the 4th as it should be

We spent the 4th as it should be...with our friends the McKellebs. We always watch the fireworks with the McKellebs....last year they were living in Massachusetts....so we watched with their cousins instead. This year they are living in Vegas, so things were back to normal. We watched the fireworks with our good friends!

Addie and Cord having fun together! (I realize the pictures are blurry...sorry Jalyn)

Addie and Cord were scaring the parents by climbing this fence. It was a big dropoff on the other side.


Cam and Addie enjoying the fireworks!

Brooke and Bri....they had a sleepover the night before and always have a great time together!

Camden, Mason and his cousin Ethan(?) We sure miss having this kids at the end of our street!

The whole crowd watching the fireworks! We have a great time parked on top of the blue bunny parking garage! Lets do it again next year!

A little confusion!

Last night Easton said "I know how Addie got in your tummy mom". Wow....I wondered how he had learned that tidbit of info. I asked him how. "I jumped on your tummy....sorry mom" I guess it is time for us to have a chat!

Workout pants

The deal of the day for modbe is the yoga pant. They are normally $49 but are now on sale for $18! That is a 63% savings! I have a few friends that love to run in them! Again...input party #2247 at checkout!

Modbe alert

Starting tonight at 10 p.m. MST (right now) for the next 24 hours all modbe swim tops will be $25...they are normally $48! That is an amazing deal. Go to www.modbeclothing.com/shelleys to get the suit you have been wanting. Type is party #2247 at checkout. If you buy 3 or more items you will get an extra 10% off! For the next 12 days modbe will have a different item each day at amazing prices! Today it is the swim top. The next day? We will know when it happens. (Shipping is $4.95 to your house for orders $99 and under.)

AHHHH Daddy!

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, AHHHHH!!!" we hear Addie yell. "It's a Cock-a-toe" aka....cockroach!

Sleepy?

Addison wanted to take a bath this afternoon....so I popped her in. I put her in the tub while I do things like fold laundry in my room (I can see her in my tub while doing this) She talks and plays with toys, then suddenly I can't see her and she is quiet. I look in and she is floating. She giggles and grins at me. A minute later when I look again she is like this.....



think my girl was sleepy? Neil got her out of the tub and she immediately starts crying cause she wants to play in the tub!

Summer

We have been having a very relaxing and enjoyable summer. We go to the splash pad, swimming, library and play dates. Birthday parties, baseball games and park time. The weather has been amazing and been a nice 91-94 degrees. Perfect! Friday we went to the park and were the only ones there for 1 1/2 hours! We took a lunch and sat under a tree enjoying a nice breeze. I know the days of 100+ are coming, so I am LOVING the cooler weather. I don't remember June ever being this cool in S.G. So lots of nothing but fun here at our house!

6 already?

This is one of my favorite photos of Easton...he was just 13 months. Each Sunday we would go to the farm with Neil while he would check his potatoes. The kids loved wearing their irrigation boots and helping dad. Last week Easton turned 6. Where has the time gone?



Camden really wanted to be the one to take Easton's picture. Not bad for a 7 year old! With camera delay I am surprised he got such a great picture.


Easton showing off his presents.

I told Easton he didn't need a picture with both of these presents because the look the same....he told me he would hold them a different way, so I needed to take both pictures....can't you see the difference?


Easton got a few games for the Wii....I think his favorite is lego indiana jones. He also got clothes, money and a transformer. His aunt Cindy was talking to me about what to get him and said $ wouldn't be that fun so I asked Easton if he wanted $ for his birthday he said "Yeah, like $5!" To him $5 was a huge amount. So aunt Cindy did get him $5! We also found two $5 cash cards inside two different fruit roll boxes. Easton wanted those cash cards so much. I wrapped them up for his birthday and he was thrilled! With his birthday money his got a new wii 4x4 game and a truck from the movie Cars! He had a great birthday and was spoiled. We love our Easton boy. He is so smart and a hard worker at school. He is reading well above his age level. Easton LOVEs Addie. Often I hear her scream and say "Easton, no kissa me" (yes she adds the "a" to kiss). Easton is a great at sports. He just finished soccer and has started t-ball. He prefers to be pitched to though! Easton is a mama's boy and always wants to sit next to mom....especially at the dinner table and at church. He gives great hugs and kisses. Easton is also a little tough to wake up in the morning. Most mornings I avoid talking to him for the first 1/2 hour. After that he is a gem! We love you Easton and are glad you are in our family!

