Our 1st Anniversary...

Happy 1st Anniversary to us! I sometimes try to remember what life was like before Shane & the girls became part of Nick & I's life and I just struggle to remember that time because we're such a perfect fit. We all became what each other needed...a husband to a wife, a mother to daughters, a father to a son, a brother to sisters. As corny as it sounds, I feel we were all meant to be exactly where we are today; even though the road here was preeeetty bumpy at times!

For those of you who don't know Shane & I's story....we actually dated briefly my senior year of H.S./Shane's freshman year of college but life happened and we went our separate ways. We both went through college, married people totally not suited to us, had beautiful kid(s) then divorced. I was ending my engagement to Wrong Guy #2 around the time of my 10 year class reunion in 2004. Shane's best friend Tim graduated w/ me so he & his wife Holly invited Shane & his floozy of the moment (totally can't remember her name!) to our reunion. I was leaving to return to Evansville at the same time Shane was heading to the ATM (to get more $$ to by the aforementioned floozy another drink!) when we stopped to talk on the sidewalk, shared pics of the cute kids we both were raising and exchanged email addresses. I moved home to Daviess County a month later in October and Shane & I started talking via email & text messages. We had our (2nd) First Date on October 30th, encountered some ups and downs over the next few months then before you know it, were engaged exactly one year later on 10/30/05. Nick & I moved in w/ Shane & the girls in Feb. 06 and this crazy family was born! Now, here we are, 1 year after our "I do's" and I can't imagine my life without these 5 people. They make me laugh, make me cry, stress me out, keep me grounded, remind me what is important about life every day, give me stories to tell for the next 50 years.....and totally complete me. This isn't just Shane & I's anniversary, its our family's....

Another weekend that flew by...

Another great weekend @ the Matthews house...nothing too exciting but a good one nonetheless. Yesterday was spent on chores (yuck), my weekly trip to Walmart (my "me" time - how sad!) then Ed & Theresa (my in-laws) came over for dinner to celebrate Ed's birthday. His b-day is actually tomorrow which is also Shane & I's 1st anniversary. We told Ed that by getting married on his birthday, we were giving him the perpetual gift of his grandkids every year on his b-day....so Shane & I could go out to eat :) Well, that's already backfired b/c they've gone out of town!!! Sneaky little suckers aren't they?! Luckily, Shane's aunt (Mickey) is going to come take the kiddos out to eat so Shane & I can go out for dinner....love her!!

Today was a fairly low-key today - I went to Lisa's bridal shower this afternoon which was fun - young love is too cute! Em was gone most of the day b/c she spent the night w/ a friend; Shane & Kate helped Gma Lela & Aunt DeeDee move some furniture; Hannah is still on house arrest so she was around the house and Nick was just hanging out...nothing much phases him as long as he has his trucks & cars to play with!

The house is quiet b/c the kids are in bed...and of course, we're watching pre-season football - fun! This week is another 4-day week for Shane & I b/c we're heading to Indy on Friday to celebrate our anniversary - think of me while I'm at drag racing alllll day on Saturday!!

Deep Breaths

Dove Chocolate wisdom for today..."Take an extra deep breath whenever you need it"...that had to be written with mothers in mind!! Surely I'm not the only one worn out at the end of the week...while its been a fairly good week around here (minus Hannah the Liar and Emily the Incredibly Slow Eater), its still been tiring! I'm not sure that will change anytime soon though...oh say, for the next 15 years! I guess I'd hate to be bored....

I'm glad to report that we're full into the swing of school - every morning gets easier & easier as far as getting my 4 little soldiers through our [carefully orchestrated] routine...I absolutely love it that my kids hop right out when we pull up in front of school, yell "love you Mom" and run in - what more could I ask for?! I think its every parents' dream to have happy, healthy, well-rounded kids - we've got that times 4 in our house!

We've got a pretty quiet weekend planned - no complaints about the quiet part :) We went to the K of C for dinner tonight - the kids ate great! Hannah absolutely cleaned her plate of shrimp & chips...she said "I'm not going to be wasteful"...amen sister! We were going to go to the 1st WHS football game tonight but decided to wait until true football weather, i.e. sweatshirts & jeans, instead of going in shorts & Tshirts. Nick was worried that he'd get in trouble though b/c his teacher said he "had" to go to the game and wear black & gold - it was really hard to convince him that the football game wasn't homework!

