Little People Overload

I am officially drowning in my son's Fisher Price Little People! I thought for sure I could get these sorted and priced while the babies take their morning naps. Yea, right! I now have millions (no exageration here) of Little People toys scattered all over my basement and my hair is sticking up all over the place from pulling it out in frustration.

But, on a happy note. I've got one very happy little baby (Chloe) who has free reign of the downstairs playroom. She's in Little People heaven. Yes, I'm saving a few sets for the babies to play with here. (Clears throat - um - and you know, just in case Ryan feels a bit nostalgic and wants to play with them, too.)

I'll admit, it was an addiction for a few years.

That's right. You guessed it - there are tubs and tubs and tubs and drawers more of it!

Will someone please save me?

3 WEEKS!!!!

3 weeks from today I'm going to be screaming my head off on awesome rides and soaking up the sun's rays at this pool! It's calling my name - I can hear it. Really.

Go Diego Go!

Last night, Bret and Ryan went with a friend and his son to see Go Diego Go down at the Civic Center. They all had a great time and Ryan was totally wiped out when he got home. I got to stay behind and start getting my stuff together for this weekend's neighborhood garage sale over at my sister in law's house. Yes, we have to start setting up on Thursday and I'm just beginning to get my stuff together on Tuesday. Makes sense, right?

Ashley's New School Picture

Ashley got her new school pictures back today. Aren't they cute? Not sure what happened to Ryan's.

Update: You'll get your pictures whenever I get them printed. (All I ordered was the disc.)

This Can't Be Good!

This can't be a good thing. All of these red spots on this map of Florida? Wildfires! And the air quality right now in Orlando? Very smoky and hazy. Ugh! Pray for rain!!!

The Payoff

There are days when the babies have gone home and my own kids are in bed and the house is quiet for the night and I look forward to enjoying some quiet time by myself or just sitting on the couch watching something from on the DVR with my husband (who patiently pauses whatever we're watching everytime I think of something I want to tell him).

Then there are days like yesterday afternoon when one of the babies snuggle with me on the couch for a half an hour all sweet and content. Or there's this morning when the other baby lays her head on my chest as I rock her for a minute as she falls asleep in my arms and I contemplate whether I should lay her down or hold her for a few more minutes, inhaling her sweet baby smell.

There are also times when my daughter will give me a hug for no other reason than just being glad to see me or sad to see me go even if it's just to go out with the girls from the neighborhood for a couple of hours. Or when my son will tell me I'm the best mom in the world and actually give up one of his rare hugs and kisses because I've done something that has made him truely happy.

These times are so rare that you just never want to let go of that euphoric feeling that it leaves you with. It's times like those that give you the biggest payoff possible - the payoff of knowing that you're doing something right and are truely loved and appreciated.

Too Loud

I am so ready for my kids to go to bed. So very ready. It has been such a long day. Too long of a day to form any kind of sentence that makes sense. Do you think it would have been too much to ask that a volume control have been included when they were born?

Creepiness Factor

Just when I thought I had the world figured out, I'm now questioning what's really out there. Tonight after Ashley's volleyball tournament, we (Ash, my mom and myself) headed over to Applebee's for dinner and the creepiness factor was off the charts. While waiting for our food to be served, a man was seated by himself at the table across from us. We didn't think anything of it until he started talking to himself. At first we thought maybe he was talking into a blue tooth phone through the ear that was facing away from us, but once he turned his head we uneasily threw that explanation right out the window when we saw nothing there.

Soon, his "conversations" went from short "Yes.", "I know." and "That's right." phrases as if he were answering someone, straight to alarming things like, "God will save us.", "Only he knows what really happened to you.", "Satan will come." and then a lot of unintelligible words strung together.

Creepy, right? While this was going on, we exchanged uneasy glances with those dining around us. Everyone was hearing all of this. All of the waitresses and waiters were huddled around down at the end of the aisle whispering and stealing glances at this man. No one knew what to think. Was he just plain loosing it and talking to himself? Did he think someone was there with him? Was someone or something really there with him? What? I really want to know - I think.

When we were done eating, we figured it was best to just leave before it got even more creepier - if that were even possible. Ashley was with us and I didn't really want her to witness anything that might keep her up with nightmares tonight - or worse - get her started asking questions that I didn't have the answers to, so we quickly paid our bill and left. It's just that with all of the recent nightmare headlines in the news lately, how can you really be sure someone like that isn't dangerous or unstable? So we left. Probably nothing else happened after that, but still it was creepy all the same.

