WOW, the last two weeks have been crazy.  I just can’t believe it is September.  I can’t believe Christmas is less than 4 months away.  Before I know it we will be celebrating the new year.

The holidays are totally going to come and go.  I already see Halloween decorations and candy in stores.  I asked Lil Tony what he wanted to be for Halloween and he said Mario.  He told me what he wanted the rest of the family to be.  Daddy will be Luigi.  Nicki will be Kuupa, Isabel will be a Princess, and Max will be the Mushroom.  AND mommy will be taking the pictures.  LOL!

If we lived somewhere that we had friends or something I could send out Halloween invitations.  I would probably make them, I hardly ever make those kinds of cards but I know it would be fun. 

The next couple weeks will probably be pretty busy with school work and such.  I will try to be back tomorrow. 

I was doing so good blogging a little something everyday for about a week.  LOL!  Then Tony went on vacation last week and threw me all off track.  Plus Tony and I start school on Monday and Nicki starts school on Thursday.  Yikes, what a crazy week coming up.  Nothing much has been going on here.  I did go pick up some last minute books and the school book school.  What a joke, I bought two books and a small workbook and it cost me $540.  Seriously???  I took five classes this fall and I bought three books that totally $100 and two books that cost $540.  What an expensive semester.  LOL!

I am just ready to get it started.  I have five classes but one is a Math class that should be “easy.”  Heck I think Nicki could teach the class.  Plus I have Tony to help me along if I need it.

Nicki starts high school next Thursday.  HIGH SCHOOL!!!!  I truly feel old now.  She will be 15 in April.  She will be getting a job soon.  She will be driving soon.  She will be graduating soon.  She will be heading off to college (hopefully).  Seriously where has the time gone.  Lil Tony will start kindergarten next fall.  Ahhhh I feel so sad.

Speaking of sad I fought back some tears last night when I thought about having to put my kids in daycare.  When we move to Arizona, both Tony and I expect to be working.  Lil Tony will be in kindergarten and that leaves Isabel and Max to be put in daycare.  For four years all Isabel has known is momma watching her during the day, Max is very much a momma’s boy and Lil Tony spent five years home with his family.  Now we are moving them across country and sending them off to school and putting them in daycare.  I am trying to convince myself that this is more traumatizing for me than it will be for the kids but I am not very successful.  I think they will have a fun time but I worry they won’t understand what’s going on.

I am excited to start making money of my own, have more things, have more savings, and be able to provide more for the kids.  I am tired of living paycheck to paycheck worrying about money.  I am excited that my dad might be moving to Arizona too.  My kids are finally understanding there is a “grandpa.”  He tries to talk to the kids as much as possible.  When the phone rings they first ask if I am talking to “daddy” but if I say no they ask if I am talking to “grandpa.”  I want my kids to have an opportunity to know their grandpa.  So fingers crossed he moves out there too.

I am just ready to start our life.  The last 4 years has sort of been “not reality.”  It’s not realistic with a family of six to expect I can stay home forever.  Nor would I want to.  The play was, though, that I stayed home until all the kids were in school full time and then I would try and work when they were at school.  But I don’t think Tony and I want to wait that long anymore.  The only way Tony will be ok with moving to Arizona next summer is if I have a job.

A lot of things to take care of before next summer.  Finishing school is first and foremost.  We are planning and budgeting our money.  We are finishing school more quickly than I think we would have liked given our other responsibilities.  I worry things won’t line up as I want them to.  I want to move before the kids start school.  I would prefer to not have Lil Tony go to school for a month or a couple weeks and then have to pull him out.  I guess if I have to then I have to but it wouldn’t be ideal in my mind.

Oh well, I have a year to get everything in order. 

Tony and I have been going to school for one full year.  We started last fall and will continue at the community college until summer 2012 at which time Tony and I plan on packing our family up and moving across the country to Arizona.

Well since we started school I find myself using our HP inkjet printer a lot.  Not only do I print stuff for my crafting but now I print a ton of stuff for school.  It would seem as though I am hp ink cartridges monthly.  That is a cost to us of $35.  I am not totally happy with that.  With us trying to crunch numbers and spend as little as possible and save as much as we can, $35 a month for ink is kinda pricey.  That is $420 a year that could be used for gas or food on our trip out to Arizona.  We decided to make a vacay out of our travels.  We will take 5-7 days to get out there. Stopping each day and doing something fun.  With 4 kids I am sure they would enjoy it.  Whether it’s just staying in a hotel that has a pool and going swimming or finding something else fun to do.  We will drive for 6-8 hours (400-500 miles) and then stop for the day.  We will also need to make sure we have plenty of stuff in the car to entertain the kids.

