When Did I Get This Old?

I know I've been married for 6 1/2 years and have two kids already, but some days I feel older than others. And in the past few weeks I have been feeling *really* old. Because not only am I old enough to have had a mortgage for almost 7 years, but we're not working on REFINANCING that mortgage. Seriously. How old does that make me sound?

And the worst part about it??? I'm excited!!! Okay, well I'm half excited. The prospect of saving a couple hundred dollars a month makes me all kinds of giddy and excited.  Think of all the money that could go into our savings, or the girls college funds, or maybe on my feet in the form of a pair of grey, high-heeled boots! {hey, a girl can dream right??}

But I'll be honest, the part I'm not so excited about is all the paper work, phone calls, and online searching we'll be doing.  So far all we've been doing in the process is looking into different banks to compare mortgages and what kind of rates and closing costs they have.  We've also been looking into what kind of tips the government gives you about refinancing.  We want to be as prepared as possible so we don't get hit with any extra fees and whatnot.

Once we settle on a bank, we'll start the endless piles of paper and make an appointment for an appraiser to come to the house.  Since the market has gone even lower since we bought this place, the appraisal is definitely causing me some anxiety.  How much our closing costs and what our rate will be depends on if our house appraises for more or less than we bought it for 3 1/2 years ago.  Anyone have a house appraised before?  Any tips to make sure we get as much money as we can?

Once the appraisal is in, it's all paper work from there.  From what I understand about refinancing, you are essentially selling your house and re buying it again, if that makes any sense.  That's where the closing costs come into play, just like when we first bought our house.

Now it may seem strange that we are refinancing when we haven't even lived here for four years yet.  We did get a pretty awesome interest rate from the PBA when we first bought the house.  But the interest rates have dropped a bit since then, and we have decided to go with a VA loan now, instead of the PBA, so we don't have to pay PMI insurance anymore.

Wow, am I boring anyone else, or just myself?  Haha.  Anyway, that's what's been going on around here recently.  If you have refinanced before or have used the VA loan, I'd love to hear any tips you have!



Disclaimer: This was a sponsored post.  However all opinions and statements are true and my own.

Wordless Wednesday

First time meeting Santa!

Happy Birthday Little M!!

In just three short years my Little M, my first born has gone from this

to this

to this

to now this.

How has time flow by so quickly?  My little one is no longer a baby, not even a toddler.  She is a little girl now.  She is a girl who brings such warmth and light into our lives.  She is such a sweet soul who simply enjoys life.  She is happy, thriving, and the most precious angel I have ever been entrusted with.  Every day with her is a gift and I could not be prouder to be her mommy.  We gave her life and she is the one who made us parents.  Emmy we love you.  We love you more.  We love you most.  Happy birthday sweet girl.

Little M's 3rd Birthday Party

We had such a wonderful time at Little M's birthday party the other day....but more importantly, she had a BLAST!!  She was so excited to see her whole family, open presents, and eat some cupcakes!  I cannot believe I will have a three year old tomorrow!!  The absolute joy on her face was simply priceless

3 going on 15

Did NOT want to have her picture taken

Happy little sister!

Dancing girls

My blue-eyed babies

Playing balloons

My angel

Ps....and a very happy birthday today to my first furbaby Shiba!! Can't believe she's 7 already!!!

Birthday Preview

Little M's birthday isn't until Tuesday, but we are having her family party today!  I'm keeping it very low-key this year.  When I asked her what kind of party she wanted, she said "A princess party!" So of course I had to give it to her!  Here is a little sneak peak of a few of the decorations.

Thanksgiving Recap and an Announcement

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving yesterday!  Ours was truly great.  We relaxed, watched the parade, snacked, watched football, and then went over to my parents for a big dinner.  {and for those asking, I ate a ham my dad made me and stuffing...in passed years if there is no ham, then I just eat stuffing} It was such a nice, low-key day and we were so blessed to have Skip home with us to share it!  We even got some pretty cute family pictures....of course we attempted to take them once we got home for the night so there aren't any of all four of us, but we'll take what we can get!

Yes, I caved and bought the $20 teething toy...I'm so ashamed

And yes Little M think that toy is actually hers

Total Daddy's girls

Now here's the announcement.....you see these two crazy kids right here?

That's my baby sister on the left and her boyfriend on the right.  They are silly, food-loving, a little bit kooky, and TOTALLY in love with each other.  And I'm so happy to announce that I can also add ENGAGED to that list now!!!

