First day of preschool

Today was the BIG day! Garrett enjoyed his first day of preschool with Miss Jenn & Miss Christy. He seemed happy & pleased when I picked him up. He already knew two friends(Ti-Ti & Allison). I'm sure it was fun for him to play with them. We are excited for the opportunities & growth he'll enjoy this year. Some of you may wonder what I did to enjoy my new found freedom between the hours of 9 am-12pm (two days a week with one child). Baby Brody & I hit the mall & shopped @ Baby Gap. Lots of stuff on clearance. Then we went to the Picture People & had his 3 month pictures taken. He was such a good boy & smiled for the camera. Garrett came home from school & enjoyed a doughnut that Dad had left for him (his first day of school treat). Then he went down for a nap & went right to sleep. I am pretty sure he played hard & loved every minute of it! I hope everyone is enjoying their Thursday! Make it a good one!

Counting the hours...

till Garrett enjoys his first day of preschool. He is so excited & so am I. He has been looking forward to this all summer. He got his haircut today, he helped get his clothes ready for tomorrow, the lunch box is on the counter ready to be packed, we have two shoes(we can never find this boys shoes), the bucket is decorated, his sharing has been placed in the bucket, & John gave him a fathers blessing tonight. He is set!

I thought I would share this 12 x 12 canvas that I made. I got the layout idea out of one of the scrapbook magazines & I knew it would be perfect for this picture. This was our first family photo with Baby Brody. My talented friend Amy took this one too! Thanks Amy! I just created a 12 x 12 layout & mounted it to a 12 x 12 canvas & then painted Modge Podge all over it! It is on a shelf in our family room. I'm still trying to find the perfect spot for it! The quote on the bottom left reads: No matter what, no matter where, it is always home if love is there. The little rectangles to the left of the house have each of our names printed on them.

Rolling

Silly Boy! He is so stinkin' cute & happy! He is rolling over from his back to his tummy! I haven't actually witnessed him doing so. It started on Friday night (8-24). He was lying on the family room floor playing while I moved the laundry. When I checked on him, he was on his tummy. I had left him on his back. So, I sat for 15 minutes (with my camera & video camera) waiting for him to roll so I could get it on film. Nothing! He didn't roll. I got up to unload the dishwasher & guess what he did? Yep, he rolled over again. Then on Saturday night, John & I went to a party & Brody rolled over for the babysitter. Tanner tried to get it on video for us so we could see it. No luck. Bless his heart. While I was cleaning off the kitchen table this morning he rolled over again (I missed). Out came the camera. Instead of rolling over, he just smiled at me. So, in my efforts to get some pictures of his new talent... these will have to do!

And the winners are:

Congratulations to Shelly & Stephanie! The boys had fun picking our winners. We decided to draw two names (John's post didn't go into the drawing). Tanner & Carter each wanted to pick one. Thank you so much for ALL of the comments. Shelly, I will pop your prize in the mail. Stephanie, I will hand deliver your prize to your front door. It was fun to read what is making each of you happy. I appreciate each of you taking the time to post a comment, thank you! The comments give me little glimpses of your lives. I love that!!!! We'll do another drawing in the near future. Stay tuned & have a great weekend.

Give Away

Okay, I have enjoyed (and even won some) give aways off other blogs. Most of the give aways have been from other scrapbookers that are published in the magazines or gals who work for the scrapbook mags. I haven't done anything fun today but I have had lots of time to think. I was thinking how happy I am & how lucky I am to live in this great land. I am happy to enjoy the freedom that allows me to choose how I live my life. One other happy thing today is air conditioning. So happy to have it in my car & in the house. So my question to you is ,What is making you happy today? Post your response to the blog & on Friday afternoon I will have my boys draw a winner. What is the prize you ask? The prize will be some of my favorite scrapbook supplies. We all know new scrapbook supplies make me happy. If you post a comment & are not a scrapbooker, I will send you a little gift card to one of my favorite stores that makes me happy! Just so you know, reading your posts & comments on my blog makes me happy!

