Goodbye 2008

In less than 5 hours, the year 2008 will come to a close! Every year at this time I am not sure how to feel! Most get excited to see the current year end and a new one to start. I guess I see the bigger picture - being that with each year that passes we are all getting older! My baby is less of a baby, I am getting older, which means so are my parents and grandparents. And ultimately we all know what happens with age! Sigh! Thankfully I only get sadden once a year like this, but time passing just troubles me, what can I say!?

Well, before the year comes to an end I feel it necessary to reflect on my life in 2008!

Mid January I lost someone very special! The matriarch of our family, a beautiful person and someone I really, really miss! Mamaw, you are not forgotten and you are so missed by so many!



Life didn't quickly get back to normal after Mamaw's death, but I am happy to report my Papaw and the rest of the family is staying strong and taking it day by day!

In March Bub quick his job with Baker after being screwed over for so long. He found a great job with Tetra Technologies out of Belle Chasse. This has turned out to be the best thing he could have done for us! I was so scared when it was all happening, but we were blessed with this opportunity and with a great company!

In May I turned thirty!! Yikes! I was very afraid of this milestone - but in truth, 30 rocks! I never understood what people meant when they said you never really know who you are until you are in your 30's. But really, I get it now! I feel more comfortable in my skin now. I have embraced and welcomed leaving my 20's behind and life is good! I have always been very much my own person, but something just switched over! It was nice!!



By the end of May Bub and I decided we were going to put our home in Jeanerette up for sale and look for a home in the Broussard area. After searching quite a bit of looking we weren't finding anything we were in love with, and for prices that were pretty high. We then found that we could build a new house for about $10K more than these older homes we were in love with! So, we found a subdivision, a lot, a floor plan and put down a deposit.



June came and Regan had her 4th birthday! It is so hard to believe she is already 4! It really seems like not long ago we were bringing home a little girl from the hospital! Regan is a smart little thing! She learns things so quickly and just surpasses what a kid her age should be doing! Right after she turned 4 she learned to tie her shoes. And tie them tight and well, double knot and all!! A few weeks ago, she learned to add all by herself. She got flashcards as a Christmas gift from her daycare and by the end of the day she was looking at the numbers, setting out blocks for each number then adding them up.



By the end of August we were boarding up windows and preparing for a visit from Hurricane Gustav. September 1st, Gustav came and turned everything upside down. Thankfully Bub was in for everything so we weren't alone! We stayed for Gustav, but after 2 days of no electricity and an approximation of it being turned on withing 7 days, we packed our stuff and headed North. We ended up staying a few nights in Lake Charles and headed home when we found our power was restored!

Our home in Broussard was done at the end of October. We signed papers on the 31st and started the long task of moving! Before we could finish getting settled it was time to start decorating for Christmas. The holidays this year weren't the best! Our family is fighting so in addition to being without Mamaw for the first Christmas, half of the family was MIA! It was very upsetting! Bub turned 31 on Christmas Day! Awww, I love my OLD man! LOL



This year has all in all been pretty good to our family! The three of us are healthy and happy and together! Bub has now been home for 4 months because of the hurricane crap! It has been a treat for us to be able to spend time together!



No doubt 2009 will be more firsts for us! One huge one will be that our little girl will be starting kindergarten. I hope we are all (mainly me) are ready for that big step when it comes!

Here's to another full and blessed year! I have a few hopes for 2009 - I will let you know if they come to pass!!

Rain = Lazy!!

Oh my goodness, do I miss being lazy!!!! lol

Before Regan, Bub and I would stay up till dawn playing games with friends or watching movies. We'd follow the night up by sleeping well until noon or after. And depending on the day, we might wake up and do the same thing all over the next day!!

Nowadays, I am lucky if I even get to sleep past 7 am and if I can stay in the house all day! You know - no shower, wearing PJs all day and no BRA! woo hoo! This happens to me maybe once every 4 or 5 months! Don't get me wrong, I love being on the go! Hell, I purposely stay busy, as busy as I can be actually! When Bub is off shore, it makes the time pass quickly and before I know it he is home again!

Here lately though I have been burning my candle at both ends! And every now and then there has been a glimmer that we would be able to stay home and do nothing! Well, today it finally happened! Of course there was definitely a few things I could have done, but it rained on and off all day and it was nice to just stay in! And we did and I LOVED every minute of it!! (you cannot see it, but that statement was followed my a huge cheesy grin!)

