Possibly the most perfect job ever...

Here, on the eve of my 29th birthday, I have found the perfect job...

Possibly the most perfect job ever

Even though the description says that the job is open to anyone, I'm pretty sure they would rather hire a local. :)

Monday Mumblings: Injuries and whatnot

1. My tooth is "less loose" today.

2. I grind my teeth at night so I'm kind of surprised it didn't fall out over night!

3. I had to take Brandon to the eye doctor this morning.

4. He had a "cornea abrasion"... the culprit? Riley.
After my post yesterday, are you really very surprised?

5. This is his 2nd cornea abrasion in 5 years!
The first one was courtesy of Chandler at 7 months old... babies have SHARP fingernails!

6. Currently he's laying in the bed attempting to sleep.

7. I asked him if I could lay in the bed all day if I had a cornea abrasion. :)

8. He threatened to give me one! :)

9. I had a leftover cupcake (from Chandler's party) for breakfast this morning... that's been the highpoint of the day so far!

10. I finally printed my pictures from Australia. They are going into a fun photo album today... I bought it at Target back in October.

*sigh* Here's to hoping that this day gets better from here!

Rumors

Rumor has it that Delta Airlines will soon be offering a nonstop flight from Atlanta to Sydney.

I get inside info because Cousin Brett works at the airport in Atlanta AND his dad, my Uncle Mike, works for Delta. :)

Delta just merged with Northwest Airlines and this flight will be something new starting in June... but like I said, rumor has it.

So, if any of my lovely Australian blogging buddies are considering a trip to the east coast of the United States... I'm only 2.5 hours from Atlanta AND we have a guest room!

I'm excited because maybe this means a return trip to Sydney isn't 10+ years away like I was afraid it might be! :)

Anyone up for a trip?


***Edited to add: Cousin Brett has just informed me that the flight will NOT be non-stop from Atlanta to Sydney, but they will have an L.A. to Sydney flight beginning July 1st. That's still happy news!

I knew I couldn't keep it up!

Well, it's Tuesday and I just realized that I didn't do a Monday Mumblings yesterday OR last week... oops!

So here's 2 weeks worth of Monday Mumblings.... on Tuesday. :)

1. All 8 members of my family got some sort of stomach bug over Christmas.
Riley got it just after we opened presents at my in-law's house on Christmas Eve.
Chandler got it about an hour later.
I woke up Christmas morning MISERABLE!
Brandon got it sometime the day after Christmas at my grandmother's house.
My sister AND my mom got it on the Saturday after Christmas.
Joel AND my dad spent all Saturday night and all Sunday day SICK!

2. The good news in all of that is that whatever it was, it didn't last more than 24 hours for any of us.

3. Because of being sick on Christmas morning, I don't have a single picture of my kids opening presents. :(

4. I got some great gifts for Christmas.

5. We have all been enjoying our Wii.

6. Chandler is quite the bowler, golfer and boxer! :)

7. I LOVE the Wii Fit!!! I'm a hulla hooping CHAMP!

8. We MIGHT be slightly obsessed with the Wii right now.

9. We have TWO televisions set up in our living room. 1 for the Wii and 1 for watching movies and tv WHILE we play the Wii.... As soon as the holidays are over the Wii will move into the bonus room and my livingroom will get back to normal.

10. I am THRILLED to know that Mummy McT got her package (or parcel as she calls it... I love Australian accents!) ON CHRISTMAS EVE! YAY!

11. I'm looking forward to having some good friends over tomorrow night for New Year's Eve!

12. I need to clean my house before those good friends get here!!!!

13. I'm excited to start planning my trip to Forks, WA (Washington State for my non-U.S. readers) with this guy...

My cousin, Brett.

14. Brett thinks there should be an entire blog post just about him... careful what you wish for Brett! :)

15. I'm also excited that Evan will be here in just over 6 weeks.

16. I need to start seriously planning my list of random U.S. things that I'm going to expose him to! I'm open to suggestions!

17. I still haven't finished my list of 30 things to do before I'm 30.

18. There are PLENTY of things I want to do, but I'm trying to be practical about it.

19. Chandler's 6th Birthday is ONE WEEK from tomorrow. I need to make some party plans!

20. Since Chandler's birthday is one week from tomorrow... that means MY birthday is TWO WEEKS from tomorrow!

21. The longer this list gets, the more I realize I have to get done in a fairly short amount of time!

Got any random thoughts you want to share?

O Christmas Tree!

Ready for picture overload?

Brandon and I FINALLY got into the Christmas spirit (sort of) and got a tree. He and Chandler went to Lowe's last night and picked it out... perk of waiting so late? Our tree only cost $17 with tax! :)
We are still not doing our full blown decorating... no lights on the house... no Christmas dishes on the table... I just don't want to watch Riley like a hawk for the next few days while hoping and praying that she doesn't grab the table cloth and pull all of my Christmas China onto the tile floor! **I'm sure you moms can understand that!

So, we decorated the tree and SOME of the house tonight...

