Celebration at Granny and Grampa's

Here comes Granny with my CAKE!

Make a wish :)


Mikie got frosting all over his hands and really grossed Daddy out!

Last night we hung out at Granny and Grampa’s and had a nice little celebration for Jack’s birthday. Granny made a great supper, a really cool cake and he was all excited to open his presents (with Mikie’s assistance as you can see). He got a little weird about Granny getting him “Toy Story” which I told her as an idea, I guess he wanted “Toy Story 2.” Seeing as how we had neither?!? But I guess he’s still a little scared of it. He’s so rare, he loves to talk about Jonah and the Whale (Veggie Tales) but is scared of it – same with Shrek 2 (Erk got it for him when they camped together) and he’s scared to watch that too! Nutty kid!

Tackling Daddy, a Mikie sandwich

I can hardly wait to open my presents!

What is it? :)

Check it out Dad!

Mikie and Grampa



Thanks Granny and Grampa!!

Relaxing

Jack ringing the cow bell out front...

The boys took a few minutes to catch some rays, or was it Z's?? :)


Picky ringin the bell...

Yesterday proved to be a day of "tudes" all the way around. I wasn't very patient and the boys were both cranky too. So we headed outside... We were out there for probably 3 hours! It was nice to just have them dink around and I sat and made my grocery list and looked thru cookbooks. VERY relaxing as it turned out. I sat there and thought to myself, "thank you Lord that we didn't move from here!" It was so beautiful and peaceful...

We ate lunch out on the front porch, better believe we'll be doing that a lot more often - that was great :)

The boys played in their "pump house" for the longest time. See their "car" parked out front?? hehe

Crazy

Kinda weird lighting on this picture, but it's cute just the same! Mer Mer surprised me and the boys yesterday when we pulled into Nanny and Papa's and she was there! What a nice surprise, always a pleasure to see her. Mikie was putting the FLIRTIN' on something HUGE with her! He knows a pretty lady when he sees one :) I'm not sure what he was doing 1/2 the time (once he spit in her hair, HUH?) but she was a good sport. Jack was also in rare form from time to time, crazy boys. Chris and Meg came over too for a boat ride and Auntie Meg was there too. Erk was at a major league ballgame and had a nice relaxing day as well.

Today we opted to skip grocery shopping. The boys are egging each other on something HUGE and I'm just not up for the challenge. I'll go tomorrow morning in peace! Soon we're gonna head back outside (I sat and made my grocery list in the sunshine while they played) and have a picnic lunch. PB&J is what their wantin'... Tonight we're headed to Granny and Gampa's house to have a little early b-day celebration for Jack :) We haven't seen them in a while so it'll be nice to catch up. Have a great Friday!

Asleep on the Job

Bean dog must be tired to not be lurking with mac-n-cheese on the table!

Pick eating his little heart out :)

Jack's owie, he fell off his bike this morning and had to have a Scooby Doo bandade :)

We didn’t really venture out today – the humidity was killin’ me! Our friends stopped by this morning to drop off a cake pan and visit for a few minutes, but other than that we didn’t open the front door as much as normal :) Come lunchtime, Bean dog was whipped (apparently) from who knows what, so she conked under the table. She’s usually up and waiting for a noodle to drop when we’re having mac-n-cheese. Funny animal! After lunch was wrapped up, we did head out to let Chloe out. She quickly took care of business and back home into the a/c for naps we headed. Jack was ticked and continued saying he wasn’t tired today but I knew he was. Needless to say, not 3 minutes after I put the boys down, they were both out. Ahh, and out I went too. One and a half hours later I came on down and hopped on email for a minute before both boys came down laughing and hanging out. Sure beats the fighting that’s been going on lately between them – sheesh! Soon enough the egging on started back up again though… We headed over and let Chloe out again and got home just in time for Daddy to be here and the pizza to be coming outta the oven. We ate and then I headed out for a haircut. Got home in time to see the boys beating Daddy up and then up to bed they went. We can still hear them up there now talkin’, but I bet it’ll be quiet soon. I just took a ½ Unisom to make sure I sleep well tonight. Hope you sleep well too!

Handy Dandy Hand Held Thingy

Yesterday when my mom mentioned to me that she and my aunt would like to throw me a baby shower, I kinda scoffed at the idea. What the beak do I need a shower for? This is my third! I wasn’t really “up” on the idea, but as I thought about it thru the day yesterday, it sounded more and more fun. Heck, there are some things we need, although nothing major. That’d be fun…

This morning the boys and I were up and about around 7:30a and didn’t really know where the day would take us. I have an antique crib I’m trying to sell and have been calling antique stores figuring that’d be what we would have done this morning. But as I got thinking more and more about the shower idea, I thought why not register?? Then folks who want to know what we need can see it on my registry. Good deal. So off the boys and I went…

On our way I asked the boys if they wanted a Slurpee. Pretty fun to realize the boys had never heard of it before – and how would they have? HA! So we went to 7-11 and got the tiniest size, they LOVED it! What a treat – nothing like one of those on a hot summer day... Then off to register.

