Wednesday, September 30, 2009

MIA.....

I'll be away from my blog for awhile but if you really will miss me (ha) I am on twitter and facebook:)
See you soon!!!!!!
Thanks my friends~Bridget

Wordless Wednesday

(almost)
She's scared of the Easter Bunny....


Santa...

and the big Red Monsters......

at the drive thru

carwash

Monday, September 28, 2009

Living The Suite Life

We sold tons of stuff and moved the rest to storage....on what felt like the hottest day of the year!!!!!!!

I had the help of 2 strong boys....

and 2 strong men!

Now we are living the suite life for a couple of weeks! (I have a maid everyday!) And free breakfast every morning.....I could get use to this:)

Stay tuned......

Friday, September 25, 2009

Just A Few Announcements........

This week the 40 days for life fall campaign started! Today marks the 3rd day and already 22 babies saved!!! If you are not involved yet, you can find a city near you. I was able to be at the kickoff in Montclair.



We had some heavy duty art crimes happen at the Ryan house this week. This graffiti art is done by Landen(surprise)with the help of his gangster sister Farrah.

But Mom, it's my friend Mr. Light switch man....watch his eyes open and close.
ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!!!!

The picture of Mr. Light switch man wasn't intended for the blog it was taken with my phone to send to daddy at work...I was hoping he could come home and whip some booties!!!!

My baby sis....

is getting married!
Last weekend was her bridal shower. I thought I would steal some pictures from my sisters blog to put up on mine.
I'm the bad sister...that didn't take any pictures or help with the shower:(
Thanks to my sister Brianna, mom and grandma for taking over. This move is killing me! ugh!

We finally got a 4 generation picture! I've been wanting to take one with all the girls and my mom and grandma. We might have to try again soon...only 3 of us knew where the camera was ha!

We should be all moved out by this weekend!
I might be MIA....but will update when I can.
But I can't leave without announcing the winners......
For the Hungry Baby giveaway....
Michelle Bradley won the girl cover
and
KDot won the boy cover!
For the Cutie Pa TuTu giveaway the winner is...
Laura at 3times a mom.
And for the HMDM Congrats 2inblue!
Please email your address so I can get those out to you.
carlsbadryan@aol.com
Thank you Jen and Nicholle for sponsoring such fun giveaways!
Thank you everyone for visiting. I have met so many nice people through my blog. People that have made this move less stressful too. From getting pizza delivered as a surprise dinner from a family all the way in Texas to all the boxes we needed delivered to my house! Thank you so much! Have a great weekend everyone!

Gotta Love These Field Trips.......

Naturally a trip to Washington, D.C. featuring a tour of Capitol Hill, viewing the Congress and the Senate in session, along with seeing our Supreme Court in action would be the most desirable. Someday (soon) we plan to go... But for now, a replica will have to do.


Here's some of the 5th graders from our homeschool group at Quality West Wing.
Here they are in the Oval office. It is over 95% to scale and was designed by a Hollywood set designer. The details of the room are modeled after how the office looked while Ronald Reagan was in office.

Austin took a four part tour. First, the kids watched a cartoon about the Constitution and how the founding fathers developed it's concepts. Then the students break up into smaller groups and move into one of three rooms. They discuss some of the presidents, talk about the construction of the white house and get an up close look at the House of Representatives, Senate and Supreme Court in session with detailed models that perfectly represent the current members according to race, gender and age. The kids then go into a computer lab where they use a program that simulates a day in the president's shoes. They are sworn into office and must then sign bills, make speeches, and work with diplomatic leaders on solving today's problems. Later the kids go into a large room where the walls are covered in historical documentation, books are set out and other items to assist them in completing a questionnaire scavenger hunt.
Austin learned a lot,(in fact you should of heard some of the bills he passed) He would make a great president someday:) It was an amazing experience. Very Educational, fun and entirely out of the ordinary.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Ridin' My Kids Around Piggy Back

He is the jockey and the master...

laughing at me and yelling to go faster...

Giddap! Giddap!

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

A TuTu Cute Halloween....GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!