The rest of the weekend will be spent on laundry (me), cleaning (me & the girls), mowing (Shane), working on the race truck (Shane & Nick) and some fun stuff...watching movies as a family and I have a bridal shower to go to (cousin Trent Otto's fiancee') on Sunday. I'll try to take some good pics to post soon.

Uh oh....not a good day for Hannah!

Well, our little liar is back....some of you might know about Hannah's short trip to the dark side of lying earlier this summer and the subsequent punishment (remember her having to go to the county fair w/ us but not getting to ride any rides??!). Well, she's back at it - I won't go into all of the gory details but what could have been a fairly minor infraction - having to write a few sentences for flipping a behavior card in class for talking - has turned in to a month-long grounding for not only not telling us about the sentences but then proceeding to sign Shane's name to the parent signature line, insisting for 10 minutes to her teacher that "that's just the way Dad writes his name", not bringing the sentences to us for a 2nd time then telling her teacher she didn't know where the paper was!!! Oh my....talk about a sinking feeling when your daughter's teacher calls you at work to tell you all this....I was not a happy camper in the least bit. Just so you know - I'm sure Shane & I's parents find this funny and are thinking "what goes around, comes around"!!!! I know that's how I'll feel when my kids call & tell me these stories about my grandkids :) Needless to say - Hannah has been writing sentences since we got home and will be writing until she goes to bed...writers cramp for sure!

Busy few days...

Wow...what a busy few days!! Shane spent Friday painting our kitchen - looks fabulous BTW then played a round of golf w/ Jonah. Saturday consisted of taking the kiddos to Anna's for the day so Shane & I could get the house ready for his birthday cookout. We had a really good time at the cookout - good food, good friends & family, good times! Sorry but I didn't take any pics...for those of you w/ access to Abbie's Snapfish page - check out the slideshow entitled "Shane's Birthday Cookout"...funny thing is there's only one pic of Shane in the entire album :) As usual, most of the pictures are of all the kids...

Sunday was fairly quiet - Shane took Em & Nick fishing while Katie, Hannah & our neighbor Avery went w/ me to Walmart...should have went to church since it was St. Mary's last mass before closing but, for various reasons, we didn't go. I spent the rest of the day catching up on laundry...fun fun!

Monday was Shane's 34th birthday - happy b-day babe! We both took the day off from work and, instead of canoeing which was the original plan, Shane decided he wanted to go to Evansville shopping & eating at our fave pizza place, The Slice....no complaints from me!! We had a great time shopping at several places and just being together as a couple...we're coming up on our 1st wedding anniversary which seems kind of crazy since it seems like we've been together for so long...comes along w/ having known each other since we were 15 I guess! Shane totally scored as far as his big b-day present - I finally caved & bought him Guitar Hero - Legends of Rock...as yes, its been hard for him to put it down ever since! Check out his reaction as he opened it:

Just like a kid isn't he?!

Yesterday was also Shane's cousin Gabriel's birthday so we all went over to Grandma Lela's for cake & ice cream...here's the birthday boys:

All in all - a great weekend!

Closing in on the weekend...

We're almost at the end of the first week of school and so far so good! We went to Open House tonight at school and met w/ the girls' teachers...Nick's teacher is also an asst coach for the WHS varsity volleyball team and they had their first away game so she wasn't there. All good news so far from the girls...Nick unfortunately had a note sent home today - yes, its the 3rd day of school - apparently he was a little chatty :( I hope he continues to mature this year - he's one of the youngest (if not the youngest) in his class and he's the baby of our family...we'll see! Hannah & Emily both had really cute "all about me" papers they'd done...Emily describes herself as smart & cool while Hannah says she's "freaky" - when asked what freaky means, she had no answer - kids! Kate of course had all good feedback - that's what we expect from our "good kid"!!

Shane has a four day birthday weekend coming up...he'll be spending Day 1 painting our kitchen (fun fun!) but then the festivities begin! We're having a cookout Sat. then Shane & I are going canoeing on the Blue River on Monday...last time I was canoeing on the Blue River involved Steph, Kim &...well, never mind! oh the memories from that trip!!

I'm sure I'll have lots to talk about after this weekend! Look for lots of pics & funnies here early next week....

1st Day of School

We all survived the 1st day of school!!! I actually think...check that - know I had the hardest time of us all! The girls were fabulous "big" sisters and Nick was such a little man - I was the baby!! I knew it would be hard...heck, I cried last year and the girls were in 2nd & 3rd grades...we alllll knew this year would probably be the hardest on me - at least until Katie graduates high school!

