Things I'd like to do before I die......

-water ski
-bowl a 200 game
-visit Germany and the Czech Republic
-snow ski
-see my girls graduate from high school
-see my girls get married
-visit Washington DC
-live in a log cabin
-feel confident enough to wear a bikini
-listen to my husband play a song on the guitar and be able to recognize it right away
-tour every major league ballpark in the US (actually Richard and I want to do this)
-visit New York City
-run a marathon
-do a triathlon
-visit the Northeast in the fall when the leaves are changing colors
-go to Hawaii
-float the Guadalupe River with my mom’s side of the family
-spend an ENTIRE weekend at Wurstfest (instead of just one night)
-visit Oprah and all of her houses
-watch the sunset on Lake Travis and spend the night on a boat
-get down to a size 8 and stay there for a while!
-take the kiddos to Disney World
-be a guest DJ on a radio station
-get pampered for a day at an expensive spa (I want the WORKS!)
-ice skate on a real pond
-visit an island in the Caribbean where the water is blue, the hotel and food are great, and there’s not a care in the world (and take Robbie and Janet with us!)
-live long enough to see a cure for cancer
-have a song sung directly to me at a show or concert
-be a Grandma
-buy my dad a ’57 Chevy
-own a 1965 Corvette convertible
-stand atop the Eiffel Tower
-spend an entire weekend ALONE in a calm, secluded place
-have some of my "vivid" dreams come to life
-be able to afford a maid
-sleep for 12 hours straight without having to get up to go to the bathroom (after having 2 kids, this would be a miracle!)
-see Willie Live
-own a margarita machine
-learn to play the guitar better than my husband
-work at a florist (although I DO NOT have a green thumb at all)
-take Richard's mom to see Neil Diamond Live
-learn how to sew (because I never learned from Granny)
-bake at least 1 birthday cake for my kiddos
-fly to Vegas with it just being my sister and I for a weekend
-sit in on a show on the Food Network and be able to eat the food afterwards!
-live like Paris Hilton for a day....or two....or three
-ride in a 100 mile bike race
-own a beach house

Outbursts from a 3 1/2 year old.....

Kyra is so funny these days. I have to share some of the things that she's come up with lately.

Easter was on Sunday. We live across the street from the Catholic church here in Buda. When crosses started going up in front of the church, Kyra started asking questions. It all started on Friday. She asked why there was a purple garment on the cross and I explained that it was Good Friday and that was the day that Jesus died. Honestly, I should have explained it better because that comment came back to haunt me on Saturday night. On Saturday night, we went to Target and when we were checking out, Kyra yells to the cashier, "Jesus died!" I wanted to find a hole to crawl into right then and there. The cashier says, "No, Jesus lives!" I bet that she thought I was the worst mother in the world for telling my child that Jesus died.

On Sunday, I took Kyra to church and Kyra noticed that the purple garment was gone and there was a white one over the cross. She came home and said to my dad, "When the purple was there, Jesus died, but now there's white there, so Jesus is alive!" Smart girl. I guess she redeemed herself from Saturday night! LOL!

Last week, I took her to the store and she was so friendly with everyone she came in contact with. When we were checking out, she said to the cashier, "Hi! How are you today?" Sometimes it scares me how friendly she is. I've started having talks with her about not all people being nice and not all dogs being nice either (she thinks they are). One night, we named all the nice dogs that we knew. Kyra knows a lot of nice dogs. ;)

Today I came home and saw Kyra "preaching" to Mia. I heard her say, "Now what did I tell you?" At first I thought it was funny, but then I realized that it's ME who says that to Kyra when she doesn't listen or has done something bad! Richard just laughed and shook his finger at me. I guess it *is* me who says that. *sigh*

Kyra likes to pray before bed and says almost the entire "Lord's Prayer". I'm very proud of her. That sweet little voice melts my heart.

She's also very excited about the arrival of her little sister. She kisses my belly several times throughout the day. I just hope she's as excited when her sister makes her grand entrance.

Everyday is a new day with Kyra. I love it. I can't wait to add another sweet little voice to the mix!

Aches and pains......

