The 4 Of Us

Oh The Girly Things You Do!

2010-07-05T18:06:00.000-07:00

She said that she and her "friends" were at a movie theater. Sugar and Spice

Tea Party

2010-06-25T20:15:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the messes are so adorable. I think her guests can stay a while longer. ;)

Just Because

2010-06-25T20:00:00.000-07:00

So I have raging, hair pulling, walk on egg shells PMS TODAY! OKAY! And this is how my sweet adorable husband deals with it. :) awe

And then I notice something hiding in the flowers. My first female thought "So uh, what exactly are you trying to say? Do I remind you of a pregnant person?" (in case you couldn't tell that is a stork hiding in there!) He of course didn't even know it was there. I sure do love my man

oops :)

2010-06-23T10:16:00.000-07:00

Here are a few random pics of the latest happenings and an explanation on my blog being set to private. Garrett finished Kindergarten!!!! I can't believe how big my little guy is getting. We will miss his AMAZING teacher.

Here are the kids playing in a freezing lake. Oh to be a kid again. ;)

Okay, London has been getting out of her bed every night around 3 or so and going and sleeping with Garrett. He has been complaining about how annoying it is and after I found them like this I can see why! YIKES! hahahahahahahaha

At least she left an opening for him to breath! lol And yes I see that her jammies don't match and her feet are FILTHY. Don't judge me. lol

I accidentally set my blog to private! (still don't know how I managed to do that) anyway, I am open again. If I ever did decide to do that I would be sure to invite all of you and give fair warning. haha.

So this week has been very interesting. At about 4 am Monday morning Doug woke up VERY sick in the bathroom. He called in sick to work for the first time in a whole year. He looked so miserable and I did my best to take care of the poor guy. Well I tried to clean my house quickly as I was sure I was going to be next to catch it. Why is it that when you are sick a messy house just makes it so much worse? Anyway, I got my kitchen all the way cleaned and was about to mop when I ran out of steam. I didn't really feel sick just felt TIRED. Anyway, about 7 pm that night it got me. BAD! I can't remember the last time I got so sick. I will spare you the details because that alone would make YOU sick. But lets just say it is a miracle we all survived the last 24 hours. Not to be dramatic but when both parents are sick and the kids aren't, it is just CRAZY. I thought about calling for help but I honestly couldn't even move to get the phone. after the throwing up came the muscle pain. And that was far worse then being sick to my stomach. I felt as though I was run over by a truck. (Why is that a saying? how many people have actually been run over by a truck and lived to tell about how it felt?) Anyway, I was in pain. Finally Doug who was a day ahead of me on the illness, felt better enough to run to the store and get some Gatorade and 7 up. After I got some fluid I started to feel a bit better. And I have pretty much just been sleeping it off. So this morning I feel a lot better but VERY weak. I also managed to lose 9 lbs in 12 hours! NO JOKE! too bad the minuet I start eating again it will all come back. haha I just hope poor little Garrett doesn't catch it. London is the little cutie that started this whole thing. So we survived and all is well. :)

Stay at home Mom- ON PURPOSE

2010-06-15T15:32:00.000-07:00

So I haven't blogged in a long time- But I feel very perplexed right now I need to vent it out somewhere- This is on the issue of education. Let me start out by saying that I value education a great deal- I think it is vital that those who are able to go to school and better themselves and their future, to do so. I have supported my husband through school for the past 5 years and continue to do so- In a strange way, I am just as proud of his accomplishments as he is and feel that they are partly mine.

The problem I am having is that recently I have been struggling with the choice for me to go to school. My kids have gotten a little older and I have had a little more wiggle room to take a class or two. Although after one semester of doing school I saw such horrible consequences of me doing those classes- My house got SUPER messy, my kids spent their time in front of that blasted television, I was on edge with my husband, I did homework on Halloween and missed pumpkin carving,(sounds silly but it really bothered me) My kids didn't have a mom! Why is it that our society has such little value on mothers? It enrages me to think of the effects no college education has had on my self esteem- Where does this come from? I hear comments all the time about how I need to have an education "just in case". Just in case what?! I actually have no intent on divorcing my husband and I can say with pretty positively that he wouldn't leave me for ANYTHING! (I am far too sweet and good looking). I know there are always unexpected tragedies and situations that no one plans for- such as death, disability, etc. WE HAVE INSURANCE- From what I understand that is what it is for and in such a tragic event,(heaven forbid) I would be able to figure out a different plan. But for now what is wrong with CHOOSING to stay home? I am sick of feeling like a failure- Yes I am the only one of my siblings without a degree, I will never earn the promised ring that belonged to my grandmother upon graduation, I am taking a risk at nothing having anything to "fall back on". I love my kids enough to risk this for them and I want them to have a mother home with them. I will probably later choose to pursue some kind of education, but dong so right now feels like is at the cost of my kids. How do you juggle it all? I struggle in school and for me it is hard enough when I don't have kids to care for.

