Catch up

Just a quick post. I am playing catch up around the house. Tons to clean and pick up. Nothing else going on around here.

Fire Pops

Happy Monday!

My birthday just keeps on going! I like this 3 day celebration! Last night we met my parents for supper. The boys did really good- which surprised me since they are at the stage where they don't behave in public. Garrett actually ate and Lance threw his food. He did eat a lemon. Mom brought a cake and the waiters put a hat on my head and sang to us. Garrett covered his face the whole time. He looked like he was going to cry. I think they scared him. I got to open my camera box and another gift from Garrett. It was a bag of Oreos. He picked it out. When Billy asked him what he wanted to get Mommy he said Oreos.

I cancelled my meeting today because G was really cranky this morning and had a low grade temp. I think it might be allergies. So we hung out here and went outside for a little bit before it got too hot. I played with my camera and almost filled up my memory card. I had fun with all the different settings.

Some neighborhood kids/punks were popping fireworks when we were outside this morning. Garrett kept asking me what the noise was so I explained it to him. So all morning long, every time a firework would go off, Garrett would tell me "It's ok Mommy, it's just a fire pop." He is too funny.

That is all I have to say. I am leaving you with a few pictures from my new camera. These are NOT edited! If you are wondering what the boys are doing to the tree- they shake it to make the crepe myrtle blooms "rain" down on them.

Having to use a slide because blogger picture is not working.

My Boys

My boys treat me soooooo good! They are wrapping my present right now. Well- they are wrapping the box because I already took the present out. But Garrett doesn't know that. And I will open the box later with the cake Garrett is making. I am sure it will have lots of fingerprints in the icing. And this is what they got me


I am so excited and can't wait to play around with it.

Not much is going on around here. The boys have been playing inside a lot because it SO hot outside. It was 108 outside our kitchen yesterday. Yuck! So my house is in shambles. Toys and stuff everywhere. I am planning on getting all the clothes washed, folded and hung today. Then I will tackle a different room each day. Garrett has turned into a good helper if I bribe him. And Lance loves to throw things away for me. How young can you start teaching them to clean toilets? I can't get Garrett to vacuum because he still hides from it.

Tomorrow we are visiting a friend and the boys will play while I work on MOPS stuff. I am in charge of MOPPETS (the little kiddos) and getting the curriculum and rooms together. We started our registration today. So if you live near me and want to join let me know!

I really can't think of much else to say. I guess I could throw a few random tidbits out.

Lance is cutting 4 molars
Garrett doesn't want to turn 4
Garrett loves to paint
Lance likes to do puzzles
Garrett is afraid of roaches
Lance says 6 words now

I need to go vote in the Digital Next Top Scrapper contest. This is my entry.



Everything is by Miss Mint at Peppermint Creative.

Have a great week!

30

I have less than 60 hours left. I will move up into the next bracket. You know the one where you are IN your thirties. Not thirty anymore but in my thirties. UGH!

I don't have much to blog about today. It has been a quiet week around here. Well- minus all the screaming and fighting from Garrett. Mom came over yesterday and took me shopping for my birthday. We hit Kohl's and found a great sale on luggage. Something I desperately needed but would never buy for my self. And it is purple so only I can use it! Now I just need some place to go!

We also stopped and picked up my new glasses. It has been 8 years since I had new lenses. My prescription is so bad that to get the lightest lenses I had to get the expensive frames for it all to work. So I am now sporting a new pair of Tommy Hilfiger glasses. Of course I only wear them for about 3 hours a day. I also had to upgrade my contacts. I am very limited in my choices now. No more pretty color contacts. I am so glad we have a health savings plan because it was not cheap!

The boys are doing great. Spending lots of time in the pool. They are both enjoying the summer. Both have had a growth spurt. I cannot keep them in clothes or shoes. I hardly recognize Lance sometimes. He looks like a boy and not my little baby. And he talks nonstop. And barks.

I will be back later to add a layout and picture. Blogger is not letting me load a picture right now.

Nothing New

Nothing new going on here. I am felling a little crummy. All the rain is messing with my allergies. And the mosquitoes are horrible! Yuck!

The boys are doing great. Making the usual messes. Lately they have really gotten into playing with cars. All day long they are carrying their hot wheels around and leaving them everywhere also! I guess we need to take them to see the movie CARS soon.

Guess I should go do the laundry since the laundry fairy didn't show up today. Have a great day!

World's Best Daddy

Happy Father's Day Billy!









