I will be out of the office until 11/29

We are making the trip to Charlotte for Thanksgiving. I know...we are nuts. Two kids, a pregos mama, and an crazy daddy are driving 12 hours (give or take) to Charlotte to spend Thanksgiving with my little sister and family. We will leave before the crack of dawn tomorrow and hopefully arrive by dinner time. Say some prayers!!!!

Anyways...this past weekend we visited my BFF on her farm in Bergen. It was great to spend a day doing absolutely nothing...and I mean nothing...laying on the couch and talking while we occasionally redirected a stray child. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera;o( But know it was great. I got to meet Clara and Kylie even got to try and milk her. On Friday night we headed out to see my little sisters middle school musical...School House Rocks. It was entertaining and I cannot get the songs out of my head. Kylie loved it!!! Here is a pic of her (not from my camera) after the musical.
On another note, I got a great Christmas idea from my bloggy blog friend Pamela this morning. LONG story short....buy these chocolates..the money from the proceeds goes towards families adopting . We all know how expensive it can be and what a gift to those who really desire a child. Not only are you getting some super yummy truffles, you are giving to those who need!! How awesome!! If your nice, maybe you will be the recipient of one of these boxes;o)



Oh and have a GREAT and THANKFUL thanksgiving!

First signs of Christmas

As I said before, I am a little bit of a Christmas nut (it's in the blood). Here is the Christmas tree in our bedroom.

Of course Kylie has her own tree too...if you haven't noticed, she was a bit of a nut that day.

Our first time playing in the snow this year. At first they just wanted to eat the snow. Then we got the sleds out at they loved it. Cooper even threw a temper tantrum due to not wanting to go inside.

And lastly, a picture of the sun rising this morning. It looked so pretty with the snow.

So I have come to realize that I have some blog stalkers. Of course, you wouldn't know that due to lack of comments. Therefore, I think you should all make me happy and leave a comment...Don't stalk..comment. Maybe I will post a funny picture for y'all!

best pumpkin bread recipe eva...

I found this recipe while playing around the other day. Today I baked it and it really is very delicious!! In case you were wondering, it is the pumpkin bread one but I am sure the pumpkin pie is equally as delicious! ENJOY...

Not sure what to say???

So here I am, researching, relaxing, and trying not to worry about my stupid thyroid (story I will not discuss further until I have the facts)

I decided to make some new inserts for my cloth diapers. I did this in the past and they didn't turn out the way I hoped. Anyways, the pattern I am looking at for my inserts looks pretty easy. Let me know what you think...

Also, I'm looking up some new Christmas craft ideas. I found an awesome website through Mrs. Whimsy love called Tricia-Rennea. She really has great ideas. If I had any energy whatsoever, I would be sitting at the table crafting some of these for Christmas, but I decided it was much easier to just sit her and type away random thoughts. During nap today I did get make two new crafts but I cannot share them with you just yet...

Speaking of random thoughts, I have been thinking of baby names lately but none really seem to hitthespot. I thought I should make this fun and do a baby name poll. Not today, maybe tomorrow, but get your names ready my friends...I may have prizes involved if a name really sticks!!

Some of you will think I am a bit of a nut for my next comment, but it has to be said. Santa Claus is coming to town! We are getting a bit excited about this event at the Riedl household. Yesterday, Kylie, Cooper, and I put up the fake Christmas tree in my room. We listened to Christmas music and decorated the tree...Kylie also has a tree in her room..crazy huh! We love it! Don't worry, I will move slowly with the decorating so I don't get Christmas burn out too soon!!!

Looking forward the the craziness of the next few weeks. Next week we will be heading to Rochester to visit friends and family. After that we will come home for a brief few days and head to Charlotte for Thanksgiving. Yes you heard me right..CHARLOTTE, NC! My sisssy lives there and we decided to make the trip. It looks like it will be about 12 hours so we plan on leaving at 3 am! Say some prayers!!

Okay, well my rambling has gone on enough. I am shutting down the computer and going to bed!!!

new front porch, superwoman, and Cooper's big boy bed

This post is full of random things going on in my life. I don't have the energy to post several different posts, so enjoy!

First of all...my front porch was finally stained! Doesn't it look GREAT....


Some views from the porch and across the street! Gotta love the country life!!


