The Despres Family

My Favorite Thing

2010-10-11T22:24:00.000-05:00

This is going to be a super-short post, but I just had to share one of my most favorite events that just happened on Friday night.

It was a regular night...we got the girls in bed on time(ish) and Cliff left to go to our apartment's gym. I was cleaning out my inbox and checking facebook, because those are two very important things to do, of course. The girls were extra giddy - they were playing and laughing together in bed, which is just the best thing to listen to, so we never really scold them for it (until a "she's making noises at me" or a "she's looking at me" fight breaks out).

All of a sudden, I hear fireworks going off - our apartment's patio has a perfect view of whoever does the fireworks at every major firework-related holiday. I have never heard of fireworks on Columbus day, but I am assuming that is why they were celebrating. Since the girls were still up and playing, I decided to go into their room and open up their blinds so they could watch them, too! I told them to get back into bed once the fireworks were over and TRY to go to sleep immediately. Right as I sat back down at the computer to resume my chat with the awesome Michaela on facebook, Cliff burst through the door of our apartment asking if the girls were still up. I said yes, and that they were watching the fireworks from their bedroom. "Oh, good!" was his reply, and he went in to watch with them. I heard a lot of "ooohing" and "aahhhhing" from all of them and even Jossie saying, "Daddy, look, there are shooting stars out there!"

It was then I realized that it was a little early for Cliff to be back from his workout...and he doesn't cut his workout short EVER. Not even if we just got a new movie from Netflix to watch. When he came back out he said, "When I heard the fireworks start, I ran back here to see if they were still awake."

HOW LUCKY AM I?????????

How many men do this - drop whatever they are doing just to go watch their kids watch fireworks?? NONE, I TELL YOU! My husband is awesome. I absolutely LOVE that he truly enjoys his kids. I love seeing the unconditional love and adoration between them.

My husband, my kids, my LIFE totally rocks.

Room Moms are Cool

2010-08-25T12:50:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was the first day of KINDERGARTEN for Aidenne, and today was the first day of PreK for Joscelyn. They were both so excited to go! While Aidenne was in school yesterday, Joss and I went swimming - I tried to make the day fun for her, but she told me all day that she wanted Aidenne! I hope they get to see each other sometimes at school.

Aidenne had a great first day - I went to chapel with her and afterward they had the parents stay in the sanctuary for orientation. As soon as her teacher called for her class, she jumped up and ran out - no hug or kiss for me at all! She did wave once she was in line...I guess that is all I get from my independent sweet pea!

Joscelyn was very proud of herself this morning for being able to go to school, too. She was excited but had a momentary lapse into babydom when Cliff and I were leaving - she said "I want you to stay, Mommy." I gave her one more big hug and then she found the play kitchen, so she was totally fine - no crying from her (or me, surprisingly!) I signed up to be room mom for Joscelyn's class. I can hear all your eyes rolling right now - don't make fun!! I love being able to go to all the class parties and help out at the school, so hopefully my own school schedule won't interfere with that. That's right, Aidenne and Joss, Mommy is ALWAYS WATCHING YOU!

I get to register for my classes next week, so I will finally be able to plan other things around my schedule! I can't wait to see what I will be taking first. I hope it isn't too tragic getting back into the normal "no time for anything" lifestyle...I have been on vacation for too long!

I think I should go eat lunch now. Without the kids here to feed, I almost forgot to eat. I will let you know how eating a full meal in peace and quiet goes...

It's Been A While...

2010-08-09T23:18:00.002-05:00

I love that my last post was almost two years ago, and I was talking about how I never update my blog. My BESTIE started a blog recently, so it apparently got me in the mood! (I look forward to the comments of your hatred of the word "bestie.")

So remember that three-year-old I spoke of in my last post? Yup, Aidenne is now just a month away from being FIVE and starting kindergarten in just two weeks. WHAT?? And our baby Joscelyn is now three and will be in the PreK program at the same school. Woohoo - Mommy free time! What will I do with it? Oh yeah...homework! I am still studying interior design, but have transferred from The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division to The Art Institute of San Antonio. I think going on campus will benefit me greatly in this field and allow me to network like crazy. I do not start on campus until October 4th, so I do have a month of pure vacation and lots of selfish ME time. I plan to take on sewing projects (yes, I have learned to SEW in the last 2 years!), update my blog (don't hold your breath), and generally be as lazy as possible.

Speaking of school, I am sad to say that my GPA has dropped to a - GASP! - 3.91. My dream of a perfect 4.0 did not last all that long, but I think it is still higher than Cliff's final GPA. But this isn't a competition. ("Certainly not a close one!")

We successfully sold the house in Denton after spending a long long looooooong 8 months apart. A lot of blood, sweat, tears and repair work, mixed with the tiniest dash of sleep made that sale happen! So we finally all live under one roof again, and it has been smooth-sailing ever since (ish).

