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!

Seven Quick Takes

So I should be napping (seriously, sleep this week has been very little), but I can't not participate in 7 Quick Takes, so here we go!

1. Pittsburgh Catholic Mommas made the cover of Franciscan Way, the magazine from my Alma Mater. It was an honor to be featured there, and it makes me smile a little bit more about where I went to school. How many other universities would want to feature a Mom's Group on their cover? Not many. Nope. Not many at all. I am very blessed.

2. Christi met with me this week and started me on Phase 2 of her workout plan. Oh. My. Goodness. My legs are jello, and my abs just hurt. But you know what? It feels so stinking good! I love it and love her. The workout is definitely a challenge for me, but in a good way. I even overhead another woman at the gym say as I was jumping up and onto a box, "Wow. That's amazing." Oh yeah. :)

3. Noah has been teething terribly this past week. He is 16 months old and until Monday, he only had 7 teeth (the top 4 and bottom 3). Well, that all changed rapidly. Suddenly, he got a low grade fever, got a clear runny nose, became inconsolable, stopped sleeping through the night, and his gums began bleeding. So far, he has gotten two molars in completely. And I counted at least six other tooth buds ready to burst through this morning. I feel bad for him and he won't eat. I don't know what else I can do (we do IB Profen round the clock and Oragel). Matthew never had this hard of time with getting teeth. I am beyond exhausted, and I am tired of seeing my usually happy baby in pain. I am thankful that this too shall pass and selfishly thankful that it's happening before the holidays come along.

4. The boys and I picked up a Cake Boss cake to celebrate Abby's birthday a week late. We had plans to celebrate last Saturday night, but Matthew ended up getting really sick. Anyways, I LOVE Cake Boss. It all began when Matthew was first born and wouldn't sleep at night. I watched every episode of the first season of Cake Boss about a dozen times when they were being rerun at all hours of the night. At one point I was sure I could make all of his cakes in my sleep. He came to Pittsburgh this past April and gave away cakes for free. Matthew and I went down to Market Square and each got one. That was a crazy experience. (People were ready to fist fight. Cause we're classy like that in the Burgh.) The cakes are delicious, even though they are refrigerated, and I am excited to try the Red Velvet tonight.

5. Here are some pics from our outing to get free Cake Boss Cakes (And yes I did just make one quick take into two. Score!)

 

The cake we are eating tonight. :)

 6. Two weeks from now, Brian and I will be on our way to Wine Country in Erie to celebrate our five year anniversary. I am beyond excited. I cannot wait to finally have some much needed one-on-one time with just my hubby. And also we will get to sleep in! Yay! Plus, there's wine. And I really like wine. :)

7. Speaking of our anniversary, Brian and I have a new little picture and featured blurb on AveMariaSingles.com Success Story part of their website. It's kinda cool. That site is so special to us, and I highly recommend it to anyone. It was some of the best money I ever spent to join. My life would be drastically different today without it. Check out the new Success Story Page. :)

Have a great weekend! Happy Friday!

Getting My PreBaby Body Back!

So, it feels like it has taken FOREVER this time around for me to get back to being even remotely close to my prepregnancy body. I even walked miles every day when I was pregnant with Noah and gained way less weight with him than I did with Matthew. After Matthew, the weight literally melted off. I was a size 2 by the time he was 9 months old (side note: I had never been a size 2 before in my entire life!). At that point, I joined a gym so that I could keep the weight off while weaning him. I became a gym addict (I started to love running) and was able to stay that size until Noah came into being when Matthew was 18 months old.

After Noah was born, I just assumed that the weight would melt off again. Ha! Not so, my friends, not so! I'm not sure if it was because he was a terrible nurser and I wasn't burning as many calories as I thought, or if my body was just way more stretched out than I had originally thought. I hit the gym the minute I got the go ahead at my six week postpartum check up. I started running miles every day and doing lifting exercises on the ab weight machines. I was frustrated. No matter what I did, I could not get back into my size 4 jeans. I wasn't looking to be a size 2 again (I honestly didn't carry that look well and Brian has said he was afraid I'd blow over), but a size 4 would be okay! Really, I'd take that. I was even counting calories again, and I hadn't had to do that so strictly since college. Nothing was making the weight budge. Nothing!

