suggestions.

we live in the middle of no where.

just ask Emily...who thought she might hit Nevada before she hit our house.

we don't have lots of places to ride our awesome Schwinn bikes.

Besides riding pass the gas station they are building so close to home...

which really I can not wait to be open, but my weight will not appreciate it.

so we need suggestions...

where do you go to ride bikes?

what is the best time to ride bikes?

what age did you decide to take the training wheels off your child's bike?

fill me in.

**I was given all the bikes for free from Schwinn Bicycles through My Blog Spark for participating.

my love-hate relationship with Kneaders

I love Kneaders food and baked goods, so much that I once gave them an awesome food review. I even talked about Kneaders multiple other times on my blog. When my sista came down a few weeks ago, Kneaders was the first place I thought of to take her...and guess what? She loved it too!
I have a thing about customer service...you don't have to be phenomenal, but you have to at least try. Maybe it's because I work in customer service, and realize that it can make or break having a customer for life.
A couple of months ago I had a bad experience. Paul suggested I write a post then, I decided I would overlook the situation.
I really like going to Kneaders, and it helps that I live super close to one...and then today happened...
Vin hates his car seat. Poor thing can scream for a whole car ride. It makes using a drive thru a bit difficult. We ate at In N Out, and I passed on the shake so that I could go over to Kneaders for my treat instead. Big mistake, huge (tell me what movie that is off of!). Because Vin is screaming, Paul says just run in, and I will drive around. Of course before I had even gotten out of the car I knew what we wanted. I waited FOREVER to order...because of two indecisive ladies. Really annoying. Maybe cashier #1 should have said something to these two ladies like "while you guys decide, I am going to take the next person who is ready." Instead I wait, and wait, and wait. Cashier #2 finally comes to help out, and takes my order. Phew, I am finally going to get someone to take my $4 and something cent order. I stand not 5 feet away from where she took my order...and wait, and wait, and wait...probably 4 orders are up before Paul enters the scene. He is making sure that I am still alive. At this point it has now taken me 15 minutes to order this...

15 minutes. Really. Paul has to make A HUGE stink for them to even "prepare" my order...which took them all but 5 seconds to drop into this plastic container. No apology, no free dessert, and I was soooo pissed off...I didn't even want it anymore. Boo!

The moral of this story: Don't expect good customer service if you go to Kneaders. If you are in a hurry, just get the shake from In N Out...and skip Kneaders all together.

guest post: Callee aka BESTEST Mary Kay Chica around!

Hello everyone!!!

My name is Callee Didericksen and I am so excited that Evonne has been so nice to help me out with my new business. She was the very first person that I did a facial on, and I am thrilled that she is letting me do such a fun giveaway on her blog. Just to give you a little background on me. I am a mom of 3 crazy boys and was a busy full time employee working from home doing medical data entry. I never left my house and thought I was going to go crazy. One day I decided to make a scary change and quit my job and do something that I have always wanted to do. Be self employed!!! I love Mary Kay products and love the values that they encourage and the opportunities that they allow me to achieve. So here I am.

So here is the deal…. My business is based on referrals and I love it because I get to meet new people and hang out with the people that I love and have FUN while I am working! I want to give one lucky person $100.00 in FREE Mary Kay products, all you have to do is be willing to host a FUN party, I prefer to keep my parties small so please don’t feel like you need to invite everyone you know. A party is considered 2 to 6 people. Once you host your party, your name will be entered in the drawing for the $100.00 gift. I promise to not be a Mary Kay stalker and I will not put any pressure on you to buy anything, I just need some fresh new faces to practice on and share my awesome business opportunity with. Leave a comment on Evonne’s blog and send her your info and she will pass it on to me.

Thank you so much and hopefully I will get to meet you and take care of all your beauty needs.

{hey, it's just me...Von. I think Callee is a gem, and I am hoping that some of my friends in the blog-o-sphere will help a sista out. Seriously $100 would be nice too!}

4 month stats.

Our baby boy.He still loves his thumb.

He loves his burp cloth, it's like a toy.

We started baby food...he is a veggie lover. He looks like his Daddy, I am well aware.

