cuties

I LOVE these kiddos SOOO much!! I love to get my kids jammies for the summer, Halloween and Christmas!
I'm so thrilled I found Bryanna and Cali matching ones....with their size difference this might be the last year I can buy them without having to make them myself!

Mark has a class twice a week, so its two nights I am doing the bedtime routine solo! They were so good for me, I let them watch a bit of TV after their bath.

oh and Beau...our new adopted dog!! we love him...although not completely house trained, he is a very even-tempered, sweet puppy with lots of spunk and energy to keep Putter going to hours!

A funny I have to write down so that we won't forgot!

Maddox was driving in the car with my sister as she was on her way to pick up her kids from school. He was sleepy and was in the state of falling asleep when he broke out this funny stuff:

Maddox: Jemfer, if you stop driving bumpy, I'll give you a great, big kiss!

Jennifer: Oh, ok Maddox. I'll try!

He repeated it a few times....I thought he was so cute and clever using the age-old tactic....something for something!

Smiles!! Among other things

Here she is, Ear to Ear!!

The kids are crazy about her...can you tell?

I think I forgot to mention a funny. The first week Cali was home, Bryanna said to me, "Mom, I wish you could die so that I could take care of baby Cali!" Thanks Bryanna....at least I know you love you sister!

A few weeks ago, I went on a walk with my sister with my kids and our dogs...we came to feed the ducks, and our dogs almost got a snack out of it, too! They jumped into the water and swam after the ducks!!

My mom and I went to Michael's and bought some beautiful silk flowers to arrange in this gorgeous vase I have, just something fun for Spring and I don't have to worry about watering it!

Maddox got into my mom's dental chair to get his teeth cleaned...but alas, I was the only one who walked outta there with a sparkly, clean mouth!

He's just too cute sitting in the chair.

Home improvement segment:

When we got our new TV, the media niche shelf had to be knocked out and moved up to fit everything. I have to say I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy to have a new cabinet to hide all our electronics with their cords...no more an eye sore!! And to make it even sweeter, the plant on the right side I bought at Michael's. Guess how much I spent? Well, the tag was $39.99...and yes, I was willing to fork out 40 bucks to get it. Well, it rang up for a whopping $1.99!! The lady at the register didn't believe it, rang it up for different times and called management up just to make sure...they gave it to me for 1.99...it was my lucky day, and happened to be my birthday weekend anyway!!

Another wonderful thing Mark finished recently....before we had wooden spindles. Thanks to Bryanna, she kicked one out and let's just say it was a safety issue when Cali would become mobile. So we didn't get mad, but actually thanked the big sister so we could use that as an excuse to do what we've been wanting to do all along! Iron!

Here it is stained and finished!

love at home

We have been having a wonderful time with baby Cali at home. Our home is filled with so much love, hugs and kisses!! Maddox has been occupied with his recent birthday presents...especially his "big guns"! I have been cleaning up the nerf bullets all over my house, they are in every nook and cranny! I can thank his Mimi for that! :)
Bryanna has loved having a "real baby" in the house. She is such a fantastic older sister, she loves to hold her, give her the pacifier, even burp her, and she likes to "just watch" us change diapers, but usually ends up helping handing us a few wipes or taking the diaper to the garbage!


Bryanna and Maddox are such good little pals, it melts my heart to see them play with each other constantly. And it made it worth it to have them 23 months apart.

All is going well on the home front...I wouldn't mind a little more sleep, but I feel so blessed to have sweet baby Cali in our family, I would lose sleep for her anyday!

Ain't Misbehaving!!

So, yesterday, I was able to play tennis at 36 weeks!! I paid for it last night, but it was worth it and fun. Just for the record, Jen and I won in three sets...5-7, 6-0, 6-3. (Yes, the pregnant lady bageled them in the second set!! :) I got there a hare late and our opponents wouldn't give us a five minute warm up, so I guess the first set could count as our warm-up! In the six years I've played league here, no one has ever been that much of a stinker...no warm-up??? Come on, they were just asking for a spanking!! I originally stopped playing tennis two weeks ago, but my team was in a bind and I had to play or we'd default a position. So what's a girl to do? I'm not misbehaving!!! I thought I'd get one last picture, pregnant in our team uniform!