It's A Boy! Maybe.

So, I might have the opportunity to add a newborn baby boy to my daytime bunch next October. I'm seriously considering it. Am I crazy? One of Ashley's teachers is due in August and is looking for a sitter. You can't beat a teacher's schedule. But three kids under the age of 1? Hmmm...got to think about this.

$3.19

Are you kidding me? It cost me $70 to fill up today!

This one has it right.

Let Me Out!

Nine months old and already begging to go outside and play.

36 Days To Go And One Nifty Homemade Countdown Calendar!

Because it's not me who's excited or anything...

She's Back...

Ashley's back with all of her stories about White Pines, including one about a girl from a different troop that got bucked off of her horse yesterday after screaming at a rabbit that jumped out of the woods on their trail ride. I am so glad she's back in one piece.

Best Buds

It has definately been a busy day today with the boys. Ryan has been loving being the "big brother" for a change and Mitchell has said over and over again today that Ryan is his buddy. I think he's really loving the fact that he's got Ryan all to himself. They're gotten along extremely well today and have both been so well behaved.

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After lunch, Bret and I took the boys to the park down the street.

We really wore Mitchell out on our walk through the woods surrounding the park area. He was walking pretty slow by the time we were back in sight of the parking lot.

It's been Ryan's mission to turn Mitchell into a fellow Jedi. Must also be Bret's intention since he went out and bought Mitchell his own light sabre while he was napping.

After dinner we took a walk around the neighborhood and found that our neightbors were having a bon fire in their backyard. It seems there were backyard parties everywhere throughout the neighborhood tonight - a definate sign that the weather has gotten nice again. The boys had a blast having light sabre fights in the dark and sitting around the camp fire. The funny thing is that Mitchell is with us because his parents and sister went camping for the weekend, and here we are kind of doing the same thing.



Ashley comes home tomorrow afternoon and can you believe that she hasn't called home once yet? It must be a sign that she's having a blast and hasn't missed us. I can't wait to hear all about her trip. I'll have to post some of the pictures from her disposable camera after I get them developed.
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Tomorrow we're going to take the boys to the zoo. If they're as good as they were today we won't have to leave them behind with the monkeys.

Not Sure What I'm In For

Ashley is off and on her way to her horseback riding trip and Ryan will soon be over at Grandma & Grandpa's house. Bret and I are going to see The Bob & Tom Show down at the Civic Center with some friends and I'm not really sure what to expect. I've heard some of their stuff when Bret's alarm clock goes off in the morning, but still couldn't tell you anything about it. I have been warned that I will probably pee my pants from laughing so hard, so we'll see. It should be a good time, especially since we're meeting for drinks before hand.

Weekend Preview

The big weekend is finally here. Ashley leaves tonight for her weekend horse back riding trip with her Girl Scout troop. She's excited, but her mother is a nervous wreck. I've packed her bag this morning and I think it's heavier than she is - and all that's in there is everything on her packing list. And maybe (shhh) my forbidden cell phone tucked away discreetly in her bag in case she wants to call us at bedtime. (Shhh, don't tell.) This will be her first trip away from home without us. Sure, she's been to day camp and overnights before, but this is 2 1/2 hours away for three days! And we're not even going to talk about the vacation curse, so don't even think about it!

So, out with one kid and in with a new one. In Ashley's place, Mitchell will be staying with us over the weekend while his family goes camping in Iowa. Bret and Ryan are saying that they're going to turn him into a Star Wars buff so that we can have two little Jedi's in the family...lol. If Mitchell's mommy and daddy are reading this: This is your last chance to change your mind...lol.

Things That Have Kept Me From Blogging

• My first ear infection that I can remember. I now know why babies scream when they have one.
• Ryan's injured toe being stepped on by a classmate at school. Thankfully, he's fine.
• A sick baby. I have to admit it's nice when they cling to you and want to be cuddled, even if that means nothing else gets done.
• My calendar. It seems there's more than one thing on it each day.
• Did I mention my ear infection? Ouch.

The Bravest Little Boy Ever

What a day it's been! Bret and I had to go separate ways with a kid each this morning. I took Ashley to volleyball while he took Ryan to swim lessons. When entering the locker room this morning, the door slammed into Ryan's big toe, causing the nail to fall most of the way off and blood to come pouring out from his toe. I met Bret at the emergency room where Ryan made us so proud, being such a brave kid. They had to numb his toe, which made him scream loud enough for most of the hospital to hear, so they could clean it and drill a hole through it, in hopes of saving the nail.

