One More Summer Update

Because it's officially the "End of Summer" today, I thought I'd update with a few more summer pics. These are Cameron's 5th birthday shots.

Here she is opening gifts with the family. She is wearing her newest fairy costume, regardless of the fact that I had a nice birthday dress for her to wear that evening. Oh well, if there's anybody that can pull off the fairy look, it's her.

And here she is proud to be five. Face paint compliments of my sister from the party earlier in the day. Don't look too closely for perfection on her cake. This was her second cake for the day, just for family, and I was EXHAUSTED! She was lucky it got frosted and the fairy wands got stuck in the top. Not what I had invisioned, but when it's this hot and I'm this preggo, this is what you get.

On the other hand, this is the invitation to the fairy party that I did for the girls. We bought wings from a fairy website (yes, they have those). Then I wrapped them in cello and tulle and added a stamped fairy image with invite to the front. I was pretty proud of how these turned out.

A close up of the stamped and colored image.

Our fairy party. I made big tissue paper flowers for each of the chairs and decorated with streamers. Not able to balance on chairs, again leads to some that are not exactly what I would have liked, but this is what we went with.

All in all, it turned out to be a great party. We had a scavenger hunt, made fairy houses, and ate fairy berries and fairy punch. I think Cameron was pleased and is already planning for next years event.

For my Gal Pal

I found these on here and my girl friend needs these for her Project Life. So, to prevent going up and booting up the old computer, I am going to see if she can just steal them off of here! For all the rest of you, can't you just hardly wait for hot summer evenings full of birthday cakes and bounce houses? Come on summer!

Best Buddies

Catching Up on Summer

Now that there is some relief in sight from this god forsaken heat, I have the energy not only to down load pictures, but maybe even post some of my Summer creations here on my blog. I am actually smiling today. It is a little bit cold. I almost put on a jacket this morning. But....I don't have one that actually fits my huge belly.

This is a picture of Tucker's birthday cake. The one that he ate the wheel off of. I don't know if I posted that on here or not, but I had made the cake that afternoon, it was cooling in perfect Martha Stewart Style on my rack on the counter. I had to run to the store for some Tylenol because somebody was feverish (can't remember who or why), so I seriously left Matt in charge for 15 minutes. When I came back, I should have known something was wrong because he was sitting up straight and tall with Tucker beside him, both looking equally guilty. He told me he only turned his back for a few minutes (which usually means he's in the bathroom doing his business forever, or on his phone, or checking craigslist) and Tucker ate the wheels off his cake. Tucker immediately starts crying because he knows he's in serious crap. And me, being too tired to start over, get pissed and just tell him he's having a Lightening McQueen cake without any wheels. Awesome. Anyways, after calming down, I realized I could probably just fill the wheel area with frosting and patch it up, and the kid is after all only three, so that's what I did. It was gloppy and floppy and full of frosting, but the wheels are there and Tucker was happy so I guess this is my attempt at Lightening McQueen.

Our weekend was great. The kids stayed at the Grandparents' house overnight. Matt and I went to dinner at Olive Garden, where I totally got my money's worth of the never ending bowl of pasta for $8.95. I ate and ate and ate not so much because I was eating for two, but simply because I could. I figure I'm over 200 pounds now, what shame is there if I continue to gain? Dare me to keep gaining? Watch me. We went and watched The Switch with Jennifer Anniston, which was cute, and then like the book nerd that I am, topped off the night by going to Barnes and Nobles to buy some much needed smut to read while I'm stuck on the couch getting fatter and fatter.

Today I am nesting. Have I mentioned how much I hate nesting? But I am. I'm having the incredible urge to clean Matt's closet and paint our hallway, so that's what I'm doing. The kids are outside swimming, even though it's not very warm, but they're fighting for summer and I, of course, don't care what they're doing as long as they're not bugging me. Tucker has managed to find a huge pile of dog poop...on the sidewalk. And he's riding his trike around it, just trying to decide if it's worth it to ride through it, even though I thoroughly explained the consequences and repurcussions of choosing to do this activity. He is three however, and a pile of poop on a sidewalk is pretty tempting.....so we will see what happens. I'm not betting money on my discussion of cleaning poop off his trike tires is going to keep him out of it. Anybody wanna wager?

Seven Years

August is full of milestones for my family. And this weekend is our seventh wedding anniversary. Yup. Seven. And while we never quite looked like this couple, our wedding was beautiful and perfect for us. And so is our marriage. It may not be Hollywood's version of happily ever after, but the two of us work. Better when I'm not huge, and fat, and bitchy. But it still kinda does. And I feel so blessed that I met Matt and that we have come so far in seven years.

And maybe classy and vintage isn't our look, but this was one we certainly pulled off last fall...

And here is a classic look....

And here we are leaving our own wedding...


No top hat and tails for this Logger. Nope, couldn't even leave the tux on to get out of the reception. Carried a t-shirt and a ball cap with us. Seriously. But this is what I have grown to love about Matt. Matt, I love you more today than I ever have before. It's been a great ride so far...

Big Girls and Broken Bones

As I may have already told you, on Cameron's birthday party, we had a Fairy Tea Party for some of her friends. I decided that Tucker probably didn't need to be involved in this activity, so my Mom came and picked him up. He was happy to go to McDonald's for a Happy Meal with Grandma. While he was out there, however, my 17-year old brother, who is also the quarterback of the high school football team and Tucker's hero worship, was playing football with him. Apparantly, he forgot that Tucker was not part of the high school team because things got pretty rough. Rough to the point of my brother falling on Tucker's foot and hurting him pretty bad. He wouldn't walk on it at all. My Mom tried to get him to stop crying, but the trauma of it made him cry himself to sleep. Since he was able to sleep for two hours, my Mom thought it was probably going to be okay. My brother, on the other hand, sat and waited for the swelling to begin, because he knew how much impact had been in the fall. A few hours later, they brought him home, where he good naturedly crawled around on the floor avoiding all pressure on his foot. We decided to wait and see if it would be any better in the morning. I always thought a break would swell, turn black and blue, or do something to let you know that it was in fact broken. However, what is true in an adult bone is not true in a three year old. It never really swelled, it never really turned blue, it didn't do anything.

