Waite for Carolyn

Waiting Waiting Waiting

2011-05-29T21:19:00.000-06:00

Waiting. That's what we are all doing. Waiting for it finally to be time to move on to the next step in Las Vegas. I feel like I'm at the starting line, waiting for the gun to go off, but I keep false starting. In the mean time we are packing, garage selling, squaring away the moving truck, house hunting, entertaining kids, and enjoying the last few moments with a couple of great girl friends here in Denver. ~before the FINAL move in July.

Let us NOT eat cake

2011-04-17T18:45:00.000-06:00

When the babes turned 1, we had a little celebration with just our family. It was uneventful and stress free! So nice!

We stuck the girls in their chairs and started singing "Happy Birthday".

They seemed pretty confused with all the attention and singing for them. Their cake... blueberry muffins with buttercream frosting. No fuss - No stress!

Aspen was pretty good to dig right in with her hands.

Emory, wasn't too sure about the whole deal.

"You want me to do what?"

"This is disgusting! What a horrible thing! I will NOT put any of it in my mouth, so stop trying to force it in!"

"Fine! If you aren't going to remove it, I will remove it myself!"

She started to throw it, flapping her wrists trying to shake off the frosting. We them removed it for her.

(not one bite made it into her mouth)

Aspen squished...

...observed...

...gave a little tiny taste...

...and then was board. "I'm done with this, what else you got?"

Presents!

Emory enjoyed this part of her birthday waaaay more then the cake thing.

As you can see in the background... we don't really need any more toys. Good times for all. The babes did receive the movie "Tangled" for their birthday. They were so nice to let the rest of the family watch it while they took a nap.

Before & After Hair Cut

2011-04-14T16:45:00.000-06:00

We did our best to take care of the situation...

The Befores

The Afters.

It's alright... as long as you don't look at her right side!

Bedtime Barbering

2011-04-13T19:49:00.000-06:00

Instead of going to bed....

I feel sick just looking at this picture. She has been trying for so long to grow her hair long. Daily, she has a conversation with me about how long her hair is getting. It's even how we get her to eat her vegetables! "Ava, it will make your hair grow."

She wasn't too upset about it. "I had some tangles, so I had to cut it out Mom." That's when I realized she hadn't actually SEEN it yet. I showed her in front of the mirror.

Tears. She cried. It was sad.

New info came out too. "I only cut a little bit, Mom."

"Eden's the one that really cut it for me."

The true barber was confronted and it was confirmed.

*sigh*

She didn't seem to upset about it either.

Twins Completed One Whole Year

2011-04-09T17:03:00.000-06:00

This day - one year ago - these two cuties entered the world! That was a BIG BIG day! For being so young they have already lived in 3 different states. It's been a whirl wind year.

We have had a fun day celebrating our little chicks together as a family. It's always fun when Daddo's around.

Someday soon I will hopefully get a chance to document how different each one of them is. And all the special moments they share with each other.

Thrifting Toothless

2011-04-02T14:24:00.001-06:00

Eden 6 yrs old

This morning Eden got herself all ready to go Saturday morning thrift store shopping with me. This doll was given to her on her first birthday, and has always been her favorite.

...here is the proof...

Eden, with friends, on her first birthday. I think she was just upset because the party was over.

Last night she lost her second top tooth.

Eden carefully put it in a ziplock bag under her pillow. This morning, she was distraught when the Tooth Fairy hadn't come. Her dad informed her that it was Friday night - the Tooth Fairy's busiest night. Sometimes it's hard for the fairy to get to all the teeth she needs to collect. Eden said that's true, and thinks the Tooth Fairy was busy in China. We hope she can make it to our house tonight!

My Friend - She's Talented

2011-04-01T19:36:00.000-06:00

This is my girl Suzanne. The first day we met, was the summer before high school. We were both trying out to be cheerleaders for Bonanza High in Las Vegas. I think I can remember watching her do a million back flips and not brake a sweat and all with a huge grin. And I was just proud of finally getting the splits down. Fortunately, I got to watch all her talents in action for the next 4 years after that as we cheered all through high school together. She's a bowl of sunshine sprinkled with many many talents. I like her a lot - check out her blog full of inspirations.

Snapped Out

2011-03-17T14:31:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, Eden (6) came home from school with her upper tooth dangling by a thread. It only took chewing and pulling on her teeth with a rubber band (which she is not allowed to do) to snap it right out. Surprised her for sure! Eden also LOVES to wear her hair in pig tails... plus she has a blue feather in too as you can see. She's fancy.

Ava (4), Eden (6)

It was a big day for sure!

The Tooth Fairy left an envelope that she wrote on the front saying, "Eden, thank you for the big beautiful tooth!" Eden would not open the envelope until the whole family was awake and gathered round. Inside was a whole dollar bill and four quarters! She was thrilled. Eden made sure to wear her green dress for St. Patrick's Day, but still with a collared shirt for dress code. She couldn't wait to smile so big for her teacher and friends!

Growing Grass

2011-03-10T13:05:00.000-07:00

Here in Denver, we are only in our rental for a year. And that year is ending in only a few more months. But I have been itching to garden! So the girls and I planted some grass...

I got rye grass seeds, and one afternoon we had fun digging in the dirt... inside even! The girls sprayed their seeds with a squirt bottle every morning. I gave them a bit more water again in the late afternoon. It only took 4 days for them to sprout. Felt like instant gratification.

Then I couldn't stop there. What else could I plant grass seed in??? I love to thrift shop... I found some fun containers for just pennies...

A butter yellow tea cup.

Easter Bunny decoration.

Ummm... toothbrush holder.

I think it's pretty hilarious, myself.

And yes, the guest bathroom is blue.

This is what goes on behind the scenes of my absurd photo shoot. The kids were following me around thinking things like, "Mom, seriously? This is how you are wasting all of our time?"

Side note: Have you heard of the photo editing site, Picnik? It's awesome and, as you can see, I've had a lot of fun editing my photos with it.

It's Monday

2011-03-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

It wasn't even 7:30am yet!

Aspen 11 months - got into the Desitin

Found this rugrat in my room eating fist fulls of Desitin. Yum. Do you know how hard this is to get off?! It's meant to stay on, and repel moisture... soap and water just smeared it. I used a dry towel and wiped it all off, then washed her. Poison control said she should be fine... as long as I don't let her eat it all the time! duh

Too bad I didn't think to take a picture of Emory right before this - she pulled down the box of dirt that was on the table! I wasn't planning on getting out the vacuum so early this morning. *sigh*

I'm not a neglectful mom usually. I promise. I guess I was busy trying to get a 6 year old ready for kindergarten.

Happy March!

2011-03-01T15:51:00.005-07:00

Eden (6) made herself a calendar. I love her picture for March! A girl enjoying herself while kneeling on the ground watching a spring bird. Do you see the eggs in the nest?

Our year here in Denver has been so weird for me. It's gone by so fast - almost a blur - yet at times, it has gone by s o o o o o o s l o w. I don't know what to make of it.

Well, maybe I do. We have been busy with two babies in their first year, and my oldest starting elementary school. ...and then that middle child (Ava, 4) running us all ragged trying to keep her entertained. All while Boyfriend works 12 hours a day. We are all tired yet the days whip right by.

But then again, this year is dragging it's feet. Probably because it is our FINAL year of training! Boyfriend has put in so many hours, days, years, and sweat into learning his skill. He takes it seriously but thoroughly enjoys it. I'm proud of him and I am grateful he is a hard worker. I think this is his 25th year in school/training, not counting his 2 year mission.

Now only 4 MORE MONTHS until he can be considered a professional. Get a "real job". Pay back a whole bunch of money.
...and if I'm so ready for this all to be done... Boyfriend is even more ready for this all to be done!

Bring on Spring, Miss March, we are so ready for some warmth!

This was our tree (last March) in Memphis TN a year ago. I miss our old house and that backyard!

Too Skinny

2011-02-16T18:42:00.001-07:00

This is a post about sewing/quilting. If you aren't into that, then you won't enjoy this post. Then again, if you enjoy giving your opinion... read on.

I found a vintage sheet at the thrift store that I thought was pretty. So I found a couple more thrifted sheets that pulled from that same color scheme. I thought it would be fun piecing them together into a quilt - all out of old thrifted sheets (mostly).

I wanted to try a zig-zag pattern, so I drew out a picture. My brain works visually.

Boyfriend pointed out that it looked kind of southwestern. I know that the southwestern look is making a small comeback, but I have a hard time getting into it.

So I switched out the green solid for a blue solid, hoping that might help...

It looked alright, but then I thought a solid white stripe would help too.

It's not as cool as I originally envisioned, but I figured I'd be happy enough with this. It was mainly for practice purposes anyways. And thrifted sheets are a ton cheaper then fabric.

I washed the sheets, cut long 3.5 inch strips, sewed them together, ironed the seems open, cut those strips into 6.5 inch blocks shown above. I was excited to lie them out in the pattern and begin sewing them all together into the quilt top.

All the fabric is from vintage sheets except for the blue and white solids.

That's when I noticed a slight problem.

Eeeerrrrrrggggghhh!

...

You see, while I was cutting all the long strips, I thought, "wouldn't it be cool to make the solid white zig-zag just an inch skinnier then all the other zig-zags? Great idea Carolyn, way to mix it up a bit and add more visual interest."

WRONG. I didn't think that all the way through.

Yet again, I am reminded how I learn my lessons visually.

Now all those skinnier white stripes are too short when piecing the pattern together! They NEED to all be the same width.

I'm so irritated! How do you think I should solve this problem? I'm thinking of cutting all the other blocks to be the same width. But it kills me to waste an inch of fabric on each of those blocks. Ggggggrrrrrrr!!!

Emory 10 months

I'll end on a happier, prettier note. Emory has four teeth,while her twin sister still only has two. She also enjoys standing on her own now. Don't tell Emory, but I've seen her actually walk while in her pack n play. I'm NOT ready for these babies to start walking!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T12:59:00.001-07:00

The balloons lasted thirty seconds before escaping free. Here they sit, high up our ceiling, while the girls watch longingly below.

When Boyfriend is Incharge (video proof)

2011-02-09T09:41:00.000-07:00

...of the twins (10 months old)....

Last night I was looking through Boyfriend's videos on his Droid phone. He had some cool footage of the snow storm we had. -15 degrees is pretty chilly for my bones!

But then I came across a few videos I hadn't seen, or that I even remember happening. They were from the times he stayed home with our chickadees, while I was out...

(Emory - the adventurous one)

My heart kept having little attacks as I watched that!

Or, after watching this next one, I know why he tells me that "two babies isn't that big a deal"...

Baby Einstein is a great babysitter at our house!

This next video is the twins having their first fight.
It completely depicts their personalities...
Emory: is the go getter, a tiny bit stubborn, 100% determined
Aspen: slightly passive, and an observer
(also, their Daddo dressed them in these fancy outfits. Not that that sort of thing matters, but apparently it does to me) :)

And just because I think my babies are the cutest in the world. (and I'm not even biased) ha ha..
Here is Aspen watching the super bowl.

Boogers and a Quilt

2011-01-31T13:36:00.000-07:00

Emory, Aspen (9 months)

These babies are becoming harder to contain! I love these pictures. They look like this everyday right now, except for slobbery food, it is gooey boogers. They are sick. It is sad, and so are they. But it certainly isn't their first time being sick... and unfortunately, not their last.

But I did finish a quilt top!

It's rad. It took forever.

