Dear So and So: What deployment does to a girl

Yep Friday again. I would tell you how many Fridays are left, but #1 OPSEC and #2 I lost count Anyways, here we go.

Dear Mr. B,
I miss your face.....and your butt and your warming up my bed and your arms and your kiss and your stuff fixing skills. Ok. I admit it. I miss all of you.
Love you lots, Miss you tons, Counting down to R&R,
Mrs. B

Dear Deployment,
I had to change a lightbulb for the first time in who knows how long. All by myslef. I am holding you personally responsible.
Sincerely,
Mrs. B (expert lightbulb changer)

Dear Unreachable lightbulb,
It's not funny!!! You know how short and accident prone I am. Couldn't you have burned out before the spare army guy moved out or waited until R&R?
Sincerely,
Mrs. B (vertically challenged)

Dear Readers,
Don't worry. I promise not to try to change the lightbulb myself. For more Dear So and So fun go check out Kat's blog at The Three Bedroom Bungalow. You know you want.
Sincerely,
Mrs. B (occasional blog writer)

My daddy is a genius

Saturday the kids were driving me absolutely crazy. We needed to get out, and I needed more aligator clips. It wasn't anything exciting, but it wasn't home. We loaded into the van and drove our happy little selves over to Sally Beauty Supply. I got alligator clips, and the kids didn't touch anything. Success!! Next stop redbox (Do you really think my kids would behave in the store if they hadn't been bribed?) We pile back in the van, go to start it, and......lots of clicking no starting :( So we went and walked around the flea market thingy for a bit (mostly so I could gather my thoughts, but also in case by some miracle my van just needed a few minutes to think about what it had done and decide that it liked me again)
So we piled into the van AGAIN, and still nothing. I considered walking home, but my favorite daughter does not seem to understand that shorts are not appropriate clothing for November. I was pretty sure all I needed was a jump start anyways. There was a man sitting in his car not to far away, so I went and asked if he would help. He told me no because he was just about to leave (FYI he left 30 minutes later) I texted spare army guy. He was out of town. I texted another friend, but then I remembered that I have emergency road service. Anything to do with insurance completely terrifies me, so I called my daddy to verify how this procedure works. He told me that I probably just had a bad connection on my battery (it was true too the post on my battery were fuzzy and blue and ewwwww). He sent me to buy a coke. I bought a coke, and dumped it over the battery, which by the way is a very interesting thing to see. The blue turned all kinds of colors and then melted away. Sadly, the van still did not start. :(
I went back into the Sally Beauty and borrowed a phone book. I looked up emergency road service. There were 2 in town Seriously?!? Aren't there like 8 in Tremonton? and we have 2 here? Anyways, towing company number one does not do jumpstarts and towing company 2 does not take state farm, is going to charge me $45 and I am going to have to wait AN HOUR. At this point the really nice (and really flamboyant) guy that works at Sally Beauty offered to help me jump the van. So he pulls his jeep around and figures out how to open his hood (he says car maintenance is his boyfriends job) and the jumper cables don't reach. Then he realizes that I am parked next to the man that works at Game Stop. So the gamestop guy comes and tries to help me jump the van, but it still doesn't work. He is convinced that my starter is dead. Finally, I called a friend that lives nearby and she picked up me and the kids and brought us home.
I called and reported this all to my dad (you just can't fit this story into a text message). He told me that my starter was not dead, and exactly what to do. So this morning I went back and followed my dad's instructions, and it worked :D The gamestop emplyee that was convinced that my starter was dead watched the whole thing this morning. I wonder what he thought about that.
Anyways, the van goes again. Hoooray!! Now I just need a spare person with a driver's license so I can go back and get the truck.
P.S. I have a new respect for what my dad does for a living (he is a mechanic in case you didn't know). Getting the cables off the battery was a pain in the butt.

battling the backyard forest

Warning in advance: This post might end up a being whole lot of randomness

I'm sure somehow it is karma coming back to get me. That's what it has to be. I will probably be raking and bagging leaves until it snows. I am figuring 1 bag of leaves for everytime I bragged about how beautiful and green it is here in Tennessee. So far, I am at.....well I don't know how many bags, but I had to stop because I ran out of empty leaf bags. Maybe someday I will take and post a picture of my leaf bag tower for you all to see. Yeah, we all know how my picture taking promises usually end. But I do have some leaf raking thoughts for your amusement:
Confession, for a minute a thought it would be really fun to move all the leaves to the middle of the road and drive a car through them. You have to admit, it would look really cool. Don't worry, this is a thought I didn't act upon.
Today I am grateful for whoever came up with the brillian idea to put an mp3 player on a cell phone. This makes it possible for me to sing "Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy" really loud and off key for all my neighbors to hear. I'm sure they love it.
I am also greatful that my dad instilled in me a diverse taste in music, because naturally after "Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy" you must sing a John Denver song. That's just the way it is done.
Well, covers everything you need to know about me and the battle with the backyard forest. I will let you know who wins.

It's back! It's back! It's back!

