The Luckiest Girl...

Baby

2012-02-16T11:26:00.002-05:00

She's getting better with tummy time.
Finally takes the binky. Makes bed time so much easier.
She loves her feet.
At 4 months....she's 13 pounds 11 ounces and she's 24 3/4 inches long. Still on her reflux medicine. and she's finally sleeping in her crib. Though we're still working on that.

More baby...

2012-02-16T11:20:00.002-05:00

I can't believe it's been 4 months already
She's not a big fan of hats but she looks so cute in them.
Her old man face. She likes to chew on her lip then spit it out in a raspberry fashion.
She loves her fingers. Her first tooth has popped thru and her second tooth is right there waiting to come thru.

park

2012-02-16T11:15:00.001-05:00

Joey

2012-02-16T11:12:00.003-05:00

She got a pigeon book from her Aunt Liz and Uncle Randy for Xmas and she loves them. We got her another book and this stuffed one.

She likes to fall asleep on the couch like her Dad...tho she's up forever when she does that.
We cut her some bangs, to keep them out of her face. They make her look so much older. This is her spider picture she drew.
She is all into making the cross eyes face right now.

Rye sans braces

2012-02-16T10:54:00.002-05:00

The change still amazes me!

update

2012-02-09T22:09:00.002-05:00

I know I'm way behind on pictures. I will get those updated tomorrow. Swearsies.
Just wanted to share that Evie weighed 13 pounds 11 ounces at her 4 month check up today and measured 24 3/4 inches. She's getting so big. She also has a bottom tooth that is super close to busting through.
You'll see how big she is tomorrow and I'll share more on what she's up to.

Girls & a dog

2012-01-06T22:39:00.003-05:00

Crazy Poofy Jasper
Jap after his haircut

JOey with crazy laughing static hair
Jo & Evie
Rye & Evie
The girls in their outfits from Aunt Shari
Rye made a pot holder purse with her xmas gift
Dad & Jo working with the lite brite
Jo's lite brite creation: fireworks

More Evie

2012-01-06T22:33:00.002-05:00

She's just so darn cute.

Laughing.
Daddy & Evie
Helping me knit.

She loves to smile.
She loves sticking out her tongue. She gnaws on it a lot.

Smiles

2011-12-14T13:26:00.002-05:00

Joey

2011-12-14T13:24:00.002-05:00

When I told her these horns 'fit' her she said that she got her very own pair that fit when she turned four. How true that is.

Christmas

2011-12-14T13:10:00.003-05:00

Eric and I used thumb prints to make this little picture. I'm going to frame it and put it up for years to come.

My favorite Santa from my mother-in-law

Evie Frances-8 weeks

2011-12-06T10:16:00.003-05:00

My girls

2011-12-06T10:12:00.003-05:00

Welcome Evie

2011-10-25T10:06:00.006-05:00

I am about 2 weeks late on there but here are some pics a friend took of Evie at 1 week old. I am waiting for a CD of pics that were taken in the hospital. I'll share those when I get them.

For Grandpa

2011-09-23T11:07:00.001-05:00

Thanks for the Busted shirt Grandpa. I can't wait for it to get colder so I can wear it all the time. I love our 'busted' game too and it always makes me laugh. Love you. Joey

36 weeks

2011-09-23T10:59:00.003-05:00

36 weeks today. So excited. Everything looks great. I am so ready for Evie to join us. I have a shower this weekend, which I'm very excited about. Onto the pictures....

Last picture, 32 weeks
36 weeks
Joey @ 36 weeks
Had an U/S earlier this week. Didn't get any good pics really. She is weighing in at 6 lbs 1 oz right now. Already bigger than Rye was at birth and we still have 4 weeks left. I really hope she comes early.

Crafts, Crafts, Crafts

2011-09-12T13:46:00.003-05:00

I've started a Sunburst Afghan for Evie's crib. These are the colors...I love how they look together.
The headbands that I've made. They're all for Evie, except #2...that's for Eric's co-worker
Some fingerless mitts that I made for Rye. Working on a 'matching' hat.
A cocoon I made for Evie. It's super soft. I'm working on her halloween costume, which is a hooded cocoon that will hopefully look like a candy corn.
This is the most 'involved' onesie I made for her. It says 'super evie' arcoss the tushy. Love it!
That's it for now. I'll share my progress on the afghan. I am so excited about it. It's the most crocheting I've done in a long while. I'm also planning ones for Rye & Joey.

4 weeks in....

2011-09-12T13:37:00.003-05:00

Rye's teeth the day she got her braces on...

Not even 4 weeks later....

It's amazing to me how quickly they have changed. She got her appointment in 2 weeks and we'll find out how much longer she'll have them on. I'm thinking it's not going to need to be much longer.

New Belly Pics

2011-08-26T13:08:00.003-05:00

OH MY GOSH! I knew I was bigger, but I didn't realize how much bigger. SHEESH!
28 weeks w/ Joey
28 weeks w/ Evie
32 weeks w/ Joey
32 weeks w/ Evie

More Crafts

2011-08-26T12:56:00.007-05:00

More crafts to share...first are the knit/crochets crafts i made. A headband (i'm making these in a few colors, and planning to pass a few along to Eric's co-worker who is due right before me), a knit twist hat and a little blanket friend for Evie. Going to make one for each of the girls as well. They're very excited.

Next, I saw a blog post about puff painting onesies and was inspired. Mine are not near as awesome as the post I saw but I like how most of them turned out. All of them have a little butt design on the back as well. In the first photo is the first of a set of legwarmers I'm making for her to wear with all her neon onesies. Hoping to make a hat as well.

Two more sheets done. I have red and orange left, just waiting on the sheets a friend is sending it to me.

3D Pic

2011-08-17T19:19:00.005-05:00

Had an ultrasound recently. My next one will be at the end of September. Everything looks good and they're aren't anticipating any problems with our new addition. We have decided on the name Evelynn Frances. We will call her Evie (pronounced ee-vee). The girls and I already call her Evie and Eric actually called her by name the other day. We were able to get a 3D pic of Evie at my last u/s. I have been trying to work up the courage over the last 3 ultrasounds to ask for one, since the machine is capable. The lady was very nice about it. I'm glad I waited so long...she was definitely more baby looking than alien. Haha. The u/s tech said she has a very healthy heart and she looks great. We almost didn't get the 3D because she was cuddling her umbilical cord in front of her face. But she decided to move it for us for just a second for the picture, before moving it right back in front of her. I'm hoping we'll get as lucky at the next ultrasound. So without further ado, here she is, Evelynn Frances
I'm adding this regular u/s picture because I found out something very interesting at the previous appointment to this one. Sometimes in the eye sockets you see a circular object, it's the lens of the baby's eyeball. I'd never noticed the circle before the doc pointed it out and he had just learned about it the day before. I now look for it at every u/s.

Rye's Braces!

2011-08-17T19:16:00.004-05:00

So at Rye's last visit we were told her cross bite had been corrected. On to phase 2. Braces! Not sure how long she'll have them but she was very excited to get them on. THey're aren't the big time braces. Just 6 brackets on the top to straighten out her front teeth. It's more for self esteem purposes. Can't wait to see how it goes.

javascript:void(0)

Craftiness

2011-08-17T18:59:00.005-05:00

Been very crafty lately. To start I'll share my tie dye sheets. I wanted really bright sheets in rainbow colors for Evie's crib but you can't find them any where. So I decided to make them myself. Here are the first 3 that I did. I've had one flub with the green one, I bought the wrong dye color. I"ll be doing a couple more shirts this week, I'm excited. I really like doing them.

I helped a friend paint letters and a trash can to compliment the new pirate bedding she got for his room. I drew out the designs on the letters and we both painted those and then I did the trash can all by myself. They're all close up scenes from the blanket. I thought they turned out really well.

