2017, week two

weekly recaps seem to be my thing right now.

so lets see...

health:

i was sick, then ronnie was sick, both girls are still

super congested with coughs, so that's been fun.

i made fajitas the other night and ronnie told me

his stomach was too upset to eat, then of course

brette refused to even try it so she had cereal and reid,

seeing her sister eating something else, cried until she got 

cereal too. 

so there was a whole thing of fajitas 

and i was the only one who ate dinner.

THIS is why i don't cook.

career:

i just started working three days a week.

a girl walked out at the bank, so they really 

need some extra hands until they can get someone else hired. 

i should only have this schedule for a month, but

i'm working mondays, tuesdays and fridays.

brette has school on wednesdays so i'll only get thursdays

home with her which is a big change for us.

i've spoke with my boss about changing my schedule to

three days a week starting this summer when 

reid starts at OLP preschool with brette.

i think they'll both be going monday, wednesday, friday so

hopefully i can pick up some extra hours.

this will be a good dry run on how that works.

home:

now that the holidays are over, i'd like to start up 

a few projects around the house.

winter seems like a good time to finish some of the 

last few jobs around here - - like the WALLS. 

you know, the ones i've only been talking about for two years.

blah.

first on the list is the entry way.

if ronnie could get those skim coated, i could paint and 

i think it could actually be done pretty quickly.

we also bought a ceiling fan for the master bedroom, 

which i'm hoping ronnie can get hung this weekend.

right now, its still sitting in its box by the front door.

i have to have a fan at night and our tower fan shot crap

a few weeks ago and we've been living with a big box fan

sitting on the fireplace.

it sucks that its going to be so cold on ronnie in the attic, but

i'm okay with it (wink) just so we can cross something off our list.

i've also been looking for two pieces of furniture.

the first one, are side tables for the family room.

you probably don't notice in the pictures, but the two tables

that sit on either side of the sectional do not match.

they are relics from my college days, spray painted black in the 

backyard of the house we rented my junior year.

one of them was shannon's parent's and the other was my aunt's.

i'm in shock and denial that these pieces of crap are still being used,

let alone moved from house to house because we've never replaced them.

i hate them. 

i'm over looking at them. 

and they will be gone soon.

i don't want to invest in anything too nice because 

the girls are so hard on furniture.

brette stands on them and jumps to the couch. 

snacks are eaten here, drinks are spilled and on and on.

i am hoping to find something at target or world market that

would work for awhile until the girls get older.

the catch is: they need to be the same color at our coffee table.

i'm on the hunt.

if you have any suggestions of another good place to look,

let me know.

the second thing i'm looking for are two small leather arm chairs 

for the living room.

once again, we borrowed chairs - this time from my parent's -

just to fill in the space until we bought something new.

my problem is, i don't know how nice i want them.

like i said before, kids are hard on furniture, but i don't 

necessarily want to replace these in a few years

like i would a side table.

there's a few at world market i like for around $300.

there's one at crowly i like for $600 and it can go up from there.

i guess i need ronnie to help decide this one.

i'm kind of leaning toward getting nicer pieces that will last and

hoping to god the leather doesn't get ripped in some 

crazy girl fight in the next several years.

if i could get these few things done and bought, i would

feel pretty good about the house.

at least for a few months...

girls:

the girls are really good.

reid is popping out teeth like its her job, which

is a nice change because it doesn't seem to be interrupting 

her sleep routine, but it gives me peace of mind when feeding her.

her hair is also getting really long and she is sporting pigtails now,

which, in my opinion, is the cutest thing ever.

brette's hair also got some attention as i gave her a little trim.

her first since she was born.

i figure 3 1/2 years is long enough.

it was almost down to her butt and while i love it and

i'm a huge fan of long hair, it was getting a little crazy.

she is also doing really well with school and loves going.

she's learning her letters and how to cut with scissors. 

they also taught her this great way to put on her own coat.

it makes me laugh every time i see it.

basically she throws it on the floor, upside down.

she puts her arms in, flings it over her head and wah la!

she's ready to go.

hilarious. 

i think that's it for this week.