Now I'm waiting for my new quilting foot to arrive in the mail. Then I will excitedly attach it to my sewing machine and attempt to machine quilt this thing. It should be fun.

Nuff Said

2011-01-26T07:00:00.002-07:00

Ava (4)

Frabric

2011-01-24T23:09:00.000-07:00

Frabric = how Ava (4) says Fabric.

New fabric! I bought this the day after Christmas a month ago online and it finally arrived!!!! It was a killer sale. I've already washed and ironed it. I wash and iron all my fabric as soon as it enters the door. It makes me happy to have it ready to go... but for some reason my pile of clothes needing to be ironed just keeps getting bigger and bigger.

At the bottom of this stack, is a thrifted sheet. I plan on making my girls each a little quilt out of these fabrics. I haven't figured out quiet how I want to arrange the lay out yet. I just played around with a square the other day.

Maybe you can't tell in the picture, but I cute each piece a little squi-whomp-ally. When all the blocks are sewn next to each other, I think it looks pretty cool. But I'm not settled on this pattern yet. Hmmmmm.... I still have some other ideas...

A Good SIX Years

2011-01-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

Eden, I have had you for 6 full years! I'm so glad I have you and you are all mine!

Remember the time we went on a "beach vacation" in TN and you found that ring in the sand?

One Ring To Rule Them All!

You definitely rule us all in our world!

Remember when we had chickens and they were your great friends?

Remember when we needed an instruction manual for you just to get along?

Remember how you aren't afraid to announce what you believe?

You are perfect in every way. Your imagination and creativity are incredible.

Ava(4), Eden(6), Camden(6)

Thanks for letting us party with you!

We had lots of fun window shopping and getting our nails done.

Rock Stars!

Thanks for sharing your makeup with all of us!

Your makeovers are the best!

Happy 6 Year Birthday, Eden Gail Waite!

P.S....

To all the parents out there - I don't recommend Window Crayons. Kid LOVE them. They are really fun. They do wipe off... onto everything! It takes a whole lot of Windex to smear and smear and smear this stuff finally clean.

Darleen Meier Jewelry Promotion!

2011-01-17T22:32:00.000-07:00

Isn't this Wishbone Necklace by Darleen Meier Jewelry really cute? You can have it for free (normally $22) when you purchase any piece of jewelry Jan. 17-18 from her etsy shop. Darleen is my sister-in-law, she has a great blog and is a very talented jeweler.

And here are a few other pieces of Darleen's that I really love!

When You Live In A House of Girls...

2011-01-14T22:30:00.000-07:00

Aspen at 8 months

You might find one of your babies like this.

Aspen

Moments later, when I returned, my baby looked like this. ...and she didn't do anything. Just sat there, waiting.

Here is Emory getting measured for her crown.

Ava is receiving custom detail work right on the spot. It's serious business.

Looks expensive, I think.

Here is the artist herself, Eden. I think she is going to be opening her very own Etsy shop soon. All of her creations are in such high demand!

Baby Party

2011-01-06T20:27:00.001-07:00

This is the playroom. Eden (5) decided to throw a "baby party". She was dead set on getting all the decorations prepared. I was instructed to invite over her one friend here in Colorado and tell her to bring a baby for the "baby party".

So for a "baby party", one must have decorative bunting and candles.

I really enjoy this girl's creativity!

Here is a close up of her bunting's detailed artwork.

There are no pictures of the actual "baby party" due to the fact it lasted a total of not even 5 minutes. I don't know what happened, the girls just moved onto other things. I think the thrill of the party was decorating for it.

Aspen (8 months)

Aside from this baby being adorable...

...and big blue eyeballs...

...she has a couple of teeth!

Emory (8 months)

So does her twin sister too! Emory is already cutting her upper teeth now.

Aspen & Emory (8 months) enjoying a Christmas present

In a matter of only two weeks time, these girls have gotten their first teeth, and started to crawl. They already are pulling themselves up to standing too! Our universe is changing... AGAIN!

Oh Christmas Tree

2010-12-20T21:53:00.000-07:00

Today, by 7:00 am, our Christmas tree was out on the curb ready to be taken away.

It started on Friday when we noticed the tree was not looking very happy. Boyfriend checked the water. Full. We were diligent about watering it. But despite that... the tree wasn't just dying... it was dead.

Then proceeded the discussion of leaving it up until Christmas. It's only 7 days away. OR taking it down. Those dried out needles are going to get everywhere and our vacuum pretty much almost doesn't work at the moment! What to do what to do.

Boyfriend won the debate. We left the tree UP.

We had a fun weekend. Went to an Ugly Sweater/Birthday/Christmas party.

Boyfriend totally won "Ugliest Sweater" prize. I, personally, was shocked that he went with the whole turtleneck-vest outfit I brought home from the thrift store in the first place. He put it on and I couldn't stop laughing. Doesn't he look like a 12 year old boy going to his choir concert? Love him!

...but the house smelled funny. I couldn't put my nose on the source. UNTIL 3:00am in the morning when I was up with Ava (4 yr old). I figured out that the dead rotting tree and the full bucket of water reeked!!! Like rancid moth balls.

Therefor, by 7:00am the tree was out on the curb.

Garbage pick up is today, so it was a good day to go. Boyfriend noticed the stench too, once he was close enough.

He helped me undecorate & unlight & drag the tree out before he left for work. He was late.

Remember how our vacuum doesn't work so well... well it doesn't work at all now after this clean up.

(just so people don't think I'm totally stupid, I did pick up the majority of the needles by hand before vacuuming)

Luckily the Big Girls were more than happy to share their tree that was up in the play room. It displays all of our cherished handmade ornaments.

Taa Daa! I kind of like the idea now of having a tree up on a table. I can hide all the gifts under the blanket - away from the eye of these two crawling rugrats...

I can't decide if Emory is giving me "evil eye" because she can't attack the presents anymore or because I have them dressed in their Halloween ensembles in December.

OH! And if anyone is still reading this, I have one more tid bit to my story...

The garbage truck came. I watched him empty my garbage can, then drive on by my Christmas tree! I ran out the door with Ava in tow. "Hay! Hay!" I was yelling. The garbage guy IGNORED me! He just kept on emptying garbage cans, driving on, emptying garbage cans, driving on. I couldn't catch him!

I called the garbage number. Turns out, picking up a Christmas tree is a scheduled event and an extra fee! My tree would cost $15 and I would have to chop it up because apparently a 6 foot tree is "too big for the truck". I suggested that I could probably cut up the tree and put it in my garbage can. Then it would be free.

So guess what Boyfriend is doing now at 9:30pm...

THE END

A Conversation

2010-12-04T18:46:00.000-07:00

Went to Walgreens with Ava and the twins.

I always get attention when I'm out with the twins, but especially when I'm out with the twins and one or both of my other girls.

This time we got the attention of an older gentlemen. He was sweet and nice and thought the girls were "pretty little treasures". He had so much to say to them and to Ava. But the conversation ended a little awkwardly.

Gentleman: "I can't believe how alert and responsive your babies are. How old are they?"
Me: "Seven months."
Gentleman: "Oh, only that old? Are thy identical?"
Me: "No, actually they are not. They are fraternal."

Long Pause and look of confusion...

Gentleman: "What does that mean?"
Me: "Uhhhhhh...."

I didn't want to make him feel like a dummy, but how do I answer that in a way that (this man - who if asked this question in the first place, probably couldn't handle a detailed answer) would understand? So I just said,

"Opposite of identical."
Gentleman: "Oh".

He walked away.

Emory & Aspen 7 months.

A couple of things these babies both enjoy - being naked and playing with the wipes.

"3 Makes 4"

2010-12-02T09:36:00.002-07:00

Ava turned 4 Dec. 1! She can't stand that she isn't 3 any more. Ava insists that "3 makes 4! So I'm not 4!!" I don't get it personally. But she LOVED celebrating her birthday. We just did a family thing. While Eden was away at school, Ava helped me make her birthday cake. What do you get when a 4 year old has complete say in the design and making of her cake?...

Taa-Daa! A pepto-bismal with blue blobs frosting number four!

For the record. I HATE and DESPISE decorating cakes. I don't know if that is evident or not. We were going for a rustic look.

Ava loved it though.

The finishing touch.

After multiple tries and turning blue in the face, Ava's big sister helped her blow the candles out.

Now for the multiple pictures of Ava....

Told in Ava's voice:

Emory, Ava, Aspen

"Hi. I'm Ava. I love being a big sister. I'm really good at it. Even when Mom can't get a baby to smile, I always can."

Ava & Eden

"I'm also a little sister. Yeah, I'm the typical middle child. I know everyone's buttons and I push them at will."

"I'm always getting people to crack up and I don't even know why."

"This is me, only 1 month old."

"3 months old. I've always been cute."

"Seriously, that's me."

"My mom loves me."

"I'm cute even when I'm not suppose to be. I had vaseline in my hair and Mom thought corn starch would get it out... it didn't. But peanut butter did."

"I don't know. I'm just a good kid. I like my family. They like me too. I'm quirky. Very quirky. I still bounce myself... in my chair, in the car, on the bench at church, on the couch. I love apple juice and my blanket goes with me every where."

"So Happy Birthday do me! Don't ask me if I'm four, cuz I'm just going to tell you AGAIN that three makes four and that is just how it is! Bye!"

But Seriously, I Love It.

2010-11-18T19:19:00.001-07:00

It's 7:00pm. Boyfriend isn't home yet. I have one twin in her PJ's, fed, changed and in her bed... but not asleep yet. The other twin is not in her PJ's, nor fed, or changed... but in her bed and totally asleep. Go figure. The older girls are fed, PJ'd, teeth brushed, prayers said and all ready for bed but "quietly" playing in their room. My lower eye is twitching. I haven't eaten any dinner yet, but here I am blogging. Go figure.

I got to visit a couple of girls from church today. They live on base. Luckily I only had the twins with me. I dropped the 3 year old off at a friends house. I'm a civilian. To get on base is quite the ordeal. I actually lost sleep over it last night. They had to do a background check and take my registration and insurance info before I could get on base. I was so worried that I would have some unpaid parking ticket I forgot about or something - and have a warrant out for my arrest. What if they had to arrest me then and there? What would I do with the babies? How would I tell my friend she'd have to keep watching the 3 year old? What would the 5 year old do when she got home from kindergarten? Yes, this is what I lost sleep over! Go figure. It wasn't the 3 year old crawling into bed with me twice. And it wasn't the twins waking up for their 2:00am feeding. It was the thought of getting arrested over nothing at all. I'm insane.

The 5 year old and 3 year old are waking up at 5:00 AM! The 5 year old had her snow gear on and went outside to make snow angels... in the dark! I let her.

I feel bad about going insane too, because Boyfriend is trying really hard to keep me sane. He has even been doing the night routine with the twins hoping I'll get more sleep. Sorry Boyfriend. Maybe it's inevitable. The twitching hasn't stopped, so maybe I'll go shove some cold broccoli in my mouth and close my eyes.

Oh wait, the sleeping baby is awake now. I guess I'll get her ready for bed!

Ha!

...repeat tomorrow.

Hexi Flower Power

2010-11-10T14:55:00.000-07:00

I'm always trying to steal a moment of the day to work on another hexi block. I have lofty goals in mind for them.

