So bad but I try

OK, I know I have not blogged in over a month. I have every intention on doing it, but I just get too busy with being a mom, a wife, a student, an employee, a daughter, an aunt, and a sister that I can't find the time! I know, I should take time to just jot some stuff down, but it is so hard!

Chris and I are still mostly dieting LOL! We have both lost some weight, but not too much. School has been really crazy the last few weeks and will continue to be crazy for about 4 more weeks. After that, we are both DONE!! Both will have our Bachelor's and our teaching cert classes done. It is amazing to think that in that short time we will both be done with school forever if we choose to be. Sure, we could go on to get our Masters, and I may someday, but I need some well deserved free time off to just enjoy my family :)

In all the craziness, I have noticed that my temper is a bit short. I try really hard, but when you have sooo many things on the brain and are always in a hurry, it is hard to keep calm. I will be the first to admit that I have a short fuse sometimes and I will also admit that I absolutely HATE the way I feel after the fuse ends. I was reading blogs yesterday and I came across a post that suggested this...30 Days of Gentleness. It is based on this verse - Proverbs 15:1 "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."

I loved this - it is sooo true! SO, today I am starting! I believe that if I can complete this task it may change me as a person and I can learn to not lose my temper and have a longer fuse! I think both my peeps will love this! I love when we are all happy! This morning I did not have one single thing to get onto Kendall for. I think she really responded to it!! I will keep you all posted!!

Other things to note, Easter passed and Kendall got some pics taken with live bunnies. My little animal lover had a BALL!! She did not want to put those babies down! Here are a few pics! We also went to Old McDonald's Farm for a b-day party and again, she could have stayed ALL day! We had sooo much fun! AND, this weekend is finally here!! Only a few more days until we go on out mother/daughter camping trip! I am so excited! Kendall has been talking about this for about 8 months when we found out about it and just plain camping for months before that! She is sad to leave Daddy and the puppies, but I reassured her that they will all be OK! So, look for a post on Monday to see how that went!!!

Have a great week and remember: Love is all you need!!!!!

Diet!

OK - sooo Chris and I started our new healthy living last week! It is a LIFE CHANGE not a diet. We both could stand to lose a few pounds so we rejoined the gym and started our new life! We are doing Weight Watchers. We are not going to the meetings or anything, but have all the tools from being a member in the past and are doing it on our own.

Honestly, it was pretty easy for me. We bought tons of low calorie snacks and lots of fruit. This helps me because I always feel so snacky at the office. By bringing many healthy options to work, I was doing well. I did not even crave Coke which, in itself, is a miracle. We cheated a little on Friday night. It was date night so we had a little cheat, but other than that we stuck to it. Chris weighed in on Sunday and he lost 10 pounds! I was sooo proud of him! The bug was being cranky and did not want to go to the gym that morning with us so I stayed home. I got too lazy and did not end up going at all on Sunday. Last night, I went and got my "last chance" workout in and went to weigh. I knew he was going to say I was 3 or 4 pounds lighter.

GUESS WHAT - I LOST..... ARE YOU READY..... ZERO.

I was so stinking mad. I wanted to binge right then. I knew there were some Girl Scout cookies in the pantry and I wanted them. Chris settled me down and I had my nice grilled chicken and vegetables for dinner and a diet ice cream. But let me tell you, if I lose zero again next week, all bets are off!!!

So, that is the crap that has been going on with me! Kendall has school pics tomorrow - they are the spring pics and cap and gown pics. I can't believe my little baby is getting cap and gown pics from pre-school graduation and in two short months she will be graduating pre-k and turning 5. I am very mixed in my emotions about this! I love that she is growing and learning but I miss that sweet little chunky baby!!! I just don't know how 5 years FLEW by in a minute! Our parents tell us it does, but WOW!!!! It is happening!

Remember to hug your babies and spend as much time with them as you can because before you know it they are grown!!

Niki - :) Love is all you need <3

Wednesday

OK first, let me say that a friend of a friend is having a giveaway contest - it is really cool! She is counting down the days to her b-day and is giving something aswesome away every other day! Here is the link to her site:

http://crystalchesser.blogspot.com/

Well, Chris and I kicked off our diet and workout this week. My body is soooo not used to eating light. Yesterday I has a banana, an apple, a Healthy Choice meal for lunch, an orange, a granola bar, and a turkey on honey wheat with mustard sandwich, baked chips and a pickle for dinner. It was all nice and healthy food, but boy were the cravings for chocolate and cookies baaaaddd.

We went to the gym and did the cardio workout on the treadmill that Chris' trainer gave us. It was intense and I sweat so much. It was great! I did not go last night because Chris is going back tonight and I have school so I did not want to have K up there 3 nights in a row. So, I will go again Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday and I will get in 4 workouts. That is all I can squeeze in for now without dragging the girl to the gym every single day (which I could never do). So let's hope that helps me lose some weight this week :)

I start physical therapy for my shoulder today. I am excited and nervous at the same time. We will see how tortured I am after.

Hope you all have a great day and remember, Love is all you need!

Niki

TIME FLIES!!

WOW! It has been a month since I made a real post. That makes me so sad. I remember that I need to blog, but get distracted (this happens easily) and then forget. So, I vow that I will blog more than once a month!!