Glad it's over!

Last week was crazy. We had....two ice cream float parties I was in charge of, kindgergarten graduation, 4 baseball games, two baseball picture days, 5th grade graduation assembly, movie night (Brooke's class spent two months making a video about the civil war....Monday they showed the movie at school...the movie was fantastic....I thought it would be a cheesy little movie, but it was so professional) I also did a presentation at the junior high. Easton turned 6 and through all that Neil was out of town. Luckily my parents came and took care of me! I am glad that week is done, now we are on to summer! I am spring cleaning (because it is so hot here you have to stay inside and so spring cleaning happens in the summer instead of the spring) I spent about 3 hours on my room and now am moving onto each room and closet in the house....up next is Easton's room with the other kids to follow and then the toys. Lets hope I survive the toy room! If I am not back in a week send in a search party!

She graduates!

Brooke graduated from 5th grade...she now moves on to a different school where there is 6th and 7th grade. I can't believe it.


Brooke (below) and her friend Brianna (above) both earned a trophy for the give me liberty program. They memorized 13 different things which included: the presidents in order, all the states and capitals, the preamble to the constitution and the Gettysburg address. I was very proud and impressed....she worked on it a lot!


Brooke and Bri receiving their diplomas. The school didn't tell us they would be graduating, luckily a friend mentioned that they would get their diplomas at the school assembly on Friday, so I was one of very few parents there to see them graduate. Good job Brooke! Oh, and she had an excellent report card!

He graduates!

Easton graduated from Kindergarten last week. They had a cute little program and then they received their diplomas. This is Easton and his teacher Mrs. Cornwall. She is a strict but loving teacher. The kids sure learn a lot in her classroom. I was thrilled Easton had her.

Easton with his friends Mason, Bear (Baringer) and Hayden.



Easton and his best friend Justice. I switch tending with Justice's mom so they boys play together Mon-Thurs. They have a great time. You should also hear Addie say his name...more like Sustis!



During the program. This is so Easton....waiting for the teachers instructions while the other kids misbehave. The teacher often put Easton as her monitor. He is very good at making sure the other kids do what they are suppose to.



And a smile for mom!

Addies Easter outfit!

I did say I would post pictures of Addie's easter outfit. I never thought it would take me this long to get them up! I did the smocking on it last summer...the construction I kept putting off. I finally finished it and love the "knots landing" look. It looks like she just stepped out of the 80's!

Addie's pictures!

I have the most talented friends. My friend Amber took pictures of Addie at the Relief Society house in Santa Clara. Although there were few smiles to be had (until we got in the car and the giggle started) Amber got a ton of great shots...here are a few of my favorites!

The craziness comes to an end!

The end is here....the last two or three weeks have been full of running around kids and watching with pride as they accomplish different things. Maybe tomorrow I will be recovered enough to update on all that has happened. Right now I am just plain exhausted. I even took a nap today which hasn't happened for me in a very long time! So stay tuned...more to come!

Caution....lots of whining about to be heard!

My a/c has a broken part. A box arrived that said "condenser" on it. I spent a week without a/c. Yesterday it was 93*. Yesterday Neil installed the part. Yesterday we realized the part was faulty. Today a new part is on its way. Today it will be 94*. In an effort to beat the heat we went with friends to the splash park on Tuesday. I got 6 kids under age 6 in sunscreen (I was watching a few friends and and some neighbor kids snuck in too) I forgot to sunscreen myself. My poor back is a lobster, no a crab, since I am so crabby about it. I was suppose to run with my kids this morning...I knew it would never happen. My red sports bra was never going to get along with my red back, cause you know, it's crabby. On a much happier note...I think Addie is on her way to being potty trained....she has told me at the store she needs to potty and last night she went into the bathroom and went by herself. We found her on her way out...she even remembered to wash her hands!

Fun, Fun on the Farm!

We went with Easton's class to the farm across the street from his school. The kids loved it!


The farmer there cracks me up...each time we have gone he tells these little 5 and 6 year olds about interesting things like: global economy or the dead calf that is in the pasture.