Dear Kat,
Thankyou! Thankyou! Thankyou! I was wondering how I would survive deployment without dear so and so, but now it is back :)
feeling the sanity return,
Brandi B

Dear Spare Army Guy,
Thankyou so very much for claiming that caffeine makes you tired in front of smiley #1. Last night when she got Dr. Pepper at 7:30 she quoted you. Crap!! I forgot to punch you.
plotting my revenge,
Brandi B

Dear Smiley and Smiley,
I know you both claim that you didn't do it, but if you don't surrender my mouse soon, I am going to have to start holding your toys hostage. Now hand it over!!
batman is going first,
Mommy B

Dear body,
I appreciate the weight loss, I really do. It is nice to be in smaller pants, but please in the future, more off the butt less off the boobies. It's making me sad.
I must, I must, I must increase my bust,
Brandi B

Why again did I have children?

It was one of those days, the kind when my mother would sigh and ask, "who am I talking to, you or the wall?" Strangely, I haven't picked up that habbit yet. I sigh and say one of 3 things, "I think I need more children, one for every day of the week.", "I am going to trade you off and get a frog.", or "Why again did I have children?"
This time it was the last one, and I was met with 3 answers.
Smiley #1 "Because God sent us down to you."
Smiley #2 "Because you have to you are a mom."
Spare Army Guy "Because you are a woman."
I'm not sure which response was the most irritating.

red+ yellow+ blue= brown

The color wheel thing sounded like such a brilliant idea, I made a trip to the craft store. We got us some paint and poster board and mixed colors until the kids were bored of mixing (I know, I didn't know that was possible either). In case you missed the title, red+yellow+blue=brown.
THE END

recent happenings, and random funny things

It's autumn time. It's autumn time..... eventually the leaves will get all red. In the meantime, the leaves keep piling and piling on the backyard. They were everywhere until I piled them up yesterday afternoon. The pile was almost as tall as Caibo. Probably, the leaves are everywhere again this morning. I haven't dared look yet.
In honor of the cooler weather, Jade brought home the first disease of the season. The school called me Thursday to let me know she had a fever and that I should come get her. So I went and retrieved her from school. Long story short, and sparing you the ugly details, she has the strep. Good times....No, not really.
I got some sense and sprays for beyond super cheap at target a while back. I finally decided to clean my bathroom counter off and set one up. Last night Caibo came out of the bathroom screaming in terror. "Mom!! There is something evil in the bathroom!" It would seem he is not a fan.
Jade was reading to Caibo from her school reading book this morning. They were looking through all the pictures.
Jade looked up and asked, "Mom, do gorrillas like to hold kittens or eat them?"
I probably haven't mentioned this, but both kids are in super quesiton mode right now. I get asked all kids of weird crap. Caibo is like a walking quiz show host. "Mom, what's 1+1 what's 2+2 what's 4+4 what's 8+8..." He keeps going until I cannot answer anymore or he can't repeat the last number I said. Currently we are in the thousands. He is also big on color mixing. "Mom, blue+ yellow what's blue+white" but my personal favorites "What's purple+ yellow what's red+ black..." I may have to buy some paint to solve this problem.
So, if you want to jump in some leaves, catch a disease, or be a contestant on a quiz show, come on over. We're having a good time.

Actual news (I know this never happens)

It's true. Things have actually been going on here besides the disappearance of my icecream.
First, a word about skinny jeans:
When I was in middle school, I believe they called them tapered. They were evil then, and they are evil now. The thing is, some girls have curves (like an actual waist). I am one of those girls. Skinny jeans make me butt look super gigantic, and believe me I need all the help I can get. Why is this important? Well, I have lost 22lbs. My jeans are literally falling off my body. It's an embarassing thing. I decided to do something about it, so I took myself down to the local walmart (remember, I am not a rich girl) and get me some jeans. I found jeans, tried jeans on, and left with no jeans. The only good thing was that I left knowing I could probably fit into that pair of goal jeans I have been saving for the past forever, AND I DID. Now, I have to go buy new goal jeans, as soon as I find somewhere that doesn't sell skinny jeans.
Big news #2:
One Sunday as we were driving to church, one of my kids said, "Mom, I wish you were in primary with us." I was sitting in Sunday school when one of the Bishopric pulled me out to talk to me. Long story short, now I am the Second Counselor in the primary presidency. How did my kids know?
Big news #3:
WE GOT AN OFFER ON THE TOWNHOME!!!
Miracles never cease. The offer came in the night before we were going to take it off the market. Now, I get to regather the mountain of paper work and pray that Citi Mortgage accepts the offer.
Ok, you are now caught up on the big news. Consider yourself informed.

Where is my ice cream?

Once upon a time, I bought some vanilla icecream. It said something about being creamy. I tried it in a milk shake. It was weird. The next day, the spare army guy was digging through the freezer and found it. I told him it was weird, but he made it into a rootbeer float anyways. He told me it was weird. Tonight I was going to make rootbeer floats for the kids, but the icecream was gone. Not hiding, GONE. Then, I was going to give the kids some rootbeer, but it was almost gone too.
I guess that explains why I came home to such a sparkling clean kitchen the other night after cheer practice.

