Busy Business Lady

I have officially joined the realm of starting my own at home business- yea for a little sister having a stupedous idea. I am now an Educational Consultant for Discovery Toys and I am BEYOND THRILLED! I have my first boutique at my pre-school on the 7th of November, and then I have an event every weekend after that until the middle of December. I'm going to be super busy and I LOVE IT! The best part is that Peyton can come with me because she's my little demonstrator =) That's the latest and greatest with the Patrick Colvin's. I'll be sure to let you know any new job news, house news, and toy news as it comes.

Stress Case Meets Chaos...who will win?

So has anyone ever seen the Simpson's episode where there's a new gym teacher who's obsessed with the game "bombardment"? Everyday Bart's class goes to gym only to get pommeled by dozens (possibly hundreds) of dodge balls. I had never thought about how that might feel...until i started working with thirteen 18 month old children =). Everyday seems to dole out a new challenge- this one's a biter, there are the bullies, these need to be cuddled, these ones are teething and cranky, etc. I have to say though, no matter how frustrated I get my heart melts with every adorable smile, every hug, and every peel of laughter. I have found a renewed sense of strength, so much so that even those "TERRIBLE" moments turn into laughing opportunities by the end of the day. Like for example: I am EXTREMELY conservative with the finger paint. There are still a good portion of our kids that will eat the paint, and though i know it isn't toxic I still cannot stomach the sight of it. So I was getting some things done and left my assistant in charge of things. Well...she's what you call liberal with paint. So the next thing I know I turn around and there is paint EVERYWHERE, and I mean everywhere. The kids are covered and trying to get out of their seats, the table has puddles of paint everywhere, and even the floor has little dobs and hand prints. I nearly freaked! How were we supposed to get all of the kids clean without any one of them escaping. Needless to say it was a long and tedious process to get them all taken care of and get the room back into some semblance of order. But at the end of the day do you know what I remembered most: Three of our little boys looked like members of the Blue Man Group and they loved it, one of our little girls who hates to get messy actually painted, and two children who normally don't get along were painting each other and laughing. In short Chaos won.

High Speed Internet...

I can't even begin to tell you how excited I am that my parents finally got rid of their dial up and signed up for high speed Internet! I am giddy as I sit here typing this entry knowing that I can FINALLY update everyone one on our family, and most especially, Peyton. Now that this day has finally arrived I find that I don't even know where to begin! Patrick, Peyton, and I are living in South Jersey with my parents and are hoping (especially me) that we will be buying a house within the next few months. I really really really really really want to get a place of our own SOON! I am working at a pre-school currently, which is neat because i get to take Peyton to work with me. I teach the 18-24 month olds and I LOVE IT! They are such a fun and adorable group of kids. Patrick is still working for GARDA but is submitting applications for other jobs around the county. He has also enrolled at the local community college in their nuclear technician program and will hopefully start taking classes in the spring. Peyton is not only crawling now, she's cruising and pulling herself up on EVERYTHING! She loves to sing, clap, and dance and is super vocal. River is her favorite obstacle to crawl over and he follows her everywhere. My dad takes about 100+ pictures of her everyday and I'm excited to share them with all of you. I think that she's totally lost her "baby look" and I seriously can't believe that we'll be celebrating her first birthday soon! It's amazing how time flies. But at least these past few months have been sprinkled with blessings, insights, and new adventures.

Total Tear Fest!

I just got back from seeing My Sister's Keeper with my two sisters-in-law and it was incredible! I thought that the story line was perfect- in fact, for those who have read the book, I think that the ending in the movie is better and more satisfying. Cameron Diaz was surprisingly wonderful as the mom (sorry to all of those fans out there, but I really didn't give her a lot of credit before this movie. She always seems to be the perfectly cute, but ditsy, blonde. In this movie she was very convincing as a mother and as a wife- good on her.) I have to admit that I tried being strong throughout the movie...even though the theater was so obviously packed with girls it was ridiculous...well and five guys who SO OBVIOUSLY lost the "which movie should we go see" game...but I cried like a baby throughout the movie. I don't think I've cried like that since the spring when Patrick and i went to see Marley & Me. So for all of you ladies who want a good cry I highly recommend this movie. For all of the gentlemen who are fathers/future fathers (or those guys who also lose the "which movie should we see" game) I think you'll enjoy that brief glimpse into the future where some little girl might turn you all mushy inside too.
The saddest thing about the movie to me is that they made death seem so final...and impossible to understand. It made me quietly reflect and sincerely express gratitude that I know that there is more to death than just being some unforeseeable end. I know that there truly is a reason for everything, and that each day should be lived so that if I left the next, I would be ok with that. I left the theater with a renewed sense of strength knowing that Heavenly Father gave me a purpose in life so that I wouldn't have to fearfully worry about my eminent demise. Theology aside, it was a great movie- so plan a girl's night out and be sure to take tissues!

Our Future?

The latest on Patrick's quest to find a "big boy job"- he has turned in four applications to work with Boy Scout Councils in North Carolina and Virginia. Three of the four have gotten back to him already and he is in the works of becoming a District Executive for the scouts. Ladies and gentlemen, we may be one step closer to that elusive career that has for so long evaded us. As of right now we're still set to move down to New Jersey on the 7th of July, but who knows...maybe we'll be heading further south before the end of the summer. Wish us luck! Also I am looking for some good books to read this summer so send me some suggestions!

My New Hero...

Now normally I do not (AND I MEAN DO NOT!) watch anything that has to do with celebrities or the gossip/drama that surrounds their lives. But, I happened to be breezing through channels the other night and something on TMZ made me pause- Al Roker told off the most disgusting, publicity hounding couple (my opinion) in the world- Speidi. I have never been more proud of the news media than I was at that moment. Finally, someone dared to ask the questions that I would ask if I had the chance. For those of you who didn't see it, copy and paste the link below and check it out- I give it two enthusiastic thumbs up. It earned Al Roker the title of my new hero.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YzsDXMVd1js

An article that contains the qoutes Al Roker referred to with regards to NBC can be found at this link.
http://www.tvguide.com/News/NBC-Exec-Speidi-1006673.aspx?rss=breakingnews

Poo in the Tub Club...

So I was talking to my dear cousin Jessica a little while ago and I was telling her that my favorite (and I mean FAVORITE) thing to do in the morning is to give Peyton Rose a bath. She has so much fun splashing around, eating the wash cloth, and generally getting me wet. "Wait until she poops in the tub, and then you'll rethink how fun it really is" came the reply. Well...it's official. My daughter has officially joined the club. Normally I would have freaked out at such an occurrence, but I couldn't help but hysterically laugh. It started out small enough, and so I thought "hey, that's not bad. I'll just put her in her bouncy seat for a second, clean it out, and then we'll finish bath time." I had all but finished my cleaning of the tub when I heard very distinct baby poo grunts coming from the bouncy seat. As I prepared myself for what I was about to see I hear Peyton giggling (HA...HAHA...HA etc.) I look down to see her dancing in her now poopy seat and smiling as though she had just mastered her first step. Clean up took a little longer, but surprisingly, it was worth every moment.