Our first stop in the store was the restroom and while we were in there we heard a baby crying. Jack says to me “sounds like a boy baby Mom, don’t ya think?” So on our way outta the restroom I turn to see the baby getting changed and she’s all wrapped in pink. I told Jack it was a girl baby and then thought, wait a minute – I know her – it’s Maggie! So we went over and said hello and ended up talking to her and precious new baby Clara and she walked us over to where her sister Sarah was! How funny! What a small world and the timing on that? Wow. So we chatted for a while and both headed on our way registering. Most of the things in the store I skipped (stroller, carseats, etc) but boy was that fun. The boys started getting loose as a goose and I was losing patience – I then realized perhaps the Slurpees weren’t the best idea I’ve ever had :) They were crazy, Mikie especially, jumping all over… But we got thru the whole store and let’s just say I registered for more than the 5 or 6 items I had in mind. Once ya get rollin’ with that handy dandy hand held thingy, ya just can’t seem to stop :) Now that we’re home and had naps, I hopped on the registry and even added a few things. Ok, so perhaps the idea wasn’t anything that hit me right at first, but this sure will be fun :)

Big Boy

Just Bean and I hanging out today. Nanny and Papa offered to come pick up the boys for the morning/afternoon so I’ve truly enjoyed some time to myself. After they picked the boys up, I headed out on various errands to include birthday shopping! Hard to believe my little man will be four in a week. WOW! It was really fun picking out just the right bike for him. We have one “big boy” bike that the boys have been fighting over ever since Jack has realized it is way cooler to ride and pedal than just run with his feet on the ground (not using the pedals)! So we thought a bike would be the perfect gift for him. I ended up getting him a red bike (hoped for Lightening McQueen, but any “themed” bike was at least $30 more than just a normal bike) with a cool guy Spiderman helmet and pads. Can’t wait to see his reaction :) Let’s just hope he doesn’t wander into that part of the garage where it’s covered with some old towels! I picked up a few other odds and ends Cars he doesn’t have yet and we’re good to go. Fun stuff…

I then came on home and have enjoyed some time relaxing watching soaps and making birthday cards. What a nice afternoon! We’re gonna have leftovers and just hang out tonight – Papa just called to say the boys are still sleeping but they’ll bring ‘em on home once they wake up. Have a nice evening!

At the Car Wash...

Whipped

We sure had a nice and relaxing day around these parts. Sheesh was I whipped come morning though! For whatever beakin’ reason, I could not fall asleep last night. Tossed and turned, get up, it’s 12:30am. Tossed and turned, maybe dozed off for a few minutes at a time but I swear I heard every car that drove by and opened my eyes every time (our windows were open). Get up again finally at 3:25am only to grab my pillows and a big old quilt and down the dark staircase I head. Prop myself up on the couch and try to catch some z’s… Took me probably a ½ hour but then I conked. Woke up at 6:30am to pee, back on the couch wondering when the boys would be coming down and when Bean could come press her wet excited nose on my face. Fortunately everyone upstairs slept until 8am, so I did fall back asleep for a bit again. Needless to say, a short night. Baby girl was a big part of the reason, last night I think she was building a house. She had a couple trips to the hardware store but was mainly pounding nails all night  Man was she BUSY! She also figured out how to stretch from one side of my belly to the other so it was impossible to find a position for sleeping where I didn’t feel I was squishing her! Crazy kid… Here’s to hoping her construction is thru, for tonight anyways :)

We headed to 10am church and then came home and Erk made us grilled cheese for lunch. Shortly thereafter Mikie and I headed up for a nap (I thought Jack would take one too but he passed) and I was o-u-t. Slept for 2 solid hours and woke up sweating (windows still open) but boy did that feel great! This evening the boys played and “helped” Daddy wash both cars – Auntie Meg stopped over for a nice visit.

Now the a/c is on and bed is calling my name. Sleep well all!

Better

I can relate Mikie! I am headed to bed here shortly myself... This was Mikie yesterday at 12noon - he just plain zonked in the chair right after lunch. We are all still pretty tired from our travels as of late :)

Here is me tonight in my new outfit :) I asked Erk to get a full body shot, but apparently just the top half of me fit in the lense! HA! My eyeballs look tired (cause I am) but I was happy to have my contacts fit and not bother me all night - and I like my hair this way better than all sticking up. Next haircut I think I'll tame it down a bit. Good night all!