And then......

I was bored this morning (by morning, I mean just before noon), so I decided to make myself look like a person. Hey! Why not? Then, while I was admiring myself in the mirror, I thought it might be a good idea to send a picture of my uncommon hotness to my husband. I decided against it. Instead, I remembered I need to get my MWR card (it's an army thing I don't want to explain right now). Seizing the moment of attractiveness, I got in the van and headed to post. I looked at the clock. Noon!! They wouldn't be there. The army is a big fan of lunch time. I needed something to distract me, so I stopped by walgreens to collect this week's good deals. I left Walgreens with $7 register rewards and more time to kill, so I went to the other Walgreens. After the 2nd Walgreens I had finally killed enough time, so I drove myself to post and got my MWR card. Since I was already on post, I went over to the youth center and signed the kids up for basketball. Then, I went to the commissary to get some P&G inserts. They didn't have any, but that's Ok.
I love it when I am unintentionally productive.

when little girls cheer.....

If you have seen my facebook videos, you know Jade is a pretty good little cheerleader. What you don't know is that for every video I upload there are atleast 8 that I don't. Why? Because stuff happens......
The Cuties attempted to do all 13 (yes they know 13 already) cheers they know back to back today, but never made it through here's why

Funny things from today's game:

Every time they did the we want a touch down cheer, the team would score. As hard as the coach tried, she couldn't get them to change the word want to got.

At one point, the coach left to talk to someone to set up an apointment for pictures, the girls were in the middle of a cheer. Everytime they finished it they would look back at the coach like "what do we do now" and then start again

The boys thought they found a spider on the blanket (I think it was a piece of grass) and totally freaked out until they decided it went underground to eat the worms.

My favorite primary lesson (part 2 Caibo )

And now, as promised, here are the many talents of Caibo

#1 He is not afraid to try new things.

#2 He is great at solving problems. (example: stacking things to get what he wants)

#3 He also loves to sing, and for you viewing pleasure I have included a video of him singing Stop in the Name of love

#4 He is an awesome bike rider. He is only 5 and has been riding without training wheels for more than a year. For a while we were afraid that he would beat Jade to the no training wheels status.

#5 He is great at reading people's feelings. When someone is sad or upset, he always tries to make them happy.

There you go. A few of the many talents of Caibo.

My favorite primary lesson (part 1 Jade )

I got a call from Jade's primary teacher last night. It is time for my favorite primary lesson: Talents. Now, you might be wondering why I love this lesson so much. Well, I taught primary for a few years, and I always loved this lesson because you learn so much about the kids. Part of the preparation for the lesson is calling each of the children's parents and asking them to tell you about the child's talents. I was always surprised to learn all the cool things that the kids can do. Anyways, since I have been thinking about it, I decided I would share the kids talents with you. I will post Jade's talents here and Caibo's in the next post. I was asked to come up with 5 talents, so that is what I will share.

#1 Jade loves to dance. She hasn't had many dance classes, but in the one she has had she caught on really quickly. For your viewing pleasure I have uploaded a video of her and Dani (who is a pretty good dancer herself)

#2 She is a good reader. Right now, she has the most AR points in her class. (In case you are wondering kids get AR points by reading books and then taking quizzes about the book they just read. They get 1 point for every quiz they take and pass)

#3 She is good at making and keeping friends.

#4 She loves to sing, and is pretty good at it. (also in the video)

#5 She rocks at memorization. I think she inherited my ability to memorize crazy things (like her brother's lunch number).

Well, there are some of Jade's many talents. Next, I will talk about Caibo.

All that free time

For those of you who have been wondering what I have been doing with all that free time I have now that both kids are in school, don't worry. I'm keeping plenty busy.

Flash cards....

Tuesday night Jade brought home mount paperwork. In the midst of this stack, was a yellow paper they like to call "the agenda" or is that the little planner thing. Anyways, the yellow paper contians all of her homework for the week. It has a list of spelling and vocabulary words, the assigned reading for the week, the shedule, and any other important things parents might need to know. It says that every night she is supposed to work on "math facts" but it never said which ones they were working on this week, so I just kindof ignored it. Tonight, yes 2 days later, Jade informs me that we are supposed to go down to the dollar store and buy some flash cards.
I know you have never asked, but here is my opinion on flash cards:
FLASH CARDS WERE CREATED BY SATAN HIMSELF!!!
You might be wondering why I have such a strong opinion about this. You see, at my house the flash cards come out. The kids play with the flash cards. The kids get bored of the flash cards. The kids spread the flash cards as far across the house as possible. The kids refuse to clean the flash cards up. A year later, I find a flash card in a place you would never expect to find flash card, for example, under the dryer. Now you know why I hate flash cards, maybe later we will talk about the evils of scissors and sharpies.
Oh! In case you were wondering, I have no intention of buying those flash cards Jade has requested. I will let you know how that works out for me.