So anywho, Tony and I have been thinking of getting a laser printer.  Just a black and white printer to print my shipping labels and school stuff.  We found  one decently cheap, I think Tony said it was even a wireless printer which is super cool.  Now we just need to make the purchase.  I hope the $80 we spend on the printer will in the long run save us money. 

Yesterday was a great day.  We started off with our yummy skillet breakfast, it was delicious.  Then we got the kids dressed and about 10am we headed to the park.  The kids were having a blast well except for Max.  He got really cranky and so we had to leave.  We had been there for about an hour and a half so I guess it was ok.  Then we just hung out at home.  Tony and I made some cool laptop covers so that took about an hour or so to get it all cut out using my Cricut.  I do love that thing and I am really upset I sold my bigger machine.  I thought I needed to stop crafting because it was just getting too expensive so I sold my Cricut Expression.  To only decide a week or so later that I really wanted a Cricut.  I ended up buying a Personal Cricut which only cuts things 6″x12″.  Oh well, one day I will get a big one.

Then we had an awesome dinner that Tony cooked, twice baked potatoes, bourbon chicken, brown rice, and broccoli.  Oh it was delicious.  I was able to craft a bit and I made this super awesome card.    I ended the day watching some TV.  It was an awesome day.  Today we will just be playing outside.  We need to mow the lawn and get the outside cleaned up a bit.  We will fill the kiddie pool up with water and let the kids play.

Here are some of the pictures from yesterday.  I love my kids and I love that Tony has the next couple days off.  It’s so nice to just hang out. 

Tony started his little vacation today.  We are just going to have a stay-cay.  No plans to go anywhere just hang out as a family.  We start school in a week and a half and we don’t get to spend much time together usually.  This morning we are going to head to the park.  Yesterday Tony made some breakfast skillets and he was able to make two so this morning I just need to heat up a skillet and we have breakfast.  We  plan to head to the park first thing this morning before it gets too crowded or too hot.  Then we will come home and spend the rest of the day relaxing with the kids.

In a way I wish we would have done something for his vacay, maybe a small trip somewhere but all in all I will be happy he is just home.  I would much rather save the money and have it next year for our move than go to a water park or something that the lil ones won’t even remember. 

Well off to heat up our morning skillet and then off to the park.  Hopefully I will get some pictures. 

Packing that is.  It is one year from when we will be packing up and moving across the country.  The main reason why I am started now is  because I will be really busy with school.  Plus next summer it will be super busy and I am sure I won’t have a ton of extra time to pack.  I will have a few classes to take next summer.  I will have to find a job.   I will have  to find a place to live.   I will have to organize our move.  I will have  to get the house in order so we can hopefully get out security deposit back.  I have high HIGH hopes that we will be able t afford a professional mover do all the work.  I am not interested in driving 2500 miles  by myself.  I was kinda hoping to make a vacay out of it.  Maybe stop in Illinois and spend a couple days with my family and then slowly make our way to Arizona.  With three young kids, a teenager, a dog, and a cat it will be a LONG trip.

I really wish we could buy a place right away when we move out there but I am just not thinking it will be possible.  Makes me sad but I think everything will work out.  In the meantime I will be spending the next twelve months packing and throwing junk away.  We are only taking the bare necessities.

Today is Monday which means Tony should have had off because that is what he arranged through work (to coordinate with our school schedule) but because it is a holiday he had to go to work for a little bit.  He chose to go in super early so he can get off super early.

Yesterday was supposed to be our fireworks celebration at the park in town but around 5:30pm it started pouring, lightning and thundering.  I was convinced that the celebration at the park was going to be canceled.  It cleared up around 6:30/7.  I put the kids to bed thinking they would make it up on their rain day but at 9:20pm from the distance (in the direction of the park) I heard loud “booms” and the sky was all lit up from fireworks.  They had the celebration anyways.  Now the only real place to watch the fireworks at the park is in the grass.  Who wants to sit in the wet and muddy grass.  Not me and my family that’s for sure.  I was bummed though because now we won’t be able to see them.  This is the first time we lived somewhere long enough to attend a fun event more than one year.  This would have been our 3rd time attending.  We will be moving next summer but not until August so hopefully we will be able to go next year.

Today we are laying low until Tony gets home, hopefully around 2pm, and then we are going to go to a BBQ at his friends house.  I am excited to get out of the house.  We were supposed to go to one of my friends house yesterday for her son’s 2nd b-day party but I had the worst headache.  I ended up laying down, taking a nap, and didn’t wake until around 3 or 4.  I felt bad but I certainly could not have been social with my head feeling like it did.

Then to top not going to the b-day party, the fireworks were canceled.  I felt so bummed.  But today should be a better day and I am excited to go to the BBQ.  Hopefully it doesn’t rain today.