When Noah turned a year old this past May, and I was sucking myself in to get my size 8 jeans shut every morning, I knew I had to do something. I posted a frustrated statement on Facebook, and that's what got me in touch with my trainer, Christi. She had been teaching my kids in her Toddlerobics class each week since the fall (and since Matthew had decided he was going to marry her and became completely obsessed with bringing her flowers and gifts, we had been Facebook friends for a long while. We had even had a few play dates together.) But this was the first time she had every really offered to truly help me out at the gym and show me a workout that I could: 1. Accomplish, 2. Love to do, and 3. Make the weight come off! I was scared at first (Christ is amazingly fit, and I've seen her work out before. There was no way I could keep up with her. No way at all. Plus, I was scared to death of the free weight area of the gym, and I knew she'd take me back there.) But I was fed up with being chubby, so I took her up on her more than generous offer.

We met the first day at our gym, and she had designed a work out specifically based upon what I could do and where I was at in my fitness journey. (So she met me where I was. This gave me confidence and made me less nervous in what she was teaching me. I knew that if everything else failed, at least I knew how to run!)  She taught me about Circuit Workouts. Basically, a circuit consists of high intensity cardio, strength training, and ab training. So, I could still run my heart out on the treadmill (yay!) and get the rest of my body into shape, too. The circuits keep my body constantly burning calories throughout the day. So it's not like one little burst or calorie burn and then you're done for the day. This keeps working. Cool!

For the circuits she designed for me, I run hardcore on the treadmill for 3 minutes, do about 3 minutes of strength training, and repeat that process five times. At the end, I do about 15 minutes of ab floor work. I stay away from the machines because surprise! They weren't doing anything! In the evenings, I also do the Ab Challenge (I've talked about it on the blog before), and that was also Christi's idea. The workout is challenging and pushes me to my limit every single time, but I LOVE that feeling. If I leave the gym feeling like I could go run a marathon, I've done something wrong. If I wake up the next morning and don't hurt, I worry. Workouts should be intense. I want to feel like I'm doing something.

Christi's workout is AMAZING. I love doing it, and I am brave in the free weight area now. Some of the guys back in that area even know me now, and they respect my being back there because they have realized I know what I'm doing (or I can at least fake it ;)). I have also taught some of them how to share. It's a win-win for us all.

Here's the best part though....Christ's workout works! I have lost tons of inches from my waist. (I recently came to the conclusion that the scale is my worst enemy, so I avoid it. I know I'm losing inches because my clothes are falling off my hips.) My abs also look much more toned. I can totally see a lot more definition there. I recently just bought size 6 jeans, and my goal is to be in a size 4 by Christmas. I know with Christi's plan, I can do it.

Christi is available for training! She teaches classes through CCAC. In the summer, she also teaches a boot camp at South Park. But honestly, if you are looking to get into shape and lose inches and weight, you need to have her time one-on-one. And no need to fear her. She doesn't yell mean, insulting things at you while you are struggling to do a push up. She's full of honesty and encouragement. Love her. :) For more info on the personal training, you can click here. Or just message me, and I'll get you in touch with her.

Here are some before and after pictures of me.....Thank you, Christi, for making me feel skinny again! I could not have gotten back into shape without you and your expertise. You rock!

From the beginning of June 2013. My dear college roomie looks amazing! However, notice the baby bulge on me. Not attractive!

From the beginning of September 2013....what a difference a summer can make!

Seven Quick Takes

I couldn't let a Friday go by without putting in my two cents...

1. I'M MEETING RASCAL FLATTS TONIGHT! And I'm pretty darn excited about it. I hope I don't make a total moron out of myself. We will see. Why at 28 years old this still excites me, I will never know. But I am pumped. :)

2. Big Brother last night was AWESOME! Totally the best episode of the entire season. Amanda and Elissa left the Big Brother house. Finally! Seriously, I didn't like Ginamarie in the beginning, but after pulling off such a power move, she totally deserves the win the whole thing. I'm hoping her alliance doesn't turn on this week. We will see. It was nice to actually enjoy watching the show again. Okay, so Brian and I always get a kick out of it. But last night just took it back to old school Big Brother when Mike Boogie and Dr. Will used to play the game. It was a great reward to be able to come to it after a LONG night of tutoring.

3. I only got to the gym three days this past week and am feeling like a total slacker. I took a long walk yesterday and took another one today. Plus, I still do the ab challenge every night, but there's nothing like sweating it out at the gym. Oh, well. One rough week won't kill me. I'll get back into the swing next week. But I only realize how much I love working out on the days when I don't have the time/ability to do so. I guess it's good that I miss it since that means I actually like it.

