We're BACK!

The kids and I went away to my mom's it was our spring break get-a-way! It was fun Red and I went line dancing with my mom. I just put him in the sling and away we went. He loved it. While I was trying to do the moves he was bouncing up and down in the sling that it made it very difficult to dance.

The funniest thing happened right before we left here. We stopped by my dad's work to drop something off. GG says, "Grandpa would you like to go with us to see your old wife?" She was as serious as day when she said it. I almost died laughing! My dad just told her he had to stay and work. They have been divorced for over 20 years. She is so innocent and I love that.

The kids had a blast playing with my brothers and their new dog. I enjoyed seeing my family. I just wish they lived closer but I think when the toll road is done it will cut down the travel time...I hope! I really have nothing else to say I am just trying to keep myself awake for 20 more minutes so I can see my wonderful hubby. We weren't gone that long but I missed him. I love waking up and seeing his face...I just really enjoy his company.

Oh yeah NEWS FLASH: Monkey can officially buckle himself into his carseat! It is the coolest thing ever :) I push a button to open Monkey and GlamorGirl's side of the van and they pile in and buckle themselves!!! SCORE I just take Red and put him in and by the time I am done strapping him in and get in and strap myself the older two are buckled. It has saved so much time!!!! Can you tell I'm a little excited about that?!?! Well I am just rambling now so I am going to call it quits and surf the net.

Sweetness!

This morning I woke up to my little Red giving me a kiss on my mouth. It was a sweet kiss with no slobber! When I opened my eyes he gave me the biggest smile. What a sweetheart.

Sunday the kids had their Easter program at church and they both did a great job. Such little hams on stage :) We spent the rest of the day at J's parents. The best part was that J didn't work!!!

Yesterday we went to met the K's at the Discovery Center in their town, which is a children's museum. I had the camera because it was in the van from taking pictures at church. I got to take one picture of Monkey and the batteries died. I was so sad. But we had a blast. We stayed til closing then we went back to our friends house for dinner. We left there house after 8pm so it was a pretty late night.

Today we are going to be coloring our Easter eggs...I know a bit late but we have been so busy. This afternoon GG starts her gymnastics class!! Oh yeah, I LOVE BEING ON SPRING BREAK :) Later...

London Bridges Falling Down...

It seems the last few days where ever we go someone falls down. The day we went fishing this guy had his dog and Monkey went up to the dog and the dog charged Monkey and the guy wasn't as strong as his dog so he landed on his butt. On the way to church last night a man driving a motorcycle took a turn too fast and he dumped the bike. J drove back to see if he was ok but he landed hard on the ground and fast. Then today we bought me a bicycle and at the store a lady was trying to get on the bike and she wiped big time, almost knocking down several bikes. It was only after today we realized that people have been falling right and left around us. Well we are going to take a family bike ride now. I am so excited we went and got Red a helmet so he could ride on the back of my new bike!!!!

Waiting patiently

The kids are being so good waiting for grandma and grandpa to get here with their Easter presents before they head out to see my brother, Kevin's family. I don't even know where to start! Last night was absolutely AMAZING. J and I had so much fun on our date. We are not one of those couples that sit at dinner and just eat. We talked and laughed, we have always had really good communication in our relationship. The food at the restaurant was the best Mexican food I've ever eaten and we have leftovers...score. After dinner we walked around holding hands and trying to lose the extra weight we just put in our tummies :) I am going to make a point to make a date night at least once a month with J. If GlamorGirl gets once a month I should too!

Now I want to take some time to elaborate on Red's happenings. Now that he can crawl diapering has taken a whole new life. As soon as the diaper comes off and he thinks I am done wiping him. He flips over and crawls away naked. Since we have been outside alot I have put Red in the grass to see what he does. His reaction the first time was PRICELESS. I don't think he liked the feel of it but after a few days sitting in it I believe he has gotten used to the feel. He has now started to eat it, he has created a new food group for his diet. First it was mud and now he added grass! He *loves* the swing. At the park yesterday I put him in the baby swing and he was laughing and smiling the whole time. When I went to take him out he threw his head back in protest. He has a stubborn streak to him. I just can't believe he is going to be 11 months on Monday. Another thing he has been doing lately that just cracks the neighborhood up is whenever he hears laughter he starts laughing. When we sit outside with the neighbors and we all start laughing there is Red laughing right along. Which, of course, makes everyone laugh even harder because he is just too stinkin cute when he does that.