I would love a queen sized quilt for our bed. Here they are layed out. I think I could get away with only making 9 more, and then start working on the assemble. My major hick-up is that I'm a girl without a plan. I'm just kind of going for it. I don't know exactly how I'm going to assemble these and what I'll do with the rest of the quilt space I will need to fill in. I do know I want the hexi flowers to be the only color, so the rest of the quilt will probably be out of the same unbleached muslin fabric. Then there is the major hurdle of how I'm going to quilt this! All suggestions and tips are appreciated!

A few weekends ago I went to an estate sale, for one purpose and one purpose only...

I saw this quilt! It was made in the 1970's. I love the vintage fabrics. I like to think each one picked out has it's own story.

But I REALLY appreciate the time that went in to making this. The whole thing is made out of hexagons! They were asking $100 - and I made away with it for $40!

THINGAMAJIGS

2010-10-24T10:18:00.001-06:00

Thing 1 - Aspen. Thing 2 - Emory.

Yesterday was our church's "Trunk or Treat". At the party no one really got to see their costumes because they stayed bundled up in their stroller the whole time. It was only 50 degrees! But aren't they super sweet? That's a rhetorical question of course!

Thing 2 all pooped out. Sugar over load. Just kidding. Maybe she is dreaming about all those goblins that came to our car wanting treats. (We kind of "borrowed" all those receiving blankets from the hospital. I think they are just the perfect size and feel.)

Emory's Secret

2010-09-26T19:35:00.001-06:00

"Hey. My name is Emory. I'm almost 6 months old now. Life is pretty good for me. Except for one thing. I have a secret."

"Shhhh, don't tell anyone, but you HAVE got to see how my parents are making my twin and I sleep. Let's just say, I've never even been in an actual crib yet!"

"That's right. It's a pack-in-play. We sleep in the same room as my parents still! They are too lazy to trek us all the way upstairs in one of the other bedrooms. Plus my older sisters have taken it over as their play room. Toys everywhere. You may be thinking, 'So What'. But look closely. This pack-n-play is jimmy-rigged pretty good."

"I know it's embarrassing, Aspen, but I have tell them. My mom's back hurts when we are all the way at the bottom of this pack-n-play, so Dad came up with a great solution..."

"...paper boxes. We sleep on top of paper boxes. Then Dad draped this old sheet around the edges. Mom asked him why he was doing that and he told her it was so they wouldn't loose any binkies or babies around the edges. He pretty much is a genius."

"Maybe someday we will get a room of our very own and a real bed. Although it doesn't really matter anyways cuz I just prefer my swing to anything else."

Memories While Sewing

2010-09-22T22:43:00.000-06:00

Grandma Bunny was my paternal grandmother. She was the only grandparent I knew. The others had already passed away. She lived with us for a couple of years when I was twelve or thirteen. I remember that dress. I called it her "angel dress" because the accordion sleeves looked like angel wings to me when Grandma held out her arms.

Grandma was always working with her hands. Sewing, crocheting, crafting. She could make anything she imagined. I thought a lot about her while working on my pillow. I always wished I would have taken Grandma up on her offer to teach me how to crotchet. At the time, my twelve year old brain didn't want to hold still for that lesson.

It was nice to spend those moments sewing and thinking of her. I thought about how she met Grandpa Cherry (called that because his hair was red) in Canada while he served his mission. Grandma Bunny was the baby in her family and she was used to having things provided for her when it was needed.

After marrying Grandpa, she moved down south to a tiny little town in Southern Utah. Alton Utah. Grandma started her married life during the Great Depression. She ended up having 11 children, and had to teach herself how to be a provident provider.

My pillow reminds me of her. I love that.

At my sewing station, I'm reminded of a couple other people I love. My flower pin cushion made by a dear friend in medical school. I get to think of her every time I pull out a pin. Speaking of those pins, they used to be my mother's, along with so many of my sewing tools. She gave me my sewing machine when I was first married, and she threw in her old sewing notions to go with it. Thanks Mom... I'm finally putting some use to them!

A Sprouting Hobby

2010-09-21T14:10:00.002-06:00

Isn't this lovely?

I've been trying to teach myself how to sew. Now I didn't make the crochet top of this pillow. I commissioned someone on etsy to do that part for me. But I did, with the help of the internet and youtube teach myself how to construct the pillow & even make my own piping. Let me toot my own horn cuz I'm quite thrilled with it!

Even Boyfriend admitted that it was cool. He was a little unsure at first with all the time and effort it was taking. But once he saw the finish product, he gave me a big hug.

This pillow has inspired my next project. Think "granny squares" but with fabric instead of yarn. It's going to be big and grand and it's going to take me ages! Can't wait.

8 Bags Worth

2010-09-11T21:29:00.000-06:00

My neighbor grew a monster size zucchini and shared it with us. I made zucchini bread out of it. 4 loaves! It was huge. He brought me over a few more gigantic zucchinis. I thought, what on earth am I going to do with all of this? ... then it dawned on me to freeze it. So I prepped it up for making bread. Shredded it, measured it out in 2 cups worth (because that is what my recipe calls for), and then bagged it. Now in the winter I will have plenty of yummy zucchini bread! I mean PLENTY... I froze 8 bags of this and each bag is enough for 2 loaves! What did you do with your zucchini this year?

Notice all the bottles and such in the background? I was having to run my dishwasher twice a day with just bottles to keep up with all the demand. Until it finally dawned on me to just break down and purchase more bottles. I don't know why that was so hard for me to understand? But now I have enough bottles and nipples to last a whole days worth... only run the dish washer once now!

Girls Girls Girls

2010-09-08T20:56:00.001-06:00

This picture makes me laugh. Ava with a bruise on her cheek holding Emory who doesn't look amused by the situation at all. Then Eden trying to help Aspen smile which is not working. This is our life.

The twins are 5 months old now - and I'm starting to feel like I have a slight grasp on life again. So often, Boyfriend and I, find ourselves marveled over the very idea that we had two babies at the same time. We now are parents of twins. How did that happen to us? And how do we do it? Something I didn't know until I became a mother of twins is that there is this "secret twins club" that exists out there in the world. Once you have twins, you automatically are a member. Anyone and everyone with multiples is instantly united with that bond to each other. What I always thought to myself before having twins was, "How on earth does a mother handle and function with two babies at one time?" Then I suddenly had to do it.

And what I do, is just do it. Luckily, they are the sweetest babies on the planet. Life at our house is just super crazy busy. NON STOP. Out of the 4 girls, there is always someone needing something or other. And then, when they are all settled, there's a house that needs tending to, or food to be made, or phone calls to return. Somehow I wish I could slip in some shut eye... sigh. That will come later in my life. Right now is my season for baby kisses and dark circles under my eyes. And I have found the joy in it.

Emory Susan 5 months old

Leaving the house by myself with all four of the girls can be crazy, but once I'm out, I have a feeling of empowerment. I can do this. I'm The Mama. These are all my little chickadees. I get plenty of stares and comments though. The most popular comment is "You've got your hands full!".

My expectations of everyday life have drastically changed! Such as...

...what a clean house looks like.

...if my childrens' outfits match or if their hair is perfectly combed.

...my own personal appearance.

...how often any of the girls are bathed. It used to be almost nightly, but that is a JOKE now.

...what a homemade dinner consists of.

Aspen Kathleen 5 months old.

I totally know I have people out there wondering if I'm able to nurse these two chickadees. I mean I bragged about my fancy pillow and all. Well in the beginning, I used that pillow every day all day. I tried to nurse both babies. I tried really very hard. It was a circus act. All three of us were horrible at it. I think Emory might have been able to have a good go at it, but Aspen was not happy. We tried this for the first two months. I would nurse and then pump and then finish their feeding with the pumped milk. Do you know how much time this took???? Ridiculous. Nursing has never been easy for me. Well I couldn't keep nursing and then pumping, so we decided to finally skip the first. What I'm saying is... I only pump now. They still are getting the good stuff, but it's from a bottle which has it's benefits. I admittedly do not enjoy pumping. To say the least, I hate it. Oh well, it's only for a period of time.

Hey, are you wondering how I feed both babies every day?

Aspen, my legs, Emory (5 months old)

These bouncy seats are my greatest tool. I plop them in and pop the bottles in their mouths. Sometimes I can get the big sisters to help out, but more often then not that becomes more of a chore than a help. I can go pretty quick this way. Both the babies and I know what to do and how to do it when we settle into this position.

These babies are my new addiction. They are so yummy!

Oh Snap!

2010-08-11T21:37:00.000-06:00

She's a kindergarten-er! Eden had to pose for every picture. There was NO just standing still in front of the camera. The school has a uniform of only collared shirts.

It has really happened as of today. From 7:50AM to 3:20PM! That seems like such a long day for my big girl! We are talking eating lunch in the real cafeteria and all! She did it though... but she was exhausted!

Ava is going to miss her very best friend!

(I did finally dress her before we left... barely)

Eden had to have a picture of her talking on her Hello Kitty phone. She told Ava she'd call her from school. But once she got in her class room and saw all the commotion and what not, she reached in her backpack and handed me the phone. She told me to just take it home. Ava snatched it out of my hand and when we were saying our final goodbyes to Eden in her class, Ava shouted out, while waving the phone, "Hey Eden, can I just use this? I got to call some people."

Seriously. She is all grown up now.

Zzzzz

2010-08-10T09:47:00.001-06:00

When Mommy Puts the Babies to Bed...

Aspen & Emory almost 4 months old.

When Daddo Puts the Babies to Bed...

Aspen & Emory almost 4 months old

...need I say more?

Celebration Up in the Sky

2010-08-08T21:38:00.002-06:00

Aspen, Boyfriend, Emory and some yummy birthday food

My Babies' Daddy had a birthday on Aug. 3rd. We celebrated with his sister and family that live here in Denver! They are so great and it has been wonderful spending time with family after being away for so long. Boyfriend also has a brother that lives in Colorado Springs that we have gotten to see as well. Life is good.

Emory is totally stoked about those cupcakes. Eden and Ava ADORE their cousins. It really tickles my heart when they get so excited to see and spend time with them!

The girls drew their Daddo a birthday card in the backyard. Do you see the tree, the mountains with a rainbow above them... and the little chickadee... with permanent marker!? I wonder if the owners of our rental will know who did that?

On the 7th of August it was Boyfriend and my 11 year anniversary! We celebrated by loading up the whole family and drove up the highest paved road in the U.S. to the top of Mount Evans.

Can you see the city waaaay out there? I could tell you this was taken from the very top, but that would be lying and I try not to lie. We were only 1 mile from the top, but we couldn't go any farther! We were all getting altitude sickness. The babies were having a hard time breathing, we were nauseated, headaches, feeling faint, our legs were tingling... We would have turned around earlier, but there wasn't any room or place to do so on the ROAD OF SUDDEN DEATH! Any tiny malfunction of the wheel and we could have fallen FOREVER!

So we turned off the side of the road at the first place we saw and settled for this outlook. It was fantastic. Then we speedily got back in the car and drove down to a lower elevation.

Gorgeous!

Still Fits?

2010-07-26T15:26:00.000-06:00

The girls were helping to unpack boxes and found the box marked "Halloween".

They tried on some old costumes to see how they still fit.

Oh my goodness, I can't believe they used to be this small!

Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Prairie and A Little House

2010-07-22T17:18:00.000-06:00

Ava, Emory, Grandma Waite, Aspen, Eden

Wow! We made it to Denver! Thanks to the help of Grandma Waite we were able to settle in nicely. She drove with me and the four girls from Vegas to Denver and then stayed a couple of weeks. Now I'm all alone... boo hoo hoo. I have to be a big girl.