I don't call him Vin, only on my blog.

Van usually calls him punk or butt nugget.

He weighs 17.2 pounds...85%
He is 26 inches tall...81%
and man we love every pound and inch of him!

attitude is everything.

Ever since we had Vin we have been adjusting to our new way of life. Even though we have been down the newborn road before, it is still hard to adjust to it all over again. Schedules, crying, feedings, the great balancing act with two children, and trying to find time to do the usual stuff like laundry, dishes, and cooking...who are we kidding I don't cook! ;)After a couple of really horrendous nights with Vin, and me waking up being a complete witch...I decided I needed an attitude adjustment. I woke up one morning feeling far from refreshed from yet another rocky night, but I was determined to "make the most of it".

It is amazing how just making a mental note to "make the most of it" has paid off big this past week. I have a cleaner house, I don't miss Coke, I have played more, I swear my clothes are already fitting better, and I actually have cooked four days in row. Can I get a what, what!?

My house is not spotless, I haven't lost any weight, and my hair still ends up looking like I didn't do anything with it...but with my new found good attitude I seem to be looking on the bright side of things, and I kinda like it!

super cool mom moment.

I wish that I could have one of these "Super Cool Mom Moments" every day. I try, but don't always succeed...today was definitely a success. I ordered a double slip 'n' slide on Monday night out of boredom from none other than CSN stores. I didn't tell Van it was coming, and what do you know it shipped out quickly...and we got it this morning.

She was super pumped that we took it directly out of the box, and set it up in the backyard to play.

Van had never been on a slip 'n' slide, so what do I do...show her how to, of course. I was not thinking about...

A. I am far to old to be running and sliding down a slip 'n' slide.

B. I'M NURSING...sliding on said slip 'n' slide almost killed me.

C. The water even on a hot day is not warm enough.

D. If you are not going to heed my warnings...you will too destroy your knees going down like this...Good thing Van got the hang of things quickly...

This is what summer is ALL about...

funny story #3

Why is it that when you have a baby all of your funny stories revolve around poop? Adult poop isn't funny, but when babies poop...it is automatically funny...oh, and when they fart too! Yeah, I said it, I laugh every time Vin farts. It never gets old. Now you will think I am like an 8 year old little boy or something, but whatev. I swear everyone had a baby all at the same time...so hopefully ya'll pick up what I'm throwin' down.NE-who. We (as in me, SIL, and Jayni) decided to have a baby play date. Van even joined the fun by bringing Doll-E to the party! We compared baby fat, sleeping schedules, hair, ya know...the usual.
Somewhere between shoving my breakfast sandwich in my face, and talking about nursing...I started to smell something. I checked Vin...nothin'. Jayni checked T.Ray...nothin'. SIL checked Kenslee...nothin'. We picked up right where we had left off not thinking another thing of it. Well, the smell came back...dun, dun, dun!Just as I am picking Vin up to check his bum again, I catch a glimpse of it...my hand had POOP all over it, and so did my black pants!! He had a blow out all over me...in public!! I immediately start laughing, and of course the girls did to. Mostly because it wasn't them, I am sure SIL's mascara got smeared from laughing so hard. There were people that were coming to sit at the table next to us, and they immediately changed course...do you blame 'em!?

my dream became reality.

My dream as a child was always to have babies. Not just a baby, but babies. We went to the park this weekend. It was like my dream was being played out right there in front of me.I had my cute 5 year old running through the water, her Daddy watching her, and there I sit nursing my baby under a big shade tree. This is what I worked the first 20+ years of my life to get, and man did it feel good to sit and take my dream/reality all in.

No matter what people say, I have got it all...and lucky for me, it's all under one roof.

mary kay facial and fun.

I have this friend Callee. We actually met because of this ol' blog. I love her to pieces. She started selling Mary Kay, and needed volunteers to do facials and practice her demonstration. Of course I said yes, because it was a chance to hang out with her. =)You can tell from the picture Van had so much fun, and can I say something...I might be coming a #1 fan of Mary Kay, and I don't even wear make up. I loved everything that we tried, and my face looked amazing after...or at least I thought it did.