GG and Monkey don't have school today for Good Friday, and neither one of them slept in for me. I don't think it helped that J got up at 6:45am! The plan is that after the grandparents leave we head over to the library and then the park district to sign them each up for a summer activity. The rest of the day we will probably spend outside playing until J gets home. I am so happy it is nice out. I need to get the kids summer clothes out soon. Well I'm outta here.....

Sleeping AGAIN!!!

Now that the weather is nice the only time I can get on here is when they are all sleeping! We have been having so much fun outside. We have gone to a few soccer games and yesterday we went fishing. Red was funny because it was windy out and he was swatting at the wind, he finally realized it wasn't going to go away. GG and Monkey were funny to watch when people caught fish. They got so excited and were jumping up and down and running around. The only downside to fishing was that J lost his cell phone. But we still plan on going again! Today we had lunch with some friends and then went to the park afterwards. Tonight J and I are going on a DATE. I am so excited. We aren't even taking Red with us :) Well I need to go get some stuff done while the babes are sleeping :) I hope everyone has a Great Easter. Remember what it is truly about...Jesus dying on the cross for our sins and then 3 days later rising from the dead. He loves us so much that he died for our sins.

They're all sleeping...

even GlamorGirl the one who doesn't take naps! After lunch while I cleaned up J put all the kids down for naps and he fell asleep too:) So the kitchen is clean and a load of laundry is started so I thought I would get on the computer. The variety show last night was so much fun. The kids each got to see their teachers there. They thought that was the greatest. We sat next to our babysitter's (Jess) mom. She was making Monkey laugh so hard I thought he was going to bust a gut! Before that he was flirting with the highschool girls sitting behind us, he's a big flirt. It doesn't help that his aunt is a freshman in highschool so all of her friends just think all the kids are so cute, Monkey eats it up. GG loved watching all the singers and dancers. The music made her dance, she couldn't keep still! At one point she was doing the air guitar. It was pretty funny. She can't wait til she is old enough to be apart of the show. Both kids got a big kick out of watching Jessie, as they call her, during her song. Red even enjoyed himself and ended up falling asleep at the end. On the way home Monkey fell asleep now we only live about 5 minutes from the school but their bedtime had passed about two hours before. I carried Monkey into the house and put him on the floor sitting up. He had his eyes closed the whole time "pretending" that he was sleeping. It was really funny because he was trying so hard to keep those eyes closed while I got his pjs on him. Finally I said, "Well everyone who is still awake can have ice cream." His eyes opened so fast!!! I said, "I was just kidding I wanted to see if you were really sleeping." Then he says, "I know you were joking because I can't have sugar this late." J and I laughed so hard at that one. What a smart little boy.

TGIF

I am so thankful it is FRIDAY. Red and I went back to the library today and had so much fun. He really enjoyed the bubbles at the end. They also pass out little bees for the kids to hold while they do a bee song. Too cute. I am looking forward to leaving in about 20 minutes to go to school for the variety show tonight. It is so fun to watch the different skits, dances, and songs. The best part is J will be with us because it is his first day OFF!

Red

Here, I'll just sit here for you and be super cute!

What is on my head mom? It feels funny.

Oh, it fell off, where did it go?

Where did mommy go?

Oh there she is!

Such a happy GUY!

I'm hot stuff going all over the place.

What is that flash I'm seeing?

Stopping for a break...it is hard work. And I *guess* you can take a picture :)

He is going to the water bottle! He has finally figured out how to get places by army crawling instead of rolling and going backwards!

Red and I had a busy day today. We went to Bible study and then came home fixed lunch then took Jess (our babysitter) to get her license. She has gone 3 other times, once they were closed or close to it, and the other two time they were done with the driving test for the day. I told her since I am home I could take her during her school hours if her mom didn't mind. Of course, they were both frustrated and really wanted her to get that license. So she is now officially legal to drive! I was so happy for her. It was cool to be apart of that experience. While we were gone J and GG made a celebration cake for Jess. That was really cute. After we took her back to school the rest of the afternoon we spent outside playing. I love this weather :) I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Who will be taller?

Monkey and Red were laying on the ground next to each other and I never realized how long Red is, I got out Monkey's baby book to see how long he was at that age and he was shorter. I think Red is going to be my tallest and GG is going to be my shortest. I thought that was interesting!

