Fresh Start

Well, it has been forever since I have used this blog for actually blogging. So, I've decided to dedicate it to something very important to me. The stuff that fills my day. Crafts and diy projects! I love finding new ways to decorate things and finding new ways to save money. So, that is what this board will be about from now on. I am so excited to share all of this stuff.

The Norm...

Since when did the normal life become centered around drugs? Since when did the norm become having at least one, if not more, people in your life addicted? Since when did it become the norm for a mother to choose drugs over their own child? Since when did the norm become watching the sweet child that you raised  turn into someone you don't recognize? I become more and more afraid of the world that my son is going to grow up in with each passing breath. I can't imagine a day where he wouldn't be the most important thing in my life, or the day that he would turn his back on me. Why do people choose to have their lives dictated by something that harms so many? Drugs not only affect you, they affect everyone in your life. It's selfish and weak. Why do so many people help out the people who do this stuff? Don't you see that you are just as bad as they are for enabling them to be like this? Don't you see that you are part of the problem? I am so fed up with having drugs invade my life. I am not the one doing them, I did not choose to have this drama and I certainly did not want to have my life tainted by this. I have a wonderful life. I can't imagine how life could get any better than being perfectly content with sitting on the couch with my family listening to my son read Cat in the Hat or watching Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. If that seems like a boring life to some then so be it, but my actions and my life aren't ruining the lives of everyone around me. I don't want to sit up at night and wonder if my loved ones are okay. Or wonder if they are finally getting caught. I don't want to have to see people I love go through hell. I don't want to look at them and see the shell of who they used to be. And I am so tired of feeling like a horrible person because I don't put up with the drama that comes with this. But that doesn't mean that I don't love them, it doesn't mean that I don't care about them, it just means that I'm not going to take part in being another person in their lives who pretends that they are okay. If that makes them think that I don't care then that says more about them than me I think. If that makes me seem like an unfeeling bitch then they don't know me at all. I would do anything for the people I love, but the one thing I will not do is enable them. But what bothers me the most is watching the people in my life be hurt by this. They didn't choose to have this invade their lives. I hate that there is nothing I can do to help them deal with this. If they think that love means being ignorant to what is right happening right in front of them then that is on them, not me. But I can tell you one thing, I am going to do everything I can to shield my son from this life. I don't care what it costs me. I can't picture him becoming another faceless drug addict. I can't picture me burying him one day because he got in over his head. I can't picture me having to visit him through bars. I never quite understood what women say when they say that there is no love as amazing as the love you have for your child, until I had little Bruce. I just pray that there comes a day when the town of Rogersville isn't known for the drugs and the drug addicts that reside there. It's not the world I want my son to grow up in. I hate reading the paper and being able to say that I know at least 2-3 of the people in the ARRESTED/WANTED section.

I guess that is about all I needed to say. I haven't blogged since July, but this is the only way for me to express what is on my mind to night. Prayer is a powerful thing and I just wanted to ask if you could please keep me and anyone else involved in a situation like this in your prayers. It's sad to say that I am pretty sure that the majority of people who read this will be able to relate. And if you are one of those people who relate to this then I am so sorry and you will be in my prayers.

BB & HP

What an incredible few days. First of all, I now have a new child to take care of during the day. His name is Charlie and he just turned one. I'm so happy that little man will have another boy to play with here at the house. He is being overrun by girls! He came out of Cassidy's room one day with blush and a necklace on. Yeah, we REALLY need more boys around this house. But I am so grateful for the children that have come into my life, both old and new. They all fit here so well and I can't imagine life without them.

On a more sad note, Bruce got laid off at Old Dominion. We knew this was a possibility when he got the job since the trucking industry is so fickle and he has never worked on fork lifts, but having that job the past few months was such a blessing and now we are moving onto something else. He already has 3 interviews! I am so proud of him. But obviously God has other plans for our family and we are excited to see where he is leading us.