The girls continue to amaze us with how stinkin' smart they are every day! Aidenne can read and we have her amazing PreK teacher to thank for that - all future teachers have a LOT to live up to! And she better still be there next fall when Joss will be in her class...you heard me, Ms. Stacie!! Aidenne has also shown her athletic ability in gymnastics, which we hope to get her in again soon, basketball (a swift ball to the head made this sport obsolete in her mind), and now tennis, which she is absolutely in love with and looks like a tiny little pro while doing! She is still very independent and cannot wait to start school again.

Joscelyn is the ham of the family! I swear I look ten years older because of the laugh lines that girl gives me. My favorite Joss-ism from today was: "My macaroni and cheese is yummy with added ranch." She has learned all her letters and their sounds, and has gotten amazingly good at coloring inside the lines. Her hair is still...ummm...(OK - brief Jossie hair update: Since I last posted she grew a mullet and I could not cut it off for the longest time since I just wanted her to have SOMETHING. But it is now gone and she has had 2 whole haircuts in her entire life!) She recently was mistaken for a boy in a restaurant - our waiter said something like, "Here you go, little buddy." And she replied, "Hey, I'm not a buddy!" That's my Jossie! She doesn't take crap from anyone. She got that from her Auntie Kristin. Both of them.

Cliff is awesome as usual. He gives 100% at work and 100% at home, making sure we are all taken care of and totally happy. He still works out daily like a crazy person and is still addicted to Dr. Pepper and Hawaiian Punch. He has even cleaned the bathroom twice this year, so I consider myself the luckiest wife on the planet! When it comes to the girls he has endless energy - he can take them to two different parks AND Sea World in one day and still have the energy to make them dinner and put them to bed (meanwhile, I am crashed out on the couch!) He truly enjoys spending time with them and that is something I will never take for granted!

OK, I know I have not caught you up on a full two years, so I will update soon with the things I have forgotten. Soon, as in, less than two years from now.

Despres Family Who?

2008-09-07T23:05:00.003-05:00

UGH! I really wish I was one of those people who kept up with their blog. Why do I even have a blogspot??
Anyway, since I blogged last, LOTS has happened. The girls and I moved back to Denton to clean up the rental property and get it ready for the market. It is really hard being away from Cliff all week! The girls miss him, and he misses them more than he can stand!
I went back to work for the same attorney I was working for before we moved, and I got the girls into the AWESOME school that is right behind my office. They are both doing really well there and learning so much!
It is nice to be back here with all our friends, and the house is coming along. Cliff is in the process of fixing the fence in the backyard (which is ginormous, by the way) which was pummeled by dogs (we won't mention whose).
I am still in school (surprise, surprise!!) and I am very proud to say I have a 4.0 so far. I have always been so lazy when it came to college, so I am proud that even with all the obstacles I have right now, I am keeping up and staying motivated! I am soooo loving my drafting class right now. I have an obsession with floor plans, and being able to draft them is just the awesomest thing.

The girls are so super cute every day. Aidenne has the biggest imagination, and is constantly talking. I love hearing about her day, she remembers a lot of it, and loves to tell what happened! Jossie is talking so much now. She says "Mommy" instead of "Mama" which I soooo LOVE! Some of her other words are "uh-oooooh" (one of our favorites!) Oh yeah, you have to imagine these words said in a cute little raspy baby voice (she sounds as if she was a smoker in a previous life!) She also says, "no", "puppy", "more", "hot", and she thinks that all dogs are named Pebbles - Aunt Morgan has a puppy named Pebbles, so anytime Joss sees a dog, she says "Pebble." She also started sleeping in her "big-girl" bed last weekend, and did really well with that!
Aidenne has started gymnastics classes at the Little Gym. She loves it so much, and almost every day she asks to go to "mynastics." We are actually having her 3rd birthday party there in 2 weeks. (WHAT? We have a THREE YEAR-OLD???) I am still going to try to make the cake since I have made her cake every year, and I have a few ideas - I might be going 3D this year!

I am off to bed now, since even though I did no homework, I still stayed up way too late eating oreos and watching Knocked Up again since it comes on HBO every day. Don't you just LOVE these kinds of nights?

Posted pics:
http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=59101&l=8fe77&id=634823803