I also want to add that if you are a mom with an education then that is AMAZING! I am jealous and envy that you have that. I in no way judge those who choose to go to school with small children, or work. Every one is in a different circumstance. My question is when did it become such a cop out to want to me a mom "when I grow up." To put out loved and well cared for children into this world? I am frustrated with these feelings because the fact is I do feel like less of a person without a degree. What is wrong with the picture?

Taking the Wheel...

2010-03-08T11:19:00.000-08:00

So my last post was a bit of a downer but that is okay cuz it felt really good to vent it out. I am feeling a lot better about things the past few days. I decided that part of the reason my kids and my dog were not listening too well was partly because they were getting away with it! duh! So I decided to kick the dog out of my bed and put him in his crate (thanks Charonne). He didn't even put up a fight! Now whenever we leave the house or go to sleep he goes in his crate. Just by doing this he has been a lot better behaved. I also pulled out the squirt bottle and whenever he does something I don't like I spray him in the face. It has made a world of difference so far.

As far as London sleeping. Well I had a few people suggest it is night terrors and I think it very well could be. So I am making her a more comfortable environment and keeping her to a better schedule. I also made sure to just put her right back in her room the last time she woke me up and I turned on some music for her. She has been doing a little better. Not a total 180 but progress for sure.

My dear friend Courtney called me and gave me some GREAT suggestions and really helped me to accept that my house will not be picture perfect at all times. Charonne always tells me just to make sure the dishes are done and my bed is made and it will make all the difference. So I have been focusing on those two things and go from there. I don't worry about the playroom being spotless at all times cuz they will just mess it up anyway and I sure don't want them to feel like they can't be kids. So I am working on just having them help clean it up once an hour or so before bed. The rest of the little messes I am just going to have to let go a bit. But not to much ;). So all in all I feel a lot better. I am sure I will have many many more days of frustration and I will also have days when life seems perfect. So I will continue to do the best I can do. Thank you all so much for the kind words and all the advice I got on London's sleeping. I will be sure to update more on this subject in the future because I think it is nice to relate to other moms who are going through the same things.

P.S. We finally got our family pictures done and I can't wait to post them here! They are all over my facebook but I am going to wait till I get them edited to post here. More to come! :)

Driving with the fuel light on....

2010-03-03T10:56:00.000-08:00

Today I am dragging my feet. For some reason my daughter is not sleeping very good at night. She has never been a good sleeper but the past couple months have been HORRIBLE! Now with a baby this type of behavior is expected, but with a three year old I rather hoped I would be getting at least a little bit better sleep by now. Not the case.

Last night London woke me up every 30 min throughout the entire night. Screaming and crying and she wouldn't say what was wrong. It was very frustrating and I finally found myself yelling at her begging her to just tell me what she wanted. Both of my kids are in a really hard stage and I am afraid I am just not cutting it as a good mom. Garrett and London have such attitudes and it seems that no matter what they just aren't listening very well. On top of that my dog is the worst trained thing in the world so he is just one more body not obeying! I want to get rid of him so bad but I can't because my family is too attached and I would feel bad as well. He just makes my day a lot more stressful.

My other issue is I feel like I am ALWAYS cleaning up the same messes. I can not STAND messes! Haha not a very good mix with a 5 and a 3 year old. I really find it hard to have things even the slightest bit messy but right now my house is a WRECK. And I am way too tired to do anything about it. My absolute worst thing is laundry. I don't understand why I am so bad at it. My kids clothes are always wrinkly and poor Hubby can never find anything. They don't even look in their dressers anymore they just go straight to corner of my bedroom. I hate this about myself. Even if I keep up on it I still manage to have the big pile of laundry vomit laying in the corner of my room. I think what happens is it takes me all day to pick up the rest of the house that I will just set the clean loads on my bed and think I will get to them when I finish the other cleaning. Well that never happens because Garrett comes home and I do homework, dinner, dinner dishes, jammies. ect... and the laundry just gets thrown on the floor and so it begins.

