Head ...too...heavy...can't ...hold...it........up!

My strong little guy is 11 weeks old today. He's getting better and better being on his tummy, and today he started rocking back and fourth (maybe to hold his heavy head up)...and poof...he rolled from his tum tum to his back. It was a one time thing, and I just missed it on camera! Here is a little clip of him cooing. Before any of you make a snidely comment about the blanket with the pink trim, there is STILL alot of pink around here including baby stuff. He doesn't seem to mind it:)

Just like old times...

Today was "just like old times" ....except that I now have 3 kids. I spent the day with the Mechling's (youth minister from growing up and fam) and Grothman's (music minister and fam) today. Darrin and Carmela live only a couple of hours away now which is SOOOOOO exciting for me. Beth Ann and I visited them back in March, and it was just wonderful to spend time with them again. We hung out at their house for hours and hours and hours and hours in high school...you get the picture. I don't know how they stood so many kids in their house, but it doesn't look like it has changed; they have company ALL the time. The Grothman's, however, live far away and I have not seen them in 8 years...until today. They are vacationing this week, and are spending time with their dear friends, so I decided to crash their party today. I left bright and early with "eeny meeny, and miney...and there will be no MO" We were there by 10am, so were able to spend a while with them before returning home. It was one of the best days of the summer without a doubt as these were among the most influential people in my life growing up and it was just a real treat to see them.

Me, Carmela, and Kathy

Mary warmed up to Carmela

Carmela and Ashley (I started babysitting Ash when she was 2..she's 19!!!!)

This was so weird for me...to see her holding Garrett!

Darrin is still cracking the same hilarious jokes..Wayne still loves babies.
Yes that's Hannah (his 13 year old..sitting beside him)

Ashley and Kathy!!

Happy Trails

My outlaws from the ranch posted some pics from their trip today. I am SOOOOOOO ready to see more...hint hint...but these will have to appease me for now. I did not send a camera with Faber because I'm not sure he would've come through on the picture taking end...it's just not his thing:) If you want to check them out head on over to Mando's and Katie's pages. Allie has been talking non-stop...of course...about their trip. She rode a horse named Leah, and wasn't scared at all. The next time we go, she'll be able to ride away from the stables...from what I understand. She told me about her hike down to a beautiful basin where she fished. Daddy W said she didn't complain a bit! She asked me today if I knew the "chicken dance." She did that for me; I'm guessing she learned that from the square dance, but it could've just been something the girls taught her! She couldn't remember. She said Pappy took her swimming, and that she loved talking to Abby and making her laugh. I'm sure over the next few days she'll keep remembering all the new experiences she had. I can't believe I missed them , but will definitely saddle up for the next time around. Tomorrow I'm taking the kids on a day trip to visit some dear friends of mine that I have not seen in 8 years. THAT is exciting! Below are some pics from today. Allie loved playing with Mary and Garrett. I think she actually did miss these two.

Jumpin for Joy

I was cleaning out the bathroom today when I found this frog. Mary wanted to sit on it and said "jump frog jump". She was carrying this big old frog all over the house and will not let me get rid of it. I guess I need to figure out a way to get it to stick to the wall in the bathroom. So that is the story behind the frog. On to the real reason we were jumping today.....after being delayed again, Daddy W and Allie FINALLY made it back home. It was a LONG LONG LONG 8 days, and I was having blogger's block due to my slight bout of homesickness (don't laugh all of you who have been around me!) My friend Amy said she knew I wasn't better until I started posting again...so THERE! The girls were really excited to see one another and instantly started playing again. They were so sweet to each other. I'm sure it will last about 20 more minutes! Allie and Faber had a GREAT time at the ranch, and hopefully the outlaws (I mean inlaws) will get me some pics soon enough. I cannot wait to see what all they did. Allie's tooth did not fall out, although she came back with the top one pretty loose too due to a Frisbee accident I'm told. She said if that one came out first that "it wouldn't count." I wonder where she got that from. Maxwell lost his first tooth today, and when I told Allie she said "Oh that boy is getting so big!" Can't wait to see your pics Maxwell! Hope the tooth fairy is good to you:)

LOST AND FOUND

LOST: One fairly decent head of hair!

FOUND: One happy kid who needed some alone time with Mom!

FOUND: My dining room table!!!

Ok the dining room table probably needs some explanation for those of you who don't live around here. Today, my friend Kristen stopped by and made the comment in conversation, "I've never seen your dining room table before!" WOW, she's been at my house almost every week for approaching three years for our small group and she's NEVER SEEN my table. That is so sad. I guess I can't blame it on Garrett's arrival, but it has gotten worse since he was born. I decided yesterday in the absence Daddy W and Allie that I would get some LONG needed things done around here since my responsibilities have dramatically dropped for the week. I started with the dining room yesterday, and this is the result. It is LONG overdue. Welcome back beautiful table!