We ended up going to the game yesterday and staying for the whole first game. The kids had a blast and they were covered in mud. Today was another game and we went they got dirty but not as bad as yesterday. And this time I was smart and brought a picnic dinner so that when the game ended at 6:15 I just had to take them home, clean them up and then put them to bed. I can tell they are enjoying the time outside :) As am I.

GlamorGirl floored me the other day. She drew a picture on her magna doodle and said, "Mom, can you guess which Bible story I drew?" The picture had a couple of people and a wall. I, of course, said, "Joshua and the battle of Jericho." Her reply was, "No mom. It is Joshua and the battle of Ai. You see this is Joshua." So proceeded to tell me all about the battle that she learned during Bible class. I was just amazed at how much she knew and how accurate she was at retelling it.

Our Happenings!

Yesterday was pretty interesting. We got up late because we forgot to change the clocks but we still made it to church just 10 minutes late. Not bad. Then when we got home my dad was waiting at the door to take GG and Monkey. So the two older kids were gone from 1 to 6, so Red and I went to a really fun baby shower. Red didn't really get to see the kids until 6 and when he saw them he was smiling and laughing so hard. It was really cute. GG gave him a new nickname "laughy taffy" you know like the candy! I thought that was pretty clever of her. She is so funny. GG ended up in our bed last night because the storm scared her and J ended up in Monkey's bed because he also got scared.(Monkey not J!!!)

Today Red got allergy tested and just like I suspected he is allergic to all dairy from a cow. But stuff from goat and sheep he is good with. Then after school we took the older two to Pizza Hut to redeem their book it certificates. Later today Liz has her first home game of the soccer season. I am hoping to make it there for at least a little bit. The sun is shining right now so I am optimistic.

Strike A Pose!

We built puzzles together while the boys were sleeping and she looked to sweet to pass up taking pictures of HER! Once she figured out what I was doing she started to ham it up as you can see.

He has a NOSE!

Red has found his nose...and the two holes! The last couple of days he has been sticking his fingers up his nose and then just leaving them in there. It is very gross and yet, so funny at the same time. This morning I woke up to a little finger trying to go in my nose. Not the most pleasant of feelings! Yesterday morning Red and I checked out the Library Baby Story time and it was so much fun. We sang and read books and met new little friends. I think this will definitely be added to our schedule of fun activities. Our small group Bible study went good last night and the dinner (a new recipe) turned out really yummy. I love hanging out with other couples, plus one couple has a 3 week old baby girl. Yeah, I got to hold her. Today when the boys wake up from their naps we are going to the store to buy a baby shower gift and then go to church.

Is Spring really here?!?!

It must be because J and I started spring cleaning. I went through all my clothes and got rid of 3 big bags of clothes. Hmm...I think I had too many clothes! What do you think? Then we decided that we are going to have a garage sale so we started going through a ton of stuff. We are having company over tomorrow night, why did we think that going through our house to downsize was a good idea? Instead of just cleaning really good we changed everything by moving and getting rid of things. I will never understand us!!! We do things so crazy sometimes...ahem *all* the time :)

GG comes up to me before dinner and says, "Mommy, my tooth is loose." I felt it and it wasn't. So I asked her if someone in her class lost a tooth. Sure enough they did. Poor kid will probably be the last to loose a tooth because all her teeth came in so late. Her first tooth made it's appearance at her 1st birthday.

Other than that, we spent so much time outside today. It was absolutely beautiful! Sidewalk chalk, bubbles, and bikes were all played with. I just wish I would have had time to take a walk but we couldn't leave the house in the disarray it was in, so I was inside most of the afternoon cleaning while J was finding a place to put the garage sale stuff in the garage and started working on the yard.

Love This Song...it is so FUNNY!

Baby Got Book
By Funny Videos
CodesAndLyrics.com

Smoothies...

The kids and I have been crazy about smoothies lately. They are just so yummy!!! Not to mention they are healthy, added bonus. We had strawberry banana today, my favorite. Tomorrow they want to try the mixed berry. A few days ago we had peach and melon, that one was good.

Today when I picked GG up from school I was talking with her Bible teacher. In the conversation she told me that GG was the smartest kid in the class. I don't know if that is true, but nice compliment. There is no debate that she is a smart little girl but the smartest?!? I think she is probably just the most vocal in the class!!! She loves reading the Bible and learning about it so maybe she is the smartest in her Bible class. She is definitely one of the top readers in her class...she puts 2nd graders from the public schools to shame.