Back to school

Yeah, it is finally here. "Back to school, Back to school...." Ok, technically it started last Friday, but it was a 1/2 day and I was on vacation.
Monday morning round about the crack of 10, we went in and registered Caibo for Kindergarten (gasp!! my baby is in school). On a previous attempt to do this (don't ask. I'm still angry at the school district), I made the offer to my children that if they could sit in the chair and be quite the whole time I would give them each $5. I think they remembered they offer because both kids were saints. Ig uess I might owe them money now.
Last night we got out the back pack and school clothes. BTW I need a gold star or something because I did all of my back to school shopping before we left on our vacation. Not bad for the queen of procrastination. Ok, I do admit we went on got the kids new shoes over the tax free weekend. NEVER AGAIN. The stores are waaaaay too busy.
This morning I got up at the crack of dawn (no really Caibo woke me up at 6am), got the kids ready, and then left. My yearly check up was long over due, and that was the only appointment I could get. Blah!!
So that left Jerry fully responsible for getting both kids to school in the right classrooms on time and documenting the whole thing. I must say he did a really good job, even the documenting thing. He even got pictures at the school. Yeah, he's that good.
Finally, at 4 this afternoon the kids got off the bus. Jade had a great time. She likes her teacher. The way she describes it I think there is a kid with terrets (sp?) in her class. She learned that they aren't supposed to laugh at him. Caibo also had fun. He liked riding the bus. He says he learned numbers. The great thing about Caibo is he randomly tells you the important stuff when he thinks you are not paying attention. He said that his teacher got mad at him because he hit the girl in the purple shirt. I asked why he hit her. He replied, "she was touching me." He also learned that when someone is touching you it's best to ask them not to touch you.
And what did I do with all my free time? I worked on some flower bows, went to lunch at quizno's, and shopped at Hobby Lobby BY MYSELF. :)
It was kindof quite though.

What part of No don't you understand???

This morning, as I was fighting with my internet AGAIN, (BTW I think my modem is dying) Jade came up to ask me, "Can I eat my cereal in the living room?" I told her no in a tone that indicated that she had just asked the most absurd question ever, and she began to try to convince me why she should be allowed to eat her cereal in the living room. "But it doesn't have milk on it.", "But you let Caibo eat popcorn in the living room".......
You get the idea. I looked at her and said, "No does not mean negotiate."
Suddenly I realized that the part of no my children doesn't understand isn't the N or the O. I have just been spelling negotiate wrong. It should really be "NOgotiate", and that's why my children don't understand the word no.

Dear So and So: The Joys of motherhood

Yay!! It's Friday. I have missed dear so and so, in my blog slacking.

Dear Smiley #1,

I know that you are more than 1/2 way to the age of infinite knowledge and wisdom (that would be 13, incase you were wondering). However, questioning my motive every time I ask you do something is not the way to gain that knowledge. Now, Go clean your room.

Sincerely,

Because I said so

Dear Smiley #2,

Putting all your clean clothes in the top drawer and leaving it open does not count as putting your clothes away. However, I do recognize progress. Thankyou for not putting them on the floor and telling me they are dirty 2 days later.

Sincerely,

I'm not washing that again

Dear Wii Fit creators,

You are evil tricksy people. You used my embarassment about being beaten by my four year old at your "balance games" to trick me into doing excerises I would never otherwise do. I would threaten to kick your butts, but we both know I can't lift my leg that high right now. Hopefully by this time next week I will be thanking you.

Sincerely,

Ouch!!!

Dear Readers,

Head on over to Kat's place for more Dear so and so fun.

Almost a party.

Ok, so school got out on May 24th. They celebrated Jade's birthday at school on the 21st. I think it may have been her 7th day at her new school. Since they were celebrating her birthday, I decided to send out her birthday invitations. She handed out 19 invitations (I know, I may have lost my mind). I know that's alot of imformation. Are you with me so far?
Anyways, so the day of the party comes around and ZERO people have called. At this point I am not sure what to do. If I plan for all 19 nobody will come. If I plan for 1 or 2, all of the will come. It's murphy's law. That's just how it works.
Did I mention I hadn't purchased her gift, her cake, decorations, party favors, ect. It's called procrastination. That's how I work.
Saturday morning I was on a quest. Four hours later, I returned with no gift. I looked at "I can be" Barbies, but evidently the bride one only comes in the African American version in Tennessee and Kentucky. I looked at a million digital cameras (that's what she requested) but none were the right one. And the littlest pet shop selection got smaller at every store. Ok I lied, Caibo picked out some LPS.
As I was leaving the PX, the phone rang. I pulled over to return the call. (No talking and driving on base) While I was talking, Caibo opened the LPS packages. He said, "but Jade wants them open." He is such a helper. He gave them to Jade about 3 seconds after we got home. The truth is, he loves Jade and loves to give her presents, so much that he couldn't wait.
So, I spent all afternoon cleanning the house and baking the cupcakes. The party was supposed to start at 8pm (we planned to watch a movie in the back yard) At 7:59 pm the power went out.
Remember those 19 invitations Jade handed out? Only one of those kids came, and that was the boy across the street. The kids were all playing so well outside. I just let them play.
Finally, around 9:30 I gave in and let Jade decorate her cupcake by flashlight. I took one picture, and the power came back on.
Whoa! What a night! Well, it was almost a party.