Some knitting projects I've completed. I have many more in the stash and some others I haven't photographed yet.
A circular blanket, I have a matching hat but don't have a decent picture of it yet. I got the pattern out of a book my MIL got me as a birthday gift. There are so many things I want to make in there.
A cloud & rainbow hat I made for Evie. I had made a bigger one and gave it to my neighbor for her new granddaughter as well. I don't think I put a pom on hers. This was the first pom I made and I liked the way it came out.
A hat I made for my niece Grace. I hope she gets to use it in San Diego.

So that's all the crafty for now. I am starting a new project, I'm going to puff paint some onesies for Evie. If they turn out alright I might do a shirt or two for the big girls, if they want them. I'll share pics later. And I have lots of knitting projects in the works and I'll try and take photos as I complete them.

24 week comparison

2011-07-01T22:41:00.002-05:00

Here are the 24 week comparison pictures. My belly looks way bigger with Jo. But if I remember correctly it was just a really bad bloaty day, the 28 week pic was smaller, if I remember right. We've been hitting hte pool a bunch so I've got my tan on this time. ;)
24 weeks with baby #3
24 weeks with Joey

That's all folks. We're having a cookout on the 4th so I'll get some pictures of the family to share then.

20 weeks

2011-06-21T09:10:00.003-05:00

So I am a little past 20 weeks. 22 weeks and 4 days to be exact. ;) I have been taking monthly pictures, even though I haven't posted them. So I thought I would post the 20 week belly picture (per Layla's request) and post the 20 week picture from Joey's pregnancy to compare to it. This pregnancy has been much more uncomfortable than the first two and I'm told that's normal with the third pregnancy. Blah. We're getting through it though. So here are the two pictures. First Joey's, than #3s. (please excuse the bra, what was I thinking?)

Joey 20 weeks
Number 3 @ 20 weeks

See, I knew I was bigger this time. We have our list narrowed down to 5 or so names. It grows and contracts, but I am determined that it will just shrink now. We are pretty set on Frances being her middle name. Our first name list consists of: Lena, Ivy, Kalli, Piper and Nina. Feel free to chime in with your opinion...though it really won't make a difference when it comes down to it. Haha.

Rye gets her 4th expander today, so I'll post pictures of that later today.

Rye's Art

2011-05-08T14:49:00.006-05:00

A mixed media piece that Rye made in her art class at school was chosen to go on display at a local mall with some from other kids from other schools. She was very proud and we're proud of her. Today we went to said mall to check out the piece.
Here is Rye with her artwork.

Here is a close up of Rye's artwork titled, "Bubblehead"

Eric's newest hobby

2011-05-08T14:49:00.002-05:00

Birthday Wish

2011-05-07T10:00:00.002-05:00

I have really been getting into my knitting and such lately. I have made some coffee cuffs, 2 head wrap/bands, a long yoga sock (finishing the pair) and I'm working on my first circular knitting project. So I just wanted to share my birthday wish on here. I would really love this set of circular knitting needles.

Harmony Circular Needles

It's my plan to get them for my birthday, whether Eric gets them for me or I used birthday money or what not. I'd also love the set of the 10" straight needles in the same wood. They're so smooth and pretty. I don't usually have much of a wish list for holidays, but these....definitely on the top!

Egg Hunt

2011-04-26T11:32:00.004-05:00

The Egg Hunt at our friend Stephanie's (she's in the first picture with Joey).
The kids decorating buckets for the hunt. The men folk were outside hiding eggs.
Rye being super silly
It was pretty hot out on Easter, in the 80s I think. Jo was ready to head home before the hunt started.
All the kids waiting to go outside and hunt for eggs.
Rye was worried about the egg hunt the night before. She didn't want to do it because she thought she wouldn't find any eggs. But she started getting them right off the bat.
Joey finding eggs.
There were three 'golden eggs' to find. They had money and extra candy in them. Joey found one. She was very excited to rub thins in Rye's face. Kids!
The girls and their eggs.
Steph's dog, Cooper. I put this in for Jerry. He loves Cooper!

Some Easter Pics 2011

2011-04-26T10:15:00.002-05:00

We went to our friends for bunch and an egg hunt on Easter. We took some pics of the girls before we went down there.
Ryelie
Josefine
Chicas
Ladies
Girls
Eric and his girls
Me and my babies

Updated

2011-04-22T11:00:00.002-05:00

So I have been way behind on this poor blog as of late. Thanks for getting me in gear, Layla. I added a few posts below. I have one more big one to do but I have some other stuff to do around the house first. I'll start you off with this super cute picture I got of Jo the other day. I haven't been able to grab any great ones of Rye as she's never in the house for more than 10 minutes before running outside again. I will work on that.

New Addition

2011-04-22T10:40:00.002-05:00

Well, we're pregnant again. We found out quite a bit ago. Right before Valentine's Day, actually. But I didn't want to post anything and jinx it. Last time left a bit of a bitter taste in my mouth.
So here is the test...
This is the ultrasound I got at my first appointment at the end of March. I was so nervous before and was so relieved to see the baby's heart beating. To add to the drama I found out a couple weeks before my appointment that my blood has created antibodies that could affect the baby. We are keeping a close eye on things and I have to get blood drawn periodically to do so.
These are two pictures from the ultrasound that I got this week. It wasn't planned but the nurse couldn't find the baby's heartbeat with the doppler (which scared me extra because Rye was with me). But she was just looking too high. But I did get more pictures of the wee one. Sadly, it's still too early to see the baby's gender, but we'll get there.

So I'm due October 21st. Right before Joey's 4th birthday. I'm very excited but nervous as well. I sure hope I can handle it all. My next ultrasound is the last day of May. So i'll share more pictures then.

Expanding!

2011-04-22T10:25:00.002-05:00

So we've started Ryelie's orthodontic journey. We had a little trouble at first. They tried the regular bar expander at first but because of the shape and length of her teeth it kept slipping off. I think we replaced it 2 times before they decided to try something new. At first we all thought she was doing something wrong but then other kids in the practice were having the same problems so they came up with something new. They changed her to an expander that it basically a retainer that expands. It has worked great. She can take it out to eat and clean and for me to turn the key. It's been a blessing.

This is her before we started.
This was her teeth after the bar fiasco but before the retainer.
Her first retainer expander, blue with sparkles

We had to get a second retainer made when the first reached it's maximum and started to break. And this is her teeth after the first retainer, when we're first starting with the second.

This is the second retainer, green with sparkles. They said we might have to go through one more before she gets where they want her. These types of expanders take a little bit longer, but it's worth it I think. She's thinking either black or purple with sparkles. She really loves being able to choose the colors.
So that's as far as we've gone. If this second one lasts as long as the first she'll get a new one after a month of using it. Which is about 3 weeks from now. I'll definitely post pics of the new retainer and her teeth at that point. I'm glad I took pictures so I can see the difference. It's hard to notice it in the day to day.

Make-up Fun!

2011-04-22T10:19:00.005-05:00

So rye had a friend spend the night and the girls asked if I would do their make-up. Then Joey had to have hers done as well. I actually had a lot of fun doing it and the girls seemed to like it too. They got to pic out their bright shades and they sat very still.

I love Rye's eyes!
Rye chose blue and green. Her favorite colors.Pardon Jo's bed head. Hers was much harder to see because I put barely any on her.
Rye and Alicia, post make over
All three of my "clients"

Big Snow

2011-04-22T10:11:00.003-05:00

We had a great big snow the day after Christmas and Eric and the girls had a ton of fun out in it.
Eric was so great about taking the girls out. Too cold for me!
Jo would get cold quickly but she wanted to go right back out after getting warm.
She says she makes the perfect snow angels
Rye being buried in snow, alive!
Playing with our neighbor Izzy. They sure had fun

Winter Pics

2010-12-04T17:00:00.003-05:00

Two pics from December, so far. :) This first one is of the girls in front of our Christmas tree. They've been really good this year and are so looking forward to Christmas morning.
We took the girls to the Bass Pro Shop today and they made a snowman sun catcher and got their picture taken with Santa. The Santa was amazing and so sweet. Both girls were a little uncomfortable but luckily we got Jo to take a picture (with promises of a candy cane afterward). The only downside...she told Santa a totally different toy that she wanted. Different than the one she's been telling me she was going to ask him for these past few weeks.Oh well. We'll figure something out. Rye didn't really want her picture taken and asked if this could be her last year. *sniff sniff* She's been questioning Santa's validity as well this year. My girl is growing up. Can't she stay a kid just a little bit longer? That's my Christmas wish!