4. Now that you're totally falling asleep, we can just skip to the next one.

5. Matthew finished his first week of preschool. He goes two mornings a week, and he LOVED it! Yay! He happily ran off each morning, and he has slowly been telling me more about what he actually does at school. Yesterday they practiced making the letter "A" and painting with water colors. He likes going to the Bike Room the best, and they try to do that each morning. No wonder he is exhausted! He napped for three hours yesterday afternoon and then slept from 830-730 last night. Poor guy. Happy Mommy. :)

6. NFL season kicked off last night and I am thrilled to report that the Ravens LOST!!!! Woohoo!!! Now all the Steelers need to do is win their home opener and we're already a game ahead of the dirty birds! What a great way to start off the season...ahead of Baltimore. I love it. Thank you, Peyton Manning, for totally rocking it with 7 touchdowns last night. You, sir, are my new favorite person. I'll finish this quick take with: HERE WE GO STEELERS HERE WE GO!

7. The weather in Pittsburgh the past few days has been glorious. Totally starting to feel a bit like early Fall. I'm loving every second of it. I've had great hair days because the humidity is totally 0. Awesome. That being said, even though the temps drop into the 40's at night, I still have our window unit AC cranked on high. I love sleeping in the ice cold. It's better that way. Brian thinks I'm strange, so if you might think that, too, right about now, I can't say I blame you.

Have a fantastic weekend!

Friday Quick Takes

Just because I couldn't let a Friday go by without chiming in with my 7 Quick Takes!

1. A woman after Mass yesterday morning asked me if I am pregnant because I look like it. First, the answer is no, and second, how rude! I have been working my butt off at the gym every day of the week and to be told I look pregnant is just not cool. The woman isn't ancient either, so it's not like I can write it off as just a little old lady being confused. And honestly, did this women never learn that the last thing you ever ask a woman is if she's expecting? I was hurt, but then Brian pointed out that with the ages of our kids, people are starting to think we'll be expecting soon. Which I guess makes sense. Even my trainer is baffled. Come on, people! I just bought size six jeans last Friday night. There's no way my pregnant self could ever fit in those. Ugh.

2. Last night I had a night off from tutoring and both my dad and Brian were working late, so my mom and I took both boys to the mall. I know the mall sounds boring, but my kids LOVE it. They love playing in the toy store and fountain. Eating in the food court is seriously the best thing ever in their minds. And it get us out of the house and burns off some energy. My mom and I had a blast! We hadn't taken the kids anywhere just us for a while, and it was nice to spend the evening with my best friend. We laughed a lot. Good times for all.

3.

This picture speaks for itself....Matthew is officially ready for preschool this coming Tuesday! It will be a big deal for sure in our house. I am so proud of my little guy, and he is so ready for school. I can't imagine keeping him home any longer. He is ready to learn, and yes, I'm a teacher. But I could NEVER teach my own kids. I prefer to let someone else tackled that hurdle. :)

4. Do parents ever get to sleep through the night? I mean, my kids are pretty well sleep trained, but if I have to wipe another nose, untangle another blanket, or find another binky tonight, I will lose it. The wake ups only last for two minutes at most, but it takes me FOREVER to go back to sleep. This Mommy is so very tired. I know it could be worse, but I am so looking forward to coming home from Rascal Flatts next Friday night and sleeping into noon the next day since the kids will be at my parents house. A full night's sleep will be AMAZING.

5.

 

Business is good....very good! It just suddenly started expanding last week as many of the public districts started back to school. I actually have more students than time slots at this point. I'm not sure what the solution is to that, but I'm sure I will come up with something. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with all the hours I'll be gone each evening, but I also feel incredibly blessed. I can stay home with my kids and still help make ends meet. God is good.

6. My Countdown App says that there are only 48 days, 23 hours, and 53 minutes until mine and Brian's anniversary trip to Wine Country in Erie. We leave on our anniversary (a Friday) at noon and return the following Sunday at noon. We will get to Erie in time to visit one or two wineries on Friday before a romantic dinner that Brian is arranging. And we will have ALL day Saturday to go wine tasting. We even plan on venturing into New York and visiting some of the wineries there. It will be a great getaway. I simply cannot wait. Plus, we have the nicest room in the B&B and it has a fireplace as well as its own, private entrance. We won't have to see another soul that weekend, and that's awesome. October 18 cannot come fast enough!

7. Sara Evans is my favorite singer ever. Love her and every single song she has ever written and performed. Her song, Perfect, is great. And you can jam to it...I do it every day on the treadmill. It breaks up the boy band play list nicely. :) Enjoy!

Happy Weekend!

