clean it up. Super fun.

So here it goes. Better late than never. Right? 

Last week was a busy one. My oldest sister Jordyn came into town with her two girls on Sunday and then my other sister Victoria and her soon to be step son came on Wednesday. Victoria decided to fly up for the week so that we could all go with her to try on wedding dresses. Looking at dresses with her was much different compared to the other people I have gone with. Her wedding is slightly different. Let me explain. 

Victoria has been dating her fiance for about 3 years and he has a sweet 5 year old little boy, Brayden. Brayden has become a huge part of Victoria's life and she loves him like he is her own son. Because of this sweet boy their marriage is more like a union of a family. Its not about just Victoria and Robert. Its about the three of them. All Victoria has ever wanted is a family and children and now she is getting both. It is something very special and it is so sweet to see the connection that Brayden has to my sister. His mom hasn't really been in the picture and Victoria has given him something that he has been missing. I am so proud of her for embracing him as her own and providing a love for him that he hasn't always had from a mother. So because of this when we were looking for dresses we knew we wanted something that made Victoria feel like a bride but was also comfortable and didn't take away from the significance of the day. Something that was mature and appropriate for the day. The most important thing to her was that she was able to pick up Brayden, bend down to talk to him, or chase after him (if needed). We found exactly that. The dress is stunning. I cried when she had it on. This was the only one that made me instantly tear up. Luckily I wasn't the only one in the room that had that reaction. We all did. I can't wait to see her in it on her special day. I love my sister so much and I am so excited for her. 

Its always nice when my family comes to town and I love just sitting around talking with them. I was still able to stick to my goal of getting ready every day even if I did change into my sweats before dinner time. Maybe I should invest in some of those pajama jeans. Christmas gift maybe?

Unfortunately I wasn't able to go to Yoga this week. We were too busy doing wedding dress shopping and I went couponing on Tuesday at the same time as my class - bummer. I am surprised at the difference not going made. I didn't feel as energized or as calm. As I mentioned before, I have problems with anxiety and with as much as we had going on this week I didn't really have alone time and I realize how much I need that. Yoga helps me relax and breathe and I can just leave all of my problems at the door. So not having that this week was a little difficult. I plan on going tomorrow and I can't wait.  

Lets go back to couponing. Holy bananas people. I got 30 items of $10. Everything I got was $0.63 and under. You read that right. I'm talking boxes of gogurt, cereal, fiber one bars, fruit snacks, etc. Good stuff! Not just stuff I would never use but just bought it because it was cheap. I have to admit that I thought that's what couponing was all about at first, but now I know that its actually something that can save you money on items you buy anyway! WOOHOOOO. I can't even tell you the shock I felt when I saw the total. Oh, and did I mention that I made 6 cents on each tube of Colgate toothpaste I bought? I made money couponing. Best day ever. Couldn't have done it without my sister in law. She's a grocery angel. 

To end the week my sisters and I went out to the Chocolate and got some Diet Cokes and just talked about life. Cake, chit chat, sisters, and diet coke. Just what I needed. Perfect end to a perfect week. 

Oh, and a HUGE thank you to my amazing and generous husband for watching the kids while all of us went to look at dresses. He is a saint and we couldn't have done it without him. Now I know he is capable of handling 4 kids and a baby. Teehee :) 

Speaking of Paul, he started a new job today. Something we are really excited about and a nice change for him. I'm going to miss having him around with me but its so great to see him get excited again. Like a little kid on the first day of school. Today was a little rough with both kids because I'm not used to tackling the day on my own (and they were both up a couple times at night) but it was nice to have some special time with my boys. And I also stopped soda today. It was hard, but I did it! 

Well this blog is getting a little long so I'm gonna wrap it up. Time to snuggle up with some sleepy time tea and my book. 

Plain and Simple.

As I sit here slightly disappointed in myself for not blogging for over a week I had to ask myself why. Why didn't I just sit down and write? The real answer didn't come to me so easily. I have tried to make excuses for myself but none of them really justify it. At least not in my mind. Blogging is my escape, my outlet, and my journal to a certain extent. I want to remember my progress and remember my life for how it really was and not for how I want others to think it is. I think I started to doubt my ability to write and to actually draw in the attention of readers. I started to think that no one would want to read my blog if its all just a recap of my day and how proud I was for actually doing my hair. I realize now that its not about that and thats not what is important. This is about my life - I want to write about the things I want to remember whether they are interesting or not. Each part of my day is significant to me. Thats what is important. I refuse to let my doubts keep me from writing. In ten years when I want to look back at my life I'm not going to care about grammar mistakes or boring posts. I am going to love remembering my life for exactly how it was. Good or bad.