Oh yes, it's that time of year again. Halloween is just around the corner! What are your little one's going to be? I like to be original and dress my kids in either a theme or something not every other child is dressed in at the church carnival. I also like to keep on a budget (Halloween can get very expensive when your dressing lots of kids)

Let your little one be totally unique this holiday wearing one of Cutie PaTuTu Boutique's many original and super cute tutu sets!
Like this cute candy corn fairy!


or how about this pirate....

I am going to order my girls these for Halloween. I just love tutu's and of course I will have to order Farrah and Finley these PRECIOUS bloomers to wear underneath their tutu's!!!


Well here's your chance to WIN a tutu Halloween costume for your little one.
All you have to do is visit Cutie PaTuTu Boutique


and let me know which one you like best then head on over to Cutie PaTuTu's Blogand become a follower! That waY you can check back as she will be adding lots of new things. If you have an idea she does take special orders.
I will be picking a winner by random.org on Friday!
So hurry!!! If you don't win by Friday you still have time to put your order in or if you have a custom order you can do that too.
Have fun!!!Don't forget to tell your friends!
See I told you lots of fun giveaways this week!!!!!!

Monday, September 21, 2009

The Hungry Baby! GIVEAWAY!!!!

Are you a nursing mom or know someone who is? My baby is almost 14 months and she's still nursing...I've never nursed this long. All my babies stopped on their own at about 9 months. Not Finley!!!
As you know I am always on the go and yes, I nurse on the go too....When you have a demanding hungry baby you gotta do what you gotta do.....but in style of course:)
I love my Hungry Baby nursing covers! In fact I have about 8 different styles:)

That's me hiding under that big hat...
feeding my hungry baby who's hiding under my very stylish nursing cover made by
The Hungry Baby


Jen author of House of Krause is the owner of The Hungry Baby.


This is her adorable family!
She is a dear friend of mine.
She is a mother of three. The baby in the family is Luke.(adorable little boy with big blue eyes and curly blond hair) He is almost 3 yrs old now and has childhood Apraxia of speech. Her blog is dedicated to reach others who are affected with Apraxia also. She is an amazing mom and I am even more amazed as I follow her on HER JOURNEY with her son Luke!

Being that Luke is almost 3 years old he will lose all his services through his regional center, including his one on one speech therapy, his play therapist and his occupational therapist. His therapy sessions have helped Luke so much in the past year and a half.
The therapy sessions are very expensive and the Krause family wasn't able to keep him in his sessions.
When another sweet family (who I am proud to know) had been planning to take a Disney cruise this summer, and after a serious family meeting they all decided they would cancel their trip and use the money to pay for another six months of speech therapy for Luke!



Jen is so grateful but feels terrible that 3 very special little girls won't be able to board that ship. There is a reason children grow up to be givers. There is a reason children grow up to have compassion in their hearts. It’s something that is learned. Jen prays God will bless this family a hundred folds. This family has such big hearts!
All money earned from The Hungry Baby will go to the Krause Family to help with Luke.
You can visit them on Ebay. The are also carried in boutiques. If you live in the area you can visit:
Claremont Village Treasures.Mention my blog and get them at a discount price! (money will go to Krause family)
Very cute boutique by the way!!!!!!
These covers also make great gifts!
Jen is sponsoring a giveaway for all Don't Blink friends!
All you have to do is visit her Ebay store and let me know if you have a hungry baby boy or a hungry baby girl. We will be giving away 2 Hungry Baby covers! (picked by random.org this Friday!)
My personal fav is the "Lady Yang." You can use it for either boy or girl. I get so many compliments on it.
For this giveaway we will give the adorable Kool Whip for your hungry boy and the Chocolate Kisses for your hungry girl.
Happy nursing that Hungry Baby of yours:)