Seven Quick Takes, Volume 1

1. So some of you may be wondering who is this Abby I keep referring to? Abby is short for Abigail Grace. She is our daughter who passed away at just six short weeks into our pregnancy on February 2, 2009. Everyone deals with miscarriage differently. For us, it was important that Abby always be remembered as a part of our family. Her birthday would've been September 28, 2009, so every year we celebrate that. I proudly consider myself a mom of 3 - 2 on Earth and 1 in Heaven. And you may be wondering how we knew we were having a girl? We didn't, but when I first started having complications with the pregnancy it felt natural for me to start referring to the baby as a girl, and by that point in our pregnancy Brian and I had already discussed how much we loved the name Abigail. I figure if we never got to hold or see our baby on Earth, at least we got to decide the gender. ;) In all seriousness, she is part of our family, and we love her very much. We are thankful to have our own personal angel in Heaven. Click the link below to hear a song that perfectly describes how we feel about her. :)

See You Again

2. Speaking of children, I adore seeing Matthew and Noah grow up together and interact. They are two years and two months apart and just this summer have really started playing together. Noah has adored Matthew from the very early days of his life, and Noah is slowly growing on Matthew! The more Noah can do with Matthew, the more Matthew enjoys his little brother. It is so dear to watch them together. And Matthew is already fiercely protective of Noah. I overhear him at events with other children many times saying very firmly, "That's my brother!" There's something to be said for having two boys that close together. (Although I'm pretty sure they are taking years off of my life and sanity.) I pray they will be lifelong friends.

3. This Ab Challenge is AMAZING!

Seriously, try it. I did it for the month of June and since then, I've chosen five sets every week to do (taking rest days about every two days.) Doing this combined with my workouts from my fabulous trainer, Christi (let me know if you want her number. She can even train you in your home!) I have lost inches from my waist. I mean, let's face it, I will never be a size 2 again in my life (sad day. I miss being that skinny), but at least my baby pouch is toned and in place and not just sagging all over anymore. It is a ton of hard work, but so worth it. And it's fun to see results. Try this workout. It will change your life.

4. My hubby and I are going on a double date tonight with on my closest friends in Pittsburgh and her husband. They are a great couple, and we very much enjoy their company. We are headed to a Japanese Steakhouse (way different than mine and Brian's normal date night at Applebee's lol). We are all excited to get out without the kids and be able to have a conversation. And let's be honest. I'm looking forward to a good Long Island, too! :)

5.

Carrie Underwood said this in an interview with People Magazine in the Spring. I cut it out and have it hanging on my mirror in the bedroom. I see it every morning when I am getting ready. Obviously, the statement is a bit exaggerated, but it keeps me motivated. I want to look good for my husband. I have always feared letting myself go and blaming it on having kids. I don't think that's right or okay to do to your hubby and all of the moms I hang out with look great every time we get together. (That helps call me on more than this quote!) But as I'm spending time putting on make up and straightening my hair, I can read this and realize that what I'm doing at that moment is important. And it reminds me that if at all possible, the first stop after daily Mass needs to the be the gym. Brian would love me no matter what I looked like (and not a day goes by when he doesn't tell me I'm beautiful), but I want him to be proud to say I'm his wife and be excited to come home to me looking half decent on a daily basis. 

6. So Monday was our first day without Brian around after 9.5 straight days of his company. It wasn't a terrible day, actually, and what made it even better was getting an email in the afternoon saying I had won a backstage pass to meet Rascal Flatts! Woohoo! I am 28 years old and super pumped about this. (hey, I never claimed to be super mature. *NSYNC is my workout music of choice, after all.) I get to meet them before their show in Pittsburgh on September 6. Brian and I were already looking forward to the concert and now it's even more exciting. Plus, the kids are staying at my parents that night. Yay for sleeping in on a Saturday morning! Oh, and I should add that we definitely got tickets that have seats with them for the concert. You know you are pushing 30 and 40 when you swear you will never go to a concert again without seats!

Gary, from Rascal Flatts. He is my fave member. And I kinda think he looks like Brian. :)

7. I have been obsessed with The Band Perry lately. Their song, "If I Die Young," reminds me of Abby in so many ways, but lately their new, rockier stuff really makes me happy. And while I am out tutoring, I totally jam to it in the minivan with the windows rolled down. (I tried to get Brian and the boys to jam with me a few weeks ago, but no go. Well, at least Matthew asks to listen to Carrie Underwood's Good Girl on a daily basis.) Nothing like a good break up song blaring from a minivan adorned with a "Baby on Board" sign as it rolls through the quiet streets of Mt. Lebanon and Upper St. Clair. Hey, at least it beats "If You're Happy and You Know It." Anyways, if you're not familiar with them, check out the links to the YouTube videos below:

The Band Perry with Done

The Band Perry with Better Dig Two 

Have a fantastic weekend! Please pray for us and the couples who will be attending the Engaged Encounter Retreat this weekend. We are giving our NFP talk tomorrow and defending the faith at the Wrap Session tomorrow night. Prayers are greatly appreciated.