Family Pics

2010-12-04T16:57:00.002-05:00

Just took a few pics on Thanksgiving before going over to a friend's for dinner. It was a good night over all and we really are blessed with all the friends we've made through the military over the years.

Stepping Stones

2010-12-04T16:49:00.002-05:00

I know it's been a while since I've posted on here. So I have a bit of catching up to do. We made some stepping stones last weekend. It was a two day process but it was really fun. I've had these kits for a couple of years now. Ha! I'm such a procrastinator. But here's how they turned out.

Rye making her hand print.
Jo wasn't too sure about the what was left on her hand.
The Family Stone
Rye's Stone
Joey's Stone

We have one more small turtle left. We'll probably use it for Jasper after we get his hair cut and nails trimmed.

Halloween 2010

2010-10-31T20:09:00.002-05:00

Putting Rye's makeup onJoey was Steve from Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
Rye was a Rocker Devil Child
Just before they went Trick-or-Treating
Me handing out candy in my Gryffindor shirt while Joey ate her candy. She didn't last very long with the trick-or-treating.

Jo is 3!!

2010-10-31T20:00:00.004-05:00

We aren't doing a party until next weekend but we decided, last minute, to do a small cake for Jo on her birthday. Rye was at a sleep over so Jo helped me frost her cake and she opened a couple of presents (we're saving the rest for the party). It was nice, quiet and small. She is becoming quite the little lady and she is cracking me up constantly.Gotta try the icing to make sure it tastes good.

Frosting the cake.
Licking her thumb and frosting, that's mulit-tasking.
Her little cake.
Making a wish. She said, "I wish for a Phinney & Ferb cake."
With her Bloo pillow from Aunt Shari & Uncle Ben.
Playing with her compuric
She's THREE now!

Brookdale Farm=Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-25T08:43:00.006-05:00

Last weekend went to Brookdale Farms and picked out some pumpkins to carve. We took some cute posed pictures first thing.

Then we head into the field to find our pumpkins. Everyone got one.

Then it was on to face painting. Here's Jo waiting during Rye's turn.
Rye had to be different. couldn't choose off the sheet the girl had but chose a red nose and white whiskers instead. Luckily we talked her out of the full black cat face.
I love her eyes.
Jo sat so still during her turn. It's like she was totally afraid to move.
She got a candy corn, cuz she's sweet like candy...and it's her favorite food!
Hit the Soybean Maze next.

Threw in a little Cornhole. Can't wait until we get our set. Yay!

Waiting in line for the hayride.

Our hayride, pulled by Belgian Draft horses. We learned all about them during the ride. Rye loved it.
Both girls were excited to pet Bill & Jake after the ride.

We had a fun time and can't wait to do it again next year.

Pumpkin Carving

2010-10-25T08:36:00.003-05:00

Eric and I helped clean out the girls pumpkins. Rye was pretty grossed out but she did her part. When we got to carving, Eric had to use the BIG KNIFE, because he's very manly. ;) I carved my Jack Skellington and Joey's Perry face. Rye carved out her cat (with a little help from Eric) and Eric did a cute face. They turned out pretty good, if I do say so myself. I had to figure out Perry all by myself, no stencil available. Coincidently, that face is going on Jo's birthday cake. This is something we'll definitely do again next year.

I had to add in this cute one of Jo while she watched us light the pumpkins.

Random Shots

2010-10-25T08:31:00.002-05:00

Some random shots I found when I plugged in my memory card. Not sure if I've shared them or not before. The girls are so cute and my hubby is wicked hot on his bike.

School Picture Time

2010-10-11T12:29:00.006-05:00

Rye had school pictures today so I thought I would take a picture of her before school. You know, because one professional picture of her on the day just isn't enough. ;)

Then, I took one of Jo when she was up and dressed. Before we took her to try out a new park.

And here I'll add in a picture of Eric and Jasper. Anytime Eric lays down on the couch (which is quite frequently, as those who know him can attest to) Jasper has to hop up and cuddle with him. It's pretty cute most of the time, except when I want to do the cuddling. ;) Hehe.

Dog-Hawk

2010-10-07T11:35:00.003-05:00

Last time we got Jasper's hair cut we got him a Dog-Hawk. Haha! Looks good on him! He even had green glitter in it, but you can't see it.

Here's Your Sign

2010-10-07T08:03:00.002-05:00

Sign I made for my niece. She's into fashion and dance. Tried something new. Put it on watercolor paper then colored it in with watercolor pencils and added a bit of water here and there.

The ladies...

2010-10-06T13:01:00.004-05:00

Thought I'd share a few picture of the girls from the last few months. They're all taken with my phone and then put on FB. I realized that there are a few that read this that don't do "the facebook" so I decided to share on here as well. I'm thinking I really need to charge my camera battery and start taking 'real pictures' again. So here we go:
Rye with popsicle face. She's obsessed with these sour ones from the ice cream man.
On her first day of the 4th grade. I miss my baby.
Jo showing off her new shirt and her UNDIES! We've gotten it to just a pull up at bedtime and to poop (sorry if that offends). She is not down with #2 on the potty yet but we're getting there. Nap times are pull up free so we are progressing.
These jean leggings she has totally rock!
She is getting so big and verbal. Not sure if the verbal-ness is good tho. Haha.
Rockin' pig tails.
Rye being Rye....well, the sweet quiet side of Rye. I love this side of Rye.
So those are my girlies, getting big...and making me happy, sad and crazy all at the same time.

Big Trouble, Little Body

2010-10-06T12:56:00.002-05:00

I was on the computer one morning to turn around and find this....

I had pulled a roll of toilet paper out and set it on the counter so that I didn't have to walk to the bathroom every time I needed to wipe Jo's runny nose. Runny noses abound in our house this time of year and maybe it makes me lazy but I can deal with being lazy. Jo had decided to decorate the house while I was other wise occupied. She was very upset when I suggested we clean up her decorations but I did it anyway with the promise that we could get her some 'proper' streamers to decorate with. Jo is definitely a bigger handful than her sister was at this age.

Rain, Rain, Go Away

2010-10-06T12:41:00.003-05:00

We had several days of rain last week. At one point it rained for over 24 hours straight. I thought I'd share a couple of pictures of what our yard looks like when this happens.
Our lake between houses
Right outside the front door. It covers the whole front walkway.
You can kind of see the river that appears behind our backyard
We had a little water get in the thru the back door but nothing major. The road we live off of tho, was flooded both ways out and one off shoot is still closed. These same roads have damage from the water in the areas that have cleared out. It's definitely going to be interesting here. And by interesting, of course I mean irritating. :)

2010-09-30T10:42:00.000-05:00

Please go and read this powerful post...

Our VA Home

2010-09-23T10:01:00.005-05:00

We decided to paint in this house. We've never done it before but we really wanted this place to feel more like a home and none ever really did with the white walls, they just felt transitory (is that a word?). Especially with this being an older house it really needed to be pumped up. We got the three main rooms done before the furniture showed up and have slowly done the others. We still are deciding whether we're going to paint our room and the upstairs bathrooms but we'll get there. Here are pics of what we've done so far.
We used 'Betty Ross House' blue in the living room. Before we got everything in it looked pretty bright but it's a nice pop with everything in there. I really love it. I put up our 'where we've lived' posters above the TV. And the family pics we took in Hawaii over the book case. I'll add some of the ones I shared in the previous post up there when I make hard copies.
Seating in the living room. Kat Reeder art to the left and Heather Brown art to the right. Both outstanding Hawaii artists. I was waiting for a few pieces when this was took
The computer area and Eric's "I love me" wall. We're hoping to get a new file cabinet soon, make the area look more cohesive.

