It's Time

I finally decided it's time to start some new things.  I have wanted to start working in the birth field.  I knew that doula work was out.  The crazy schedule just won't work with where we are in life.  So I had it in my mind to teach childbirth education classes.  I never took the time to really do the research and find the right program that fit me and what I wanted out of a program.  Finally it hit me that it was time to bite the bullet and just jump in with both feet.  I spent several days feverishly scouring the Internet, looking for just the right program that fit what I wanted and who I am.  Then I found it, Birth Arts International.  After a few emails with the instructor I jumped in and paid for the class and dove right in.  

It's the best decision I have ever made.  I am so proud of myself for letting go of the fears.  For the past ten years this path has been lingering in the back of my mind.  It's so weird to actually be on on it.  It's a little surreal.  

Been forever

So I haven't used this blog in ages but it's time.  Things are moving and shaking.  The seasons are changing in life and nature.  Time to get back to things I had forgotten.  Time to create again.  Time to awaken some things that have been asleep to long.

Audy is soo much like me!

Ok so as we were at the gas station tonight Audrey asks to get out and wash the windows. Me'Me let her do this while she and Amelie were on their parent free trip to visit Me'Me, Paba, and Aunt Leah.  So after a few minutes of back and forth abut the fact that it's raining and the windows don't really need cleaned. I say let's do it.  After we get out a young woman pulls up next to us and goes inside to prepay.  I notice she has a really cool turtle stuffed animal on her dash, so I point it out to Audrey.  She thinks its super cute so I tell her when the girl comes back she can tell her she likes it.  Audy goes and tells her as she is starting to pump.  She sets the pump to automatic and tells Audy she'll show it to her.  She comes around the car and gets it out.  It really was the cutest thing. We chat a bit. I notice she from her shirt that works at one of our favorite local pizza place.  I tell her it was one of the first places we ate when we moved here.  She hands it to Audy and I think I hear her say that Audy can have it.  Audy gives it a hug and smiles all cute.  I tell her to put it on our dash in the same same spot.  The girl's like  "No, I meant she can hold him".  We all start laughing as Audy hands him back.  No upset. We all just giggle at the confusion. I apoligize about the confusion several times.    We chat a bit more.  Then we both head our separate ways with the final note that we will visit the restaurant to see her and have some great food.  I giggled and smilled the whole way home.


All this happened about 20 minutes after the speakers in the van shorted out.  With a loud pop and a puff of stinky smoke as I drove over a bump. So we no longer have music or NPR in the van.  Sad Mom. Sad Kids.  But we'll make it work.  Lots of singing songs and storytelling.  Hey this may just be a good thing in disguise.

I was pulled out of what could have been a very bad mood by making a new friend in the gas station with my daughter.  Who just like me seems to be able to make friends everywhere we go.  Even places you would never expect.  Audrey rocks!!

It's Been A Year!? Really? A Year? Wow!!!

So I realized a few weeks ago that it had been forever since I had blogged. Then realized that the last time was on Amelie's Birth day last year. Wow!! I decided that today would be the day I started blogging again. It has been a crazy year. I have been on a roller-coaster the past year. Bipolar-type mood shifts, bad decision making, the verge of insanity at a few points. I am trying to get back in rhythm and balance. I am feeling tons better. Through all of this I have learned a lot about myself.

But really today is all about my super special birthday girl. Amelie!!! The second daughter. My shining star. My headache maker. My inquisitive detective. My ballet dancing, messy tiny chef. All with a heart of pure gold. She loves everyone. She is sweet, sensitive, cuddly, active, spirited, and well just plain sprightly!!! We all love her.

So today we woke up and made Oaty pumpkin pancakes. I'll post a recipe soon. Made two different types of cupcakes. Both of which where made with secret ingredients vegetable purees. I found Jessica Seinfeld's great cookbook, Deceptively Delicious at the thrift store awhile back and scooped it up. We made the Yellow Cake with Pumpkin and the Chocolate Cake with Beets. I probably won't do the Yellow Cake again; it tastes great, but it was a little too moist for my taste. But that Chocolate Cake with Beets...DIVINE!!! It's so good you have no clue that there are beets. It calls for melted chocolate--which I didn't have--so I just used Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa. But it turned out fine.

We went to the park and took the Cupcakes with us. It was Homeschool Park Day. We go every week, but since it's been so crazy hot here, not many people make out. But I have to get out of the house, so we go even when its hot. Today Suzanne and her kiddos came, so we weren't all it alone and the girls made friends with a little girl named Hailey. They had a blast. It decided to rain a bit, but we stayed through. But after the rain, instead of cooling off, it turned into a sauna. Suzanne and I both said, "This is just too gross" and loaded up the kids and headed out. We came home and chilled till it was time to get Daddy.