Another great weekend! Saturday I didn't do much around here. Billy went in to work for a few hours. In the afternoon we headed over to Sugie and PawPaw's to get the boys. All of my brothers and sisters-in-law were there. We had a great meal and Garrett learned things that only an Aunt or Uncle would teach.

Today we went to church and had a wonderful Father's Day lunch- at McDonald's. Then we went to see Grandma and Grandpa. The boys had fun running around there. Helen and I took Garrett to pick tomatoes. He was eating as many as he was picking. I come back to find Lance with a big scrape on his forehead, nose and shin. He is now officially a little boy.

We were wondering when Garrett would start the "are we there yet?" And he has. The entire way home he asked different variations of that question. And he is also a backseat driver. He likes to tell us when there is a red/green light and which way to go. Just like his Daddy.

Speaking of- I did this the other night:


Billy seems to disagree with me. He does not think Garrett looks like him. I need to put one of Billy's childhood pictures up and compare. I think he looks like and acts like his daddy. Heck- they even sleep alike.

It is late and I am tired. Off to bed---

I just took a nap

Do you know how long it has been since I took a nap? I can't remember. Every now and then I might read or try to take a nap. This is the first time I have fallen asleep in the middle of the day without an interruption.

I need to go dust. AGAIN. The powder is still everywhere. Billy changed the filter last night and I hope that helps. I also need to clean up the kitchen. It has been a very productive day. I cloroxed my bathroom- except for the yucky leaky shower, worked on laundry and went grocery shopping-ALONE. And tonight we are having steak. Yummy!

That is all. Not much to say. No good stories (sorry Ann) and no pictures. Life is pretty boring without my boys. Quiet and clean- but boring!

I AM A CALENDAR GIRL

Check it out:

Here and Here

They know me

1-800-222-1222





Anyone know that number?


They have received a few phone calls from me lately. I think they know me. Today it was because of powder.






Poor Lance. He is always the subject of Garrett's experiments. Today was the powder. An entire bottle all over Lance and my living room. Do you know how hard it is to get powder out of the carpet and couch? Vacuuming doesn't do it. There is a fine dusting all over the place and we are slipping on all the floors. I called poison control and Johnsons & Johnsons because it says on the bottle DO NOT INHALE. But we are ok because this powder was 100% cornstartch and not talc. Why???? Why does Garrett tormet his brother and do things like this? I was a good girl growing up. This should be happening to my brothers. SHANE- HAVE A KID PLEASE!

I need to go fix the boys some lunch. And then go pack them for Camp Sugie. Mommy needs a break.

AFLAC

Happy Wednesday!

Not much has been going on around here. I have spent the majority of my time refereeing the boys. They are BOTH in a biting phase. Not fun. And if I am not breaking up the fighting I am cleaning up after Lance. That boy can make a mess! He does like to help clean up. He really likes to throw things away. So I am always checking the trash can. I found my flip flops in there today. He is also eating with a spoon. He INSISTS on using it for everything. This creates a HUGE mess. But he is getting pretty good at it. Lance has also discovered pudding. And I have discovered the ultimate bribery- pudding. Those two will eat all their food for pudding. Garrett likes chocolate and Lance likes vanilla

Oh- did I tell you the cookie story? I made cookies Friday night for our beach trip. They were in a ziploc baggie on the kitchen counter. Saturday morning I hear Lance laughing. I go to check on him and get him out of bed. I walk in and see Garrett laying in his bed with the open bag of cookies. Chocolate is all over his face. And he is grinning. He asks me if I want cookies for breakfast. I then look at Lance and he has chocolate all over his face and a cookie in hand. I couldn't get onto them because they looked to dang cute and they were sharing.

Another cookie story. I was cleaning up and asked Garrett to throw away some trash. One piece was the tray from the Oreo cookies Grandma gave Garrett. Garrett asked me where the cookies were. I told him that Daddy ate the rest of them. He then said "Daddy didn't save cookies for me?" So we had to call Daddy. Garrett asked him "You no save any cookies?" So sad. Garrett should learn that you can't keep Oreo cookies away from his Daddy. That man LOVES Oreos.

Guess I should explain my title now. We went to the library to check out books and go to story time today. They had a petting zoo outside. Something they do at the beginning of every summer. After storytime I let the boys visit the animals. Lance headed straight to the bucket of water and food. Garrett was walking around petting all the animals and telling me what they were. When he came to the duck he said it was AFLAC. It looked just like the AFLAC duck (he has a little stuffed one that screams AFLAC) Too cute! Lance finally figured out there were animals there and started banging on them. He does not pet, he bangs. That is why Trevor hides under our bed.

