About a million pictures from the party

Okay, so I exaggerated a little-but I am so close it's scary! It was so hard narrowing it down to just this many-so you'll have to deal with them. :-)

The girls' riding a horse--not sure why G3 is so mad

G1 and his new dinosaur

The girls' birthday cake

Cheese, crackers and meat (and Daddy)

G2's "smash cake"

G3's "smash cake"

The pretty birthday girls (they were already pretty tired and we hadn't even started)

The party area

Dirt dessert and the candy favors

G2

G3

G2 blowing out her candle (I was trying to keep her from touching the flame)

G3 blowing out her candle

G2 trying to decide her attack plan

G1 didn't think G3 was attacking her cake well enough, so he decided to help out

G2 picking at the cake trying to not get any cake with her frosting

G2 doing her new favorite habit: picking her nose

G3

G3 trying to get out of her seat

G2 covered in frosting--look at all those teeth

G2 getting ready for Mommy to clean her up

And G2 not liking it

I'm not positive but I'm sure G3 is wondering why she still has a diaper on

One of my new favorite pictures--Daddy cleaning G3 up

Pretty girls-G2 and Aunt Anissa

The girls opening their first presents of the day (from Uncle Jacob and Aunt Marcia)--the sleepers fit them great by the way

G2 thought is was more fun to "ride" the presents than to actually open them

G1 trying on his new sweater from Uncle Ryan and Aunt Anissa

I just liked the face Matt was making (that's G2 beside him)

Skyler (I think he was bored)

Daddy being goofy

Look Aunt Marcia snuck into a picture with G2

Silly Uncle Ryan

The girls' posters after the party

So sweet! Anissa and Ryan

The girls' candy badges (still haven't eaten them yet)

Cousin Lydia and G3

"After a long day all I need is my sister by my side."

That rascal!

So, anyone that knows my children knows that they are all little monkeys. But yet their monkiness (is that a word?) never ceases to amaze me. A couple days ago G2 learned to climb up onto our bed. Not such a big deal, we spend a lot of time in the morning there. But then today she learned that she can climb the gate. She can get to the top but I'm not sure she knows how to get to the other side and down-we didn't wait to find out. We got her down right away and told her that she wasn't allowed to do that. Of course naive little me thought that she would really listen to that. HA HA! She kept trying it. Little stinker! Neither girl has learned (YET) how to climb out of their bed, so that's a plus. I hope G2 never lets G3 see that she can climb the gate because G3 always has to outdo G2 and WILL get over it before Mommy or Daddy stops her.

A new tooth!!

G3's 3rd tooth has finally come through. YAY!! G2 has her 4th and 5th already also-6th is about through.

Before I was a Mom

Before I was a Mom

I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.

I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.

I never thought about immunizations.

*****

Before I was a Mom

I had never been puked on.

Pooped on.

Chewed on.

Peed on.

I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.

I slept all night.

*****

Before I was a Mom

I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.

Or give shots.

I never looked into teary eyes and cried.

I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.

I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

*****

Before I was a Mom

I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.

I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.

I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.

I never knew that I could love someone so much.

I never knew I would love being a Mom.

*****

Before I was a Mom

I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.

I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.

I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.

I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

*****

Before I was a Mom

I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.

I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache, the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

It's started

As Matt put it..."There's no turning back now."

We have started taking down all the wall tiling in the bathroom today. It would be so much easier if we had everything thing out of there already: the tub, toilet and vanity. But we are making due with everything in there for now. It's hard work, but not as bad as I was expecting.

The first 2 pictures are the before shots that Marcia took for me. The next 2 are the progress we have made and the last picture is all the tiles that we have removed hanging out in the tub. We still have quite a bit left to do but it feels great to have finally started and to know that we are that much closer.

Yes there is only 1

We have had 4 ultrasounds now. I am positive there is only 1 in there. The 1st picture is from my first ultrasound--I was about 8.5 weeks along. Looking at this picture really makes me wonder how anyone could say that they aren't babies this early on. You can totally see that that is a person.

