A Big Boy Room

Today was the BIG day. The bunk beds arrived and were assembled by the fantastic delivery team. (We had originally ordered the beds from IKEA, but after 8 hours of pain and sweat from my dear husband and mom, we determined that not only did the holes not line up in certain places but in other places the holes were not drilled correctly at all and wouldn't allow the pieces to go together. So we sent them back and went to Value City. There we found even nicer beds and found out that the delivery men actually assemble the beds! Score!) I rushed home from work early this evening in order to get the room all decorated and set up before Brian brought the boys home from previewing the new train exhibit at the science center.

The beds are great, and the Steelers room looks great! We ended up getting thinner mattresses than what are normally sold for twin beds and that allows Matthew to have a protective railing on the top bunk. We moved Matthew to a toddler bed when he was 22 months old, but we felt like Noah was ready to move. And Matthew was definitely outgrowing his toddler bed. So we decided to make the move out of the crib earlier for Noah at 18 months. We were nervous at first, but at bed time tonight, I tucked him in and he snuggled right under his covers with his new pillow and fell fast asleep. No crying and no fuss. And Matthew, well he was just super excited to finally have the bunk beds to sleep in. He loves the fact that Noah sleeps below him. We are beyond happy that we chose the bunk bed route for the boys. It's a huge space saver and at the same time, gives them more room to sleep comfortably. And you can never go wrong with a Steelers theme in the Burgh. :)

Enjoy the excessive photos that are about to appear below. :)

Bunk beds!

A baby blanket makes a great curtain!

I bought this light switch plate in high school, and my parents let me take it to use for the boys.

Awesome rug from Walmart.

Our Icon Corner still stands. :)

Matthew's top bunk and his new bunk bed bear that we built this past weekend named Troy.

I've also had this license plate decoration since high school. Goes great above the boys' door. (Don't worry. Their crucifix stands on the night stand. It was blessed by JPII.)

I designed their new name posters and had them printed at Staples on foam board.

Noah's bottom bunk and his new bunk bed bear that we built this past weekend, Heath. 

I had a blast decorating, and hopefully, the boys will have a blast sleeping in it. :) Good night!

JFK Anniversary

Lately I have been fascinated with reading up on and learning details about JFK's assassination. This coming Friday marks the 50th anniversary of the horrible event, and many television networks have been showing specials throughout the past several days. I am beyond intrigued. I really, really want to solve the mystery.  I even found myself going through the details I had learned while running my 5K on the treadmill yesterday!

Clearly, I will never solve this mystery. No one will. I don't believe at all that the government and the CIA all got together and planned his assassination. The government can't even launch a health care website correctly. I highly doubt they could pull off a cover up that big. And let's face it. Someone would've talked. Someone always does for enough money. No, the government absolutely had nothing to do with it. Plus, Kennedy was already going down a path to self demise. Sure, we talk about how amazing and wonderful he was. But let'ts not forget about the Bay of Pigs (epic failure) and the Cuban Missal Crisis (coming just minutes from the brink of nuclear war does not make one a hero). Oh and then there were all of his mistresses. That speaks well for the young president. (not.) Plus he had even wanted to put the Civil Rights Bill (that he had campaigned on) on the back burner for a while until the governor of Alabama forced him to start fighting for such legislation earlier. His first few years in office were not as dreamy as everyone seems to believe. If the government wanted to get rid of him they didn't have to kill him. They could have just let him self destruct and get him out when the time for reelection came. Pulling off his assassination would be too hard.

But I don't think Oswald fired the fatal shot either. I do believe Oswald hit JFK in the back of neck and the bullet traveled through his throat, but I don't think he fired the shot that killed him. The shot that killed Kennedy exploded when it made contact with his head. The first bullet did not explode. Oswald had one weapon, a mail order rifle. So clearly his weapon was not capable of shooing exploding bullets. That meant the bullet had to come from somewhere else.

I watched several interviews over the weekend with ex FBI agents, and one theory made a ton of sense. There was a young, new agent working for Kennedy at the time of the assassination. Some may have even called him inexperienced. His name was George Hickey. Hickey was riding directly behind JFK's limo in the front of a car. Once the president was shot the first time and slumped toward Jackie, eyewitnesses have said they saw Hickey jump off the car that he was riding on and stumble as he was pulling his high powered weapon into his hands. Some have said that during this stumble, they witnessed the gun go off, and this is the bullet that fatally struck JFK in the head. The weapons used by the FBI at the time included a new type of assault weapon that shot out bullets that exploded once they hit the target. This explosion was meant to be fatal. Thus, when Hickey accidentally discharged his gun, the bullet struck JFK in the head and caused the massive explosion.

So I guess if I truly believe that Hickey fired the fatal shot, then I do believe in some sort of government cover up. But I guess it was more of an FBI cover up than an intentional plot to kill the president.

I guess we will never really know what went on that day. (I have a feeling Jackie saw a lot more from her position in the limo than what she ever talked about. But I'm also sure she was in shock the entire time and apparently was pretty obsessed with gathering JFK's head pieces in order to "put him back together.") It was a tragic day in our country for sure. As the anniversary approaches, I will continue to watch all the specials and interviews and piece together the puzzle for myself. At the end of the day, however, I just pray that such a dreadful attack never happens again in our country.

God bless America!

Five Faves

The blog has been a little quiet lately. I've been too tired and actually just too busy to actually have the time to sit down and write a post. I've thought about it several times but our days have literally been nonstop activity. And nap time has been spent with me reorganizing the house and prepping the boys room for the big transformation to bunk beds that is set to occur this Saturday. Anyways, before I get my ab exercises done, I thought I'd pop on and write about my five faves this week.