Being there makes me miss Neil farming, then the farmer started telling the kids all about the schedule he keeps and I stopped missing it.

The kids loved these little piglets. The farmer picked one up for the kids to pet and boy did the piglet and the momma squeal about that.

Poor Easton had a terrible time on the farm. His eyes got redder and itchier the longer we were there. When we left I checked him out of school and got him home to take some benedryl. I called that day for an appointment with the allergist and the next week we learned that not only is he allergic to hay, but like every grass or tree imaginable, except pine trees! No wonder he was having a hard time!

Addie loves to go to Easton's class. She especially liked going to the farm and has asked about everyday since if she can go to the farm. I tell her it's closed!

I had to add this picture because you can sort of see the wonderful haircut Addie gave herself...her bangs are not that short, normally! Don't you love her combover!

Oh what to do when you're two!

You live in a world that isn't fair. You get put in bed, when you are clearly exhausted. You don't want to be there. You know if you come out of that room you will be sent right back. Yet you want out so badly. So what do you do? You quietly sneak out to the hallway. Then when mom is on her way to bed she finds you like this....

Everybody clean up!

During our Saturday morning cleanup I passed by Addie's room and found she had "cleaned up" her polly pockets! Thanks for the help Addie!

Pretend it's Wednesday!

I have a great post that I would love to title "Work's for me Wednesday" but today is Tuesday. So play along, ok? Yesterday I got Addison a new Barbie movie....Fairytopia. She loves Barbie movies and I am hoping that they will be a great potty training incentive! The worst part of getting a movie? All the tape they put around the edges so you can't steal the $5 movie! As I was struggling to get off the tape, you know how stinking hard it is, I look down and on the desk is my seam ripper. Aha....I pick it up and in an instant the tape is off and the movie is ready to be watched. Gotta love a simple seam ripper! Do you have a "work's for me Wednesday" you want to share today?

It happened in the car!

Do you have days that are so crazy, and you are running so late, and on the way out the door you notice that you or your child have something on their shirt...like a little jelly from their pb/j or chocolate. Now you have a dilemma....do you take the time to change her shirt, shoes and bows so that she matches, or do you go out the door with the little stain. You know if you change you will be late. Have you ever thought to yourself...."if anyone notices I'll say it happened in the car on the way here" then run out the door content knowing that yes there is a stain, but you have a totally believable excuse!

Guilty!

Well I have spent the last two days doing jury duty. I really thought I would get out of it. I thought the defence lawyer for a DUI would see a mom with young children who have never had a drink and would think "she is not what we want" the prosecutor said he thought I would have been his next choice to get rid of. We started at 8:30 in the morning yesterday and finished today at around eleven thirty. It took us about an hour and a half to deliberate. The defendant refused the breath test at purgatory (the jail here). He said he wouldn't do one without his lawyer present. He said his dog jumped on his arm while he was driving, that made him swerve and almost run off the road. The cop that was at the stop sign didn't see him swerve, he didn't even turn to make the curve in the road, that is why he went off the road. They gave him 3 different DUI tests and he failed all 3. We found him guilty. It was hard for me to decide someone had chosen to break the law. I felt good about my verdict, I thought he was guilty. I just felt bad being the one to say yes he was guilty. I felt bad that he had made the choices he did. If I could change anything I would change his decision to drive his car that night. After the trial the prosecutor talked to us for a minute and told us that there were things he couldn't tell us in court. Like this is his 3rd DUI arrest (and perhaps conviction) in 10 years. On the scene the man took a breathalyzer test, and failed. It isn't admissible in court like the one at the jail would have been. When he failed it on the side of the road, it was at a .167! The drinking limit is .08! I felt even better about the conviction after I heard that. It could have been me and my kids that he hit when he was driving, rather then almost killing himself when he drove off the road. I am now done with jury duty for at least 2 years. It was a good experience. I felt like I learned a lot. I made a difference and I would totally do it again. I just wish I could have picked a different date for it. I missed out on #1-going to Eastons classroom to help out #2 family game night at the school #3 piano lessons for two kids #4 spending time with my friend visiting from out of town #5 dentist appointment for all 4 kids. #6 running with my friends on Monday #7 working out with my friends on Tuesday #8 running with my kids on Tuesday. I also had to bug my friends and get 4 of them to tend my kids at different times. I wish I could have said some days were better then others, but such is life. That is the way the jury system works. And today it worked well.

blah blah blah

So I have nothing to blog about. I should be posting cute pictues of my kids and Easter. I should be posting pictures of soccer. I am not. I don't have the energy to do it right now. We have been super busy with our church callings, 3 soccer teams, piano and friends visiting. We enjoy all of them, just keeping us busy and my mind so busy I can't think of a fun post. Maybe tomorrow!

