Wow, who would have thought?

So the first week of 2012 is all but over. I started out the week strong by knocking out the first organization challenge in one day. And I'm happy to report that my counter tops and sink stayed clean and spotless the entire week. It's amazing how much better I feel with a cleaned off kitchen table, counter top, and sink. I feel as if I'm already ahead of myself when I start the day. Who would have thought?

Yes, dorky me is already excited about tomorrow's challenge. It must be the competitive part of me that really drives me. I perform so much better when I have to earn points, get something accomplished by a deadline, or out-perform someone else. I'm crossing my fingers that tomorrow's challenge is cleaning out the pantry and cabinets. If you are joining in, be sure to check my Organization tab tomorrow! I'll post it as soon as I get the email! Yes, I'm weird like that!

So through out the week I've visited a few blogs and have scoured Pinterest and came across Becky Higgins' "Project Life". Basically it's trying to get you to take a picture every day and journal about it. Well, I know taking a picture every day is kinda pushing it, but taking a picture every once in a while and journaling or jotting down a thought every day seems do-able. Maybe in 2013, once I'm completely organized, I can really dive in to Project Life. Until then, here's what went on in the Simmons' house the first full week of 2012.

M-1.2.12
Began the Organization Challenge and conquered it in one day! Ready for some routine again!

Tu-1.3.12
Carston went back to school wearing Bengal pants, shirt, jersey, and sweatshirt. He wore orange socks and took his Bengal pillow pet for Show and Tell. Can you say "WHO DEY"! :)

Wed-1.4.12
Carston turned 4!!! The day started with the balloon tradition, then the Lomshek boys helped us celebrate at the bowling alley, and to top it off Zac Dickey stopped by for some cake. The Jayhawks beating the Wildcats while wearing his brand new jersey was priceless!

Th-1.5.12
Basketball practice, math homework, and studying for Spelling. Yep, back in the swing of things.

Fri-1.6.12
Cooper had practice. No more pee-wee. Now we have two sets of practices to go to. I'll be living in the van soon enough.

Sat-1.7.12
Busy day at the Simmons' house. It started in Lamar, MO at 9am with the Gorillas. After the game was over Colton, Cooper, and I headed back to Pitt for Coop's 11 o'clock game. Cooper scored a basket and according to Coach Simmons, Cade had his best game this year. We were all excited for the Bengals' playoff game....and then bummed. :(

Sun-1.8.12
12 years ago today I married my best friend! And what better way to celebrate than in Lamar, MO watching 5th grade basketball. One of these days I hope we'll get to go somewhere really neat and celebrate!

All in all, a very good week. Looking forward to trying a few new recipes this week. And hopefully cleaning out those cabinets and pantry!

Hello 2012

So I didn't start this on New Years Day, but I thought about it. Does that count? It's also day 2 of 2012 and I have yet to exercise or stop drinking pop. And we'll forget about the handful of M&Ms that were calling my name and I couldn't resist eating.

The good news is, I don't feel defeated. With sick kids this past week, the in-laws in town, football to watch, and a birthday to celebrate, I didn't have the time or the energy to pre-plan my New Years Resolutions and expectations for 2012. No, my house is a wreck, laundry still needs done, cabinets cleaned, new toys put away, and Thank You cards written. I need a good week to recoup and really get my mind in a good place.

I am thinking about my resolutions though. I know I want to become BETTER ORGANIZED! So I found an organization challenge on Pinterest and signed up for the weekly email. This week's challenge: Kitchen Organization (Countertops and Sink) Which I've already accomplished thank you very much!!! Now my goal is to keep it that way the rest of the week. I feel so much better already. We'd be silly to talk about the overflowing cabinets, the pantry that is in disarray, and the fridge that needs cleaning out. I'm sure I'll be tackling those issues in the days/weeks to come, but right now I have sparkling clean countertops and sink, and that makes me happy!