Here is me at 14 weeks-12/6/07

Here is me this morning-18 weeks 1 day

We had our BIG ultrasound yesterday. The baby looks like a girl. Poor Matt and G1--there is going to be so much estrogen in the house-I wonder how they will survive. :-) Of course I won't really completely believe 'girl' until the baby is born-but for now that is what we are preparing for.

Happy New Year!

It is now 2008. Wow!

We had the girls' birthday party today. I will be posting pictures from it later--after I've had a chance to go through them and decide which ones to post. We had a great time-despite the horrible weather we have been having. The girls had a lot of fun and we had a pretty great turn out.

Thanks to everyone that helped out. We really appreciated it.

June 4, 2008

Happy Birthday Daddy!!

Today is Matt's 23rd birthday. He has to work this evening but we had cake before he went to work. We are staying in the new house now so I got to use my new oven. YAY!!

We got our big delivery today. Our fridge, stove, shower, toilets, vanity and medicine cabinet for the upstairs bathroom and the faucets for the upstairs bathroom. Now getting the delivery was a big pain in the butt. (I won't go into that right now.)

Not a great picture and it's sideways--but I will take a new one once it is put together and installed.

New house

After the girls' appointment we went to Galesburg and signed the papers on our new house!! YAY!! So exciting and terrifying at the same time! I will be posting pictures of the house later-when I have more time.

1 year check up

The girls had their 1 year check up today. Everything looks great. G2 is 17 lbs 1 oz and 29.25 inches. G3 is 16 lb 11 oz and 28.5 inches. They also had to get their immunizations today. Poor babies. The doctor seemed very impressed with how well they have caught up with the children their age. YAY GIRLS!! :-) G3 even stood on her own to show off for the doctor.

More birthday pictures

G2 in the tub

G3 in the tub saying "What Mom? I'm not trying to take the plug out."

G2

G3

G2

Daddy getting G3 ready

G2

G3

The cake that we ate

The cake that Daddy took to work

G2 not sure what to do

G3 had a taste on her thumb

G2 once she figured it out

G3 enjoying the cake

G2 at 7:02 PM--exactly 1 year old!

G3 at 7:02 PM--exactly 1 year old!

1st birthday pictures

We took the girls to Sears to get their pictures taken (for the first time by a professional-although Marcia does just as well, if not better) for their birthday this morning. All three kids did really well. I was amazed. We then came over to Galesburg (that's where I am now) to have cake with my mom. We will be doing their party on January 1st. I will post pictures from eating the cake today when I am back home.

G1 wanted to do pictures too, so the photographer did get one of him by himself and one of him with the girls. Matt picked out the dresses that the girls are wearing. Didn't he do a good job?

Here are the pictures from Sears:

G2 and G3-The birthday girls!

G2

G3

G1

Pretty girls

G2 and G3

G2 and G3

G2

G3

G1, G2 (trying to whistle like the photographer) and G3

G2 and G3 reading a book

G3

G3

G2

G2

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY BEAUTIFUL GIRLS!!

The girls are one today! It seems so unreal. They will officially be one at 7:02 this evening. I will post pictures of them later. I just wanted to get their HAPPY BIRTHDAY on here while I had a chance.

A new tooth!!

G2 got her third tooth today. YAY!! It is the top, front, left one.

More ramblings

We just purchased the movie Reign Over Me. We really enjoyed it-except it made us cry. I would definitely recommend anyone watching it. Anyway-so we got this movie and we've watched it a few times. Well, as we were watching it at Matt's parents house last night it got me thinking. If I were to lose my family (Matt and the kids) in a tragic accident (like there is another kind when you lose your family) how would I be afterwards? Would I be able to eventually pull myself through and continue my life how it once was? Or would I be like Adam Sandler's character and just become some completely new person who is totally lost? Would I just get into some sort of funk where I forget everyone and everything in my life?

I think I would end up in a mix of the two, I guess. I know my world would be shattered. My children are my life. I don't spend much time without them in my presence and for them to be gone would just tear me to pieces. Matt is my best friend and without him I would definitely be completely lost. But I still would have (hopefully) my siblings and parents-who I know would eventually be able to bring me back to the 'real world'. I hope and pray I never have to go through anything like that, but it got me thinking.