1. Gratitude from my students

The second grader I tutor had a writing assignment to write a thank you note to someone and she chose me! I was honored and really flattered. It was so sweet of her and the note is now hanging on our fridge in the midst of the kids' artwork. What a great motivator when I find myself losing steam as the holidays approach quickly.

2. Gymsport Open Gym Play Time

About once or twice a month, I take the kids to Gymsport, a local gymnastics gym. They offer preschool open gym Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9-12. It is $5/child/hour. We usually go from about 10:30-11:30 and then stay around afterwards to eat our lunch at the tables provided there. The boys LOVE it. They can run, jump, bounce, climb, and do so many fun things without getting in trouble for it. As the winter approaches, it is great to have something so close to our house and so cheap to go and do get their energy out.

3. Philip Rivers

So, he's not a Steelers quarterback, but he is an AMAZING, devout Catholic who is an awesome witness to the faith. He and his wife has six children and they speak out about why couples should use NFP. I saw a video online recently of an interview he did speaking about NFP and why he and his wife use it. It is honest and sincere. My favorite quote from the whole thing is this:

 “For us it was a Church teaching, so you have to do it. As you obey...then you start to understand and see the fruits of it (NFP) in your marriage.”

Take five minutes and check out the video here. 

4. Sales

Last Thursday night, Brian just happened to be on Craigslist when an ad for a wooden train table with accessories popped up for only $40. And it was literally 15 minutes from our house. We jumped and were able to purchase this gem the next day! Now, we have an awesome, usually very pricey, Christmas gift for a fraction of the price! Also, this past Friday, the boys and I had a little extra time after we were done at the gym and between when we needed to be at our next activity, so we wandered around the shops at the shopping center where the gym is located. I found Brian a pair of really nice dress shoes that originally cost $100 on sale for only $40! They were the only pair in his size, and he loves them. He can't get over how comfortable they are. I was also able to pick up a Jingles the Dog DVD and book for Matthew at Hallmark. (Both are Christmas gifts.) The book was $10 and the DVD was $10. After coupons, I paid only $11 for both. Awesome! And I was able to buy them without Matthew knowing I did so. He loves Jingles and will be excited for his new book and DVD.

5. This picture from after the circus on Sunday night.

I mean, how can you  not smile?

Have a great night!

7 Quick Takes

I sit at the end of this week just completely devoid of energy. Technically right now, I need to be getting my rear in gear and working out with Jillian Michaels since I missed the gym today and yesterday, but I just don't have the energy. Instead, catching up on blogs and actually blogging on my own blog seems much more appealing.

1. All Saints Day

Today is All Saints Day, and it is by far one of my favorite feast days in the Church year. What I think is particularly cool about today is that it is a day when we celebrate ALL the Saints of the Church, known and unknown. Everyone in Heaven is a Saint, but some have not been declared Saints by the Church. So it's nice to have a day like today when we recognize those who have reached their eternal reward. Someone told me yesterday that they would be remembering Abby today when they were at Mass, and the comment made my day. 

2. Halloween

In all, the boys attended two Halloween parties (three if you count Zoo Boo), and trick or treated for a good hour last night. The weather could have cooperated better, but the rain just made things more interesting. We made it through one whole street and then headed home. Somehow between all the events, we now have enough candy to last us a lifetime. Seriously, it is insane. And most people in the neighborhood where we go give out full size candy bars or packages of candy. I am going to gain ten pounds just looking at it all. 

The morning of Halloween before the Preschool Party.

Mike and Sully ready for trick or treating.

 3. Noah joins Preschool

Matthew's preschool party was on Thursday morning, and I am a homeroom mom, so I stayed to help out. Of course, Noah had to tag along as well. He was intimidated at all. In fact, when it was story time, he just pushed through the crowd and plopped down right next to Matthew and continued to listen to the story. He fit right in.

4. The Weight Game

I had a doctor's appointment this past week (two actually), and I had gained five pounds in six months. Gasp! I wasn't all that freaked out. In fact, I kind of expected it. I have been training with Christi, and I am definitely losing inches, but I'm also gaining major muscle. And muscle weighs a lot. Anyways, the second doctor was quite concerned and really had me worried. Christi tried to give me a good pep talk, but I was still feeling all chubby and yucky. Then, at the gym on Wednesday an older man who hadn't been there in about a month was suddenly back working out. (The gym I go to is pretty small and you start to recognize the people who work out when you do. You make small talk sometimes, too.) And he stopped me and very sincerely proceeded to tell me how impressed he was that I had lost all the baby weight and then some. What a nice thing to say! And I sooooooo needed to hear that. I am nowhere near my prepregnancy weight. But I feel like I am actually healthy for the first time in my life. If I keep working with Christi, I'll get leaner, too. And the best part? The OB okayed my entire workout with Christi (including my 5K) to continue during pregnancy in a few years when, God willing, we decide to have another baby.

5. A Friendly Visit

Last weekend Matthew's Godfather came to visit. We had a very busy weekend, and we had a lot of fun. I am quite certain he went home way more exhausted than when he arrived. Matthew loved having him visit. And it was adorable when after Mass on Sunday he proudly walked over to Father Jim and said, "This is my grandfather." He meant Godfather, clearly, but it was oh so cute since his godfather is nowhere near old enough to be a grandfather!

6. Monsters University

Monsters University came out on DVD this past Tuesday, and the boys and I could not wait to bring it home. I never thought I would be one of those parents who runs to the store the first day something is released, but I am! Monsters University is really such a cute and fun movie. I was anxious to get to see it again. I think I even like it better than the first. And the boys love it. They enjoy sitting and watching it and also trying to scare each other like the students in Scare Class. I would highly recommend watching it.

7. Bam!

The following sums up everything about why we use NFP:

 

Have a fantastic weekend!