Nice Day

Today we had playgroup at our house and it was nice to not have to go anywhere but to school and then home to play with friends. This afternoon went fast and then J was home from training. We piled into the van and went to the department, two different banks (one to pay the mortgage the other to deposit money) then to Wal-mart, The Sara Lee and Market Day store and then to give my dad something. When we got to his work he wanted to go out to eat so we went to our favorite spot. We came home unloaded all of our stuff and now the kids are in bed and it is just J and I!!! Well and Red too.

Oh yeah GG gave me a scare today at school. She wasn't in the room I pick her up in and one of the kids said she went to the cafeteria but she wasn't in there either. So I walked down to the preschool and she wasn't there called grandma in the office...you guessed it she wasn't there. She ended up being in the bathroom blowing her nose! But boy did she give me a scare and that school is HUGE!

I've been swept away into the world of myspace!!!

I can't help it, it is so fun and addicting. I have talked to so many people I haven't talked to in years. It is a network of friends. I love it. But it is eating all of my computer time. I need to pace myself!

On the Home front: J is training today and tomorrow which means...he is going to be home for dinner every night this entire week!!! I am so excited. Oh yeah, he has Wed, Thurs, and Friday off :) Last night Monkey came into our room about 2am (at least that is what time I think it was, I could hardly open my eyes!) he was cold in his room. I told him to crawl into our bed. I didn't want to get out of my warm bed and him getting into ours is the easiest thing to do. But he didn't want too. I thought "what?" this is the boy who pretended to be scared everynight just to sleep with us. Now he doesn't want to be in our bed!?! Kind of broke my heart. So I crawled out of bed to fix his blankets in his room. They were everywhere but where they needed to be to keep Monkey warm. He is growing up and becoming so independent, in every area. I have some mixed emotions about it but mostly I am happy that he is growing to be such a great little man. Even though myspace is fun, I will continue to do this blog because I want to remember EVERYTHING the kids do and say and just the little things of their childhoods. Well that is all I have to report for now!

Library Day

After J went to work the kids and I headed to the library. We haven't been there in forever and I told them we would go today. Of course, it was snowing when we went but sunny when we came home. What a crazy day, weather wise. The kids each got to play on the computer. GG really loved the pet shop game and Monkey enjoyed Franklin the Turtle. Red and I picked out some books and a movie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. I got the second book in the Laura Ingells Wilder series and a book for GG to read. She loved the fact that she could take home a book from the library that she could read herself...great confidence builder. Her reading ability amazes me everyday. Also while at the library we checked out some of there programs and I found out that they have a 6 month to 23 month story time on Friday mornings. I think Red and I are going to attend and we'll see if any of the mommies from our playgroup are interested too. They also have a older kid time on Wednesdays in the early afternoon so I thought that would be perfect for the other two. They have so much fun at the library, which is a wonderful thing. That is about all for now, until next time!

My little SNOWMAN!

Last night J gave the kids a bubble bath, when I went in there to help get them out Monkey was covered head to toe in bubbles. He says, "Look mommy, I'm a SNOWMAN!" And with his little round belly he probably could of passed for one!

I just have to say how excited I am about getting the ink out of our clothes!!! I was so surprised and happy. So here is what I did...used advice from everyone who gave it to me! I soaked the stain in hair spray for about 30 minutes then rinsed it and used oxyclean with an old toothbrush and scrubbed the stain. That usually got it out but if it didn't I repeated the process of hair spray and oxyclean. Then I pretreated the spot and washed it in cold water with a scoop of the oxyclean and detergent. Someone told me that hot water sets the stain and cold loosens it up. I don't really know which does which but the cold water worked great!!! The only problem is that it is such a lengthy process that I am only able to do about 3 articles of clothing a day, so we are getting there :)

The Plastic Surgeon

Today GG was in her room during quite time playing with her barbie doll, it is a cheap one she got in a goodie bag or something. The arms fell off and when she was trying to put them back on she pushed in one of the boobs. She comes running out, "Mommy, can you fix my barbie's boob?" It was pretty funny looking so I fixed it and put both arms back on. J comes home from subbing and I proceed to tell him the story of GG's barbie's boob being caved in and how I fixed it for her. He then says, "From now on I'm going to tell people that my wife is a plastic surgeon. When they ask what type I'll say she does breast augmentation!" He makes me laugh, no wonder our kids are so hilarious :) They have a great role model.