I was so anxious to pick them up from after-school care so I could hear about their days...Katie's best part of the day was seeing her friends, Hannah loves her teacher and classroom, Emily was excited about her friends and recess and Nick....well, Nick couldn't name a favorite part but his friend Luke from the YMCA is in his class so I'm thrilled that he had someone he knew close by. When I picked them up, they were all playing and looked like such happy kids...made this mom's heart smile :) Now, let's just hope Day 2 goes as smoothly!

Simply be...

More Dove chocolate wisdom...Simply be, rather than do, for a moment. I don't know about everyone else, but this very simplistic concept is hard for me! There's always something that needs to be done, someone who needs attention, a phone ringing, another email needing answered...its hard to find the time to "simply be"...I guess I should say its hard to make time because its all about choices. I've said it so many times - life is about choices. Often its a choice between two options that are both unappealing but yet a choice has to be made. And once the choice is made - stick to it! I have very little patience for people who are wishy-washy and second guess themselves (and others) after every little decision....make an educated choice and MOVE ON! ok....I'll get off my soapbox now....

We just got home from Mr. Gatti's - we wanted to take the kids out for one last "hurrah" before school starts in the morning. We even played in Gatti-land...woo hoo!! Shane always stays home the morning of the 1st day of school so we can take them in together - of course there will be the required picture on the front porch w/ their new outfits and loaded down backpacks...too cute! I'll make sure & post a pic w/ tomorrow's message.

Fun family weekend...

Weekends just fly by don't they?!

Shane took Em & Nick golfing Saturday morning while Hannah & I went to breakfast (White Steamer - yum!) then went to Walmart to get picnic supplies. After picking up Katie from her sleepover (FYI - the sleepover girl got verrrry little sleep!), we headed to Spring Mill. We ate our lunchables (all 6 of us - even Mom & Dad!) then hiked down allll the steps to Donaldson Cave. We then had to hike back up allll the steps to the top :) From there, we went to the Pioneer Village - we love going to the Grist Mill w/ the huge wheel outside...this was the first time I was able to hear the "miller" describe how the Mill worked and see the corn actually get ground up - pretty cool! Like I said to Shane though, I would have been a horrible pioneer! Give me running water & electricity please!! We all took a wade in the creek which was absolutely freezing but fun nonetheless...at least until the snake came floating down! Needless to say - that put an end to the wading...

We all chilled for awhile once we got home...Shane is hooked on the Olympics so we watched that for a bit...we made Kate take a nap which ticked her off but she went right to sleep! After resting for a couple of hours, we got cleaned up and went downtown to the Block Party/Cruz-in. We drove "Alvin" - Papa Beasley's Ford Galaxy - so we fit in pretty well! There were sooo many people - way more than I expected. There were a lot of really cool cars and the free Kramers Coneys definitely made the waiting in line worth it. The girls got beads in their hair and we got to visit w/ friends (Steph & fam; Kim & fam) plus we "cruised" over to Scoops for ice cream when we left. After a drive out to Ed & Theresa's, we headed home & everyone crashed - quite the busy day!

Today we're just getting caught up on household chores and enjoying the beautiful weather...the kids are getting anxious for school to start and I'm ready to get back into "school routine"...its still hard to believe we have a 4th grader, two 3rd graders & the little man is a Kindergartener...I guess its not just the weekends that fly by huh?

Katie....the ROCKSTAR!

I guess you all probably didn't know that our daughter Katie is actually mega-rockstar Miley Cyrus but I had to let out our secret since there's now picture evidence! Kate's friend Emma is having a "Hollywood" birthday party/sleepover tonight and all of the guests are coming as their fave star so Kate chose Miley....because she has brown hair unlike Hannah Montana who's blond (Kate felt the need to explain this to me)! Not sure who Emma is supposed to be but, oh well! The limo arrived to pick Katie up and they're on their way to the red carpet at Emma's house where the "paparazzi" has staked out the party....I'm sure they're going to have soooo much fun!

Today is also my mom Cindy's birthday - HAPPY 51ST MOM!!! Talk about a gal who doesn't act her age!! As she always says - you're only as old as you feel...why do I feel like I'm 90 some days?? Oh yeah...I have 4 very energetic kids between the ages of 5-9...I forgot - must be getting senile :) Back to my mom - I doubt I tell her near enough how absolutely fabulous she is - she's always so positive about life and can always cheer me up...she even tries when I want to sulk - this usually leads to a slight disagreement but we get over it quickly! Shane & I are so looking forward to our vacation to Hawaii w/ Mom & Scott in February...I don't usually wish days away but I'd really like for Feb. to get here sooner rather than later (!)...not just for the opportunity to see Hawaii but also to hang w/ Mom & Scott. I'm sure we'll have some stories to tell after that trip!

