Saturday, May 31, 2008

Sex and The City


I went out tonight and saw the Sex and the City movie with some girls from the subdivision. I honestly can't remember the last time that I saw a movie in the theater?!? Maybe it was when Kelly and I saw Elf with her boys. It was definitely pre-kids. I can't believe how much it costs to go see a movie in the theater now...$9.50/person! Can you imagine being in high school and going on a date to the movies? It would be $20 before food was even factored in! Net flicks is starting to look like a really good deal!



Thursday, May 29, 2008

The Depot


Yesterday I took the kids to Home Depot to get some extra house keys made. I never realized how much fun Home Depot is when you are 2 1/2 years old! Wyatt sat on every lawn mower in the store (and even the ones on display ones outside) and played in all of their sheds that were on display. He went into all 10 sheds and practiced closing the doors and running around in circles. His favorite shed was a mere $11,000!!!!!

Today I took the kids to the park to meet John for lunch. We got there early and the kids ended up wanting to eat before John arrived, so I spread out a picnic blanket that I brought along. I was amazed at how well the kids sat down and ate. We ate together for 45minutes without anyone running away...so we are making progress.

(Pictures are from my cell phone)

Wednesday, May 28, 2008

So Thirsty


Wyatt found a water bottle on the deck and was entertained for over an hour with it today.



Catching Up


It rained today, but it is supposed to be nice for the rest of the week. I am hoping that the mud pit dries out and John can work on the paver patio this weekend.

Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Jet Lag

Can you get jet lag traveling by car? We drove back from Michigan today after only getting about 2 1/2 hours of sleep last night. Maybe the kids will sleep in tomorrow morning?!?! Yeah right, who am I kidding?

Sunday, May 25, 2008

Michigan Adventure


We enjoyed another day of beautiful weather in Michigan!



Beach Bums

Yesterday we took the kids to the beach. They loved the sand and water and even ate lunch on the boardwalk. Everyone was pooped yesterday...even my camera battery died so I am posting late. Don't worry, we're still alive!

Friday, May 23, 2008

Sleepy Head

Jonah rarely wakes up at night after we put him in bed, but every once in a while we hear him crying to get back up. On those rare nights that Jonah wakes up in the middle of the night I always get a little excited because he is soooooo cute when he is sleepy. Jonah is the most attached to me of all of the kids and loves to be held, but he is not nearly as cuddly as Sammy or Wyatt. During the day he never lays his head on your shoulder and relaxes his body so that he is completely pressed up against you like a limp noodle. He is always surveying so that he doesn't miss a thing. (Jonah and Wyatt are my analytical left brainers while Sammy is my social right brainer and future violinist). At night though, Jonah is the sweetest little guy. He lays his head on you and takes long relaxed breaths without caring at all about what is going on around him. His body is completely limp and warm and he is content just watching my face. I hate putting him back to bed and once just let him lay on me for over an hour even though I could barely keep my eyes open. He never smiles when he gets up in the middle of the night, but I always do.

Full Speed Ahead

We are leaving for Michigan tomorrow after John gets home from work. It will be a 7 hour trip without stopping! John told me tonight that he only plans on stopping twice..."YEAH RIGHT" I said! Tonight I will be praying for an uneventful safe trip, and packing a tranquilizer gun just in case.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Spinning My Wheels


Ok, so I still haven't started packing. I have a list though and that's half of the battle. I found an old list from Christmas of everything that I packed for the boys when we went to Michigan and I am amazed at how much less we will have to bring with us this time. The boys have outgrown so much of the baby things that take up space in the truck. If it were up to John to pack, he would throw a couple of things in a garbage bag at the last minute and drive off. One time he actually called me after he left on a hunting trip and said that he forgot to pack underwear! That's why I am in charge of packing for the boys. When I pack, I like to be prepared for everything, which means that the truck is usually overflowing. We could live in the truck for about a week before running out of supplies. But with the weather that we have been having lately, we might actually get stuck in a snow storm on the was back to Michigan and need a weeks' worth of supplies. Like I said you need to be prepared for everything!

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Just When I Thought It Was Safe


Sammy went to the doctor today. He has a runny rose and a fever. I wasn't going to take him in because I figured that he was teething, but he refused to let me put him down for 2 hours today so I figured that something must be up. The doctor said that he may have a virus or be teething, but that he does not have an ear infection (which was my main concern). They also weighed him and he weighs 23 lb 6 oz. which is really shocking because he seems a lot heavier than that. I am hoping that he is a little less clingy tomorrow.
We are going to Michigan for Memorial Day and I have big plans to spend my free time reading books. I checked out about 15 books from the library yesterday for myself and can't wait to dig in. I am, however, not so excited about figuring out what to pack for everyone. Is it spring or winter? Long or short sleeves? Pants or shorts? Bug spray or chapstick? Bottles or sippy cups? Left or right? Up or down? Help!

Monday, May 19, 2008

Nah


Sammy calls Jonah "Nah". It is seriously cute! I will have to get it on video, but today was a little crazy. I did manage to get a close up picture of my blue-eyed boy amidst the chaos.