we're expecting a big ice storm this weekend,

so i'm just praying that we don't lose electricity.

there's not gas lines in our neighborhood, so if we lose power,

we lose heat and then we're screwed.

here's hoping next week is uneventful too... and warm. 

last week, wrapped up in a ball.

christmas has come and gone and while

i feel like i should write a whole post to the holiday,

there's not much to say that hasn't already been said.

the girls LOVED opening gifts.

for reid, it was the tearing of the paper and throwing the tissue.

oh and the candy. this girls LOVES candy. 

for brette, it was the actual gift inside that got her going.

we are now proud owners of a million and one troll and 

shopkins items that brette is obsessed with.

ronnie's sister and her family came over and i made

a big turkey dinner, with potatoes, dressing, gravy, corn, 

green bean casserole, rolls, leftover cookies and pecan pie.

i had to make the pie twice because i had too much going on

and put the oven on at 450 instead of 350. 

damn the luck.

but besides that, i'd call it a success.

since then we've celebrated the holiday with my parents too

AND partied it up for new years eve,

how is it january 4th already?

for new year's we went out to jason and amy's

(ronnie's best friend, who we went on vacation with over the summer.)

we normally go to their annual party every other year.

one year with them and then one year with my friends.

although, with the way my friends are popping out kids,

we might never "party" again.

i hadn't been feeling well that day, but i pushed through

and had a really great time.

any party that involves flip cup, is my jam.

plus we played a few rounds of cards against humanity and

had an amazing dinner.

so. much. food.

my kids stayed with my parent's so we headed back to their place,

where i spent the next two days super sick.

(i knew i didn't feel well!)

and here i am today, resurfacing from the sewer and ready 

to start 2017 strong.

and by strong, i mean with at least one or two blog posts a week.

(sorry, i suck!)

as for resolutions?

i really don't have any.

i'm feeling pretty good about where life is headed and

i only plan to make it as fun as i can.

cheers!

on the eve of

Merry Christmas, Love the Cox's!

(for all of those not on our mailing list)

the children are nestled all snug in their beds.

the presents are out.

the cookies have been eaten.

stockings are stuffed.

ronald and i are cuddled up in bed watching christmas vacation.

we woke up this morning to a note from

tootie (our friendly elf).

 she told the girls goodbye and

left them pj's for tonight.

brette told me they weren't cute and she wasn't wearing them.

true to form, she went to bed in doc mcstuffins jammies.

she's trying to kill me.

i have my fingers crossed i can talk her into them

in the morning so our pictures are cute, but

i'm not holding my breath.

we went to church this afternoon and

then made an evening of looking at the lights.

we stopped by the magic tree and 

then drove out to brookside where

they really know how to decorate for the holiday.

by the time we got home, we had enough time to set 

out cookies, (we made some the other day just for santa)

put on jammies and read

'twas the night before christmas.'

it was a really fun night and i wouldn't mind

making it a tradition.

  

tomorrow i'm in charge of dinner.

yikes.

i have a turkey ready,

dressing made,

potatoes done,

and rolls frozen.

all i have to do tomorrow is bake a pie.

i feel ready.

i'm really hoping for a chill, stress-free morning.

i want to enjoy santa with my kids.

i hope you're enjoying christmas to the max!

(first, our cookie adventures)

(and tonight, church and lights)

Joy to the World!

sing and be merry

christmas programs are now at the

top of the list for favorite things.

literally - my favorite.

brette's little three year old class sang 

silent night, up on a rooftop and 

we wish you a merry christmas.

as a parent when you see your kid 

walk down the aisle of your church 

like such a big girl,

with prayer hands and a big smile, well,

its everything i've ever wanted for christmas.

and then she actually danced and sang, which

i really thought she would clam up and do nothing,

so it was such a sweet surprise.

the actual sound that comes out is more

like yelling chaos, but that just adds to the charm.

i'm already so excited for next year's performance.

i think i would send my kid to school 

just for the christmas program.

it really doesn't get any better.

meanwhile, my littlest turned up her cuteness so 

she wouldn't be outshone by her sister.

how freaking adorable is this???

mimi introduced her to hand lotion.