I love all of the positive feedback and the wonderful advice and loving words that I have received. I hope that anyone who reads this blog senses the raw emotion and honesty that is going into it. This is me. Plain and simple.

Thats all for tonight. I promise a recap of the past week tomorrow. Nighty night upper west siders.

Say What Wednesday.

Before I explain what the title of this post means I'm gonna have to let y'all down a little bit. But I promise you'll forget all about it once I explain Say What Wednesday. So keep reading!

Today really started last night when my husband got home from a friends house and insisted we stay up late and enjoy some alone time. We watched How I Met Your Mother and talked about this awesome blog and by the time we decided to go to bed it was almost 2 a.m. Yikes. I knew I should've listened to my gut and said "Sorry babe, its a little late dontya think? I'm going to bed." But really... who can decline a handsome man asking you to watch your favorite show and cuddle? Not me, that's for sure. I did however decline the brownies he offered to make. (Dangit.. now I want brownies)

As we are getting ready for bed my man candy looks over at me and says "I will take care of the boys tomorrow morning so you can sleep in, you deserve it" Husband of the year.

Fast forward 4 hours.

Mister baby wakes up. Eats. Goes back to sleep.

Fast forward 3 hours.

Mister baby wakes up, I holler to the hubs, change a diaper, and just like that... I was back in bed.

Bliss.

Usually sleeping in helps me have a better day and I feel more refreshed. But today the exact opposite happened. I woke up and instantly wanted to get back in bed but my empty stomach had other plans so I made my way to the kitchen instead. Mmmmmm coffee cake.

Literally the rest of the day is a blur. Liam refused to take a nap in his bed so I laid down on the couch with him and we took a 45 minute nap together. 45 minutes is not long enough for the little stinker.

Blurdurrduurrrrmurrrnanerrrrr.

Seriously. Its all a blur.

I remember at one point telling my husband that all of my followers were going to be disappointed.

Hair was never done. Sweats were never taken off. The make up I was wearing was leftover from yesterday.

By the time I decided it was time to take a shower and actually be productive it was 4:00 and I knew I was going to Yoga at 5:30 and so a shower seemed pretty pointless.

Disappointed yet? I am.

I realized that not getting ready and not being productive made me get pretty down on myself. I didn't feel as energized or as happy. I found my mind wandering to places I didn't want it to go. It was a rough day. But I'm happy to know that tomorrow is a new day and a fresh start. I have to let go of today and just make the most of tomorrow. One bad day will absolutely not effect my progress.

Yoga tonight was amazing by the way. Hardest class I have ever taken but I loved the change of pace. Turns out "rowdy yoga" is just yoga on speed. Non stop moving from pose to pose with each breath. I loved it. I loved my bath afterwards even more though.

Onto the good stuff.

I decided I wanted to give my blog something special. So I came up with "Say What Wednesday". Every Wednesday I am going to create a list of things that make me, and hopefully you, say "Say WHHHATTTT!" I grew up in the South and I feel like that was everyones reaction to anything and everything out of the ordinary.

First up:

Gene Simmons - He has his tongue insured for 1 million dollars. ONE MILLION. Say whhatttt!

Next on the list:

The largest bubble gum bubble ever blown was 20 inches in diameter. That's one big bubble! I can only get those suckers about 1/2 inch in diameter. So yeahhhh.. Say whhatttt! I challenge you to break that record.

Our final one of the day:

Someone has been putting human feces in Yale students laundry while its drying. This person referred to as the "poopetrator" hasn't been found but campus officials are on the hunt! Hahahah! Say whhatttt???!! Heres the link to the story if you are interested. Click here for some laughs. 

Hopefully you enjoyed the first Say What Wednesday and I hope you come back for it next week.

Ps. Don't expect pictures for awhile I have a monster attacking my lip. (aka cold sore) Feel bad for me.

Never rely on your children to be alarm clocks.