Hand Me Down Monday


Halloween edition!
Calling all zookeepers! Do you have some wild kids that would make some perfect wild animals this Halloween????
I know I could be selling all this on Ebay and making some extra money. But I thought it would be fun to bless some of my readers. If you would like a costume or costumes for one of your kids or all of your kids (I have a whole zoo I could dress you in) I would love to give it to you!
Leave a comment telling me what costume you would like for which child. If you know someone who would love this theme costume...send them on over. Or if you have 5 little kids yourself and these work for you too, let me know.
Or maybe you just like one of them and your child really wants to be a monkey etc....
After going over the comments I will pick the winners (myself this time) So kiss up in the comment section:)
Gorilla is a kids one sz fits all (I would say sz7-10)
Tiger is a kids small. I would say sz. 6-8
Elephant is a sz small. I would say fits sz 3-5
Monkey I would say fits 2T-3T
and Panda fits 6mo to 12mo


The Zookeepers trying to tame their wild animals to take a family picture!

Happy Monday!!!!
Stay tuned....We have some awesome giveaways planned this week!
---------------------------------
Winners for last weeks HMDM by random.org are:
Kimberly for the sz 12
and
Shannon for the sz 3T
Please email me your addresses so I can get those dresses mailed out to you:)
carlsbadryan@aol.com

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Another Supermom Moment!



Letting your 4 yr old watch your 2 yr old so you can get some packing done!
Not smart!
Farrah is now sporting a new layered haircut and a nice full leg tattoo.

The Fair



Hi Ya'll


We just got back from the fair....



and yes, I finally grew enough hair


for pigtails......




I am usually very shy, but seeing



all the farm animals got me excited....




so I started to scream a little....just a little




I liked the pigs


and the cows....


but I liked the food most of all....especially chewing on the hay!



My mom made these two wild kids wear bright green colored shirts because they tend to run off in big crowds and she likes to be able to spot them fast....
My mom just needs to learn to either go barefoot like me or wear
some running shoes so she can chase after them faster....

Nana came with us.........

We all had a great time.......


ok, maybe too much fun!!!!!!

Love, Finn

Thursday, September 17, 2009

There's No Time Like The Present

These two little darlings are now 8 and 10!

Sitting in our backyard of the first house we bought. We thought these two were it.......
We were done having kids......
I was 21 and my husband was 23.....
We had the perfect house that we were going to stay in forever......
We had our boy and our girl.....
Life was good.......

But......
My husband worked LONG hours and we didn't see him much.....


So......
We sold our house and invested in starting our own business......
Daddy was home more! A lot more!
We both decided we wanted more kids.........
I'm SO glad we had moreeeeeeeeeee:)
I'm glad we didn't listen to anyone else......


God is so VERY good!

I can look back and see God's plan even though I didn't see it then.......


Time is flying by.......
I'm very busy now.........


I remember when Austin was a little baby people use to tell me," enjoy him they grow up fast. " But as young mom at 19 you think you have your whole life ahead of you and how could time go by that fast??? Ha!....but now I know what they were talking about!

I often remind myself how fast the kids are growing up. I am trying to enjoy this season in life being a mommy, because I know it will be over before I know it. I only get one chance at raising my kids and I want to make the most of it. I don't want to only be busy just taking care of all of them but to really slow down and enjoy them.


I want to jump into their little worlds and really get to know them, what they like and dislike. I want to understand their dreams and their struggles.


So, if there's something you've been longing to do, or someplace you've been dreaming about going or something you have been wanting to do with them.... go for it! What are you waiting for? We're not promised tomorrow, which is why we need to live each day as if it were our last. Love a little more. Laugh a little more. Hug your kids more. Serve God with all your heart. Don't let the sun go down without telling your family how much you love them. Spend time with them.Make sure your kids know how much Jesus loves them. Think of today as a gift from God....because it is!


Now, I still have a whole house to pack............but that will have to wait.......I promised to take my kids to the fair!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


*I know I'm dropping tons of hints.......I promise to share as soon as things are more concrete:)


Trust me I'm dying to tell you!

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Mom Someones At The Door For You!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
this post has been set as a draft post for about a month and I finally decided to publish it
after reading Mckmama's post. I wasn't ready to publish mine because I had so much more I wanted to say. But she wrote an awesome post and I couldn't of said it better myself. Her post today on Truth was one of the best posts I've ever read!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I look out the peep hole




Me:Shhhhhhhhh! pretend we aren't home!Everyone hide!
Kids:why?
Me:Because I don't have time to talk.
Kids:But mom it's a chance to share God's word.
Me:ugh,your right!



