About Me

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I am 36 years old and a mother of two beautiful little girls. Kevin and I have been married for 11 years. He is a stay-at-home dad who runs his own business from our home. I am a part-time 3rd grade teacher and have been teaching for 15 years. I live no more than 10 minutes away from my parents, in-laws, sisters, nieces, newest nephew, grandparents, aunts, and uncles... I wouldn't want it any other way!

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

My Husband...My Best Friend

Today is Kevin's 35th birthday. Here are just a handful of the many things I love about this guy...

  1. The way he plays and interacts with our girls

  2. The boy can part hair, remember which pants/skirts go with which shirts, and most importantly...he can match hairbows to the correct outfits for our girls! Now that is quite the accomplishment for a dad

  3. He has participated in more than one tea party with the girls

  4. He takes care of all of us

  5. He is a stay-at-home dad who truly loves being home with the girls

  6. The way he thinks

  7. He is a problem-solver

  8. He is always positive...you know, the glass is half-full kind of guy

  9. He is able to calm my fears

  10. The way he loves us

  11. That he is my best friend
Happy 35th Birthday sweetheart! I hope you have a wonderful day!

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Happy Birthday Mom and Dad!

My mom and dad will both celebrate their 57th birthday this Thursday, April 24. Here is the amazing story of their meeting...

Although my paternal and maternal grandparents lived in Xenia, both families decided to have their babies in Springfield. At the time, Xenia did not have a hospital, but there were a few area hospitals from which to choose. My maternal grandmother and paternal grandmother went into labor on the same day at approximately the same time. They had the same OB. Once at the hospital, they shared a hospital room. Coincidentally, my mom and dad were born within 20 minutes of one another (my mom is older) and were delivered by the same doctor, Dr. Ray Berry.

As time went on, my parents had heard of one another from time to time around Xenia. Although they both lived in Xenia, my dad went to Catholic schools where as my mom went to public schools. They did not meet again until they were 16 years old. My dad was cruising around town in a car full of boys and my mom was cruising around with her girlfriends. After this first meeting, they started dating off and on for the next 6 years. They were married on August 24, 1973.
My parents have always felt that their story was destiny more than mere coincidence. They know that they were meant to be together. They will celebrate their 35th wedding anniversary this summer!

So here they are, nearly 35 years later with four grown children and 4 1/2 grandchildren so far. They are an inspiration to me. I am so blessed to have parents who are still married in this day and age. They are an inspiration of true love and commitment. As they celebrate their birthdays this week, I want them to know how much I love them and how blessed I am to have them for parents.

Mom and Dad,
Thank you for the unconditional love and security you have given me all of these years. Thank you for your amazing example of love, Christianity, morality, kindness, family values, and a strong work ethic. Thank you for being you! I Love you!

Thursday, April 10, 2008

Disney World!

I cannot even begin to describe how magical Disney World is, specifically... The Magic Kingdom! If you have been there, you understand. Otherwise, it is a place everyone must visit. Here I am 33 years old and I had the best time. Kevin asked me if I was enjoying it more than the girls. I think it was pretty equal for all of us. We spent four days at The Magic Kingdom. I highly recommend spending several days at this park so that you can relax and enjoy all that this park has to offer without feeling stressed. We also spent a day at The Animal Kingdom, which was nice, but not nearly as magical.

We spent the better part of the first two days mostly watching parades and meeting as many characters as we could. It was so exciting to see all of our favorite characters. I have never had in interest in meeting a celebrity, I just didn't see the thrill in meeting someone who will never remember meeting me. But the Disney characters, completely different story! I was completely starstruck! We had breakfast in the castle...Cinderella's castle. It was amazing. Even Kevin was totally impressed! Cinderella and many of her friends were there to eat with us and visit with us at the "Royal Table." The girls couldn't eat because they were in awe watching the princesses. We had personal visits with Cinderella, Belle, Aurora, Snow White, and Mary Poppins. At one point, there was an announcement for all of the little princesses and young knights to pick up their wishing stars, close their eyes, make a wish, and wave their magic wands over their wishing stars. When they announced for the children to open their eyes, the most amazing music was playing and the castle was glimmering with sparkling lights...magical!


Kennedy loved the parades. She and I watched the afternoon parade three or four times and the evening parade twice. The fireworks were beautiful, but Katelyn didn't like the loud booming fireworks. So, we only watched them the first night. Both girls loved meeting the characters and getting their autograph books signed.
We had dinner at "Chef Mickey's." This was another fun meal with character visits from Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and Donald Duck.

By spending four days at The Magic Kingdom, we had plenty of time for the girls to ride everything they wanted to ride, several times each. Katelyn is a huge rollercoaster fan


while Kennedy loves the carousel.

We are big fans of the "Fast Pass" system and the "Parent Swap" system. We didn't start utilizing these methods much until our last day, but they are so beneficial!

At Animal Kingdom, we saw "The Lion King" show, "Finding Nemo...the musical," and watched a "Pocahontas" show. We did the Jungle safari and had time for Katelyn to ride some rides while Kennedy met Tigger, Pooh, and Eeyore.


Animal Kingdom is the park where the girls met their seventh, and final princess...Pocahontas! Katelyn was very excited to get that checked off her little mental list (as was her mommy).


We stayed at the Nickelodeon Hotel, which was designed for kids! The girls had bunkbeds to sleep in, which were a huge hit! The pool area had full-sized waterslides and daily slimings. We didn't partake in any slimings since we were at the parks most afternoons, but Katelyn did love those waterslides!

We also watched a show that was very similar to "Double Dare." Katelyn was chosen from the audience to compete in one of the physical challenges. One player was squeezing utters from a fake cow. The milk was shooting across the stage. Katelyn's job was to catch as much milk as she could and pour the milk into another container. It was so exciting seeing her up on that stage, and she won the challenge!

We had a character breakfast at our hotel as well. Since it was a Nickelodeon hotel, we had breakfast visits with Spongebob, Dora, Diego, Squidward, Wanda, and Cosmo (the last two are from the Fairly Oddparents show).

As you can see from this lengthy post, we had a great vacation. We decided that The Magic Kingdom was designed for a 5-year-old little girl. Everything just seemed to be fit for Katelyn's current loves and interests. Kennedy had a great time too. We didn't expect her to get into the characters, but she loved them. She just kept wanting to meet them, give them hugs, and wave to them during the parades. Although she had a great time as well,we vowed to go back when Kennedy is 5 so that she can ride a little more and hopefully remember the trip.

Friday, April 4, 2008

We're Back!

We just returned from our very first Disney World vacation! I have so much to write about and so many pictures to share. But, I must tackle the laundry first! So, here are just a few pictures to hold you over until I have more time.

Breakfast at the Castle with Cinderella and all her princess friends! Awesome experience! I am not sure who loved it more, the girls or me! It was truly magical!




We spent 4 days at The Magic Kingdom alone! We love this park! I took over 300 pictures, mostly of the girls meeting each of the princesses and other classic Disney characters! Many more pictures to come!