So what are my other resolutions or goals for 2012??? I'll list 'em and then that way I'll feel accountable. But it all comes back to my overall goal of being more organized!!!
*Lose weight-As if you didn't know that was coming. My goal is to be down 40+ pounds by 2013. My 6 month goal is to be able to wear a women's cut shirt and feel good about it. I really don't care about the scale, but more about how clothes fit.
*Eating better-Not just for me, but for the boys too.
*Exercise-It all goes hand-in-hand.
*Drink more H2O-Going to be a tough one for me!
*Get Moving-I found myself in a rut in 2011. I lacked motivation to do anything. So in 2012 I want to get both my body and my mind moving. I'm hoping to do that with exercise and planning. I'm a calendar, planning, list-making, and schedule freak. I'm also competitive and have a love/hate for deadlines or time limits. Therefore all those "challenges" I'm starting will be just what I need to get me moving!
*Finish What I've Started-I have a playroom still waiting to be completed and other projects as well. This year I want to tie up all the loose ends and be better about finishing things.
*Blog More-Let's face it, it's the new way to scrapbook. And until I can pull out the paper and glue, it's how I'll remember what went down in 2012. So prepare yourself!
*Read-I was going strong at the beginning of 2011 but something happened, not sure what. So my first book of 2012...The Help. Yes, I just saw the movie, but I'm hoping the book is even better.
*Try A New Recipe-I'd like to do this once a week, but since I really despise cooking, I'm going to settle for maybe once every two weeks. I'm hoping that I'll learn to enjoy cooking in 2012. We shall see. You know, it's not so much the cooking I don't like, it's constantly having to think about food. When Eric and the kids are gone, I could be fine just eating cheerios. Seriously.

So that's a pretty good start to begin 2012. I'm excited for this year and can't wait to see what it has in store for our family. Here's to wishing you and your families many blessings this coming year as well.

A Spooktacular Halloween at the Simmons' house!

To be honest, Halloween is not my most favorite holiday. If I could sew amazing costumes, I might think otherwise. But this year I got in the mood a little more thanks to Pinterest and some inspired Halloween mantel ideas. So...I decorated the mantel.Then Cooper got excited because I decorated the mantel, Carston got excited because he wanted to go trick-or-treating with his buddy Joseph, Cade got excited because that meant he and his buddy Matt would get to go trick or treating, and Colton got excited because food (better yet, candy) was involved. Overall, it was a great Halloween. The little boys had a blast going up to the houses and saying "Trick or Treat". They also gave some very hefty treats when our doorbell rang, which made for an early night.

Now it's November 1st. Which means Christmas and 2012 will be here in a blink of an eye! We've got one more Halloween parade at school, and then the decorations will be coming down. I have decided to go against all WalMart and major store chains by actually decorating for Thanksgiving.

Poor Thanksgiving/Fall never seems to get much attention. Who doesn't like 55 degree football weather on a sunny, slight breeze blowing, Pitt State-playing afternoon with kids running around playing football, and food!! I'm not going to let WalMart and the Toys-R-Us Big Book suck me in to thinking about Christmas decor or shopping just yet. No, I plan on enjoying what's left of the wonderful temperatures, the beautiful colors, and take some time to be THANKFUL for everything I have.
(Before I have to knock some poor person down so I can get the last coveted "most wanted Christmas gift of 2011".)

Enjoy your fall everyone!

Monday Motivation

The past few weeks I've had some strong feelings about where I am in life, what my life was before, and where I'm going. I've always been a To-Do List writing, quote loving, goal setting type of girl. And before I had kids, I was an organized person. My house was clean, my car was clean, and it drove me crazy if it was anything but!

Fast forward 10.5 years. I make To-Do lists, but about 40% gets done (on a good day). I still love my quotes! And my goals...well, I haven't really thought about those for a while. Oh, I'm organized...in my head! But a clean house or clean car, no where near it! I realize I have kids and it's hard to keep up with them AND the house, AND the bills, AND the laundry but I could definitely be doing better, I'm just not always motivated to. I mean come on, who wakes up excited about cleaning toilets?