I did not clean anything except for the dishes made by lunch and supper. Actually the house was already clean, but I do have some laundry I should have tended to. Hell, there seems to ALWAYS be laundry that needs tending to! LMAO! We have watched countless hours of NCIS and CSI and House, recorded over the last few days. I love those holiday rerun-fests. It lets us see any we may have missed! Sounds boring right? Well, sometimes boring is a nice change from on the go and overstimulated! :)

Well, I will soon bake some huge chocolate chip cookies and do a little more couch potato cuddling with Bub and Regan and the critters! Here's to a well deserved relaxing, lazy day!!! Cheers!!

Starting New Traditions

M E R R Y C H R I S T M A S ! ! ! ! ! ! !

I do hope everyone is having a blessed day! I hope you are spending this day with those that you love and are making great memories!!

This year we have done things a little different. Since we did our "family" Christmas early, Bub and I decided to do something we've talked about and wanted to do for a while! After we woke up and opened presents, we took showers and got ready and headed to the Acadiana Outreach Center. I found out that they serve a big Christmas Dinner and pass out gifts to those that are homeless and down on their luck.

When I signed us up to volunteer, they asked that we be there for 9:45 am and bring a dessert large enough to feed 10 people. I am happy to report that the amount of volunteers was so much so they actually have to turn down some help! That alone just warms my heart!

I know there were well over 400 people served and the food was terrific! And the desserts was plenty! The three of us helped where we could, from cutting desserts to be served, to bringing drinks to people, to delivering plates, to welcoming people as they came in while Regan yelled "Merry Christmas" to everyone she saw! She really worked her little hiney off!

There was a choir there that sang to those eating for the duration of the meal. Everyone worked so hard and I think there were a lot of people who really needed today to lift their spirits!

As for the three of us, we really had a great time and it felt great to get up on Christmas and make use of our time! I really think we have found a new tradition to continue each year!

Well, it's 3:45 and Regan just woke from her nap! We have a 4:30 date at the movies to see the new Adam Sandler movie that opens today! I hope that everyone, everywhere is exactly where they want to be with who they want to be! I know I am!

The Real Meaning - Christmas!

I have really began to find that the meaning of Christmas seems to get more and more lost each passing year!

While I am not an overly religious person, I do know the purpose of Christmas. I also have adapted my own expectation of what the Christmas season should be about and what people so easily forget!

I find it so strange that everyone claims to know that "Jesus is the reason for the season", but in the fight to get to that sale or to get everything on the list of a child who already has everything, we somehow forget what really matters! I find that this time of year people are rushed and rude and intolerable of others. The focus is on the wrong things and I think people are acting in ways they normally would not! When did Christmas become like this? About 2 weeks into December, I find myself - while fighting traffic all over town, wishing December was already here!

Besides the celebration of the birth of Christ, Christmas is about FAMILY and CHARITY and COMMUNITY and REJOICING about life! Obviously these are things that should be celebrated daily - but I am a little more realistic! lol To me the Holidays are an extra excuse to take those you hold dear and make them spend time with you! Enjoy the little things, makes memories and do things for others!!

I miss the daily hospitality that is Southern Louisiana! I am tired of looking at something at the grocery store and having someone reach in from of me to grab something without even a word! I am tired of the ignorance of drivers on the road! Everyone is either running up your butt, or piddling around with 5 car lengths in between while making people sit through lights 4 or 5 times! I am SO tired of a 15 minute drive to my daughter's dance class taking 30 - 45 minutes! I know it will soon pass, and I am definitely ready! lol

Another thing I want to discuss is the vicious cycle of gift giving! I am sure you know what I mean. At the beginning of season you make a list of those you'll be buying for! This is so you can get your shopping done in the least trips possible and be done with the shopping and crowds! Then your friend says "I bought you a present" or " So-n-so bought me a present, so I have to buy her a present. And if I buy her a present I need to buy you one too!" Well, there are two more people to buy for! LOL It's a vicious cycle I tell you!! And see, I don't need a thing - so I was just gonna buy for a few of my friend's kids! Oh well, like I said, soon it will be all over and life can return to normal!! :o)

The moral to this blog is not a bah-humbug sort of point! It's just my frustrations with the hussle and bussle and I'm just ready for it to all be over! Only 3 more days.........THREE DAYS and counting! Heheee!