Off to Florida

2008-06-17T13:49:00.002-05:00

The girls and I left for Florida yesterday morning. I was very nervous about flying by myself with 2 toddlers, but it turned out much better than expected! Aidenne LOVED the airplane...she sat by the window and decided to report on everything: "I see the ground! I see the cars! We are in the clouds!" And when we hit turbulence she would scream "Whheeeeee!!!" The whole time. Luckily, Joss had her own seat as well, since even on an almost full flight, NO ONE was crazy enough to sit by the lone Mommy and 2 small (but very loud) children. Jossie did not enjoy the plane ride as much...she was scared into silence during take-off and landing, so that was nice, but the rest of the time she was up and down in her seat, crawling all over me, kicking Aidenne, not wanting to just sit and watch the DVD player. But it all went by very quickly!
We got to the airport where my mom was waiting for us. Aidenne said "Hey, Gran, we are coming to see you today!" HAHAHAHAHA!! And she has been the main source of entertainment since. We had to wait an hour and a half for our luggage to come out on the belt. UGH. But the girls were glad to be able to get up and walk around, so they were really good during that time, too.
So we just kind of hung out when we got back to the house, and this morning we decided to go to Pine Island which is a little beach with a playground and some shops. It was really fun, it was the first time at the beach for both girls. Joss jumped right into the sand and the ocean, and Aidenne had to be coaxed against her will to come with us near the water! We finally convinced her that she could make a better sand castle with the wet sand, so she came with us. Aidenne did not want to get all sandy, so she didn't really seem to be impressed by the beach. Joss loved it, she put her toes in the sand and just wiggled them around and she walked all over, even into the ocean with Pops!
We saw lots of stingrays and even a baby shark swimming close by. It was awesome! Aidenne didn't seem too concerned that there was a shark in the water...she didn't want to go in, so I tried to coax her in saying "come see the shark!" But she didn't care! I guess that's ok since mommies should usually keep their kids out of shark-infested water!
So now we are back at the house and just hanging out. Tomorrow we will just chill, too, and maybe have relatives over to see the gloriousness that is my children.
I posted more pics:
June 2008:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=45261&l=d1498&id=634823803
and Florida trip:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=46118&l=b0919&id=634823803

Where are all the dinosaurs?

2008-05-26T07:20:00.004-05:00

We had the best Saturday EVER this weekend. We started by going to the zoo in the morning. Aidenne was so excited over all of the animals, especially the baby monkeys. She would say "oh, look, they're so cute!" and "look, the mommy is kissing the baby's feet!" It is so awesome to see the world through a toddler's eyes. She also kept asking to see the dinosaurs - I didn't want to tell her there weren't any there! Joss also loved the monkeys, she would point and grunt in her usual raspy voice! Joss also liked to run away from us, and there were so many people at the zoo, she was usually running into someone's legs. Luckily she is super cute, so they didn't mind too much!
It was soooooo hot though, and I kept telling Cliff that the zoo in Colorado probably isn't that hot! I am hoping that when we visit my sister later this year, he will fall in love with Colorado just like me!
Then we came home and stayed inside for a while and just chilled while Joss took her nap. When she woke up, we went out to dinner. We came home and swam in the pool until bedtime. Aidenne can now swim with just the floaties on her arms, which is the cutest thing ever. She is so proud of herself when she is swimming on her own, and she just kicks her legs and bobs around. We can never get her out of the pool, she wants to swim constantly now. After we get back from Florida next month we are going to start swim lessons for her and Joss. Joss also likes to be in the water, but she doesn't like to just chill in a float - you have to hold her, and she likes to bounce up and down, in and out of the water. She gets the biggest smile on her face!
I am keeping up with my school work, just barely. We are drawing people for the next couple weeks in my drawing class, and I drew Cliff's profile for my first assignment...it didn't turn out too badly, but it really doesn't look like Cliff! I think I am going to have a hard time finding people who will want to sit for me for an hour or so while I draw them.
By the way, I am not using flickr anymore to post pictures, I only post on facebook now since it is MUCH easier. Here are the links to a few recent albums:

Michaela's pictures of the girls:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41140&l=15986&id=634823803

Colorado pics:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=42606&l=4fe87&id=634823803

May 2008:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=40770&l=60bc4&id=634823803

April 2008:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=38018&l=2d1c0&id=634823803

Joscelyn's 1st birthday:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=37860&l=44448&id=634823803

Also, I have started to "middle name" Aidenne when she is doing something wrong. I see her about to fling a yo-yo at Jossie, and I say "Aidenne Camille Despres" in my best mean-mommy tone. The other day when we were playing in the back yard, Aidenne opened the door and said "Mommy, come inside!" I don't know what I was doing (probably trying to stop Joss from falling in the pool), but I didn't answer her right away, so she said "Mommy Camille Despres!" It was hilarious. Its funny that she probably has no clue that that is her full name, she just thinks it is what you say when you really want to get someone's attention.
Aidenne has also been going to the potty a few times a day this week. She doesn't even want to use her potty seat, she always just holds herself upon the big potty, which is nice for me since I don't have to clean up 2 potties. Woohoo, we are about to cut our diaper and wipes bill in half!!
Joss is getting really good at sign language. She says "more" all the time, and she is getting better at "eat." We just teach her one at a time, so hopefully she will really understand what they mean. She goes around saying "mama" all the time, which I absolutely LOVE. She loves to play with the big basketball in the back yard, and when she sees it, she yells "BALL!" Aidenne loves to blow bubbles, and Joss yells "BUBBA" when she sees them. She is too cute, she has the raspiest little voice, like she has been smoking for years.
Anyway, I think I just heard Aidenne, she is going to want breakfast ASAP!!

