Cover Girls

About a month ago my mom, Cassie and I all went down to the Girl Scout headquarters in San Diego for a leadership photo shoot. All I did was get an e-mail asking who had generations of Girl Scouts in their family. I wrote back and told them that we had at least 5 however only 3 of us would be able to show up. They told us to come one down. So, we did. We met a lot of other families, a lot who had a ton of Girl Scout history along with a ton of pictures and things with patches and pins on it. We had a fun time, it was so nice to get to have that time together and share a special day. But both my mom and I said there is no way we would even be in the magazine (oh yeah, the pictures would be published in a national magazine, forgot to mention that small part, haha) since there was a ton more people with a longer and more extensive history than us. A couple of days later I got an e-mail asking if we wanted copies of our pictures and if so to look for them in the mail. Flash forward to today. I received an e-mail letting me know I should get my cd and some copies of the magazine but in the meantime I can look at it online. So, I put the web address in my browser, hit enter, and what did I see? Me!!!! My mom!!!!! Cass!!!!!!! My first thought? Did she send me the link to the copies of our pictures? NO!!!!! We made the frickin cover!!!! I am so excited!!!!!!!!! Cass feels like a super model and I think it is the coolest thing to have done and get something super cool in return. I am keeping that magazine for forever and even thought of shadow boxing it with some other cool things. Now maybe Hollywood will see what they have been missing and I can go somewhere, hehe.

Savings

Part of the "new me" is trying to save money. Being broke drives me crazy and I am determined to no longer be that. So, I am clipping coupons and have stumbled upon a really cool site. Granted, my printer wasn't working with our old computer and i haven't tried to see if it does now that our laptop is fixed so I haven't printed off coupons from the site but they have a ton of freebies. I have been getting a ton of samples and some of the samples are not tiny. They also have deals through Target and clothing stores now and again. The other day Sally Beauty Supply was having a sale on nail polish. This site had codes for buy one get one free and free shipping and a discount. The deal was when you buy 3 nail polishes, the total that included tax and shipping was only $1.48!!! Super cool. So, anyways, the site is called hip2save, check it out and save it to your computer, they are always updating with new deals and some are so good that they sell out quickly. Actually this morning they had a Burt's Bees gift set though Target that is normally $29.99 plus tax and shipping, they had it for $9.99 with free shipping and 20% off, that one was gone in a matter of minutes. Alright, enough talking about it, just go and happy savings :)

Sick Day

I knew this would be coming. While we were camping this weekend I knew it was going to happen, my co-leader and I actually said out loud that we don't think any of our girls would be at school on Monday. It was just so stinkin cold at night and in the morning followed by a hot day followed again by a stinkin cold night. Mix that with lack of sleep and any sane person would not be feeling good. Well, yesterday seemed like a good day. Cass was at school and I saw some of the other girls there as well. And then last night Cassie started in with a sore throat which has led into a runny nose. And, we aren't the only ones, the co-leaders daughter is sick today as well (and her son who wasn't even at camp with us, good job on the sympathy sickness Jackson!!) So, we are here, still in jammies and get this.................quiet!!!! Yep, our little mover and shaker is still sleeping!!!!!!! I would prefer to have Cass in school so she doesn't continue to fall behind but I must admit, being able to go online in peace and quiet this morning and not have to get the day started yet has been very welcoming!!!!!! I hope you all have a peaceful day!!!

Camping

This weekend was a big one for 2 of us in the Hall household. Since I am the leader of Cassies Girl Scout troop, it was my responsibility to take our girls on their very first camping trip!! The 2 younger girls went to stay with my Aunt and me and my co-leader traveled right outside of Julian, CA and went camping for the weekend. Cassidy got sick going up the mountain and one of the girls got sick going down but all in all, it was a good trip. It took us about 2 hours to get there so it wasn't so bad and we had great cabin mates. We played some games, made some crafts and even ventured off on a hike all alone. It was really pretty and we heard that the next one in September is in the same area but at a nicer camp spot, hallelujah for that one, maybe this time I wont be sleeping on a 1 inch thick mattress made of plastic :) Ok, I am sorry, had to have one complaint in there, haha. Cass is wore out this morning and tried to con me into letting her stay home from school, that was until I told her that all of her friends would be excited to hear about her trip. Those are the moments the lack of attention span comes in pretty darn handy. So, we are back to the grind and things are returning to normal, as normal as that can be I guess.

Distance Sucks!!!!

