Today

I thought today would be a lot harder than it really was.



Today I should be the mother of two children.

Today I should be happy for what I have, not what I don't.

Today I wish for the future to hold more than I hold right now.



Thank you to everyone who called or asked or just let me know they were thinking of me. You made my day a little brighter.

Christmas Funny

Merry Christmas

and remember....

If you don't get what you want, it's better to be pissed off than pissed on. Especially by Santa.

Letter From Santa

Holiday World posted on their Facebook page that any child wanting to write to Santa could do so and mail it to their address. The child would also get a return letter from Santa. I thought we would give it a shot. Grady mailed his letter on Saturday, the 12th. Today, when the mail came, this is the face he had on after seeing what he got.

The boy was, excuse my redneck description of emotion, tickled shitless!!

Mommy thought it was great too, but....

The letter was obviously generic in format and told him to think of others less fortunate this holiday season and share love, peace, etc. All of that is well and good, but all Grady wanted to know after having me read the letter was if Santa thought he was on the Nice list and whether or not he was getting what he had asked for. Might have been better for Holiday World Santa to put something like that in his letter. Maybe they should consult a mommy or two when writing their return letters next year.

Happy Birthday T-Bone!

3 years old....time sure flies when you're having fun!!

Aunt Aubbie, Uncle Spank and Grady love you buddy!!

Did You See the RACK on That?!

I posted a couple of these pictures on Facebook, but Chris asked me to blog about it since he never gets any attention on my blog. As some of you might know.....Chris got a big buck during shotgun season. 14 points with 2 drop tines. He was beyond excited and of course, it is going on the wall.

Generation Y

I got this as an email and thought it was good for passing on a laugh or two. Thank you Kelly for making me laugh.

The Baby Boomers... people born between 1946 and 1959.

Generation X... people born between 1960 and 1979.

Generation Y... people born between 1980 and 1995.

Why Generation Y?

Now You Know!!!

Sweet!

Crocs.com has some awesome deals!! I get an email with the specials and found these sweet little sandals for $8.99....plus I found an online coupon code for 20% off!!

Makes me want summer to get here so I can wear them somewhere besides the kitchen!

Good Enough to Eat?

Grady, Dawson and I made new crayons out of our old broken ones a few weeks ago. Grady thought the darker colored ones looked kinda like Reese's cups. It kept them busy on a rainy cold day. Hopefully, I can come up with some more of those kinds of ideas to last through the winter months!

Football 101

November 3rd was probably one of the best days I have had in a very long time! This was the day that my friend Amber and I traveled to Chicago for Football 101 at Soldier Field. I might add this trip to Chicago was WAY better than the last trip I had there.

First, and foremost....Thank you Amber for asking me if I would like to go with you to this awesome event! It was truly an experience I will never forget and am eternally grateful to you for allowing me to be a part of it with you.

Waiting to get in the United Club....that line was HUGE...Thank God we didn't leave late or get into a traffic jam!

Next......OMG OMG OMG OMG!!! We had the chance to take a tour of Soldier Field, including the Bears' locker room, walk through the tunnel that the players take to get onto the field at home games, stand on the sidelines of the field, get some wonderful goodies to take home, eat some delicious food and most importantly, meet the players who were in attendance, get autographs and chat it up with them. I told Amber if I became a blubbering starstruck idiot to just slap me. That could have came back and bit me in the butt...We met Robbie Gould on the escalator and I said hi, and he said he liked the Ditka jersey Amber loaned me. You couldn't have wiped the smile off my face with a Brillo pad!


Again, kudos to Amber....she won an online auction for us to be able to sit at our very own table (everyone else just had chairs) in the absolute front of the crowd. This honor also allowed us another swag bag, being escorted to the front of the line for locker room tours, and the aforementioned meet and greet. This girl rocks!!

Inside the Bears' Locker Room

On the sidelines of Soldier Field

Staley Bear, their mascot. I see I didn't hide my food very well. Those were some kind of chicken teryaki stuffed dough balls (for lack of better words) that they threw at us on the escalator. Delicious!

