Trying Hard

So when we moved, I had promised myself to keep my house cleaner, spend more time with my kids, and just be a better wife and mom in general. And I think I did do those things.....for about 2 weeks. And then it was like life caught up with me. I am behind again on laundry, cleaning, potty training...I haven't been able to get back into my workout routine. And although this may sound like a pity party, IT. IS. NOT. I am actually writing this post, hoping that anyone reading will share their ideas on what they do to keep up on everything.

And I guess I hope that with any ideas that are shared, I will be able to implement something to help me be better. After all, us moms have got to stick together!!! :)

And so it begins

Andrew's first day of school

White Coat ceremony

A little bit of fun

We arrived here 2 weeks before Andrew started school, and his parents were here for a little bit, so we took both those opportunities to do a few fun things before we wouldn't see Andrew anymore :)

The first weekend we got here, we took a trip out to Kirtland....the first of many I am sure.



We went to a place called Chagrin Falls with some new friends. It was beautiful and fun, but we went on a SUPER hot day so we all got kind of grumpy.


Abbey, and her new friend Ellie


We went on another day to Cuyahoga Valley National Park and saw some more waterfalls and then went to an ice cave. The problem was though, that we forgot our flashlight so we couldn't go in the cave too far, but it was still a fun hike.







We went to an Indians game but I forgot to take my camera....They got killed, but we had so much fun. It was $1 hot dog night, and after the game they had an awesome rock and roll and fireworks show. The kids were worn out but had a great time...eating peanuts, hot dogs, soda, nachos. They even took their baseball mitts just in case their was a foul ball hit into the stands. The funniest part of that was that we were almost at the very top of the stadium!
Then the next day we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.


That was the only picture we could take, since they don't allow you to take pictures in the museum. We LOVE it here!

Our New Home

Here are some pics of our new place, for those who wanted to see it.





Kitchen...Looks small, but believe it or not we have more room than our last kitchen


Living Room


Ammons Room


Abbey and Dylans Room

Our Trip

Our 3 1/2 day trip to Cleveland went smoother than I had anticipated it would. We left pretty close to the time we wanted on the 11th, and drove all day long, stopping in Sidney, Nebraska, which was about 100 miles short of what we wanted to achieve. We were all ready to stop though, and the kids got to swim at the hotel so it was worth it. Day 2, Tuesday, we started SUPER early to make up for the time we didn't drive the previous day and made pretty good time arriving in Clinton, Iowa about 10:30. We had the chance to stay with Andrew's great Aunt Marilyn. It was fun to spend some time with her and the kids had a blast sleeping at her house. Once again started pretty early on Wednesday. But once again didn't make it as far as we wanted because of 2 things....I just HAD to stop for pizza at Giordanos in Illinois, and because of the 2 hour traffic jam we got caught in on the south part of Chicago. So Wednesday night we ended up getting to a hotel in Toledo at about 1:30 am. Left early Thursday morning and drove to our new home in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. We arrived here at about 10:30. We were so glad to be here. Some pictures that highlight some fun times on our drive...................

At a park somewhere in Iowa


Eagle Point Park in Clinton, Iowa. Grandma had been talking about this place for months!!! :)