Ready, set... POST

P.S. for those of you who don't know how to post a comment (umm MOM - lol), you can hit the anonymous key. Just be sure to sign your name at the end of your post :)

MISCELLANEOUS

Just random things I want to remember:

- Carter was on the family room floor talking to Baby Brody. I looked over & he had the Disney Incredibles "FAKE" cell phone out. This "FAKE" cell phone has the "FAKE"camera button too!

What cracked me up was that he had the phone pointed at Brody & said "smile big so I can post this picture on the blog".

- Garrett is potty trained. He loves to wear his big boy underwear. He is even staying dry during nap time. He gets to check out his new preschool tomorrow. We can't wait.

- We received Tanner's STAR (CA state test) test results. He did REALLY well in all areas. We are so proud of him. It was a big deal to him. This was his first time (2ND grade) taking the test.

- Baby Brody is grabbing his feet, pulling them to his chest. He is talking so much. You talk to him & coos right back, we love this age. He is really starting to play with the toys on his little floor gym. He slept last night from 9:15pm to 6 am, AWESOME!!!!!

- Had a conversation with Tanner about holidays. He wanted to know what holidays are always on Sunday. When I mentioned Mother's Day/ Father's Day, he said those are the days for you & Dad. Then I was informed that "the rest of the days of the year are for kids because we are so special to you". This boys mind does not stop thinking! He is loving third grade.

- Soccer practices are in full swing. We can't wait for the games to start.

Enjoy your day!

Spur of the Moment

I love the phone calls when some of your best friends call to say they are coming to town. Kind of spur of the moment. Meridee & Erin flew into town on Friday night. John was able to rearrange his plans so I was able to enjoy some serious girlfriend time. I so needed it this weekend! It has been non-stop fun! Jan & I were so excited to have them here. We were also able to see our friend Morgan- HI MORGAN!!! We attended a wedding reception, stayed up till 2 am talking, shopping all day, swapping recipes, sharing our favorite books, eating out, catching each other up on family members, & yummy chocolate cake from Chili's. I love these girl & am so thankful for their friendship. It will be a sad day tomorrow when they leave to go back home! Love you girls! Please come back soon!

Meeting the German Cousins

I don't know where the week has gone??? I have been meaning to post about our visit with John's cousins. Sabina, Geht, their twin daughters & their friend came to the states this month. They are from Germany. They had a great time touring the state of California. We had a birthday lunch for Hans (John's Dad) in Weimar at Frances house. Frances is always a wonderful hostess. Lots of food & things always set up for the kids. She is so great. It was fun getting to know John's cousins. Thank goodness they speak English. I love their cute little accents. I am always impressed when people can speak another language. They were all very nice & fun to visit with. They loved Baby Brody. Frances has a great yard & the boys loved running around, swinging in the hammock, shooting BB guns, playing chase, driving the RC cars & lots of laughing. Here are a few pictures from the afternoon!

P.S. You can click on the family one to see it up close. A Friend took this for us & he didn't zoom in.

3 months old

Two posts in one day! I couldn't let this day pass without acknowledging Brody's 3 month milestone. I take pictures of him on the 14Th of each month, in the same spot. Okay, who am I kidding? I take pictures of him almost everyday, but that's beside the point. At the end of the first year, I can create a layout that includes a picture from each month so we can see the changes. I have done it for reach of the boys & it is fun to look back on.
At three months, Brody:
-is wearing (barely, he's so big) 3-6 month clothes
-is smiling all the time.
-is giggling
-is drinking 6 oz. @ each feeding
- is slowly getting used to his crib.
- is still wearing a size two diaper
- will sometimes sleep thru the night, it is hit or miss
- watched (kind of) his 1st Baby Einstein & Little People videos
- met the German cousins last weekend
- still likes to sleep on his back
- likes to try & get his thumb in his month (he usually isn't successful)
- loves his blankets
- is such a good baby
- loves when the older boys pay attention to him
He is a JOY to have in our lives!!!!!!