Our hero...Robbie Gould. Photo courtesy of Nick Roach.

The actual program informed us on their view of the game. They went through play reviews with each of the players in attendance and talked about what the plays were called and what their job was in each of the plays. Then it was the audience's turn to ask questions, most of which really got the guys going. Some women had some good questions pertaining to football, some not so much. One woman even got up to the microphone and asked, "Boxers or briefs?"

Our view from our seats...and no, I didn't zoom in!

The players in attendance were Brett Basanez and Caleb Hanie, both backup quarterbacks, Nick Roach, linebacker, Earl Bennett, wide reciever, and our favorite.....kicker Robbie Gould! All of the players we got to meet were very gracious and didn't seem to mind the endless autographs and photo ops. And Robbie totally remembered Amber from her previous meeting with him and can't wait to golf with her next year. I haven't mentioned yet, but that Caleb Hanie.....complete hottie!! Agree?

I don't think we got back to Newton until after 1 am. Totally worth the late hours! I can't say it enough, but THANK YOU Amber!! I had an amazing time....and would love to do it again next year!

Subway Goes Green

Aren't these adorable??

Instead of letting your child tote a wonderful plastic bag with their kids meal....you now get one of these!!

I heart Subway. I know it's only a lunch meat sandwich, but you just can't duplicate that toasted lunch meat taste at home.

Another Series Started

Some of my readers might remember the series of books by Janet Evanovich that I reviewed a while back. I have another series to reccommend.

If you liked the Stephanie Plum books, Hannah Swenson is another character you might enjoy. Kind of the same plot lines, but so far no Lola or Grandma Mazur stirring the pot.

All of the books are dessert related. Chocolate Chip Cookies, Strawberry Shortcake, Blueberry Muffins....makes me hungry now. Each of the cookies she made in the first book has the recipe included. Just an added bonus!

Check them out if you need a good who done it read.

Bergbowers from Where?

This is going to be an odd post to some....to one person in particular, not so much. Bear with me people.



If you're a Bergbower from Texas (you know who you are!) and left a comment on my blog....... please, please, please leave me another one with your email address. I tried to connect with you, but it says you're profile on blogger is not a public one. My email address is aub79@hotmail.com. I would love to find out if, in fact, our families are related!

Gluttony

After waiting for my turn (not so patiently), I finally got to go to Moonshine with Chris this week. DEEE-LISH!! Nothing beats a mom and pop griddle cooked burger. Add cheese and bacon and I'm in love! Of course, later on that day I was in love with Rolaids.

And then, we have the other end of the universe...Puerto Vallarta. OMG! We love this place.

Chris ordered the special.....Molcajete. How ever the hell you say that!

It came out boiling. I kid you not. Boiling. There were some ladies across the aisle who would vouch for me on this one.

Our dinner conversation went something like this:

Chris: I have never ate out of a cauldron before.

Grady: The Mexicans ate out of those?

Aubrey: Are you really gonna eat all that?

Chris: I better take a Prilosec when we get home.

Grady: (after being told to be quiet) Do the Mexicans not talk when they eat?

All of this while Chris wiped sweat from his forehead and snot running from his nose. A very pleasant meal out to say the least.

Family Photos

The Bergbowers got new family photos taken last week...Click over to Photo Graphics website to check them out!

http://www.photographicsgallery.net/p39597054

Kudos to Amber for awesome photos of Grady.... You did what you could with his parents! Ha Ha!

Persistence Pays Off

You would think with a husband that is a welder, I wouldn't have had to beg for and threaten to purchase clothesline poles. But, the fact is that yes, I really did. It seems that after working so much overtime and well, apparently not having me beg or threaten nearly enough he didn't think I was serious.

I am happy to report that the clothesline poles were finally welded up, painted, set up and are ready for use!! I know, such a ridiculous thing to get excited over. I am trying to save some energy here people!! After 7 loads of laundry, only one went in the dryer over the weekend.