Colorado, the best state in all the USA

2008-05-21T19:03:00.002-05:00

Picture this:
I am sitting in my living room alone, finishing a drawing of a teapot and utensil jar. It is about 10:30 p.m. Cliff has taken the girls to his mom's for the weekend so I can get a break. Since it is only 9:30 p.m. in Colorado, I decide to take a break from my masterpiece and call my sis. We talk for a while and realize that we are both going to be alone for the weekend since her husband is going out of town for a week. This spirals into us searching for plane tickets for me to come visit her for the weekend. I call Cliff to see how he is and I casually mention that I was thinking of visiting my sis, to which he did not seem too excited (maybe just because he was really tired). So when on the phone with him, I decide I shouldn't be so hasty and I should just stay home.
I call my sis back who in the mean time had found a flight leaving at 6:35 a.m. Saturday. I immediately tell her to book it, and say "I will see you in 7 hours!!"
WOOOHOOOOOO!
I finished my drawing and got online to turn it in. I did a load of laundry so I would have some clothes to wear. I packed all my stuff and my laptop and quadruple checked that I had the little thingy that lets me connect to the Internet wherever I am. I finally fell asleep at 2 a.m. and set my alarm for 3:15 a.m. so that I could leave for the airport by 3:45. Are you thinking I am crazy yet??
So the one hour of sleep caught up with me on the plane, but I couldn't sleep because of the loud BEEP of the seatbelt sign on the plane kept going off.
I get to Colorado and get a burst of energy since I am finally there and can see my sister. We wait at the wrong baggage claim like dummies. No, I did not fly in from San Antonio, I flew in from Austin, and we are standing at the baggage claim for the San Antonio flight forever, all the while making fun of all the stupid people from my flight who I can see clearly waiting at the wrong baggage claim. I only realize that we are actually the ones waiting at the wrong baggage claim after I go to the office to angrily tell them they lost my luggage. Lets just blame this on only getting that one hour of sleep (and maybe the smelly guy I had to sit next to on the plane).
OKAY, so I was actually in Colorado and my sis and I were really excited to see each other. She had a lot of things to show me, but first stop was Chickfila so I could get a sausage biscuit (yessssssssssss). I also decided to call Cliff again and let him know I was in Colorado since by the time we bought the ticket the night before, he had already gone to bed. I thought it would be nice to let him know I had left the state!
We had an awesome weekend. I got to see all the beautiful mountains of Colorado, which dont even look real, by the way. They look far too gorgeous to be real.
She took me to the hippie downtown Boulder and the yuppy (sp?) downtown Denver. Both were awesome.
We ate out at every meal, having some wontons with questionably-shaped pork inside and some weird (aka gross) Mexican meat on top of giant tortilla chips.
We shopped at little boutiques and I bought 2 dresses, mostly because my sis is the WORST to shop with. She makes you buy everything you see!
It was an awesome weekend, and even though I only stayed Saturday through Tuesday, it seemed longer than that! It was awesome to see my sister, it was awesome to be in Colorado for the first time, and it was especially awesome that neither of us had a hubby or children with us!! As much as we love them, it is so nice to have some alone sister time.
So, hopefully within the next 2 years we will be able to move there too, because I miss my sister WAAAAYYYYY too much!

The Plague

2008-04-22T09:04:00.002-05:00

So....
We girls are sicker than SICK. Joss and Aidenne have the snottiest of all snotty noses, Aidenne has pink eye, and I have a sore throat from hell.
The best part of it was when I was telling my mom over the phone that Aidenne had pink eye, and Aidenne overheard and said, "No, my eyes are blue!!" I was hysterically laughing, but since my throat is so bad, I think I sounded like a dying pig.
Anyway, we will all be staying in our pajamas today, and nothing will be cleaned whatsoever (except for the girls' noses of course. eeewww).

For Thea,

2008-04-11T23:51:00.003-05:00

I would like to start out this post by saying PLEASE ignore me when I say I will blog more in the future. I am lying, plain and simple.

Since my last post, Joscelyn turned 1. Her birthday party theme was The Very Hungry Caterpillar (a children's book by Eric Carle). As usual, the party was held at the house, and I made the cake. It was not as awesome as Aidenne's Blues Clues cake, but I think I still did pretty well:

The party was very nice, I think everyone had a pretty good time, and Joscelyn got a whole wardrobe since I banned everyone from buying toys for her. She liked the cake and playing outside with everyone the most! My sister was in town, too, so we were all SUPER excited about that. But of course the weekend went by pretty fast, and I wanted her to stay longer.

After Joss went down for a nap, but before all the guests left, I played "awful hostess" and left with my sister and Michaela to get pedicures. Thinking back, I guess that was pretty rude. But all I was thinking was FREE PEDICURE and I went with it.

Also since my last post, I started interior design school online at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. My classes are broken up into quarters. Those quarters are broken up into two 5-and-a-half week sessions. The first session I take one class and the second session I take two classes. So now I am in the middle of my first session, taking a computer class, learning Microsoft Office, Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. Three big books and only 5.5 weeks to learn it all. This is definitely my kind of school--go to class when I want, get ahead on assignments if I want, and if I hate the class, it is only a month and a half long--very simple to put up with. As I start my 3rd week, I recommend it to anyone! My first week's grades were just posted and I got 60 out of 61 possible points (damn that last point!!), aka I am making a 98.3 so far. I am really excited about being in school, I have never been motivated like this before. I think given my circumstances, this is the best time for me to go back. It's the first time I haven't had to work while going to school, so I can really make it my main focus (other than running after my 2 gorgeous fit-throwers).