This is a close up of my Kat Reeder wall. I've just found 2 new ones of her that I'll hopefully be adding to the collection soon.
We used a tan in the downstairs half bath. We put up some old pin-up style recruitment posters and got some corner shelves to show off some of Eric's Marine Corps nutcrackers. I'm really pleased with how it turned out.

We used a dark olive green in the dining room and put up the Hawaiian god illustrations I have. We'll eventually get some frames for them but they're on odd size so it'll take a while. We may eventually rearrange the picture layout to fit in some shelves to showcase our crystal and all our ball mugs.
Dining and Entryway. I am planning on stripping and resurfacing that dresser which Eric's Aunt Minnie gave to us. Not sure when I'll get to it but I'm excited for the challenge.

Our entryway. We went with a colonial gray. It's one of my favorite colors in the house.
Joey picked out a lavender for her room and both girls have glitter stirred into the paint. It's really pretty on the walls. Jo said her room was 'just bootiful' when we were done. Made all the hard work worth it.

Ryelie went for 'Lucky Clover' in her room. We're looking for more posters and a new bed, so Jo can have Rye's. Rye made it clear she wanted NO GIRLY COLORS! Greens and blues. We might be able to get some purple but definitely no pink. *sniff sniff*

Missing Hawaii...

2010-09-23T09:37:00.003-05:00

We left the islands about 3 months ago and I have to say that today I am missing them. BIG TIME! I'm not sure why, it's not particularly cold today or too humid...I'm just missing the relaxing atmosphere and the scenery. I'm seriously tearing up looking at pictures from our time there. *sigh* I'm not quite sure what to do with these feelings. A friend from there, that also moved away, told me that she misses it at least once a day and shared this quote with me:

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." ~Dr. Suess

It's so true but it only helps me a tiny bit. Part of me really wants to go back....and if it weren't for the schooling there I would get on Eric to get us back there for our next duty station. But Rye already has such a hard time with school, I'm not sure that it would be fair to put her back into that. I just don't know.

Just wanted to share how I'm feeling right now. I'll post some pics in a few of the house. I need to save them to my computer from my Facebook. Be back soon.

I'm editing this to add on our last Hawaii pics that our friend Anna took for us the weekend before we left. I miss her so much.

Picture of the Day

2010-09-02T17:43:00.003-05:00

I'm sure I won't post one everyday, but I definitely need to get back to taking more pictures. I don't think I've taken any other than on my phone for months. Here we have Jo, showing off her big girl undies and her new Olivia Tee. I hate Olivia, with a piggy vengeance. But my kid loves her. She saw this shirt today and asked for it. I had to get it for her.

Today we had a small triumph in the potty training. She actually pooped on the potty, just a little. For the last month she would only go pee. She down right refused to poop. She's say, 'Mommy, I go poop?" I'd exclaim, "Let's go in the potty!?" She'd calmly reply, "No. I just go poop in my diaper.' Let me tell you, it was frustrating to no end. True, she only got a few little pellets out today before it started hurting, she's a little constipated, so we've given her some raisins and apple juice so maybe we'll get a full one tomorrow. Fingers crossed.
As we speak, Jo is running through her gambit of excuses as to why she can't clean up the toys she threw all over the floor. Like her big sister, she can make a mess but hates to clean it up. Right now, over my shoulder I'm hearing, "my neck hurts, my leg hurts, why do i have to clean up...ow ow ow, owie" It's always something. Hah!

We're supposed to see some Hurricane Earl action tonight. I"ll take pics if I can, though we're supposed to get it pretty late tonight.

Here I Am

2010-08-30T09:22:00.002-05:00

Lots has happened since my last post. We packed up and left our home in Hawaii. We stayed a month in Pennsylvania with family. We had lots of fun there. We always enjoy our time there. And now we're pretty much settled in our new house in Virginia. We've actually painted and are trying to make this at least feel like a more permanent home. We're tired of always feeling while we're just "staying" some place. I'll take some pictures and post them for those that don't have access to Facebook. I have to admit, it's look pretty darn good.

Rye had her 9th birthday and will be starting the 4th grade in a little over a week. It's hard for me to wrap my mind around that little tidbit. She is growing out of all her clothes and we'll soon have to go on a major shopping excursion to beef up her essentials.

Joey in the midst of her extremely terrible twos. Her attitude leaves something to be desired. It's something we're constantly working. My favorite mantra with her right now...'this too shall pass'. I just really hope it passes quickly. She'll be 3 in only 2 months. I swear she was just born. I get choked up every time I start to think about it. It's doubly weird now that we're back where we 'made' her. Hehe.

Eric is back at work. He'll be something new and I think that's always good. He's been home a lot more than he was in Hawaii. It's taking some getting used to but we're enjoying the family time.

I too have found a part time job. It's right here on base. I'll be working at the ITT office (Information, Tickets & Tours). I won't be working in the office but in the rec type cyber center they have set up for single service members. The use the computers and watch movies and do events. Stuff like that. Just a way to get out of the house and get my foot into the 'work force' again. We'll see how it works out. Still not totally sure about the 'third kid' situation so this will be a test in a way...I guess....

Anyway, I need to run to the library to return some books. I'll take and post some house pictures when I return.

Beach Pics

2010-05-28T15:45:00.002-05:00

Some photos from the beach a few weeks ago. Our friend Anna took them. I love how the ring ones turned out.

Our family...

It's been almost 10 years and it's only getting better...

Still Here...

2010-05-24T13:40:00.002-05:00

And I have a computer. Just no way too upload pics. Eric has been having troubles with his computer so I don't want to add more trouble. I have a couple friends that have some pictures for me on CD, so I'll try and get them and share. We took a nice hike up to the Lanikai Pillboxes on Friday. It was really fun and such fanstastic views. I want to get Eric up there before we leave. Only a little over 4 weeks left in the Aloha State and I wish I'd started appreciating where we live earlier. So much beauty here. Maybe we'll take a family hike this we weekend. I'll talk it over with the boss.
Looking forward to our visit with the family in PA. Can't wait to see everyone.

Hiatus

2010-05-18T12:34:00.002-05:00

I know I haven't been on much and it's gonna get even skimpier for the next 2 months. They're coming to pack up our house this morning and I will be without my beloved computer for at least a month until we get to the parents house and can use theirs. I hope I have not gone completely insane by then. I'm just sayin'...

On the Wall..

2010-05-06T04:29:00.003-05:00

I got my pictures on the wall...in frames. Eric is very happy about this, as I still have 5 military pin-up pieces that I got long ago and they still have not found their way into frames. Sorry babe. I'll try. I am so pumped to get more stuff from Kat and Heather. I am coming up with more ideas. Hehe.

Meet & Greet

2010-05-03T02:10:00.004-05:00

Today I went down to the gallery in Waikiki, that I first saw the artists mentioned in the previous post, with my friend Anna. There was an autograph signing with Kat Reeder. AWESOME! She was super nice and I totally forgot my camera. Boo! But I bought the Triple Crown poster and I bought my first print. What's even cooler is that she just finished the original today...and made up prints to bring to the signing. So we're one of the firsts to get it. It's so pretty and I love love love it. I shall post a picture below, it is titled Island Sunrise:

I almost bought a print of the postcard I posted in the last post but I figure I'll just frame the postcard instead. Now I just need to get a few of Heather Brown's and I'm set. Yay.