I've realized I've kinda lost my spunk, my motivation, my drive. I miss having that something that gave me purpose. Don't get me wrong, I love being a mom and realize that's a HUGE purpose. But I want something challenging other than a dirty diaper and only 1 wipe! I think that's why in the last two weeks I've really looked at renewing my teaching certificate.

One of the main reasons I think this feeling has emerged is because, quite frankly, the whole graduating college, getting a job, getting married, buying a house, and having a baby-thing happened REALLY fast and REALLY close together! Graduated fall of '98, got a job 2 weeks later, engaged summer of '99, married January of '00, bought a house May of '00, had Cade December of '00! (Just in case you didn't believe that it happened really fast!)

I never really felt like I gave teaching a shot or could see what I was able to do. And while I never thought I'd want to go back, teaching would be ideal for my family since I'd be off when they are off. And while it's been 10.5 years since being in a classroom, one thing is sure, I enjoy kids. Obviously, or I wouldn't have coached for so many years. I just realized that since graduating high school in '95, I've coached some form of sport (volleyball, basketball) at some level (6th grade, jr. high, high school) all but 1 year. Kids are fun and there's nothing better or more rewarding than watching them succeed.

So where is this long post going? Well, to kick start myself, I've decided to do a Monday Motivation. It will basically be a quote and maybe a few things on my To-Do List and possibly a recap of the week before. I've begun looking in to renewing my certificate and am tentatively planning on taking some classes in the spring. But to begin with, I'm starting with ME! I'm kicking my own butt for 1. becoming this heavy and 2. becoming this lazy!

So here is my Monday Motivation Quote from Nike:
"Yesterday you said tomorrow."

I've been guilty plenty of times for saying "tomorrow", but not anymore!!! It begins TODAY!! The goal setting is beginning again! And already this morning, I can check off working out and blogging! I hope your week is as productive as I'm hoping mine will be!

F is for Fall and Football!

September 23rd marked the "official" start of Fall. But here at the Simmons' house, fall begins the first time the pads go on, when the bands perform the National Anthem, when the coin is flipped for the very first time, at the first sound of the whistle, and the first opening kickoff. Football "kicks off" our fall, and we LOVE this time of year.Football can be an every day event for us.
So far every day but Tuesday.

MONDAY: Packers practice (Cade), Monday Night Football
(Doesn't even matter who's playing.)
TUESDAY: only day off
WEDNESDAY: Either Packers practice or
Packers game night (Cade)
THURSDAY: SMC Panther game or college on tv
FRIDAY: SMC Panther game or college on tv
SATURDAY: Packers (Cade), Chiefs (Cooper), and
our Gorillas!
SUNDAY: BengalsYes, our family LOVES football. It's been so fun watching Cooper dive for flags and Cade's first year of tackle. And it won't be long when we'll be going to jr. high football on Tuesdays, junior varsity games on Mondays, high school games on Thursday or Fridays, and the final YMCA games on Saturdays. Right now, I have to pack at least 2 footballs in our diaper bag so that both Carston and Colton can play while the big brothers are on the fields. We've already begun the "all football gear left outside in the garage" rule. And sneaker balls...wow, they really do make your shoes smell good.
Football is so BIG at our house that if you ask Carston,
"What time is it?"
he'll answer you with, "GAME TIME!" every time!
And now that it's OFFICIALLY fall, I can bring out the pumpkins and mums, we can take a trip to the pumpkin patch, think about Halloween costumes, and hopefully take an updated family pic in our Pitt State Red!Yes, there's nothing better than a good pair of jeans,
a nice over-sized hoody, a cool breeze, chili in the crock pot and FOOTBALL!!
Especially when the Panthers, Gorillas, Chiefs, Packers, and Bengals all win!
HAPPY FALL from the Simmons family.

My newest obsession!

As if I need yet another reason to not clean the house, cook dinner, or fold laundry....