Well, it's official. I'm tired of being pregnant. The reality of it all has hit me within the last few days. Before, I was in denial. I have waited till the last minute to do a lot of things and now I'm rushing to get everything done. I'm stressed. Last night, I broke down and cried. I think it's just all caught up with me. I absolutely cannot wait to have this baby. I can't wait to see her, hold her, kiss her. I want her here! It really seems like I've been pregnant forever. I was pregnant at Lisa and Nathan's wedding, but didn't know it! That seems like a lifetime ago!

I'm now 35 weeks and neither Maeve nor I have any more room. I have no appetite. I gained one pound in a month. My back is killing me and I feel like one of my ribs has popped out! It hurts! Before, I felt fine and light, but now I feel HUGE! I'm still working out. I cannot go more than 2 days without working out. My body needs movement and stretching. If not, then I'll hurt even worse. I can't wait to teach step tomorrow! I'm hoping to teach till April 12th and possibly the 19th.

So, we'll see what the next few weeks bring. My due date is April 30th. I'm hoping to avoid a c-section. Please pray that I go into labor on my own. That's ultimately what I want. Don't think that I'm not going to ask for drugs though! When I get to the hospital, Mr. Anesthesiologist God better be greeting me at the entrance! LOL!

Easters of yore.....

Well, it's Easter weekend. Kyra is really into it this year. That got me thinking back to Easters of long ago when I was a kid.

We were always in Schulenburg at Granny's. We would go to the Easter Vigil mass. Before we would leave for mass, we would take those old cardboard beer boxes (remember those? Roxie or Lisa might.) and we'd make a nest of Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrushes in them. We'd leave the Easter Bunny a note and then come back from church with our boxes full of goodies! Yeah, it wasn't really hard to guess who had put the candy in there. My Granny didn't go to church till Sunday morning, so she was the guilty one!

Other years, we'd all gather at Granny's for a fish fry on Good Friday and we'd have our family Easter Egg Hunt that evening with the Mendel's and the Munsch's. Some aunts of mine (coughGlendacoughSandracough) would be extremely nice (read: mean) and hide the eggs high in the trees. I still don't understand that one. I was the only taller one at the time and of course, the oldest. I wanted my cousins to get just as many eggs as I did. I guess they thought otherwise.

Aunt Mary Lou and Uncle Willie's was the place to be on Easter Sunday. We'd go there from Schulenburg. Since they live on a farm, you'd never know what might happen. We did hunt candy outside...although I have no idea why because everyone was too stinkin old. ;) Lisa and I are the youngest! We'd have water balloon fights. We'd go up in Mark's room and snoop. It was always interesting. Ahhhh....the good ol days!

We aren't doing much this weekend. We have a 40th birthday party to go to on Saturday evening. Sunday, we'll go to church across the street and hang out here at the house. My dad is coming up to see Kyra. I'm nesting really bad right now, so I assume that I'll do some cleaning and organizing this weekend. Tomorrow makes 35 weeks! Just 5 more (or less! ACK!) to go! I can't believe that in a few weeks Kyra will have a little sister and Richard and I will have 2 kids! (Gasp!)

Happy Easter everyone!

Congress vs. baseball.....

I love baseball. I really do. But, what the heck is going on lately? The latest dispute is steroid use among players. Congress has forced MLB to drag players like Mark McGuire into this huge mess. I honestly feel sorry for Mark McGuire. He retired a while back....hoping to bow out gracefully. Instead, his "past" comes back to haunt him a few years later. So he doesn't want to talk. Fine. You know who else didn't want to talk? Bill Clinton. But he lied to the American people on national television and he was PRESIDENT! Poor Mark McGuire is just trying to keep a low profile and now they are trying to threaten him with remarks of never being inducted into the Hall of Fame. That's crap. Bottom line: He more than likely took steroids. So has probably at LEAST 10 players off of every bench in the MLB. He just got picked as the "bad apple" to talk about it. So what if he doesn't talk about it. It's not like the world will end if he doesn't speak up. Who cares. I certainly don't. I don't know if they are trying to bring a lot of publicity to baseball before the season starts or what, but I'm sick of hearing about it.

Also, the MLB and the players' union has agreed NOT to do random testing for steroids, although I have no idea why. If that's the #1 drug that players are all on, then why not do it? There are other sports that test for performance enhancing drugs. Why on earth should baseball be any different? Blood tests should be mandatory to pick up human growth steroids. Peeing in a cup ain't cutting it anymore. If there's no proof that any of these "picked on" players have taken steroids, then they have every right to keep their mouths shut. Heck, I'd take the drugs too if I knew I'd never get caught!