I. am. in. LOVE.

2010-04-22T01:11:00.005-05:00

So this last weekend I went out with two girlfriends. We had a blast in Waikiki. We had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and went out dancing. More on that later when I get the pictures from my friend.
What I am posting about today is an artist I found out about while down in Waikiki. She's featured at many of the shops down there and from what I heard they have a ton of her stuff up in a town called Haleiwa, by the North Shore. She is an amazing artist. I wish I'd seen her stuff right when we got here. My living room would have her art all over the walls and it would stop looking like a college apartment and start looking like a grown up house, as Eric likes to say. The artist's name is Heather Brown (I will link her name to her site). She is mad talented. If anyone ever wants to get me presents, birthday, christmas...this is what to get me. Once I start getting her stuff I will post a list on my sidebar or something so everyone knows what I have. Hehe. That's not too pushy, is it? Just trying to be helpful. ;)

I will try and post a pic below. It might be copyrighted so I don't know if it will work. Both her and this other artist I found out about down there did posters for a surf competition so I might be able to post those. This is Heather's stuff:

This other art that I saw and I really like is by a lady named Kat Reeder. Her stuff is very retro and very me (well, a side of me). I bought a post card with of hers. I so love it. This is it, and below is another of her painting (it reminds me of Layla):

Anyway...besides the regular hub bub of life not much is going on. We're working on our list of stuff to do before the move. We have lots of stuff to plan out. We're hoping to leave Hawaii by June 21st. I'm kind of a sad person. Now that we're getting ready to leave...I'm realizing just how much I'll miss the laid back life style here. It really does suit us. I've never been the 'cram as much crap as you can into your day' type of person, and Hawaii is definitely a place to lounge and live restfully. I'm hoping we can enjoy it as much as possible before we leave. We'll definitely be back to visit...if not to retire.

Update...

2010-04-09T19:52:00.003-05:00

It's all changed again. We will be moving to Virginia this summer. 100% positively!
Hopefully spending some time up in Pennsylvania with family before we settle down there. We're moving back to the area we were in before Hawaii. It will be nice to know our way around. School districts, places to play & eat....we have a good idea on it all. We're putting in for base housing but we're also looking for a rental out in town. It's always nice to have some BAH left over. These next two months will be busy busy busy. I hope I don't get too stressed.

Pork Roast

2010-04-06T02:12:00.002-05:00

So my little sis posted a link to a Crockpot Carnival, so I went on over to check it out. I decided to share my all time favorite crockpot recipe. Many have heard my claims about it, as well as my sister in laws. It is insanely good. Here is it:

Pepsi Pork Roast

1 pkg pork tenderloin.

1 (12 ounce) can Pepsi
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 (1 1/4 ounce) package onion soup mix

optional: 3/4 bag of baby carrots

baby red potatoes, halved

1. If using the carrots and potatoes put them in the bottom of the crockpot. Place tenderloin on top. Season tenderloin with salt and pepper.

2. Mix together soup and onion soup mix. Add in can of Pepsi. (it will be lumpy) Pour over top of tenderloin.

3. Cook in crockpot on low 6-8 hours or high 3-4 hours.

If you use the carrots and veggies there will be less sauce. If you just use the tenderloin the sauce makes an outstanding gravy over mashed potatoes.

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do.

La Famiglia

2010-03-25T18:11:00.007-05:00

A little update on our family. Not much has been going on here. I had my follow up appointment and everything is going really well. I basically got a clean bill of health. The doc just warned that I would probably get tired more easily since my blood counts are still building back up. Having Eric come home early from CAX was such a blessing. His help in the little things around here gave me the rest I really needed. He is the meglio, the best!

As of now, Eric will be deploying with the unit he moved to in February. So this will be the 3rd year in a row that he'll be gone for 7 months. *sigh* I'm okay with it. To be honest, I'm just glad to know. But we will definitely miss him. Something awful! I am hoping and praying that Skype will be as readily available as it was last deployment. It was such a comfort to the girls and me. I will be buckling down this deployment. No traveling this time, I will be working hard on putting money in savings and on bills so when we do finally leave Hawaii and lose all the COLA and extra we get from 802 housing that it won't be a bother. I am going to be better about taking the girls to the beach and to the pool. We need to enjoy what we have here, while we have it.

One cost we will have to deal with is getting Rye to the orthodontist. Her teeth are very crowded in that mouth of hers and I think she's gonna need to get her palette expanded. Rye is doing really well in school, even if she claims that she hates it. Her math is improving and she's kicking butt in spelling. Her cursive has improved tremendously as well. I wish I had more pictures of her, but she's usually in a crappy, pouty mood or she's outside.

Jo is growing up so fast. She is talking more like a person and less like a toddler all the time. Unfortunately that sometimes means that a whole lot of attitude is included in what she's saying but she's learning.

Jasper is getting big as well. I'm not sure what he'll do when Eric leaves. He is definitely Eric baby, as you can see in the following pics. Rye can be hot & cold with him. Loving him one part of the day, thoroughly annoyed by him later.

I'll leave you with his last picture that Joey took while she was playing with Eric. I heart it, so much.

Mini Bike Time

2010-03-25T17:59:00.003-05:00

Joey loves Eric's motorcycle, she calls it the MiniBike, and nothing gets her more excited than hearing the rumble of minibike coming up the driveway. She loves to be out in the garage with Eric when he's wiping down the bike. It's so sweet to see her out there with him, having the 'discussions'.

Here the two of them are wiping down minibike.

She loves to act like she knows just what she's doing
We might have a chopper girl on our hands
Eric got a new head light for the bike. It looks pretty cool. He was a list of a few other things he'd like to get as well, to make it more him.

Adventure?

2010-03-14T01:43:00.003-05:00

Not sure whether this qualifies as an adventure....a scare...but we'll go with adventure to put a more positive spin on it. ;)

So, since my miscarriage I have patiently been waiting for my 'auntie' to show. Tuesday afternoon I thought the time had finally come. I was actually pretty excited. But within a half hour I had to change clothes and another half hour after that and about 10 minutes after that. After that I finally figured out to have a pad on as well as my tampon. *If this is TMI, veer away from this page now* Around 6 hours, 3 heavy duty pads and 10 super tampons later I made a call to the on call physician at our hospital. He told me this was definitely not normal and that I should get my tail to the ER asap. He suggested going to Castle, since it was closer & because I planned on driving myself. I felt fine, I didn't need an ambulance. I got there and they got me in a bed pretty quickly. The doctors and staff were great. I, of course, answered the same questions about 20 times. They did an exam and an ultrasound. The doctor there called Tripler and they decided that I should head there for a d&c. I should say that they offered me a d&c when I first miscarried but the doctor said she'd rather see if I could pass everything on my own, like I had done the first time. The Castle doctor then told me that since I had lost a good amount of blood already they were going to transport my via ambulance, they didn't want my passing out on the drive over. I am very thankful for that. While waiting for the transport to arrive there were several times I felt about ready to pass out.

I got to Tripler and the doctors there were great too. I waited to be seen by the doc and had a very helpful Murse with me. I tried to sleep, it was after 1 am by this point. The doc finally came into see me and I'm pretty sure I passed out while talking to him. I remember feeling like I was going to puke one second and him saying, 'ma'am can you hear me' the next. They got a little more hurried after that. They did another pelvic exam. And in cam a nurse to have my sign blood transfusion consent forms. BLOOD TRANSFUSION?? That stopped my heart a little. Was I really that bad? Had I lost that much? They explained the necessity, I signed and around 345 I was being wheeled up to surgery. This whole time I wasn't caring about being there alone. I was wishing I were home with my girls, I was hoping everything would go well and that they wouldn't be growing up without a Mommy. That's how scared I got for a minute. When I woke up from surgery and was told everything went well and I'd be fine. I sent up the biggest thank you I ever have in my whole life, after I puked. ;)

I spent an extra night in the hospital than I would have had it just been a d&c and not a blood transfusion as well. I am glad I did. On top of the stress of that I had just started my p90x again. I was so sore on top of being exhausted from the procedure. My nursers in recovery and my doctor were outstanding. Now, I have heard many a horror story about Tripler (or Cripler as some people refer to it) but I have to tell you...every time something has happened or I've been seen there...I've had not an ounce of trouble *knock on wood, just in case*

Everything is good and it turned out to be a blessing in disguise for a couple of reasons, the most important being that Eric gets to come home early. He should be here tomorrow. I am still very tired and get light headed quite easily. But I am feeling better more and more each day. I have a follow up with the doc in 2 weeks and I'm hoping he'll okay me to start working out again. I don't want to push it...but I also don't want to use it as an excuse to laze about too long.