These past couple of months have been eventful. We all have gotten sick, ear infections, asthma attacks and even Emory had a visit to the E.R. for a horrible respiratory infection. You know I was worried about her when "Doctor Daddy" finally said we should take her to the hospital. BUT all is finally well now!

Our rental house is a perfect size for all of us and we love the community pool. My only complaint is that I don't feel like I live in Denver. It's more like Kansas! We really are a "little house on the prairie". To get to the nearest gas station, grocery store, McDonalds, church, anything... I have to drive 20 minutes!!!

*sigh*

This will be a survival year. It will also be a joyful, fun, exciting, BUSY and future telling year!!!

Aspen, Emory

Vegas Lovin'

2010-06-24T16:33:00.002-06:00

Eden and Ava hangin' with cousin Taj

Chillin' in Vegas has been loads of fun. Especially because Aunt Cathy lives around the block from Grandma Gail. Aunt Cathy is THE Coolest...

She lets us put on Tattoos!

And as many as we want!

Eden got to have her very first sleep over with cousins at Aunt Cathy's house! It was a blast.

Ahhh. Aunt Cathy's house rocks! And so does this Desert Vegas SunShine!

I especially love Aunt Cathy's iMac!... okay, and her freezer full of ice cream!

2010-06-15T22:37:00.000-06:00

We (meaning all of us girls) have made it to Vegas. Boyfriend is stuck back in Memphis finishing up work. We miss him. He is trying to fill his free time by eating all the BBQ he can fit in his belly. We have been filling in our free time with... wait... what free time?

Sometimes it feels like all we do is feed babies! Good thing I have excellent helpers. We also have been filling our time with a family wedding, family visits and friend visits. I don't have my computer with me here in Vegas, so it has been difficult to blog.

Can I Just Have a Nap?

2010-05-31T20:27:00.000-06:00

Emory & Aspen at 4 weeks old

Oh my goodness life has been full of excitement around here. I barely have time to blow my nose, let alone blog these days! Remember my list of things that needed to happen all at the same time? Well, I've been able to check every single item off the list! The past couple of months have been a whirlwind with many twists and turns. Luckily the twins have been very consistent with out any surprises because EVERYTHING else has given us a bit of a headache. Like selling the house, making arrangements to move and travel, and our rental... but everything has worked out in the end!

Eden & Ava

These two big sisters have been so sweet with the babies.

My Mom, Emory & Aspen

My mother seriously has been my life line! She has stayed with us since the babies were born! I couldn't have gotten through this whole ordeal with out her!

Tomorrow the moving van come. I'll be staying with my parents in Las Vegas until the end of June while Boyfriend finishes up work in Memphis. Then we will get to meet up in Denver Colorado in July!

Toothless

2010-05-02T17:21:00.001-06:00

Attention - Attention

-I'd like to interrupt the news of our babies, for this very important announcement!...

Eden lost her very first tooth and she is so proud!

And just fyi, the very next week she lost one more!

The Novel of Their Birth!

2010-04-22T15:06:00.006-06:00

WARNING: Reader discretion advised. This is my labor & delivery story. I want to record it... everything about it. Even the unpleasant. Please don't feel like you have to read it... it's long!

My fraternal twins were born at 36 weeks...

Easter Sunday - I could tell something was a bit different. I was extra tired, extra grumpy, and I had extra contractions. I spent the day lying around as much as I could.

Wednesday morning - I had my doctors appointment. I was dilated at 2cm but I wasn't effaced at all.

Thursday morning around 2:00 AM - Contractions woke me up. I was uncomfortable. I took a bath and downloaded a new application onto my itouch... a "contraction counter". The contractions were averaging 7 minutes a part. It stayed this way for a couple of hours. I woke up Boyfriend and started bossing him around. He helped me pack for the hospital and got things together for the babies. I had thought about doing this a couple of days ago... but hadn't.

I called and woke up my mom in Las Vegas. I told her these babies weren't going to wait for her to fly out next week as was planned. She found a ticket that very day to arrive at midnight.

Around 8:00 AM - My contractions slowed down to 12 minutes apart. We decided to wait it out at home and see what happens. We did, though, make a bunch of phone calls to friends who could help out if we decided to go to the hospital. "Thanks friends!"

That afternoon, the contractions picked up again and I decided we better just go. If they send us home, so be it, but at least we would know.

Here I am at 36 weeks to the day... about to leave for the hospital.

5:30pm - We were at the hospital being checked out. I was dilated at 3cm and 60% effaced. They said that was a big enough change, I was in labor and needed to be admitted. "Holy Smokes! We were going to have our babies!"

As soon as I was in a labor room, I was given Pitocin to get my contractions moving along.

9:30pm - The doctor on call that day came in to check me. Baby A's head was still high. The doctor got out her "hook" and broke that baby's water. That gush feeling is just kind of gross to me and continues to be gross long after.

Luckily I still was comfortable enough to not have an epidural yet. This meant I could get up and stand by the side of my bed. I liked to rock from side to side. I also could use the restroom unassisted too.

Thursday around 1:00 AM I decided I wanted that epidural. I couldn't just breath through my contractions anymore...

By 1:15 AM my mother stopped by on her way from the airport to my house. I had just finished getting the epidural and it was starting to kick in. I had a "hot spot" on my left side (which means there was a certain spot where I could still feel everything). They had to do some tweaking to fix that. I usually like it when I can feel a little bit through the labor, but after this ordeal... I was extremely numbed up. It felt like the bottom half of my body was disconnected from my top half. I couldn't feel anything. My mother gave me a big kiss and told me to be brave, I could do this.

I fell asleep.

Thursday @ 2:15 AM - My nurse comes in. My contractions (which I couldn't feel) were only one minute apart. She decided to turn down my pitocin. As she was doing this, I was thinking... "wait, can I actually feel the baby's head ready to come?" "No", I thought, "I can't feel anything down there, and I am so tired. I'll just sleep some more. ...But I felt VERY IMPRESSED to just let my nurse know that I thought I could feel baby A down very low. She checked...

WOW, there was baby!!!

I was wanting more than anything to deliver these babies with out a c-section, but because I was having twins, I had to at least deliver in the OR just in case things turned towards a c-section. Nothing was prepared. My nurse tried to calmly (but not really) walk (but run) out of my room to sound the alarm. I told Boyfriend to wake up because the babies were coming. I also started shaking uncontrollably. Boyfriend didn't wake up, so I was yelling at him to wake up. He woke up. I said we are going to have the babies now so get ready. He said okay and lied back down to sleep! I yelled at him again to get himself up and ready. The nurse came in with caps for us and a gown along with booties for Boyfriend. And I continued to shake uncontrollably.

Off we raced to the OR. I was scared. My nurse was pushing my bed. She was trying to be so calm and tell me that the doctor wasn't there yet, but if the babies came, she could deliver them, even in the hallway. As she was telling me this, she was also banging my bed into walls and doors! She was just as nervous as I was, I think.

I have never been to the OR. It was sterile with lots of bright lights. There were so many nurses there telling each other what to do and no one seemed to fully know what to do. What was going on? They put me on the bed. I was a beached whale by then. I couldn't move anything to help them. They got me on the bed, then realized they needed to pull me down further. They heaved my body down. Oh, then they realized they needed to heave me up again. I was getting sick. I exclaimed that I was going to throw up. Boyfriend and a nurse held the top half of my body up-right with a wonderful clear cup in front of my mouth. I threw up. Boyfriend was impressed with the color. Florescent Yellow... for the world to see. The nurse helping couldn't get someone to take it away fast enough for her!

The doctor arrived. Wow, she was fast! She told them to get my legs up in the stirrups. The nurses hoisted up a couple of chubby wobbly legs. I thought, "who's big ol' legs are those?" I couldn't feel a thing. So it was almost surreal, I felt disconnected with my body. It was weird realizing those were my legs!

The doctor said to me that on my next contraction, I was having baby A! It took 1.5 pushes for Aspen to arrive. April 9th 2:26am.

Aspen Kathleen. 6lbs 6oz.

Baby B was still too far up. They gave me more pitocin. The contractions helped push her down. 10 minutes later and 2 pushes... Emory arrived. April 9th 2:36am.

Hope you aren't grossed out. I think this picture is awesome!

Emory Susan. 6lbs 6oz.

So there they were. Our two new little girls! Their apgar scores were perfect. We thought everything was wonderful, but once we had them in our arms, we realized they were having a hard time breathing. It sounded like they were humming or grunting. Their lungs weren't expanding enough and had some fluid in them. Off they went to the NICU.

Here is Aspen. She looks like a Waite to me with her longer face.

Emory had to have a feeding tube put in. She looks more like her big sister, Eden.

Aspen

Emory

The babies improved dramatically everyday they were in the NICU. Emory had her tube taken out on the second day. I was released on Sunday and the babies came home Tuesday. So four days in the NICU. They were the healthiest babies there. We have been counting our blessings!!!

Life now has been exciting and good and exhausting and overwhelming! We couldn't ask for it to be better!!!

They're Here!!!

2010-04-20T11:53:00.002-06:00

The girls arrived April 9th 2010.

Aspen Kathleen @ 2:26am

Emory Susan @ 2:36am

Emory & Aspen

Definitely fraternal!

More to come later, but for now... I need another nap!

Buy Me!

2010-04-01T14:55:00.001-06:00

Our beloved little house is officially on the market. It has been for about a week now. We've had about 8 showings. I'm hoping this Easter weekend will bring out a lot of buyers. The sooner we sale this place the sooner I don't have to keep it sparkling clean any more!!! It would be super duper nice if that all happened before the babies come too. And that would be one more thing to cross of our list of Crazy Gigantic Things that need to take place all within the next three months.

Items on said list:

Sale house and hopefully get to stay in house until end of June!
Give birth to healthy twin girls!
Don't give birth to healthy twin girls on April 17th because boyfriend has to take the Boards! (I'll be 37 weeks preggers by then)
Pack and move my family of two little girls and two month old twins across country to Colorado!

Note there isn't a number 5 item of "finding a home to live in for a year in Colorado"... we had a "tender mercy" from the Lord and thanks to a small miracle, we came across a wonderful older couple who just happens to have a house they need to rent out for a year in the exact location we need to be living!!! Counting my blessings!

The Sisters' Get Together

2010-03-16T17:40:00.001-06:00

Every year my three sisters and I get together for our Annual Sister-Get-Together. This year it was hosted by the youngest sister, where she lives in Las Vegas. It was scheduled for the end of February. I was thrilled when my doctor gave me the go ahead to travel! The doctor did have me take along a copy of all my paper work. So I got to leave for a long weekend (with out kids) laughing and playing with my sistas. Traveling ended up paying a toll on me, but it was so worth it. Laughter is very good for the soul and we did a lot of laughing!

My limitations did limit what we could do and for how long, but we still had fun. My sisters had for me a bright red wheelchair. They took their turns wheeling me around the Fashion Show Mall. It was humbling. I also might have hopped on one of those electric shopping carts at Target one night. And in case you were planning on using one of those, let me warn you that it WILL make a back up beeping noise and it WILL be extremely loud!!!

We like to exchange a little something with each other at our get togethers. This year, there was a cute Easter bird nest decoration, some delicious pomegranate jelly, and tools for fondant decorating (along with a tutorial from that sister). I had decided this year, with all the time I had at home not being allowed on my feet, to sit down and learn how to embroider. I embroidered kitchen towels for my sisters. I found the pattern at A Little Sweetness.

