Our new additions!

We are now proud owners of 4 goldfish! These little things really have a way of growing on ya. I was given a super small fish bowl from work. (At work we have a beta fish named Dubee, he just got a new tank) I told Haylee that if she had an awesome week without any problems then Friday after school she could pick out a pet fish. I was surprised when I actually had to follow through. I really wasn't excited about getting a pet. I don't know what happened but when we were at the store, instead of picking one beta we ended up picking 4 goldfish! It seemed like a smart idea. Everybody picked there own fish and got to name it. That's fair right. When I agreed to goldfish I was excited to get a bowl full of orange fish. Little did I know the girls would pick white and brown fish! I always pick a white fish with a red spot and I always name it Redy. My first fish was named Redy. I got him when I was in kindergarten and he died (was murdered! But that's another story) on Valentine's day when I was in 4th grade. I've had Redy jr, Redy 3, 4, 5, 6 and now have Redy 7. Well everything was fine until Saturday morning I noticed the fish were all gulping air from the top. I was suffocating the fish! After some quick reading I learned goldfish are high maintenance fish! They require so much space! They're also the dirtiest fish. No wonder the small fish bowl turned disgusting over night. I felt so bad for these fish! After almost killing them on accident I felt I owed it to them to give them another chance. So after a quick trip to the store for a new tank (which is still too small for 4 goldfish but it has a filter so it's better) our fish look happy!

Mine, is of course, Redy 7.
Bret's is the big white one, he named it Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Haylees is the small white one. She named it Sparkle. Then Wendy. Then Dorothy. Now it's Sparkle again.
Maycie's is the brown one. She named it Marigold.

Their round tank sat behind our kitchen sink. Now their new tank is by the couch.

We'll see how long we can keep them alive!

Closet makeover!!

I decided it was time to take over half of the closet... again. Bret's collection of sweatshirts has slowly taken over the entire closet. Each time I do laundry I end up shoving more and more of my clothes into drawers. Now that I have somewhat nice clothes for work I decided it was time!

Bret might think otherwise when he sees it though....

Check out the before and after pictures. The purple line shows where my clothes ended. Remember this is one side of the closet.

Haylee loves my cooking!

Haylee just ran up to me and gave me a huge hug and said:

"Thank you for cooking dinner! You're the best cooker ever!"

I made ramen noodles.

My new job!

Yes, thats right, I have a new job!! Crazy, you say? Maybe. But I love it!

So... it all started last week. Well I guess "it all" actually started waaaaaay before I was even born. But this story starts last week. Rewind to last Wednesday. Bret called me out of the blue and I could tell from the start of the conversation something was up. He wasn't his normal self. Then he paused for a minute and said "Ummmm do you want a job?" I was thinking he was going to have me sew something which is what he usually asks for. I asked him where and he told me all about this job (and it wasn't sewing!). After hearing about it I was so excited. I got off the phone with him and called the owner of the company to set up an interview... for the very next day. So Thursday morning, after I dropped Maycie off at school I went in for my interview. She told me I didn't really need to interview, the job was mine if I wanted it. She said the ladies there absolutely love Bret and said that I must be nice and normal if I'm married to him. I took the job and started working yesterday! Now, are you ready to find out where I work and what I do??? 

I work at:

 Cups Drug Testing.

 Get it? When you have a drug test, you pee in a cup. 

We C (see) U (you) P (pee).

C-U-P 

Cups. 

"Making the workplace safer one cup at a time."

 Yeah pretty awesome isn't it?! 

Thats the real reason I took the job. I figured anybody that can come up with a name like that has got to be awesome. Turns out I was right. The owners are so much fun! We do urine analysis and hair testing checking for drugs; and breathalyzer for alcohol. This is where Craig's employees have their drug tests done. Bret just happened to take a guy in that afternoon for a test. While he was there, he saw an ad they were getting ready to send in to the newspaper saying they were looking for help. Bret got talking to the owner to find out what was needed to apply and all that good stuff. He really set this whole thing up for me! (Now he's asking for a finders fee!- he says my first 2 pay checks are his!)