"Play Park"

2010-02-21T00:06:00.002-05:00

Rye is spending the night at a friend's tonight. So, I took Jo to the Super Park. We haven't been in so long. Seriously, it's been forever. SHe had fun and when it was time to leave to was, "No. Play park!" She was a little more tentative there than she used to be. I had to hold her hand across the bridge and down the slide. She wasn't too sure about the swings either. I guess I need to start taking her there more often again. So here are the pictures. She's getting so big and she is such a beauty already. It makes me sad that she's growing up so fast.

Girls Night In

2010-02-20T19:48:00.004-05:00

The girls and I had a nice night together last night. Very relaxed, for the most part. We had dinner and the girls played pretty nicely together in the living room. Here are some cute pics from the night.
Rye's self portrait
Jo after her hair do
Rye put Jo's hair into a ponytail. Jo sat very still for her.
Cheesing for me!
Then Jo got to be the stylist. Rye was very nice, even when Jo banged her in the head with the hairbrush.
Poor Jasper, he was used as a doll last night. Rye put her Build-a-Bear's robe on him. He didn't seem to mind too much. It is very soft. :)
Rye made this at the end of the night. Last week she went to the mall with her friend and they had their pictures taken with some Chinese dragon's for the New Year. This is her dragon skin. I'll try and get the pictures form the girl's Mom to share.

Last night was good. I need to cling to night like that, so when night that aren't like that roll around, I don't get too crazy.

Obsession

2010-02-17T15:09:00.002-05:00

Jo's first obsession was with the ever popular Yo Gabba Gabba. She took her friends with her to bed and every where else with her. Jo still loves her Gabbas and her best friend Brobee but she has some new friends to add. As of late Jo has been loving Wow Wow Wubzy..A LOT! I found these stuffed versions for her at a great price. She claims they are now her 'fay-vitt'. She is now watching WWW in the same position she is in the picture below. Only with a slightly more tired look on her face.

2010-02-16T23:12:00.001-05:00

New blog...all about tattoos, getting fit and shopping. Check out the link in my sidebar.

Sea Gals Visit

2010-02-13T15:04:00.002-05:00

The Seattle Sea Gals came and did a mini cheer camp at the base. Our neighbor invited Rye along. She had a really good time. Here are a couple pics.

Here is a video of Rye doing the cheer they learned. She did pretty well for how uncoordinated she can be.

Oh and here's a random shot of a rainbow over the house. The one with the blue grill is ours. ;) Even when it's raining there's still something pretty to look at.

Cuteness...

2010-02-13T14:43:00.004-05:00

Just a couple shots I took of Jo to show how long her hair is getting. She is getting too big, too fast. She's talking like a crazy woman now. I can't believe how fast it's gone.

Hehe, the darker side of Rye. She didn't want Joey taking a picture of her.
Another of Joey in the kennel. She likes to get in there with Jasper.

Jo is so sweet and pretty when she's sleeping. I just had to try and capture it.

One More Year

2010-02-06T23:16:00.002-05:00

So, news from the home front. We will be staying in Hawaii for one more year. Eric has changed battalions and will be deploying again sooner, rather than later. He'll be gone most of the year again but it will be okay. We talked about this a lot. We really wanted to get one more deployment in before we left here and this way instead of leaving around Christmas time, he'll be coming home. I in no way think this deployment will be easy. It's gonna be tough. This will be the 3rd year in a row he's missed our anniversary, his birthday, my birthday, Rye's birthday, Father's Day, Mother's Day. Not only that but the 3rd year in a row he'll be gone for half of the year. It will be a struggle but I know we can come out the other side stronger than we are now. I am counting on Skype to help up through this again.

Keep us in your prayer, I have a feeling we're gonna need them.

Hale Koa Pool

2010-02-06T22:55:00.003-05:00

So we made our way down to Honolulu yesterday to the pool at the Hale Koa Hotel. It's a hotel for military and at one of their pools you can get in with a military id. It's such a nice pool and it's so much fun to go there. I really need to head down with the girls more often. We had a lot of fun. Eric did most of the pool time as my tattoo was still healing a bit (ps, i got 2 new tattoos last week. hehe). Eric's camera is so cool. I was able to get a few underwater shots too. Rye's friend, Juliana, came with us which was nice for her.

Joey humoring me with one more picture
Here she's yelling across the pool for Juliana & Rye to come back. You can see Rye splashing back there.
Just a beautiful picture of my baby.
Here she is talking...and talking...and talking. She is quite the talker now.
It's so hard to get her to say 'cheese' to the actual camera.

Rye & Jo with Juliana

The Chicas

My favorite part. The girls loves getting their pictures done underwater. Even in their individual pictures have both of them in there. I liked that.

Girls

2010-01-25T14:31:00.002-05:00

Couple random girl shots from vacation and some of Jo since we've been home. I'll add some of the cute snow pics I have of them and a video when I get back from the bank. The girls fight, a lot. But they can be so sweet together sometimes, I guess those little times will have to tide me over till they get bigger and hopefully get along better.Chillin', watching morning cartoons. Jo's usually nicer in the morning.
5 seconds after this Jo was pushing Rye off the rocking horse
At least Rye and I are looking...
My baby, she's getting so big

Conflicted

2010-01-20T03:05:00.003-05:00

I know I haven't written a non family related post in a while....I guess this is kind of related, some what. I'm having this inner conflict.

On one hand...I see my friends with new babies and I want to try again. I want another member of our little family, I new child to love. I mean, most days I love being a Mom and taking care of my family.

On the other...I have friends that are finding their hobbies and their passions and turning them into a job. And I'm slightly jealous of that. To have time to myself, to work on something I care about, to earn something.

I just don't know what path to take, what's right for me. I know no one can tell me what to do, that it's a decision we have to make...I'm just putting this out there. Something I can look at and read. Doesn't it help to see things written out.

Why can't there be a little guide book we each have. That, when life puts one of these life choices and you're having a hard time figuring it out you could just pick up said book, thumb through the pages and find out which choice would take you where. I mean, there are choices that I have no problem seeing where we should head. This has just always been a tough one for me.

I hate it. Bah! Maybe I'll feel better in the morning.

New Years

2010-01-13T19:26:00.006-05:00

We started out our night at the Hibachi. It's one of those Japanese Steak Houses where they give you a show with dinner. Jerry & Emily were brave, I mean great, enough to watch all the kids so us couples could have a dinner out, kid free. *insert the hallelujah chorus here* We had a lot of fun. Everyone caught a shrimp, except me. Of course I had to get shots of everyone at dinner. R&L
B&S
US
G&M
After dinner, before the house making we took a crap load of pictures of the family. It's not very often that we're all together so we have to take advantage of it.
Had of take a self portraitFeel the love
Blue meets Joey
REady to ring in the new year, or at least make a bunch of noise for a while
Our girls
Rye
The grand kids
The Couples
The brothas
The Wifeys
Das Family
Then we put the kids to bed and did our houses. After making the houses, we counted down with mini toasts of champagne, in little chocolate shot cups. We all then welcomed in the New Year with a kiss with our better half.
R&L
G&M
J&E
B&S
US
All in all, it was one of the best New Year's I've had in a long time. I think that's all I'll be able to post at this time. I'll try and get back on later tonight and catch up some more.

Gingerbread Madness...

