Westward Ho!!!

Oregon here we come!! We leave in the morning for a 10 day trip to the Oregon Coast...Woo Hoo!! We'll share lots of pics when we get back!

Gettin' old!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DARIN!!

Today is Darin's birthday and he has enjoyed himself. While I ran a bunch of last minute errands with the kids-a friend's house, the dollar store, grocery store, bank and camera store, Darin went to the Movies, out to Lunch and to get ice cream. The good thing was that he had a coupon for all of it! Well, not the movie ticket, but he had a free drink coupon. He knows how to work the "birthday" system-he had a free birthday coupon for ColdStone Creamery, a burger at Ruby Tuesday and also a free entree at Silver Diner, which we used already, and one for and entree at Chevys that we have yet to use.!! Did you even know you could get all that on your birthday? Be sure to check at every retail place possible because you could rake it in the month of your birthday:)

Anyhow Darin we love you and hope you have a great day. The kids are thrilled to have ice cream cake later and open presents!! Spencer asks me "Am I invited to Daddy's party?" So funny. Another funny little side note-I took Jordan and Spencer shopping with me for Darin's present on Saturday. On Sunday morning Jordan said "Daddy, we got you 2 belts for your birthday." Good thing she didn't say what else was in there because I did manage to get one thing he doesn't know about!!

Oh, by the way....I am not allowed to explicitely say it, but if you are wondering how old Darin is, just think about how long ago we landed on the moon......he he he:)

Sucessful Swim Lessons!!

We just finished our first session of swim lessons this summer. It was great!!! We went to the same pool we did last year. It is so nice to find one that you don't have to be a member to have lessons. Around here, all they have for pools is either in your subdivision, which we don't, or small private swim clubs. I only know of one public pool. Where I grew up, there were only public pool.

Anyhow, we went 4 days in a row for 2 weeks, and the kids did sooo well! The really progressed and it was well worth the money-and the teacher didn't even up her price from last year:) Here are the highlights:



Jordan:

Jordan started level 2. She was not too happy about it, but ended up doing well because one of her classmates was in the class. This was actually a little girl that wouldn't do it earlier in the summer, but I told her mom about it, and when she found out Jordan was in it, she got right in. Peer Pressure!!

Jordan started the lessons hesitant about many of the skill, but tried all of them but one in the end. The only thing she did not do was jump off the diving board.

The first day they learned to "dive" into the 6 feet, she wouldn't do it. We bargained for a highly valued toy and she did it the last day of class!! Way to go Jordan!!

The class was learning how to do the freestyle with ther faces in the water, but she really struggled with this. The last day of class she decided to try it. Her main concern was how was she going to plug her nose....

Spencer:

Spencer started in level 1. The first day of class I had to get in the water and walk him to his teacher. He is really hesitant to try new things. He started the class not wanting to put his face in the water at all, but the last couple days he was doing it!! He really progressed as well.

My cute little surfer!! Doesn't he look so cute here?

Spencer would get so proud to tell me he was going to put his face in. Sooo cute!!!
Landon:

No lessons for him yet, but he sure loved the baby pool soo much!!He would just play and play and play. It was a little tricky because the older 2 were always wanting to go in the "big" pool. Therir lessons were in the 2 -3 ft. part of the pool. I would try to take Landon, and even though he could touch, he didn't like it. Well, towards the middle of the second week when I was putting sunscreen on Spencer, Landon decided that he could do the "big" pool. The last couple days we barely went in the baby pool, much to the pleasure of the older 2.

This is how Landon kept busy during Spencer's lessons the day I had the camera-I only took it the last day because I didn't want anything to happen to it.


Future lifeguard.....
or maybe cabana boy?

We are excited to go back for 2 more weeks in August after our vacation!!

Tell it like it is...

Leave it up to my children to be completely candid with people. We had a funny exchange with a neighbor tonight. This is a really nice lady. She has been really helpful in the past-when Jordan was in preschool, Landon was always asleep when I had to pick her up. I could always count on Margaret to come and tend the boys for a couple minutes to either drop her off or pick her up. Or if it was really raining or cold, she would help me out. My kids really love her and her husband Jim.

So, Spencer noticed something on Margaret tonight. To first explain a little, she is smoker, and unfortunately, it has taken it's toll on her.

Spencer: You have cracks in your eyes, Margaret.
Marg: What?
Spencer: You have cracks in your eyes.
Marg: Yes, they get red and might look like that.
Me: What do you mean Spencer?
Spencer: Cracks
Me:can you point and show us what you mean?

Spencer proceeds to point to the wrinkles around Margaret's eyes.....Oh boy! Inside I was laughing so hard, but tried not to show it.

Margaret: Oh, those are what you call "crow's feet." Some people are really nice and call them "laugh lines."

