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...