I am in the middle of my Mary Kay challenge. I am the girl that doesn't get zits, never washes my make up off, and barely puts any on anyway.

Callee gave me the Time Wise solution...it cleanses, exfoliates, freshens, and tones...I wash my face morning and night with this cleanser, and I put this lotion on after. I love the way it makes my face feel, so much so, I don't even like to put make up on after. After a couple of days I had someone come up to me to tell me my face was glowing (hoping they didn't mean I had the pregnant glow again!).

What is your favorite Mary Kay product for a newbie like me?

Wanna order or have a party, I think you need to drop Callee a line...because honestly she is off the hook. Oh, and she is doing a little promo/giveaway on my blog...just you wait for it.

my sister and her tat.

I asked my sister if she would like to do a guest post about why she would put a CTR shield on her body permanently, but she declined. So instead I just made her answer some questions...

me: How old were you?

sista: 21ish... (that makes it like 13ish years ago)
me: Would you remove it?
sista: NOOO!!

me: Why did you pick that?
sista: It's always good to "Choose The Right".
me: Do you get asked a lot about what it means?

sista: A lot of people ask about it.

Want to know what it looks like? Just like the ring. If I remember correctly my sista and her friend took a ring in, and that is what the tattoo artist made it look like...the famous green and all. Oh, and her friend has a matching one...cause that is cool to do too! ;)

Best two things my sister has said to me in the past couple of days...

"Hey anonymous commenter! You are making the situation that much better!"

"Why is it that everyone can say what they want on your blog Evonne, but you can't!?

Man, I am glad that I am friends with my sister. I am glad that she laughed with me about my gratitude post...and all the comments about her CTR tat. =)

for this I am grateful.

As many of you know, it recently has been brought to my attention that I don't show enough gratitude towards my parents, and siblings. This should hopefully enlighten some of you, and those of you who really know me...should be laughing.

Gratitude for my Dad... He gave me my sense of style, or lack there of.
He taught me that if I don't like a situation, I can get out.

He taught me it is okay to like boys. ;)

For this, I am grateful.

Gratitude for my Mom...

She instilled a passion for eating, and dining out.

She taught me what gossip is all about.

For this, I am grateful.

Gratitude for my eldest brother, Jeff... Sometimes it's okay to value your friends, more than family.

For this, I am grateful.

Gratitude for my only sista, Emilie... She taught me modesty is over rated.

She taught me going against the grain is so in...and so is getting a lime green CTR tattoo.

For this, I am grateful. Gratitude for my other brother, Kyle...
He doesn't act his age, and it keeps everyone young at heart.

For this, I am grateful.

If you feel like commenting.

I know a few people that could use some extra comment love...the nice comment variety.

This family.

or

This family.

or

I just really liked this post.

hi, my name is mature.

We have all read the "Anonymous/long time family friend comment" by now. If you haven't...go ahead and read, and be just as confused as I was. I still have no idea why it was left on that post. Maybe if this person didn't hide behind anonymous I could ask, eh? Wait a minute!! I could just ask, because I have their 4-1-1, since this silly ol' blog keeps track of all my visitors for me.

I haven't really been into blogging lately...if you hadn't already noticed. I find that when I have spare moments I like to take a nap, rock my babes, catch grasshoppers in the backyard, or a million other things I could name.

I started blogging, because I truly enjoyed it. I didn't care how many comments I got, I didn't even care if only my Mom was reading it (she still looks at my blog, 11 times and counting just today!). After a year, I thought it would be fun to do giveaways, reviews, etc...and it was for awhile. It seems like I have come full circle...I'm back to just blogging for me, because I truly enjoy it. Not that I don't enjoy getting nice comments from my friends and family, I do, but I don't like when people try to hurt me. I have debated all day...Private? No comments allowed? Or just take away my "Anonymous" comment problem? I am leaning towards no comments allowed, and if someone has a comment, they can always e-mail me.

I started off this week having lots planned for posting, and now I am feeling like walking away...and not looking back.

legacy.

This past week or so I have thought a lot about making memories. Maybe it was because my MIL came to visit, maybe because my Grandpa isn't doing so well, maybe it was because my sista came to visit...whatever it was that spurred these ideas...I have had this desire to make lasting memories.