Me thinking to myself: that's what years of smoking does.

Margaret proceeds to tell me a funny story about a lady at her dentist thinking she was on Medicare. She proceeds to ask the kids how old she is.....big mistake!!

Marg: How old do you think I am, Jordan?
Spence: 5
Jordan: I don't know...maybe 70
Marg: Oh, it goes from bad to worse.

Jim and I were laughing so hard at this point.

I had to go and stop Landon from ringing a neighbor's doorbell and when I come back, I hear that the following exchange happened.

Marg:I am 57
Jordan: that's in the 70's...see I was right.

Luckily Margaret is super nice, so I don't think she took offense. It was just so funny. I'll never forget "cracks in your eyes."

Kids do say the darndest things!!!

We got a new car.....

well....kind of. Seems like lots of parts in the engine of our car ganged up on us and decided they were done working all at the same time and desired to live out the rest of their lives in the used car parts heaven. And they were in cahoots with the brakes and tailgate of the van as well. We know something was up with all the wonderful noises the van would make when I would start up-old belts sound wonderful.....Seems like it has a mind of it's own..darn it!! Guess 111,000 miles was enough for the parts and we finally realized that the noises and "check engine" light was coming on for a reason!!

We took the car in last Friday. I asked Darin what they said and the first thing he asked me was "how much do you like that car?" The van failed emissions and safety, so I knew we couldn't sell it in that conditions. The new ones are a little bigger, so the thought of a new one is nice, but since the only upgrades we would want-besides the obvious more space and newer body- is 2 remote controlled sliding doors and a DVD player, we decided to do all the repairs and the van stayed at the "car doctor" as we explained to the kids, until Tuesday. Having to put the kids in Darin's car for 5 days next to each other and dealing with opening and closing regular car doors made me realize how much I LOVE my van. It is sooo much easier putting them in the van. I love opening the slider doors and not worrying that the kids, or me, are going to hit the car next to me. Although I must say, the kids did really well sitting next to each other-I think putting Landon in the middle was the key:) They loved the fact that they could reach the windows and put their hands out a little.

Overall, I am glad we did it and I do think the van drives better. It is nice to start up and drive off without all the extra noises-just normal engine noises!!! I do feel better knowing it won't break down on me when I least expect it. The mechanic said it will go another 100,000 miles...so you won't see me posting about getting a new car for many years!!!!!

Do's and Don'ts

Some things I have learned this past week:

DO give your children a chewable vitamin in the morning-if you feel so inclined.
DON'T trust the childproof cap-it does not work if you have a child with the skills of my Spencer. I am still trying to figure out how many he ate before I found him....

DO take a picnic dinner to Wolf Trap and sit in the lawn seats to enjoy a wonderful concert. Leanne Rimes with the National Symphany Orchestra-excellent. DO check the weather better and wear warmer clothes next time.
DON'T stop your husband when he turns around to tell the very loud and annoying ladies behind us to stop talking so we can listen in peace. We DON'T care to hear how you like to chase Marines and get drunk.

DO drive home on the beltway-it is usually the quickest way at 10:30 at night...BUT- a very IMPORTANT BUT......
DON'T pass the Van Dorn Exit and think you can take the beltway to the Telegraph Road exit. You will be 1/2 late picking up your children from the babysitting swap. Thanks to Jesse Bushman for waiting up until 11:30 for us to get the kiddies. Darn that construction!!!

DO set up babysitting swaps so you can enjoy a night out.
DON'T have your 2 year old at someone else's house at bedtime. He does not enjoy being awaken from a sound slumber late and he will not fall back to sleep when he gets back home and will insist on sleeping in your bed all night and you won't get any sleep.

DO take your children to swim lessons-very important to learn.
DON'T go without some bribery in mind...or they will never learn to go underwater!! Shameless, I know, but I have to do what works.

DO take your boys to the BARBER to get a haircut. They have books, toys, lollipops and end up with AWESOME haircuts!! (Acutally Jordan got hers cut as well and it is great.)
DO NOT EVER step foot in the Hair Cuttery again!!! As Scotty the awesome barber said "They aren't barbers, they are beauticians and all they know how to do is cute a straight line." The barber shop was a little more expensive but SOO worth it!!

DO take your car to the mechanic to get a few things checked out-especially when the "check engine" light stays on and the tailgate broke and you can't open it from the outside.
DON'T have a coronary when they go over the list a million miles long of what needs to be repaired and certainly DON'T cry when your husband tells you how much it will cost. (With getting our van fixed, get used to seeing me drive it for another 10 years because of how much we are putting into it!!!) I guess it was meant to make us feel better, but the mechanic did tell Darin it will go another 100 thousand miles after we get it fixed.....