With each towel my stitches got a little better. This picture is of the first towel I tried. I really enjoyed embroidering. When I first started, Boyfriend came home from work that evening and stopped in his tracks when he saw me sitting there, by the lamp, needle, thread, and an embroidery hoop. It was a very odd site to see me doing that. Eden and Ava were constantly interested in what I was working on.

I found a great idea from the blog Filth Wizardry that kept the older one busy for a while.

She felt so grown up and loved learning a new skill. And she and I both loved doing a fun project together.

She is so proud. I love this girl!

It's Getting Bigger

2010-03-11T21:11:00.001-07:00

These girls are getting very excited for their sisters to finally arrive. Everyday one or both pretend to have twins in their belly. In these pictures, Eden is having the babes.

But the other day at dinner it was Ava (3) who announced she had two babies in her tummy. This was the family's conversation...

AVA: I have two babies in my tummy.

ME: Oh, what are they doing? Are they sleeping right now? (this is usually what she says they are doing)

AVA: No, they are reading books.

ME: Oh, well then! Those are some smart babies!

AVA: Yeah.

EDEN: They're just looking at the pictures!

AVA (agreeing with her older sister): Oh, right. They just look at pictures.

32 weeks pregnant with twins. (I'm measuring at 40+ weeks already)

I'm hoping I make it at least 36 weeks. That way the babies will be big enough to likely not need to be admitted into the NICU.

I have nothing to complain about though. We have been so blessed throughout this twin pregnancy. My doctor told me to stay off my feet as much as possible although I'm not on complete bedrest, but all the women at church treat me like I am! I am being so well taken care of. Everyday, someone takes the girls for a couple of hours so I can rest. That has been such a life saver for me! I don't sleep well at all during the night, and I am just so tired during the day. My stomach feels like it's being stretched to it's max - as if it is going to rip right open.

Names for the twins are still being tossed around. Boyfriend and I have a few that are major front runners, but nothing we are ready to announce yet.

Go ahead and offer your suggestions if you'd like.

7 Months Preggo with Two

2010-02-19T19:05:00.001-07:00

Here's the bod in all its glory! Pregnancy is quite the production for me. I don't just carry in my belly. I carry in my legs, bum, arms, chest, face, hair, nails... I do love the part of my hair and nails. I have never had such thick hair before and it has become so much wavier.

I'm not going to lie, this twin pregnancy has been an adventure. I am thankful that I really haven't had major complications. I was put on bed rest over a weekend when I started contracting. And now I am suppose to stay off my feet as much as possible. I've learned there is a difference between sitting down and lying down! I also drink a gallon of water a day.... there are many many bathroom breaks.

The weird thing is I retained so much more fluid with my first two pregnancies. Don't get me wrong, I am swelling with this one, but not as bad. I wonder if it might be because I'm carrying these girls higher... which also might be why I can't breath. I can't seem to take in enough air. I get winded just walking from the bedroom to the kitchen. More often then not, the person on the other end of the phone will stop to ask me if I'm okay. "Yes, I'm okay, I just breath heavy into the phone like this for everyone".

There is constant pressure. I waddle. Any one would get a good laugh watching me put my shoes on. It hurts to lift a leg up when dressing or getting into my NEW MINI VAN. Speaking of the van. It is a good thing it has a "tattle tale" beeping sound that doesn't stop if you don't put your set belt on... the twist I have to do in order to reach my set belt makes me cringe every time I get in.

Sleeping (or lack there of) is another story. A nice friend let me borrow her recliner. I keep it in the bedroom and switch from that to the bed through out the night. I get up about 4 times a night to use the restroom. It's amazing and wonderful what a nap during the day does for my foggy brain (and grumpy attitude).

I think the twins have retired from being"dancing ballerinas" to now "head bangers" in the middle of a mosh pit. When they move, they really move. It doesn't feel like a nice game of patty cake. I think they are punching and kicking to get the room they want.

To sum it up, I guess this pregnancy feels like how it felt to be 9 months pregnant with one... but that 9 month feeling started at my 5 month mark. I am already running out of clothes that fit. I think I'll just rotate between the three outfits that work right now. Really - I'm just complaining. I know too many other moms of twins who have had such horrible pregnancies, so I'm thanking my lucky stars.

THE END

The HUTCH is DONE!

2010-02-16T20:02:00.001-07:00

Remember waaaay back (3 years ago), when I decided to finally take on the project of painting this hutch?

I am very excited to say that it is now completed! It only took the deadline of twins, getting the house ready to sell, and moving - for me to get myself in gear and finish it!

About a month ago, my mother surprised me and said she was coming into town the next day and stayed for a week! What a life saver she is!!! She cleaned my house, boxed up junk and helped me put stuff in a storage unit. I watched her do all these things with my feet up, or I took long naps. But one thing I did while she was here was finish painting this hutch. I am in love with it!

I decided to use the same hardware that was on it originally. The only problem is that I packed away and stored all of my cute nick-nacks and decorations to put inside. This piece of furniture makes me very very happy!

It's Official

2010-02-08T13:19:00.000-07:00

Check out our new ride! The Waites are now the proud owners of our first official MINI VAN!

Who would have ever thought Boyfriend would be so proud to show off his Mini Van! You should have seen him after church. He stopped all his peeps out in the parking lot to have them check out his new ride.

I was driving my mother-in-laws old car... a 1997 CRV

Boyfriend was driving my little sister's old car from high school!... a 1990 Celica (with well over 200,000 miles on it!) It's been good to us all these 10.5 years of marriage.

With the twins arrival we had to get a car we could all fit in! It feels like luxury! Leather seats, automatic doors, dvd player, heated seats! I proudly LOVE it.

Brrrrrrrrrrr

2010-02-02T20:32:00.000-07:00

We've had a long weekend of cold and ice.

An ice storm hit here in Memphis and everything shuts down. They don't have the equipment to handle this sort of thing I guess. Like salt and snow plows and four wheel drive.

School was canceled for a couple of days and even church was canceled. It was nice to be stuck at home with each other... until the girls started going crazy with cabin fever.

At one point we saw this bird who kept trying to fly into our house. Poor bird, it must be so cold outside that she was desperate for some warmth.

And then we were like, "whoa, that bird is not outside"! She was in our house. Eden had opened the garage to check out the world and apparently that was the moment this bird made her move. I love her yellow eyeshadow though. She pooped alot, that I didn't love.

It is starting to warm up a bit and the ice is melting. Although this weekend is suppose to be a repeat.

Even though Mr. Groundhog said more winter, we have seen some signs of hope in our yard that Spring will someday arrive... along with a couple of new additions to our family...

Eden

2010-02-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

My little first born, who once was so little, is now getting to be too big!

Her birthday was January 19th.

I enjoy every moment of her.

I love that her world consists of waking up and wanting to create. She loves to draw, color, cut, glue, paint, tape, fold, create. I'm amazed at some of the things she comes up with.

Eden also has a great ability to remember details, and she loves music. Eden sings all day long.

Smart, artsy, music... she sounds a lot like her daddo.

Happy Birthday Eden Gail!

Snow Day in Memphis

2010-01-07T14:32:00.001-07:00

In Memphis, when it snows an inch...

...morning surgeries are canceled for eye docs!

...schools are canceled for kids!

So we chased around Dad in the backyard.

We had a snowball fight.

Luckily the only target was Dad and he is hard to miss.

We went for a walk around the neighborhood to confirm it really had snowed at everyone's house, not just ours. And then we were frozen, so warm baths and hot chocolate fixed everything.

I hope we survive those Denver winters next year! I wonder how much snow they have to get before school's canceled?

Gnarly Dream

2009-12-28T15:15:00.003-07:00

Last night I had a pregnancy dream.

I dreamed I started into labor with the twins. No one was there but my sister. I asked her to get help, but she freaked out, panicked, and froze at the foot of the bed I lay in. The babies came, but they weren't babies. They were black cats with waaaay too much fur. It was gross... it gets worse. I figured these were the babies I was given, so I tried to love and cuddle them, as yucky as they were. The cats were hungry and wanted milk. They attacked me, got there milk, it hurt, and then I woke up. That dream was one ugly dream!

Authors Note: Boyfriend is totally grossed out that I even posted about this dream. But sorry, I is what I is.

Christmas Eve Greetings

2009-12-24T11:41:00.004-07:00

Merry Christmas Ya'll!
I forgot all about our very own Holly bush growing in the frontyard. We cut some sprigs to bring inside on the mantel. It's very festive and cute.

Boyfriend is finally home for a couple days! This means ALL those autumn leaves finally got piled up, jumped in, and composted! Yeah!

We've had fun partying the Holidays. The girls made "milk carton" houses.

They loved it, of course.

We listened as boyfriend performed his holiday musical number for the church party.

After it was all said and done, we finally saw Santa.

The End!

The Twins Are...

2009-12-14T16:54:00.002-07:00

DANG IT! In my last post I totally revealed what gender the twins are by accident. I wasn't thinking! Typical me. Oh well. Thanks for all the fun comments already though! What I wanted to do was put together a fun movie to reveal their gender. I had great ideas in mind, but since I already spilled the beans, I quickly threw this one together. It was going to be sooooo cool, but instead you just get pretty much the same thing over and over and over and over. The actresses are
beautiful though!

Inquiring Minds

2009-12-14T12:05:00.004-07:00

Many people have been wanting to know how the twin pregnancy is going and how I've been feeling. Now that I'm over the whole shock of it all and the first trimester... I guess I'm ready to talk.

This pregnancy has been crazy and just so different from my first two pregnancies.

There has been such a whirl wind of emotions:

shock
fear
denial (I felt like this really isn't happening, or that it really wasn't going to happen)
overwhelmed
fear

After I worked through some of those feelings I was able to start feeling the good emotions like how blessed we are to have two new spirits come into our family at once.

I don't want to sound ungrateful ever when I talk about this whole experience, because I really understand how amazing it is. Especially when I have people I cherish in my life who long for something like this to happen just once in there precious lives.

The first trimester was hard. I was sick.
I threw up a lot.
I gagged all the time. Once I was paying for groceries and while handing the check out lady my card, I started gagging. She freaked out - worried I was about to hurl all over her and the register.
I was terribly exhausted. So tired!
Even though I was sick, I needed food all the time.
I had crazy cravings.
I gained a lot of weight really fast. -I've read now that weight gain in the beginning of a multiple pregnancy is important for the growth of the babies. I'm having faith that is true and so my weight gain is good... but I sure hope it slows down now... although from previous experience, I don't think that's going to happen. It was only 7 months ago that I ran a half marathon! That energetic me I worked so hard for is long gone now. And realistically, I'm going to have to come to terms that it might be a couple YEARS before I can get that strength back. Boo hoo.

Now that I'm in my second trimester I'm not as sick. I still gag, but no more running to the bathroom.
I'm only 4.5 months along but I feel like I'm already 8 months pregnant.
I can't bend down. Well, I can, but I really wish I didn't have to.
Therefore... my floors are dirty, toys are in each and every room of the house, and I'm still really tired.
I don't get much done during the day. I've slowed way down.
I constantly have weird sharp pains stabbing me from my growing uterus.
But the best part is... I can feel little twinges of movement from my dancing ballerinas inside.
At my last ultrasound I witnessed Baby B tap dancing on Baby A's face. Awesome.

