What I Need...... According to Google!

You put your name in a google search followed by the word 'needs' and post the first ten things that come up with.. Then comment on them if you'd like.. So here goes...



1. Crystal needs to sit in a super-saturated solution to continue growing.

Ok, if you say so. I kind of thought that I had finished growing. And I don't know how I feel
about sitting in a super-saturated solution. What's it made of?



2. Crystal needs a Home!

Well, I am still looking for my perfect home. LOL



3. Crystal needs concrete directions.

Well, this would make life so much easier!



4. Crystal needs replacement.

Why?



5. Crystal needs improvement.

Thanks, google, for the help with self esteem! LOL We all need improvement.



6. Crystal needs marble.

Again, why?



7. Crystal needs a park.

Google is really not in touch with my wants and needs. I do not need a park.



8. Crystal needs identified.

Nope, google! I know exactly who I am!



9. Crystal needs to spend a great deal of time in solitude.

Way to go, google! Let's promote antisocialist behavior! A little bit of time yes. A great
deal, no.



10. Crystal needs help.

Sure do! A babysitter would be great!



Would love to read your google searches if you'd like to participate.. Just come back and leave a comment to your post so I can check it out.

Chuck E. Cheese: Where a Kid Can be a Kid!

I decided to take the kids to Chuck E. Cheese tonight...... alone. LOL What an adventure! I had coupons and we ended up with 240 tokens! The kids ended up winning a total of 769 tickets (Tina - 322, Carly - 259, Caitlyn - 60, Charlotte - 89, and even the babies won some - 39). Tina got a crown, straw, slinky and ring; Carly got a crown and ring; Caitlyn and Charlotte each got a bracelet; and the babies didn't get anything. I used their tickets for the older girls since there weren't really any prizes for them. We were there from 6:30 - 9:00 pm. All the kids were asleep by 10:00 pm!

Here's some pictures:
Cheyenne does like pizza!


Caitlyn loved the Bob the Builder ride. She cried whenever I made her get off it!


Carolyn:


Charlotte:


Courtney:


And this was the only pictures I got of Crystina:

Lowe's Build and Grow Clinic: Yard Mobile

I carried the kid's to Lowe's today to do their Build and Grow Clinic. This month's was a Yard Mobile. The kids really enjoyed it, although I built the ones for the big twins! When they were done, they got a certificate and patch.

Crystina:


Carolyn:


Caitlyn:


Charlotte:


The Patch:

Twilight: The Movie

**May contain spoilers! Please do not read if you have not seen the movie and do not want to know beforehand! **





My favorite movie since I was a wee little girl has always been Gone With the Wind. I loved it! I related in ways to Scarlett and felt like I knew how life was then. I used to have a massive Gone With the Wind collection, which was stolen when our house was broken into. I never thought a movie could EVER replace it. Honestly, Chris couldn't either. For 13 years, I have subjected him to having to watch this almost 4 hour long movie at least once a year. I still love the movie, but I have finally found one that HAS replaced it: Twilight.





I don't know what it is about this movie, but I can watch it over and over again and never tire of it! Something about Edward and Bella's love story has me captivated. Now, of course, the movie is nothing like the book. They usually never are, but this movie was just as captivating as the book. The music playing when Bella figured out what Edward was just set the stage perfectly. The actresses/actors playing Bella and Edward and the Cullen family were a perfect fit. The chemistry between Edward and Bella had me truly believing this story. And Victoria at the end, oh so set the stage for New Moon.

I only hope that the New Moon movie is as true to the books as Twilight was. Sure there were some added parts (Dad's friend Waylon) and some things taken out, but all in all was hand in hand with the book. I would liked to have seen them go deeper into Bella and Edward's "love" in the movie than they did.

I'd give it 5 thumbs up if I had 5 thumbs! Never mind, I'll borrow my kids thumbs so a 14 thumbs up!

Surprise!

I think I mentioned before that Chris is out of town for work for about, well, another month now. I miss him more than anyone could possibly realize. So, this afternoon, Chris called me up and said "Guess what?" Now, at this point, he was in South Carolina waiting to see where his next job was (either North Carolina or Washington DC). I said "What?" (Assuming the worst - Washington DC). He said "See you in 14 hours!" I couldn't believe it! The explanation was that the bridge crew rented a piece of equipment from Chris' company so he got to drive it down and spend a couple of days here. YAY!!!!

Planet Shares 350 Challenge

I visited this website - Brighter Planet's 350 Challenge - put their badge on my blog and in return, they offset 350 lbs of carbon in my name.

My, How They've Grown!

I did some reminiscing tonight and looked back at some old pictures of the kids. So I decided to do a Then and Now comparison.

Crystina Then (Dec. 2007)


Crystina Now (Jan. 2009)


Carolyn Then (Dec. 2007)


Carolyn Now (Dec. 2008)


Caitlyn Then (Jan. 2008)


Caitlyn Now (Jan. 2009)


Charlotte Then (Jan. 2008)


Charlotte Now (Jan. 2009)


Cheyenne Then (Dec. 2007)


Cheyenne Now (Dec. 2008)


Courtney Then (Jan. 2008)


Courtney Now (Dec. 2008)

Yes, I Have 6 Kids.......