I better get outside...we're roasting wienies over the fire pit tonight since the weather is so beautiful...s'mores too! Hope everyone has outdoor plans this weekend - we don't often get such gorgeous weather in mid-August....

Downhill slide

Its Wednesday so we're on the downhill slide of the work week! Shane & I both deal w/ the "working parent" guilts so we're always glad to see Friday come. I long for the day that I can go part time so I don't have to juggle work/home priorities quite so much...our kids are getting to the age that they're starting to get involved w/ more activities and our family schedule gets pretty hectic. I can't even imagine how it will be as they get older! Shane & I were both really active in sports/clubs/friends so we hope for the same for the kids. My Dove chocolate wisdom for today was "Do a little more each day than you think you possibly can" - there are definitely days that I feel I can't fit it all in but I guess I should "trust the chocolate" :)

Its pretty quiet here in the house right now...the three younger kids are outside w/ Shane - they absolutely love being outdoors and will stay outside pretty much all day if you let them. Katie on the other hand is more like me - we don't like to sweat/get dirty so we're the insiders! Its absolutely crazy b/c I was such a tomboy as a kid - I've said it before...the older I get, the prissier I get!! I think we're going to take the kids to Spring Mill State Park on Saturday to hike/cave/picnic and I'm absolutely thrilled that the weather is supposed to cool down majorly - I'll definitely enjoy it better at 82 degrees than 95 :)

Shane's birthday is coming up on the 18th along w/ our 1st anniversary on the 25th so we have a lot to celebrate this month...we'll be having a cookout on Saturday the 16th for his 34th b-day then we'll both take Monday the 18th as a vacation day to do whatever he wants to do...just the two of us! One of our "happy marriage" secrets is we make it a priority to be "Shane & Chasity" sometimes, not just "Dad & Mom"...we've done that ever since we started dating since we were dating w/ 4 kids! He's mentioned canoeing on Blue River as a possiblility but I'm secretly hoping he goes w/ his other idea - road trip to Bloomington to go to our favorite winery (Oliver) and eat at a good restaurant. We'll drop the kiddos off at school then be back in time to pick them up when school lets out (instead of at 5:15 when I normally pick them up). We all win!

We also have plans for our anniversary...since the traditional 1st anniversary gift is paper, I bought tickets for us to go to the NHRA drag races in Indy....I know, not exactly my fave thing in the world but I'll enjoy it b/c Shane is so excited. We're going to stay in Indy for 2 nights so I know we'll eat well & enjoy some other activities too. (i.e. SHOPPING!!)

Failure is only the opportunity...

Some more Dove chocolate wisdom..."Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently." [I can't go wrong w/ these things!! Chocolate PLUS great quotes - someone at Dove needs a pat on the back for coming up w/ this combo!] I think we all face certain failures in life but I guess they're only true failures if you don't learn from them. Shane and I feel we both definitely learned from our diabolical first marriages...we're much better spouses to each other than we were the first go 'round. I wouldn't change my path in life for anything...I think everything happens for a reason - even the crappy stuff. I can't count the number of times I've told myself (and others) that life will never throw anything at us that God doesn't think we can handle.

Enough philosophical stuff...

Today was a pretty normal day other than my trip to the salon for a much needed perm/cut. Major bonus that Angie also scheduled Abbie to be there so we had a chance to catch up w/ life...we had fun talking about how Max follows Nick around just like Ab used to do to me! Of course I totally couldn't stand it when we were kids but I think its the cutest thing ever when Max does it to Nick! What did we ever talk about before we had kids??!

Its Monday...again.

Another Monday done with...work-wise anyway! Dinner is done, kids' showers are started, laundry can be dealt with later....one of my favorite times of the day. Today was a "2-chocolate" day at work - I love the Dove dark chocolate Promises so there's a bag of them in my drawer - the messages on the inside of the labels are great. Some of my faves:

Own all the moments of your life

Laugh uncontrollably...it clears the mind

Love is not getting, but giving

And my personal mantra: Hey, why not?