2010-01-13T18:54:00.003-05:00

Gingerbread houses were all the rage this holiday season in the Longo family. It all started with Rye & Meghan building houses. Then Eric made a tiny one out of graham crackers for Jo. He "helped" her decorate it, which really means he decorated it while she ate M&Ms (because she didn't want to get icing on her fingers). Then we got the brilliant idea that each couple in the family should decorate one on New Year's Eve. Some didn't take it as seriously, you know who you are (Randy & Greg). We had so much fun. Each house turned out so different from the others. It was a blast.
Here are the girls and their houses.
Rye
Meghan
Jo eating while Eric decorates
notice her chocolatey teeth
most of us, hard at work
Eric & I worked until the last second
Hog Heaven
The Hermit House
The Dawg House
The "Rainbow" House
The Longo Inn
I think we'll do this again. For sure, I honestly can't wait.

Pictures

2009-12-10T23:00:00.001-05:00

I am having some trouble with my memory card reader. I'll try and figure something out, such as using Eric's camera. I had some cute pics too. Rrrr!

12.8 Trouble Maker

2009-12-08T22:04:00.002-05:00

The terrible twos are in full effect in our household. Jo is into EVERYTHING! She is testing the limits constantly. Tormenting her older sister and the dog. Then she gets so upset when they get mad at her. She seems to be a lot more intense than Rye was. At least with some things. She is definitely a button pusher.

It's so hard to remember to keep a straight face when she's doing something so funny but so wrong. It's a work in progress.

Bath Time

2009-12-07T13:48:00.002-05:00

Does this picture look familiar Liz?
Playing peekaboo
being a vampire, like max on max & rubys' halloween episode
cheesy grin
jo likes to close her eyes alot...like if she closes them you're not talking to her or you're not there.

12.6

2009-12-07T13:46:00.003-05:00

Just a little picture to share what a hottie my hubby is when he goes for a bike ride. Very Nice!

December Pictures

2009-12-06T03:08:00.008-05:00

I'm joining Heather and Beth in a picture a day for December. I think I'm just gonna do some for the first days here since I'm just starting.
I don't have pictures from everyday but I have at least 2 from some days. So I'm just going to share what I've got so far.
12.1 Jo likes to drag Jasper around
& he likes to jump

Rye got her haircut today too. She's like me...growing it out, cutting it....growing it out, cutting it

12.3 Jo likes to make faces...

...and take weird pictures of us.

12.4 She also likes to take pictures of EVERYTHING in the house. So much so that the batteries in my camera never last very long. Though she does grab some interesting stuff sometimes. This is her 'mailbox'

She also likes taking pics of Jasper, or Jaba as she calls him

12.5 Jo is still obsessed with YGG, here's a shot of Plex

And here they are together, longing for the out of doors. Jasper will whine if someone leaves the house and he doesn't get to go with.

Umm, so it's kind of sad but most of these were not taken by me, but by Joey. Shows you how much she steals my camera. Good think we got her one for Christmas. She's gonna love it.

Birthday Cake

2009-11-02T00:56:00.005-05:00

The Cake
Lighted
Singing
I do what now?
Make a wish!
Immediately wanting to play with the toys. Our friends, Malinda, Chucky & Austin
Icing on the elbow, due to reaching for Toodee
It tastes way better than she's making it look
Gotta play before I eat
Yummy!
Feed me Daddy!
I'm 2!Singing "Happy to you" to her friends
Jo has really come alive since Eric has gotten home. She has become quite the crazy one. She's so funny, goofy and silly. She's putting together a lot more words too. Some of her favorite phrases are: move dad, my spot, my turn, my toy, tummy hurt, leg hurt, no like it, no wanna.She usually pulls out the 'leg hurt, tummy hurt' when she doesn't want to walk or throw something in the garbage. It's only slightly amusing.Some of the things she says really amaze me, but to be honest I can't think of any of them right now. I'll try and be better about writing them down before I forget them.

Halloweeny 2009

2009-11-02T00:48:00.003-05:00

This year we had Yo Gabba Gabba's DJ Joey Rock and a 50s Hop Diva. This girls had fun and we only had to venture down 2 streets before they were ready to come home. Gotta love that. It was so nice having Eric home with us for the fun.

Jazzy Jasper!

2009-11-02T00:42:00.003-05:00

This here puppy, named Jasper, will become the newest member of our family later this month. He's come over to visit twice and is much loved already. We can't wait for him to be with us full time.

Random Dad Time!

2009-11-02T00:36:00.002-05:00

Coming Home

2009-10-29T18:44:00.004-05:00

We have been so blessed with Eric's homecomings. I've heard stories of them being delayed over and over again. His last one he came in right on time, no changes. This time, we were delayed 2 & half hours, then back tracked and hour and a half.
He is home, safe and sound and we could not be more happy. Here are some pictures.

Putting up the sign last night
Looking for Eric. when we pulled up the plane was already there and guys were coming off. I'd have felt horrible if we weren't there when he got off. Lucky us he was farther back on the plane.
Others homecoming banners
guys deboarding
hugs and love. jo was very shy
they're making the same face

this was jo the whole time we were there. she started warming up in the car and now she's all spazzy around him, very cute.
can't get enough kisses
hanging out, rye chatting dad's ear off
together again

I DID IT!!

2009-10-29T04:05:00.002-05:00

With the exception of Jo's costume, which I still have a couple days to take care of, I finished my whole list. So proud of myself. Eric will be home in less than 12 hours and I doubt that I'll sleep much tonight. I can't wait to see his smile. His smile always gets me.

A little hiccup, the woman that was going to take some homecoming pictures for us won't be able to make it. She works during the week and has to save her leave time for when her new little baby arrives. I totally understand, but I'm a little bummed. My friend, Malinda, is going to come with her camera and take some pictures for us instead. They won't be professional quality but I know we'll get some good shots. I just want to be in some pictures too. Is that really vain of me? I 'm hoping we can get one to go in the Christmas card.

Malinda's husband doesn't come home until next week and she changed her plans to help me out tomorrow. I really appreciate it. I'm going to return the favor next week when her husband flies in.

Anyways...I'll share pictures soon and I'm sure Eric will call who he needs to call and we'll have some much deserved family time. I CAN'T WAIT! He better appreciate this effin' clean house! Hehe, I'm kidding...I'm really not....but I really am. :P

This week

2009-10-26T01:33:00.014-05:00

I have a lot to do this week, in preparation for "the man's" return. We are so excited and we have an official meeting tomorrow at 1830 to get the flight times. Eric already told me what they've been told (I was lucky enough to catch him online on yahoo yesterday) but it will be nice to have it confirmed. Of course these are estimated times and they often change throughout the week. But I am looking forward to a good weekend. I probably won't post much this week, I'll be too busy cleaning and "preparing". I am going ot post a list of all I have to do this week and cross it off as we go. Hopefully this will make the week go by faster and my list get shorter, quicker. So, away we go:

~~~Kitchen~~

~~dishes~~
floors
counters/appliances
table
~Living room
vacuum
pick up toys
~~sofa, vacuum out & wash covers~~

~~clean tv area~~

~~~Entryway & Hallway~~

~~shoes away~~

~~de-clutter~~

~~~Office Areas~~

~~de-clutter~~
file bills away
trash

~~wipe down surfaces~~

~~~Laundry Room~~

~~~Downstairs Bathroom~~

~~mirrors~~
counter/sink
toilet
~~trash~~

~~floor~~

~~~Playroom~~

~~toys away (rye)~~
~~de-clutter~~

~~vacuum (rye wants to do this)~~

~~~Girls Room~~

vacuum
sheets
de-clutter

~~trash~~

~~~Bedroom~~

de-clutter
~~vacuum~~
~~sheets~~

~~laundry away~~

~~~Upstairs Bathroom~~

mirrors
counter/sink
~~de-clutter~~
toilet
tub
floors

~~trash~~

~~~Finish Banner~~

~~~Rye Dentist~~

~~~Hang up Banner~~

~~~Rye Teacher Conference~~

~~~Monday meeting for flight times~~

~Jo's Costume

~~~Buy Eric's "stuff"~~

~~~Wax Appt?~~

Saints Alive, that is one long list. I'll get thru it as well as I can. Don't want to stress out too much and be a mess when he gets home. I can't wait. Yay!!

update: finished the sign, almost. it's gotta dry before i can touch up the boots with a sharpie. what do you think?