I have always been the one with the camera, always wanting that perfect shot...the perfect picture of whatever it is that we are doing. I have put down the camera, I have just enjoyed making the memory...not documenting it.

I have always wondered when I pass from this life, what will people remember me by. Will I be known for being too loud, for never being able to quit my addiction to Coke, or will it be for something I didn't even know I had done to make an impact on that person's life.

I look back on my childhood, and I wonder if my siblings and parents realized what kind of memories they were making with me. Did they do things knowing that I would remember them forever? Like playing school with my sister, or farm with my brother, Kyle.

Van got the memory of her Daddy...the kind that remembers everything. Van can tell you things that she has done, with who she has done them with, and how old she was when she did them...no problem. Maybe it is because of this that I have a burning desire to make the best possible memories for her.

This weekend I ran through the sprinklers with Van, in my clothes. I let Van push Vin around in the stroller for two hours straight...and didn't critique her style or what she was doing once. I made Vin laugh uncontrollably by acting like a complete idiot. And guess what...I didn't take one picture of any of it.

Life is about the memories you make, not the photos you take.

wordless wednesday: we {heart} swimming.

and because I can't resist showing off these...

it's still hard.

It is still hard to leave my babies for work. Doesn't matter how long you leave for, it still makes my heart break.

Today after I got the boys down for naps (yes, Paul takes a nap with Vin every day...so jealous) I found Van crying in her bedroom. I asked her what was wrong, and she said "it's just so hard having you leave every day!"

Oh Van...Mommy couldn't agree more.

So on that note...Paul is taking the day off tomorrow. We will be going to see the vampire movie, eating too much food, and probably having a few good laughs because of the ridiculousness of said vampire movie.

a promise.

Van made it to the end of her no tv challenge. Paul made good on his promise, like he always does. When we tossed around the ideas of what kind of toy she wanted during this past week she always came back to this one Buzz Lightyear. I went to Toys R Us online, and the most expensive one I found was $50. So in Paul's mind this is what we had kind of planned on spending. Of course when they went to Toys R Us...the one she really wanted was $85...yes, I typed that right. Paul tried to sway her into cheaper toys, but he could tell that she would come home disappointed. After all, he did tell her she could pick any toy she wanted. Paul called me on the way home to break the news of just how much we ended up forking over for "the deal". I was a little shocked to say the least. Paul handed the phone to Van, and she was instantly in tears. After asking her why she was crying she said "because Daddy had to spend all of this money on my toy, and I don't deserve it!" Aaaah, poor thing. I quickly explained that she did deserve it, she worked hard for that, and Daddy wasn't mad at her nor did he spend all of his money on it.

I am so proud of Van for making it a week without tv. It's a big deal. She is in love with her new toy, and man is it really cool...and in Paul's words "It better be a cool toy for $85!!"

Paul learned his lesson by never saying she could pick any toy she wants, and Van learned that she can survive without her one true love...tv.

a hill.

When I was really young I had a best friend named Reagan. Weird how so many of my childhood memories are gone, but I can remember so much about Reagan. I was scared of her Dad.

Her Mom was burned in a motor home fire...it was so sad.

Reagan started the trend of sticking small stickers in the bottom corner of our glasses.

We went tubing in the rain, down a slow-moving river...I still think that was really fun.

She was a year older, and man I looked up to her.

Whatever toy Reagan got, I wanted.

For Christmas after she turned 16, she got a Geo Storm, and I thought she might be the coolest person ever.

We lost touch after she got married.

I think about her all of the time, and today was no exception.

There was a small hill by our house growing up. Her Mom, Peggy, would turn the awesome 80's music up (probably Michael Jackson...because Reagan introduced me to Thriller!) in the car, and go really fast over this hill. Ya know how it makes your stomach feel...we loved it. We would giggle like we were on some fantastic roller coaster.

Guess what? I found a small hill where I live, I turn the music up really loud, and I go really fast over the hill...for my Van. Every time I do this I think of Reagan, every time I do this I hope that I am making memories for Van that will last a life time. I'm no Reagan...but I still wanna be as cool as she was.