My kids are right and so this started a month long of meetings. My husband and I met with some nice young boys and had some long conversations.(God is so good)
You see our family and friends comes from many different religions. I grew up a Christian but how did I know my Mom was right? So, I looked into many religions and studied what they believed. My kids and I do the same together. I want them to know that they are a Christian not because Mommy and Daddy are but because they believe it for themselves and can tell you why they believe what they believe. I also think it's important for them to know what other religions believe. How can you share if you haven't looked into it yourself?
Some of our family and friends don't claim to belong to any religion, but still believe there's a God out there. We even have some friends and family who are Atheist.
So, who's right?
Whose God is the real one?
Are we all climbing the same mountain on different trails to reach the same single peak where we will all see the same God?
Are we all going to make it to heaven as long as we're climbing up the mountain living pretty good lives?
Many people I have shared with, their beliefs seem so valid, especially when they seem so sincere. I have talked to many people and so called" Christians" but the minute I start talking about the God of the Bible, they refuse to accept my "narrow" definition of who God is and what He expects out of humankind. There is a big difference in believing in God and believing God. Simply because you believe in a God doesn't mean that you are going to do what He says. The Bible says that even the demons believe in God and they certainly don't do what God says. On the other hand when you believe God, you believe what He says and you take His words to heart.
When Jesus, who is God in human form, said, "no one can come to the Father except through me" John 14:6
He meant it!
There isn't another way to gain God's favor and secure your eternal destiny with God except through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
People want to believe in God, but they don't want to believe Him. They don't want to do what He says.
I try to remember when someone calls my beliefs "narrow" that God said there aren't many ways to God, there's only one!

Head on over to Mckmama's post for today, she's amazing!!!!
Amen Mckmama!

And next time someone knocks on your door......don't hide! Always be ready!



Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Many Perks!

Homeschooling has its ups and downs like any other project or lifestyle that we adopt, but after having homeshooled for awhile now, I have found that the benefits far outweigh the negatives. In fact, there are many perks that make me a happier mama!

Just the fact that I don't have to rush out every morning to get the kids to school on time is a major perk! ha!
Another huge perk for us is the fact that my kids can spend a lot of time with their Great-grandparents.
We often go to breakfast at the Greats house. We bring some of our work and spend a couple hours there. Grandpa sings hymns and prays with the kids. It's memories my kids wouldn't have if we didn't choose this lifestyle.

plus my Grandpa is a math wiz (big perk)

Monday,we celebrated Grandparents Day by inviting them over for breakfast at our house this time. Grandma (my mom) was able to make it too before she had to go to work:) The kids enjoyed serving their Grandparents breakfast. We had the table set up and "played restaurant."



Another perk is I am not just teaching my children.
I am instilling a love of learning and a thirst for knowledge.
My kids LOVE school!

This week Austin is begging me to write a report on Helicopters. Faith, has completed 5 book reports because she LOVES to read. (on things that interest her) I like to go with what they are showing interest in and rent books and print unit studies up on those things. I also encourage them to do a lot of research on their own.

With the largest wildfires in Southern California history going on, the kids and I have been praying for the firefighters every morning during our bible time.
After making a Starbucks run (another perk) we went to watch the firefighting helicopters fill up on fire retardant.(and you guessed it the kids did research on it)


another perk my 10yr old gets to spend a lot of time with his 4yr old brother. They are so close yet so far in age.

and he's learning right along side him.




photography by Austin...another perk!

As you can see, homeschooling is indescribable and exhilarating because there really are not a lot of rules to get in the way. Instead,I can try and be creative and personalize my children's education. (Which I am having a lot of fun with) Sure, there are going to be times when my children need to learn things that I don't know but since they love learning and know how to find information I will not have to pound the information into their heads. They will go discover the information for themselves because they want to know it.
Just being home with my kids all day everyday in this short season of life really is the best perk of all!
What are some of your perks?

