I want to share my really cool, God Provides story. Well, I rarely ever spend any money on myself. If I have the option of getting something for me or the girls, I willl always buy what the girls need. Lately there hasn't been the finances to get anything extra, and I was in desperate need of a pair of jeans, my only pair tore beyond repair Saturday morning. Well, Saturday morning I packed the girls in the car and we headed to the mall to get a $15 gift card from Macy's for being one of the first 150 people there. We got our $15 and head straight to the kids section and found an adorable Disney Princess Shirt for Grace which she loved, and I loved because it was free! Then we proceeded to head to Bath and Body Works where I had a coupon to get something for free. On our way down there we passed Old Navy and a lady was handing out treat bags to the kids with candy and a coupon for the adults. I opened up my coupon and won $50!!! I was so floored and utterly amazed by God's continued blessing! So, for once I got myself something (and a little something for the girls)! I am always reminded that God provides for His children.

The weekend was a bit of a blur. I worked late Saturday night and Sunday night, and I had church nursery on Sunday morning. I had two great money nights at work, which really helped with some unexpected expenses- once again God is always in control!

Monday Grace had a soccer game, and this time instead of somersaults, she would run and then fall on the ground and just lay there. I don't know what I am going to do with this kid!

After her game we had dinner with my fam and my Aunt Emily who I haven't seen for probably 10 years. It was nice to get a chance to catch up and to show off my family.

Yesterday was a fun day. It was storytime at the library and Grace was able to wear her costume. She was absolutely adorable!

Here is miss Minnie Mouse herself! Aren't the shoes amazing?!!

Minnie mouse and Woody, or as we know them, Grace and Carson! They have a blast together!
Lena at the library! She is getting so big!

I absolutely love this picture! Grace was so tired that she fell asleep in the cart at Meijer. There are times that she seems so old, but times like this remind me that she is still my baby!

I worked last night and I work again tonight. Today I am trying to get things done around here before we head out of town tomorrow. tomorrow night we are staying with Matt in Detroit before heading to Grand Rapids for therest of the weekend. It will be great to see everyone and to catch up with family and friends. Until we go though, there is so much to do. I hate packing but once we are on the road it will all be worth the stress!

It has been a little more low key of a week for us, which has been nice.

Monday night Grace did good at her game. She actually dribbled the ball from one end of the field to the other! She also made her first attempt at goalie. She has been wanting to play so bad, I think it has something to do with the cool red shirt that the goalie gets to wear, but nonetheless she was pumped!

Tuesday I took Grace to storytime at the library. Next week she gets to wear her costume to storytime, so we definitely have something to look forward to.

Yesterday I did some bargain shopping at Meijer and Kroger. I was able to get $90 worth of merchandise for $25. Not bad! There are times when it seems to take so much of my time to cut coupons and find deals, but then I have shopping trips where I get things for free, or even better yet, am paid to buy something, and it makes it all worth it!

I didn't have to work last night, so it was nice to have a quiet evening at home.

Today has been nice and quiet. We have read a lot of books, Learned all about apples. Drew pictures. And now both girls are sleeping peacefully. I love days like today!

This evening I think I am going to take the girls to the DC Varsity Tournament game. I keep going back and forth as to whether to go or not. It is supposed to get chilly, but not until later. As of right now, I think I will do it, but I think I will wait and see how the girls are when they wake up!

This is definitely the weather that I wish I was playing soccer! Crisp fall air, blues skies, it doesn't get any better than that!

It was a beautiful weekend here. Erik had the whole weekend off, so we went to the park on Saturday morning. It is so refreshing to be able to spend time as a family. We spent the rest of the day relaxing until I went to work.

Sunday we went to church and then I had to go to work. While I was at work Erik took Grace to get a new pair of cleats. They are absolutley adorable! They are white adidas cleats with pink stripes. She has a game tonight, so hopefully they will motivate her to kick the ball!!

Today we made it the the mall for the monthly kids concert. Grace had fun dancing with the kids and getting little trinkets from the vendors that were there. She even won a Tigger spin toothbrush! And I won a large picture frame!! i guess you could say it was a productive morning!

Here are a couple pictures that were taken this weekend.

Grace decided she needed to wear my glasses. Can you tell that she is my kid? No resemblance, huh?

This is how I was able to make dinner on Friday night! Lena was having a fit because I couldn't hold her, so I took her clothes off of her, strapped her in the high chair, and gave her pudding. What I do for some peace!

Here is our latest family picture! Yesterday we dressed the girls in the adorable outfits that Aunt Karis gave them while she was in town. They were SO cute! We used the timer on our camera to try and get a picture of all of us, and it actually turned out to be the best picture we have taken together yet! Go figure!

Well, I had better start cleaning since everything is a mess from my having to work all weekend!

10 Months Old

Lena is now 10 months old. It's hard to believe that her birthday is just around the corner. She is such a joy and brings so much to our family. At times she seems to be about to walk, but for now she is more satisfied with crawling, as she is able to move around a lot faster that way. Lena has fast become an avid climber. (The other day I caught her climbing on top of our bed!) We are so blessed to have two amazing little girls!

We have had a full but fun week. Monday night Grace had a soccer game. She did better this time, as she did not do her first somersault until the second half! She did get a hold of the ball a few times during the game, so I was pleased to see that. The funniest part of the game had nothing to do with soccer. Over the past couple of months Grace has been around the DCsoccer team and has picked up on a few things, one of which is stretching. So, during the game, Grace ran over to the edge of the field (but mind you she is still on the field), tells me that her leg hurts and I nedd to stretch it. She lays on her back and lifts one of her legs in the air for me to stretch it. She absolutely cracks me up!