I'd like to introduce you to my newest obsession. It's called Pinterest.Pinterest is a virtual pin board where you can categorize things you see on the web and don't want to forget. It's just like a bulletin board or an idea notebook. You can follow people, "like" something, or repin something a friend of yours has put on their "board".
I'm OBSESSED with it right now. I've come across so many good ideas. And not only with crafts, but I've also pinned recipes, gift ideas, outfits I like, decorating ideas, and quotes.
Below is just one example of a "pin" on my "Future Projects" board.
I found this idea on Pinterest:So with the help of my hubby, I set out to make my take of one. I found this frame, which initially came with cork board, at Hobby Lobby. I loved the look and how it seemed to fit on the wall in the kitchen, but we never really used it. Eric got some white marker board at Home Depot and cut it to fit inside the frame. I then decorated it and voila! I LOVE how it turned out. And whether I want to be in there or not, the kitchen is the heart of our home. They are the first lights we turn on in the morning and the last lights we turn out at night, so it made sense to keep it there. Now we can all write our intentions on the board and at the same time, it serves as a reminder to take some time out of our hectic lives to say thanks to God for all that he's given us.
I imagine that the board will fill up more once tests start, the boys have a big game, Cade loses his ipod again, or Eric's gone on those far away business trips!

So here's one of my future projects I got from Pinterest
when I should have been menu planning:Fear not friends, it's going to be either a Pitt State wreath, or a SMC wreath. I can't decide, so I guess that means I need to make both! :)

Hope everyone is enjoying their Labor Day weekend. We are headed to watch Cade's first football scrimmage. Yes, it's just a scrimmage, but with weather like this...who cares...we get to hang outside and it's FOOTBALL!

August Recap

It's September?? Really?? Because it feels like mid July with the 100+ temps.

I am sooo ready for fall to get here.

You can tell that our August was fast and furious, considering I didn't post 1 time the entire month. So here's a quick review of a month that just seemed to fly by! See ya August, hello fall...please!!!
It began with all 4 kiddos heading to Elkhart so I could remodel the boys' playroom. (Thank you Grandma/Grandpa Simmons!) I'd say it was a success! I LOVE it, and just have a few things to finish. Not really my ideal way to spend 7 days without kids, but definitely rewarding.
Then we went on a family vacation to Branson, MO. The house we stayed in was AWESOME! We had our own media room and pool table!
(Thanks Mom & Dad!)
While in Branson we went to White Water (twice), the lake, hit the go-cart track, and chilled. It was really relaxing and a lot of fun.We came home and shifted in to SCHOOL MODE! (Or at least I kinda did!) Hard to believe I have a 5th grader. Won't be long and he'll be heading to the jr. high. Cooper was super pumped to go to school! He loves wearing his uniform and school lunches. He doesn't care for the 3 recesses, and with this heat, I don't blame him. Carston asks every day if he gets to go to school. Unfortunately for him, he only goes 2 days a week.
Makes for a long week, but he's loving it too.
Before officially starting school we got to celebrate a birthday! COOP turned 6! He requested chicken and noodles for dinner and Oreo Cookie dessert for his "cake". YUM! Hard to believe my little guy is 6. He's such a sweetheart and I've missed not having him at home all day.
For Coop's birthday we lucked in to some Red Sox/Royals tickets. Under the influence of his older brother, Cooper became a Red Sox fan. So we had Cooper, Cade, and I wearing our Red Sox attire and Carston and Dad cheering on the Royals. It was a great night. It was Cooper's first MLB game, it was the RED SOX, and it was Fireworks Friday. We were a foul ball short of making it the BEST DAY EVER!!!

WOW...I'm almost tired again from just thinking about how busy our August was. Makes sense how the month got away from me.
So we have almost two full weeks of school under our belt. We're getting used to the early mornings, lack of naps, and homework. And now yet another activity is beginning to take over at the Simmons house.
FOOTBALL!!!Are you ready for some football, because we are!