DO help your cute little Sunbeam give his first talk in Primary.
DON'T Cry just because you are so proud and overcome with emotion. (I wanted to, but I stayed strong:)

DO take your family to the beach for a nice day of fun and relaxation.
DON'T forget to wear sunscreen.

DO enjoy a little treat every once in a while, especially if it involves Hersheys chocolate and peanut butter. Thanks to the tasters at Costco!
DON'T buy a bag to bring home because you will eat the whole thing....darn those Hershey and Costco people!!!



I am sure there are things I am leaving off, but this is my life in a nutshell!! We'll see what the new week bring!!

Happy Monday!!

I am going to scream!!!

Ok you seasoned bloggers. I need serious help. Something happened to my blog and it is driving me NUTS!!! I don't know how to change it and I was wondering if anyone has any ideas.

You know when you add pictures, you can type above the picture-you know do some writing before you get to the picture? Well, I can't do that without it getting underlined. If I do it under the second picture it is blue writing and underlined as well. I tried going in the settings to fix it and can't figure it out.

I want to SCREAM!!!! If I put in the pictures, save it and go back later, sometimes it works. I always have to play around and then type under the first picture....UGH.

Any ideas would help!!

Sleepy Boy!

Landon today after swim lessons. He crawled up next to me on the couch and fell asleep.

We all know that the third child gets a little shorted on a few things, one of them being naps. With Jordan I was anal about it-even skipping playdates for her naps. Then with Spencer I tried to do the same, but had things to do with Spencer, so sometimes his were not always on the schedule I wanted. Luckily he would go straight from the car seat to the crib really well.

So poor little Lanny comes along and it is CRAZY!! We did pretty well during the school year because we had a pretty good schedule. Summer is not as scheduled, so lately his naps are hit and miss. Doesn't help that I pick and choose-maybe I want him to go to bed well so we skip his nap...etc. I know he still needs one, but it isn't always the way I would like.

The other day when we came home from swim I put a video on so I could go take a shower. I laid a quilt down and gave all the the kids their blanket and pillow. I came down from my shower and this is how I found Landon. He slept with all the noise of his siblings and the TV.

I forget what we had done this day, but he was so cute when he just cuddled right up to Darin-oh, I remember now. It was the 4th of July. I had been shopping and when I came home, Darin informed me that he didn't want to take his nap while I was gone. We were all on the couch reading books-yes, all 5 of us. Landon had just had a diaper change and crawled up by Darin. I looked over and this is what I found.

A little summer fun

We have been having lots of fun lately. We had a week of no scheduled activities, so we found lots of things to do. We really love being outside, so the nice weather has been great. It hasn't been overwhelmingly hot and humid, so it is enjoyable to be outside. Helps keep active and get exercise as well:) The above pic is by the Kingstown pond when we went to feed the ducks and turtles. It was such a nice night and we really loved it.

We tried a park, the pool, spraypark, the beach, fed ducks, played at home, played in our front yard, and simply had fun. Here are some highlights:

This pic is out of order but I had to put it in. Landon loved the pool.He was really fearless and would "swim" on his belly. He loved it. He would even put his face in the water.

This is what happens when you leave out half a stick of margarine on the counter.



Mommy's heels are so much fun. Jordan and Spencer really do have fun playing together and do well making up games to play. I am glad they have fun and hope it continues as they grow up. Although Spencer has started this new thing "Jordan hates me..." He is a sensitive little fella:)


Spencer had fun with a kickboard at the pool the other day. Thanks for letting us tag along, Trish:)
Landon's first real time in the pool for the summer.
After getting horribly lost in Arlington, I finally made it to the spraypark. I was so mad at myself because I have been there so many times. I just took the wrong exit...Jill-I needed your GPS to get myself turned around:) Jordan love, love, loved the water feature, but the boys wanted nothing to do with it. Spencer wasn't himself, and throwing up in the car literally 2 minutes before we got there didnt' help him much:(

new camera=lots to learn!!

I am having so much fun practicing and learning about my camera. There is so much to learn. Last night I poured through my instruction and was just amazed! There are so many options and settings for the different type if pics I want to take. Whoa...there is so much!! I am excited that there is a class about digital photography at a cultural arts thing our stake is having.

One night we saw this daddy long legs spider outside. I quickly grabbed my camera. I took a few shots, then put it on manual on the lense and took the following pics. You can get so much more in focus with the manual option. The spider is on a birdhouse just outside our front door.

One day I attempted to try some of the filters-as much as the kids cooperated. I did a few-the following is the rainbow filter. I don't know exactly what I would use it for except to take funky pics:)
One of our favorite of the filters was a multi-image one. The pictures are really funny.

I have lots more to learn so I'll keep ya posted as I go:)