Easter outfit

I started Addie's Easter outfit last summer. It started out as a summer outfit, but then I put it away and finally got back to it this week. I need to sew on one sleeve, put in some elastic and hem the top. I can't wait to get it on her and show you the fantastic fabric and pattern!

Happy Feet!

This morning when I got Brooke up to run we had four additional feet join us, Camden and Easton. I never thought I would see the day when I went running with my kids. All three big kids! They did really well. Camden wanted to run faster, but Eastons little legs just couldn't keep up. There was no whining and they all want to go agin on Thursday. I just hope my knee is doing ok for me to take them, it has been bothering me all day:(

Pwincess

Addie is in love with anything "Pwincess" In hopes to encourage her to use the potty I bought her this crown at the dollar store. She used the potty in order to get the crown, and then promptly stopped using the potty. She got what she wanted so she was done! I love this Pwincess!

Pathetic

We went to Washington state for spring break (two weeks ago) and this is the only picture I took the entire time. I know, pathetic! This is my nephew Carston. His new baby brother was born the week before. You would think I would have taken the new baby's picture! We got to see lots of friends and family. We had a great time, but spent a lot of time in the car. Neil told Brooke that for her essay on what she did for spring break she should write "we drove, stopped, drove, stopped and drove some more" That is a very accurate account of our trip, but we had fun!

Lucky Girl!

After 14 months, and before finishing the 5th grade, Brooke got her braces off! How lucky can a girl get. Her teeth look great. This is her fantastic ortho. Dr. Beckstrom (he went to dental school with my friend from high school, isn't that crazy)

Brooke was so good about following the ortho's instructions. She stayed away from a lot of her favorite things, popcorn and caramel! She didn't break one bracket so we celebrated with a popcorn party!

We rented bedtime stories and made a bunch of yummy popcorn's and had a great time with her bff Brianna.

We had lime, orange and strawberry popcorn. We also had peanut butter and traditional butter popcorn. Yummy! Now lets just hope she doesn't lose her retainer ($150 to replace that puppy)

My favorite chore!

I have a few chores I love. I love to do laundry (just hate to put it away). My favorite chore is to vaccuum! However my hoover has died. It lived a good life (10 years) We broke down this weekend and bought a new one. Wow! I love it. I love the suction! I love that I can hear and see all the dirt that is getting sucked up. I just might use it everyday this week. Maybe next week too! I can't tell you how much I love my new Hoover. Well....I'm off to vacuum again!

I felt like Rocky!

I am a new runner. I haven't really ran a mile since 7th or 8th grade. I am trying something new and out of my comfort zone. My friends have somehow gotten me out the house on Mondays to run two miles. When I say two miles I really mean I run as much as I can and walk some in between. My goal has been to get the first mile without stopping. I missed the last two weeks of running because I was out of town. We went to Washington and visited family and friends. One brisk morning I got myself out of the house and decided to run alone. I put on my IPOD and went out the door. Crunch crunch....oh yeah...gravel roads. Out on the farm there are no sidewalks. I loved the rhythem and the crunch, crunch, crunch. I took a deep breath. Oh yeah....no cars driving by so just fresh air to breath in. Crunch crunch. I looked to my left and saw the sun just hitting the tips of the mountains. crunch crunch. I will run until I make it to that hay stack. Crunch Crunch. Hey I made it there....I think I'll keep going until I reach the next house. Crunch crunch. I look to my right and see a thick cloud in the distance. The sun is streaming down though the cloud. Wow....I would have missed this if I had stayed inside. Crunch Crunch. I made it to the house and can see where the mile mark is...I think I'll just keep running and see if I can make it all the way to the mile. Crunch crunch. I pass a small pasture with a horse in it. Now on my right a farmer is just climbing into his tractor. I wonder what he is doing today. Did he notice the sun streaming through the cloud or the way the air smells. It rained last night and there is a clean, fresh smell in the air. I breath in again and can almost smell the potato dirt smell that reminds me of Neil. Crunch Crunch...I'm almost at the mile mark...why does the last 1/8th have to be uphill? I won't let that hill stop me though. I make it....I walk for maybe 20 feet then think...let's run back now...so I do. I only stop one more time, cause that horse is calling my name. A farmer drives past and gives a little wave. Crunch crunch crunch. I am almost back to the house and it makes me a little sad. I don't get to run this again. No more crunch under my feet. 2 miles. It wasn't that bad this cold morning. I almost enjoyed it! And when I got to the top of that hill I felt like Rocky! I wanted to raise my hands in the air and dance around, but I didn't....I had another mile to go! Tomorrow I will go alone again. I didn't think I would like running alone, but I didn't mind it. It wasn't as fun as chatting with my friends, but instead gave me a little more time to think. We'll see if on tomorrow's run I can repeat my mile without stopping....if so I might try to go even farther!