Rain Rain Go Away


It has been raining forever....ever since we decided to start a paver patio! There is rain in the forecast for every day next week except for one day too! We may start building an ark instead of a patio if things don't turn around soon.


Sunday, May 18, 2008

Stairmasters

How cute do they look racing up the stairs for their baths?

Saturday, May 17, 2008

Test Shots #2


I was using Wyatt as my model today to check out some different settings on my camera. When a two year old poses for 20 minutes straight you end up with some interesting pictures!



Thursday, May 15, 2008

My Little Shopper

Today I took the boys to meet John for lunch at Chick-fil-A. We try to meet with the kids for lunch at least once a week. They love seeing their Daddy in the middle of the day. It is also a nice way to practice going out to eat in public and learn manners and self control when everyone is hungry and happy. At dinnertime everyone is tired and cranky so we try to minimize public exposure at meltdown time. We left our usual mess under the table (I wished that I had my camera today to document it) and headed home around 12:30 pm. Wyatt, in an attempt to avoid his nap, said "no go home" in a pathetic desperate voice. So I said "where do you want to go?" to which he replied "Costco!". I couldn't have been more proud!

All Grown Up

My baby is growing up! sniff sniff...

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Aviary

Yesterday I took the kids to the Aviary with some friends. The kids loved the birds and were excited to be able to help feed some of them. The Aviary also has a story time for kids and we showed up just in time to catch my boys favorite book...Brown Bear.


Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Showing Off

A little slice of Wyatt......

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Happy Mother's Day!

I'm such a lucky Mommy!!!! Happy Mother's Day!

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Practice Makes Perfect


I spent some time today working with my new portrait lights and backdrops. I got them in February, but have not taken any pictures with the umbrella lights. We took some pictures today and I am really excited about how well they turned out! My goal is to avoid having to go to a portrait studio for pictures of the kids since it is so difficult to get them all to sit still and smile. I prefer a little studio in the basement that I can use whenever the kids are being cooperative and get my own pictures without the added stress of public humiliation. We are going to try and get one of all three boys tomorrow. The second picture of Grandpa is using the final lighting settings that I am pleased with...no shadows, not too light or dark, and in focus! Yipee!


Expect the Unexpected Part 2

The other day I put all of the kids out onto the deck to play outside while I was fixing their lunches. When I brought their food out to them, Sammy was eating bird poop off the top of the picnic table. His teeth were black and he had pieces of poop in his hands and hair. All that I could think about (besides gagging) was that he would get some sort of avian bird flu or salmonella, but then I remembered that he is still on antibiotics for his ear infection, so I started breathing again. It's been a few days and he still hasn't grown feathers, so I think that we are in the clear!

Here's a picture of my favorite new shopping carts at Giant Eagle and Walmart.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Biker Gang

On your mark...get set....GO!!!!!!!

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

Expect the Unexpected


No matter how prepared I feel as a mother I still forget to expect the unexpected. A couple of days ago we were at Kohls waiting in line to check out. A lady in line behind me was cooing over the twins in their stroller about how cute they were and how different they looked (because I never hear that enough…actually I had one woman tell me that she thought Jonah and Sammy were twins but guessed not since they didn’t look anything alike! Seriously) and Wyatt was playing with some stuff on a display right in front of me. He walked back over in the middle of my conversation with the adoring woman to which she replied “Oh my, is he yours too?” I said yes and she asked Wyatt what he thought about his baby brothers. He looked straight at her and poked Sammy in the eye! True story!


Santa Sucks

Santa's on my list! He brought the kids this cute little chainsaw for Christmas this year and they used it for this.....

Monday, May 05, 2008

I'm Rich

If I had a dollar for every time that Wyatt climbed out of his crib tonight, I would be rich! Seriously it was the longest most painful bedtime routine EVER!!!! Do they make tranquilizer guns for toddlers? I do have to give Wyatt credit though...after about the 15th time that he crawled out of bed tonight and came down to impress me with his killer skill, he caught on to the fact that me seeing him meant that he had to go back to bed. Thus, the 16th time (and every time thereafter) that he climbed out of bed, he would work on trashing his room. I'm loving the fact that this is the week that John has to work late every night! Tomorrow I will be having Tequila for dinner! Here's a picture of the kids eating their free dinosaur cookies from the grocery store today.

Sunday, May 04, 2008

Mr Loud


Sammy is the loudest of all the boys. He yells to hear his own voice at every opportunity possible.

Little Tiny Wagon

I went to some garage sales this morning and got a few things for the kids. Wyatt was particularly excited about this "tiny little wagon" that I got for him for $3. I asked him to hold it up and smile for a picture and this was his pose.

Saturday, May 03, 2008

Pollen


I am being attacked by pollen. There is so much of it here that I can see accumulation of yellow dust on any flat surface outside. My eyes are itchy and I am popping Zyrtec like candy. I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed that none of the boys have allergies this bad, but things are not looking good! Jonah and Sammy both have had clear runny noses for about a week and
Jonah has a few patches of eczema on his legs. We have been spending a lot of time outside lately too, so maybe when the trees stop pollinating things will improve....but I'm not so sure!