Don't forget to become a follower of my blog! I'd appreciate it! And I love comments....like really, really love. :)

Five Faves

1. Kindara NFP App

Seriously this NFP app has changed my life. I have been obsessed with NFP since high school and started learning NFP a few months before our wedding. Until a few months ago, I was using the old and hard to read paper charts. Then, I got an iPhone (I know I'm only five years late on that one!) and figured there had to be an NFP app. I did some searching and through some reviews thought that I'd like Kindara the best. I have not been disappointed. Now my chart is with me everywhere which means I can record my data when I have time and not when my chart is nearby. Plus, it makes my charting a whole lot more private. No longer will Matthew be pulling out papers from beside my bed and asking me, "Mommy, are these for coloring?" Yes, this app has changed my life.

 

2. This Cooler, Fall like Weather

I despise the summer heat, so today when I could throw on jeans and a hoodie and pretty much be comfortable all day I was in Heaven. I love, love, love Fall weather and these little previews we've been having this summer here in the Burgh have been delightful. I cannot stand to sweat, and I hate humidity because my hair turns into an afro point two seconds after I leave air conditioning. Today, I had lovely silky hair and didn't sweat at all (except when I pounded out my 5K at the gym.) And with Fall comes football, and I just love football more than any other sport. Watching preseason games last weekend totally rocked. Come on, Fall, hurry up and get here for real!

 

3. Kids' Room at Fitness 19

Okay, so this kids' room is not your ordinary daycare. The women back in that room are AMAZING! Matthew asks to go every day and gets disappointed if we miss a day. They do arts and crafts and have strict rules for the kids to follow to keep them in line. They also aren't afraid to let kids be upset when Mommy leaves. Instead of calling me back after five minutes of Noah screaming, they worked with him for weeks to get him to keep calm, even if that meant he cried for a while for those two weeks. They knew it was best for him and me that way. One of the reasons we kept Matthew out of preschool at age two was because of his experiences at the gym. He was doing a lot of what kids would do in two year old preschool at the gym. When Noah was born, I even transferred my membership to Brian so that Matthew could still have access to the kids' room while I wasn't allowed to exercise. We have even visited one of the teacher's houses, and many of the women who work at the gym actually babysit for us. The kids love going and Mommy gets an hour and a half to herself to try and get her pre baby body back. It's a win-win!

 

4. Big Brother

Totally an addict of this show and so his my hubby. I have to admit that this season is not as good as last, although last season saw the return of Mike Boogie to the Big Brother House, and he is by far the greatest player (next to his buddy Dr. Will) to ever play the game. Just thinking of them together makes me smile. Brian never had the privilege of seeing them play (he was in seminary at the time). So I always have to try and describe how they played and why they were so funny. If you have no idea what I am talking about, you can watch this YouTube video of the two of them. It is hilarious!

Boogie and Dr. Will

But, yeah, this season just doesn't measure up. In the words of Rachel Riley, "Floaters, grab a life vest!" There are too many of them around this year! Ugh. Still, though, Brian and I are addicts. We don't miss an episode, and we talk about the players during daily conversations as if we know them. Wow. We are boring.

 

5. Tutoring

I love my job and my business. I really do. I tutor about 12-15 hours every week, and while it can get exhausting by 8:30 on Thursday night, I would never not do it. Yes, I will totally cut back on hours the minute our budget will allow it, but right now, I can work while my husband or parents are with the boys and it brings in money needed to pay some of the bills and to have fun with! My business, Tutoring with Danielle, allows Brian to now only work one job when he used to work two. (Which meant not Saturdays for us.) Plus, I love working one-on-one with students. It saves my sanity some days to know that in just a few hours, I'll be free for a little while to not have to refill sippy cups and clean up messes and make sure Noah isn't trying to plunge to his death from the couch. It's nice to be just me the teacher for a few hours. I love my kids, but I love my work, too. As a bonus, any money I make extra above what we need for the month can either be saved in our house fund or used to have weekend fun. We are not a family who just stays home on the weekends. We work hard for what we make and both Brian and I feel that we should live life by working hard and playing hard. This summer some extra money allowed us to buy Rascal Flatts concert tickets (yes, I won a contest to meet them!). So it's the best of both worlds for me. I can stay home with my little ones during the day and tutor in the evenings. And eventually my business will expand enough where I will only tutor a few hours each week and make money from all of the other people who work for me as tutors. That day will be amazing!

 

Have a lovely evening, everyone! And remember tomorrows the Feast of the Assumption (one of the best Feast Days ever!). It's a Holy Day of Obligation. :)