This is my cute sister, Jamie and one of her BFF's, Alex, who recently joined the church. They are grubbing after a hard core swim team practice. Jamie is such a good friend and example to all she is around. Aren't they such cute girls?!?!?!?!
Photographer---Bryanna

And of course, Bryanna the photographer wanting to take more pictures...

My mom's dog had puppies a while ago, and they kept 1 of the 3. Meet Beauregard (but we call him Beau for short). He's the sweetest and most obedient little pup ever...and the kids just love to cuddle and squeeze and give him lots of kisses!

I couldn't forget to post pictures of the almost finished Baby room. I still have to get the dresser, but I know the exact one I want, its just a matter of getting it!! I will put it right under the picture here.

And to finish this wall, I found a mirror at Home Goods. It should be complete right around the time Cali arrives... just two-three weeks left!!!

messy face

I fixed crepes for dinner the other night, and, well, we got a little crazy with the whip cream! To get my crepe recipe click here.

We have all our couches and bar stools from the kitchen moved into our dining and living room. Needless to say, it is a little crowded in the dining room, where we now eat all our meals. We were able to float the top of the concrete with more cement, and now that its all dry we can stain it! There are pictures to come of the progress, soon!

straight

Hair, that is. I made the mistake of using my chi flat iron on her last week, and now that's the only way she wants it...good one, Stacy! Bryanna has a stubborn side (just like her mamma), so of course you can imagine what its like, me, doing her hair, and her...knowing exactly how she wants it. I can usually con her into doing it my way, but some days I'm just not willing to battle it out with her. So, looks like we may be having some straight days ahead of us!

And what would I do with out Maddox and his sweet little personality? He is the funniest little boy, who is constantly repeating Bryanna. He's turning into quite the quick study!

today

I'm in one of those 'moods' where I don't feel like cleaning up after the kids and all their messes they make. Mark was a saint, and he cleaned the downstairs til it was sparkling like the top of the Chrysler Building!! Sometime's he knows right when to step in without any prompting from me. (or maybe it was a little prompting that I didn't clean up yesterday's mess?)

Despite his beautimous cleaning, it doesn't last forever, so I'm reverting to this quote, to help me stay sane:

"If you are still in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will-to your surprise-miss them profoundly."
-President Thomas S. Monson

I know they will be gone one day and their child hood will have slipped through my home in the blink of an eye. It kind of makes me sad, but happy at the same time. (I secretly, ok...OPENLY...LOVE a clean house, and still remember how easy it was to keep my house spotless with just one child). But on the other hand, I know this is a happy time in my kids' lives...their worries are minimal, they are truly content and happy people, and their innocence is purity. They aren't psychologically marred by the world and their self images are doing pretty good. They are healthy and strong. I couldn't ask for more, and I feel so blessed. But when kids grow...so do their life challenges. I shouldn't wish away these blessed days, but today I crave solitude.

Is it bad that I feel like going to the mall, shopping like there is no budget, eating out and ordering a filet mignon, and getting dessert too? Of course, I'm a sensible wife and would NEVER do that. Mark works too hard for me to devalue our precious budget. Thanks babe for all you do, and when we are old and retired, we'll enjoy a day at the mall together!

Update with pictures!!

First of the updates...we went to the Shark Reef last week, and it was so fun!

Touching the Sting Ray...COOL!

They were so SLIMY!

Obteen & the kids...with sharks in the back round, but you can't see them in the tank

Jennifer and the kids


Camoto Dragon...ewe!

Three little cousins

Mommy and Bry

We had lots of fun learning new things about these creep creatures!!

Bryanna LOVES getting her picture taken, she was quite the poser:)




Pucker up...they are so sweet to eachother!

The wall being built for the Trampoline

Viola...it's done!!

Our Planter Boxes...now we need to run the sprinkler system. I tell ya, when one project is done, there is always another one lurking in the dark!!

In goes the Tramp!!

Although there is no landscaping YET, The kids still love going out there and jumping. Its nice to get them outside for a change when we are at home.

Thanks Mark...this was HUGE project, but you did it, in record time I might add! WE love it and appreciate all the work and effort you put in to getting it done!! Love you!