You know, I really hate when this conversation takes place:
Stranger: Wow, how many kids do we have here?
Me: 6.
Stranger: Are they all yours?
Me: Yes. {As I roll my eyes}
Stranger: You must have your hands full.
Me: No more than any other parent.
Stranger: Do you know what causes it?
Me: {Dumbfounded look. Then I say} Yes, I do.
Stranger: Oh, ok.

What do they take me for? A moron? Anyone that has taken sex ed in school knows where babies come from. I'm 30 years old, for heaven's sake, of course I know HOW I ended up with 6 kids!

And another of my favorites:
Stranger: Wow, 2 sets of twins!
Me: Yes.
Stranger: You must be blessed.
Me: So it would appear.
Stranger: Well, why did you have 2 sets?
Me: Well, I really had no control over that part.
Stranger: Oh. {?}

Ok, how am I supposed to control TWINS? It just happened... twice. It's not like I waited until the exact moment when the planets were in the right alignment to conceive!

And my final favorite:
Stranger: So, how many different fathers are there?
Me: {Thinking its really none of their business, but what did I have to hide?} They are all by my husband. We've been together 13 years and our oldest is 10. {Then I walk away}

So, for anyone who is wondering: Yes, I have 6 kids. Yes, they're all mine. Yes, they all have the same dad. Yes, I know what causes them.



Don't forget to check out my Ultimate Blog Party 2009 Post, found here. It's going on until March 27^th.

Ultimate Blog Party 2009

I am really excited about joining in on the Ultimate Blog Party 2009 this year. This event will go from March 20th- March 27th. Basically you go to their blog @ Ultimate Blog Party 2009 and sign the Mr Linky so you can join in and win wonderful prizes. During this week you visit as many other blogs, Twitter or Facebook pages as you can and leave comments about their blogs.
What a great way to visit and learn about other mom's in the blogging world and maybe meet some new friends, find blogs that interest you and learn new things.

A little about me and my blog:
I'm Crystal. I've been married for 10 years and we have 6 daughters. I am a Virginian by birth. I now live in Louisiana, just outside New Orleans. I am in college full time majoring in Accounting. I home school my daughters.

I blog about anything. My life, jokes, news, whatever strikes my mood that day.

Can't wait to get started! Hope to see your blog there too!

There are so many cool prizes to be won at this year’s Ultimate Blog Party, but my top three picks would be:

First:
Bracelet
Provided by: Sydney Andrews

Second:
$40 gift certificate to Carrabba’s Italian Grill
Provided by: The Divine Miss Mommy

Third:
Kitchen Aid Artisan Stand Mixer
Provided by: Moms Who Think

And if my top three picks are already chosen, I’d love any of the following (in order of preference): 41, 17, 25, 81, 10, 20, 21, 113, 118, 26, 91, 123, 94, 71, 60, 16, 38, 5, 98, 87, 89

Chris and Crystal: A Decade of Marriage

Well, today is the day that marks my 10^th wedding anniversary. There were so many people that doubted that we'd even make it to the altar much less this far. I love Chris with all that I have. My life would literally feel empty without him in it. Without him with me right now (work related), my life feels empty. Therefore, I never want to know what it feels like without him in it at all. It's because of him that I believe that true love and soul mates exist because he is my soul mate. We have a decade of marriage under our belt. We've had our share of problems along the way but when all is said and done, we're still together. Always and forever and a day.



Here I am on our wedding day (3/20/99):


Here we are on our wedding day:


And here are we a couple weeks ago:


And the kiss of true love (on the beach no less, what else could be so perfect?):

In Memory of Alexis Marie

I'm using this as my entry for today since I have saved my anniversary for tomorrow's entry. March 20^th, 2009 is not only my wedding anniversary but also the 12^th "anniversary" of the miscarriage of my first baby.


Here is "her" story:

Alexis Marie Swarmer
March 20, 1997
Miscarriage8 weeks

There's not much to say for Alexis' story. It was an early pregnancy miscarriage. So early, I would never have the chance to know the sex of my baby. But, in my heart, I felt it was a girl so we named it what she would have been called had she been a girl. Chris picked out her name - her whole name. I miss her. I know that had it not been for losing her, I wouldn't have my daughter. And I thank her all the time that she sent my little Crystina to me. Crystina can never replace her, but she helped me overcome the grief. I had never known anyone that had miscarried. I had never known anyone who had lost a baby by any means. I never went to the hospital. I, at first, thought the home pregnancy test had been wrong. I just thought it was just a late period. But when I passed the blood clot, I knew it wasn't just a period. I was young, but not too stupid. I paid alot of attention to things around me. And that looked like a little, bitty baby (real itty - bitty). I tried for so long to block that day out of my mind. I tried to forget about it. But I couldn't. I couldn't forget about my first baby. I still remember it all.I'm still waiting for the day that I can truly memorialize her. But, being me, I have to think of the perfect way. I may wait until I own my own house, so whatever I do, is mine and mine alone. I don't have to worry about dealing with any landlords or anyone else's property rules. So if I have to wait 10 years to do my memorial, then so be it. Some people frustrate me when they say that there is no way I could be attached to Alexis since I was only 6 weeks pregnant. But, I was. She was a part of me and I can't ignore any part of me. I can't just say that since she wasn't carried long enough that I don't love her just the same. We all love our children no matter if they were with us for 8 weeks of pregnancy, 8 months of pregnancy, 8 months of life, or with us now. Time doesn't change love. Alexis Marie will always remain in my heart and my thoughts. She was my first child and in my heart she will always be my first baby.