I feel so bad for the families who's lives are shattered because of September 11, 2001 (I mention them particularly because in the movie Adam Sandler plays a 9/11 widower)-which of course does not just include the people that lost someone on that day but everyone that has lost someone in the war since then.

*******

Now onto less serious stuff.

We are supposed to be signing the contract to get possession of the new house on the 20th of this month. YAY!! So exciting-yet so scary at the same time. We will hopefully be in the house this weekend or the beginning of next week to get started doing work on it shortly.

I still haven't started packing anything yet. I keep thinking about it-I just haven't done it. I don't really have any boxes to be packing stuff into though either. Hopefully we will be getting boxes this week or next. I really just want to get everything but the necessities packed RIGHT NOW. lol

We finally got a new filter for G1's humidifier (he tried to eat the old one) and we got a humidifier for our room. Now I can breathe when I wake up.

We got the girls' stockings for this year-just cheap ones (like the rest of them) and then hopefully next year I will get all of us ones to use every year. Well, I got their names on their stockings and went to find Matt, G1 and I's stockings. Can't find them ANYWHERE!!! Very frustrating. So, I guess I will be going back to the store to get 3 more cheap ones for this year. UGH! I had been putting all the ornaments and stockings in with the trees, but evidently forgot to do that last year or G1 found and took off with them. Either of those is possible.

We haven't had much snow or what not-but it's still be yucky (yes I said yucky) outside. Well, Matt just called to tell me that if I am going to be going to the store this evening I might want to go now because we are supposed to be getting 3-5 inches of snow later today. I just put the kids all down for a nap-no way am I waking them up to go to the store. So, hopefully the snow holds off until we can go later. Otherwise Matt will be going to the store for me in the morning.

Can you believe it's December already?!?

This year has gone by so fast. It's crazy! We have had so much happen this year. First the girls were born-which of course was last year, but they didn't come home until January 5th of this year. Then 5 weeks later they got put back in the hospital for 9 days with RSV. A couple weeks later (beginning of March) we moved into a new house. At the end of March Matt started working for the railroad. Easter weekend (April) G1 spent a couple days in the hospital because he had a bad asthma attack.

We finally had a break in all the craziness and were able to enjoy the summer and G1's 2nd birthday. It still seems like we are on the run all the time though. We always have something we have to get done. In a week or so we should be starting work on the house and then hopefully we will be in it shortly after Christmas.

The kids are all getting so big. There is such a big change in all of them from the beginning of the year to now.

G1 is talking so much now-and most of it is understandable by people other than Matt and I too. :-) He is so smart too. We are still working on numbers and letters-colors he is getting pretty good at. He has his characters--although he doesn't watch too much TV. We get movies from the library and he definitely knows what he wants to watch. Dora is a big one right now. Yesterday he named all the Sesame Street characters in one of his books. It amazed me. He loves reading to his sisters. It's so cute to watch them. He has learned the first part of the song "Jingle Bells" and knows parts of a couple other songs.

G2 is a climbing fool. Luckily she hasn't figured out how to get out of her crib yet. (G1 was climbing out by the time he was 10 months.) She loves giving kisses-but only on her own time. She loves to clap for everyone and loves to have everyone clap for her. She is so happy and so serious at the same time. She loves to observe what is happening in the world around her. But don't think about putting a hat on her, or putting her in her car seat-making her restrained, otherwise you will hear that little girl's soft voice become very loud!

G3 is definitely our funny girl. She has a laugh that could make anyone smile and laugh out loud. She thinks everyone is great. She is still our social butterfly. She is becoming so vocal and some of what she says is actual words. She is signing a lot more words now. She loves to dance (so does G2-just not as often). She is our little drama queen. When she does not get her way I'm sure the people in China can hear her!

I could have gone on and on about all of them but I had to end it some time. :-) I just could not imagine life without any of them. They are all wonderful in their own little way and as a group. I love how much they love each other and everyone else around them.

In 12 days the girls will be 1 and that seems so unreal. I'm excited for the next stages in their lives but I'm so sad the baby stage is coming to an end. They will be walking before we know it and they will be talking (understandably) before too long also.

As stressful as this year has been at times it has been equally rewarding also. :-)