Pictures of the river

This is the Cumberland river. It is less than a block from our hotel. Right now it is above flood stage. It is expected to continue rising for atleast another day. It hasn't reached the road yet. I'm not sure if it will or not.

Storm Chasers

Back in the day when I used to have cable (I know it sounds crazy, but quitting cable was one of the best things I ever did), I enjoyed watching storm chasers. Somehow the science of where tornadoes come from is very interesting to me.
When I was informed that Tennessee has the potential to get tornadoes, I was both intrigued and worried. Most people assured me that tornadoes in Clarksville are rare. The man that showed me the house friday claims that the last tornado here was like 12 years ago.
It started RAINING (it has to be all caps, because I have never seen that much rain) yesterday. Weather.com says it has rained almost 6.5 inches in the last 24 hours. The kids think it is gloriously fun. The people in the walmart parking lot hiding under their umbrellas probably thought they were crazy as the merrily danced through the puddles.
Where is all this water going? To the river across the street from our hotel. Clarksville has this really cool river walk thingy. Someday, I will have to go check it out, but not today. It's under water. All you can see is the tops of the little lights sticking out of the water. I will have to take a picture later.
Also, we have been and still are under tornado watch. Not to worry though. Kristy says you really don't need to worry until the town blows the siren, and that a warning is worse than a watch She lives in Iowa. I trust her judgement.
Yep, were are totally fine. We get to hang out in the hotel for one more day. Tomorrow, we sign our lease and start moving into our new house.

Because I know you are dieing to know.......

Well, we packed up are stuff and have safely arrived in Clarksville (that's in Tennessee in case you were wondering). We found a hotel. The kids are swimming happily. Guess where my swimsuit is!?! Yep, the very back of the moving truck. My choices were not swimming or braving the traffic to go buy a swim suit. (Always remember: Never go any where within 20 miles of a military base at 4pm)
Clarksville is gorgeuos. It is very very green, and everyone has a lawn. There is a river that goes through the middle of town. There is a cute little park by the river. That is all I know about this town, but so far I like it.
We went this morning and looked at a house out in Woodlawn (the Sticks as Jerry calls it). It was on a huge lot and had a pond in the back yard. Sadly, we didn't get it.
This afternoon I went and looked at a house I found on the internet about a week ago. It is a 4 bed 2 bath cape cod in clarksville. It is super cute, and is in a neighborhood full of kids. I saw 2 potential Jade friends in the short time I was there. We move in monday morning.
So for now, we live in a hotel. The kids are good, they did really good on the drive, and like I said before they are happily swimming. They should sleep well tonight ;)
Oh! For those of you who voted, if nothing changes before monday, we will be living in Tennessee.

We survived AIT

getting his certificate

Mr Jensen pinning on Jerry's crab (btw Mr Jensen is from Brigham City. Yep it's a small world)


Well, it has been over a year, but I am proud to announce that Jerry got his crab. For those who do not know, that is what they call the EOD badge (I guess it looks like a crab). If you want to read all about the crab go HERE. I would explain it all myself, but I would probably get something wrong.

This is a major accomplishment. Almost half of the students in EOD school fail out. For 10 months he spent 12-14 hours a day learning all there is to know about Explosive Ordinance Disposal. He would start his day at 4am and not come home until after 6pm. He had tests where he had to disarm ordinance while being watched over by an instructor who was taking points away for every tiny mistake. Anything less than 80% was considered a fail. It was an extremely stressful inviroment, but he made.

I was want to let him and all of y'all (I'm practicing for Kentucky/Tenessee) how proud I am of him. I have always known how smart he is. He really can do anything he sets his mind to.
Jerry, I love you and I'm proud of you. Good work!!

Flowers, flowers every where

Look at all the flowers I found walking around the block!

Yep, it's spring here. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love springtime in the desert, but how can you not love all of these flowers. I do admit they do create a cloud of pollen, but for some reason it hasn't really affected our allergies, so I'm loving it. I should have taken pictures back when the magnolias were blooming. Maybe there will be some in Kentucky/Tenessee. I sure hope so.

