And a little fun in between

With the crazy schedules we all have it has been rather hard to get together with friends...BUT we still try to find the time. One weekend Micah had a craving for bowling. We decided just the two of us going would not be as exciting so we decided to drag the Mooney's along with us.

Now, bowling has never been my favorite thing to do, but I tried to humor them by participating. I cringe at the thought of actually trying to bowl well. The only bowling i have done in the last 8 years has been with Camp of Champions....if you call that bowling. Of course we only use lanes with bumpers because we have 7 kids per lane under the age of 10. And no one actually tries...well maybe the boys do, but the girls just sit and do each others hair and have to be reminded that it is their turn to bowl...and then they beg someone else to go for them. Needless to say, bowling without bumpers was quite the challenge.

But it was fun. And if anyone lives in Morton, you can bowl at their little shack of a bowling alley on saturday nights for $16 (includes shoe rental and crazy lighting as well as unlimited games from 9-11:30.) We got our money's worth.

Jennie is excited to bowl!

Me acting thrilled

Dave telling me to put the camera away, and then struggles to bowl because of the bright flash

Micah trying to look macho

The final score of the first game. NOTE: I didn't lose. Also note that this was the ONLY game i didn't lose :o)

David pouting because he lost to me....only once of course :o)

Disclaimer: Morton bowling alley is usually full of Teeny-boppers or older drunk people so it can be a bit unruly at time. I would recommend the Christian Center in Peoria if you have a chance to go there instead!

Job #2

Since babysitting full time and going to school part time is not enough to fill my schedule, I decided to take on a second job. Luckily 1 week after applying, Proctor hired me in their Emergency Room. So now I am actually using my EMT license inside the hospital.

It's definitely no Rady Childrens...although we do get a few little ones...but I am sure I will love it for what it is. And it takes up more of my time so I cannot complain of boredom.

I will be working some second shifts, third shifts, and weekends as needed for now...and then we will see what happens in the summer after I get rid of the twins. Today was my first day working a full shift and it was quite interesting. I met many wonderful, many interesting, and many old smelly people....but it is all part of the job. And I must come across nice because one little old lady tried to tip me for being 'such a little sweetheart' too bad we can't take tips lol.

I am sure i will be worn out by the end of the week because lifting people 3 times my size, pushing them around the halls, running around up, down, side to side...it is all quite tiring.

We will see how I'm doing after a few weeks of work school and babysitting...If i make it that far

Job #1

In January, I started taking a class at ICC (need it to get into PT or PA school). It took up a little bit of time, but not enough so it was time to get a job. Since there are about 5 jobs available in Peoria and I qualify for zero of them, I started looking for the childcare jobs. Well turns out a friend of mine was thinking about using me if she kicked her nanny to the curb...haha but after discussing the fact that i would not be available once i get into full time school we decided it was not the best plan because she would be stuck without childcare. So she is dealing with her nanny and Her sister decided i would be perfect for her kids. So I am not the proud teacher/playmate/nanny/babysitter/caregiver/mediator for her twins. She has 5 year old girls who I am attempting to prepare for kindergarten.

Little Miss Caitlin

My morning starts by getting them showered and ready for the day. Now this should not be a difficult task but when you have 2 high maintenance girls it can be quite the chore. Delaney's hair is very curly and needs special shampoo and about 3 different products after the shower. Caitlin's blond straight hair must be blow dried and curled under to her satisfaction (with a special shampoo). And of course they have bows to match every outfit....that is once we find an outfit. They are polar opposites so it is rather had to get them dressed. Delaney is very style oriented and she does a rather good job picking out her outfits on her own...Caitlin on the other hand...she will have about 20 outfits on before she finds one that is just right. My assistance is requested however i don't think she really listens to anything i say and is almost always appalled by my input. Reminds me a lot of a little Sophie Ann in England. But it makes me smile.

Sassy Delaney

Then of course 2 hours later we can eat breakfast and basically run out the door to get to playgroup on time. So for an hour I can relax before I pick them back up from playgroup. then it is off to the house to clean our rooms, make our beds, decide what we want for lunch, and then begin the battle of eating veggies. Delaney likes her vegetables but Caitlin is not the biggest fan. She will spit them in the garbage when I'm not looking. hide them in her pockets, under napkins, or on her sisters plate. So when she says she is finished i usually have to frisk her before she can get up from the table... seriously healthy eating habits should not be this hard to teach but i guess if her parents don't make her eat them then she really doesn't know why she has to for me.