Oh, and I am not the only one enjoying them. Grady has decided that they double as a fire pole.

What We've Been Up To

We're officially farmers. Chris bought a new-to-him tractor from his friend Matt. I'm sure Chris is just as happy to have it as Kara is to not.

Grady got another bunny. This one my mom and dad couldn't butcher because they thought its hair looked just like Grady's. So now it belongs to Grady. Oddly enough, it's name is Briar Bunny. That is what Grady's name would have been if he were a she. Just Briar, not Bunny.

Last weekend was our trip to The Great Pumpkin Patch at Arthur. Always a good time. At least this year Grady wasn't sickly and enjoyed it.

Thank you nice lady for taking our picture.

What a cheeser!

Of all the cutouts to get photos at, this was my fav.

Our Pumpkin King Grady! Grady took a picture of Chris and I at the Pumpkin Prince and Princess, but I won't share that one becase Chris was tired of photo opportunities by that time.

I think this is my favorite of the day. He crawled behind their wall of mums and peeked through at me. What a stinker! But the cuteness more than makes up for it.

1st Bus Ride

Mr. Grady Sawman was super excited for this day to come. He and I went with Aunt to a band competition in Robinson. He just couldn't wait to get on that big yellow bus. Of course, being the mother of only one child, I had to do a photo documentary of the whole process.

Probably took 5 times to get him to look at me. He said, 'Mom, just let me get on the bus!'

Now it was, 'When are we ever gonna leave?'

And like you all suspected, he was asleep by the time we got to Oblong.

Apple Picking

A couple weeks ago, we ventured north (all the way to Greenup) to Grissom's Lost Creek Orchard. Chris wanted cider and Grady wanted to pick apples and I wanted out of the house.

The apple of my eye for sure!

Not quite tall enough, but being a good climber helps.

After making absolutely sure it wasn't a 'snapper' Grady decided he might want to touch it.

Can't you just hear him? LOOK AT......

THAT!!!

After much consideration, Grady had to pick out a gourd or two also. He chose this one because it looked like a swan. I thought so too.

Pretty nice little place to go to that wasn't too far from home. They have a few corn mazes and you can walk through the orchard and pick your own apples to bag up. Or you could do like my husband and pick one just to try. (Please don't turn us into the Orchard Police!!)

Party!

I LOVE PAMPERED CHEF!

So much in fact that I sold it for nearly 4 years.

Now one of my friends, Janelle Kuhn, has decided to start selling it and loves it.

So.....I'm having a party for her!

This Thursday night, 6:30 p.m at my house. Come hungry and bring a friend!!

If you would like to come or place an order, leave me a comment or send me an email.

She has a great deal for hosts .... she would love to do a show for you too! Check out her blog for more details.

http://thekuhnfamily3.blogspot.com/

50 Years

This year the NCHS Class of '59 was honored at half time of the Homecoming *very sad* Football Game.

My father-in-law was a part of that class. Here is one of his partners in crime, Ed Schafer (and his wife Carol) before the announcing of their class.

Hope you had fun Papa Johnny!! It sure looks like you two are up to no good though!

3 of these things belong together...

3 of these things belong together

3 of these things are kinda the same

But one of these things just doesn't belong here

Now it's time to play our game.

Does anyone else remember this song from Sesame Street days?

It's very fitting to what I found in the chicken barn this past weekend, don't ya think?

Weekend

I CAN'T WAIT!!!