More Joey

2009-10-25T03:24:00.003-05:00

I can't get enough of how cute this little girl is. I just had to share. I'd have more pics of Rye but she's never in the house. Always outside playing.

In other news...could this be a new tattoo design? Maybe for Mother's Day? Rye drew it for me, isn't it GREAT?!

Craft & Share

2009-10-23T00:04:00.003-05:00

So, I've started getting back into knitting and started up crocheting. It's been coming back to me. Here are a few things I've been working on.
These are hats I made for the girls I originally was only making one for Jo because I didn't know how it would go so I just bought one for Rye. But she loved Jo's so much, I made her one too.

This is a Drop Knit Scarf I started. It's slow going, not as mindless a task as some of the other stuff is. I really love the yarn it's made of it. Let me know if you want it when I'm done. No promises on perfection though. ;) Sorry the pic is a little blurry.
I bought a Wonder Woman t-shirt to wear for Trick or Treating with the girls. I thought it would be fun to crochet come WW Cuffs out of silver string. Mine won't deflect bullets like hers will but they'll work. And Rye will love playing with them when I'm done.
On another note. Jo is completely day potty trained. She basically did this all by herself folks! There were actually days when I said, "Please just go in your diaper, I'm in the middle of something." But, no dice! It's been 3 or 4 days with no wetness in her pull-ups all through the day, not even at nap time. She even asks to go potty when we're out. She still wears a diaper to bed, but I have noticed she it's getting less full in the morning. My baby is getting big.

The Deep Clean

2009-10-19T04:21:00.003-05:00

It's that time. It's getting closer to Eric's return and it's time for the house to get a thorough cleaning and de-cluttering. I'm thinking of assigning zones to days and just going top to bottom. When I'm done with the days zone, I can either start something else or consider myself done for the day and work on some other projects I have going. Once I've done an area I'll try and keep it maintained and then give the house a good going over the day of or before he gets back.

I've decided to start with the down stairs...

Zone 1: Kitchen

Zone 2: DS Bathroom , Entryway & Laundry Room

Zone 3: Office Areas

Zone 4: Playroom

Zone 5: Living Room

I may combine zones 2 and 3. So, I'll start that tomorrow along with getting back into my exercise routine. I'll update my progress on here, not that any of you really care about about my progress, it's more for me.

I'm About to Blow Your Mind

2009-10-18T01:36:00.003-05:00

September 2008

September 2009

Is that not the craziest change EVER! I can't believe how much she has changed in just a year.

Picture Pages

2009-10-17T22:47:00.002-05:00

Just a few pictures to share.
Rye with the necklace & bracelet she made with Shrinky Dinks.
Rye with the hat we bought off Etsy.com for her. Covers her ears and everything. She loves it. And purple looks so good on her.
These are two dishcloths I crocheted. I'm learning.
Jo going on the big girl potty. We're working on it. On her insistence. She's doing great.

2009-10-15T14:23:00.000-05:00

Dwelling on the negative simply contributes to its power.

For Layla Joyce

2009-09-30T20:18:00.002-05:00

Layla, I don't know if you remember giving Joey this doll for her birthday last year but THANK YOU! This little thing is one of Jo's best friends. She cares for her like her own baby and loves to share her nap time with either her or her favorite bear, Bayo. This little doll has been dubbed Penny and she is loved very dearly. Thank you again.

I just though I'd share this last picture because Jo took it. She loves carrying around my camera and snapping pictures. I had to help her actually get someone in the pictures but I have lots of pictures of legs carpets and the TV. Haha.

Jo's World

2009-09-29T20:09:00.004-05:00

Jo's world is a simple world. One of laughter and pretend. Sometimes I just look at her in her crazy glasses or in the midst of being a mommy and I just smile. And I realize how much I miss being a kid. Finding fun in the simplest things. Entertaining yourself for endless amounts of time...with nothing but imagination. Here are some pictures of her enjoying herself over the last few days.
Here she is feeding her baby...
Jo loves her sunglasses. Here she is wearing them with a WAY cute dress my Mom made for her. Thanks Mom!
Just being cute!
Chilling with Rye's Hannah Bear and her shades, watching Yo Gabba Gabba most likely.
Today Joey took a nap in Rye's big girl bed. When we were in WA she would nap on the air mattress. She did really well in the bed. Didn't fall out or anything. I had to take pictures of her, of course. Not sure if we'll move her to one yet. We'll just stick with nap time for now.

Jo's Birthday/Halloween

2009-09-24T20:38:00.004-05:00

Sooo, change of plans for Halloween. I have decided against the witch costume. Jo doesn't like it. It's scratchy and it's too warm here for a tee layered underneath. I found the costume below online and I think I can recreate it for my little chica. It won't be exactly the same, but I'm hoping it will come out okay. She is WAY into Yo Gabba Gabba right now. We probably watch that and Blue's Clues 20 times a day. Always before bedtimes. I got the leggings and a shirt I think will work. I need to paint on the stripes. I also need to find a belt. I have the hat and glasses figured out. They actually sell a set online as a toy. I know she won't get what I'm dressing her up as, but I think when she sees the pictures she'll love it.
We are definitely doing a YGG theme for her birthday. My friend Maciana makes cakes and she's going to recreate the one before for the party. Only DJ Lance's head with be cake. We won't have that many people here. One of Jo's gifts will be a figurine set of the YGG characters, those will be used around the bottom of the cake. I can't wait. We'll hold the party the day after Eric gets home. Timing wise I think that's best. He can just laze on the couch while I take care of everything. I'm excited to plan it and see it come to fruition. I'll keep you all posted.

Rye and I are still talking over what she wants to be. There is this leopard print dress type thing with boa feathers all over it. I'll post a picture below.

I'm not feeling it. We're going to have to discuss it...A LOT!

Picturas

2009-09-24T02:43:00.003-05:00

Okaaaay! Here are some recent pictures. I have not been great with the camera. Apologies! Away we go...
My latest tattoo, what?!
The girls talking with Daddy
Can you see him on there? Hehe.
Jo when her costume started itching her. Must fix that.
Most likely she'll be this witch, unless I can pull of this other costume that would be killer.
Jo likes to get up here and point out her Daddy. Sweet, no?
The girls hanging out Saturday morning. Jo watching Rye play the DS. She likes to yell at Rye's dogs on the NintenDogs. Rye being goofy.
Jo having to do what Rye does.
I have about 10 pictures of Jo with her "eyes closed." She's really just watching the TV.
Jo rocking the ponytail! Love it!

That's about it for now. Not much new going on here. Just counting down the days until Eric comes home. There still seems like there's way too many. We're getting there though. ;)

More updates

2009-09-23T19:15:00.003-05:00

We have a date for Eric's arrival. We're very excited. I'm deciding what to do about Jo's birthday. Maybe post pone it until that weekend. I'm thinking a Yo Gabba Gabba theme. (I don't mean to bite off you JenJen)

He has also decided to put in for orders to Bridgeport, CA. Apparently they need instructors. So we'll be up in the mountains with our friends Buck & Layla (sorry to follow you everywhere guys). We'll be there waiting on word about the package he'll be putting in when he gets home. We'll be out inthe middle of no where, from what I hear...but on a good not. We'd only be 9 hours driving from my little sister and only 14 or so from home. Yay! He's put in for around an August 2010 date. So we'll see when his orders come back. It's not final yet, but I'll let you know when it is.

I have some pictures to share. I'll have to do that in a few minutes. Have to get some stuff started for dinner. Then I'll come back and do that.