Trying to take a picture but Caitlin got distracted (very common occurrence)

Once lunch is over it is time for 'school'. They girls know the routine and get their school stuff and are ready to learn. Through this time i have discovered that I am not going to be a homeschooling mother because i would rip my hair out...and I am not having twins because it is quite the challenge....and I have realized that Marti (in England) is a SAINT.

Sometimes we get to sit in time out for coloring on the counter...

After school they get to play inside or out depending on the weather...I am not a fan of TV so they only get to watch if they have been perfect for the whole day, the weather is horrid, or i have a sprained ankle and cannot chase them around like I normally can. The girls are not ones to play with each other or on their own...I am 99.9% of the time forced/asked to join in on whatever crazy fun they are having. The other .1% of the time I am doing dishes and cleaning for their parents. (I would rather clean up in your house Holli, your kids didn't make nearly as big of a mess, and you were tidy yourself so i didn't have to clean up after you too haha). But the girls have caught on the cleaning and i am so proud. They now pick up after themselves (sometimes i must remind them kindly that nothing new can come out til the other toys go 'home') But with my organization obsession all their toys have a home and the girls know where the home is so it doesn't just get tossed around. I think their parents were rather shocked when they first came home to a clean house, but i guess the girls only stay organized for me and when I'm gone for the weekend I come back to a disaster. But they pick it up rather quickly once i get there...they know better they just don't have anyone else reminding them so they would rather not keep it clean.

We take field trips...Whitney errands are their favorite because they get to see what I do as a 'big kid', but we also LOVE the park and Library.

It keeps me busy and I love their sweetness. They are quite sassy at times but it is always entertaining. I will be sad when summer comes and I am no longer needed. But they assure me that i will be able to swim at their house with them all summer (haha yea maybe once but that will probably be it).

A warm weekend in FREEZING Kenosha

Sometimes you just need time away with some great friends. It has been entirely too long since I lived in Kenosha with some of the most amazing people I have ever met. I didn't realize how much I missed being in Kenosha until I was back.

It all worked out wonderfully with schedules and getting everyone into town at once. I was really in need of a bridesmaid weekend and it could not have been better. I drove the horrid 5 hour(should have been 3 hour) drive up to WI to be greeted by my favorite roommate...Laura Lu. She was kind enough to be my roommate once again for the weekend. It was so nice to just catch up for the evening and play with her little puppy. It was also exciting because another wonderful friend, Brit, is now Laura's new roommate so I got to see her too. It really is a huge adjustment from College to real life. You get used to being able to run down the hall and have 50 wonderful friends there whenever you need them...then being stripped of that luxury is really difficult.

Mike taking out the puppy so we didn't have to freeze :o)

My favorite roommate Laura!

Saturday we spent the day running around town, shopping, enjoying life in Kenosha, and just remembering the good old days. In the evening we joined up with the rest of the bridesmaids and friends. It was Courtney's birthday so we all went to our favorite Mexican place in Racine, Hose's Blue Sombrero. It was just as wonderful as I remember, and then we all headed to the house (the place to be across from campus).

Part of the group- Mal and her BF, Court, Kyle and Brit...

missing Liz, Laura, Mike, Dave, Sarah, and James

Myself and the Birthday girl - Court

XO's Brit and Liz

Sunday was spent on campus visiting with the XO sisters who remain. It was great to run around the floor and see happy faces. I just couldn't get enough and 1 weekend was just not enough time. We tried not to spend too much time in rooms on the floor since the whole group had be struck by the Pink Eye...thats the bad think about living on campus. You share your closets, secrets, and germs hah. All of the ladies were getting ready for their final recruitment party and they got some WONDERFUL new sisters. I miss you all and am so proud of how you are leading Chi Omega.

Laura-thanks for the wonderful weekend and for being an incredible host.

Court- I am so glad i got to celebrate your birthday with you! Love you

Liz- i wish i was still in San Diego so i could see you every other week when you are there on business...maybe we can convince Micah i need to be back there!!!

XO's - miss you all and love you all

Mike - thanks for letting me claim your girlfriend for the weekend :o) And thanks for the frosted animal crackers haha.

Happy Valentines Day

Micah and I started dating back in February of 2004. Our first Valentine's day was spent at Rizzi's (on State Street in Downtown Peoria) with our friends Chris and Jessica. It was a wonderful evening and Micah thought it would be romantic to spend our first Valentine's Day as a married couple at the same place. He had it all planned out just for the two of us, but then of course i suggested our favorite couple friends join us. And although i do not doubt it would have been a wonderful night just the two of us, it was an incredible night with friends (as always).
Everyone met at our house and we piled into our jeep to head downtown. When I say piled into the jeep, i do not like. There were 4 of us sitting on top of one another in the back seat. I would put a picture up BUT we were so smushed I could not use my camera. Once we got to Rizzi's we ran in as it was rather chilly, and were seated at our table (reserved by my oh so wonderful husband) We had a wonderful dinner with our usual random conversations, and then headed back to pile in the car. This time, it was a bit tighter as we were all fairly full.

