This month I did something a little different for my ramblings post. Usually I sit down a few days before the end of the month and try to recall everything we did (and have a hard time), this month I jotted down a reminder note for myself whenever something bloggable happened.  So as you might expect, this post was much easier to write…and it’s pretty long. So lets just jump right in and get random, shall we?

* I became an aunt this month! My sweet little niece – Mallory – was born on the third, my sister in law went into labor and had her on her actual due date. That almost never happens. She is tiny and adorable and Elijah is constantly asking if he can go “pet the baby”.

* Adam got lasik eye surgery this month. He was having problems reading things even with his glasses on, so we decided to bite the bullet and fix his eyes rather than going and getting a new prescription and glasses. Levi and I watched the whole procedure, there were windows looking into the operating room and a flat screen that showed a super close up of his eye. They don’t knock you out, but rather just give you some Valium to help you relax. Anyway, the surgery was really quick and kinda creepy to watch, but he has 20/15 vision in both eyes now (that’s better than 20/20). He is always having eye competition’s with me now, he’ll point out a far away sign or billboard and say “can you read that sign? How about that one?”

* I love Thanksgiving. We did three this year (Thursday, Friday, hosted Saturday) and I want to say it’s my favorite holiday. It’s hard to say that I like it better than Christmas, but I don’t think Thanksgiving gets the attention it deserves. It’s just such a fun and EASY holiday. You gather up your family and friends, and you eat and hang out. No presents, no decorating, no fuss. I am thankful that we live within an hour of all our family members and that we sincerely enjoy spending time with each and every one of them. I know a lot of people aren’t able to say that and I feel so blessed that I am able to. So if you are related to me and reading this, thank you for being awesome.

* Elijah started climbing out of his crib this week. I have been dreading this day, the day that I can no longer put him and his crib and know that he will be there until I am ready to get him out. Now he comes creeping into my room in the wee hours of the morning, or comes creeping out during nap time, or I see his little face peering at me when Adam and I are vegging on the couch at night. He is so quiet about it too, so quiet in fact that my super sensitive baby monitor doesn’t pick up his movements. Seasoned parents, please give me some advice. What worked for transitioning your kids into toddler beds? I really don’t want him wandering around the house, I don’t want him to wake up Levi (they share a room), and he can very easily unlock the deadbolt on the door and go outside, which makes me nervous. I know every kid is different and it’s probably not as big of a deal as I am making it out to be, but if you had something that worked like a charm I would really appreciate you sharing.

*For  awhile now I’ve been thinking about turning my blog into a legitimate business and incorporating it. The only thing holding me back is that I’m not sure it is really necessary and it will probably cost around $500 or so. So I got to thinking about why I really honestly wanted to make my blog an LLC, and I realized that I mostly just want to be able to keep all my blog money and personal finances separate. So I got to googeling and found that you can just file a DBA (Doing Business As) with your county and that will allow you to open up a business bank account. Bonus points that it only cost $16 to do! So now I’m feeling mighty official and organized, my blog has it’s own bank account, debit card, and paypal account. All my monthly checks get directly deposited and blog expenses come out of the business account. Now if I could just figure out what the heck counts as a business expense for a DIY blog that would be awesome. One day I might still incorporate my blog, but for now I’m happy with just separate bank accounts…I might change my tune once tax time rolls around though!

* I don’t want to get all political on everyone, but this month was election month and Adam and I enjoy politics. As far as the results I’ll just make one quick statement…Dang it. Dangitdangitdangit. Here is a photo I instgramed on election night of Adam watching the results roll in… he was clicking between all the different news channels and furiously doing math in his head.  Man he’s sexy when he gets into nerd mode :)

* Definitely – can’t spell it.  I spell it wrong every single time I type it…so wrong, in fact, that spell check doesn’t even know what to suggest as the word I meant to use. Then I go to google and type it in so I can get the “did you mean…” and it can’t help either. So I’ve started typing in “Definitely Maybe” (the Ashton Kutcher movie) to trick google into me with the correct spelling.  I can’t believe I just admitted that, but there it is.

* Since Adam and I have been married we have had one thing that we have always disagreed on. We really don’t disagree on much, but here is our big problem… I am a night owl and he likes to go to bed early, which also translates into him getting up early and me wanting to sleep in. I know, I know..boohoo, our big problem is that we don’t want to sleep at the exact same time. The issue is that we always try to go to bed together, so either he would stay up and be exhausted because I wasn’t ready for bed, or we would go to bed early and I would lie in bed awake while he snored like a freight train. It had gotten a little better since we have had kids because I have to get up early so I’m tired earlier, but still. THEN this blog started growing and requiring more time. Except that the kids won’t let me get anything done computer wise during the day, then after they go to bed Adam wants me to hang out with him and not be on the computer. I’m very glad that my husband likes me so much, but it was getting frustrating not being able to get anything written and having so many unanswered e-mails and comments. SO I came up with the perfect solution. I went to bed with Adam at 10 or so, and then as soon as he fell asleep (so like 30 seconds later) I would sneak out to the living room and get my work done. It was going really well for about a month, then one night he caught me. He proceeded to give me so much crap about it that I agreed to start getting up with him in the morning (at 6) just to shut him up. So I have been waking up with him in the mornings for about a month now, and I have to say…it is awesome. You have no idea how much I hate saying that, but it is true. After we wake up I have an hour (or sometimes more) to work before the kids wake up. It helps that I can’t do anything besides sit in bed and type on the computer, since I’m terrified to make a peep, wake the kids, and ruin everything. But I am able to have some guilt free work time and Adam and I are tired at the same time. I’m not hungry for breakfast at 6am so I sit there and awkwardly stare at him while he eats, but besides that we are pretty much in sync. And it only took 8 1/2 years.

*I bought my new fancy camera on Black Friday! It’s a Canon Rebel T3i and I am super excited to learn how to use it and take awesome magazine worthy pictures. Give me a month or so and Better Homes & Gardens will be knocking down my door, lol. Anyway I just got in in the mail today, so here is a crappy iphone pic of my fancy new camera. Ironic, huh?

I also bought the beginners photography course, Shoot Fly Shoot, from The Lettered Cottage. I have watched a few of the videos so far (I think there are 11), and they are amazing. Really, they describe things so that you actually understand them and even though I haven’t even used my camera yet I don’t feel too intimidated my taking it off of the auto setting. Anyway, if you are interested in purchasing their classes you can do so HERE.

 Wow, I think that covers everything this month.

Oh wait, I almost forgot my monthly video and favorite pictures of the month. Information overload, anyone?

 

 Doesn’t that above picture just melt you heart? Poor little Levi is sick right now and I’m praying that it stops with him and doesn’t travel through the family. We can not all get sick in December, it’s too busy. Not only do we have the standard Christmas craziness, but in our family there are seven birthdays, including my own. Whew, I think I’m ready.