Right now Garrett is watching a DVD he picked out at the library and Lance is sleeping. So I am going to do the dishes and get some meat out of the freezer. Have a great day!

Show and Tell

Not sure if I have shared these before:



credits: scallop border is from Shabby Princess, green stitching is Fhung Lie's Art Stitches, chipboard sheet is from Amanda Rockwell and everything else is from Nikki Meador- patterned papers and ribbon (Bloomers), white stitch (Perfect Personality) and the crochet flowers. Font is cammipea.


credits: paint brush is from Sarah Van Dyke, stamped alphs is Lisa Whitney's, jewerly tag is Michelle Coleman, paper tear is Kim Hill,yarn circle is Gina Miller, and everything else is from Ethan's Hope (brown paper, blue paper and eyelet are Kim Hill, orange paper is Thersea Hernandez, file tab is Eve Recinilla) Fonts are peaangedawn and amanda's hand.


credits: Brenda Kempf and LaWanna Desjardin's Diva Double- Basic Black.


credits: papers from Jan Crowley’s Just Peachy kit, jewelry tag is from The Digi Chick’s Remember When kit, the stitches and torn edge are from CG Essentials. The safety pin is also from CG Essentials- Sweet Baby Boy kit. The lace is from Tia Bennet’s New Growth kit. The fonts are Angelina and Rage Italic.

Weekend Recap

We are all sooooooo tired! We went to Surfside yesterday and had a blast! The water was beautiful and so calm. Robert and Helen met us down there and joined in on our fun. Garrett immediately pulled Grandma to the water. Lance sat in his hole for a while. Then he found a little tide pool and played in that. He even ventured out into the waves and splashed around. He also tried to go after his Daddy who was fishing. Neither one of the boys have any fear around water. Wonderful day!

Today was Sunday School and church. I don't know what Garrett was doing in his class but when we picked him up he ws sweating! I am glad he has such a good time. Everytime I pick him up the teachers always tell me that he is the sweetest boy and never gets in trouble. And I always want to know if they are sure they are talking about my Garrett and not the other Garrett in the class. Lance has started to cry whenever I leave him. It is so sad and makes it so hard on me. He is really growing up!

That is all I have. I need to go give Lance his paci so he will go to sleep. His brother is already passed out. Have a great week!

Busy Week

What a busy week! And there is still soooooo much to do. Monday we were stuck here because Billy had the booster seat. On Tuesday Lance had a dermatologist appointment. Wednesday we went to Target and Sugie came over. And today I have a bunch of phone calls to make. I need work on MOPS stuff also. Of course there are a ton of things that need to be cleaned and worked on around the house. But I like to do those late in the day so then it stays clean for a few hours.

At Lance's appointment we found out he has Eczema and Keratosis Pilaris. Fancy ways of saying he has bumps all over his body. He has all sorts of creams I have to apply twice a day. Yeah right! You try to hold him down and get the right cream on the right body part. And we shouldn't use baby wipes any more. I am attempting to use soft paper towels because I can't keep up with washing that many washcloths. I am keeping the wipes in the diaper bag because it is easier.

We had to take the alligator pool back because it had a leak in it. So Garrett picked out a Giraffee pool instead. I like it better because it has more room for Lance to splash around. They played in the pool for over an hour yesterday. Garrett was worn out! They both ate all their supper. And thirty minutes later Garrett wanted cereal. I think he is having a growth spurt because all he does is eat.

Here are a few pictures and pages. Way to many to leave credit. So if anything catches your eye I will be glad to direct you to the credits in one of my galleries.

I'm still here!

Sorry I have not kept up the past few days. I did have a post last night but IE froze on me. And then eariler today Blogger was down. But I will be back tomorrow with pictures and everything. Promise!

Husbands

Did you know that I have the best husband? He is my best friend, my support and makes really good guacamole. He knows when to call me and what to say- usually. He does the dishes and has been caught using the vacuum. He can fix just about anything. He cooks on the weekends. He does NOT do laundry. He plays with the boys and reads to them. He teaches them Spanish and Czech- I just hope they are not dirty words. He has a very soft side but you have to look really hard to find it. He loves animals and treats Trevor like a king. He calls me beautiful. He works hard to give us this wonderful life and leaves his work at work. He gave me the new vehicle. He loves his boys and he loves me.

Withdrawal

Are you in picture withdrawal?




Well, I have one at the end of this post. But you have to read this to get to it.