Amelie decided she wanted to go to Chick-fil-A for her birthday dinner. It's tradition around here for the birthday kid to get to pick a place to go for lunch or dinner. It just happens that Thursday nights are Kids Nite at our local Chick-fil-A. They have a craft and face painting for the kids. Free Icedream for them as well. "Cowie" is my girls' favorite part (that's what my girl's have chosen to name the person in the cow suit). The person in that suit must feel so loved at the end of the night. All the kids love it, but mine will follow that cow around almost the entire time we are there. It's cute. Tons of hugs and dancing with the cow.

We went about a month ago and found out about the Kid's Nite and this was the second time we've been. I have to say we are huge Chick-fil-A fans around the Sprightly Household. Mr. Sprightly is a huge fan of the new Spicy Chicken Sandwich. Anyway, my beer is getting warm. So I think I'll stop her and go sit with the fam on the couch for some "wii movies" (Netflix thru the wii). Peace Love and Birthday Cake!!!!!

Already another birthday

It's shocking to me how quickly time flies. June and July are big birthday months in my house. June 24th is sweet baby Cassidy who is now the big 1. July 13th is mine. it was 26 this year and man am I feeling the years now.

But today we celebrate Amelie. My rambunctious, spunky, joyful, emotional, lovely, crazy little girl. Born in the midst of much chaos she can still bring me the feelings of peace and joy or of stress and headache that where at the center of her entrance to the world.

She taught me to trust in my body and in all that I was created for. She has been key in my learning to trust myself, in my personal growth, in my growing collection of gray hairs. I would never change a thing about her. Her obsession with cutting her hair, her sweet smile, her beautiful hazel eyes that perfectly match her Daddy's, her whiny squeal, the just so way that she says things.

I love her so much even when she is pulling things off the shelves and making messes. Or pouring sprinkles in a bowl at someone elses house and trying to suck them through a straw.

Life just keeps moving on

So day to day life has a tendency of overwhelming me. I easily get bogged down in the mundane, distracted by pointless, obsessed with the inconsequential. It must be my ADHD. I flit from thought to thought. Then I find one that sticks and it just won't let go till it has run its course.

That is what has been happening. I have all these things I have been doing, seeing, watching, enjoying that I have been wanting to share here. But I have been so wrapped up in the doing that I haven't gotten to the actual blogging of the events. I am sure that part of it has to do with the recent changes in my free time. With Dave being home I am much less drawn to the computer. He was gone so long I want to enjoy as much time with him now as I can. As I type he is sitting behind me playing guitar. Yeah he really is that sexy.

So a quick update of the things that I have been up to since my studdly guitar playing sailor arrived home.

-A few days before he got back my lovely mother in love, came to suprise Dave. She stayed a few days after he got back and we all had a really good time bonding. It was beautiful.

- We had a nice two weeks of getting reaquantied as a family. Parks, libary visits, the usual things. We spent a signifacant amount off money. We bought a new tv, Blueray DVD player, and a Wii. Along with several other sundry items.

-Then we left to spend Dave's two weeks of leave visiting his family. We drove to Pittsburgh stayed overnight, then headed to Ann Arbor for the bulk of the trip and the back to Pittsburgh for a day to visit more and go to the zoo.

-When we got back I was ready to dive head first into a big room switching adventure. Which is still not fully completed. But I am getting there.

So the plan is to be blogging out all this awesome stuff over the next few weeks as well as staying on top of all the great joys of late spring. Summer is coming quick. I am not sure I am really ready for it to be here yet.


Sorry for the lack of pictures. There are lots of awesome pictures I just don't know whats up with the laptop the picture files are set up diffrently than they are on my computer. So there will be pictures on the posts to come dont you worry your pertty little head about that.

Random Tuesday Thought and its a guest post!!!!

Ok so dave has been talking about starting his own blog but I told him to start by guesting on mine. Well because I love him, He is hot, also smart, funny and totally awesome. So here we go Welcome Dave to the world of blog with love.

Okay, so here's my Random Tuesday Thought. It's more like something random I saw today. I'm not sure if they do this where you're from, but around here, the shopping carts at the grocery stores are fitted with a "boot" on the back wheels to prevent people from taking them out of the parking lot. So anyway, while we were at a stoplight, we saw this poor, confused old lady desperately trying to push a cart full of her groceries out of the parking lot of Kroger and wondering why it wasn't moving. She was putting quite a bit of exertion into it and looked rather frustrated. I wanted to roll down the window and say "HEY LADY! YOU CAN'T TAKE THAT CART WITH YOU!!"

Poor lady probably lived just down the street and walked to the store for her groceries. But, if so, she probably would have had this problem before. Maybe she's new in town. How much would that suck. So here's to you confused old lady leaving Kroger. May your future shopping trips be less eventful!

Other random thoughts...

Last Monday Amelie was half asleep while Amy, my mom and I were talking and she was responding to some stuff we said. Among her babblings were:
"I'm not a drunk dude!" and "I'm a girl! Not a boy!"

Today, I attempted to play Wii Boxing with the girls. Amelie actually did better than Audrey.

I've had too much to drink at this point...so I'm done.



And that's my thought for the day, as Mort Crim would say. But unless you're from the Detroit area, you probably don't know who that is...