I woke up this morning to a text from my sister in law Carolyn letting me know that she would be late to our couponing day. Uhhh.. it was 9:30 which just happened to be the time we were supposed to meet up. "Oh don't worry about being late, I will just wait here for you because I totally set my alarm and stuff!" Jokes, I told her the truth but I could've easily gotten away with it. Seriously though, I didn't feel the need to set my alarm because the baby usually wakes me up around 8. Such a sweetheart to let me sleep in. This little hiccup didn't kill my goals though, I still put some make up on, brushed my teeth, and even remembered deodorant (3 points to Kelsi). I even threw my hair up in the prettiest high bun that I could instead of my go to sloppy top knot. I then figured I should try to balance out my lack of hairstyle by wearing a maxi dress and some sparkly lip gloss. Totes gorg. Ready in 10 and out the door.

Couponing. Wow. I don't even know where to begin. I tried so hard to follow along and understand everything that I was being told but it was so overwhelming. Carolyn is the Queen of couponing. I am in awe of this woman. Seriously. I can't believe how organized and thorough she is. I honestly think I started to drool as I watched her during check out. I mean that in the least creepy way possible. She is a great teacher and I am sure I will get the hang of this whole thing eventually but for now I'm really using her as a crutch and its a darn good thing she is patient because if she wasn't I would've given up already. Todays killer deal : 4 cent taco shells. You heard me. FOUR CENTS. Holla atchya girl!! I got a few other really great deals but I wont bore you with the details. 

After my exhausting coupon adventure I drove past a McDonalds and... oops. Large coke please. 

Baby steps. 

When I got home I did a little jig with my husband as I explained all the sweet deals I got and then plopped on the couch and finished up my grocery list then whoosh! I was headed out the door again to go shopping. 

Shopping done. Back aching. Feet cramping. Hair falling.

I'm a firm believer in the "one trip from car to house with the groceries even if my arms break" concept.   YIKES. Today was a doozy. I had to leave the milk and send my husband back out to get it because I literally had to catch my breath. I live on the second floor of our apartment complex and I had A LOT of groceries so its only partly because I'm out of shape that my lungs felt like they were going to explode. I'm pretty sure I have a couple bruises on my wrists but I decided those are just initiation marks into the grocery warrior mom club. Are you a member yet? 

After such a long day I really considered ordering pizza for dinner but I know how happy making dinner makes me so I sucked it up and made mashed potatoes, chicken, spinach, and steamed broccoli. It was pretty delish if you ask me. Liam totally ate 90% of his plate.. with a little help from our friend "caca" thats chocolate in his language. We only gave him 1/4 of a chip each time he took a bite so I feel a little better about it now. 

Dinner done. Kids bathed. 

I may or may not have stepped on my maxi dress while trying to get down next to the tub to give Liam his bath and landed straight on my caboose. Add aching tush to my list of todays ouchies. I laughed it off like a champ... and so did Liam. I've raised a real sweetheart. 

We got the kids in bed, I put my sweats on, and I hit a wall. Like, Great Wall of China. I sat down for 30 seconds and realized I couldn't move. No joke. You could've put s'mores on the floor next to me and I wouldn't have even moved to get them. If you know me, you know thats a big deal. 

There are dishes that need to be done, toys that need to be picked up, and a basket of laundry that has needed to be folded for a couple of days. But right now. I just need me time. I need to sit back and relax and just unwind from a busy day. And you know what? Thats okay! I realized a long time ago that sometimes we can't do EVERYTHING and thats okay. Its okay to have a messy house. A messy house is a loved house and it will never make me any less of a mom. I had to learn the hard way to accept that I'm not perfect and sometimes I just have to stop and take a breather. And the best part about it is knowing that my husband and kids still love me even if they step on a car in the middle of the night or have to eat cereal out of tupperware. I'm proud of myself, I put my big girl panties on today and got a lot of things accomplished. I haven't given up on myself and I feel great about the life I am creating even if its not perfect. 

And now its time for me to fabulously catch up on my silly TV shows while I lay on my heating pad and indulge in a couple pieces of caca. 

XOXO, Kelsi

Ps. Tomorrow I'm doing something called "Sweatshop Yoga" google told me it was like rowdy yoga. I'm still not sure what that means... Wish me luck! I have a feeling I'm gonna need it.