The other problem with me wanting it spotless is that I spend all my time cleaning and cooking that my poor kids end up watching way too much t.v. I just don't understand how people have time for dance classes and sewing and cleaning and cooking and laundry and homework and fieldtrips and dr.s appts. and neverending church activites AND still have a happy welcoming face for poor hubby to come home to. I just would like to know if anyone else has this problem or do I win worst mom of the year? My kids are acting like stinkers with terrible attitudes AND my house is somehow a disaster and I am so tired and worn out. And no I am not apologizing for the poor me's and I know things could be MUCH WORSE. It is my blog so I am complaining dang it. Hmmmmmm

Christmas 09

2009-12-27T11:44:00.001-08:00

Happy Halloween

2009-11-02T15:18:00.000-08:00

We had a CRAZY Halloween day! First we did London's Party (SEE POST BELOW) and then we did the trick or treating. The kids had lots of chances to wear their costumes this year- at least we got our moneys worth!

This is Garrett at our Church's trunk or treat. He got really into character! lol
This is him at his school dress up day. So cute. He couldn't wear his mask to school so I put a snow band on him.

Here is Garrett carving his pumpkin. Yes he is only half dressed...

And here is Lulu carving her pumpkin. Yes she is practically naked. Didn't want to ruin their clothes. Don't judge me....

Here is Daddy helping out. He did all the carving

Here I am holding a very heavy pumpkin.

Here I am holding an even heavier chunky monkey puggy. He is on a diet. Don't judge me.....

He is Mr. Ninja himself. Watch out for that one

London was a (drum roll) PRETTY PRETTY PRINCESS~ What a shocker! She did a lovely job at it if I do say so myself ;)

She added wings so she could be a Princess Fairy

Our Pumpkins. I like Doug's pirate pumpkin. HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Happy Birthday Lulu!

2009-11-02T14:09:00.001-08:00

Our little London turned 3! We love her so much and are so thankful to have her in our family. She is our little ball of sunshine! Happy Birthday baby girl! It was a day fit for a princess!

She wanted me to do her hair like a "pretty pretty princess" so this is what I came up with.

Garrett wanted to be in the picture too.

We had her birthday party and Chuck-E-Cheese

London's new little friend Dakota

Nana and Papa got her a Strawberry Shortcake and some new winter clothes. Thank you!

She wanted a heart birthday cake so this is what we made

Make a wish!

She loves her Daddy!

The aftermath......

All dressed up on her birthday (we celebrated on Sat cuz her birthday was on Sunday)

Auntie Robyn wanted to come to her party but ended up having to take a test. So she sent this package for Lulu and it got here just in time. Thanks Robyn!

As you can see she LOVED her new movie! (wearing new princess jammies)

Grandma Stephanie (Doug's Mom) and Grandpa Gene (Doug's dad) Sent London a 40 dollar gift card to TOYS R US!!! She is SOOOO excited to go pick out something special from them. Even though we don't see you often we love you and miss you lots!

CAN

2009-10-20T12:02:00.001-07:00

Pumpkin Patch 2009!

2009-10-11T17:57:00.000-07:00

We went to our pumpkin patch! It was so cute. This is the BEST pumpkin patch we have ever been too. Back when we lived here in Fresno before we went every year when we live here in Fresno. It was so nice to be back. It really felt like we were home today.

I really was happy to get a picture with everyone looking at the camera! lol

It was great to spend some time with my honey. I have been so busy with school that I was starting to miss him.

I LOVE all of these pictures of London. They really capture her personality

Daddies little princess

They have the funnest train ride. Of course we had to go!

The top picture was taken in 2005 and the lower in 2006.

Reunited at last! Um I think the tractor shrank.....

Nana, Papa and Robbie. We just love living by them!

Garrett loves his Robbie

History Lesson

2009-10-11T17:02:00.000-07:00

We did the funnest thing ever! We went to a Civil war reenactment and it was just such a blast. (no pun intended) I even learned so many things about the Civil war that I never knew. It was great to see such an important part of our U.S history.