I'm planning to nurse these two girls. Heaven knows I'm well equipped to do so!
I just ordered one of these twin nursing pillows. Unfortunately mine isn't going to be such a snazzy pattern. Just plain ol' pink thank you. I'm sure I will be smiling like the model woman too, the whole time. And I hope to keep my 20 year old cordless phone in that handy side pocket.

Fellowship Match!

2009-12-09T20:07:00.005-07:00

Hey, so guess what? We know where we are going to be moving for a year come this July! Before I reveal the location let me explain...

Boyfriend has finished 4 years of medical school in Salt Lake, Utah-
then an internship year of internal medicine at Las Vegas, NV-
then, this June, he will finish up his 3 year residency of ophthalmology here in Memphis, TN.

He could be done after that. We could go into practice and live where we want, BUT, just for the fun of it, Boyfriend would like to add one more year of specialty training. He wants to be an Ophthalmologist specialized in Cornea. He is just that cool.

So for the two months of October & November, he was flying across the country interviewing at 7 different programs. He also had a week long "eyeball" conference in San Fransisco and then a week of charity "eyeball" surgery in Mexico. One might have noticed I wasn't blogging much then. Everything seemed to be spinning at that moment... we were husbandless/fatherless, I had just found out why I was SO MORNING SICK, plus the flu hit our house and all the other lovely season changing illnesses. I personally felt I was swimming in an ocean of despair. Luckily I was able to fly home to Las Vegas for a couple of weeks with the girls and have family wait on me hand and foot. That was so fantastic! Boyfriend was able to arrive just in time for Thanksgiving. When I returned back to reality, more then one person mentioned how good I was looking. It was called REST!

Here is a family pic from the trip to Vegas. Don't we ALL look well rested? My mom is not going to love this!

Well, when one applies for a fellowship it works like this:
1. Apply to programs
2. Hope to get an interview with program(s)
3. Rank all the programs in order of preference
4. Programs rank all the interviewees in order of preference
5. Computer matches up all the interviewees with the programs according to the rank list.

Applying for residency worked the same way. But the odds were much different. Boyfriend applied to 40 different ophthalmology programs, interviewed at 11, and we matched at our #6 on the rank list. As for fellowship, he applied to 10 programs, received 7 interviews, and matched at his #1 on our rank list! Yep! We got our number one location! We are thrilled!

DENVER, COLORADO - here we come (all six of us) in July of 2010 until July of 2011.

We Have a 3 Year Old Now

2009-12-06T18:41:00.002-07:00

It happened December 1st, 2009.

The Halloween Shots of 2009

2009-11-03T07:11:00.004-07:00

It sure is pretty outside these days. The trees are colorful and beautiful. Boyfriend finally returned home on Halloween day from a week long trip to San Fran and a quick stop in Denver. I was very glad to have him back even it was for just a couple days. He is now out in Sacramento interviewing.

I didn't have quite enough energy this year to really care too much about the costumes and luckily for me, the girls made it easy (for the most part). They just wanted to be princesses. Great! We have lots of princess dress ups to choose from!

Eden had a preschool Halloween party on Friday. She wore a Cinderella dress that we actually borrowed. It was beautiful and we dolled her up. I think it was her best custom of the weekend. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture. I tried, but was told I was "NOT ALLOWED" to take her picture. Oh well.

Friday night was are church Trunk or Treat. Great friends took the girls for me and I rested. My attempts of capturing a good photo reminds me a whole lot of the time during Easter or Christmas last year. These girls are crazy!

Could they please just stand pretty for one picture? The one in the bottom right is while they waited in the open garage for their chariot to arrive to take them to the ball. I love that Ava is putting on her lip gloss!

This is what they wore for the actually Trick or Treating of Halloween night. Eden remembered the Little Bo Peep costume we had from a friend and decided to wear that instead.

These are blurry, but classic. They had been out Trick or Treating, but of course, wanted to do our house too. Look at Miss Ava. Boyfriend strolled her around in the stroller and said she would NOT get out. So he just rolled her up to all the doors. He said she looked like this at every house!

Cough Cough Cough

2009-10-19T19:29:00.002-06:00

(I came stumbling into the living room one afternoon and found the girls chillin' watching the tube.)

We've had "the flu" around here. It has completely NOT been the best time of our lives! You know how it is when the mom of the house is sick... nothing gets done! The house looks like a war zone, no one gets fed or cleaned, and all day long the television is on.

(Ava was left to dress herself. This is pretty good considering she normally prefers zero clothing.)

We are finally on the mends though! Things are looking up and we've survived!

(Eden decided she should be "a robot" for the day. It lasted a good 2 minutes.)

Boyfriend is the only one who came out never getting it. Probably because he immediately put himself on Tamiflu.

He is now out on one of his interviews for fellowship year which will start this July. It will be a one year fellowship in Cornea. And then we will be DONE!!!!!!!!!

Places he has interview so far:
Atlanta
Indianapolis
Minneapolis
Portland

Places he will be interviewing in the next few weeks:
Sacramento
Denver
Oklahoma City

We won't find out where the lucky spot will be until December 15th! Joy.

A Funny Smell

2009-10-09T18:08:00.004-06:00

The other day I smelled funny. Even after my shower, my arms, my skin smelled weird. It was strange. Boyfriend came home after being gone for three days and was giving me hugs and kisses. He stopped, looked at me, and told me I didn't smell like his Carolyn. I smelled weird!

Boyfriend: "What did you eat while I was gone?"
Me: "I don't know. LOTS of stuff."
Boyfriend: "Well did you eat a whole bunch of garlic or something?"
Me: "No!"

a minute passes...

Me: "Oh, wait! I did eat a whole head of cabbage yesterday for dinner!"
Boyfriend: "What! That's it?"
Me: "Yeah, cabbage sounded soooooo good! So I cooked it up and ate it. I just fed the girls chicken, and I ate cabbage."
Boyfriend: "Huh, so I guess cabbage makes your skin smell funny."
Me: "Yep."

I've had major cravings this pregnancy! Major. Absolutely nothing will sound good. I start gagging thinking about food... until that one thing pops into my head... then that's all I want. I can't think of anything else but that one particular item of food! Early in the pregnancy I made fresh homemade wheat bread. Warm out of the oven, with butter and honey. Delicious, right? WRONG. I can't stand the thought of it right now! What's with me? (besides two humans taking over)

I've eaten things I wouldn't normally eat. Here is a list of sudden cravings...

sardines! ~a whole can! While I was eating it I thought this is so gross, but it tasted so good to me.
radishes ~raw, yummy and crunchy
pickles ~duh!
green olives ~straight from the jar
Arbies ~I would never choose to eat there, until I needed one of their roast beef sandwiches
tuna fish sandwiches
cereal ~particularly shredded mini wheats
beets ~steamed with olive oil and salt
green apples ~tart and mouth watering
scrambled egg sandwiches ~just like how mom used to make 'em

The weirdest part of it... I don't want chocolate! I even pass it up while it's sitting in front of me! Something is very very wrong!

Whaaaaaaaaaaat!

2009-09-30T19:13:00.025-06:00

This is how the day started off. I should have noted it as a preview of things to come. Those are strong girls - pulling their beds apart like that!

But I have a story to tell. A couple months ago, while Eden was in preschool, I decided to swing by Walgreens with Ava. I only needed one thing and it was urgent. Even though it was raining I dragged Ava into the store with me. Ava rode in the big basket part of the shopping cart. So there she sat, in her throne, while I wheeled us over to grab my item and quickly stood in line to pay.

Luckily there was one little old lady in front of us. "Should be quick," I thought. But it wasn't. The cashier needed to locate the price on this lady's purchase and blah blah blah. So the old lady's attention quickly turned to Ava. They talked all about Ava's dress, Ava's purse, Ava's lip gloss (which she is constantly applying). Then the conversation between the old lady and Ava evolved into what a good helper she was to her momma while shopping. Ava proudly held up my one item in the basket for the old lady to behold.

"Oh!", the lady said, and quickly looked up at me with bugged out eyes.
"You think another one?!" - she asked me.

Yes, my one item was a pregnancy test. "Uh, well, I guess that's what we will soon find out," I replied with a forced grin. I didn't like my business discussed. I mean my husband didn't even know yet.

So there you have it. It was positive, another one is coming this spring!

A week ago I asked Eden, my four year old, if she thought we were having a boy baby or a girl baby. Eden's reply was, "You have two babies inside you, Mom. Two boy babies." She said it so matter of fact, it caught me off guard. Luckily, no one in my family has had twins, so I laughed at such an idea.

Today I had my first ultrasound appointment. I told the tech what my four year old had said, and to please make sure there is only one heart beat.

This is what she found:

TECH: "Here are your two babies"
ME: "Whaaaaaaat?"
TECH: "Your two babies, your twins."
ME: "You are kidding, what are you talking about?!?!" (at this point I'm shaking)
TECH: "I thought you were kidding with me, saying your four year old said your having twins. I thought you might have already had an ultrasound and knew!"

She then had to ask me to try and hold still, so she could get the heart beats.

She really did find two! I really am having TWINS! ...and I haven't been the same since.

A Fun Few Days

2009-09-29T10:20:00.003-06:00

Over the weekend, Boyfriend's brother came for a visit. Jonathan had business in New York, so it was nice of him to stop into Memphis on his way home! All he wanted to do was eat BBQ. Boyfriend wasn't complaining either! That's what they did... all meals, every meal... BBQ! I think they got their fill.
Then yesterday was my 32nd birthday! Thanks for all the Happy Birthdays! I didn't feel like cake or baking. So I just stopped into the store bakery with the girls and let them pick out the birthday treats. Cupcakes and Pink Cookies. My sister sent me that great flower bouquet that looks like the cake! That was perfect for blowing out my candles. I did get a very unexpected surprise from Boyfriend...
...an iPod Touch! The new residents that came in this year were GIVEN one of these! So Boyfriend said he was able to work out a pretty good "deal". He has been hiding it in his car for a couple months now! He is so tricky. I can't believe he gave it to me and not himself! Maybe my best present is getting him for my husband! I love him! ...and my rugrat girls!

It Was Hard For Him to Swallow

2009-09-20T20:20:00.005-06:00

Boyfriend will never live this down!

We started Netflix. I love this service. A few days ago I checked the mail and found that the movie I ordered had arrived... TWILIGHT.

Boyfriend whined and complained about the movie we received. He was hoping for the one he ordered...

...the 1929 silent movie, Nosferatu!

If he was in the mood for vampires, then he better sit down and watch Twilight with me!

"No way! I swore I'd never watch that stupid movie! I won't watch it!" - He said, while kicking and pouting.

None the less, I MADE him watch it. He did make fun of a lot of things, but I didn't mind. They were all the scenes I made fun of too. You have to admit, the movie was pretty cheesy in parts. But I have to tell you he ended up needing control of the remote, so he could pause any time I started talking or commenting. He would even rewind it if I interrupted too much! Boyfriend had to swallow all his pride because I really rubbed the whole thing in!

The best part was the next day when I was sealing the envelope to send the movie back, Boyfriend stopped me, "Wait," he said, "I kind of wanted to watch it again. There was a cool guitar part I want to listen to."

He even suggested that when the next movie comes out in November, instead of me going with all the other girls for a "girls night out", I go with him!

WHAT?!?!?!?!

Grandparents

2009-08-31T18:51:00.002-06:00

My parents came for a quick visit. It was therapy for me.

Everyday, Grandma had a little gift for the girls to open. The first day of their arrival, it was make-up!