On a bittersweet note, LITTLE BRUCE IS TURNING TWO! AHH!! I can't believe that this is happening. It seems like he was just born yesterday. I feel like time is flying by and I can't do anything to slow it down so I can enjoy this age just a little bit longer. He is the sweetest little boy. I couldn't ask for a better son. I am so happy that we are going to be able to celebrate his birthday with all of our family here in Tennessee. Last year was so hard because all of our family was back in Tennessee, with the exception of Lisa, Mark and Ricky.

But I do have a prayer request. Ricky's girlfriend, Brittny, lost her grandfather yesterday (Tuesday). She was very close with him and her family is going through a very rough time. Please just keep them in your prayers.

Now onto the entertainment portion of my blog:

IT'S BIG BROTHER TIME!!! To most people summer means the beach, cookouts and etc...But to me and my mom, it's means Big Brother on CBS. They announced a few weeks ago that 6 old houseguests would be returning and we were praying that one of them would be Evel Dick. And then premiere night came and our wish came true. He walked through those doors and we lost it. We even posted a video on Facebook! He is our all time favorite houseguest. But then we found out that within a week of the game starting he had to leave. From what I have read he had a friend who needed him. I'm assuming he was hurt or sick, but whatever the case may be I just hope that everything turned out for the best. I will for sure miss him this season, but I hope that he will be back on another season.

The final Harry Potter is coming out Friday. I can't even explain how that makes me feel. I have been reading these book since middle school! And on Friday it's over, done, finished, no more! It's been such an incredible ride though.

Outnumbered...

I can't believe that I haven't posted in almost a month. Actually, it will be one month as of tomorrow. I have been so busy. Between being a mommy, watching Ally and having Cassidy get out of school I feel like I am constantly out numbered by little people. But I do enjoy it.

I spent this past week working on Cassidy's room and I am happy to say that it is finally done. She has the cutest girly room! I love it!  The picture doesn't include all of the stuff. I added a few things since I took that picture. There is now a tree above the desk, mirrored butterflies around her name and there are framed Barbie pictures on the wall next to the bed (not pictured). It really does my heart good to do this stuff for her. I love her more than I could have ever imagined.

Little Bruce is repeating everything we say. He is making sentences and everything. I can't believe how much he has changed this past month. Heck, he's changed a great deal this past week! His newest thing is saying "Ready, set, go" and then taking off running. It's adorable! His birthday is next month! Yikes! His party is going to be so awesome this year because we will have family there. I feel so blessed to be able to have them all there for him. Mark has been redoing the back porch and he has been a huge help to him. It's so adorable! He is such a cute little boy and so smart.

Couponing has been awesome this past month. We have such an awesome little stockpile going and it's been such an awesome hobby. The only sucky part is actually cutting the coupons. UGH! I could do without that.

I have really got to make more of an effort to hang out with people that I am not related to and that are my age. I feel like I don't get out and do things with friends much anymore. In San Diego that was all I ever did, but now that I am home I find myself very isolated from other people as far as friends go. Another thing is that I have got to get little Bruce away from all these girls he hangs out with and around some boys. He is around dolls and stuff to much. He took a fairy wand into Wal-Mart and I said that that was just weird and Cassidy proceeded to tell me that he was a "man fairy". Oh my gosh! HELP! But he also a very manly guy when it comes to most stuff. Always copying his Daddy and Papaws.

Well that is about it for me tonight. I am going to go hit the sheets and get some rest. I'm so exhausted from the past week. But I am so looking forward to next week, Ally comes back and I have no big "jobs" to do. It's back to normal for me!

A wine kind of night...

So, my binder has arrived. It took me almost 5 hour to get all of my stuff in it and organized. But I have to admit, I really enjoyed it. I was amazed at how many coupons that I had at that point. Now I've more than doubled my amount. My Dad gave me all of his extras, Lisa's coworkers gave her theirs and we have another set to go through. Then it all starts over again next week. It's a ridiculous cycle!