Last but not least, I purchased a plane ticket for me and the girls to go to Florida to visit my parents as soon as I have summer break. Am I crazy? Yes. Flying alone with 2 toddlers is going to be GREAT FUN. I am sooooo looking forward to it. We will be spending a week, but depending on how the flight there goes, I may just move there permanently. I am really excited to go, since we will see my parents and they will get to see their awesome grandkids, and also because neither girl has been to the beach yet, and I plan on taking billions of pictures of that. The two girls with their chubby legs and big heads walking in the sand in cute bathing suits...does it get any better than that??

Now remember, I will blog more VERY SOON!

Funny Aidenne Stories

2008-02-25T14:05:00.004-06:00

I haven't blogged in FOREVER, but now we have our desktop computer set up, so I should be able to log in more (at least until I start school next month).

Anyway, Aidenne cracks us up every day, and I thought I would write some of the funny things she says down for your enjoyment (but more for myself, so that I can remember them years from now!)

*I went to my friend Jessica's son's first birthday party. Her daughter, Kristian, is six months older than Aidenne. I told Aidenne we were going to a birthday party to play with "the kids" and never actually told her what Kristian's name was. So about an hour after they had been running around together on the playground, I hear Aidenne say, "Hey, Kid!" hahahaha So I thought I should tell her that Kristian had a name. This was our conversation:

Me (pointing to Kristian): "Aidenne, do you know what her name is?"
(Aidenne stares blankly)
Me: "Her name is Kristian."
Aidenne: "No, she not Frish-chin. She just a kid."

*Cliff has taught Aidenne to say "Pow, right in the kisser!" in his best northern accent, so now Aidenne runs around saying, "Pow, right kissa!" and sometimes she says "I love pow right kissa." I don't really know what that is supposed to mean.

*The next one will fall under the category of cute-when-you-tell-other-people-about-it-but-annoying-to-mommy: Aidenne has become pretty bossy (honestly, I don't know WHO she could've gotten that from!), and so she will tell me to "hush" if she doesn't like what I am saying to her. So, my response has been "YOU don't tell ME to hush." So now, when I tell her to hush, she says "Mommy, don't tell me hush!" Uggghhh. I have created a monster!

*She has started making her dolls be "best friends" with each other, and the other day she told me I was her best friend. Of course later that night, Cliff was her best friend, and today I asked her if I was her best friend, and she said "No, Mommy, not today." So she is only 2, but she has already figured out the mechanics of middle school.

Joscelyn will be one in a little over a month. I am in shock about this because I still think of her as a little baby. I don't know why, since she has been walking for over a month now. Maybe it is because she still cries all the time like a little baby. Hmmmm. Well, the good news is that she will be off formula pretty soon, so that will be extra money for us! Actually, the Art Institute will be taking the rest of our money for the next 4 to 5 years, so I guess I shouldn't get too excited.

OK, I should stop blogging and take Aidenne outside for some fresh air since it is 88 degrees out today, and Joscelyn is napping.

Hilariousness

2008-01-18T16:07:00.001-06:00

The other night I did not feel like cooking, so we ordered TGI Friday's and brought it home to eat. I got Aidenne the kid's pizza since it didn't seem like she would eat anything else from their menu. We sit down to eat, and I took off Aidenne's shirt so she wouldn't get pizza all over it. (I know, I know, it's weird to make your child eat naked, but get over it, I hate having to pre-treat all of her clothes.)

So she eats about 1/8 of the pizza, and decides she wants to have her mandarin oranges then. I tell her to eat more pizza first. (Why? I don't know, looking back it seems silly since mandarin oranges are way more healthy than pizza, but whatever.) She starts crying, so we just ignore her and keep eating. Finally her cry turns into just a pout, so I look at her and she says "I'm pretty sad" and puts on her best frown face. To which I am trying my best not to crack up laughing (because she hates that). So I say, "You're pretty sad?"
"Yeah."
Cliff and I try to just carry on normal conversation and not laugh at her. Then she said, "Mommy can I get down?" and I said "Yes, you may" and proceeded to help her down from her chair. Then, with her voice still wimpery and pouty, she says "Can I have my shirt?"

I guess you just had to be there to see her devastated face at the fact that she couldn't have those oranges, and also that her mom was making her eat naked again. Poor thing! I tell you, it's tough being 2...

Eeeeeeeee!!

2008-01-10T09:01:00.000-06:00

Joscelyn said "mama" today. I have been working on this so that she would say my name instead of Cliff's name first since Aidenne's first and only word FOREVER was "dada". So HA! It's me first this time. So now she has 2 words: "bap" and "mama". And yes, "bap" is a word.
My children are just brilliant. BRILLIANT, I TELL YOU!

Oh yeah, here is that video I never posted:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=25373466

When I grow up...

2008-01-03T21:49:00.000-06:00

...I want to be an interior designer.

Also, I really hate it when people text me back the word "OK" and that is it. Like I say, "call me this weekend." I don't expect a reply, unless you can't actually call me this weekend. If you don't reply, I know you will call me. Saying "OK" is just not necessary. OH! I especially hate it when they do this about 3 hours after I messaged them, so then I have to look back in my sent messages to see what is up. You know who you are. Stop doing this to me!