They loved it, and still love it!

We enjoyed antique shops, BBQ, good friends, and each other.

We also went to the River Walk, which is a replica of the Mississippi River. Every 30 feet represents a mile.

Grandma is helping Ava cross the river. The park keeps the water level consistent with the real river's water level. You can see that it's pretty low.

Then we saw this fox enjoying a quiet view of the river.

Date

2009-08-29T21:00:00.003-06:00

Boyfriend took us out to dinner. The girls were so excited to be going "on a date"!

Okay, so I didn't even know or intend to make this face... but Ava, must have learned her photogenic-ness from her momma.

Oh, and I cut my hair... OFF.

A Two Year Old Joke

2009-08-19T23:39:00.005-06:00

My new favorite picture.

Tonight while putting the girls to bed, I was helping Ava say her prayers. Once we were done, Ava informed me she wanted to say a prayer for her blanket. I thought that was sweet. I know how much she adores her blanket. She asked for my help...

Me: "Dear Heavenly Father"
Ava: "Dear Henly Fawder"
Me: "Please bless my blanket"
Ava: "Pleeze bless blankie"
Me: "In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen"
Ava: "Amen"

Me: "Alright Ava, now hop into bed"
Ava: "No No! I bless my milk"

Ava's next favorite comfort besides her blanket is warm milk. So we bless her milk.

Me: "Goodnight"
Ava: "Wait! Mom, I bless door."

Bless the door? She does get nervous at times when the door has to be shut - her punishment for constantly getting out of bed. I figure it doesn't hurt to appease her.

Me: "Dear Heavenly Father"
Ava: "Dear Henly Fawder"
Me: "Please bless the door"
Ava (jumps up, bright eyed, hands in a 'ta-da' stance): "KNOCK KNOCK!"

Eden and I, along with Ava, bust out laughing. That little turkey!

Beauty as the Beast

2009-08-17T20:58:00.002-06:00

This is actually more clothing than that little monster ever wears around the house. I mean we're talkin' nothin' but the cutie patooties!

They're cute.

And then it ends like this. Typical!

Fruity Fingers

2009-08-15T22:27:00.002-06:00

Watermelon and banana fingernails are all the rage at the Waite Household.
P.S. Don't worry... I'm at peace with my pudgy sausage fingers.

Aquarium Date

2009-08-13T19:39:00.008-06:00

While looking through pictures from this summer, I found some I hadn't seen.

During our trip to Georgia, Boyfriend took Miss Rockstar on a date. They went to the aquarium. Here are some of the gems I found from their grand day...

...notice the shark up there in the corner.

... baby beluga.

...an alligator checking out this curious little girl.

...an alligator stopping to smile for the camera. He seems to enjoy his job.

...an enormous Grouper eyeballing my little chickadee.

"Uh, he just told me he's hungry, Dad."

...a Sea Dragon. Yep - a fish - not a plant. If you click on the picture, you might get a closer look at that creepy eyeball.

Here is a big orange water droplet, that might be a fish or something. I just think it's weird. His name is "Deepo" not to be confused with the similar colored fish from Disney named "Nemo". That would be a rip off. My little girlie seems to have enjoyed her exciting date with Daddo.

Jr. Scientist

2009-08-11T22:00:00.003-06:00

Eden started preschool this past Monday. She could hardly wait to get back into Miss Tiff's Preschool. Luckily, over the summer, Miss Tiff offered a two week "Summer Science & Math Camp".

Eden loved all of it! Every single day of it!!

She makes an awesome Mad Scientist - she is very serious about her work.

I Love Him!

2009-08-09T18:20:00.004-06:00

Over the weekend we celebrated the BIG TEN YEAR anniversary! We had a lovely night on the town. The rule was NO gifts, but then Aaron totally showered me with flowers and slipped me this box over dinner...

A jewelry box?!!!!!! I was very surprised.

Ah, the most lovely piece of accessory! Just the right color and JUST what I WANTED! Thanks boyfriend!

Past Posts:
Honeymoon
The Prophecy
A Romantic Gesture (Life is Beautiful)

Ripe

2009-08-06T16:28:00.002-06:00

We FINALLY get to enjoy the heirloom tomatoes we planted! It seemed like an eternity for them to ripen. They are delicious!

He's Old Now!

2009-08-03T21:05:00.004-06:00

Happy Birthday to You

Happy Birthday Dear Daddo/Boyfriend

Happy Birthday to you!

He's the COOLEST guy in the universe, and he's all ours! We celebrated yesterday with a fish dinner and cheesecake and the family. Then today (the real birthday) we went for a night of sushi and friends. Boyfriend also brought "eyeball cookies" to work.

These are hilarious, and no I did NOT make them. The Busy Bakery did.

Tile Project

2009-08-02T21:06:00.002-06:00

This is what our weekend consisted of... ripping up the CARPET in the front bathroom and the old stained tile.

Gross!

Who puts carpet in a bathroom? Well, we don't.

Boyfriend found some tile on a great sale, we couldn't pass it up.

The tile is glued down, but we still need to grout, seal, and put up new baseboards, paint. Oh yeah, and replace the toilet that is occupying the tub. Right now we are all enjoying the opportunity to share our master bath!

Dorothy's Calling

2009-07-30T18:02:00.004-06:00

I was sitting on the living room floor, playing with the girls, when I stopped to listen. I heard something. I knew what it was but I went to the back door to and opened it. I needed a better listen. The rain was coming down and the wind was picking up. It was what I thought... I heard the tornado sirens! The girls sensed my alertness and they became anxious.

EDEN: "What is it Mom?"
ME: "Listen Eden, do you hear that sound?"
EDEN: "Yeah. I think it's an Angle's cell phone ringing."

I informed her she was probably right. I then turned on the local news channel. It was fuzzy but the reporter was telling me of tornado warnings. "The tornado will be passing through Bartlett at 4:40pm". Then the cable went out. Oh.

Bartlett is where I live and it's 4:35pm! I gathered the girls up and proceeded with our game at the safest spot in the house during a tornado... the bathtub. I acted like it was a great new game, but the whole time I had one eye on the window. The lights flickered, the rain poured and the wind raced. It was loud. Then it was done.

All is well with us. No damage here. The tornado did do some damage only 5 miles down the street... at the very location I spent the whole beginning of the day. Phew!

Our Family Farm

2009-07-28T12:47:00.002-06:00

This is a formal invitation for any one to come visit us out here on the farm.

We have our very own fishin' hole.

The girls are expert fishermen, they can show you the ropes.

Here you can see our farm equipment and animal. It's a lot of work wheeling around that cow.

Even our animals are treated like royalty. Don't you want the royal treatment?

To the Market We Went

2009-07-25T19:27:00.006-06:00

We spent some time at our farmer's market.

Eden got to pick out a geode and then watch as it was split open. Super cool.
P.S. Band-aids are the new fashion accessory.
Besides all the fantastic produce, we love to pick up comb honey!
This hasn't even lasted us a day! We cut of chunks and chew it like gum, then spit out the wax. (did anyone just say "eeewwww" outloud?)
The comb is pretty amazing, I think. And I may or may not be researching the hobby of beekeeping...
I also love to pick out fresh flowers to bring home.
I made those canvases a few months ago. I got the idea from a blog of a blog of a blog. It's fabric stapled over canvas, then "gessoped" (Is that a word?). Next I traced an outline of the picture and painted around it. It's pretty folk-artsy and it REALLY WORRIES me that I LIKE that!!!

A Typical Friday Morning

2009-07-24T07:01:00.002-06:00

Sisters Praying

2009-07-20T09:59:00.001-06:00

Eden loves to help Ava with her night time prayers. She tells her what to say and the younger sister dutifully repeats the words. Boyfriend caught this on audio one evening. It's pretty cute. You can really tell what's important and on a young 4 year old's mind...

... I'm happy to say that their heads were not hurt in the night by beds falling over & their pillows stayed plenty warm by their sheets!

A Grape & A Face

2009-07-14T18:00:00.001-06:00

Ava Demonstrating her art of eating a frozen grape. She calls this "frozen candy".

"Hello, my name is Ava, or otherwise known as the Spaz. I like frozen grapes during the hot summer time. My daddo likes to take pictures of me, so here you get pictures of me - eating frozen grapes. enjoy."

"First, I must pick out the very best one of the bunch. I think this one will be good."

"Then I pop it in."

"I think it's best to swirl it around your cheeks. It's pretty frozen, you know."

"Then when it's just soft enough... I chomp."

"DELICIOUS"

"What? Can't you here me? Does this look happy enough, Dad? I Like to Eat Frozen Grapes (and blueberries)!!!"

Strawberry Fields

2009-07-13T15:11:00.008-06:00

"That's one gigantic strawberry field Dad. Let's go get 'em!"

When my sister's (all but one) came into town for our Annual Sister-Get-Together, Boyfriend took the girls out with another wifeless dad. He took them to pick strawberries.

Hard at work and just beginning.

She made sure to search for the juicy ones.

And she became quite good at it.

"Yes, this one will do nicely."

"Dad, seriously though. Am I gonna do all the work? You just gonna stand there takin' pictures?"

"What do ya think? Half full or half empty?"

"I'm more of a half full type of girl."

Happy 4th Of July!

2009-07-05T21:09:00.009-06:00

This holiday really is my favorite. For me, there is just something about the patriotism and the good feelings of spending time with family, celebrating our roots! This year we spent the holiday in Peachtree City, Georgia, visiting with great friends.

Early that morning we sat waiting for the parade to start.

This was the BEST part of the parade. I was suddenly overwhelmed with pride, respect and gratitude for EVERYTHING that was ever given to allow me my freedoms.

I love this! So cute! These are a couple of our friends we spent the weekend with.
Mr. "Flag in the Hat", was our host for the weekend and also our constant comic relief of the morning. The parade was great, but it's always more fun with a professional hackler around to tease all those in the parade! He made sure we were all noticed and tossed our fair share of candy!

Love this girl!

The parade brigade gave out BomPops!

BomPops! Awesome!

It was a perfect start of a great day.

Later, we reunited with a long lost friend and took off to picnic and watch fireworks.

We spent the time frisbeeing...

chatting...

sparklering...

(this picture is of four girls who all grew up together sharing a great childhood friendship in Las Vegas - but now reuniting in Georgia! Crazy!)
reconnecting with a long lost friend from childhood...

...and remembering the joy & blessings I have because I was born in a free country and all the good things, just that alone, has given me.

A Long Time Ago...

2009-06-28T20:09:00.005-06:00

Back in May... Boyfriend and I actually went on vacation together, just the two of us!

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida! Boyfriend had to present some eyeball research at some eyeball conference. His trip was payed for... so I tagged along! The girls were left home with a wonderful babysitter. It was some good times.

This is the view from our hotel room. The best part of the trip might not have been all the seafood we ate, but the thread count on the sheets we slept on. I have never felt such luxury!

My scientific boyfriend made sure to bring his own project from home. Here he is collecting data from the ocean.

Now analyzing the data collected.
The verdict... his thingamajigs that tell him if his salt water fish tank measures accurately to the salinity of real ocean salt water was measuring waaaaay off. I'm so glad we came all the way to the Atlantic Ocean to solve that mystery. I'm all ready sleeping better.

One day we ditched the eyeball conference and drove down to Key Largo for some snorkeling. I was very happy and pretty excited.

Captain Bob of the catamaran.