Now, don't judge me for taking pictures in an emergency room, but I happened to already have the camera in my purse from having been at volleyball, so I thought, why not?

Ryan got his own personal TV, which helped him take his mind off of the pain. The staff in the ER were so great to him. They explained everything in advance directly to him to ease his fear. The doctor was amazing with him - just the kind of person you want helping your child in the event of an emergency. In fact, I think she was the same ER doctor that treated Ryan when he was a baby and cut his finger on a formula can.

Bret got to play with the TV, too.

Over in the xray department we learned that his toe was not broken. Thank God for some things!

Guess what came in the mail today with perfect timing? His new GameBoy and Star Wars games. Could that not have worked out any better? He was so excited about it that he hasn't once complained about his toe.

Hopefully nothing else happens before we go to Disney in June - remember that vacation curse? Poor kid was sick last week with another throat infection and now this. Looks like he's going to be getting his tonsils out this summer, too. Does it ever end?

Update: Ryan says he's going to punch that locker room door the next time he goes to swim lessons. Take that, you terrible door!

Do You Dare To Outbid Me?

I never thought my kids would need or be interested in video games. Boy, was I wrong. This year Ashley discovered the iPod and the Nintendo DS, which means Ryan has now discovered it, too - and wants his own. Sigh.

We've been looking into the whole handheld video game thing for Ryan and have decided on the Gameboy Advance since it's a bit more simple than the DS. He did pretty well with it when we had borrowed Skyler's.

So, today I found an awesome deal on Ebay. It was for the cobalt blue Gameboy Advance, carrying case, home and car chargers and 4 games for what you would pay for 2 brand new games. I probably would have kept on looking, except that two of the games were Star Wars I and Star Wars II. Duh! (We all know how addicted Bret and Ryan have been to the Star Wars games on the PlayStation downstairs.) I spent 4 hours keeping tabs on the bidding until it ended late this afternoon. I watched and then swooped it up in the last minute of bidding out from under everyone's noses.

Oh, you didn't think we were going to wait for his birthday in August, did you? Nope, we're going to give it to him before we go to Disney World so that we'll have a peaceful flight there and back. Little man is going to freak out when he sees it - but not as much as he will when he sees this and this - the two things he's most excited about this Disney World vacation for.

Just Send Your Daughter Into The Pack Of Wolves, Why Don't You?

I had to buy my daughter a pair of sliding shorts and a sliding leg shield for her softball practice tonight. They're expected to slide into home plate every time they run home. Every time. They're 11 years old. Fifth graders. Shall we guess how many girls are going to be out for the first game due to injuries after tonight? I'm just a wee bit nervous.

Bump, Set, Spike!

A few pictures from Ashley's Volleyball Tournament today. They kicked butt.

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Ashley waits for the serve.

A quick smile while she waits to be rotated back into the game.

Ashley's turn to serve.

A view of the whole game. (Ashley is circled in yellow. Click on picture to enlarge.)

She really wanted that one.

Probably Not What He Had In Mind

Today was the last official day of Spring Break for the kids. I wish I could say it was as much fun as last year, but in all reality it was kind of a disappointment. Last year we spent the whole week outside from sunup to sundown, enjoying warm and sunny days. This year it rained. It snowed. It was cold and we were pretty much stuck inside all week, getting over not so much fun colds. The kids are getting stir crazy and we all need to get out of the house, hence meaning that it's time to go back to school. The days have felt really long and it always seems like it should be bedtime when it's only 7pm.

It's never hard to get Ryan to go to bed at night because when he's tired, he'll let you know that he's ready. He has this ritual at night, though, and can't go to sleep without it. Usually it's Bret that goes through the motions with him while I'm picking up the house or falling into bed myself. However, tonight Bret is out with his friends seeing some comedian downtown at the Civic Center and it's me who put the kids to bed.

After spending quite some time listening to Ryan tell me all of his thoughts and answering all of the questions that were rolling around in his head, he told me I had to lay with him for 5 minutes before I could leave. The only problem is that he tells you minute by minute just how many minutes are left - and his minutes are pretty long. The last one I remembered hearing is two. By zero he had to wake me up and tell me to leave. No wonder Bret seems to stay in there forever. He's probably out cold, too.

The Girl's Got The Moves!

You can't argue with talent. Especially her little "shaking of the head no" move.

