Smarty Pants

Not to be outdone, Banana (a.k.a. Lady In Pink) saw the video of Em on here and informed us it was time to put one of her on here. Hubby (a.k.a Running Man from now on), is quizzing her on what different body parts/organs do. In case you can't understand at her, at one point he asks what the heart does and she says it pumps the blood. Smarty pants. And she's not proud of herself. At all.

Hi!

So I've been in a little bit of a rut lately. I can't think of anything too exciting to tell you about. Life is back to normal, and Russ just finished his finals!! I have to say how proud I am of him. He pulled a 4.0 this tri!! It's something I could never do, and I am super excited for him. Contrary to what a lot of people think, he studies hard and has made some big personal sacrifices (like sleep) to make sure that he spends time with us, has time to work and stay on top of his school work. It's pretty exciting to know that he is starting clinic now. That makes everything we have been through these last two years seem worth it. It didn't seem like we would ever get to this point, and I am sure I will feel the same way in just over a year when he is graduating. I think we have an exciting year ahead of us!

Here is just a little clip of how much Em is growing up. She has started saying hi and waving to us. This isn't the best video, but she is a stinker and won't cooperate when I turn on the camera. She's crawling aroud, getting into everything, and pulling up and walking along things. Banana is excited for Hubby's break. We are taking her to check out a pre-school tomorrow, and that makes me feel so old. Hopefully it's one we like and it all works out.

The Gift that keeps giving ....

The Gift that keeps giving ....

The first 3 people to leave a comment on this post will receive a gift from me during this year. When and what will be a surprise. There's a small catch though...Post this same thing on your own blog and then come back and leave a comment telling me you're in. Fun, huh? Remember, only the first 3 comments receive the gift!

Wonder Woman

I don't mean to butt in here, in front of Christa's excellent post about our recent escapades, but I wanted to take a moment on this Valentine's Day and tell her thanks for all she does, 'cause she does a lot. Depending on how much you know about our lives right now, you may or may not know that I'm gone a lot...this is...uh...I forgot what codename she uses for me on here...Hubby! Yep, it's me. What with school, work stuff, church callings, and my recreational activities...which she refers to lovingly as an 'addiction' or at best an obsession. And with 2 growing girls at home she has a lot to do. And I know I don't tell her often enough how much she means to me, and how much I really do appreciate what she does. So, thank you...um...codename....I'll just call her Pretty Eyes. Thank you Pretty Eyes for being you. For being Banana's best friend, and M's sweetheart. Thank you for late night feedings, and all the bedtime stories and sing-a-longs. Thank you for nightly meals and clean clothes. Thank you for a living room that's clean and free of toys...oh wait it's dirty again already, no wait she's got it clean again. Oops more toys...no it's clean! Well you get the idea. Thank you for evening prayers, and meal time blessings. Thank you for a family that's on time for church each Sunday. Thank you for time to run, and play bball, and lift, and bike, and swim, and canoe, and compete in race after race... Thank you for giving me a reason to get up and do my best each morning. Thank you for 2 beautiful girls who I hope each day grow up to be Moms like you...and I can see it in Banana already. Thank for giving me a best friend, and Eternal Companion. Thank you for smiling through it all. Thank you Pretty Eyes. I love you so much, and I promise to do so much more each day to make sure you always know that. Siempre, tu Amor.

Too Much Of A Good Thing?

It seems like we have had non-stop festivities going on at our house. The past week has been packed with lots of presents, lots of treats, and a lot of spoiling. Banana's birthday was great, and I couldn't have asked for it to go any better. I was kind of ok really emotional for a lot of the day. Three years old just seems like such a giant leap. Suddenly she's doing little girl things (like being so caring with her sister, playing pretend a ton, giving me more attitude...). I enjoy almost all of it. It's hard not to laugh at her when she gets sassy with me. She's so dang cute when she does it. I need to start writing down the hilarious things she says more often. My favorite at the moment is when she informs me that she's "confused about this mommy." She usually tells me this when I have asked her to clean or eat or do something to help me before she starts playing. Way to play the dumb blonde card already :)

Anyhow...by the time her birthday party hit last night I could tell that she was pretty burnt out. She had a lot of fun, but didn't get into everything as much as I thought she would. It's nice to just be able to relax now and not stress about parties, and making sure everything is perfect for her.

We got her this copier that we thought would be incredible. It's not. We're taking it back. So much for the perfect gift...

She was excited about her chocolate chip birthday pancakes. Grandma W. made them for her over Christmas and they have become a staple in our house.

Of course she requested Maggie Moo's for lunch. How can we turn down a request for ice cream? We got ours just in time, because the power went out right after we ordered. She was not impressed with that. But LOVED her sprinkle ice cream.


Just like when they sang to her at Red Robin she got embarassed when everyone sang to her at her party. Poor girl takes after me.
Banana and her favorite friends (minus a few). She loves these guys!

This is the only bite she took of her cupcake. She just licked the frosting off the rest of it. Did I mention she's a frosting junkie. Gets it from her Grandpa T.

Thank you to EVERYONE who made it such an awesome birthday for her. Especially Grandma T. We have LOVED having her here and are so sad to have her leave in a few days.
Have a very happy Valentines Day!

My Banana

Happy Birthday My Sweet Girl. I love you!

We love Grandparents!

We love having visitors! We really really love having Grandparents come! Hubby's parents and littlest sister came for a visit last weekend and it was tons of fun. Banana kept them busy the whole time. We attempted to go to Chuck E. Cheese for her birthday party...but we pulled up on Saturday afternoon, saw a line out the door and left in a hurry. There was no way I was waiting in line for an hour just to go inside and try and have fun with 5 million kids running around. Lucky for us Banana saw all of the people there and instantly decided she didn't want to go, she wanted to go to Red Robin. There was no arguing with that request. She opened some presents from her grandparents and aunt, and one from us. We weren't surprised one bit that she loved the ones from her grandparents a lot more than the one from us...

She is on a serious Barbie kick right now, and Diamond Castle is her favorite movie. This particular barbie sings the songs from the movie...here's to hoping the batteries wear out sooner rather than later :)
And her "lady in pink" computer they got for her. It is pretty cool. She can't put either of these toys down. Thanks Grandpa and Grandma!

Not so patiently waiting for her mac 'n cheese...
Finally food!
Miss Em enjoyed her oh so nutrtitous lunch of fries.
We thought it would be a great idea to have the waiters come to sing to her for her bday...This is what she did the whole time. She wouldn't even look at them she was so embarassed. But she did enjoy the sundae!


After lunch we headed to Galena where they are staying so we could swim and hang out. It is GORGEOUS. I can't wait to go back in the summertime.
Grandpa and Aunt K left on Monday but Grandma is staying until this coming Monday!! We are SUPER excited. It has been so nice to have my MIL here. She is an awesome lady! She's helping with my first sewing project and I am proud to say that I now know how to work my machine :)
Banana's bday is tomorrow, so I'm sure you'll hear from me again soon.


Em and Grandma


Playing with Aunt K.
I made these cute crayon necklaces with the girls. It was so fun, and so easy!
The valentines cards she made for dad and Grandma. She's only a little excited about it...