A New School Year

Today was the first day of school. I asked the boys to get their clothes & to lay them out last night. Wanted to make sure things ran smooth this morning. This is what I found in my room on the floor. Did you notice how Carter put his underwear in the right place (it still makes me giggle)? Tanner & Carter are so happy to be back at school. Tanner has Mr. Bishop & is one happy boy. It is the teacher he has hoped for all summer. He is the "COOL" third grade teacher. There are not very many male teachers at our school. Everyone wants/hopes for Mr. Bishop (even the girls). Carter has Mrs. Stevens, another happy child. Tanner had her two years ago for first grade. She is awesome & I am so thrilled for Carter. We attribute Tanner's strong reading ability to Mrs. Stevens & her teaching style. I am so happy for my boys. Happy Tuesday!

P.S. Garrett did better than we expected. There were no tears.

Excited

John & I are so excited for Tanner. A few great friends have let us know (thru the grapevine) who Tanner has for his third grade teacher. He is going to be so excited tonight we we go to the school to check it out. It has been hard to keep this a secret from him. He is going to be so EXCITED. Just counting the hours till he can see it for himself. We are so HAPPY for him!
Now that we can rest easy about Tanner's school year, we are anxious to see who Carter gets for first grade. We are all looking forward to the first day of school tomorrow. Make today a great one! Happy Monday!

Last Hurrah

Our last HURRAH before the school year starts. We started our morning off at the cement slides. Tanner & Carter have been begging to go since they saw the pictures of Garrett @ the park.They ran up & slid down for a solid hour & a half. They loved it & think it's the best park around. The commonly asked question today was : "When can we go back"? They even tried to get John to take them back tonight when he got home from work. Nice try!!! After the park, we headed off to Borders. I have been dying to pick up the new Stephenie Meyer book. Eclipse is the third in the series. Can't wait to settle in & get started. I've heard it's fabulous. I let each of the boys pick out a new book & they were thrilled. Tanner got a novel called KEEPER (it is a soccer book). Carter got a book about the night before first grade & Garrett got a Sesame Street ABC book. Garrett keeps telling everyone it is his book for school, very cute. After the book store, we picked up lunch & headed home. John had a soccer clinic to attend tonight. He is coaching Carter's team again & needed to take these courses in order to do so. While he was at the clinic we headed out again! We were able to find new school shoes for everyone! That is one of the things I loved about going back to school, the new shoes. Boys are so easy. They just needed a new pair of tennis shoes. Again, Garrett was telling anyone who would listen that these were HIS shoes for school. He is going to be disappointed on Tuesday when we take the boys to school & he stays home. He doesn't start school till the end of the month. I am guessing we are going to have a few tears. All in all, it was a fun day!

P.S. If anyone can give me picture placement tips, I would so appreciate it!!!!

WHEEEEEE

My friend Stephanie introduced us to a cool park today. This park has cement slides. There was also a little playground off to the side. Garrett didn't even touch the playground. He was all over those slides. He spent a good solid hour running up the hill & then he'd slide down on his cardboard box (thanks for the box Stephanie). This is a park we will be hitting over & over again. I can't wait to take Tanner & Carter there.

I am so happy to have my older boys home. John, Tanner, & Carter have been in Oregon for the last four days. They went to Florence to ride their toys on the sand dunes. They had a great time riding & playing on the beach. We sure did miss them & are happy to have them home safe & sound. We are going to wind down & relax this weekend. The boys start school next Tuesday. Can you believe that? We will be shoe shopping & looking for a new pair of shorts for each of them. I have already purchased school supplies, backpacks, lunch boxes, the underwear, socks, & shirts. You know, the FUN things-NOT! I am so used to growing up in the Bay Area & having school start the day after Labor Day. We would squeeze that last camping trip in to Memorial Park. It is hard for me to send them back to school during the second week in August when it is 100 degrees outside. I may not be ready, but they are ready. They both love school & are looking forward to a new school year.

PINK

Yep! This is as close as I will get to scrapbooking something PINK. This is a layout I taught last month for my baby class. Some of my co-workers down at Green Tangerines wondered where I got baby girl pictures-LOL! These are pictures of my niece Aubree "Breezy" Shore when she was two Weeks old. So sweet! She is now 18 months old & just as cute.

I interrupt this post for breaking news:

As I typed the title to this blog post tonight, my sister Amber called to tell me to turn the Giants game on. Since I grew up in the Bay Area, I have always loved the Giants. Loved going to games out @ Candlestick & Pac Bell Park. Many fond memories. I am so glad Barry Bonds broke the home run record at home. Way to go Barry! What an exciting day in the world of baseball.