Feeling Low

I’m having a low self esteem day. I just plain feel huge. We have a dinner outing tonight and I didn’t feel like I had anything to wear so I went shopping solo this morning to find the right thing. Huh… I went to 2 different places and felt nothing fit right, it was either way too huge (like a tent) or too small. I finally found something I liked but I have no shoes to match. Now, I’m not a big shopper (as most of you know :) so my wardrobe is pretty darn limited, especially my shoes. Flip flops, sure! Anything else, uhhhh… So I debated, do I get it and go shop for shoes? That was the last thing I wanted to do right then… I just sat down on the little bench in the fitting room and could have cried (blame it on the hormones again).

Out of the fitting room I headed one last time and the lady working there offered to help. Of course she is quite a bit older than me and what she was picking is stuff she would wear. Umm, no thanks on that one. As she’s showing me weird prints and crazy fabrics I spotted an outfit. Wouldn’t you know it fit! I spent a tad more than I would have liked but it’ll work. And the topper? I already have shoes to match!

Recap

As I sit here and try to recap the last week, it all seems like a blur already! A great week at that though, seriously, so good to see everyone and the boys have been true champs. We got home from camping on Monday afternoon (as you saw the pics) and had a marvelous time :) Great times camping with our friends! Then I quick tossed some laundry in and come Tuesday morning we headed out again. It was a bit of a car ride (6 hours) but the boys did really well. We got to see pretty much all of the family that lives there so that was a huge plus. Kate and Laura were at Nanny Loo’s when we got there so it was great to see them and have the boys play with Laura. We spent time out at the farm on Tuesday night – caught lightening bugs, the boys dipped their feet in Auntie Jane’s pool, Mol and Em took them for 4-wheely rides, we sat around and had some “world famous” iced tea (ok, so maybe it’s just famous to me)… took me back, I swear every time I go there I am 13 years old :) Great time (figures I forgot my camera too, eh?!)

(Mikie with cousin Mikie)
Then on Wednesday we went to Auntie Pat’s and got to visit for the whole day. Wow, was that nice! Spent some quality time with the cousins, Auntie Pat and Uncle Mike. Met Ali’s boyfriend, sat outside on the swing and watched the boys play and run around, ate some really good grub and headed back to Nanny Loo’s. All in all, a very blessed and fun time!

(Mikie with Auntie Pat's dog Sugar - looks a lot like Rocky)

(the boys had a blast tackling with Uncle Mike!)
We headed for home on Thursday morning and the boys snoozed in the car. Once we were home the boys and I took a minute to sit and relax (ok, they didn’t… I DID) and then headed out to find Ryan a birthday present. Then off to dinner for Ry’s 8th b-day. Man, the time FLIES! We had a nice time celebrating with them. Ry is so cute with the boys, he and Jack had a “secret” last night, come to find out it was about orange pop. Funny kids…

(I can't believe Ry is EIGHT!)
This morning the boys headed with me to my 30 week doc appt. All is well, the baby’s heart rate was 153 :) Sounded so cool as always. We then came on home for lunch and naps – then off to Nanny and Papa’s to let Chloe out. We’re home now and lookin’ to enjoy a nice peaceful evening at home. Haven’t decided if I have the energy to make supper yet, we’ll have to see. Hope you’ve had a nice week, we sure have!

A Few More...

The boys had fun chasing Chloe around at Auntie Pat's

Uncle Mike, Ali and the boys getting the squirt gun out...

Cousin Mikie playing football with Jack

I think Ry likes his gift! We got him a 2 person tent :)

DRAGGING

So much to say and show (pictures wise) but I am dragging! I'm so freaking tired right now! I'll post some pictures tomorrow sometime. What a busy week! I have a doc appt in the morning, so the pics will probably come in the afternoon... Hope all is well!

Sandwiched

We’re coming away from yet another fantastic weekend. Erk and I have repeatedly said to each other today, “what a great time in our lives.” :) We had the best time with our good friends camping up north. The comfort, the constant laughing and humor, the way we can relate to each other, our boys who play so well together… their friendship means so much. After having spent the weekend camping together, they invited us over tonight for dinner and a dip in their pool! It’s so refreshing – so awesome to be blessed with our relationships – priceless :)

I’ll try to post some pics for ya from the weekend, as you can see we spent some time at the beach (it was right at the end of the road that our campsite was on) and last night we had fun at a nearby park on the beach too. The weather was perfect - couldn’t have been better. I suppose one of the only tiny things we would have changed was having a campsite where we could have opened our awning up (our trailer was right smack dab sandwiched between 2 sets of trees) but we did just fine without it. A good time was had by all…

Now I’m freaking WHIPPED and headed up to bed. Tomorrow morning the boys and I are headed outta town again! We’re gonna go visit with some family out of state along with Nanny and Papa. I hope you have a great next few days! Sorry so few and far between on the pics and postings these days :) Have a great week!

Another Great Weekend Camping

Ivan :)

Sand in the ol' eyeballs, poor Jack