Here is her certificate from The Shrine of the Unborn at The Church of the Holy Innocents in New York, New York (in fact all of my losses as well as the baby my sister miscarried are listed there):

You Know Its Love

I wrote this poem on March 16^th, 2009. While me and Chris were talking I said "You know its 100% true love when this is how we feel apart." That was the inspiration for this poem.

You Know It’s Love

You know it’s love
When you are all I think about.
You know it’s love
When every thought is of you.
You know it’s love
When you invade my every dream.
You know it’s love
When my only wish is to be next to you.
You know it’s love
When I’d rather die than be apart.
You know it’s love
When not being with you breaks my heart.

© Crystal Darden Swarmer
2009

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy St. Patty's Day!

And here's a quiz I took for fun!

Congratulations, according to our experts, you have : 75% of the luck o' the Irish Take the Luck o' the Irish Quiz at Quizopolis.com

Me: Then and Now

I thought it would be fun to share a baby picture of myself.

So, here is a picture of me from when I was about a month old.


And, here is me now.

Lessons Learned: I Owe My Mother

I got this from someone else. I thought it was so true! I think we have all heard these at some point!

I OWE MY MOTHER:

1. My mother taught me TO APPRECIATE A JOB WELL DONE.
"If you're going to kill each other, do it outside. I just finished cleaning."
2. My mother taught me RELIGION.
"You better pray that will come out of the carpet."
3. My mother taught me about TIME TRAVEL.
"If you don't straighten up, I'm going to knock you into the middle of next week!"
4. My mother taught me LOGIC. "
Because I said so, that's why."
5. My mother taught me MORE LOGIC.
"If you fall out of that swing and break your neck, you're not going to the store with me."
6. My mother taught me FORESIGHT.
"Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you're in an accident."
7. My mother taught me IRONY
"Keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about."
8. My mother taught me about the science of OSMOSIS.
"Shut your mouth and eat your supper."
9. My mother taught me about CONTORTIONISM.
"Will you look at that dirt on the back of your neck!"
10. My mother taught me about STAMINA.
"You'll sit there until all that spinach is gone."
11. My mother taught me about WEATHER.
"This room of yours looks as if a tornado went through it."
12. My mother taught me about HYPOCRISY.
"If I told you once, I've told you a million times. Don't exaggerate!"
13. My mother taught me the CIRCLE OF LIFE.
"I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."
14. My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION.
"Stop acting like your father!"
15. My mother taught me about ENVY.
"There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don't have wonderful parents like you do."
16. My mother taught me about ANTICIPATION.
"Just wait until we get home."
17. My mother taught me about RECEIVING.
"You are going to get it when you get home!"
18. My mother taught me MEDICAL SCIENCE.
"If you don't stop crossing your eyes, they are going to freeze that way."
19. My mother taught me ESP.
"Put your sweater on; don't you think I know when you are cold?"
20. My mother taught me HUMOR.
"When that lawn mower cuts off your toes, don't come running to me."
21. My mother taught me HOW TO BECOME AN ADULT.
"If you don't eat your vegetables, you'll never grow up."
22. My mother taught me GENETICS.
"You're just like your father."
23. My mother taught me about my ROOTS.
"Shut that door behind you. Do you think you were born in a barn?"
24. My mother taught me WISDOM.
"When you get to be my age, you'll understand."
25. And my favorite: My mother taught me about JUSTICE.
"One day you'll have kids, and I hope they turn out just like you!"

Book Review(s): Twilight Saga

I had initially stayed away from these books because I honestly didn't want to follow the crowd. It seemed EVERYONE I knew was so into Twilight. I managed to avoid it until last week. That's when I said "What the heck. I'll read Twilight and see if its any good." So, I went to the store one day with Chris and he bought Book #1: Twilight for me. It took me a couple days to get around to starting it, but when I did I discovered it was a great story! I instantly fell in love with the love story of Bella Swan, a human teenager and Edward Cullen, a teenage vampire. I went out and bought Book #2: New Moon. New Moon wasn't as good to me as Twilight was, but was still worth reading. I am glad that the author waited until the second book to introduce the werewolves. Accepting vampires was enough for one book! Then came Book #3: Eclipse. That book, all 630 pages, was read in a day. Now, I am reading Book #4: Breaking Dawn. I am 221 pages into it and LOVING it! I have not seen the movie yet, but plan to buy the DVD when it comes out (3/21).

I will write about Book #4 when I am finished with it.