Another year another birthday

A couple of weeks ago I told Caibo I had a birthday coming. He just looked at me like I had spoken a foriegn language. Finally he said something to the effect of grownups don't get birthdays. It's kindof true. After 21, what is there really?
So I told him again yesterday that it was my birthday, and his only concern was that I didn't have a cake. He was pretty determined that I need a Dora cake.
Anyways, this is the story of my birthday:
My husband somehow slept through his alarm for an hour (oddly I did too). Shortly after he left I got up and played facebook for a bit before I woke Jade up. While Jade was gettting ready for school, I figured out the coupon situation (I think couponing kills brain cells from over use). I put Jade on the bus, and then picked my rice on farmville (very important you know).
I got Caibo up and got him ready for school. After I dropped Caibo off at school, I went and got my deoderant and then some Mountain Dew (also very important)
Then, I drove to fort walton to get the part for my van (which btw is the wrong one. I have to go back today) Then I did the shopping trip I told you about yesterday. I also got an Easter dress for Jade and tried to get some alligator clip at Sally Beauty Supply, but they were out of the kind I like.
Then I drove home unloaded the stuff from the van, went and got Caibo, and then just hung out and did a little housework until Jade got home. Then, I had to take Jade to dance. On the way, we stopped at Good Will and got rid of all the clothes I decided she didn't need anymore.
This is where the adventure starts. When I picked Jade up from dance, I backed into another car in the parking lot. There wasn't much damage, but she insisted on a police report. I spent over an hour with 2 kids in the van waiting for the police report. Then, I came home and called the insurance company to report the claim.
By the time Jerry got home I was frazzled to say the least. He sent me on a walk. I don't clearly understand it, but somehow walking makes me a nice person again. I don't know if its the music my phone plays for me, the endorphines or what ever they are, the being outside and seeing all the cool things, or just the moment of semi quiet to myself. Whatever it is, I came back a nice person.
Jerry ordered pizza while I was gone, so that's what we had for dinner.
And that is the story of my Birthday.
So for my birthday I got an adventure, and the new pair of running shoes I am buying today. Also, I am claiming the new BBQ grill we bought Saturday as mine.

Couponing like it's my birthday

Yep, It's my birthday. I had to go to Mary Ester this morning to pick up a part for the van, so I played a little couponing while I was out.

I got:
4 boxes of frosted mini wheats, 4 boxes of pop tarts, 4 dove deoderant, 2 degree men's deoderant, a pack of socks for Caibo, a package of highlighters, a package of gum, a tube of toothpaste, a package of "silly bands", 12 plastic Easter eggs, a gallon of milk, and a new spring wardrobe for Jade (4 shirts, 2 skorts, and a pair of leggings) all for $47.35 (I saved $66.78) and I still have $4 register rewards left for Walgreens.
Just wanted to show off my new skills, that's all.
Now, I have to go sort through Jade's clothes while she is not here to see.

Dear So and So: Laundry day AGAIN

Dear massive pile of laundry,

Didn't I wash you last week? Please start washing, drying, folding, and putting yourself away.

Sincerely,

The laundry lady



Dear Mr B,

I don't remember what you called the imaginary lady you think washes the laundry for me, but can we get a real one? Please.

Sincerely,

The laundry lady



Dear smiley and smilier,

Remember that list of things I don't wash. Was crayons on the list? If not add it. You are super lucky my pillow cases are bigger than my pillows. If Mr. B finds out about the brown crayon....

Sincerely,

Mommy



Dear prince charming,

I warned the smilies about you, but they didn't listen. If you are going to be in my laundry room I'm gonna find you a job. BTW you hold the little button that lets my washer fill really well. You're hired.

Sincerely,

Your new boss

Dear Readers,

I'm feeling lazy today, so click the dear so and so button at the top and head on over to Kat's place for so more Dear So and So fun. (and some really funny kitty videos).

Ok, I totally forgot to put the reason I was so worried yesterday. After I told Jade to take her hair out her response was, "But mom! I like it this way."
Much to my surprise, she came home without the half hairdo.
I asked her about it this morning. She said that she left it in until she got to school and then took it out.
So if you voted that she listened to me, you can have the satisfaction of knowing that you were right. I am just glad she didn't spend the day looking weird.

Just when I thought I was doing good.

This morning Jade was totally on task. She got up, turned off her alarm, and took a shower like I told her to. I thought we had plenty of time, so I was doing her hair while she ate her breakfast. I was doing the pigtails with the twists in them. I was done with the first and just starting the second, when the bus pulled up. I sent her out the door with her hair half done. I told her to take the first pig tial out. I am really curious as to whether or not she listened. What do you think? Did she listen or is she going to walk through the door with her hair half done tonight? I made a poll on the side. Please vote, and I will tell you tomorrow what happened.

Wordless Wednessday: Our fate has been decided

To the park

I took Caibo to the park today. Instead of having lots of little parks with playgrounds all over town, our city has one big children's park. Everytime we went around the corner and saw another playground Caibo said, "Look mom! Another park."
I hope I am not the only one, but my kids are obsessed with those little automatic "hanitizer" (their word for hand sanitizer) dispensers. They just won't leave them alone. That might just have been Caibo's favorite thing at the park, except the car of course.

A small change I forgot to make

Once upon a time (like a month ago) before I moved my scrapping out of this blog, I signed up for a blog train. I forgot to tell the blog train people that my blog had moved. Sorry for the inconvenience, but if you click the preview you can go do my scrapping blog to collect your freebie. Otherwise, the next stop on the train is Scrapmuss Designs or if you are lost you can find the complete list here.