Have a nice day and look at my awesome pictures on flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cvajdespres/

And check out my hilarious baby girls at:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=25369588

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=25370676

there is one more video, but i will have to post it later...it is taking a while to download!

2007-12-21T22:28:00.001-06:00

Enjoy these new videos of Aidenne and her friend Oasis (are you HAPPY NOW, ma??):

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=24439489

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=24440308

Also, new pics are now posted:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cvajdespres/sets/72157602143712479/

No time to blog, we need our laptop to be working again.

The next 5 years

2007-12-10T08:52:00.000-06:00

So, I went to my doctor on Friday to get the Mirena IUD so I will not be pregnant ever again (at least for the 5 years it is supposed to last). Before the procedure, the nurse told me that I may feel cramping for several months until my body gets used to this foreign object. I thought nothing of it, especially since she mentioned it so nonchallantly (if that is a word). But as soon as it was inserted, I felt like I was in LABOR. I thought it would pass after a few minutes so I got dressed and left the office. I made it to the bathrooms outside the office and just kinda hung out in there since I couldn't really stand up straight and I was so nauseated I thought I was going to throw up. This whole time I am thinking, is this what it will feel like for SEVERAL months?? Then I thought it was getting better and decided to go home. Halfway home I called the doctor's office since it really wasn't getting any better and asked to speak to the nurse to see if this was normal. Of course she could not be reached right away, so I had to wait for a call back. TWO AND A HALF HOURS LATER she calls to let me know that it is pretty normal and to just take something for it. Ugh. By that time I had already felt MUCH better, thanks to Andrea...she watched my girls while I went to the doctor and then she watched them so I could lie down for a while and rest. I can't thank her enough!

So if you are thinking you want to get this IUD, I am all about it...just make sure you have planned at least half a day to rest afterward!

Who needs sleep?

2007-11-27T16:11:00.000-06:00

So, Joscelyn has semi-slept through the night the past 2 nights. The first night she woke up at 2, but got herself back to sleep within minutes and then I woke her up to feed her on schedule. Last night she slept through, not waking up at all, and guess who gets up at freaking 4:45? AIDENNE. She was wide awake wanting to play. So I did what all awesome mothers would do...I turned on the TV and went back to sleep on the couch, only waking up when each show was over and I had to find another on the DVR. She fell asleep with me on the couch after about the 3rd show and we slept until 9:30. So I have had 2 nights of sleeping way more than I normally do, but I am all exhausted and headache-y. I just want to sleep until I WAKE UP, not when Joss wakes me up with her high-pitched pig squeal, or when Aidenne does the creepy kid stare in the middle of the night. You know what I mean, right??

Standing and peeing.

2007-11-20T15:50:00.001-06:00

OK, so Joss pulled herself up on the Little Tykes table we have upstairs, trying to get to Aidenne's juice box. When I lifted it up and out of her reach, she took her hands off the table and reached for the juice. So she was STANDING on her own for at least 4 seconds!! And she didn't fall, she just put her hands back on the table. She is so strong. Aidenne is a great big sister, motivating Joss to get up and around just like her! Aidenne doesn't really like the fact that Joss is so mobile now. She usually picks up her toys and moves to another part of the room so Joss can't play. I am not looking forward to the fights I will have to break up in the very near future.

Speaking of Aidenne, I have made it a routine to try to go potty every night before her bath (yes, this is the only time we try all day because I am extremely lazy when it comes to this potty training stuff). But last night, I told her to go potty instead of asking her if she needed to, and she did! It was just a little bit, but she was so proud of herself! If anyone has any potty training tips, please GIVE THEM TO ME because I am just clueless on how to start...I tried the "leave them naked all day" technique, but that only lasted about an hour and a half--I cannot have her peeing on the carpet! I don't have time to clean it up every 2 seconds, and I cannot have Joss crawling over carpet cleaner/pee all day. (Those are my two reasons, Ma!)

I wanna MOVE!!

2007-11-15T12:23:00.000-06:00

I just want our own space! That is all I will say on the subject.

The girls are awesome as usual. Don't have time to write, but I posted more pics:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/sets/72157602143712479/

and a new video:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=22137375 .

Kids say the darndest things.

2007-11-12T19:24:00.000-06:00

Today Aidenne, Joss and I went to a playnastics class. Aidenne had so much fun going down the slide into the big foam pit. She also loved jumping up and grabbing the bars--she can hang and swing for a loooooong time. She is really coordinated, I think we will enroll her in the classes they have there, so that she will keep up with it!

I have been trying to teach Aidenne her full name...when I say her middle name, Camille, she thinks I am saying "come here", so she says her name as "Aidenne Come-here Away." If that isn't the funniest thing ever, I don't know what is!

I took a video the other day when it was cold outside. Joss kept shivering and her tiny lips kept quivering, so I tried to get it on camera, but it didn't work out too well! She of course wouldn't do it anymore. But the video is really cute anyway, Joss is concentrating on the wonder that is Zoey and Aidenne is being a ham as usual!