Top Four Reasons Why My Husband Is Not In Charge Of Decorating Our Home

Over the past couple of days, Chloe has almost mastered the whole crawling thing. Out of fear and knowledge of what could happen, my husband and I moved Ryan's Lego table into Ryan's bedroom. Moving this table will also make room for Bret's Grandma's China Cabinet (or whatever the proper term for it is) that I've managed to talk Bret into getting.

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Luckily for Chloe and Cecelia, they're cute so they'll be forgiven for whatever they get into.

Taking advantage of the temporarily free wall space, Bret tried his hand at decorating. He says he wanted more space in the livingroom.

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So, let me give you:

The Top Four Reasons Why My Husband Is Not Allowed To Decorate Our Home:

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Reason #1:

Reason #2:

Reason #3:

Reason #4:

Yes, I know. You never thought you'd see my house filled with baby toys again, but where did my hallway go?

Am I wrong to change it back and break his heart? LoL

Anyone Else Need A Travel Agent?

While signing us and Teri's family up for the Magic Express transportation and luggage service for our upcoming trip to Disney World in June, I came across a huge mistake. Some how I accidentally booked them on a flight leaving Bloomington at 6am in the morning, instead of the 11:27am flight that I had booked for our family. Oops. I swear that's not the flight I selected when I booked their trip for them, but that's what it says they've got now.

Turns out they prefer their earlier time (at least that's what they're telling me...ha ha) since they are now arriving in Orlando at 10:55am instead of 4:26pm like us. They'll be able to stay with a friend of theirs that lives in Bloomington the night before and will now have a more full day of going to the theme parks, but will probably already be passed out by the time our flight arrives. I'm sure they're looking forward to getting up at 4am in the morning to catch their flight, too. It would definately have been more fun to fly in with them, but we'll still meet up when we get there - fully rested. Ha.

I did try to call Orbitz to change our flight to the same one as theirs (even though that would have meant that we'd have to get up at 3am to get to Bloomington in time) but they wanted to charge me all kinds of fees to do it, so I left it alone. We'll still have a great time - I just wish it would get here sooner!

Happy Easter!

After spending the entire day with Bret at Teri & Scott's watching a Star Wars Movie Marathon yesterday, the kids were exhausted when they went to bed last night. Bret and I were pretty sure that our wake up call would be pretty early this morning, but were pleasantly surprised that we actually had to wake Ryan up at 9am this morning! Poor Ashley was up by 7am and had to wait for the rest of us lugs to get out of bed. (See, Ash? It's so much fun to grow up, isn't' it?)

The kids had fun hunting down their eggs and going through their Easter baskets. Both got $10 in Disney Dollars to spend at Disney World this June along with some other Disney paraphernalia. If they do their chores they'll earn some more before we leave. Ryan got lots of activity books to help him with learning how to read in school (who said the Easter Bunny wasn't very smart?) and Ash got her Nintendo DS bundle pack so that she can keep herself more organized and not loose any of her games. Did I mention that they got loads of candy? Ugh, it's going to be a long day!

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Ryan searches for his Easter Eggs.

Ashley is smarter than the Easter Bunny thinks.

"I found two, Mom!"


Happy Easter, Everyone!

Ready For MGM

Check out the t-shirt I got for Ryan on Ebay. He's totally ready to meet his favorite Star Wars characters at Disney World now. Is this not perfect?

Update on the mixing of medicine and alcohol

This is Kelly, Cece's mommy, not Lynda. So, at about 5 pm, my husband and I decided to see if any neighbors wanted to come over to have a few adult beverages. The W********'s were out because a new Lego Star Wars video game was at their house. However, Scott called them over... all attended initally but Lynda. However, Bret called her a few hours later and Lynda, in a medicine "coma" showed up. From about 8:30 pm to 11:00 pm, Auntie Lynda, as we call her, had ONLY 3 drinks. In this time, she went from the normal, jovial Lynda to a woman who was laughing hysterically as she twirled back and forth on a bar stool! I love this lady... because she just shared a beer with me... I praised her long before this little glass of beer appeared before me though! For those who have never watched others' children... Lynda, as I am sure Chloe's mommy would agree, is an amazing woman who truly makes working moms feel blessed for the opportunity to ""have it all!" How one woman can be the matriach of a family of 4 and still find time to be the caretaker of 2 young infants is well beyond my scope of imagination. Thanks for all who read about my little treasure... and thanks to you, Lynda! You always make going to work a pleasure instead of a guilt trip!