excuse me while i watch these on repeat and

die of cuteness overload.

december birthday brownies

my niece turned ten last week and we 

didn't get to celebrate with her over the weekend since

we were out of town at a wedding.

instead, we headed over to their house during the

week with a little gift and a sweet treat.

i made smore poke brownies.

have you ever made a poke cake?

it's like that, but with brownies instead.

can you say, ooey-gooey delicious?

they were amazing.

everyone loved them,

even ronald, who never eats dessert.

and to make it better?

they're so easy to make.

buy a box of brownies and make them

just like the directions say.

when they come out poke holes all over and

pour marshmallow fluff on top.

the marshmallow seeps into the brownie making 

it pretty much the best thing that has ever happened.

put the brownies into the fridge to let cool.

meanwhile, crush up some graham crackers.

i think i crushed up somewhere between 4-6.

whatever covers your brownies. 

i also warmed up some hot fudge.

after like 10 minutes, i pulled the brownies out

topped with graham and drizzled a bit of hot fudge.

you can stop there - because that's amazing OR

you can cut marshmallows in half and place on

top of the graham crackers. (or just use mini marshmallows)

then broil until marshmallows are golden brown.

(i didn't do this step because i didn't realize but the marshmallows 

we have in the pantry are fruit flavored.)

i saw this recipe on facebook - here's the video.

and here are mine:

winter wedding

one of my friends from college was married

over the weekend in jefferson city, so

ronnie and i dropped the girls off at my parent's

and made a little overnight trip of it.

it was so fun and the i loved the venue.

the bride was gorgeous and i got to hang

out with margie and all my sorority sisters -

which i never get to do, but love.

too much beer and a dry dz ride later,

we made it back to our hotel for a long winter's nap.

 

 

 

 

 

unfortunately, my parents were not having the same luck.

both kids were sick.

running fevers and couldn't breathe.

so instead of enjoying an actual guilt-free night away

with, dare i say, breakfast to follow, i got a text from

my dad letting us know that they had

a rough night and so did the girls.

of course that would happen.

so bright and early, ronnie and i hit the highway

back home to get two sick kids from my parents.

i've spent the last few days at home with them and

called into work monday so i could take them

into the doctor to see what was up.

ear infections, pink eye and a cold.

great combo.

i hate colds.

there's no medicine that helps,

they last for weeks and

someone always needs a tissue.

but we now have eye drops and antibiotics, so even

though the cold remains, the pink eye and ear infection

seem to be getting better and better.

we have family christmas on saturday and sunday, so

i need them feeling great and soon.

 

 

ps- ronnie is sick now too. awesome.

preparations

for being christmas time, we've actually

had a pretty chill week.

i'm surprisingly prepared for the holidays.

my house is decorated.

my tree is up.

and every. single. one. of my presents is bought.

well, i don't have the girls' stocking stuffers done,

but that's so easy.

i ended up going black friday shopping by myself.

i had a few hours before i needed to be into work.

brette was in school and ronnie had reid.

it was incredible.

i got a lot bought and it was nice to have some

"alone" time to do it.

plus, i didn't feel like the crowds were bad, but

i've always been a fan of black friday shopping.

nothing is wrapped.

 in fact, everything is sitting in my bathtub 

because the girls rarely go in there.

so i still have that, but

there's no point in getting it done super early

because i would never put them under the tree.

reid would have them destroyed in 5 minutes.

she spends a lot of her time taking down the

ornaments and the poinsettias i have in my garland.

i pretty much redecorate several times a day.

i plan on making cookies with the girls the week 

before christmas so we can have special treats to leave for santa.

we also need to take the girls to see the magic tree and

maybe swing through christmas at the park to see all

the lights if the line to get in isn't too outrageous.

we have christmas with my family scheduled, cookie day and

christmas with ronnie's family on the calendar too.

it's the 8th of december and i am ready.

i can't believe it. 

i feel like i'm forgetting something really important.

am i?

hmmmmmmmm.

here are a few pics of the girls from the past week.

brette being sweet and then...

brette being brette.

and reid, bundled up 

ready to run errands with me.

we're never getting rid of that pacifier.