 I have an awesome schedule! For the month of March I'll be training and I'll work Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday 9-2. After that I get to pick my own schedule. I think I'll stay with the same hours though because both girls are in school. I was able to extend Maycie's preschool to all day so she now goes from 9-2:30. Since they know Bret and they are well aware of how oilfield schedules work, I am able to work the same schedule he is on. That way if we want to still get away on his days off we're able to. I'm so excited! I've wanted some sort of a job for a long time now. Things here get kind of boring and I've thought it would be so nice to get out and meet more people. The stress of finding a place that would work well with the girls schedule and be flexible was more than I could handle. I didn't even want to apply anywhere until I had back up plans for the girls. With this job falling straight into my lap, being everything I could have wished for, I feel like its too good to be true! I love it so far! I know its only been two days, but having an excuse to leave the house has been so nice!

The girls had very different reactions when I told them I would be working. Haylee started jumping for joy saying "now daddy gets to stay home with us!" Maycie on the other hand has cried many times saying how much she is going to miss me. She had a really hard time yesterday when I dropped her off at school. She was excited to eat lunch at school but she kept saying "I'm going to miss you while you're at work." Looking back I shouldn't have even told her. Her teachers said that at random times throughout the day yesterday they would find her putting on her coat and backpack saying it was time to go home. This morning I decided to send a small stuffed animal with her. That seemed to do the trick! She didn't cry when I dropped her off and she was happy the whole day!  

Hopefully things continue to go well!

Our Little Gymnast

Here are a few pictures of Haylee at gymnastics. Shes doing so well! 

She's almost ready to move up to the next class.

She isn't even running straight into this pad anymore!

Haylee

Haylee has been going through some pretty tough things the last 6 weeks or so. Actually she's been dealing with these issues for 6 years but the last little while has been extra hard on her. It is so hard being helpless, watching her struggle. She's such a tough little girl but I can tell that things lately have really effected her. We've been doing a lot of fun little activities just for her, trying to keep her spirits up. She loves going to the pet store so we've been doing that about twice a week. She's adopted a dog. She thinks we're going to buy it. We're not. Still, the look on her face when she sees this little puppy. Adorable.

One day while we were looking at the puppies, a couple came in and wanted to hold "Haylee's puppy". As the store clerk started to get the puppy out Haylee started closing the gate on her saying that was her puppy. I had to pull her away and she was just sobbing. The couple was cute and let Haylee hold the puppy. Which was the first time she had held it. They asked her all sorts of questions about the puppy then told her they wouldn't buy her puppy, they'd pick a different one. I was so thankful they were so kind in that situation. They could have just ignored Haylee but I know it meant the world to her!

Another of our activities was going to The Wizard Of Oz. I saw signs all around town for this and since it was at the high school I just assumed it was a high school play. It wasn't. It was a dance recital. It wasn't at all what I expected but the girls loved it. They had girls from 3 to 18 in the recital. The younger girls kept Maycie's attention quite well. I'm so glad I braved the night time cold to go! I was really thinking of how I could back out of this activity but I'm so happy we went!

Maycie has been such a good sport during all of this. She is so supportive of Haylee and she is so attentive. It surprises me everyday how much they love each other. I know it shouldn't but it does! Nearly every morning as Maycie and I are pulling away from the bus stop Maycie says "I hope Best Sister has a good day at school and doesn't have any problems." It really shows me how much Maycie worries about her big sister. During the last 6 weeks Maycie has also quit calling Haylee by her name, its only Best Sister. Haylee can be having the worst day and Maycie will say "I love you Best Sister" and it completely changes how Haylee feels. She'll immediately get that sparkle back. 

Maycie wanted to have a party for Haylee when she got home from school. She colored pictures and made her tons of decorations. Maycie worked on this all day and was so excited for Haylee to see it!

She hid decorations all over the house. In the cupboards, in Haylee's shoes, in the bathroom, in Haylee's pillow. ALL over the house!

Mace even made this crown.

When Haylee opened the door and read the sign I thought she was going to cry. She was so happy. Both girls were jumping up and down saying how much they loved each other. 

Not everyday is better than the day before but we are slowly progressing. We're trying to stay positive and keeping things in perspective. Sometimes bodies just do what they want to do not what they are meant to do. Things have a way of working out. Its hard watching this sweet girl get so discouraged and depressed but I know we'll make it out of this someday.

Weather

While you guys are enjoying your nearly 60 degree weather I just thought I'd let you know that we are -5 this morning. Enjoy...