"Happy" Monday from Ella

Thought you could use a little smile this morning....

We're off to see the Easter Bunny..well once we change clothes and tame Ella's crazy hair lol :)

Triple Coupon Week..

I love saving my family money!! Randy works so hard to provide well for us and keep us from going without. I used to find that since I didn't have an actual income that I felt really helpless when it came to our bills and finances. One way I have found that I can help out and "contribute" to our bank account is by saving money in any area I can. I have been a little slack lately about using coupons and keeping up with the good deals around town, so last month I decided to start working hard and paying attention again. I'm so glad I did!

Today at Harris Teeter I bought a lot of stuff. My out of pocket expense was higher than it usually is when I do triples, but I purchased a lot of "high dollar" or more expensive items like baby wipes and cleaning supplies. It's great to be able to buy them with coupons because it lowers their price so much..

So today (after 2 stores, 2 balloons, and 2 cookies!) here's how I did:

The first stop I used the maximum amount of coupons allowed (20) and my total should have been: $95.16, but ended up being $40.83 with a total savings of : $54.33

The Second stop I only used 10 coupons that I had left over. My total should have been $35.76, but ended up being $16.04 with a total saving of $19.72

so...my total savings for the day was $74.05
Woo Hoo!

Here's a pic of purchases and of course my little shopping side kick :)

As usual, I want to give a BIG Thank you to Barbara, who showed me the ropes on using coupons!! For those of you in Greenville, she is now even offering classes and workshops you can host in your home to learn with your friends. Check out her BLOG for more info or to see the latest deals!

Ella's New Bed!

Last night marked a big accomplishment for our self proclaimed "Big Girl". We really wanted to get her out of the crib before the new baby was born. I had been debating this in my head for awhile. With Ella, we didn't put her in the crib in her room until she was probably 4 or 5 months old. Up until then she stayed in the bassinet in my room. This left us "options" on whether we would move Ella into a bigger bed after her 2nd Birthday or go ahead and do it now.

Obviously we decided to go ahead and get her situated. We have been telling her all last week that she was getting a "Big Girl Bed" soon. We made it a really big deal that she was getting a special bed and she could give her crib to Noah. She has been really excited. So yesterday, Randy set up the new bed and we took down the crib. This was a little harder on me than I expected lol. I was so caught up in the excitement with Ella that I didn't really think about how HUGE she would look laying in a bed. Or how "big" her room would look without her crib in it. It didn't help that I had spent the whole morning packing up the clothes she had outgrown.
I'm sure you're all thinking, "Well, at least you have another baby coming!" which is true and I can't wait, but it still won't take away the bittersweet feeling of seeing Ella grow up. We all had fun getting the room situated and remembering when Randy put the crib up while I was pregnant with Ella. So sweet.

I can't wait for Noah to meet Ella, because he sure does have one sweet big sister!!

Of course no "new bed" post would be complete without the pictures :)

Ella waking from her last nap in her crib..

Ella and her new bed!!

Resting in her new bed :)

She did awesome last night. I expected to have her come into my room this morning, but she still just sat in her bed yelling, "Mommy!!!!!!". So we'll see how long it takes her to get brave and start venturing out. She's napping right now and so far it's quiet and she's actually in the bed...so we'll see how it ends :)

*Update- 3/26/09*
Ella has slept in her new bed now 2 nights and napped 2 times a day each day that she's had it. She is doing great!! She goes right to bed and still will actually wait for me to come and tell her when she can get out of bed. We're so proud of her!! Yay Ella!!

A Few Thoughts..

Well, yesterday ended up being a great day, but it was crazy busy! Things at the Daffodil park were pretty disappointing! Most of the flowers had already died or fallen off. Ella still had a really good time running around exploring. The pictures I was hoping to get were a big bust though lol. She was either blinking or refusing to smile. But we had fun and that was the point. Thought you might enjoy our "out takes" from the day!

I do love this one of her tickling Randy :)

Sunday mornings are always really busy for us as we try and get everyone ready and out the door in one piece. I can only imagine the craziness of adding yet one more family member to the routine this Summer. Well, since it takes me the longest to get ready, I have started sitting Ella's clothes out so that Randy can take care of her once he's ready himself. It has been a huge help to me since I also worry about all of the little details of what we need to pack and bring and not forget, too. Well, this week Ella woke up with some nasty bed head. Her hair was crazy and had stuff stuck in it from the day before. GROSS! (and frustrating since I gave her a bath on Saturday so that she wouldn't need one Sunday morning). Randy was a sweet Daddy and gave her a good shampoo really quick at the sink. Well, they had fun laughing and splashing so I just had to share how cute it was with Ella in her little robe :)




Well, that's all I've got...
Can't believe I've been pregnant 29 whole weeks and am working on 30..time flies! Everything looked good yesterday so that's great news! :)

Happy Monday...

