Really????

18 months and Gabriel wears a size 7.5 shoe!!! I mean seriously?!?!?! Since Gabe has been born we have been blessed with family/friends donating their kids clothes and shoes. When he was younger he never really needed shoes because he wasn't walking. I would just put socks or those really cute Robeez style shoes on. However it is Summer, Gabriel is walking, we are always out at Playgroups and the boy needs to wear shoes. My issue is I refuse to pay $30-$50 for a pair of shoes that he will outgrow in a few months.

Up until today his shoes have come from Consignment Sales or Once Upon A Child and I take pride in only spending $2-$15 dollars for a pair of shoes. Then it hit me, I can not find shoes anywhere in this town to fit my son's gigantic feet!!!

Nathan and I went shoe shopping today after lunch and went to Stride-Rite. They are having a sale and it helps, but good grief that place is so expensive!!!!! Nathan smiled, told me to relax, and with all the cheap or free things we have been blessed with, we are okay to buy two pairs of shoes for our son.

Gabriel received his two first pairs of Stride-Rite shoes, majorly discounted (clearance and military discount-thank you), and I am still trying to wrap my head around the lady measuring his feet and telling me size 7.5

Pictures soon - one pair for this summer and another pair for fall/winter....size 8 I mind you!!

Steppin on the Scale....

and I am SO scared to see the numbers. I am FAT. I am very disappointed in letting myself get like this. No one to blame but myself. So in 10 minutes (12:00), I am stepping on the scale, writing it down, and then will do my daily at least 30 minutes of activities. My first two things I want to try are Jillian's 30 Day Shred. Several friends have used this to jump start their work outs and a friend is letting me borrow the DVD. After that, I will borrow my husband's new phone (Verizon's Droid) and start the Couch-2-Five-K program. He has an app on his phone for it. For some reason I pay out the wawzoo for a BlackBerry and they don't carry the C25K app!!!!

Reason for the weight lose....I CAN'T stand the way I look! I am 5'10 and curvy but now I am 5'10 and Fat.....I used to have beautiful legs and skinny ankles but I look at them now and see cankles...yes cankles!!! Reason #2 - I can't sleep and I am moody. Two things that have been linked to being overweight. Reason #3 - Even though I am not ready to have another baby I will be soon and won't be able to get pregnant because I am fat. Yes I know you can get pregnant no matter what size you are but there are too many complications and diseases you can pass on to your baby if you are not healthy. Being fat is not healthy! Reason #4 I want to be proud of how I look, feel, and want to teach my child and future children how important being healthy is. Heck America is the fattest country on this planet and I don't want to be part of that number any more!!!

Wish me luck for I now have 2 minutes to get on that scale. If you hear a blood curling scream...it is just me seeing the numbers for the first time in a long time!

Back on the wagon....

Some how we (mainly me) have fell off the band wagon of not eating Fast Food and going out to eat only once every two weeks. Starting tomorrow this ALL changes!!! Tonight for dinner I had my last Fast Food dinner- Spicy Chicken Sandwich from Chick-Fil-A. Can we say yummy!!!!

Normally I plan two weeks of menus and base my menus on is in the grocery sale ads. Well tonight it is 11:20, I'm tired, too stressed, so I only planned one week. Here you go!! Btw, a friend is letting me borrow her cookbook and I LOVE it...so much I'm not going to return..just kidding. Anywho, the cookbook is Taste of Home Simple & Delicious with over 600 recipes. She got it at Sam's (got to LOVE Sam's!!)

Sun - Chicken Creole
Mon - Chicken Enchiladas
Tues - BBQ (Brauts/Hamburgers)
Wed - Sauteed Spiced Salmon
Thurs - Honey Buttered Chicken
Fri - Potato Chicken Pockets
Sat - Salad

**I know today is Wednesday but when I make out my menus I always seem to start on a "Sunday" no matter what day it really is. Also some have asked about side dishes...sides are usually a veggie or fruit of some sort and whatever I have in the cabinets. The main dish is what I am focusing on right now.**

Time flies...

So I am catching up on Season 2 of True Blood (Sookie Stackhouse novels HBO has turned into a series) and uploading pictures to FB, when it hits me that today is the 21st and somehow I missed the fact that our son is 18 months old!!!!

I have this irrational feeling that I have let him down!!! Gabriel is a December baby and since he was born, on every birth date (17th) I wish him a Happy Birthday and take his picture. For 17 months I have done this. Never missing a picture, wishing a Happy Birthday and yet, I miss it this month. Not only does this sadden me but it also makes me realize that he is a year and a half old!!! He is almost TWO!!!!!!!