Tuesday we made it to story time at the library. Grace had a good time because her friend Carson was there. Later tuesday we went to a friends house to let the kids play and to watch iron man. It was nice to get out of the house and to hang out with other adults!

Wednesday we actually went to another story time. I am attempting to get Grace more used to taking direction from people other than mommy and daddy. She had fun and was good for the teacher, so I was thrilled. Later that afternoon we painted pumpkins. There are times I know I have to be crazy, but they both had fun and were absolutely filthy!

Grace with her finished product!

Here is my centerpiece!

Yesterday we got in the mail the girls' holloween costumes. They are going to look absolutely adorable. Grace is going to be Minnie Mouse and Lena is gong to be Daisy Duck. It should be fun! Pictures to come as soon as I get the finishing accessories (tights, turtlenecks, etc). Grace can hardly wait, as she is asking several times a day if it is halloween yet!

It is finally starting to feel like fall! Today was the first day that I had to dress the girls in long sleeves and pants. We have had a good day of deal shopping and playing ( I definitely have got over $100 worth of groceries for only $30 this week, OH YEAH!)

Grace riding her bike!

A sweet picture of Grace. She is starting to look so old!

Well, we are going to enjoy a nice evening at home tonight. It should be a pretty low key weekend for us, other than the fact that I have to work Saturday and Sunday night :)

The weekend was full and tiring and I am glad I have a couple days before I work again!

So, this morning I was helping Grace find a toy, and apparently Lena thought this was a great time to raid the pantry. I came into the kitchen to find this:

I absolutely cracked up! She was having the time of her life, and chowing down like her fun would be over any minute. Lena definitely has a nose to find food, and now I will have to make sure the pantry door is always closed!

Tonight Grace has a soccer game and she is excited that we are bringing the snacks! After her first game she went to get her snack, which was an orange and juice. Grace took a bite of the orange and said, "I don't like those lemons, they have peanuts in them." Since my husband doesn't eat oranges, I rarely buy them and when I do they don't have seeds. Definitely another great "gracism."

Thursday we made a trip to the zoo with Grace's friend Carson and his mom Amy. It turned out to be a beautiful day, and the kids had a great time. There is nothing cuter than three years olds holding hands, running through the zoo. This was our third trip to the zoo in just over a week. Crazy huh?

Yesterday was a day to run a few errands and do some cleaning. I did some deep organization/cleaning out of our front closet, pantry, and entertainment stand. I always feel so much better when things are are cleaned out and organized!

Today Grace has a soccer game. The game is not til this afternoon and she is already dressed and ready to go. Hopefully we can make it through this game without somersaults! :)
Well, I work late tonight and tomorrow night so I will be exhausted by monday morning!

I Now Believe in Ghosts!

A couple of years ago, while we were still living in Michigan, my mom called me one day to tell me that a childhood friend had passed away. My mom even went to the viewing, and had commented later that she had really changed from when she was a girl.

Fast forward to last night at work. I walked up to greet a table and there is this girl that looks EXACTLY like my friend that had passed away. I know I probably weirded this guest out with the way that I looked at her, because I had to convince myself that this was not my friend, she had died years ago. It definitely weirded ME out!

Well, it was right before the table was about to leave and the girl says to me, " I think we used to play soccer together. My maiden name is Heather Chin." The name of my friend! I about choked, and then composed myself enough to have a quick conversation with her.
So, one of three things must have happened: 1. My mom didn't stay at the viewing long enough for Heather to rise up out of her coffin 2. Heather's ghost is now haunting me, or 3. My mom paid her respects to a complete stanger! Regardless, I will probably be laughing about it for years to come!

Last night was Grace's second soccer game. It was absolutely hilarious. She really couldn't care less about what was going on, and was more interested in hanging on the goal and doing somersaults. Go figure! You could tell she was still out of it from being sick, so hopefully she will be more "with it" at the season goes on. She had a good time though, and was thoroughly thrilled with the snacks after the game.

After the game we returned some movies and then went to Chick-fil-A for dinner. So we definitely used four different coupons, got two value meals, a kids meal, a brownie, and an ice cream cone for 6 dollars. It was a nice treat, and it was even nicer that it was so cheap! Yay for coupons!!!

We have been doing really good at spending money on only the things that we need, and I have been trying my hardest to cut costs through coupons and bargain shopping, but today, I have to admit, I caved. So, as you have probably already figured out, I have a princess in my house and today it the day that the Disney movie Sleeping Beauty came out on DVD. Well, while at Meijer getting some good deals I saw the display for the movie. I called Erik and got his opinion, and even though Grace did not necessarily need Sleeping Beauty, I knew it would thrill her. Granted it was a great deal, I got the movie and the Aurora doll for only 16.99, but the bottom line is I couldn't resist. It is so funny that as you get older and have children, how your focus changes. I never think of what pair of shoes I should get ( I haven't had a new pair in who knows how long) but rather what can I get for my kids. Don't get me wrong, I still have completely selfish moments (as in right now when both girls are sleeping and I am sitting on the couch, enjoying a few minutes of peace and quiet) but in the end, being a parent causes you to look outside of yourself. So, in other words this is my justification for splurging on a special surprise for my precious three year old (and yes we have already watched the movie and enjoyed every minute of it!)

I have decide to try a new blog to keep everyone updated on what is happening in the crazy lives of the Buskards. Now anyone can leave a comment, instead of only Xanga subscribers. Hopefully the new layout will motivate me to keep you more up to date!