Yes. I am one of "those moms" that fixes the ornaments that her children put on the tree. I really didn't move too many of them... we have LOTS of heavy ornaments and they must be hung "just right" to keep them from crashing to the floor!

Chandler HAD to put the star on this year... it's the 1st year she hasn't complained that we have a star and NOT an angel.
I have no idea what kind of face she is making!

The finished product!!
I told you my presents are all wrapped and ready to go!

All lit up... anyone know how to get a picture like this that ISN'T fuzzy?

So, I've read TONS of blogs lately that have had pictures of trees and homes all decked out for the holidays...
Since I don't have much to show as far as home decor is concerned, I've decided to show you some of my favorite ornaments. :)

These first 2 are gifts from my mom and dad.
They are from Hungary and they bought them on one of their trips through Hungary headed to (or back from) Romania.

Brandon tells me every year to remind my mom to look for more while she is there... he wants an entire tree FULL of these bells!

I'm pretty sure they are one of a kind since they are hand made out of porcelain. :)

Ok, every year we try to buy an ornament that reminds us of something we did that year.
If we go on vacation, we buy an ornament while we are there... it's my favorite vacation tradition!

This one isn't from a vacation, but we bought it to remind us of our very first UGA game!
Gooooo Dawgs!

This one is from a trip I made to Kennebunkport, Maine.
I made the trip with the choir at church a few years ago... back before Riley, but I'm not exactly sure what year it was...
Kennebunkport is BEAUTIFUL! If you live in the U.S., you NEED to go... I recommend going in the summer... the weather was PERFECT!

This ornament was the very first one that Brandon and I bought after we were married... it's from our honeymoon to Aruba.

This little lighthouse is from our first vacation to Jekyll Island with Brandon's parents after we were married.
I had been with them to Jekyll before we were married, but we didn't start the ornament tradition until after our wedding.

This cute little Santa is from a trip we took to Myrtle Beach in 2002. It's the only vacation the two of us have ever been on alone.

The candy cane is from 2004. We vacationed on St. Simon's Island that summer with my parents and my sister.

Bet you can guess where this one came from!
We took a vacation to Disney World with my parents and my sister back in 2006.

This one is from another vacation with my parents. We spent 2007 up in Gatlinburg.
Fortunately, we did NOT see any bears!

**I do not have an ornament from my trip to Australia. I looked for one while I was there, but didn't find anything that I really loved. I've sent Evan on a "Australian Christmas Ornament Mission". We'll see if he succeeds.
I'll keep you posted!


These next 2 ornaments are special because they have pictures of my babies in them!
Brandon's mom got each of the girls a photo ornament to celebrate their 1st Christmases.

Chandler in 2003

Riley in 2007


I mentioned last year how much I love my nativity.

It's the one my sister and I grew up with and it's VERY old.
The bottom of each piece is stamped, "Made in West Germany".

It is chipped. It is scratched. Some of the people have had heads glued back on, but I wouldn't want a new one... even if it was a duplicate set.

A few years ago, my sister in law Lainey, bought me this Flurryville set.
It's Santa's Workshop, but all of the pieces are snowmen... I LOVE IT!
Thanks Lainey!!! It's one of my FAVORITE Christmas decorations!

So, that's all in my livingroom.

Next we have our kitchen...

My Gingerbread Welcome sign... a gift from my sister. :)

A cute little gingerbread man hanging on our French doors.
My mom found him at a yard sale... thanks mom!

Another gift from my sister... a little gingerbread family pillow hanging out in an extra kitchen chair.

Chandler and Riley's tree got moved to the kitchen so we could keep an eye on it.
I mentioned last week that Riley is just a tad rough on it!
Now it is wedged between my china cabinet and the fridge.

Riley went to bed before the decorating got under way tonight so here are a few pictures from the night we decorated the little tree... it was still in their room at the time.

"Puppy Mom!"

"ohhhh... I can take the ornaments off all by myself!"

Thoughts on Rules

Well, your honesty made me laugh! Myself and the 8 of you who commented should NEVER go out into public together! :)

Half of us would be breaking all kinds of socially implied rules while the other half would be hiding under the table out of embarrassment!

No, not really... I'm sure we all know how to control ourselves in public!

Sara: I go out in public without makeup... in fact, if you saw me right now... well it's scary really so I wouldn't let you see me right now. Monday through Friday I leave my house between 7 and 7:15 to take Chandler to school... I RARELY change out of my pajamas... makeup, ha!

Jenn: Before I had kids (and even when Chandler was very young) our friends commented that any time there was a party, Brandon and I would be the 1st ones there... I was a band geek most of my life (and really... who am I kidding? once a band geek ALWAYS a band geek.) and the band geek moto is "Early is on time and on time is LATE!"
Now, I'm lucky if I'm only 15 minutes late EVERYWHERE! I HATE being late... I don't intentionally break that rule... I blame my kids! :)

Sandi: I eat when I'm hungry. The only "set" meal at our house is dinner. It is a bad habit that I have passed on to my kids.