Caught

Today I caught Addie in her first lie. I need to begin this post by saying that everyday I do something cute with Addies hair and everyday she pulls it out. She does it when she get sleepy...either in bed or in the car. She does it so much that I have a stash of rubberbands in the car so I can put it back up before we go into stores. Today we went and got the oil changed. She was sleepy. While sitting and waiting I turn around and she had pulled her hair out. I asked her if she was suppose to pull it out and she told me "Daddy said no" I said, "Daddy said not to pull it out?" "No", she said "Daddy said no ponies" What? Daddy would never tell her she is not allowed to have ponies. 2 and already telling a lie...that would get her daddy in trouble! So I caught her in her first lie. I thought to myself....if you're going to lie, make it believeable!

I'm Lovin it!

Things I am currently loving:

Friends: Good friends that motivate me to run. I love our chats (well they chat I try to breath)
Food: Recently I have been loving..... sauteed mushrooms, black beans, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (with my parents homemade jam) salad and pink lady apples (gala and fuji's work too) I also love pulling out a frozen dinner from my freezer (my dad made a bunch of them while he was visiting last)
Family: when the boys spend an entire day playing together instead of fighting, Brooke offering to take Addie on a bike ride, Neil being so darn handy (he can build of fix anything I want)
Faith: going with Brooke to new beginnings. She turns 12 this year and is growing up so fast. She is a great kid to have around. She is helpful and fun with her brothers and sister. It is fun to see her enter this new and exciting world! Going with Camden to 8 is great night. Cam turns 8 this year and every prayer he says includes "bless me that I will have a great baptism" His birthday isn't until August, can you tell he is excited? Listening to Easton sing. East loves to sing primary songs. He totally picks up on the songs in primary (thanks to great singing leaders) He also has been downstairs playing legos while belting out "Can you hear the people sing, singing the song of angry men" (from Les Mis) Hearing Addie yell "my church" every time we pass by. She loves to go to nursery (Andrew may play a small part) She has just now started saying prayers. We have tried for months, but now she finally asks.

So there you have it....some of my favorite F's! Do you have any current favorites?

Update

Since the title of my last post uses one word I couldn't post more info. So here is the rest of the story (in tribute to Paul Harvey) Chelsea use to teach classes at 24 hour fitness (I think that club) Tuesday she tortured me with over an hour of Pilates. Today my body is yelling at me. That is my favorite kind of torture....you work hard and feel it later!

one word for Chelsea

OUCH!

$85

Have I mentioned how much I love rebates? Today I got $85 in the mail....gotta love that! What will I do with that cash? Get more items that qualify for more rebates!

25 Main

My good friend Jalyn is in town. She moved away a year ago for her husband to attend college. Today Lindz and I went to lunch with her at 25 Main. It is a cute little restaurant which specializes in cupcakes....and boy do they do cupcakes. They are normal size with just the right amount of amazing frosting. They also have a delicious menu. We each got a different item and each enjoyed it. I had a yummy panini. Even better then the wonderful food? The wonderful conversation. It is so great to get together with friends, without kids, and chat about life. I think I need to do this more often. I think I need to go once a month and enjoy yummy food and good conversation with my friends. I feel lucky cause I do have great friends! The one flaw for the day? I forgot to get a picture...and Jalyn forgot too (which shocks me because she is attached at the hip to her camera). So girls....lets plan a lunch date for next month.