We're going to go by the Daffodil Field today and let Ella look at all of the flowers. I think she will enjoy it much more this year now that's she's older.

Although she sure made for some cute pics last year...

Hoping to get some good ones today!
After that I have to stop by the Doc for a check up on Noah. I'm going every other week now, so I'm hoping for a quick one! Once I'm done we may be driving out to New Bern to pick up a new bed for Ella we found on Craig's List. I LOVE going to New Bern so we might try and go early to walk around some. Then back home and off to small group.
Busy day, but we'll be spending it together, all three (and 2/3) of us so that makes it fun and special..

Happy Monday from the Strickland's :)

Doodle Face :)

Tonight, I *thought* I was getting ahead..feeling accomplished...

I made dinner and put some aside for Randy to have when he got home..got sick (again!) and decided I would take a quick bath so I didn't resemble someone who'd been throwing up an hour prior, once my hubby got home. lol.

Figured that while I already had the tub going, I would give Ella a bath, too. Cleaned her all up and washed her hair..put her in jammies...

brought her into my room and turned my back for seriously 2..MAYBE 3 seconds....

and found this:

My little Doodle Face

*sigh* definitely bed time...

Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot...

Well, it seems that it was only a few months ago when Ella and I braved the "cootie shot". Neither of us like needles or shots, but since she's still young and I'm pregnant, and nobody likes the flu, I decided we both should get our annual flu shot.

HA! As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, Ella was sick most of the time we were in TN. She never did throw up, but she had a fever and was pretty cranky. She's also been having some extreme diapers for over a week! I'm still not sure with her if it was a virus, or teething since it has lingered so long.
Well, I spent Monday afternoon hanging out with my sister having a great time. Feeling great. Woke up Tuesday morning feeling super nauseous..sadly this isn't a reason for me to be alarmed..I popped a Zofran already prescribed to me for nausea and started making breakfast..About 5 minutes before the kids I babysit were knocking on the door, I am throwing up BAD! I actually proceeded to joke about the inconvenience of throwing up right before the kids came to their Dad, thinking it was just pregnancy related. Well, it wasn't. Every time I tried to get off the couch, I ended up sick. (Also got a call from my sister saying she was leaving school because she was throwing up!)
Thankfully, Randy was off from work so when he got home from his weekly accountability breakfast, he helped me with the kids. I was so worried that I was going to pass on my germs to them, so Randy got a nice peek into my day. He was awesome warming up bottles and changing diapers. He even tackled the laundry I had sorted out to do. He definitely saved the day. It has only been one day of actually throwing up (which I am thankful for), but I am still having waves of sickness throughout the day. At least now I can get up! It also worked out that the girl's I watch are visiting with their Grandma in from out of state these next couple of days so I could recover.

It's been hard keeping Miss Ella busy and content so I can rest, but these smiles, and lots of, "Love you Mommy" have kept me going!

Today, I'm dreaming of this..

Yummy Date Night :)

As most of you know, Randy and I celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary on the 4th. Well because we were super busy and I was trying to get ready for my trip, we just went out for a quick dinner last Sunday. Randy had something planned that he really wanted to do so we decided that when I got back, we would get a sitter and go to Raleigh. WELL, Randy's surprise was that he was taking me to the Melting Pot!! I have wanted to go for a looonng time. Obviously, having babies and living on one income doesn't allow stuff like that very often, but we went and had so much fun. It was so yummy and the staff did a great job at making us feel extra special since it was our anniversary dinner. What a great night...I'm still full and smiling as I sit here this morning lol.

Here are a couple of pics from my phone, but most are kinda dark..

This is a little card they put on our table that said "Happy Anniversary"

They also put a candle in the center of a piece of cheesecake when they brought out the dessert.

The hardest part of the night was deciding what chocolate to use for dessert, but we chose the "Yin and Yang" which was half white chocolate and half dark..

THANKS RANDY :)

Greeting from TN!

Hey there!
We are enjoying the last day of our trip here in TN with my family. I had planned to give you some updates while we were here with lots of pics, but I forgot my camera!!! I was soooo frustrated when I realized that. I do have a few that my Meemaw took while we were there.

The first day we got into Nashville, we went to the Opry Mills Mall right near The Grand Ol' Opry! It was one of the coolest malls I've ever been to! They also had a Gymboree Outlet inside, so that was really exciting! :) Ella is border line obsessed with Trains and they have a Choo Choo that will take you around the mall. It had a man dressed like a conductor and a loud train whistle. Lucky for Ella, she was there with her "Dolly" who was willing to pay the fee and let Ella ride. Ella loved it!