On the boat heading out to the ocean.
I had just finished teasing boyfriend about how he always wants to go snorkeling and boating... but he always ends up getting sea sick. I never get sick. I think I should have been born a sailor. I love being on the water, in a boat. I never get to do it enough though! You know the carnival rides that just spin you around and around and around and around. I LOVE them. Maybe I really should have pursued my childhood dream of being an astronaut.

All geared up and ready to see some sea life! We are very cool people.
We saw all the usual stuff like angle fish, puffer fish, parrot fish, trumpet fish, barracudas. And to top it off, boyfriend can die happy now because he spotted his favorite fish... the gorgeous Queen Angle Fish.

And then this was me the whole boat ride back inland! SICK. I totally had to eat my words... or maybe throw them over board. Everyone else on the trip got to see it too. In the middle of the worst of it (while my head was hanging over the side, and my hands clenching the ropes)... boyfriend smurkingly asked if I wanted him to take a picture because he felt fine right then, and I might want to remember the moment. Then the man behind him told him to be nice... he he he he he he he he.

The girls were happy with the sea shells we brought home for them. Eden calls them "treasures" and Ava says in a quiet voice with eyebrows raised, "very special".

Felt Like They Were Crawling All Over Me!

2009-06-26T19:43:00.003-06:00

After our 2 week Vegas trip, Boyfriend and I couldn't wait to get our hands dirty again in the backyard. Some plants were doing very well, others were not... like the broccoli!

We had six broccoli plants. This was the largest head growing. It's not looking so good, eh.

Probably because a whole bunch of these took residence on each and every one of the leaves. (if we could even call them leaves... more like green lace) It was so sad looking.

This leaf is actually very mild with the number of worms feeding from it. There were a bazillion of them. We picked each one off and threw them in a bucket. Then they would inch all the way up the sides. Boyfriend thunk smart and just started to squish them on the leaf instead of fumbling to pick each one off. We made an honest attempt to save the broccoli but now a week later, and daily pickings of the worms - I'm sorry to say the broccoli did not survive.

Oh well.

Right at dusk when boyfriend is home from work and the girls are attempting to sleep, we like to go out in the backyard. Fireflies! A ton of them! They are so cool.

So if you were to ask me what I was doing the other night. I could have told you I was outside, all by my lonesome, catching fireflies. It was strange doing that, but also kind of fun.

I tried to take a picture of the jar full. It didn't work so much. They weren 't cooperating. I had ten in the jar. Once caught, they wouldn't light up AND they all "loved" Miss Fertile Myrtle in the bottom corner there.

Any tips on how to photograph fireflies?

And then another surprise from the previous owner!

Say Say Oh Playmate

2009-06-25T15:00:00.000-06:00

Getting reacquainted with their cousins was one of the highlights during the Vegas trip for the girls.

They had daily popsicle parties at Grandma Waite's house.

Made up all sorts of games at Grandma Gail's house.
(This is now Ava's preferred attire for the summer months)

Took strolls around Grandma Waite's backyard.

Hung out on the trampoline with Grandma Waite herself.

Enjoyed long bedtime stories and relaxing tickles from Aunt Jen on Grandma Gail's couch.

Chill out time picnic style with the big screen, snacks and juice.

(cousin Jackson)

Eden ADORED her baby cousins.

(cousin Ari)
She loved being the "momma" to the babes making sure everything was just right.

The girls had playmates around every corner and these pictures don't even show all the cousins! There about four other families with cousins we enjoyed while in town, but without pictures to prove it, I guess no one will ever believe me.

Father's Day

2009-06-23T13:51:00.008-06:00

Surprise! These pretties were growing in our yard. Thanks to the previous owner... boyfriend enjoyed flowers for Father's Day

I HAD to try out some of our red potatoes I planted this year. We doubted if we would be able to tell a difference between store bought and home grown when it came to potatoes... we could tell a difference! These were delicious!

Also, our first carrots! We roasted these, the potatoes, and four itty bitty beets from the garden. So yummy!!!

But Eden informed us she prefers them fresh and crispy.

During our visit to Vegas, Eden and I went with our cousins to the pottery shop. We picked out gifts to paint for our Daddos.

Eden was in her element here amongst all the paintbrushes, paints, and creativity going on.

The Gunnerson sisters painted a mug together for their daddo.

Miss Stella worked diligently on her gift.

Lucas wasn't fooling anyone, he really did have a good time.

I was instructed exactly what colors to use and where to place them.

We had to leave it at the store to be fired, but it arrived to us here in TN shiny and bright. Daddo loved his beautiful butterfly!

ART

2009-06-08T16:16:00.000-06:00

By: Hailey Simmons (niece)

Medium: chalk and little sister's newly cut hair

Vacationing

2009-06-07T15:57:00.004-06:00

We are in Vegas! Mom and Dad are home from the Philippines after serving a two year mission. We are enjoying family... lots of family! Boyfriend's family is here in Vegas too! We already have enjoyed a niece's baptism plus a niece's and nephew's baby blessing, seeing an old friend, and fantastic dinners! Good stuff and more to enjoy. Love this!

Wherd-she-go?

2009-05-23T20:31:00.004-06:00

Oh this girl! It was unbelievable the craziness she cooked up last Wednesday morning.
I was having a Primary presidency meeting at my house. There were three other mothers sitting, with me, around the kitchen table. Eden, Ava, and another cute 3 year old were running about playing. They went outside to play. We could all see them from the windows. After a while I went out to bring them a popsicle...

...and that's when I couldn't find Ava...

For the next 30 minutes, I along with the other 3 women at my house, searched and called for this two year old. I looked in every room, every corner, under every bed, in every closest, bathtub, shower. We ran around outside, knocked on neighbors' doors, some drove around the neighborhood. Nothing. I was panicked and terrified and confused how this could happen.

The police were called. I was in the process of calling my husband (but couldn't mental think how to do so) when one women went into my garage. It was dark. All the lights were out. She opened the car door. And there was Ava. Sitting in her sister's car seat, just a happy camper. She didn't even look scared, worried, or like she had been crying!

Neighbors were notified and profusely thanked. The five police cars that arrived were also thanked and luckily they were all understanding. I was so grateful that if this had to happen, I had those other women at my house. I was like a chicken with her head cut off, running around not knowing what to do.

She can't open the car door by herself. I think the four year old might have left the door opened. Talk about relief! (and embarrassment) So there she was the whole time, chillin' in the car in the garage in the dark.

When I finally had her in my arms and knew she was okay, Ava looked at me and in her two year old voice said,

"Momma crying?"

"You sweaty Mom. You need shower."

Ode to Harlene

2009-05-13T13:39:00.016-06:00

I met Harlene only once before.
and from the very first intro,
she was one I could not ignore.

That was four years ago.
I did not know her well,
but through our blogging addiction
my heart for her doth swell.

Now I live across the country
from Miss Harlene and fam,
So that is why their visit
made me happy as a clam.

They went to see their eldest
graduate from training camp.
Dude, that kid is brave -
a real American Champ.

They squished up in their car
headed for Southern Carolina,
but by the time their trip was over
you would've thought they drove to China.

In the car with three chillins'
for 10 plus days
could make one go crazy
or at least grow some grays.

Kids were entertained
by the songs they composes-
of singing in rounds
the classic Guns & Roses.

On day eight,
it started getting dark
so to the Waite's house
their car they could park.

The visit was short.
They left early in the morning.

It wasn't enough time-
their family, we were enjoying.

But now Harlene is home.
I'm sure they had some fun.
And aren't ya'll lucky
my pathetic rhymin's done.

Oh Harlene (and family) thank you for your visit. Our life was dull and dreary, but you (and family) reminded us of the joys to be taken.

Thank you for the gifts you gave.

Thank you for the hair glitter, which we thought at first was body glitter and works just as well for that too.

Thank you (well actually thank your kids) for showing my girls how to let the wind blow through their hair even inside the house.

Thank you for showing them how to play the game of "SUPERMAN" as they jump from the couch onto the bouncy blow up mattress.

We learned that when you are having this much fun, even a bump or two just doesn't seem to hurt as bad.

We are smiling again. We wish you could have stayed longer. We hope you made it home safely. And we hope to see you (and family) again someday soon!

Love to My Moms

2009-05-10T19:47:00.004-06:00

Happy Mother's Day to my mom. I love you Mom and miss you! Can't wait to see you in less than a month!!!

Happy Mother's Day to my mother-in-law. She has always made me feel just as loved as her very own children. And thanks for being the perfect mom for the perfect husband that I have! Love you and can't wait to see you in less than a month!!!

I Ran & Ran & Ran & Ran

2009-04-27T20:43:00.004-06:00

I accomplished one of my biggest goals this past weekend...
Ran 13.1 miles! I did it!!! I ran in the Nashville Music City Marathon!
My girlfriends and I made a weekend out of it. It was so fun enjoying some alone time with these other mommas! I can't believe we all survived... well barely.

Here we are on the shuttle to the starting line - taken with my camera phone:
Me, Hallie, Pam, & Marlena

All smiles before the race. Yes, I do wear that visor, yes I do look like a dork, and yes I own another in white!

So we heard this course was hilly, but I underestimated what that really meant! I learned that hilly means pretty much ALL up hill, or at least the first 8 miles of it. Those hills wouldn't have been so brutal if it hadn't been for the unseasonable heat!!! The temps were 20 degrees higher then the average estimated. Talk about heat exhaustion. People seemed to be dropping every few miles, but maybe that's what all marathons look like... I wouldn't know this was my first - but not my last!

A highlight for me was how proud and excited Eden was to see my medal (everyone gets one for running). Today at the store Eden informed the cashier...
"My mom ran a race lasterday! She won and got a medal!"
I proudly nodded and said, "she's right!"

Memphis Magic

2009-04-22T13:17:00.002-06:00

Happy Earth Day Ya'll.

Both the girls are napping - doesn't happen often! So I'm sitting here at my kitchen table with the windows wide open. The birds are singing and there is the quiet sound of April showers sprinkling the flowers. About 5 squirrels (not chipmunks) are darting around with pecan nuts in their mouths looking for sneaky hiding spots. Those spots are usually in each of the garden beds and alongside every newly planted flower.

Oh, wait a minute - some action just took place. Birds have been nesting in all of our trees and one of those squirrels apparently got way too close to a momma birds' nest and she pecked him all the way as he scurried across the top of the fence. She told him.

Yeah, so ummm, anyways. I also can smell the most delicious roses I've ever smelled! No kidding. They are sitting on my kitchen table. Boyfriend brought them home from work. One of the patients at the V.A. hospital brought a whole basket full of thick long stemmed roses which he has been growing for years.I had no idea roses actually could smell this amazing!

There is one rose in particular - although it doesn't match the others in smell it makes up for it in looks...

"Memphis Magic" is what the Ol' Man named his one of a kind rose:
Boyfriend asked the story behind it... One day one of his rose bushes mutated one single rose with this very dark color and stripe. So he cut off that stem and rooted it - starting it's very own bush, and this is it's produce. He says it's only here in Memphis, thus naming it "Memphis Magic".

Another Hair Slimage

2009-04-20T20:58:00.004-06:00

This face is saying, "Yeah, I did it. Now fix it!"

It's Boyfriend's pomade. This stuff usually takes a couple washes to fully come out... especially when used in quantities such as this! Well, at least it wasn't as bad to remove as the Vaseline from last year! (I had to use Peanut Butter for that one). This time it only took two washes with good ol' shampoo.