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21927842

We are starting a strict routine with the girls so that they will go to bed at the same time every night and Cliff and I can actually hang out for a little while before passing out for the night. So wish us luck, this week will be the hardest!

Another video

2007-11-09T16:11:00.000-06:00

Aidenne taught herself how to do somersaults. All of a sudden the other night, she said "Watch me!" and did about 25 in a row. Luckily I got 3 good ones on camera!

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21665308

Videos

2007-11-07T13:06:00.001-06:00

I have been trying to post videos, but I am unsure how to do it here. The best I can do is give you the links.

Aidenne singing:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21605520

Joss eating peas:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21605907

Aidenne's 2nd birthday:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21607403

Aidenne playing peekaboo with Joss:

http://myspacetv.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=21614188

Long time no blog!

2007-11-06T15:41:00.000-06:00

The girls just had their well-baby check-ups at their new doctor this morning, and they are both healthy and growing! Aidenne is as usual huge and in the 90th percentile for everything and Joss is average in the 50th percentile. I need to make friends here, possibly one with no kids who would like to accompany me on their doctor appointments. How can I hold both kids after they have been given shots?? Poor things were at the doctor's office for 2 hours being pushed and poked and shot, and told to sit quiet in one room the whole time. Not fun at all and all girls (including myself) were in tears by the end! No matter how many times you do it, you just can't watch your little ones get shots, especially if you have to hold them down for the nurse and they are looking at you with their wet, red faces as if to say, "why are you doing this to me?"

We haven't been doing much lately, just trying to go to some of the MOMS club outings. The Children's Museum was the latest outing, and it was really cool--the kids can see and play with all the exhibits. There is a dinosaur exhibit, and Aidenne liked digging for fossils. There was also a play hospital where you can turn on the lights in the ambulance, weigh the babies on a real scale, and listen to heartbeats with stethoscopes. There was also a spaceship exhibit where you could push a lot of buttons, a big outdoor water exhibit and a climbing wall. Aidenne tried everything at least once. And during the fall/winter it is only $5 to get in, so I think we will be going there often!

Aidenne has also made a new friend in the neighborhood. Her name is Oasis and the way Aidenne says it sounds soooo cute! And I LOVE getting to have an adult conversation with her awesome mom while the kids play.

Joscelyn is crawling and pulling herself up like crazy, I swear she will be walking any day...I don't think she likes being a baby. She sees what Aidenne can do and eat, and she wants it all! Aidenne was trying to feed her the carrots from her lunch today, and Joss loved it until I pulled it out of her mouth! She usually pulls herself up on the back of Aidenne's chair (the little toddler chair) while she eats lunch, and tries to figure out how she can get the food.

I can't wait until next weekend when Chris and Michaela will be here. We miss them so much! Michaela is going to take our family pics at a nearby park, and hopefully we will get at least one good one for the Christmas card.

Then the next weekend is Thanksgiving and my sister will be in town on her way to Colorado, so I am REALLY excited about that. Aidenne loves her Auntie Fristin. And congrats to Auntie Fristin on her NEW job in Colorado! It's frickin cold there, and she is moving right in the middle of winter. It's ok because she has the perfect ET outfit to keep her warm! WOOP!!

Lots of new pics to see:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/sets/72157602143712479/

Leave comments on the pics, people. I love it when people tell me how cute my kids are.

The Wedding

2007-10-18T14:25:00.000-05:00

Last weekend was my sister's wedding. It was so much fun. Aidenne and I got to go for the whole week before, so I got to help out a bit with some errand-running and preparing! The drive over with her lasted 11 hours, but she was amazingly good! Cliff and Joss flew in the day before the wedding, and we had the rehearsal dinner that night. Aidenne didn't have a nap all day, and was of course TOTALLY OUT for the entire rehearsal, so she didn't get to practice. She was probably the only one that needed it, too! Then we went to the dinner, which was fun after Cliff took the kids home! I don't like bringing my kids in public, haha.

The wedding actually went better than I thought it would (Aidenne-wise). She had to be carried down the aisle, but once we were there, she was very well-behaved. She mainly hung out behind the officiant in the hockey goal (yes, I said hockey goal!) so I am proud of her. She didn't scatter the flower petals, but she did dump them in a big pile at the end of the aisle, so at least they ended up in sort of the right spot!

The ceremony was awesome--it was short, to the point, and very funny and meaningful! You could tell Andy was a little nervous which was sweet. The reception was really awesome, the DJ was hilarious and was in his own world most of the night. Aidenne loved to dance with the other kids (especially Matthew, the ring bearer, and his little brother Michael...they are both handsome little dolls!) She also loved that she could reach all the food at the buffet table and proceeded to eat every tomato in sight! Her dress shows it, too. My sister said the night went just the way she wanted, which is awesome, I am so glad she had fun, too! My maid-of-honor speech rocked, that's all I'll say about that.

The next day Cliff, Aidenne, Joss and I drove ALL the way back to Texas. We had to miss the opening presents brunch that morning, I wish we had stayed longer. We made it back home in 10 hours, 45 minutes and were completely exhausted.