Dang I feel like crap and I know it is no big thing but I swore that I would always make sure his birthday is special. Especially since he was born in December which happens to be out wedding anniversary month and my favorite holiday, Christmas.

Today is also Father's Day. My dad is celebrating his 28th Father's Day and Nathan is celebrating his 2nd Father's Day. This weekend we celebrated Father's Day by going to Great Wolf Lodge, eating Red Velvet Cake, going to Young's Dairy for breakfast and then a round of Putt-Putt, with ice cream after. I truly am blessed by God to have Nathan as my husband and father of my child. Thank you my love for everything you do and give to Gabriel and I!!!

For my daddy, there are not enough words to explain how you have made me feel loved, safe, joy, and much laughter in my life. I truly look up to you as a parent and pray that I can give all the love, respect, and encouragement, to my children that you have given to me growing up and still to this day! Know that even though we are not together on this day to celebrate YOU, you are forever with me!!!

Nathan and Gabriel @ Great Wolf Lodge

Gabe - 18 Months old (taken a few days late)

My daddy, last November

Gabe and Grandpa at Destin, FL this past April

COSI....Oh My!!!!!

For those who follow my Blog (thank you and sorry it is not all that great of a read like others), know that we are moving to Pope in November. Since this news, I have been compiling our Ohio Bucket List. First you may say Bucket List for Ohio?!?! Yes folks there is a TON of things to do in Ohio!!!! So much within just a hour radius from our house!!!!!!

Okay back on track, so since we have started the Bucket List, we have actually started crossing things off the bucket list :D First thing we crossed off was COSI in Columbus. We took a day trip to Columbus and boy did we have fun!!!! It is truly a 3 level, all ages, hands on, kind of museum. We went on a Saturday and it really wasn't too crowded. School hadn't let out officially for Summer but still it wasn't bad. We didn't get tickets to see Titanic because that was an extra 10 bucks per person and we didn't know how Gabriel would like the place.

Gabriel ended up LOVING it!!! Not as much as his parents though. For the younger ones COSI has one level of just hands on, running, jumping, and climbing room. This room is ideal because Nathan and I needed a break from walking around and Gabriel needed a place to truly run wild. The exhibit that gave us the most laughs was the Piano Human Body Sounds...yes play a piano and hear the sounds of farts, burps, and your late night Taco Loco meal coming back up -hahaha.

So go explore the COSI for yourself. Can't make it, scroll down and view some of our pictures. Then check back for my Ohio Bucket list as I will post that very soon along with links......

Front of the building

Gabe putting all the balls into the air

He loved this Tree House

Nathan getting into it

The infamous Piano..hehehe

Strawberry Festival

Was fun this year but bitter sweet too. Last year our friends Don and Terrell along with their fabulous son and Gabe's first friend, Price took us to the Strawberry Festival. It was HOT, crowded, and did I mention it was HOT?!?!?! Gabe was almost 6 months old last year when we went and this year he is almost a year and a half old. When we were riding the bus I was wondering what The Michael family was doing at that exact same moment. Since they are half way around the world in Guam probably sleeping!!!

This year we went with Amanda, Corrie, and Elizabeth along with Elizabeth's two adorable children!! Weather was picture perfect, in the 70s with a nice breeze and sun. However there was one issue....all weekend it rained, then poured, then rained again. So this equaled a muddy hot mess. I wore my tennis shoes and huge mistake. Everyone else wore their flip flops and end up walking away with a mud pedicure.

The Strawberry Festival is full of Strawberry things to eat and all strawberries are from a local farm, Fulton Farms. Last year I didn't sample any of the strawberry things but this year I did (it was just way to hot for me to eat)!!! :D Nathan got the Strawberry Funnel Cake topped with strawberries and whip cream. I sampled the Strawberry Salsa which I wasn't that impressed with. I honestly thought it tasted like jar salsa with chopped up strawberries added to it. However, our trip ended with the best Strawberry food item....STRAWBERRY DOUGHNUTS!!! Man oh' man are they yummy. With all this I took zero pictures...not even of our muddy toes. Check out The Troy Strawberry Festival at least once I say! Make sure to make a pit stop under the bleachers to try one of the doughnuts!!!

2009 Strawberry Festival

2010 Strawberry Festival -

man he is growing up way to fast!!