DayQuil & Michelob - HTe Results

Not good.

Disney World Links

Here are the links for all that requested them:

Pop Century Disney Resort

This one has a virtual tour.

Resort Map. 3 Pools!!!!

I've also just read in a new guide book that I picked up that once you check your luggage at your home airport, you don't have to deal with it again. Disney delivers them right to your room. Then when you check out of your hotel, they check your bags right there and print your boarding pass, all before you even leave for the airport. Sweet!

My brother is in Tampa, FL right now visiting a friend and my aunt. He's already emailed pictures of the ocean. An ocean that I'm not going to get to see! Maybe my aunt will drive to Orlando to get me and take me to see the ocean. Sigh, like we're really going to have time for that.

Mickey Moolah

Guess what the Easter Bunny is going to stuff the kids' Easter baskets with this year? Disney Dollars. They will also have the chance to earn more by actually making their beds and getting their clothes into the hamper instead of on the floor right in front of the hamper. Then they can take their Disney dollars to Disney World with them and spend them where ever they want. (With in reason, of course. We don't need a 5 foot tall stuffed Mickey Mouse hanging around our house like a 3rd child.) It's possible that I might be just a teeny tiny bit more excited about this trip than anyone else in this family.

And, just out of curiosity, would any of you make fun of us if we all wear matching fanny packs (loaded with snacks and other can't leave behind items) around Disney World? Don't laugh, Teri! I'm buying you guys fanny packs, too! Do you think Scott would prefer pink or purple? Ha.

Unpredictable

Two days ago I was sitting outside in the sun with the kids, enjoying the mid 70 degree weather. My checks and chest were a bit red when I went inside for the day with the faint glow of an unmistakable sunburn approaching. Now, it's 40 degrees outside and snow flurries are blowing around like little annoying white flecks of nothing good to come in the next week. Will someone please bring spring back to me?

Disney Or Bust!

Well, it's all booked. It took us until 2am this morning, but it's decided. We're going to Disney World in June with Teri and her family. We'll be staying in one of the Disney resorts for 5 nights and 6 days. I think I might be the most excited out of any of us. I've never been to the state of Florida before. Never been to Disney, nor have I ever seen an ocean. I guess the ocean will have to wait, but at least I'll get to finally say that I've been to Florida. I only have one concern, though. What if a hurricane wipes out Disney World before we get there? Then what?!

Where Have You Been?!?!

I have been submerged in the endless digging of Disney World Family Vacation deals for a 5 night, 6 day vacation.

Why? Because of this awesome special event at MGM. Ryan will truly pass out from the excitement when he finds out. It will definately be a moment of awe for him when he sees the storm troopers marching down the street.

I'm not sure how our kids will do on their first airplane flight, but it will definately be an experience to remember. Teri and her family are considering going with us. Which means we'll all get a chance to go out at night without the kiddos if we're still able to function after putting full days in at the theme parks.

I'm pretty excited my self since it's only taken me 30 years to get to the state of Florida.

On a sadder note, I'm losing one of my babies. Kelly, Dan and Cecelia are moving to Ohio this summer. I've already told them that she can't go with them, but I don't think they'll go for that.

Almost, But Not Quite

Well, Bret almost had the 4-wheeler running again. After not using it much towards the end of last summer and fall because it wouldn't run in reverse or stay in 2nd gear, we ordered a replacement gear box and new tires. Bret replaced the gear box this afternoon and it worked for all of about 5 minutes. Now it won't run in 1st gear or reverse. You have got to be kidding me. Poor kid was so excited when he saw it back in the garage after being in Bret's Grandma's garage for the winter. And we know what Ryan does to the 4 wheeler when it ticks him off. Worth a pretty good laugh, though.

Sure, Go Right Ahead

So last night at 2am in the morning, Ryan comes in to our room and asks if he can go downstairs and play his Star Wars game on his Play Station. Having not a single clue what time it is and knowing that I just want to go back to sleep, I tell him yes. He says "Yipee" and turns and heads for the door as Bret thankfully wakes up and sets us both straight. After finally calming down, Ryan climbs into bed with us and I'm still not really sure if he ever went back to sleep because at 6am he's bugging us about it again. So I sent him on down. Great parenting, huh?