So now we are settled back at home, and Joss is crawling around like an old pro. She has started pulling herself up on things, and can sit unsupported now. Today she pulled herself up on the couch and stood up for a long time! I wanted to take a picture, but I was downloading all the pictures from the camera onto the computer, so I couldn't. If you want to see the wedding pics, go to:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/sets/72157602499784866/

These are just a few that I took and have collected from other people, but there will be more...I know there was more taken of Aidenne and Matthew, so check again soon!

I have also added a few more pictures to our family album:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/sets/72157602143712479/

Enjoy!!

Jossie is getting so big!

2007-10-04T10:51:00.000-05:00

Yesterday Joscelyn turned 6 months old and she started crawling! She looks so cute, she takes one hand and s-l-o-w-l-y reaches it up then puts it s-l-o-w-l-y down in front of her, then moves her legs, then does the same with the other arm. It is hilarious!

Aidenne and I are leaving for Mobile early tomorrow morning for my sister's wedding...I can't wait to be there, obviously to see my sister whom we haven't seen since early this summer, but also so I will have the car ride over with. Aidenne is known for her hatred of riding in vehicles. I am not looking forward to the 10 hours of screaming! I am leaving very early so hopefully she will be really tired and sleep for the first couple hours.

I will miss Jossie while we are gone though, she will probably get so much faster at the crawling thing by the time she and Cliff get to Mobile the next weekend!

I am Kristin's MATRON of honor (that makes it sound like I am extremely old), but I am so excited. She picked out the best bridesmaid dresses for us, so I am really excited about that. Her wedding is going to be an awesome Celine Dion-less party! I hope I can make my matron of honor speech as awesome as Kristin made hers for my wedding. GO ED MANAGBANAG, WOOP!!

I will be packing for the rest of the day, but I have uploaded more photos:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/sets/72157602143712479/

Check back soon for video of Jossie crawling!

I feel a rant coming on...

2007-09-25T07:43:00.000-05:00

Cliff and I got to go to dinner last night while his dad watched the girls for us. It is always nice to do that! So first we stopped at Game Stop so Cliff could trade in some PS2 games for one PS3 game (and we still had to pay about 50% of the price!) Then we headed to TGIFriday's to eat. I ordered all the food that I had seen advertised on TV and have wanted to try forever since there was no TGIF's in Denton. We are in the middle of eating our fried green bean appetizer when the whole staff starts clapping and singing Happy Birthday to someone. SERIOUSLY PEOPLE---if you are going to celebrate your birthday in public, DON'T TELL THE WAITSTAFF! I can't remember the last time I went to a restaurant and they weren't calling the attention of all the customers to sing Happy Birthday to a total stranger. Last time we went out it happened TWICE before we left. Anyway, maybe I should be angry at the restaurant managers. Isn't giving the birthday person a free dessert enough? Why do you have to disrupt everyone else's dinner? Some of us just want to go eat where it will be semi-quiet, away from children, etc. UUUUUGGHHHHHHH!!!!

Birthday Weekend

2007-09-24T13:08:00.000-05:00

This weekend was soooo busy! Cliff and his dad's side of the family all went to the UT football game on Saturday while I took the girls to hang out with his mom's side of the family. (PS - UT won the football game THANKFULLY - it is always a rough couple of days when they lose.)

Sunday was Aidenne's 2nd birthday party, which went really well (see the slideshow on this page and go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/14141553@N08/ to see bigger images and other pics). We started with the cake (yes, I made it and yes, I again amazed myself with my cake decorating abilities!) and then Aidenne (slowly) opened her presents. She received TONS of toys and clothes, including TWO keyboards. Then we all went outside to swim/talk/swing.

Once everyone left, I cleaned up and went to Best Buy to see about getting a DVD player installed in the car (we are taking an 11-hour car trip in two weeks, so we need it BAD). But they proceeded to tell me they wouldn't be able to install it in my car since newer cars are made so cheaply that there is no support in the ceiling for the player. So what did I do? I would like to say that I saved the money we had to buy it, but I didn't. I bought a really cheap portable DVD player and then I bought Cliff a Playstation 3. A PLAYSTATION 3!! Why?!?!? Football season just started, I don't think he needs another distraction! Oh well, I had a momentary lapse of judgment, but Cliff is an awesome husband so he stinkin' deserves it. I guess.

Annie

2007-09-11T08:41:00.000-05:00

Aidenne has apparently renamed herself. She calls herself Annie, and when we try to get her to say "Aidenne", she adamantly says "No, ANNIE!" Maybe she is already mad at the strange way we spelled her name...

Joscelyn is still quite a handful, but she is so sweet! She smiles at everyone who smiles at her, and she is getting very good at sitting up on her own. She even looks like she will be crawling soon, she gets up on her hands and knees and rocks.

Since we have moved closer to family members, Cliff and I have gotten to go out on a couple dates. It is so nice to get away from the children, especially when Grandpa always has them in bed by the time we get home!

I am new to this blog site, but check back soon for more pictures and updates on our amazing, genius girls!