Rock Band Take 2

Last night we had some friends over for homemade pizza and play time. We were getting tired of our Rock Band 2 so we had bought the original Rock Band on Ebay and were dying to try it out. It had some great new songs on it and we had a blast, or should I say the little boys might have had more fun and we were dying laughing at them.

Kristen tried her hand at singing!
Jacob and Roland played the other instruments with Lee's guidance

Then, Seth took over the drums and Jacob sang

I did sing a Bon Jovi song which was right up my alley. We had a great night!

Weekend Plans

We try to make plans at this point but tend to then take them day by day. So our plans should we accomplish them all for the weekend are...

~ Have friends for homemade pizza tonight along with Ro's new specialty dessert that is chilling in the fridge!

~ Go to different friends home for dinner tomorrow night. (I don't have to cook!!!)

~ Rest and relax during any other time of the weekend.

As you can see... it is very non-stress, food and fun filled! Hope that yours is too!

Must Try Recipe!

On Tuesday I was in charge with two fellow teachers of our TIEA Monthly Breakfast. I made a bunch of different kinds of muffins, but our librarian made something called Blueberry Buckle Coffeecake. It was extremely delicious so I thought I would share the recipe with you. I think you could use any type of fruit on top if you aren't a blueberry lover.

1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup sugar
* Mix ingredients
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1/2 cup milk
1 egg
1/3 cup oil
* Mix and add to the first bowl. Pour into an 8x8 greased pan. Add 1 cup of blueberries to the top of the dough mixture.
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Crumble Top~
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. oil
* Put this mixture on top of the fruit. Bake at 350 for 40 minutes.
***** Double this recipe to make in a rectangular sized dish or for more than 4 people.

Pregnancy Update

I went for my 38 week check yesterday afternoon and after waiting an hour and a half I received basically no news. Everything is going as planned, her heart beat is strong, she has dropped a tiny little bit, but that's about it. There is no action going on. So now we wait and see if anything changes in the days to come and if not I go back next Thursday for hopefully some sort of news. I'm trying to stay positive, but my clothes don't fit so well and I'm just plain tired. I wish I could wear yoga pants to work daily, but you know what, if I end up overdue that is just what I will wear. I am much more pleasant when I am comfortable! My goal was to get past this week though in order to get paid for April Vacation so that goal is just about met. Watch now I will jinx myself and go into labor tomorrow! Ha!

Tonight we are headed to my Dad's for dinner for his b-day which means I don't have to cook, that is a definite PLUS!

Happy Birthday Dad & Grandpa Buckingham!

See you tonight!

WHERE & WHY??

I would like to know where young children learn half the things that they learn?

* Where do they learn to talk back to you or rather YELL back?
* Where do they learn to be so stubborn?
* Where do they learn naughty words like (Doof Head)?
* Where do they learn to whine and hold on the floor temper tantrums?

WHERE WHERE WHERE & WHY?

To make us miserable and horribly embarrassed, well I guess so.

Let me just preface that about a week ago I was raving about how awesome Seth's behavior was and what a good boy he was, WELL fast forward one week later and a whole new Seth has emerged. I don't know if he can sense my anxiousness about the arrival of the baby or my just plain tiredness from not being able to sleep longer than 45 minute intervals. He has been a bear and all of the above WHERE questions fit him to a tee.

Last night we engaged in our normal nighttime routine. Brush the teeth, go potty, etc. Once again we fought him to sit on the toilet and for about 10 minutes tried our hardest to get him to go. When he makes up his mind that he doesn't have to go there is NO changing it. So we put him to bed only to be awoken at midnight to tears and wet wet wet bedding. He had wet the bed and when I say wet I mean WET. Everything was soaked including him and everything he was wearing.

So we stripped ALL of the bedding and him. We put new bedding on and new jammies and we were all back to dreamland or so I thought. Seth fell back asleep, Roland fell back asleep but not me. I was more than exhausted, but could not sleep and that made me super mad. So I went out into the computer room to see if I stretched out if I could indeed fall back to sleep. It took an hour, but it eventually happened. So needless to say could you please send some of the following vibes our way...

* sleep vibes for the 38 week preggo lady
* good behavior vibes for the 3 year old munchkin who lives at 154 Bowers Ave.

Thank you!

Let the countdown officially begin...

Today marks 2 weeks until my due date. We are now in uncharted territory as Seth was born 2 weeks early and we didn't have to do the waiting and wondering game. As you all know I don't do surprises, I'm a plan it kind of girl. So I continue to wonder when this event will actually happen?? We are all set at home, we have all supplies needed. I am working on plans for a few of my classes for next week and my long term sub is coming in to get the low down on Thursday. I also brought an extra pair of clothes that I am keeping in my school bag. My worst fear is having my water break in school so if that worst case scenario does in fact happen then I will be semi-prepared. I won't be prepared for the embarrassment of it actually happening here in school, but at least I won't have to ride into Watertown in wet slimy clothes.