Right to the Point

Bullet point that is, in no particular order:

• Chris is still fuming over the stolen camera.
• Grady had to take his favorite apple today to school. I was informed last night red apples were not his favorite.
• My mom and I have been walking at Sam Parr while Grady is at school. We have worked up to 5.7 miles. Today is our day off. I needed it.
• Chris and I have a big (much needed) date weekend planned. Yeah!! It involves a road trip and bands and alcohol. Sounds good to me!
• I witnessed an absolutely horrible sight last Friday night as the Eagles got beat up on hard core by Effingham.
• We now have pumpkins growing out of our ears.
• Fall Festival was probably one of the nicer ones I have been to in a long time.
• Grady was in a pedal tractor pull. Somehow the little booger didn't get it to move. He could have cared less about the pedaling, just fixated on the goodie bag for participating. His best buddy, Dawson, pedaled 70 feet. Way to go DW!
• I rejoined Netflix and took the cheap way. I am thinking I should have been a little less tight. I am patiently waiting on my new month to start so I can watch Gran Torino.
• Our yard looks horrid. I think, unless Mother Nature decides to bless us with a shower, that I will make it look more presentable this afternoon.
• Finally Grey's Anatomy starts, tomorrow night. But why do they make it a cliffhanger at the end of the season, when the DishNetwork guide tells you who dies on the season premier?

Don't that about take the cake?

With yesterday being Chris's birthday, you would think I would have something on a happier note to post about, right?

Wrong.

He went to the woods to retrieve his hunting camera in hopes of finding more good pictures. And there is was. Gone.

So, if anyone out there in blogville knows someone who just happened upon a trail camera by sheer luck, please inform them of their misfortune when my hubby hears about it.

Tacky. That's what it is. Just plain tacky to be a thief.

Birthday Ride

I got my first Harley ride this weekend from my brother-in-law Gary.

AWESOME!! That's about all I can say.

Thanks Gary...I will probably take you up on the offer of going again sometime!

What a Game

Last night's Eagle football game was a nail biter! In the end, the boys pulled through and won in overtime against Olney and I have a very sore throat from cheering (louder than the cheerleaders I believe).

I want to give a shout out to my nephew, Mitchell Stanciu #25, for having an awesome game!! For me to still think he is the little man ring bearer in my wedding, he sure can play some football! Congrats!

(Sorry this is from the Robinson game, but I liked it better than any I took last night)

What the....

I have found way too many little gray hairs on my head this week to count.


When did I get to be an old lady with gray hair?


I have a birthday in a week (a big one I'd rather forget about, mind you) and this is not helping matters.

One Week

After 10:45 today, we will have survived a whole week of preschool. Seriously we, because I think this week has been way harder on me than it has on Grady actually putting in the time there.

Chris and I told Grady if he had a good week and did his best we would take him bowling. (I kinda thought about what I should get if I had a good week too, you know since I didn't just fall in a heap bawling in the floor everyday.) He said that he would rather have a bowling trophy. Don't know where that came from, but he is going bowling tonight before the football game and he will probably be pissed not winning a trophy for his efforts.

I don't hear much about school other than the kind of snack they have and playing outside. I guess that is the highlight of his day. He does try to sing me a goodbye song with the cutest little smile with your eye bit, kinda squinty and pirate-ish at the same time. Oh, and one boy is going to have to have his hands tied up if he doesn't keep them to hisself.

First Day

Here are highlights from my mini photo shoot with Grady this morning before his first day of preschool.

Right before his alarm went off. He insisted he get his own alarm clock so he could get up on time.

Doing his own hair.

Checking to make sure he brushed good.

Now hairspray.

Tim McGraw cologne

Waiting patiently on mom and her camera.

My favorite picture of the morning.

Can't you see it on his face, "NO MORE PICTURES!!!" Seriously, that's what he was telling me. I didn't stop though.

I had to force this one on him. At least he smiled.

The best buddies together. Forget about you mom. I had to ask for a kiss.

I had the hard time leaving. I kinda wanted him to want me, you know? He says he had fun, but won't tell me anything they did. I know they had cereal for a snack and played on the playground, but couldn't climb the rock wall unless their mom or dad was there. All of this I learned from the moment the boys got in the car, but it was from Dawson. Grady said he didn't want to talk about it. And he doesn't want to go back tomorrow. I have a feeling I could take the same type photos again in the morning and he will be more than happy to stay and maybe he'll leak me some preschool gossip tomorrow.