I love the Holidays....even though they exhaust me!

Christmas is fast approaching!! Are you ready??

All year I look forward to the holidays....all of them! I love the decorating, the festivities and celebrations, the shopping, the giving, the spirit and the extra excuse to cram lots of family time in there! By the end I am glad it is over and am ready for my life, my house and my routine to get back to normal!

This year's Christmas season has been like no other! I was overly excited this year because we would be spending our first Christmas in the new house! This mean new decorations and new way and places to decorate! It also meant we could put our tree in a spot not behind our couch like we had the previous two years! But when December came, we hadn't even finished decorating and organizing around here before it was time to start putting up the tree and decorating! It has been exhausting to say the least! We are getting it, and in a few weeks it will all be over and things will return to normal!

We are hosting "Christmas" here at our house this year! I have been attempting to do this for a few years, and this year it will happen! Unfortunately though, nothing is the same this year....nor will it ever be I fear!

We will be having Christmas early this year - this was originally due to Bub's work schedule! But I thought it a good idea either way so that everyone could wake up Christmas morning at their house and spend the day there instead of rushing to head off to someone else's house! One big change is the divide in our family! Since the death of my Mamaw, my Aunt has taken upon herself to single handily ruin our family! At first I was trying not to place blame, but I can see no other way to explain why our family - the few there really is, is no longer talking and cannot even spend the holidays together! I am angry and am about to cut ties myself! How dare she do this and it make me even more mad she is doing it in the name of my Mamaw. She knows damn well if Mamaw was alive she'd be kicking her ass right now!

I don't ask for much! But since moving here all I have wanted was to be with family. When I found out all of this was surfacing I cried and told her all I wanted was for us to all be family. At first I was very upset and depressed over it. But now I am just pissed! I think wrecking a family over money is just stupid and selfish and I will no more be the middle man trying to be friendly with everyone! YOU have personally taken something very special away from my and my daughter and I hate you for it!


Anyways, now that that is out, on to better things!!

We have a few traditions of our own!!

We do Breakfast with Santa at the Zoo of Acadiana.





We will now be doing the Christmas Festival at River Ranch each year. It was a blast! We got to take Nativity pictures for crying out loud! I LOVED them!! She got to play lots of games, chat with Santa and ride a Trolly! Oh and this was her first ever face painting experience!!









We go to Acadian Village to check out the lights and ride a few rides!











We had our annual Christmas Party with Playgroup! Always lots of fun! We hosted this year!!









We also finished up our Charity for this month!! We did great! We collected more than what is pictured! I am so proud of my girls!!!





Friday morning I went and did something called Christmas Wishes! Acadiana Outreach puts raises enough money to send 100+ kids on a $100 shopping spree at Toys R Us. They ask for volunteers to take the kids shopping and let them pick out whatever they want! I got a little 4 year old girl! She picked out a Princess bike, a princess makeup set, some play shoes and a phone! She even got to ride her new bike while we were waiting for them to load up the buses!! It was a neat experience and I think I will definitely do it again next year!!


What I hope to make a new Christmas tradition is serving Christmas Dinner for Acadiana Outreach! The three of us are all able to go and volunteer as a family and though Regan doesn't understandng what we are going to be doing, Bub and I are very excited and are certain Regan will get a lot out of it too! Even if she just has a good time!!

Well, I think I've covered most everything so far! There are lots of other things still to do, so I need to get busy!! HAPPY HOLIDAYS ALL!!!

Annual Cookie Exchange

Yesterday was my Playgroup's 3rd Annual Cookie Exchange! I look forward to it ALL year!

My friend Jeanne hosts this event each year and it keeps getting better each year! We jam pack the day with contests and exchanges. We each bake a certain number of dozens of our cookie. We each wrap a set amount to give to each of the attending members. We always suggest everyone get creative with their packaging and boy, do some really go for it!!

We do a best tasting contest, a best wrapped contest, an ornament exchange, a White Elephant steal-a-gift exchange and well, we eat lots and lots of cookies! LOL

If you are ever invited to a cookie exchange, don't say no!! It is a lot of work - but SO worth it! Especially if you are surrounded by great ladies like I am lucky enough to be!