Rant over. Can you tell how mad I've been about this the last few days? LOL!

You're only as old as you feel?

Yeah, I felt really old today. I took Kyra to her 1st "friend" birthday party. It was strange seeing Kyra and her friends all mingling with each other. They missed each other this week because they had Spring Break. So, it was a great chance to have them all together again before school on Tuesday. They had a blast! I don't know if my little house would withstand 15-20 3 year olds though. I'd probably only do it if I had as big of a house as these people did! ;)

Doesn't seem that long ago that my mom was taking me to parties like that. Where the heck did the time go? I know that I had a birthday this past week, but I don't really feel that old....well, I didn't until today. Taking your child to a birthday party to be with all of their friends is just weird. Pretty soon it'll be dances. YIKES! I'm so not ready for that. I want my kiddos to be babies forever. I'm in denial with Kyra right now. She's almost4! That's closer to 5 and closer to kinder! I'm glad I'm having another one so that I can experience the cuddling, coos, and sweet little breath of a newborn. Otherwise, I'd be in worse shape than I already am! LOL!

Regardless of how YOUNG we feel, there's always situations that make us realize how OLD we are. It sucks.

Idol fever.....

Well I might as well admit it. Yes, I'm hooked on American Idol. I watched the first two seasons faithfully. I didn't watch much of last season because it was just boring to me. I'm really excited about this season though. They've got a lot of good talent in the finalists. The girls aren't as good. The guys ROCK! Anwar and Bo are my favorites.

So, I'm busy on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. LOL! Thursday night rolls around and I go into a depression until the following Tuesday night. Kyra even recognizes the Idol music and says, "Mommy, American Idol is on!" *blush*

Once a parent, always a parent......

I've been thinking a lot about Kyra and this new baby and how we'll all adjust when the time comes. I keep wondering if my heart will be big enough for the both of them. I know the love will just multiply and my heart will grow with room for the both of them. But, I worry. Parents worry. Parents will always worry no matter how old their kiddos are. I got to see that firsthand within the past few days. Not one, not two, but three of my cousins have all had accidents since Friday. Two were airlifted to Brack here in Austin. Luckily, they are all fine and are home. It's made me realize that I won't be able to shelter Kyra and Maeve forever. They'll grow up and drive and be out till all hours. I know it's rather premature, but it's something that I think about. I know it'll happen one day. And I'll worry just like all parents do.

Kyra was sick the other week and I felt so helpless. Her little body just had to fight so that she'd get better. The thing that keeps crossing my mind was that she was SICK, not HURT. I feel for my aunts and uncles that had to endure that pit in their stomach. I can't imagine how that felt. It honestly scares me. To see your child in pain has to be the hardest thing in the world. When I see a child stricken with cancer, my heart breaks. My heart not only breaks for them, but for their parents as well. Ugh. Life isn't easy. I'm sure I'll learn that even more as the years pass by.

We are all lucky in this world. We have food and shelter and the company of wonderful family and friends. But, one of the things that you should always thank God for is your health. Without it, you are nothing. I'm so thankful that God rested his hands on my cousins during their accidents. Things could have been a lot worse. I'm just glad that they are all ok and hope that they heal very soon.

Birthdays and such.....

My birthday is next Monday, March 14th. I have a LOT of family and friends that have birthdays in March and April, so if I don't get the chance to tell you personally, just know that I'm thinking of you and hope your day is just as special as you are.

Jen's birthday is tomorrow (the 10th). She came to visit us today. We had a great afternoon....talking about all sorts of things. I wish her and Kevin the best on their journey to Indiana. I can't wait to hear stories about what's all going on up there.

For those that don't come and visit, what are you waiting for? We love having company! We promise to cook at least one good meal for you! ;) Oh, and I promise that Richard will leave the knives alone too! LOL! (if you don't know what I'm talking about, see my last blog entry)

Looks like the weather is going to be cooperative through the weekend! YAY! I don't think I could stand another Saturday full of rain. Mr. Jim Spencer (my personal hero) said that it's rained for 6 weekends in a row. How depressing is that? Looks like there won't be a 7th though! SWEET!