Not too much happened in February. My birthday was on the 5th, we did not do too much. Just dinner with friends. Kendall also started swimming lessons at Lifetime today. Kids Playce is taking them every Friday over to the gym. Only $20 a month! Can't beat that. Then there was Valentine's day. It was very laid back. We went to dinner and a movie on Saturday and my mom watched Kendall and on Sunday we all exchanged gifts and went to lunch. Nice lazy day.
The next weekend was pretty low key as well. We did nothing on the 20th and then on the 21st, Andi and I went to see Miss Saigon. It was so good. I had NO idea the story and it was very good and shocking!!! This weekend we got new floors in our master bedroom. We put 16 x 16 ceramic tile in there. Our dresser broke (it was on its last leg anyway). It was a little funny because we knew how fragile it was and I really could not stand it anyway. The drawers were always breaking and I had to keep a screwdriver in one for when it happened. The bad news is that we are not prepared to buy new bedroom furniture so I have to spend some money on a replacement to last a year or two. Blecho.

The floors look great! Now all we need is paint!!!!! And new furniture. And new bedding. Oh yeah, maybe we will be done with our room in 2015 hee hee.

I love March so I am excited for it! Except for the rain, I am in a great mood! We signed back up at the gym and joined the Biggest Loser contest so I hope to stay motivated!!! I need to lose some weight so I can fit into my shorts!!

St. Patrick's day is coming and it is my FAV day! Being Irish, I love it!!!!! I don't go out for it on a weeknight, but I still love the spirit behind it!! Also, Kendall has school pics and cap and gown pics coming up on the 10th. She is not wanting to get them taken wight now, but I will bribe her LOL!! I also start physical therapy for my left shoulder that has been hurting me for, ohhh, about 14 or so years.

Only 22 weeks of work left if we can get jobs!! Only 2 1/2 mor months of school for us both to be DONE!!! There are some job fairs coming up this month and next month so be praying for us that we can get a job!!!

Other than that, all is the same - busy, busy, busy!!!!!

Until next time (hopefully sooner than later).

Niki
Remember, love is all you need!!

GIVEAWAY!

I saw a great giveaway on a friend of a friend's blog today! From what I can tell she is a reading junkie like me! If you are as in love with your husband as I am, then you will want to check this out!!

Go and check out her Blog...

http://www.sarahlett.blogspot.com/

More later on what is going on with the Buckalew's.

Love is all you need - Niki

YAY!! Girl time!!

Well, today is Thursday (my Friday this week) I leave out early tomorrow morning with some great friends and be back Sunday evening! Daddy and Kendall are going to have some bonding time and then Granny is picking her up on Saturday. She has some GREAT fun planned for them. They are going to the movies to see The Princess and the Frog, then going home to make smores (Kendall makes roasted marshmallows LOL) and then on Sunday they are making dog biscuits for Pretzel and Peanut. On Sunday night they are going to bring her back to us and meet for dinner at Ginger Cafe for my b-day (I know it is not until next week, but they will be out of town).

Kendall is going to get her eyes checked tonight! When she was at her 4yo well checkup the nurse mentioned that her vision was about 20/40 - well last week when I was at the eye dr. she told me that my right eye was 20/40 - i felt SOOO bad!!! How could I be such a bad mom and let her have blurry vision. SO, tonight we will see if she needs glasses.

That girl has been testing my patience this week with sleep. She will not go to bed. I try and lay her down and she will toss and turn for an hour - it is killing me!! Last night I was so tired after class I just wanted to relax and then Chris needed help on his homework and she would not lay down - it was exhausting. SO, tonight after the eye exam, I get to go home, eat dinner, do some homework, finish packing up and load my car so I am ready to go in the morning and fit some sleep in there somewhere! AHHH the joys of motherhood and being a wife. I told a girl in my class last night that I needed a maid, she said she needed a wife! I thought I was going to pee my pants!!!! So, this morning I told Chris that a wife is what I wanted for my b-day!!!

Clearly it can't happen, but we shall see - I would settle for a cookie cake and some books LOL!!

I have to go for now!!

Remember, Love is all you need!!!

Niki

Monday Musings...

Well, first, if anyone that reads this voted for SMA on facebook, the Gwendolyn Strong Foundation won 6th place so THANKS!!!!!!!!!!

Second, school is in full swing this week - the assignments are coming like crazy. Chris is definitely busier than me, but I try and help him out when I can :). He passed his math 4-8 contect exam so we were super excited!! His last obstacle is finishing this semester and graduating! Now we just need jobs to be all done and ready to go for the fall!!

Kendall starts Kindergaten on 08/23 and that is sooo scary! I am not ready for that by any means. I am ready to teach, but not ready for my girl to grow up. She is not supposed to be this big already!!

On another note, my friend Julie turned me on to a new blog and it is AWESOME!!!!!! It is called Tatertots & Jello. She has a gread giveaway this week and you should all check it out!!

Here is the link:

http://tatertotsandjello.blogspot.com/

Well, I have a busy week and a scrapbook retreat this weekend so if I don't post again, have a great week and I will write next week (my b-day week) WAHOO!!!

<3 Niki