Monday, September 14, 2009

HAND ME DOWN MONDAY



While packing today and sorting out things to take to the Goodwill I came up with an idea.
First, it was lets go do a trash the dress kids style photo shoot in the backyard ha!
Although that would of been fun, I thought maybe I would give some of you a chance to win these dresses.
Both only worn for a couple hours!
this is sz 3T



This is sz 12month


Then as I kept digging in the attic and finding all sorts of things I have spent a lot of money on...
Stuff that is too good to just give to Goodwill.
I came up with Hand Me Down Mondays!
I know I'm no Gwen Stefani but I still thought it would be fun to do.
I know some of you might not be into hand me downs but those of you who don't mind,(like me) I'll have some cool things to giveaway.
I guess we will see how it goes.
So here is the first HMDM!
I will try and do a Hand Me Down Monday every Monday.
Today's contest will be picked by random.org on Thursday night.
The rules...
You can enter one comment telling me whatever you want or just say Hi!
You can enter two comments if you link to this post on your blog about HMDM and let me know you did.
If you think my idea stinks and it's ghetto then just let me know that too haha!
*bows are not included.
Please leave which sz dress you are wanting either the 12mo or the 3T.
Oh and I can't give ALL the cute girly stuff away because turns out my sister who was having a boy is NOW having a GIRL!!!!!!!!

p.s. I'm thinking I need a blog button for this? Maybe a new design? Help!
email me!

Sunday, September 13, 2009

Don't Go There Girlfriend!

This picture has nothing to do with the post, just Farrah after she got into my make-up!
At least the black eyeliner is somewhat around the eye,(a little on the arm) and the lip gloss in on the lips (kind-of.) I just don't understand why she thought the big glob of lip gloss in the middle of the forehead was necessary?

"Don't go there, girlfriend!" I have a friend who says that to me when I start heading down the self-pity pit. This week I thought I'd throw my self a little pity party. It's over now! I went shopping and got some new make-up and 3 new much needed bras! ha! The simple things in life that make this mom feel better:)
You see, once I get down in that pit, it's hard to claw my way back out. For me, all it takes is dwelling on something negative for a few minutes (like the 5lbs I've gained when I've been trying to lose) or not knowing where we will be living in less than 3 weeks) and the next thing I know, I am looking up from the center of the yucky pit.
It's like the devil knows what buttons to push in order to make me feel down.
Have you ever watched a college cheerleading squad? Their motions are perfect, in sync and very sharp. If one member is behind a half a count, everyone can tell.
Well, I feel like a cheerleader who is a half a step behind the entire routine. Sometimes it seems that a lot of the moms I know have it all together and I'm kicking with the wrong leg. The devil loves to point out my shortcomings and whisper things like, "Ok, Bridget who do you think you are?" "How can you even homeschool when you don't even have a house to homeschool in etc..."
This week I'm taking my friends advice and I'm not going there!!! I'm going to think positive! I believe that is why the Bible tells us to think on good and lovely things because God knows how we get. When I start to compare myself to other mom's or start to worry about the future, I'm going to stop and right then begin thanking God for giving me the wisdom and strength to be the best mom I can be. I'm going to thank God for the plans he already has in store for me. That way if I respond to the devil with praise for the Father, I'll send him packing!

Friday, September 11, 2009

Laugh!

To be honest with you, I'm not in the mood to laugh. But this jokester can make his mama laugh no matter what. No matter how down I am.


I thank God for him! I thank God for his awesome sense of humor!

When I'm down he knows how to put a grin on my face.
He knows how to encourage my spirit.
Laughter is an important part of life and he reminds me of that.
When I'm stressed (because we have 19 days left until we have to be out of this house) he makes me laugh and helps release some tension.
He's teaching me to just laugh and not take life too serious.
Life is short and enjoy it even when times are tough.
Laugh at yourself, laugh with others, laugh often.
I'm serious...It's no laughing matter:)
~I love you Landen
thank you for making Mommy laugh!