Let the wedding planning begin!

I Give Thanks

I just wanted to pop in and say a very happy Thanksgiving to you all today!!  I have so very much to be thankful for this year.
- My family who is always there for me
- My friends who keep me sane
- My two furbabies that are the best snugglers in the world
- A roof over our heads and plenty of food on the table
- All of you...my blogging/Twitter friends are always there when I need them to laugh or cry with
- All of my military boys are home and safe
- My two precious girls...they are my whole world and my heart is simply overflowing with love this year
- My Skip....being married to him is my favorite thing ever.  I'm even more thankful this year though because he is off today for the first time since I met him!!!!!!! I could not be more excited to spend the day together as a family.

Hope you all have a very happy, healthy, and safe holiday!!!

Food Allergy Brain Dump

This whole, being a parent to a food-allergy kid is rough man.  Thankfully Little M is only allergic to peanuts, but her allergy is so severe I have enough to worry about.  She will go into anaphylactic shock if she ingests peanuts.  And if she just touches them, she will break out into a rash.  She accidentally touched a dog treat that had peanuts in it and she broke out in a rash within minutes.  I try to stay as calm and nonchalant as possible about it...but honestly?  Her allergic scares the crap out of me most days.

We've become experts on reading labels and I'm constantly looking up foods with hidden peanuts {like Chinese food}  We never leave the house without Little M's mini medical bag with her benedryl and epi pens.  My anxiety level goes up every time we're out of the house and around food. 

It can even get a little frustrating at home sometimes too.  Like last year when Little M randomly broke out from eating Thousand Island dressing.  Or the time she got a rash after eating croutons. Neither of which contain peanuts, or are even made in a facility that makes peanuts.  And she has since eaten each of these with no problems.  Then there was last week when randomly one night she broke out bad on her face and arms.  She had been eating a pear just before it happened, so we thought maybe that was it?  {though we didn't know how}  But then the next days it flaired up again after she was playing with some toys.  So I then spent the rest of the day bleaching and cleaning all her toys.  Did someone eat something with peanuts and then come over here and touch her toys?  Can a transfer like that even happen?  And no, I still have no idea what happened last week or what caused the rash.  Thankfully though it didn't flair up again!

I have to say that Halloween is probably one of the most stressful days as a food-allergy mom.  Do you know how many chocolates may contain peanuts?!?!  Yeah all of them pretty much {not really, but it feels that way}  Strangers dropping unknown candies into her bucket, all mixing together?  Sends my blood pressure through the roof.  The second we come home from trick-or-treating I quick go through all her stash and pull out anything that might have peanuts in it.  Sadly it's normally abut half her bucket, so we always keep extra "safe" candy at home to replace it with for her.  The whole thing isn't that bad now...it's when Little M is much older and trick-or-treating with her friends by herself that freaks me out.

And don't even get me started on the fact that she will be starting pre-school next fall.  What do you mean I have to hand her over to strangers every day and trust they will watch over her?  Maybe those home-schooling people have the right idea.  As a teacher I always had a few epi-pen kids in my classes.  And while I was always diligent about keeping an eye on them and following all the protocol, I was no where near as diligent as I am as a mom.  And that scares me.  I worry about how most school keep the epi-pens in the nurses room, and not on the child themselves.  I worry about her having to sit at a peanut-free table and kids making fun of her.  I worry about whether or not I should get a medical alert bracelet for her.

I know we're so lucky that Little M doesn't have a serious disease.  And she's lucky that so far she is only allergic to peanuts.  And as much as I try and downplay the whole thing, sometimes I get very overwhelmed and scared about the whole thing.  This food allergy thing is rough man.

So all you other food-allergy parents..do you feel the same way, or is it just me?  Any tips on how to prepare for her going off to school next year?

Thanksgiving Top Five

This week I'm linking up with Rachel over at Just Peachy for her Top 5 Tuesday. 

 This week's topic is of course, THANKSGIVING!!! So here is a list of my top 5 favorite things about Thanksgiving.

1. Football.  I'm sure that seems a little weird, but second to the Superbowl, Thanksgiving football is some of the best.  Especially this year....Packers/Lions at 1:00??  Yes please!!!

Let's go LIONS!!

2. Family.  It is so fun to get together with everyone, laughing, talking, and sharing a meal.

3. The smells.  I'm not really a fan of Thanksgiving food...I don't like turkey, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, most veggies, or any kind of pie really. {I know..I'm a weirdo}  But I do love the smell even though I don't love the taste!  It just smells so warm and homey.


4. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Watching it always reminds me of being a child.  Relaxing in my jammies, eating some breakfast, and watching the parade while my mom made an apple pie.  It's even more excited now that Little M is older.  I love watching her reaction to all the floats and balloons!


5. Black Friday Shopping.  It's weird that I like this because I rarely actually go shopping on Black Friday, and the few times I did go it was just during the day.  But the excitement of it all is a little contagious.  My friend L and I actually decided last night that we will go with the crazies at midnight one year soon.  I mean who doesn't love a good bargain??



So what are your favorite things about Thanksgiving??





{All photos taken from Google.com}

I Need Another Shot

The past week has really been kicking my rear end around these parts.  After spending days getting ready for Baby C's sweet baptism last Sunday, the hubs was right back to work on Monday to work five days in a row, have one day off, and then work another three.  Little M has been turning into a little tantrum queen and Baby C just screams all.day.long.  I woke up sick last Monday {I have yet to get better} and Baby C has decided that sleep is for the weak...no napping, no sleeping at night, nothing.   And I've already told you about the adventure that was bringing two kids to the doctor alone. 

With all that going on though, I didn't want last week to be a total wash.  So since we were mainly bumming around at home, I figured I'd attempt to take the girls Christmas picture.  I already feel totally behind in that department, so it was time to get down to business. 

Decked out in there fancy new Christmas dresses and armed with my camera and some props, I thought we were setting ourselves up for success.  Until I started snapping away.  This was the best picture I got.

Guess what I'll be doing today.  So think of me and send good vibes that this shoot goes well.  Because otherwise the only pretty face you'll all be seeing on my cards this year is this one....

Outnumbered Outing

Since Little M was born, I've kind of made an unofficial rule to never take her to the doctor alone {I have done it though, and this obviously does not apply in an emergency or case of illness}.  Now I know this sounds totally weird, but with Skip's weird work schedule, his days off are almost always during the week, so it's not that ridiculous of a thing.  And honestly, I just like having someone else there to remember questions we have or details on a diagnosis from the doctor. 

Obviously if I felt this way when we just had Little M, you can be real sure it has been the same now that we have two kids.  Baby C has appointments every month {our doctor likes to spread out shots} and each time Skip, Little M, Baby C, and I all trek over there together. {I must also tell you that the girls' pediatrician is also *my* old pediatrician...that has nothing to do with the story I just thought I'd share}.

Anyways, Baby C had her five month check-up scheduled for yesterday morning.  Originally Skip was supposed to be working nights, but his schedule was switched this week so he could take a class on fingerprints.  He did offer to change the appointment, but that seemed ridiculous.  Moms all over the country take 2, 3, 4+ kids to the doctor all the time.  I could take my girls this one time.

Let me tell you...I don't ever want to do that again!!! First off, it took me about an hour and a half to get all three of us ready because one of the girls was constantly fussing or crying.  I finally get them both loaded in the car with all our diapers, wipes, underwear, snacks, drinks, etc with just enough time to get to the doctor by our 10 am appointment.  About halfway through the trip we hit not one, but TWO detours.  Awesome.  By the time we get to the doctor we're about 10 minutes late.  Thankfully though there is no one else waiting and the doctor is just finishing up with a patient.  I assume it will just be a few minutes wait.  Thankfully both girls were very good during our FORTY-FIVE MINUTE WAIT.  Awesome.

We're finally brought into the room and Baby C starts crying, so I free her from her car seat.  Then Little M announces she has to go to the bathroom.  I tell the nurse where we're going to be in case the doctor comes in, and while holding Baby C manage to help Little M go to the bathroom...one handed.  I wrangle them back into the room and while we were gone the doctor came in..but since we weren't there he decided to go make a phone call while he waited.  A phone call which lasted fifteen minutes.  A fifteen minutes that Little M thought was the perfect time to through a crying screaming fit on the floor.  Awesome.

The doctor finally comes in.  The next few minutes are a whirlwind of trying to talk to the doctor, hold Baby C down for her shots, console her screaming self, stop Little M from climbing all over the tables, and get Baby C undressed, cleaned up from peeing all over herself, and dressed again.  All while trying to stay calm and look like I actually have this parenting thing down.  Don't worry, Baby C is all happy and healthy...or at least I think that's what I was able to hear the doctor say.