Jay Leno was called to be a witness in the Michael Jackson trial. He can write jokes about Michael, but he can't tell them on his show right now. So the other night, he had Brad Garrett of "Everybody Loves Raymond" come in a be a "surrogate" and tell those jokes while he just stood in the background. BRILLIANT!

Hope everyone is having a great week. The sun is out, so let's all go out and get some much needed Vitamin D!

My husband likes the ER.....

So, yesterday I was calmly working with Janet until I got a call around 5 in the evening to "come home NOW." It was Richard. He said that he was hoping to make supper for me, but it got cut short (literally). All he told me was that he cut his thumb and he thought that we should probably go to the ER. He told me not to "fly" home though because it wasn't too bad. The bleeding had stopped. He didn't want to look at it though (Richard is notorious for passing out...isn't that lovely when I'm going to have a baby in a few weeks?). So, I came home and we got everyone into the car and headed to Austin. We dropped Kyra off at Mona's (my lifesavor) and then headed to South Austin ER. We checked in around 6 and waited forever. Finally, they took him back. I didn't go back there with him. He waited back there for a long while because he kept IMing me and calling me from his cell telling me that nothing was happening yet. Long story short, we didn't get out of there till after 9:00. By the time we picked up Kyra, got a pizza, and stopped for pain meds., it was 10:00.

The verdict: 6 stitches. When we left the house, Richard told me that he thought that he probably needed 1 or 2. Yeah, I knew that he just said that so I wouldn't freak out. They have to be in for 2 weeks. They were very nice though and gave him a script for vicodin. Lovely stuff. Really. When I had my c-section with Kyra, I LOVED vicodin! So, he's resting today. Kyra is at school and I'm about to go downtown to teach my step class.

When I called Richard's mom last night, she said, "What did he do now?" She just knew! LOL! Mother's intuition, I guess. See, Richard is no stranger to the ER. While we were waiting, he was *trying* to count the number of times he's been there to get stitches. I think we came up with about 4 times. He's spent more time in the ER at just 27 than most people do in their lifetime. His mom said when he was little, they were always making trips to the ER because Richard had done something....usually that something wasn't just a minor cut or sprain. He's got scars to prove it!

Richard kept apologizing for me having to wait so long in the ER for him to get out of there. No problemo buddy. In a few weeks, you'll be waiting on me! ;)

Baby update.....

I'm 31.5 weeks as I type this. I absolutely cannot wait for April to get here (and it's only March! LOL!). I can't wait to see and hold my precious little girl. So, last week was my final week to teach Body Flow. *sigh* I did get a new DVD in the mail this week for the next release and I went out in Richard's shop and did it this afternoon. Talk about difficult. I just did as much as I could and skipped over the parts that I couldn't do (there wasn't too many). Yoga poses are hard because my belly is in the way. I'm still teaching my step class and will till the end. I'm also walking on my treadmill here at home and doing Body Pump from time to time. I just have to stay active or I'll go crazy!

I went to the doctor on Monday. Imagine my surprise when I step on the scale and she says that I've lost a pound! hehe! Yeah, I totally wasn't expecting that one. All this time I've been gaining and gaining. I know it's all for a wonderful cause, but I'm not used to being this big and carrying all of this extra weight around. Hopefully, it'll come off fast after Maeve is born. That's why I'm so dead set on working out till the end. There has to be a PRIZE somewhere, right? I just hope that it shows on the scale!

Kyra is totally ready for her sister to be here. She keeps going in Maeve's room and admiring everything. She talks to my belly. It's so cute. She's beyond excited that she will get to teach Maeve everything that she knows! Kyra is very happy to hear that the months have now turned into weeks....just about 8 weeks to go! YAY!

I don't know what Richard thinks. He never talks to me about it. Perhaps it's because we've BOTH been through this before and we know that many sleepless nights lie ahead. I think we are both trying to get as much rest as possible right now. We'll need it. Kyra was sick with the stomach stuff the other week and late last week, Richard got a touch of the flu. Now if I could only stay well. I'm on pins and needles and washing my hands constantly. I DO NOT want to get sick.

So, that's the update. Maeve is fine and kicking the heck out of me. It hurts. Kyra was a gentle squirmer, so can you tell what I'm in for? ;)