Here she is on the train..don't mind the silly video, it was from my cell phone to send to Randy lol

On Thursday Morning, we got up bright and early and took breakfast over to my grandparents house. Ella got to visit with Meemaw (her great grandma), BennyPa (her great grandpa) , and Nanny (her Great, Great Grandma).

Ella, Meemaw, Benny Pa

Ella with me and Dolly

Noah's Baby Bump-28 weeks!

Ella playing on the stairs with Benny Pa!

Ella with her Grandma, Great Grandma, and Great Great Grandma :)

We have spent a lot of time relaxing and watching movies, and a lot of time visiting family. It has been a really great trip and although I'm ready to get back home and see Randy, I'm sad to leave so soon.

I'll have lots of work ahead getting Miss Ella back in shape from lots of fun with the grandparents! She has really enjoyed all the snuggles and especially the treats!! My suitcase is busting at the seems and we have another box full to ship home. Gotta love grandparents!!

Here is a little video I thought was cute of Ella singing while she got a quick bath..definitely the center of attention!

We leave Nashville this evening around 5 o'clock and have a lay over in Cincinnati, then off to Raleigh. Keep us in your prayers for a safe trip and that Ella will be as wonderful as she was the way over!

Sunny Day :)

Some weeks I have to really stretch to find things to blog about...others just have lots of stuff!!

When we heard that the temps would hit 79 today, we knew it was going to be a fun Saturday!! Ella and I didn't waste much time this morning while getting dressed and eating breakfast. We were ready and out the door around 9:00!

Our first stop was the library. I've been trying to take her to the library on Saturday mornings so that she can get used to it..really hoping she'll be ready to sit still for story time this summer. She loves it so far, but while she loves hearing the stories, the puzzle table seems to be her favorite lol.

After that, we went by the park to play. She is really into swinging. Out of the two hours we were there, she probably only spent 30 minutes on the slides and other equipment. Nice work out for mommy's arms I suppose...

We picked up some lunch on the way home and ate before she went down for a nap...

I spent some time reading and getting some sun and decided to fill up Ella's little pool so the water could warm up before she woke up. She LOVED it. At first she spent most of the time just splashing with her hands, but she finally sat down some, too. Her pool is from last summer so it's really small. Just big enough for her to sit and splash! It looks like we'll be out looking for a bigger one soon!

She loved running around in the yard with Princess, and of course she switched her hat to face backwards right away. My plan to use a hat to keep the sun out of her face failed once again. She just likes it backwards like Daddy!!

*Sigh* only 3:00 and I'm worn out!!!!

Guitar and Camera FUN..

While Randy was off on Tuesday, he was sitting in our spare bedroom playing some guitar..well, at first Ella didn't realize what he was doing, but as soon as he clicked the amp on and she heard the guitar, she went running into her bedroom. She had run off to fetch HER guitar so she could play, too. It's one of her favorite things to do..watch Daddy play guitar. Don't think I can blame her since it's one of my favorite things to do, too. So Randy's peaceful guitar practice turned into a family event. Ella and I sitting there watching him, and Ella occasionally joining in with her own song. Fun times. It was especially sweet because Randy and I have often sang the song "Glorious" to Ella and this was the first time she "sang" along..She just held out a big "Uhhhh" every time we said the word glorious, but is was enough to melt our hearts.

Also thought you might enjoy these pics they took while I was at Bible study Tuesday night. Two Cuties!

Well, that's all for us this week!! We're enjoying the "warmer" weather and having a blast playing outside. Looking forward to the weekend and our trip next week :)

March 4th, 2006

The Happiest day of my life...

So happy to have had 3 wonderful years with my one and only sweetheart :)
Looking forward to lots more!

This one's for you, Randy.

Click here for last years post, too.

Growing a BOY...

Some of my out of state friends and family have been bugging me about new belly shots..I completely haven't meant to neglect poor Noah in my updates!! Happy to say there's just not a whole lot to report :)

I go to the Doc on Monday for a check up and my glucose test, but until then I'm just doing normal pregnant stuff...
eating A LOT! (Like holy cow, I can't even believe it myself, a lot!)
smiling a lot...
eating some more...
thanking God for zofran and tums...something I couldn't survive without...
eating a lot...:)
Here's a recent belly shot Randy took yesterday...not one of my favorites, but it will do!

Mommy and Noah starting the 27th week of my pregnancy :)

I'm super excited that Ella and I are going to Tennessee next week for a visit :)!! Yay!!
Randy was going to come, too, but since he has a "on 4 off 3" work schedule it would be a busy 3 days of travel and then right back into the work week. Of course we're bummed he's not coming, but it is allowing Ella and I a couple of extra days..We'll be flying out next Tuesday and we'll be sure to take lots of pics :)

As for this little girl...well, she's still as cute as she was last week..maybe even cuter...and she keeps me laughing ALL day!