The kids are having a lot of fun w/ Jonah babysitting - for those of you not up to speed, the kids were all at the YMCA for most of the summer and Jonah was a camp counselor there...the kids loved it but Jonah approached us about watching the kids and we saw it as a way to pay less per week while he made more $$ then working at the Y. Plus, it gave the kids a chance to spend time w/ their uncle while having a few weeks of "typical" summer activities; i.e. sleeping in a little, going to the park, lunch at McD's, etc. Here in Washington, a group of people got together to have "Summer in the Park" which is planned activities at the City Parks Monday-Thursday. Today the girls made tie-dyed Tshirts which they thought was, quote "totally awesome" while Nick & Jonah played on the playground. I guess Nick isn't quite into fashion just yet!

I hope everyone has been checking our website out....please feel free to post comments!

Day 3

Well, its already happened - my husband totally doesn't get why I want to blog but then again, I also don't understand his need to build a race truck when he already has one so I guess we're even!

We've had a good weekend in the Matthews household....we went out to eat last night @ Mi Pueblo w/ Ed & Theresa then went bowling....Theresa & I were the cheering section for the girls, Shane & Ed and they gave us plenty to cheer about :) . I have slide show at the bottom of the page w/ pics of the girls. The girls & I went to church this morning then I got my "me" time at Walmart. After unloading groceries, it was time for me to head to Oakland City to pick up Nick...2 days is really too long for him to be gone - he said to me on the way home "I thought I was never going to see you again."....absolutely broke my heart. But he's home now so I don't have to think about him going to Evansville again for a couple of weeks at least.

Bad news for all of the "football wives" out there...pre-season football is officially back on TV - we're getting ready to watch the Colts vs. the Redskins....woo hoo! Here's to the next 6 months of pro-football every week! Don't get me wrong - I enjoy watching it about 1x per week...its when we get to Sunday, Monday & Thursday that it gets to be a bit much!

One more week until school starts....we get different answers each time the kids are asked if they're ready for it to start....Katie is ready for Art class, Em can't wait for recess but is so-so for the rest of it, Hannah is ready to see her friends and I don't know if Nick knows what to think about Kindergarten! I'm just ready to get back into the routine of school...

Hope you guys are enjoying our page...I'm having fun with it!

Girls Day Out

The boys are gone & we are having "girl time"! Shane has a golf scramble in Jasper today and Nick is in Evansville (yuck - a topic for an entirely different post) so the girls and I went shopping in Vincennes this morning for back-to-school clothes....got some totally cute outfits for them at Goody's [and new cute shoes for me!] then went to Kohls for new tennis shoes (mostly pink of course) and a couple of things for Nick. Shane was definitely the biggest loser in the new stuff department but oh well! After shopping, we lunched at Applebee's and shared a yummy dessert "four spoons please!" of molten chocolate cake w/ ice cream - YUM! Other than the twins thinking that playing tag in Goody's was a good idea (um, NO), we had a good time. They're now chilling in living room watching "The Last Mimzy"....its just too hot to do anything outside that doesn't involve lots of water...we may go swimming tomorrow at Rainbow Beach (Vincennes...and its a pool, not a beach) after we pick up Nick in Oakland City but we may also not feel like driving over there!

My first blog...

Hi everyone - I've decided to enter the crazy world of blogging to keep the world up-to-date on the Matthews' family "madness" - definitely how I describe Shane & I's world w/ 4 kiddos between the ages of 5 - 9!

We're getting geared up for school to start on 8/12....each of the kids went w/ me alone to pick out school supplies so that was a little one-on-one time that doesn't happen often enough in our household. I don't know what they enjoyed most - new school supplies or getting to pick out whatever drink they wanted at the gas station on the way to Walmart! I didn't even veto the caffeinated drinks like I normally do :) Katie will be in 4th grade, Hannah & Emily are heading into 3rd and our "baby" Nick is finally going to "big school" (his words) and starting kindergarten. Finally - all four kids in one location...I won't know what to do with that extra 20 minutes a day!

Shane is working like crazy at MasterBrand but he likes his job (most days anyway) so that makes the long hours ok sometimes....of course he'd love to work closer to home and has "working dad guilts" on a weekly basis but he knows my anal-retentive self is keeping the homefront organized. The kids are always so excited when he gets home - I hope that never changes!

I'm still at Olon and, like Shane, enjoy my job for the most part...I work w/ good people and we don't have the BS that most jobs have - at least we don't at our Washington location :)

I better sign-off now so I'll have more to talk about later....now the fun part of setting up this blog page how I want it!