A Work of Art

Here are a few pics from last week. Allie went to art camp with her pal Emma Cate for the week. They made some really cute stuff all under the umbrella of "Garden Gadgets". I scanned in one of her "masterpieces" which is what is below.

They made it...just barely.

Ok...I obviously have WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY tooo much time on my hands since I went to all this trouble to make this silly image. I'm laughing at myself for my previous title because the trip so far as turned out to be a BUST!!! Not to worry, all will recover, and this will only be a funny story, but for now, I doubt it is any laughing matter! At 730am, Allie was bebopping around the house, and said "Dad, are you ready to hit the trail????" So they headed to the airport which is a few hours away. After sitting on the plane for while, they pulled away from the gate, and then the dreaded VOICE came over the loud speaker. "We're sorry to inform you that there is an electrical problem with this plane. You may want to draw the shades as it may get hot. Your options at this point are to fly standby on the next flight which is almost full, OR you can wait for the mechanic to get here on this flight and hopefully they will be able to fix the problem." THIS ALWAYS HAPPENS to us! I'm SO THANKFUL that it was just Daddy W and Allie. They waited on the plane only for the flight to be CANCELED! So now three hours later, they are booked on another flight to the Denver airport as they could not get to Colorado Springs until tomorrow. Upon arriving to Denver many hours past the scheduled arrival, Daddy W went to rent a car. Unfortunately, one may not easily rent a car that is going to be dropped off at a different location. "not easily" to the tune of alot of money that is! He called me, and with my trusty internet I did some searching. This was looking VERY BAD! I had the idea of maybe catching a cab...it had to be cheaper . So Faber found a cabbie who informed him that it would be cheaper but that he had to pay cash. UGGGHhh...Daddy W tried to pull out the cash, but our ATM prohibited withdrawing that amount. The next thought was to call his parents at the ranch to come get them. Again....another dead end...no cell phone service on the mountain! Could this get any worse??!!! Finally, Daddy W went back to the rental company and haggled them down to what was still a rediculous amount of money to drive a couple of hours and park the car for the week. YIKES! That was Daddy W's day. I'm sorry babe. I'm glad you are safely there! As there is no cell phone coverage, I will be eagerly awaiting details from the week, but this is probably it for a while! It can only get better right!

Colorado or Bust!

Today I will be packing for Colorado......but only 2 suitcases are going. 1 suitcase is gray, and 1 suitcase is pink with white polka dots. I will primarily focus on polka dotted one; it will have band aids, tylenol, Molly, blanky, swimsuits, sweaters, books, favorite movies,etc. Now there's just something I'm forgetting....what is it exactly....oh yeah...me:( Allie is going on her first trip without me. I know I know, she'll have her daddy, bunny, pappy, Mando, Bo, Abby, Katie, and Jason. She'll be fine!!! I can't think of anything significant she's done that I've missed. But wait...do you hear that??? Silence is setting in around the house. My ears are beginning to rest already. I will have baby Garrett and Mary, but my little jabber jaws will be leaving. It is bitter sweet! She bounced in this morning with a HUGE grin on her face. I thought she was just excited about the trip, and then she burst out, MY TOOTH IS LOOSE!!!! I felt it to confirm what was true. Yes, it was so. Immediately a sad look came over my face (b/c I know I'll probably miss the first tooth fall), and she said "Don't worry mom, your teeth will all fall out someday!" I'm going to miss that kid! Have fun polka dotted suit case.

Twinkle Twinkle!

Today was a bit hectic. Allie went to art camp this morning for a couple of hours. This year's theme is "Garden Gadgets." She said in her preschool class the year before last that she wanted to be a gardener when she grows up. She is undoubtedly inspired by her DeeDa...my grandfather. Every time the kids are in town, he walks them all down the garden to "help" him..just as he did when we were growing up. We'll see what great masterpiece she comes up with this week:) Garrett had his 2 month check up and weighed in at a hefty 13 pounds (80%ile) and was 24.5 inches in length (95%ile). He'll be caught up to his older cousins in no time I'm afraid to say. He seemed ok after his shots and then woke up from a cat nap squealing. There's no other way to say it; he sounded like a little pig for several hours before giving up to sleep. Mary, on the other hand, has been in a delightful mood for a couple of days which is very uncharacteristic of the last few months. Here's a clip of her singing a little song for her daddy before he went in to work tonight.