Back to the regular scheduled post :). Sorry, I had to record that moment. Growing up in the home that I did, there was no way around not liking baseball & the Giants. I only wish my boys were home to have witnessed it. Thank goodness for replays.

12 Weeks Old

I can't believe my baby is 12 weeks old today! I say this all the time... but time really is moving way too fast. He brings a smile to my face all day long. He is a sweet boy!

This is what he's up to at 12 weeks, Brody is:

- wearing 3-6 month clothes( a few 9 month outfits for fun)

- wearing a size 2 diaper

- smiles all the time

- one happy baby

- giggled for John last Sat. (full on belly laugh, so cute!)

- loves to snuggle his blankets right up to face when he sleeps

- drinking 6 oz. of formula @ each feeding

- sleeping on his back with his arms straight back above his head.

- loved by his big brothers all day long

- will be moving into his room to sleep in his crib.

he will share a room with Garrett, wish him luck!

- snores like his Daddy (it is very entertaining @ church)

- getting better about tummy time

- loves to take a bath

- likes to be rocked (in our arms, in his car seat, or in the cradle)

- the hit @ the scrapbook store when we go for a visit :)!

- sleeping about 7-8 hours straight @ night.

I love this little guy!

Another Birthday shout out!

Happy Birthday dear Stephanie! Happy Birthday to you! Today is my friend Stephanie's birthday(See picture a few posts down). *Stephanie, I hope your men spoiled you rotten. You so deserve it! Stephanie is an awesome friend. She is always so helpful & ALWAYS has a a smile to share. She has a couple of boys that are the same ages as Carter & Garrett. It is so fun to have that common bond with her. *Stephanie, I hope your day was fabulous! I think the world of you!


I have been going through Brody's drawers & his side of the closet. I am removing all of the 0-3 month sized clothes. They don't fit him anymore. We are now on to the 3-6 month clothes. I got all teary eyed today while bagging up the smaller clothes to give away. It makes me sad that he is getting so big so fast. I want him to stay little forever. Of course I would like him to stay little AND sleep through the night...EVERY NIGHT. With the older boys, I always knew there was one more baby(of course not knowing if it was a boy or girl). So I would save all of the clothes in bins, in the garage. We are pretty sure our little family is complete, so we are cleaning house(the garage) as we go! John can't wait to get all of the those shelves back once the baby clothes are unloaded.


I just finished a great book! I really enjoyed TWILIGHT. It was a different kind of read for me, but I really liked it. I am 3/4 of the way through NEW MOON, the sequel to TWILIGHT. I am liking this one too! The author has the third book of the series coming out sometime this month, I can't wait! Now if I can just figure out how to balance chores & new books to read :).



Enjoy your week!

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday dear Meridee! Today is my sweet friend Meridee's birthday. Just wanted to wish her a happy day & let her know that I'm thinking of her. Even though several hundred miles separate us, I consider her one of my best friends. She is kind, sweet, a fabulous cook, a great Mom & wife, honest, FUN, stylish, & a true friend! I am so thankful for her friendship. Happy Birthday dear friend. I Love ya!

FUN

What a couple of FUN days we have had. We loved having Malakai & Kannon here. My nephews were able to stay with us for a few days. We enjoyed the park, swimming, playing UNO, building forts with all of the blankets in the house, the water park, an outing to the Dollar Tree store, jumping on the trampoline, Happy Meals, playing baseball, & just being together.
This top picture is of all the goods they scored @ the Dollar Store. I promised them $5.00 each if they would do a quick pick up of the toys @ the end of each day. The $5.00 deal worked like magic. It's days/visits like these that make me really wish we lived closer. Then the cousins would be able to play together more often. We are so glad they were able to visit for a few days. We hope they come back real soon.

A side note: We are in the middle of potty training Garrett. There has been just one accident today. I was even able to drive to Vallejo & back AND stop @ IKEA with out any incidents. It is a happy day for this Mom. We may be on to something. It would be so nice to have just one child in diapers :). Please keep your fingers crossed for us. Have a Happy Wednesday.