Renata: I don't even make rules for myself anymore! I know I'm going to break them so why bother! :)

Kristy: I love that you are a tattooed mama! I was REALLY close to getting a tattoo not too long ago, but couldn't make up my mind so I decided to wait.
When Chandler was born I took out my cartilage ring because "mama's probably shouldn't have multiple piercings" and I wanted to fit the "mama mold".
Today I sit here with not the 3 piercings that I had when I was pregnant with Chandler, but FIVE (yes 5) piercings. :) All in my ears, but 5 none the less.

Lacy: Your blog comment makes you sound like the kind of friend my parents warned me about! lol! I did sneak a snack into the theatre once, but it was for Chandler before I allowed her to eat popcorn... I had a fear that she would choke to death!

Mummy McT: Your comment reminds me of my friend, Kim, from high school (Kristy can back me up on this)... she could burp louder than any GUY I knew! In fact, on several occasions, I heard her burp the ABCs... and I'll admit, I was a bit jealous. LOL!

Jaime Lynn: I already knew about you and your non-conformist streak! You didn't surprise me one bit... actually I thought about you as I was writing the post! :)


So? Do I break rules? Yes. I do.
Do I always do it on purpose? No.
Do I feel guilty about breaking rules? Yes and No. Really the only I time I feel guilty is when Chandler (who is beginning to notice EVERYTHING) calls me out on breaking a rule... it's usually the socially implied rules.
Does it keep me up at night? Nah.
Is there one rule in our house that's more important than the others? No. Not really. Our rules are more of the "unspoken" variety. The importance changes based on what we are currently struggling with at home or school.

After I posted my rule breaking blog on Wednesday, I noticed that is was my 200th post! YAY ME!
Such a landmark blog requires some sort of giveaway so...

Mummy McT you are the winner! E-mail me your mailing address at brandonjennifer@bellsouth.net and I'll mail out your prize!

You may be asking yourself, "What is she winning?"

I guess you'll just have to wait and see! Maybe she'll write a blog all about it.
**Here's a hint... it's a little story about a rule breaker. :)

Maybe you are asking yourself, "How did she win?"

That's an easy one... Chandler picked her.

Now you are asking, "Why did Chandler pick her?"

J: "Chan. Here are 8 people which one do you think should win?"
C: "Who are they?"

I showed her each of your blogs...

C: "I like this one." (pointing at Mummy McT's blog)
J: "Why?"
C: "Because she has cute kids and they call her mummy... not mOmmy!"

Apparently she shares my love of the Australian accent!

Why am I choosing to embarrass myself?

I saw this posted on Heather's blog as well as Renata's blog... check them out!

15 years ago, I was...
*13 years old
*In the 8th grade at Osceola Middle School in Ocala, FL
*The drum major of our middle school band for the Ocala Christmas Parade
*playing the flute
(Sorry, no picture for this one... I honestly looked, but the 8th grade was such an awkward year... I probably burned all pictures from that time in my life!)

10 years ago, I was...
*18 years old
*A high school graduate... graduated with honors :)
*Spending my last summer at home doing community theatre
*Moving to Tennessee in the fall to attend Lee University
*Majoring in Music Education
*Playing the oboe in the Symphonic Band

That's me on the right

The only picture you may ever see of me dancing... I'm just to the right of "Frank Butler"
The show was "Annie Get Your Gun"

Freshman year of college in the Symphonic Band
That's Brandon sitting behind us... funny that we barely knew each other in the picture!

Me and Brandon coming home from a mission's trip to Brazil... we were only friends back then.

5 years ago, I was...
*23 years old
*Becoming a mom for the 1st time in January
*Married for 2 years
*Graduating with a Bachelor's of Science in Business Administration in May
*Spending 7 months as a stay at home mom after graduating

My first good look at Chandler

Chunky cheeks!

Graduation was extra special as a mom of a 4 month old baby girl!

Thanksgiving 2003

3 years ago, I was...
*25 years old
*Working as a Ministry Assistant at our church
*Married for 4 years
*Excited that we were buying our 1st house!

Our house just before we bought it
It looks different now :)

Chandler and Me December 2005... the pile of notebooks on the table reminds me of all the work I had to bring home with me!

1 year ago, I was...
*27 years old
*A mom of two beautiful girls
*Married for 6 years
*Staying at home full time!

Riley was born in March 2007

Just me: Mother's Day 2007

My Family on Thanksgiving 2007
Dad and Mom
My Sister,Erin, and her husband, Joel
Me, Brandon, Chandler and Riley

This past year, I was...
*watching my baby have surgery
*watching Chandler turn 5 years old
*watching Riley turn ONE!
*going to my 1st UGA football game
*becoming obsessed with Twilight
*off on an adventure to Australia!
*having life changing surgery
*learning to take time for myself.

Riley's cyst removal: January 2008

Chandler's 5th Birthday Photo Shoot

Riley's 1st Birthday Photo Shoot

Our 1st UGA football game!

My Twilight Obsession!

Me & Charlie the Koala in Sydney, Australia!

Me just before surgery

Just Me: October 2008