catch-up!!

Ivy is growing up too fast and she LOVES her daddy!

She follows him around and cries when he walks out the door.

Lilly's choice of shoes. She is quite the fashionista.

Sibling Day at the preschool! I had Bear and Alli with me so it was double the fun!

I can't believe that we have one last week of preschool and Lilly is a kindergartner! She has grown so much this last year and she is SO excited for kindergarten.......as am I!

Maddy's 80's party!

What a beauty!

F.A.T.

What is the one word that women don't want to be called......okay I guess there are a few words that women don't want to be called. But I am pretty sure that for 99% of us there is one word that starts with an F and ends with a T......and has an A in the middle......that we don't want to be called, especially on a regular basis! Am I right ladies?

So Lilly has started displaying some of her obsessive tendencies lately with certain words, this "certain word" with an A in the middle is one of them. She has decided that she needs to inform me of every person that she knows or sees that she thinks is fat. And guess what......I made her list! Infact I think I am her number one! Which means that she wants to inform me of this multiple times a day!

We have had many conversations now when she is pointing out the lady at McDonalds that is "you know what" that this isn't a nice thing to say and that it doesn't make people feel good. I have explained how everyone is made differently and that it doesn't matter BLAH BLAH BLAH. All I really want to say is stop calling people FAT!!!! And by people I mean ME!!!!! Frankly I don't care if you whisper to me that the lady walking down the street is fat or that the man checking the groceries is fat, as long as you just whisper it to me. But when you won't stop whispering to ME that I am FAT, I can't handle it anymore.

So I finally got her to stop saying people were fat but she has still decided that I must not forget that I am fat. So we are driving in the car, or walking down the street, or going to bed, or eating lunch (you get the drift right.....it is ALL DAY), and she will say to me, "Mom remember what I said about you?" To which I have to respond, "Yes Lilly." Because if I don't respond this way she will say, "But mom I just want you to remember what I said. Just remember what I said about you."...............seriously? There is nothing worse than feeling pretty good and having a good day and then having your 5 year old remind you that she thinks you are fat. Gotta love kids..........right, I do have to right?

Did I mention that she also tells me that daddy is really skinny? Do I still have to love her?

mommies in training

Every year the girls look forward to take your child to work day. Probably just as much for going to work with daddy as getting out of a day of school. So Thursday night we were all in the kitchen and girls brought up that it had been take your child to work day that day and that like half their class was gone. I hadn't realized it was that day and though Dustin knew that it was, he also knew that he wasn't going to have time to take them that day. So the girls were a little disappointed but understood and he promised that they would do it another day and he would take them all downtown and show them a fun time in the city. BUT! Then I had a thought. Daddy wasn't the only one with a job. I HAVE A JOB TOO! And so I asked them if they wanted to come to work with me the next day and they could be mothers assistants. They were SO excited. I told them that they could decid what we were eating for all the meals and they could help take care of the babies and of course miss school. I couldn't believe how excited they were. They were up at 5 in the morning making breakfast for everyone.....of course no one was awake until around 7 but they were THAT excited. Maddy came in my room and took the baby monitor out so that they could hear Ivy when she woke up and they brought me breakfast in bed and got Ivy up and I didn't even hear a peep! They fed her and changed her diapers and played with her. Then we all headed to the store to shop for our meals on a list that they had put together. It was a very fun day and by the end of it I think they were ready to not be mommies anymore! They were asking for their break time. I told them they had to wait until the baby was down for a nap or asleep for the night! They didn't like that very much!! They even picked out Ivy's clothes and got her all dressed for the day.

I think they are going to be GREAT mommies someday and I am so proud of them. I think I might want to keep them home everyday!

technically a pre-teen??

She sure seems to be getting to that stage anyway if she isn't technically referred to as a pre-teen. I am not sure when you are allowed to call a girl that. Frankly I think Lilly seems a little pre-teen to me but I don't think at 5 she qualifies.

ANYWAY! Maddy turned 11 last Sunday. And yes it was kinda awesome that our birthdays landed on Easter this year. I only remember one other time that my birthday was on Easter and I think I must have been around 7 or something. I decided that since our birthday landed on Easter that we would do alittle bit of celebrating the Friday before since Easter was TOTALLY going to upstage any birthdays. So she woke up to a decorated door area and a present. She was SO surprised. Dustin and I had picked out a new outfit for her to wear to school. She looked to cute!

The last couple of "present" holidays have been interesting with Maddy. She is definitely at that stage where she doesn't really know what she wants. She doesn't want clothes yet but she doesn't want "toys" either. So this year after prying and prying to try and have some idea of what she wanted (discluding a cell phone and a laptop) we decided that generic was the way to go. We picked out a few different gift cards for her and gave her a wallet and a new purse and a card letting her know that daddy and I were taking her out for a special birthday dinner and shopping spree, just the three of us. She was so excited! And we had so much fun a couple of nights later. We went to the mall and just shopped with her. She was literally running through the mall! We had such a good time with her and she is really growing up and becoming such a fun person to be around. We love you Maddy!

She is having her birthday party this Friday, a sleepover none the less. Wish me luck!

And as for my birthday! Dustin took me out to a really beautiful restaurant in Portland, The Portland City Grill. It is on the 30th floor of a building downtown and it was really breathtaking. We ordered WAY to much food and talked and had a really great time. It was so delicious! I think it might be my new favorite restaurant. Thanks for a wonderful birthday date Dustin. I love you!

just too cute

There is nothing more to say

bring on the sunshine.....

We have a few scattered days of sunshine around these parts lately and I can't tell you what that vitamin D does not only for the body but for the SOUL! It is amazing how every ones moods perk up, including the kids. So Lilly, Ivy and I went out for a little stroll.....

Please don't leave us mister Sun. I really need you right now!!

More Tulip Festival

Here a few more pictures from my camera......I know that anyone who looks at this blog was dying for yet even MORE pictures but really they are just for me to keep a record of! But I will let you enjoy them as well.....

Easter

I thought this was the best Easter picture of the bunch........

Dustin insisted on getting a picture just with the boys, which means alone.

We wanted to take pictures outside but of course it was raining and so we opted for the always springy "in front of the stairs" shot. Oh well. The kids had a great easter egg hunt over at their cousins and an absolutely delish Easter dinner. I think we got pictures of the table somewhere. My mom made it ADORABLE with big foil wrapped easter bunnies that looked like big chocolate bunnies and all their little babies! Thanks for everything mom!