We had a great weekend! Billy worked half a day Saturday. I think he figured out that being gone 18 hours a day for 4 days was too much time away from home. We did our usual grocery shopping and errands. Played outside and had a family meal. I DID NOT have to give baths!!!!! After the boys finally went to bed we watched a movie.

Sunday began with the boys cooking breakfast. Then it was off to church. This is the first time Lance has cried when I drop him off. Made me sad. After church and lunch is was rest time. Then Billy and Garrett took Trevor to get a hair cut (pictures later). While they were waiting they went to Target and got the alligator pool and socks. They needed socks so they could go bowling. It was a well thought out trip. Garrett had a blast! He told me all about it when he got home. While they were gone, Lance and I went back to church for a meeting. We all got home around the same time. And Trevor looks adorable! Billy set the pool up and the boys had a great time. Garrett went down the slides so much he has plastics burn on his hiney and legs. Lance just climbed in and out of the pool. And drank from the hose. This pool should make the summer evening fun! They both got into fire ants and had huge bites. So they got a dose of Benadryl and ate a little supper. We out them to bed and did not hear a peep from that room. Isn't it great when they play so hard they wear themselves out! The Benadryl probably helped out a little!

That about sums it up. And for reading about our weekend I reward you with this picture. Check out those eyelashes!

S.P.I.#5

He is not a baby anymore! Lance had his 15 month checkup today. He is in the 95th percentile in height and 75th in weight. He was such a ham when Dr. Clarke came in. He wiggled out of my arms and ran to him and lifted his hands up. He also giggled and made silly faces at him the entire time. That boy loves an audience! He did really well with the shots. Only cried for about 3 seconds. So different than Garrett!

This is the last of the Padre pictures. Enjoy!




Day Four

Lauren and Shane made breakfast for all of us. We packed up and went back to the beach. The tide was still high so we had to more our hole back a few times. We finally got settled and lance had a huge hole this time! Everybody worked on their sandcastles. Garrett and Lauren foraged for greenery. It turned into a city. Complete with a drainage system. Lance lost stem about an hour and a half later so I took him back. He took an outside shower and then went to nap. And he took a long nap. Laurie came back early also. I enjoyed visiting with her. Not too long after that Garrett, Billy and a few others came back. After Garrett got cleaned up he spent the day playing and watching videos. I think he was tired of the beach. Everyone came and went the entire afternoon. The boys ate early and had a nice bath. They then went to bed early. We had hamburgers and spent the evening talking and listening to Clayton and Shane play guitar. And Joby trying to sing. That is it. The next day we woke up to rain. Which was fine because we were leaving anyways! We had a great trip home and are planning out next trip back!

****If you look at the pictures you can see Garrett feeding the seagulls totrilla chips. From what I have been told, he was also telling them to "shhhhhhhh." I guess they were making to much noise. Garrett is still taking about the seagulls.****

S.P.I. #4

Day Three





Saturday. By far the prettiest day we had there. The sky was brilliant blue and the waves were perfect. The boys woke up and were ready to go. Uncle Ernest and Ignacio had arrived in the middle of the night. Garrett had a good time following Uncle Ernest around the back yard and naming all the ceramic frogs and fish. After everyone had breakfast and we packed two wagons up we headed to the beach and set up camp. It was beautiful and we snagged a prime spot. Lance had more fun in his whole and Garrett played in the water. Lance didn't last that long so Sugie took him back to nap. We stayed out the whole day. Billy went back around lunch to grab a few sandwiches and snacks. Garrett fed the seagulls and played more. I think we finally took Garrett back after 3:00. Later that evening Uncle Ernest made the best fajitas and margaritas. Yummy! After we made sure the boys were asleep, Billy and I walked on the beach. We stopped at the Wanna Wanna bar and listened to the band for a while. We were all there- except for PawPaw and Sugie- they were babysitting. Walked on back to the house and went to bed. It was about that time that I realized my feet were sunburned. But at least I didn't look like Clayton and Laurie! Too bad I don't have pictures of them! Another wonderful day.

For A Great Little Boy

Check this little boy out:

His name is Ethan Ford and he is amazing! He was diagnosed with T-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in 2005. He is such a trooper! Check out his website: Ethan's Caringbridge. Right now at Elemental Scraps the kit used in the layout above is on sale. All the proceeds are going towards Ethan's medical bills and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. What a great cause! And the kit is wonderful! Packed full of goodies. 26 designers collaborated for this and there are over 300 pieces. Go grab Ethan's Hope! There is also a chat in July with prizes!

Check back later for S.P.I #4.....