~ I am ready for clothes to fit properly again, I feel as if I am constantly tugging on my shirts because with each passing day they get shorter and shorter and tighter and tighter.
~ I am ready to sleep on my belly again. (when I get to sleep)
~ I am ready for a BIG glass of wine.
~ I am ready to meet this little girl who is so very active and see what her personality holds.
~ I am ready to play on the floor with Seth and lay in his tent with him. He looks so sad when I tell him I just can't do it right now.

Stay tuned and tomorrow I will share my fears...

Creative Boredom

We Charlton's are not used to staying home. If you know us at all you know that we are always doing something fun or going somewhere. We always have some sort of plans. This weekend that was all put on hold because our little bean had pneumonia so we stayed home and let him recuperate. I think it was good practice for the new addition to our family. We will have to slow down for a bit to let her get adjusted to the new world.

It was a good time to finish up last minute baby stuff as well as little projects around the house. Roland was right on top of my mini list for the weekend, PLUS he had his creative hat on and built Seth a new toy.

Seth has been obsessed with the movie Cars since mid fall and we now have quite the collection of model cars from the movie, coloring books, place mats and blankets. Anyhow, Roland thought it would be fun to build Seth a roadway for his cars since he lines them up on the coffee table all the time. Here is the process of building our very own Radiator Springs roadway just like the movie...

Step 1: Map out the road and paint the lines.Step 2: Place character stickers all over the land.Step 3: Remember the WHOLE cast!Step 4: Test it out with a few of your cars.Step 5: Enjoy your new toy that Daddy made for you with love!

Congratulations to the Hubs

Once again Roland has proven what an asset he is to Pepsi and once again he is being honored. I am such a lucky girl to have such a successful and appreciated husband! I don't mean to brag, but I'm so proud of him that I want to share it with you all!

In case you have a hard time reading it, Roland was recognized as one of PBG's General Manager's Circle of Excellence. He was able to choose a gift from a list of about 25 items that ranged from DVD players to ipod docks. It was like Christmas in February for him!

We are so proud of all of your hard work honey!

Check it Out

We were flipping through the On Demand movies last night and we saw a preview for this movie so we thought we would watch it. We haven't stayed up or rented any movies in ages. We were between a couple of movie choices, but ultimately I told Ro to make the decision and this was his decision. It was super funny and we laughed a ton. So if you want a good laugh watch this movie! It is called My Best Friend's Girl.

My gourmet hubs also made us chocolate covered pineapple to enjoy during the movie and between the two of us we ate a whole pineapple. It was sooooo delicious and half healthy so we didn't feel as guilty!

On the Mend

Thank you for all of your kind calls, texts and messages for Seth. His cough is loosening up and his spirits are high. He slept until 8:30am this morning and then didn't want to nap this afternoon. He played in his bed for 2 hrs. Oh, well hopefully he will sleep well again tonight and get rid of these sickies once and for all. We took the time to rest up ourselves and cook out on the grill again. We have some serious spring fever. I even bought spring Oreos in celebration of the thought of spring. Here's hoping...

Tomorrow I think we may take a drive to get out of the house and possibly stop at Sam's Club to pick up the last item on our baby list, wipes!

Then it is back to work for I'm-not-so-sure-how-long?? We will keep going with our life and have to wait and see when Miss Charlton would like to make her debut! We will keep you posted.

HALT

We had to put a halt on Project FUN Week. Our little guy is sick with pneumonia. We thought it was just a little cough associated with getting more molars, but we were wrong unfortunately. Luckily we caught it in time and he is on some high powered meds and on the road to recovery. We had to cancel all sorts of fun plans for the weekend, but it is totally worth it. I think that it is humorous though that he has dodged all sorts of sick bullets at Pat's this winter, but the one week he is home he gets sick. Well, we are thankful that he is home and that we can let him rest and recover. He is in such wonderful spirits that we actually have to ask him to sit down and rest. That's our boy!

To a restful weekend...

Check it off the list...

Today I hired Taylor to come over and play with Seth for a couple of hours while my mom and I finish up my baby list. There isn't much left due to the wonderful people in our lives that have helped us out. There are a few little items so we are heading to Target and Baby Depot followed by lunch. It will work out perfectly, Seth will have a new face to play with and I will accomplish my list. Plus the weather is crappy so we couldn't have played outside today.

This vacation is flying by, but we are enjoying every minute of it. Tomorrow we have Kidnastics and dinner at Mom and Tom's. Saturday we have been invited to The Castana's for dinner. That means I don't have to cook 2 nights in a row. YIPEEE!!!