Here are all the cookies packaged by each of the ladies to hand out!
Cute, right??
Mine was the Christmas Tree burlap sack thing! lol

And here is my great group of friends!! Can you say blessed?!?!
Happy Holidays everyone!!

Being Charitable....Love Your Community

About 3 or 4 times a year my Playgroup adopts a charity and collects donations for that cause! In the past we have done food drives for the Lafayette FoodNet, collected supplies & monetary donations for The Lafayette Animal Aid, walked for the Race for the Cure and all to much success!

I cannot tell you how great it is to be surrounded by great people willing to help their own community! The way I look at it - this is OUR community! We live here and raise our families here and I think supporting our community and those within it is important!

I feel very fortunate and blessed that our family has done so well. It wasn't but 4 years ago when we were just starting out here in Louisiana, had a newborn and wasn't sure how I was going to buy her an $11 can of formula! I have been at every level of the economic "food chain" and I know good and well what its like and how it feels! I think so many people get on their feet or do very well for themselves and forget to pass it along!

Our last charity event of 2008 is the Faith House! I am really excited about this one and hope to make it a great success! If you are unfamiliar with Faith House, they are a Shelter for battered women and children. They house them and also help them start new lives and get on their feet! This is a charity I hold very dear to my heart!

I usually will post our charity events on local boards like Acadiana Moms (or moms like me) but I have yet to receive any interest after asked for help in our 2 previous charity events. I find this so funny, since this site is filled with OUR community! I start to lose faith towards the end of each time we collect for charities - but at the end of the day I have to remind myself that people have to do what is in their hearts! Me trying to get my community active and to care about those less fortunate will not change things! So, for me, I do what I can. My ladies usually pull through and give what they can!! I can't ask for much more!!

So in closing, if you would like ot donate to the Faith House - we are delivering our donations on Monday the 15th. I can meet you or you can drop items to my home! If you do not wish to donate to our chosen charity, please know there are MANY, MANY people in need! Not only during the holidays, but all through the year! It's never to late to reach out!!
For more info on FAITH HOUSE go to
http://www.faithhouseacadiana.com/
You can also view their wish list!!

As a tribute to my girls and all of their selflessness throughout the year........

FoodNet : http://www.foodnetacadiana.org/
GIVE ALL YEAR LONG TO THEM!!

Lafayette Animal Aid :
http://www.lafayetteanimalaid.org/Home.html

Find out about donating your time or items, or adopting a friend!



Komen for the Cure - Acadiana :
http://www.komenacadiana.org/site.php

Even if you do not know someone who has breast cancer or even
have it yourself, giving to a cause that effects so many is good for
the soul!


FoodNet : http://www.foodnetacadiana.org/
They need food throughout the year, not just around the holidays!!
They generally run out of food during the summer, so this year we
had our canned food drive in July!

'Tis The Season

Well, I know it's redundant to say we are busy as usual, so I won't! ;oP But, there are definitely lots of things going on lately!!

First, we finally got Regan's room finished! They changed out the carpet and the painters came. We also had the handful of screwed up tiles fixed! We are well on our way to having all the little things done! After a month, it's really about dang time!

We are now slowly finished up the decorating in the house, while we are also decorating for Christmas! I had hoped to be done with the house before we even started with the Holidays, but you know how that goes!

In keeping with the Christmas spirit we are doing Regan's Advent Calendar this year! We tried it last year but she was too young and I struggled to keep up with it! Here is one of the Crafts she has done from her calendar.






We have done decorating on the tree a few times. This is after the first time.We have since changed it up a little and added a bow and some gold! I will post an updated picture when I add the rest of the items I bought! lol




Today I took Regan to see the Nutcracker Ballet! It was actually a first for both of us! I am not sure how I made it 30 years without watching this Ballet - but I finally managed to make it happen! It was really nice and we really enjoyed it! I couldn't help but wonder as I watched these Ballerinas, how many of them wanted to be a Ballerina when they were Regan's age! Hmmm!

Regan did well, but I think this type of venue was a little too long for her! She was more excited once we got there and we found that one of the students from her old dance class was in the Ballet! We even ran into her in the lobby during intermission.




This is just a shot of my two loves before we left for the Ballet! Couldn't help but add it! <3