Dear So and So: The good, the bad, and the weird

Dear readers,
I typed this really great dear so and so post. I talked about my superior laptop skills (which it turns out I don't posess), the people that broke into my car and only stole 60 cents, the fantastic sams that closed 40 minutes early, the people and Katies laundry that can't move their clothes, and why Katie should play dear so and so. I forgot to talk about beef bacon. In a moment of brilliance, I somehow hit the back button and now it's all gone. :( I'm not typing it all again, so you will just have to make something up.
Sincerely,
laptop challenged
P.S. Go to Kat's place and check out more Dear So and So letters.

falling off the planet: It's what I do best

As you may have already discovered, communication is not my strong point (even via blog). Sometimes I actually tell people what I am up to, but usually not. Don't be offended. I do it to everyone.
So, what have I been up to lately?
Mostly, nothing exciting. Caibo had a cold for like a week, we played pinewood derby with the ward (I'm holding my pictures hostage. If you want to see some pinewood derby pictures, you have to get Jason and Becky to post theirs), ummmm yep that's about it.
See, it's not that I'm ignoring you. I'm boring that's all.

Dear So and So: Laundry day

Dear Mr B,

I would like to publicly apologize for my epic laundry failure the other day. I assure you that the situation has been taken care of, and it will not occur again (atleast for another week or two)

Sincerely,

The laundry lady

Dear Friends of Mr B.,

I have been told that you have a habit of wearing your ACU pants a little low. Now, I don't have to look at you while you are at school, so I really don't care. I would just like to issue some friendly advice. If you would wear your pants wear they belong, I wouldn't have to keep fixing them.

Sincerely,

Expert torn pants fixer

Dear smiley and smilier,

I do not wash glitter balls, hot wheels cars, prince charming, polly pocket, or GI Joe. If I find these items in the dirty clothes hamper they will be confiscated.

Sincerely,

Not the launderer of all things

Dear Mother Nature,

Please pick a weather pattern and stick with it, so I really can take half of the smilies' wardrobes away. Every time I do, you change your mind, and I have to get them back out again. I'm not impressed.

Sincerely,

Pulling the shorts out AGAIN.

Dear Readers,

If you want to play or just read more letters, head on over to Kat's blog.

Out and about

I always forget that blogger puts the last picture first. I'm not going to fix it though.

This is our monkey friend. He lives at the Mc Donald's play place. This is the fanciest play place I have ever been to.

They also had video games and TVs (one had Finding Nemo, the other Nickelodeon) I'm not the biggest fan of this. In my opinion the best part of playplaces is that the kids run around and wear themselves out. What do you think?

My kids love any restraunt with chopsticks.

They liked this one even more because of the fire (it was a hibachi) Sorry, no fire pictures. I was too distracted by the fire.

Dear So and So: I think I may have lost my mind

Yep, It's friday again.

Dear Caibo,
Believe when I say that I totally understand your liking of all things sweet and sugary. It's just the way you are, and we like that about you. However, 3inches of frosting on top of your cookie is taking it a little to the extreme.
Lots of love,
The mean mommy that made you share the frosting with 3 other cookies

Dear Kat,
Thanks for inventing Dear So and So. It's my favorite friday blogging activity.
Sincerly,
Brandi
P.S. I love your blog.

Dear readers,
If you too would like to play dear so and so (or just read some more letters), head on over to Kat's blog. You know you want to.

Baking with Brandi

I have the absolute best sugar cookie recipe ever, and I like to pull it out for special occasions (usually Valentines day, Christmas, and Halloween if you get really lucky). You see, I enjoy sugar cookies, but I am not especially fond of the mess it takes to make them. Still, I decided it was time to make some heart shaped cookies. This was a really good idea until........
Brandi's baking lesson of the day:
Always make sure you have a cookie cutter before you make the cookie dough
It would seem that I forgot a few things when I moved here from Utah (my heart cookie cutter, my lamps, my wedding pictures?, and I'm sure there's more) So, my sous chef and I made some not so run of the mill Valentine's cookies.

As you can see we made "St. Patrick's stars," cats, candy canes, and "apples"

Conversation between me and the sous chef who was way too excited to be using a cookie cutter
Him: "Can I push it down yet?"
Me: "Hold your horses."
Him: "What??"
Me: "Hold your horses."
Him: "No mom, it's a cat."

It is time

I have debated this for quite some time, and finally broke down and did it. It is time to separate my personal and digiscrapping blogs.
My personal blog will stay here. This is where I will tell all of my adventure filled stories and post pictures of all of the fun we are having.
My digiscrap blog has moved. You can get there by clicking here. This is where I will show off all of my newest kits and layouts and give things away of course.
I am really excited about this change, and hope you are too.

Adventures with the GPS

I may not know what direction I'm going, but I have become pretty confident at finding my way home. Still, I take my GPS friend (I should probably name her) with me most of the time. The other day I zoomed the map out, and saw "Trout Lake" I was really excited because it looked like it was within walking distance of my house. That's when the adventure began.
I turned onto dead end road after dead end road trying to find this "Lake". Caibo was not impressed. He kept telling me we should just go home.
After like 20 minutes I found "trout lake"
It's the water hazard on the golf course.

