Talking with Two

When anyone asks my daughter her name, the response they will mostlikely hear is - "My two!" (Meaning I'm two, of course she holds up three fingers normally while she says this.) It is cute and I've decided that I should just start calling her Two.

Today during mealtime I was talking with Two, while she was trying to convince me to turn on the TV and I was trying to get her to eat her dinner.

Actual conversation below:

Me: Are you nice?

Two: Yep. My nice.

Me: That's good. Are you obedient?

Two: Nope, My not. My nice.

Well at least she is honest ... and nice. :)

Side by Side

With joyful greetings, playful meetings, and mutual love a best friend comes in all shapes and sizes. Thank you for all of the friends in my life, you have made the world full of light, love, and life.

Wednesday French Inspiration

In Our Economic Turmoil Seriously Amber Lynae Presents:

HOW NOT TO STRETCH A BUCK!!

My husband loves to shop around. He is always looking for a bargain. Whether we are vacationing in France or living in Virginia, he wants the best deal in town. Personally, I think it is great that I've married a man who doesn't want to throw away his money. But as his aunt and I learned from letting him and his uncle book a hotel.... Frugality can go TOO far.

For the equivalent $40 we stayed at Premiere Classe. (Just in case the name is deceiving you, it wasn't first class.) The room was barely big enough to fit the double bed with the luggage shelf above it. And the bathroom (pictured above) was a pod of sorts small enough that you can shower, poop, and shave all at the same time with out moving an inch.

Overall, it was a laughing experience. The small size of the room really wasn't enough to rate Premiere Classe at the bottom of our list. The rooms which were non-smoking (in France??) definitely had been smoked in (there is a headache for me), some sort of mold looked to be growing over the door, and the two bath towels the provide were scaled down to fit the room and were more like hand towels.

Have you had any money saving experiences go awry?

If you have the time and inclination go over to Mormon Mommy Blog and nominate me for a spotlight blog, today is the last day for nominations.

My Little Secret

Everyday my little girl asks to go to the park. It is the joy of her day. We come home and blow bubbles. But you know what... it is the joy of mine too. I love to watch her having fun... but I LOVE to swing too. I love that sensation of free-falling when you get the swing going high enough that the chains get slack at the top. I love to hang up-side-down and look a the world from the bottom up. Go sing and blow some bubbles see if that doesn't make you laugh.

If you have the time and inclination go over to Mormon Mommy Blog and nominate me for a spotlight blog.

Reading and Writing

I was reading over at LDS Publisher and they are sponsoring a Summer Reading Thing 2009 reading challenge!

SRT 2009 is a low-pressure, easy challenge where you set your own goals for reading fiction by LDS authors.


This year's reading challenge starts in exactly one week. That gives you time to come up with a goal.

Click HERE for details.


My Reading list is short because I have many books on my reading shelf right now. Some of them textbooks, some of them enjoy books. But from the LDS Fiction genre I have two books at least to begin with.

1. Wings by Aprilynne Pike
2. The Host by Stephenie Meyer
3. My Fair Godmother by Janette Rallison

I hope you join and post your list. Get Ready, Get Set, READ!

My New Skinny Jeans

You know that comfortable pair of jeans or sweats (I'm not What not to Wear I don't judge). I'm certain you know the pair I'm talking about. The pair you pull out when you are bloated or having a fat day or week, or year ( Or two years you know however long). Well that pair the ones in my closet labeled my fat pants. What do you do when your fat pants don't button anymore. Do you pull out the rubber band and deny knowledge of any existence of fat pants. Oh come on you know the rubber band trick don't you? (If you don't then tough... j/k.) Well when your fat pants become your skinny pants you may be like me.

I am not sure how it happened. Other than the fact that every bit of chocolate that comes into my house is gone with in a week, and well there may have been some pizza, and french fries, and well an unending list of foods that have somehow contributed to my newly coined skinny jeans. Because calling them fats pants now that they fit so snugly just means something that I can not think about right now. Much like Scarlett O'Hara Hamilton Kennedy Butler. "I will not think of it now." (I just read Gone with the Wind great book. ) I will not think that if my fat pants are now my skinny jeans then I have ..... yeah not thinking about it.

But in my attempts of not thinking about it I recall, that after my little girl was born I dropped 25 of the 65 pounds I gained. I then carried around the remaining 40lbs for over a year before I lost another 20lbs through second hand Weight Watchers (this is when someone you know does weight watchers and you just use hand me down knowledge to do it too). Now my little princess is two and I have put on 35 pounds and am only short 15 so pounds short of full term pregnancy. Yeah let's not think about that. I try very poorly to occasionally exercise. But some how my once a week workout isn't working. LOL I just don't get it. Yeah! I know I have a lot of work to do. I'm going to have to rededicate myself to healthy living.

As I was walking to the park with my hubby and little girl, I decided that instead of admitting my own laziness, I will break out the maturnity clothes and use pregnancy as the reason for my weight gain. It would be a lie but hey I have been asked recently by some if I'm pregnant and by others when I plan on having more kids. (Don't you just love it.) I do want more kids but a baby can "weight" a person like me.... So is weight a reason for a baby to wait? What do you think? If your skinny pants, used to be your fat pants should you go for the matunity clothes for reals not the lie?

Wednesday French Inspiration

On the country roads between Clermont Ferrand and Marseilles we passed through various scenery. There were orchards, vineyards, small towns, mountains, ruins, bullet trains and river banks. Never ending beauty as we watched from the car. As we neared the top of another snow-capped summit, we pulled over in an effort to experience the beauty that had been passing us by.

It was so much fun to live in the surrounds instead of just viewing it. We had a snow fight, we made snow angels. I laughed and smiled. I know these are things I should be doing everyday; however, many times I feel more like I'm sitting in a car letting life pass by. While I do enjoy the beauty of life, I rarely feel the same thrill I felt as I got out of the car and sunk my boots into the snow. I do on occasion feel more than just a spectator in my own life. It is on those occasions that I remember how much I really enjoy living life.

What are some of the things that help you to smile, live, and laugh?