2 Cute!

Garrett is 2 months old today. I am stealing what I think is a GREAT idea from my sis-in-law Mando as the months roll by. She took a pic of her daughter Abby every month with the same very large stuffed animal in her room. It is fun to see her "outgrow" the dog as she is very quickly doing. Thus enters, Sheep number 8. I decorated Garrett's room with lambs, and Beth Ann's parent-in-laws had a sheep they were willing to let go astray. He's an official serta sheep branded with the number 8. He must be working because since he's set up camp beside the crib, Garrett has slept through the night...now 3 nights in a row..sounds like a streak to me huh! Here are some pics below of my little lamb. He's now about 12 pounds...as you can probably tell he hasn't missed too many meals. He's not doing much yet, but enjoys lying under his play mat. He is cooing and smiling alot now, so life is good:) He has been to church for a couple of weeks now, but today was the first time I actually had time to take a pic before we made it out the door. He (I) enjoyed Mamma Lion holding him through almost the whole service. Thanks Mamma Lion.

There's a little smile:)

And a laugh...

and a hug...

Still trying to get a smile from all 3...may be a while.

Girls Day Out...plus baby Garrett

Beth Ann and I took the girls out today for some painting fun. There is a little pottery place here in the View called the Mud Hut, and it's definitely one of Allie's favorites. She's only been there once before, but it is unfortunately for me right on the way to school. She asks just about every time we pass by if we can go to the Mud Hut. Lucky for her, today was the day. She chose to paint a soccer player that looked like her....which is pretty ironic because she acted like she didn't even like soccer when she was playing last season. Laynie picked out a butterfly as her masterpiece, and just like her mamma VERY thoughtfully and carefully took her time in painting it. Allie slopped the paint on hers and asked me to finish it after about 15 minutes into it. Beth Ann chose a square platter and worked on some polkadots to finish it off. I fed baby Garrett! He seemed to be fine with the very girly event and I even caught a smile as Allie showed off her finished project. This afternoon, there was another treat to be had. My friend Sarah "Garah" came over for a visit. She has not been here in a year, so I was shocked to see that little Thomas was walking and talking. She and Rick were in town to visit his grandmother, so they all came by for supper, and the kids played outside. It was GREAT to see them.


Showing off their masterpieces
Posing again..
Beth Ann working on a platter
Garrett admiring Allie's work
Thomas loving the car
Sarah due next month

Extreme Makeover Blog Edition

Beth Ann came to town this week with her crew and besides swimming and playing like crazy, she found time to give my blog a makeover. My friend, Audra came over a few weeks ago and took the kids pictures, so she gave me permission to use them. For you local folks, it was a very easy process as I was a little anxious to try to get all 3 of them! Thanks Audra! Her website is on my side bar. Thanks also to my computer savvy friend!

Surprise! A Hair Raising Event...

Mary discovered a tingly feeling on her head when she walked under neath the slide a couple of days ago. Too bad she doesn't have more hair yet to rise up! So what's the surprise all about...my dear friend over at the Lion's Den turns 30 on 8/8/08. She's one of the final few to turn thirty among our friends, and she just knew that we couldn't "get her" with a surprise party. Being the smart folks that we are, we planned the party on 7/8/08 around 30 days before! Below are some pics. She was really surprised! Happy Birthday Pal! I have your card and of course forgot to take it to the party, so save a day from me in your 30 days of card. Enjoy! Below are just some random pics I've taken in the last week. Garrett really does live here; I guess I've left him out in my picture taking, but he has had his fair share the last 2 months! He's 8 weeks old now! Melissa, I hope you are noticing all of Olivia's clothes that we are enjoying:)

Posting Pirate

Huh...what's that title about? Last night we went over to the Lion's Den for Fourth of July fun. I did not take my camera as I was feeling a little bit lazy and "blogless" the last few days. I've sunken to a new low of just referring you to another blog to check out the fun, as I knew Mamma Lion would be all over documenting the night for me. Thanks Mamma Lion! Click on the Lion's Den to view:) Also, Thanks to Mamma Lion for forwarding me the pics so I can put them in my year book. On a funny note, this morning as I staggered out of bed Allie said, "Mom, yesterday I saw a commercial about this juice that you squirt in your eyes that takes the red out really fast" Not getting it, I just said, "Well are your eyes red??". She said, "No, I was thinking you might need it, so I'll look for the commercial again, so I can find out what it's called"...gee thanks Allie.

Happy 4th!

Good morning! I'm happy to announce on this 4th of July that my sweet baby niece Abigail Grace was born very early this morning...3..ish..I can't remember what Melissa said:( Hud and Mel went to the Dr. yesterday for her 38 week appointment to find that her fluid levels were low, so they decided to admit her. The baby weighed 7 lbs and some change (again I wasn't quite awake yet) and was 21 inches long! I can't wait to see some pics of her!

Progression of a Popscicle