1st Time Bowler

Today for Project FUN Week we took the boys bowling. Seth has only ever bowled on the Wii so he had no idea what to expect. He was a little off because I think another molar is coming in so he was quite tame and reserved. Not your typical Seth. After one game he was done which surprised me and also clued me into the fact that something must be up. Now he is on hour 3 of a killer nap.We did have a fun time and it was so humorous to watch him carry the ball and shoot it down the ramp without any help, god forbid!

Mini-Doc

Seth went with me for my 38 week check this am and he is getting pretty well known at the docs office these days. He has gone with me quite often during the course of this pregnancy. Today he managed to wrangle a sticker and a lollipop out of the nurse, a high five and a personal assistant job out of the doc. Doctor Dodard let Seth assist during my check today. He put him right up on the table with me and let him be in charge of the heartbeat machine. Seth thought he was quite special and I thought the whole thing was totally priceless. I only wish I had thought to whip out my camera!

After the doc appointment Seth and I headed to Lowville to visit Great Grandma and Grandpa for lunch. We took a trip to Walmart in Lowville and then hung out at the house. It was a great morning!

Non-Shower

I just wanted to say a special thank you to some special friends in my life who gathered yesterday and went out to lunch with me one last time before Miss Charlton arrives. It was a relaxing chat filled afternoon of girl talk and I really enjoyed myself. I had even more fun last night reading all of the babies new books that you bought special for her. Thank you so much!Myself, Jen V, Rachel, Kristen & Sarah

Girls who missed out AKA were out of town were... Amanda, Beth I, Mackenzie & Beth N.

We missed you girls!

Project FUN Week

I'm off on mid-winter break this week and I feel like I could possibly have this baby at anytime in the next few weeks so my plan for this week is to do something fun with Seth each and every day and enjoy my last few moments as a mom of one.

Today was no exception. It was Day 1 of Project FUN Week! Kristen and I took the boys to The MOST Museum in SYR. I had never been so I had no idea what to expect. It was a larger version of our own Sci-Tech Center here in town and Seth loved all of the hands on material. We spent about 2 hours there, stopped at McDonald's on the way home and then Seth was exhausted and took a 2 hour nap.

Take a look at some of the cool things we encountered today...

Levers & Pulleys
Anything with drum sticks is right up Seth's alley
Watch the pennies go around and around!

Virtual Reality Basketball
K'Nex
Cover me in bubbles!

We decided to take it up a notch next time and drive to Rochester to an even bigger and better MOST Museum during April vacation.

The BEST Hubs

I have to say that hands down I have the best hubs around. We didn't make any definite Valentine's plans this year we just said we would do whatever we wanted to and decide when the day came around. We didn't want to get a babysitter, we wanted to spend the day and evening as a family. That is just what we did. During the day we poked around and then Seth and I took naps and when we woke up we were told that we weren't allowed in the kitchen. I really liked this idea. With Ro's work schedule he seldom gets home early enough to make dinner. I don't mind, I love to cook, but it is ALWAYS a treat when someone else wants to cook for you. Not only did Ro go through my cook books and make a new and interesting dinner, he also made homemade chocolate covered strawberries. The whole meal was totally and utterly delicious in itself and because HE made it for us. Thank you so much for a wonderful Valentine's Day!

I will not scare you with the picture that he took of me! AHHH!

Getting Me Back

When my friend Sarah was at the end of her pregnancy I didn't mince words when I saw her. I kept telling her honestly that she was huge! She did have a 9lb baby in there! Now she is getting me back and it makes me laugh so hard! Thanks Sarah, only a TRUE friend tells it like it is! I appreciate it! OHHH, the countdown has begun...

3 year old pick up artist

Last night we had some friends over who are sadly moving back to SYR next week. We wanted to see them before the big move so I made homemade pizza (story for another time). Seth has been asking and asking to play with Lucy for weeks so we finally made it happen. During dinner this is the conversation that our son engages in with Lucy...

S: I have a secret for you Lucy.

L: (just looks at him and smiles)

S: I Love You!

L: (giggles)

S: I have another secret to tell you.

L: (keeps eating her pizza)

S: I Love You Lucy!

S: Wanna go see my big boy bed?

Parents: (roar with laughter)

WE DIED LAUGHING! Yes this is our 3 year old pick up artist in action. What a one tracked mind!

It was also so wonderful to spend an evening with someone who is as large as I am. We ate our way through the night and I had 3 bowls of salad, YES 3 bowls and it was delicious. Hey, it could have been 3 bowls of something totally bad for me right??Beth 30 weeks and myself almost 37 weeks!