Kylie got a superwoman custom at target for a whole $2 and we cannot get it off of her...she even sleeps in it (for nap of course...what kind of mother did you think I was)


Yes, Cooper is finally big enough to sleep in a big boy bed. He LOVES it and really transition rather nicely for nap today. Although, he didn't sleep as long as mommy would have liked. We will use it for naps for now and see where that takes us!

Oh and in case you were wondering..we had a GREAT anniversary! Zach even surprised me with this...


It's the ring on top! This is the best pictures I could get!! email me for the story...I promised Zach I wouldn't embarrass him.

Christmas past

Just getting a wee bit excited for Christmas. Thought I would take a trip down memory lane...

Christmas 2005...Kylie's first Christmas

Christmas 2006...Kylie and "Cooper"
Christmas 2007..Cooper's first Christmas

It's amazing how fast these little people grow and even more mind boggling to know there will be another addition to the Riedl family next Christmas!!

Prayer request

Please pray for Jocelyn's mom. To see to full request visit her website at www.jubbyplace.blogspot.com!

5 years already

Tomorrow, Zach and I will celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. Over the past 5 years we have started a family and are currently at 2.5! WOW..what an average! We moved from Farmington to Cazenovia, built a house, and have both changed jobs!

Yes the last 5 years have been crazy, but I am more in love with my man everyday!!!

On a happier note

Thanks to my good friend Jocelyn over at Tillabro Orchard, I was reminded that Christmas if only 50 days away!!!

In honor of this event, she has decided today is a day of Christmas music listening...

Join us as we celebrate a season to come

Words about the election

Most of you know I do not get overly involved in politics, but something about this election has my fire burning. Maybe it was because I wasn't overly impressed with either candidate or maybe it was because I am truly concerned about where are country is going.

So here comes the part where some of you think I am a crazy....I am hoping and praying I am wrong here, but I have MAJOR concerns about Obama being our president. He scares me!!! Although he does have some good ideas, some of his beliefs are far beyond what our country SHOULD be founded on...GOD! How can a man who claims to be a Christian believe in partial birth abortion. I don't care what religion you are...that is just wrong. Murder is Murder and I don't know of a more ludicrous way of getting around it! This is just one example, there are many others where I just think things are going to get sketchy.

On another note: I am truly saddened about how this election turned into a color issue. It just drives me crazy how people always talk about the fact that color doesn't matter anymore. It just has to do with who is the BEST candidate. I have had the TV on for the last hour and it has not turned away from the fact that Obama is black. I really have not heard much about how qualified he is...just that this is a historic event because he is black! Talk about separation of God's people. Did you know that in this election, America had the highest turnout of minority voters in history! That pretty much says that he was voted for JUST because he was black by some people. But I digress...

Let's just pray I am wrong...let's pray Obama gets this country out of the deep hole it has sunk into. Let's pray Obama turns to God for the answers this country needs!

Know that this post is pretty much me writing down all of the ideas in my head.

Soap nuts??

I have been on a hunt to find a perfect laundry soap to clean my diapers! NOTHING seems to make them smell fresh and they are constantly giving my baby red buns. I talked to a friend who told me to try these soap nuts. I was a bit leery because they come from a tree...actual NUTS from a tree. Crazy!! So here is my experiment with the soap nuts...

The smelly diapers....

I have to hold my breath due to vulgar smell of week old dirty diapers

The process is SOOO simple. Just put a few nuts in the bag and throw it in the washer...
Throw your laundry in with it and "get er done"
Whilst waiting for the true smell test, I sat down and read a book loaned to me by an awesomely, wonderful lady! Of course I had a tangerine to go with it;o)



And the results are....


CLEAN AND FRESH! When I opened the dryer door, IT DIDN'T SMELL!! I was actually able to put them up to my nose and not mildly gag! We all know how enhanced the sense of smell of pregnant ladies are and my husband always said I can give a bloodhound a run for his money. Therefore, SOAP NUTS pass the test with FLYING colors! I recommend you all try them...oh and FYI, they also take that yucky film of detergent off of your clothes...HURRAY FOR SOAP NUTS!

Trick or treat

Kylie and Cooper with they "baby" pumpkin...it only has one tooth!

Princess Sleeping Beauty
The Frog Prince
Avery AKA: Mulan and Kylie

We went tricker treating with the Carrier family
Cooper was so cute...he just lifted his little pumpkin up and looked at the person and MADE sure they put candy in there.
He feel asleep as soon as we got in the car...holding the pumpkin bag of course!