Us enjoying our dinnerBetsy and JakeJennie and Dave

Once we got back to our house we hung out and talked...and of course...played Dominoes (if you didn't guess that was going to happen, you have not read the last few posts :o) The TV didn't even get turned out. That's how you know you have wonderful friends. You are the entertainment for one another. I am so thankful for our friends and so glad we all live close enough to hang out 90% of each week. Yes, I just said that I was glad we live close to one another, which is probably as close to saying "I am glad I am back in peoria" as anyone will ever witness.

Jennie and Dave...this is Jennie's personality caught on camera. I believe the thumbs up are because she just kissed her hubby. haha Dave is such a good sport.We are so close we share husbands...haha Not really but it is not uncommon to hear Micah call Jennie babe and Dave call me babe. I think we are all together a little too much :o)Jennie and Micah being coolThe Guys being AWESOME sports with my picture taking. I think they are used to it by now, but they all actually smiled. We are still waiting for Dave to show his teeth while smiling, but a smile is enough to make us happy as of now.My favorite twins EVER. Love you both so much. Thanks for making the move back to IL enjoyable. I don't know what I would do without your love and support.

It was such a wonderful evening that Jennie and Dave ended up spending the night. Micah and Dave talked until 4:30 and Jennie and I are early to bed girls so we both fell asleep. Rather than waking Jennie, Dave just opted for staying in our guest room. Love good friends.

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's day as well.

Superbowl Sunday

While we were in CA, our goodbye dinner with our friends Ben and Debbie was Fondue. We LOVED the social aspect of a slow paced meal, so we decided we would have a fondue night of our very own. At first it was just going to be a random night, but as weekends kept filling up with plans, we ended up having to combine our fondue party with the superbowl party. We were worried about how this would all play out with the boys and the game...but it went wonderfully.

The table all set up and ready for feeding.

I have everything ready and then once people got there we were able to enjoy :o) We started with cheese fondue. I was originally going to make it from scratch but could not find all the types of cheese i needed, so we found a pre-made fondue. it was AMAZING. (Kroger in the specialty cheese area, YUMMY) We ate that first with french bread, mushrooms, cauliflower, and broccoli. We probably could have stopped there, but would have wasted a lot of food

Everyone sitting enjoying their meals.

Next was the main course which was either teriyaki chicken cooked in chicken broth or seasoned beek cooked in beef broth. We also had carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms, and potatoes to cook in the provided broths. So good I wish I was currently reliving the moments of pure indulgence....

Betsy cooking up some beef.

Although bellies were very full, we still had room for desert. Chocolate!!! We had our chocolate fountain and provided marshmallows, rice crispy treats, bananas, strawberries, and pretzels for dipping.

Around the Chocolate fountain dipping the goodiesHalf-way through....now i know what to buy more of next time ;o)

The husbands were so wonderful and really only watched the game between courses. They were too into the food to stop. They were even willing to sacrifice lounging and watching the game so they could play a nice game of dominoes. It was just a wonderful evening with wonderful friends. I would recommend fondue nights to anyone just wanting time to chat with friends and enjoy each others company.

Love you Mooney and Cease families.

Dominoes...Our entertainment

Winter is not the best time to enjoy life. You can't really spend time outside, and in Peoria there's not much to do. SO you must MAKE entertainment. Our entertainment is Dominoes. Towards the beginning of our time back in IL, our friends Dave and Jennie invited us over to play dominoes. We played with Dave's parents, and we were hooked. So of course we went out and bought out own set and now play at least once a week.

Before we started playing, we thought that dominoes was just a boring game of lining them up and knocking them down, but it is oh so much more.

We love socializing and getting a little competitive with one another. We also play Rummikub but Dominoes is preferred. I am waiting for the day we get bored playing and have to find something else to do for entertainment on cold winter nights.

A game with the four of us (sometimes we get lucky and Jennie's twin sister and husband come play also)

Being creative with my photographyJennie and Dave...looking incredibly happy, and Micah trying to look elsewhere. Silly kidsA typical Jennie and Micah momentMicah did Jennie's hair :o) haha love it

I love friends and good company. We especially love time with our Mooney family