Life has been rough the past week. I feel like I can't get ahead or do anything right. I can't really explain it, but I just feel worn out. I hope it's all over soon, I am tired of feeling like crap all of the time. I need to figure out what to do to fix this or hopefully it fixes itself.

This is a short blog, I just needed to get that off my chest.

Easter, Couponing and Royalty!

Whew...both Bruce and I have had major changes to our work schedules. He now works night shifts and I now have a different schedule with Ally which isn't a bad thing. We are pretty much set into our new schedules and it's been working out pretty good.

Easter was amazing! We had such a good morning at church and little man looked so cute all dressed up in his suit. After church it was time for him to nap and it was time for me to get to work on dinner. I made a honey glazed ham, baked mac and cheese, deviled eggs and rolls. Lisa made veggies and potatoes.

Little man did so awesome when it was time to hunt for eggs. He wanted to carry his basket all over and put them in there himself. He found 29 eggs! We were so proud of him.

He is so talkative now. Well, he's always been talkative. But now he is saying EVERYTHING! It has been so amazing to watch him grow up so much these past few weeks so much. He changes on a day to day basis. I feel like time is moving by so quickly and I wish I could just pause it so I can enjoy this time more.

Anyways, I've been couponing! I am on my way to becoming a crazy coupon lady! So far I've racked up a good amount of loot. I've gotten over $80 in free body wash, $10 in deodorant, $8 in floss and $12 in personal stuff.

I have ordered a binder to get it all organized and it should be here tomorrow and I'm so excited to get all of my coupons in order and grow my collection so I can really start racking up the savings. I don't make a ton of money babysitting, but with what I am saving in groceries and personal items it is helping to even out the amount that both Bruce and I contribute to our family.

And tomorrow is going to be so amazing! Tomorrow is the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton! I am so excited! It's just so awesome that I get to see such an amazing event happen. I wasn't alive when Charles and Diana got married, but I am so excited to be able to watch their son wed. It's the stuff of fairy tales and I know that a lot of people don't see the reason behind all of the excitement. But I do, it's just so amazing to know that there are still kings, queens, princes and princesses. And to know that a regular girl can grow up and become a real life princess and eventually queen. It's what every little girl dreams of growing up. So, tomorrow is the big day and I am going to be here watch every minute of it with my little prince. And I know that there are all sort of matters that are more important than a wedding, but for those of us who still believe in fairy tales this is an amazing event.

Anyways, I'm going to wrap this up so I can watch the Lifetime movie William and Kate and then go to bed.

Work, work, work...

It feels like it has been forever since I have blogged. But here I am. That past two weeks have been very busy. Bruce is now working at Old Dominion and is loving his new job. I started watching a little girl named Ally. She is 3 and I couldn't ask for a better little girl to take care of. Little Bruce is saying everything now. And when I say everything, I mean everything. If you can say it, so can he. But he is still as stubborn as ever. He is the perfect mesh of the two of us. He has our stubbornness, my pickyness, my cleanliness, Bruce's ability to play for hours and hours without stop. He is just the best little boy.

We are just trying to get adjusted to being here and our new life. But sometime next year we will be moving closer to Bruce's work in White Pine, TN. But until then, this is our home.

I've been coming to terms that San Diego isn't home anymore. I won't ever see those places again and I won't be living that life anymore. It sucks, but at the same time I know that this is where we are meant to be.

I had the pleasure of working at the Clothing Carousel yesterday and I have to say that it was awesome. Since I volunteered to work I got to go to the preview party and we got such awesome stuff for little man. And working the sale on Saturday was fun. I love feeling like I accomplish something every day. Whether it is doing laundry, cleaning, working, etc... I just sleep better and feel good when I know that I did something productive at the end of the day.

I also have special request, if everyone who reads this could please say a prayer for the Arrechaga family. They lost their solider in Afghanistan this past week. He was a husband, a father, a son and a brother. So, if you could just pray for God to give them peace during this horrible time.