So long, farewell....

Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey hey goodbye.
Hit the road jack and don't you come back, no more no more no more no more!
Got any other good bye songs?
As of this morning the scale says I am down 10 lbs. That is 10 lbs. I hope to never see again. 10 lbs that I worked hard to say goodbye to. Lets hope the next 10 come a lot quicker, and with less sweating involved! As a tribute to those 10 lbs. I have one more song for you....

Now it's time to say goodbye to those lost 10 lbs.

T-E-N-L-B-S

L-O-S-T-YES!


(for those not in the know, that was the mickey mouse club song)

Dandruff

Today while I was putting Brooke's hair in a ponytail I noticed a little dandruff. I kept combing and noticed a lot of dandruff. I explained to her that she needed to go hop in the shower and I would get her special shampoo, etc. She got a little teary and as she was walking to the shower said, "are you sure it isn't sugar?" What? Her and her friend were goofing around yesterday and got sugar in one anther's hair. Upon closer inspection....yes it was sugar! No wonder the dandruff was so granular looking! And Brooke felt much better knowing it was just sugar!

Time for anti-aging cream?

Friday afternoon I went shopping with my friend. While she was trying on shirts in the dressing room I sat out in the chairs and held her two month old baby. The baby was dressed from head to toe in pink. A woman, about 50 I would say, came and sat down next to me and asked "boy or girl" Hmmm, I thought, all pink. Whatever. So I told her girl. She then said "well if she wasn't Bald I would be able to tell the difference. Too bad she is Bald" She went on a little bit more about how bald the baby was (as if we had shaved her head or something) She then asked me "so is she yours or is she your GRANDDAUGHTER?" What? Seriously? She thinks that I at 33 look like a grandma? If I weren't already questioning her sanity then I would be really offended. I think perhaps it's time for me to get some anti-aging cream.

A new recruit!

Here is my new running partner. I asked Brooke yesterday if she wanted to go running with me in the morning. Surprisingly she said yes. So this morning I woke her up early and we ran a mile. We took it easy this morning, I didn't want to make it hard on her the first time and make her not want to go again. I think fromnow on I will go Mondays with my friends, Tuesdays Pilates, Wednesdays elliptical or run, Thursdays run with Brooke and Fridays Pilates. Anyone want to join? This picture was taken by Camden right when we got back. It was a little cold, so I am surprised we don't have much redder faces. On another note....do you think she looks like me? Look at the eyebrows, the chin and the nose.

Nothing better

There is nothing better then rocking your baby ( yes she's 2, but still my baby) to sleep. The yummy smell of fresh out of the bath. The rich chocolate eyes that look up at yme with such trust. The little voice that wispers "twinkle" so I will sing to her. I love stopping in the middle of the song so she will fill in the blank, she sounds so cute saying "diamond". I love telling her to close her eyes and she snuggles into me. I love that moment when sleep takes over and I can feel her breathing change. I'm trying to take in each of her features and memorize them, since I know this is a fleeting moment. I use to put her down for a nap without a fuss and time in the chair, but now we read, sing and sleep. It's just about the best time of my day.

Even my eyes hurt!

Today's run kicked my rear. Lindz really pushed me to go farther and longer than I normally would. As a result...I am building up endurance....but I am sore. My body is sore in different places. Like my legs are fine, but my shoulders are sore?! What's with that!? And now my eyes hurt. Is that a complication from running....or do you think I just need a nap?

Church bag

I am finding that we have so much stuff in our church bag that it makes a big mess. I am wanting to scale down how much and what we take to church. Somehow power rangers have made their way in....and those just don't lead to quiet time in church. I like having books for Addie to look at...although anything with farm animals doesn't work because she likes to make their noises loudly. What do you like to put in your bag....at what age do you stop taking treats? No matter what time we eat before church, my kids are suddenly starving during sacrament meeting. Any suggestions?