I finally get Baby C strapped back into her car seat and head out to make their next appointments {on days Skip is off obviously!}.  I'm about to breathe a sigh of relief as we are almost out the door when Little M throws the mother of all tantrums.  It just really topped off my morning and sent any semblance of me looking like a pro right out the door with her screams.

After wrangling the girls back into the car we drove straight to the Wendy's drive-thru....because Mommy obviously need the largest fountain Diet Coke ever after that morning!!

So moms of 2+ kids, how do you do it??  Supermarkets, malls, even dinners out I can handle with just the two of them..but the doctors?  Kicked my butt!

Jersey Pride

Yesterday, Andrea posted this list on her blog about ways to know you are Southern.  I love reading stuff like that because it's so fun to see how people from different parts of the country live.  So I decided to look up one from Jersey and share it with you.  Because sure, there are some common things among us northerners that is different from those is the south...but there is nothing like Jersey.  Let me know if you can relate to any of these!



You've been seriously injured at Action Park.
You know that the only people who call it "Joisey" are from New York (usually The Bronx) or Texas.

You don't think of citrus when people mention "The Oranges."

You know that it's called "Great Adventure," not "Six Flags."

You've ordered a hard roll with butter for breakfast.

You've known the way to Seaside Heights since you were seven.

You've eaten at a diner, when you were stoned or drunk, at 3 am.

Whenever you park, there's a Camaro within three spots of you.

You remember that the "Two Guys" were from Harrison.

You know that the state isn't one big oil refinery.

At least three people in your family still love Bruce Springsteen, and you know what town Jon Bon Jovi is from.

You know what a "jug handle" is.

You know that a WaWa is a convenience store.

You know that the state isn't all farmland.

You know that there are no "beaches" in new Jersey - there's "The Shore," and you know that the road to the shore is "The Parkway" not "The Garden State Highway."

You know that "Piney" isn't referring to a tree.

Even your school cafeteria made good Italian subs, and, you call it a "sub" not a "submarine sandwich" or worse yet, a "hoagy" or a "hero."

You remember the song from the Palisades Park commercials.

You know how to properly negotiate a Circle.

You knew that the last question had to do with driving.

You know that "Acme" is an actual store, not just a Warner Bros creation.

You know that this is the only "New..." state that doesn't require "New" to identify it (like, try ...Mexico, ...York, ...Hampshire (doesn't work, does it?).

You know how to translate this conversation: "Jeet yet?" "No, Jew?"

You only go to New York City for day trips, and you only call it "The City."

You know that a "White Castle" is the name of BOTH a fast food chain AND a fast food sandwich.

You consider a corned beef sandwich with lettuce and mayo a sacrilege.

In the 80's you wore your hair REALLY high.

You don't think "What exit" (do you live near?) is very funny.

You know that the real first "strip shopping center" in the country is Route 22.

You know that people from 609 area code are "a little different."

You know that no respectable New Jerseyan goes to Princeton - that's for out-of-staters.

The Jets-Giants game has started fights at your school or local bar.

You live within 20 minutes of at least three different malls.

You can see the Manhattan skyline from some part of your town.

You refer to all highways and interstates by their numbers, except the Parkway and the Turnpike

Every year, you had at least one kid in your class named Tony.

You know where every "clip" shown in the Sopranos opening credits is.

You've gotten on the wrong highway trying to get out of Willowbrook Mall.

You've eaten a Boardwalk cheesesteak with vinegar fries.

You have a favorite Atlantic City casino.

You start planning for Memorial Day weekend in February.

And finally...

You've never pumped your own gas.

Baby C's Baptism

This past Sunday we welcomed Baby C into our church.  I was excited for her baptism because it was going to be a day just about her...which as the second child sometimes she gets lost in the shuffle.  But not Sunday...it was just about Baby C.

We planned a semi-big party for our friends and immediate family back at our house for after the service.  My two sisters are her godmothers and our good friend D {Little M's godfather} is Baby C's godfather as well. 

It was a beautiful ceremony and of course Baby C screamed through the second half of it...though that is to be expected! We had a great time at the party too...eating, relaxing, {and of course watching football...whoops!}  Sadly, I have no pictures of the food!  But I'll try and snag some of my sister's pictures later.

Me and the girl of the hour

Us and the godparents

Being baptized

Blessed girl

Our little family

Godparents

Love those cheekies!!