Some of you I have told about my amazing best friend Julie who lives in Japan and her fourth little bundle of joy. If I haven't told you, here is the short version, not because I don't care to tell the long version, but there is a lot to it and I want to get to the good part :) So, when she was roughly 15 weeks pregnant she woke up in a pool of blood and thought what any of us would have though, she had a miscarriage. She dropped her other 3 kids off at a friends and drove to the hospital preparing to hear the inevitable. However, the baby was fine!!!!!! This happened again once she was in her 20 something weeks pregnant. This time they told her that her baby was not going to make it. That at some point she would come in for an ultrasound and her baby would be dead and she would have to deliver it. I remember that day so vividly. She called and as soon as I heard her voice crackle, I knew it wasn't good. We sat on the phone for hours. We cried and I wished I could be closer to her, to hug her tight and tell her she is not alone and it would be ok. I made her promise me she would be ok. But every time she called, I feared it would be the call with the worst news possible. Well, on April 10, the best thing happened. Her sweet little boy, Monroe Ethan-Keith Downing was born in Japan!!!! She made it through the pregnancy and the baby is doing wonderfully. She posted pictures of him on her facebook and he is the cutest thing I have ever seen!!!! He even has more hair than Hayley already, haha. Then she called me, to tell me how it all went down and how she was doing. Then she held the phone up to him and asked him to say hi to his Aunt Kaleena, he was making the sweetest baby noises ever and I cried. I cried so much, I just wish I could see him and hold him, along with all of her other sweet little ones too!!!!!!! I understand that goodbyes are a part of the military but for once I have met the best friend I have ever had in my life and for her to be that far away and have such a wonderful miracle as this happens just makes me sad and wanting to vent on the suckiness of distance. So, Pacific Ocean, how dare you be so vast as to keep me from my friend, you are beautiful and I love seeing you everyday but right now, you are a big blue piece of suck!!! Ok, vent done. Congrats Downing family, I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Baby Talk

There is no greater gift than to see your little baby who you carried in your stomach for almost a year blossom into a little person who actually knows and understands the words I speak to her. When Cassidy was a baby we ( I guess that would be more I since Will was gone for almost her whole first year of life) taught her basic sign language. She knew please and more and eat and more of the simple things I would try to communicate with her during that age. She learned pretty well and it was so good to be able to look at her in her high chair and when she whined and I asked what the matter was and she signed more, I knew she was still wanting to eat. For some reason, we never even tried with Kendall. Lord help us, maybe that's why she uses her words so darn much these days!!! But lately we have been trying with Hayley. We have been signing, helping her make the sign, repeating the words and then following through with what she gets when she is done signing. Well, today was the day!!!! After her nap she normally likes a bottle of juice. So, into the kitchen we go. As I pour the juice into her bottle, she proceeds to stand up holding a cabinet so she can see better and when I saw do you want juice.........she signed please!!!!!!!!!!! she did it a couple more times again tonight as well. Now I know she is not the only little one to do so, Lord knows I have seen the little booger on tv for your baby can read say turtle over and over, just kidding, I have seen kids, actual friends of mines kids sign so I know it is not some rare thing, however, I felt like my baby was the smartest in all the land tonight. I was so proud of her!!!!!!!!!

I'm Back!!!!!!!

Thank you amazing Corpsman whose name has slipped my mind who told us not to buy a new cord for our broke laptop, which are super costly by the way, because he had an extra he would like to give to us. Because of you, I am online again and not on my monster upstairs that takes up more than half of my desk. I am relaxing on my couch with my sweet little laptop, life is good :) And a lot has happened since I wrote last. The biggest thing, our baby turned 1!!!!!! I am so sad that she is growing up so fast but she is so amazing. She has 3 teeth now and crawls on my lap and smiles a silly toothy grin and my heart melts. It also makes my empty uterus melt and that scares Will :) On her birthday we went to Sea World to celebrate with my mom and a good friend of ours named Sal. It was a ton of fun and Hayley loved looking at all the animals!!! Then we went to my Grandma's for Easter and did a mini celebration for Hayley there too. I also saw my brother (technically step-brother since he is not blood but brother non the less) and his girls, one named Kalina....so awesome, and I met his dad as well. It was so good to see them after all these years, Will and I both drove away thinking of how much we missed them and wish they lived closer!!!!!!!! Will also re-enlisted for 2 more years. Seems kind of silly since he just re-enlisted last month but he did it so we can transfer his GI Bill to me so I can start school. Then this weekend we had a BBQ with some friends and family for Hayley again. So fun to celebrate my little one again. I am just sitting here feeling so blessed and so happy to have wonderful people in my life. There are times when I think of not having a dad or people who don't live close and all that stuff but it really puts it into perspective to see how much I do have and how many loved ones I have around me. And today at Hayley's party I had a beautiful wonderful friend who came by later in the day because her daughter had been sick but couldn't stay long. As she was leaving she got teary and said she wished she could stay and was telling how much she loved Hayley. Seriously, I wanted to cry. Here right in front of me I have an amazing woman who feels so strongly for me and my family, I am so blessed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And I am back online so I can tell you all about it :) Now, I normally try to post a more recent picture but since I haven't had the laptop up and running in probably over a year, I have no recent ones on here and have downloaded any new ones tonight yet. So, above is an oldie but goodie I guess you can call it :) I am pregnant with Hayley and Will played Santa at his commands Christmas party when we lived in Illinois. So fun!!