30 years and 2 days ago....

in a galaxy far far away (well it was the 70's) I looked like this....



and was enjoying my 3rd birthday. Yep, do the math, and you will realize that on Saturday I turned.....25! Right?! I had a great birthday this year. Brooke and her friend Sammy each bought me a gift from the dollar store. It was very thoughtful of them. Neil and I went shopping for new clothes for me, but found stuff for him and Addie. We had papa murphys heart shaped pizza. My parents left after spoiling me for a week. Neil let me read for a very long time and I was able to finish a good book I was reading. Overall a great day!

*Don't you love pictures from the 70's. I love the wallpaper, that it matches the kitchen chairs. I love everyone is in their cords. In the picture is my brother, sister, some of the Waite kids and a friend Justin Petes. Look at Aaron's adorable dimple....goes well with his red pants!

Bad hair day?

Everyday I do something cute with Addison's hair. If not it hangs in her eyes and makes me nuts. With Brooke I could get her to brush it out of her eyes, but Addie doesn't seem to care. Some days she will leave it in for a long time. Some days she pulls out her "pretties" while we are in the car. She is nice enough to hold onto the rubber bands and bow and give them to me when we arrive at our destination. She also sits still and lets me put it back in. This is how she usually ends up looking. Having a bad hair day. I wish I could have bad hair days like this and still look so darn cute. (This is her little friend. We had them over for Thanksgiving and had a great time. They have moved away and we miss them terribly!)

Playing catchup

I was finally able to get pictures uploaded....so now I am going to play a little catchup. In December the kids had a piano recital. Camden and Brooke are both taking lessons. They have a fantastic instructor, Nicole. We were on the waiting list for 3 years before we were able to get in, that's how popular she is around here. Brooke played "where are you Christmas" and Camden played "away in a manger". They both did really well, especially since it was their first recital.

I can dream!

There is the realistic side of me, the logical one that thinks things through. Then there is the side of me that dreams. Like today's dream....I knew it wouldn't happen, but a girl can wish. Have you ever stepped on the scale, gone running, get back and wish the scale had changed? I know that isn't realistic. But wouldn't it be amazing if it had gone down, even half a pound? Do you have any unrealistic dreams?

Valentine's party

I have been asked to be in charge of the party for Camden's class next week. Got any great ideas? I think I am going to do ham/cheese heart sammies, heart rice crispies, decorate heart cookies, strawberry ice cream in 7 up for the treats. I was thinking of doing a craft or two (but need ideas) and doing a few games. Bingo, memory and bean bag toss are always easy games, but you got anything good?

A few funnies

Yesterday my kids seemed to be silly. Easton was playing a video game and suddenly yells "what they hay?" I thought I had heard him wrong, but he repeated it a few times. Right before bed Addison hurt her arm. I gave her all the proper mommy condolences and then told her to run and tell daddy. I hear a kissing sound and then she says "I ok, I kiss it better" Talk about self sufficient! I love those two and love that they keep me laughing!

Sweating and everything!

So I posted yesterday that my friends were taking me running. We did 2 miles. This broke so many rules for me. I was sweating. I was out of breath. When that happens I get red in the face. It was cold. But I feel just a little bit proud of myself. My friends were very kind and walked way more often then they would have liked. They listened to me whine. Now I just want to run on my own so that the next time we go I can shock them with how much I have improved. And if anyone knows how to exercise without sweating....let me know! I'll pay you a million bucks....(if it is an aerobic exercise). Thanks girls....for getting my rear in gear.

Great friends!

There is nothing better then great friends. I love having friends that inspire me to be a better person. Friends that teach me things. Tonight we had 3 families over for a little superbowl dinner. Valerie, with her hubby and two boys, Lindz, with her hubby and cute boy and girl (ANDREW for Addie) and Alissa, with her hubby her little boy and girl. We projected the game on the wall above our stairs so we watched the game in a 5x12 area! The men we in t.v. heaven. The girls? We chatted and had a great time together. We always have a good time together, we just don't do it often enough. The kids? Had fun taking out every toy in the basement. Thats ok...this is just the push I have needed to go through the toys. We have far too many! I loved having Val, Lindz and Alissa over. Only problem? They are all runners and are somehow getting me to go with them this week. You know me, I hate to sweat, so this will be a definate challenge.