Complaint Free World

The 21 Day Challenge

As I'm sitting on the couch reading through People magazine (because I'm feeling too tired and lazy to put away the rest of the groceries I bought this morning) I came across this article about a church in Kansas City, MO and a movement they have started. It's called A Complaint Free World and you wear these purple bracelets (similar to the Live Strong ones). The challenge is to go 21 days without whining or complaining. Every time you whine or complain you have to switch the bracelet to the other wrist and start the 3 weeks over. I've ordered 20 of them since they are free and when they arrive, I'm going to hand them out to family and friends. I think it'll be fun to support each other and yet kind of funny catching each other breaking the rules and having to start over. What a great idea! It'll sure make us all realize just how often we complain and help us to become more aware of our thoughts and more enjoyable to be around. So check out the article and let me know if you want one.

Now if I could just find a bracelet that says "Patience With Your Kids" for the other wrist.

A Perfect Day

Finally! Some warm weather! Today was a true sign of spring being right around the corner. With almost 70 degree temperatures and the warmth of the sun, the babies and I hung out on Emily's driveway on a blanket watching all of the neighborhood kids that weren't in school play. I did feel a bit guilty since Ryan and Ashley would surely be upset that I was outside enjoying a beautiful day while they were stuck in school. (Not too guilty, though...ha.)

It's funny how you don't tend to see many of your neighbor's during the long and cold months of winter, and then all of a sudden it warms up outside and you realize that everyone's kids have grown a few inches taller and look a lot older. It was nice to sit and catch up with friends that we don't see everyday.

Spring break is quickly approaching and I'm hoping the weather will be as nice as it was during last year's break. Last year the kids and I were outside from the time we had finished eating breakfast until it was time to come in for bath time. By the end of the first day, Emily and I had sunburns - in March! We couldn't have asked for better weather.

Here's to hoping that tomorrow will be just as great as today was.

Future Astronaut

Yesterday was Ashley's field trip to the Challenger Center in Bloomington and she had a lot of fun. Bret went with as a chaperone and it seems the kids really enjoyed having him along.

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The kids got to simulate a mock space mission.

After they left the Challenger Center they headed over to the Children's Discovery Museum. Someone failed to tell Ashley that you shouldn't lay down under a cow when you're attempting to milk it.

Below would be the kids' free entertainment.

Why Can't They Stay Little?

Chloe is now 7 months old and Cecelia is now 6 months. Where has the time gone? Can they get any cuter?

Chloe hams it up for the camera.

Cecelia is always full of smiles.

Chloe: I'm getting such a headache from all of this picture taking stuff. Do you think she's about done, already?

Cecelia: Who knows. Here let me massage your headache away.

Chloe: Okay, but I get to play with your head next.

Cecelia: Um, I don't think so. I saw what you did to that teddy bear's head earlier.

We Already Knew That She Couldn't Keep A Secret

This post is dedicated to you, Mom!

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Yesterday was the big day for Ashley's family birthday party and I had come up with a sure fire way to throw her off. She was pretty sure she was going to get the iPod Nano she's been begging for and I didn't want it to be too easy for her. Bret kept trying to talk Ashley into getting a Nintendo DS but Ashley insisted that she didn't want one. A friend of hers had just gotten a Nintendo DS for her birthday, so I borrowed the box and hid the iPod inside of it, pretty sure she'd believe there was a DS inside. I told everyone ahead of time NOT to tell her to look inside the box. I wanted her to continue opening her presents so that she'd slowly realize she was getting an iPod as she opened up all of it's accessories. Then we would have told her to look inside the DS box when she had gotten to the last present and still didn't have an iPod in her hands.

She did fall for it, and very graciously....

But then my mother asked to see what the DS looked like before she moved on to the next gift!!!



Sigh. She was happy to see it was an iPod instead of a DS, but man it would have been really fun to see her sweat it out some more.

Ashley's New Gig

Last night was Ashley's very first babysitting gig. While my friend Emily and her husband took Ryan and their son to a basketball game, Ashley stayed behind and watched their two young daughters. I think I was more nervous than Ash. I called at one point and asked if she needed help getting the two girls to bed and she told me she could handle it. I kept looking out our kitchen window through the backyard at Em's house to make sure everything looked okay. She did such a great job!!! When she came home she was all smiles and so apparently proud of herself. I knew she'd be great since she's had a lot of practice with helping me out with the babies here at home. She says she's ready for her next gig - only mom won't let her go further than a neighbor's house since she's only eleven.

Up next is Ashley's family birthday party this afternoon. I've got something very funny (Ash might think cruel) up my sleeve. I can't wait so stay tuned...