This is for you Allison

So, I guess I didn't really explain where I am exactly. I'm not going to be too specific because my blog is not private and I don't want crazies at my door, and really sometimes I have no idea where I am.
Seriously, unless I am looking at my GPS screen I can't tell you which way north is. I live on a street that runs into the forest on both ends, and my house faces the house across the street. Maybe one day I will get it all sorted out, but for now I have decided it doesn't really matter.
The city I am in is called Niceville. You can look at a map of the area here. It is a smallish town (I think). Their claim to fame is their yearly mullet festival. You can see some awesome mullet photos here. Sadly, I will probably move before the mullet festival.
Technically, we are closer to Alabama than we are to Orlando (but we think we figured out how to get the resident rate at Disney World). I imagine things are about as southern as they get here. You here alot of ma'am, and all the women at the schools are referred to as Ms (it sounds more like miss though). You see signs for BBQ, fried catfish (very good BTW), and boiled peanuts. We have squirells in our trees, and get raccoons at night if we leave the trash can open.
So far, I love it here. The beaches are close, the people are friendly, and it is sooo GREEN.

**So upon further inspection, the pictures of the mullet festival don't really have any mullets. How is that possible?**

Shhhh! It's a secret.

Ok, I was going to brag about the super cool thing I got for my husband for our anniversary, but I can't show you the picture. I guess I will have to do that when it gets here. Unfortunately, that means my title is VERY misleading.
So, you may be wondering where I have been. My sister told me the other day that I am lost. I tried to tell her that I know exactly where I am, but I couldn't tell her which way north is. Yeah, she wasn't buying it.
There is really nothing super exciting to tell you. Jade loves school and has some little friends. She is mostly happy except I told her that she can't have any of those friends over until she cleans her room. Caibo is finally in a preschool. We found one just a couple of blocks from our house, and so far I am very impressed. He is also mostly happy except that he can't have a cookie until his room is clean. I am the meanest mom ever.
We have found spaces for most of our stuff. The pile on the patio is slowly getting smaller and smaller. You know, the best part of a small house is that it is really easy to clean. Speaking of which.....

by some miracle my filter isn't overachieving today

I have a confession to make. My life is boring. Yes, it is true. I am not an exciting person, so I am always on the look out for something interesting to post as my facebook status. As I was driving across the country I thought up several status updates, but decided to wait until the end of the day to use them, so I wouldn't wreck the van texting and driving. Sadly, by the end of the day I was always too tired. So, in honor of Random thought Tuesday, I bring you the status updates I thought up (and can still remember) from my long, long drive:

got my kicks on Route 66

always thought the animators of the movie cars made the hills in the background look like cars on purpose, it turns out the hills really do look like cars.

it's a good thing people in the middle of nowhere have a sense of humor about living in the middle of nowhere.

resisted the urge to go to Roswell when I saw the exit sign.

Jade says Texas smells like crap. I think she's right.

mmmm Cherry cider, too bad they are closed.

didn't know it snows in Texas. I guess you learn something new every day.

just passed the "It'll do" hotel.

Dallas+Rush hour+snow=how is this even fair?

Crossed the Mississippi and lived to tell about it

and then, I got so bored of driving I pretty much quit with the status update thing, so that's all the random I have for you today. If you want more random head over to The source of all randomness and join the fun.

Dear So and So: tales from the road

I survived my 4 days driving across the country (BTW if you didn't know I just moved from Utah to Florida), I am somewhat moved into my new house, and 1/2 my kids are in school. To celebrate......

Dear dude at Jade's school,
When I mentioned I was surprised that you had to wait a day after you register your kid for school to actually take them to school, I was simply making small talk. Your response, "With all the military here, they are probably worried people just dropping their kids off at school and not coming back," flabbergasted me to the point of no response. I couldn't even open my mouth to say that I am infact an army wife.
How dare you make such a ridiculous generalization!! These people are out fighting for our freedom because they love their families so much.
I hope to never run into you again.
still angry days later,
Army wife

Dear whoever knows,
I noticed that the state of new mexico has these "safety corridors" where the fines double for speeding. I also noticed that most of them are under construction. As we all know, fines double for speeding in a work zone. I am left wondering: If you were to get caught speeding in a "safety corridor" that is under construction would they quadruple your fine?
Sincerely,
super curious

Dear lady at the water company,
When I asked for a phone book, I really did intend to keep it. I had to go talk to you anyways, and I was in desperate need of a phone book. You just looked at me weird when I left.
Sincerely,
yay! I have a phone book

Dear Walmart,
I just wanted you to know that the walmart in FWB is way too crowed all the time, and it is a 25 minute drive from my house. I know I was spoiled to have 3 walmarts within 15 minutes of my old house. Please consider building a walmart closer to my house. Please.
Sincerely,
tired of driving to walmart

Dear weather,
I don't know if you caught that detail, but I live in Florida now. Twenty degrees and snow are not appropriate Florida weather. Warm up already!! I want to go to the beach.
Sincerely,
BRRRRR!!

And if you want to play along with all the dear so and so fun head on over to kat's blog and check it out.