The next day really didn't show any change in it physically and Tucker still wasn't even walking at all. I made him an appointment to see the Orthopaedic Clinic in Boise, because quite honestly, they'd still be standing there scratching their head if I had taken him to Emmett. (Another joy of living in a small town.)

I really thought I was overreacting. When the doctor came in and told me it was broken in three places, I felt like the worst Mom in the world. They casted him and Tucker chose blue, so he was tickled to death. Luckily, little bones heal fast, so we only had to deal with the cast for three weeks. Here is a shot of the cast after three weeks of wear and tear.



And here is a picture of Tucker just milking it for all it's worth. He totally knows he's my boy. I think he'll be sad to not have so much attention now that it's off.

Me on the other hand, am relieved to get rid of the stinky boy foot smell that was beginning to smell a lot like a dead dog. It is IMPOSSIBLE to clean a three year old boy without being able to soak them in a warm and full bathtub. He was grubby between his toes, stinky all over the place, and just plain disgusting. Last night we came home and had a 45 minute soak in lots and lots of soap. And then we scrubbed him down like he'd been a orphan for his first three years. And my boy smells like a wet puppy again instead of a dead dog.

Oh, and the good Mom that I am, didn't know that Tucker had taken a screw and stuck it down in his cast. It was imbedded into the side of his leg. Can you imagine walking around in a cast with a screw in the side of your calf? I would have gone crazy! He didn't even make a fuss. Kids are way to resilient to things.

Other excitement in our week is that Cameron got to start kindergarten today. Here she is in her carefully planned Hello Kitty outfit and Disney Princess backpack. Not my choice of backpacks, for sure, but she thinks it is the coolest thing ever.




And I got a little teary eyed when I was taking these pictures because she's just growing up so fast. And as ready as I am for her to be in school, I couldn't help but be a little bittersweet about sending her there. Being a teacher myself, I had only walked those halls and considered the school through the perspective of a teacher. And today, when we were walking down the hall, I started to look around with the perspective of a parent. So many things could happen to my baby there, it's hard to just block it out and be positive, but that's what you have to do. Be positive and know that she's going to love it. And pray for her. I stood over her bed last night and just prayed that this was the beginning of something wonderful for her. It's amazing how much you just hope and dream for you kids. And then you kiss them good bye and before you know it, they're driving to high school and you don't get to come down the hall with them at all.


But for today, I have a five year old who is a little scared and a lot excited and I'll take that.

Turning 29

I confess that my current pregnant status may be affecting my mood and outlook on all aspects of life from friends to kids to love. Sorry.

I turned 29 today. And supposedly 29 is the new 19? I googled "turning 29" today. There are massive amounts of blog posts on this topic. There are links to turning 29 jokes. There are ways to "survive" turning 29. And really, after reading just a small handful of these posts, I realize I'm a lot more content with my current situation than some of these people. I didn't wake up in a panic because my twenties are on the way out. But I did wake up and think, holy hell, was it only eight years ago that I was counting the days to be 21? Where has the time gone?

I'll tell you where it's gone. It's gone to getting married, graduating college, working, staying at home with two kiddos, miscarriage, 3 pregnancies, weight loss challenges, side jobs, hobbies, excursions, vacations, housework, and keeping my head afloat to prove that I am still the girl I used to be underneath all this pregnancy fat and kiddos.

I really am still the girl I was at 19. I know I am. Somewhere. I still like the same things. Laugh at the same jokes. Watch the same trashy tv. But now I have to tivo it and watch it later. If I can stay awake. My friends are some of the same, and some of the new. Playgroups influence who you hang out with. And that is okay. My world doesn't revolve around myself anymore. My world revolves around ballet schedules and Disney princess backpacks and appointments to get casts removed. I don't sleep until they sleep, and yet, I still probably sleep more than I did when I was in college. Our "fun money" goes to paying off doctor bills and eating out at restaurants with people dressed as big red birds waving us in from the main road. And those gross ass playlands. And I'm happy.

If turning 29 is the end of the beginning, as some bloggers call it. Then I really can't wait to see what 30 brings. Mind you, I STILL have an entire YEAR before I'm that old (ha), but the thirties mean more confidence. I am done having kids, now I just need to raise them. The drama of the 20's isn't there. Atleast that's what I'm told. So for now, I'm enjoying being woke up at 7:30 by Cameron, more excited than me that today I'm the "birthday girl". I have already gotten five or six handmade cards from her. Tucker wants to make me a cake. It's nice to have these littles here who just care that it's a special day for me. They don't realize that Mom is OLD. Yet. And I"ll take that.

My photo choice for the day

I love this shot. And in an attempt to be keep you guys from thinking this blog has become nothing but a bitch session for pregnant me, here is a photo I just had to share. I found this on thepioneerwoman.com in her gallery of "love" photos. It didn't catch my eye first, but then I really went back to look and I just love the contrast of the young couple and the old couple. Both equally in love, but what a lifetime of memories the old couple must have and what an exciting place to be when you are first in love with somebody.

There's not alot I can say about this photo that isn't being said just by looking at it. Enjoy your weekend. And thanks for sticking around, those of you whom I haven't scared away by now with my crazy hormonal rants.