This is my GGG grandfather General "Jeb" Stuart who was probably the most famous cavalryman of the Civil War. Do you see a resemblance?
Some people got really into it and got all dressed up. These ladies were having a real old fashioned picture taken with a REALLY old camera. They had to sit there like that FOREVER. It is no wonder no one smiled back then! lol

This was Garrett's first cotton candy experience.

Also Lulu's first and hopefully their last. What a mess!

Lulu loved the jump rope!

Happy girl

He loves pretending to be a confederate soldier. He had to be a confederate after J.E.B Stuart of course. Although I must say I am glad the Union one the war! Can you imagine what a different country it would be if the opposite happened? Do you think we would still have slaves?

Ha ha. This picture is so cute. It is funny though because General McClellan is obviously a Union soldier. But Garrett was so cute he made an exception even though he was on the "wrong team" lol

Daddy and Garrett watching the reenactment

Abraham Lincoln!

Fighting and stuff

It was so smoky from all the gun powder. I kinda liked the smell of it though

These are the nurses that went to take care of all the dead and wounded soldiers. See the blood? cool stuff

This is London making her angry eyebrow face. I guess she had enough for one day. Ha Ha

Happy Graduation Baby!

2009-09-09T13:11:00.001-07:00

We had a party for Doug over labor day weekend. We went swimming, barbecued, and I made him a yummy cake.

After years of long HARD work, my honey squishy, hot hot hottie Graduated with his bachelors degree. I am so stinking proud of my man!

He worked 2 jobs took 18 credits a semester, helped with laundry, brought me flowers, watched chick flicks with me and was a great daddy all at the SAME TIME! I think I married superman. I love you Dougie and there are no words to express how proud I am of all you have accomplished.

Fun Stuff.

2009-09-09T11:54:00.001-07:00

We have been doing a lot of fun things since we came to Cali. Here are some pics of a Cabin trip we took and Garrett's first real Baseball game. Enjoy! Oh and some of the pictures didn't turn out too good. I have been using a different camera and I really don't like it.

Here is Dougie getting a fishing pole ready for Garrett.

Here she is in all her glory. Playing in the dirt. She is such a lady ;)

Garrett learning how to do whatever it is they are doing.....

Nana giving Garrett a back rub

Papa Helping Doug

Teaching the boy how to fish

My honey playing away on his amazing guitar! He is so talented

Well, here I am with my squishy honey man.

View from Cabin

Picture from the drive home

We also took Garrett to see a real baseball game. It was so much fun! Although I was terrified that I was going to be clocked on the head by a foul ball!

First Day of School and Missing Tooth

2009-09-09T11:15:00.000-07:00

The day actually came! My little squirt started Kindergarten! I can't believe it! He lost his first tooth the night before. He is a growing up boy!

Walking to school. We only live about a block away.

Happy family!

A very proud daddy with his big school boy.

Garrett's adorable classroom

big cheesy missing tooth smile

Garrett's awesome teacher, Mrs. Mongellie.

Little Lulu all dressed up for Garrett's big day.

A short little clip I have. I tried to move this to a better spot but I don't know how. I thought this video was funny because he thought I was taking a picture of him instead of taping.

Shannie It's You're Birthday!!!!

2009-08-04T23:08:00.001-07:00

*BE SURE TO READ THE POST AFTER THIS ONE. IT HAS ALL THE MOVING DETAILS*

So it has happened. I turned 25 today. Yes I am closer to 30 than to 20 for the first time ever. I had such a great birthday though. Nana watched the kids overnight on Friday and Dougie and I went out and par-tayed! Well, we went to dinner and a movie. Anyway, it was so awesome! I got a fabulous new dress (Thanks Mommy!) and saw the new Star Trek! So fun! I had way too much caffeine and was being overly obnoxious and totally weirded my hubby out. It was fabulous!
The next day when I went to pick up the kids Nana and Pappy had a birthday lunch for me! (Yay Subway!) I stayed down there the whole day and hung out at their pool for hours!I got to take a nap in the sun and then ate some yummy cake! Then today on my real birthday, I laid around and watched the old 90210~ So fun! (I heart Dylan by the way) Don't freak out Dougie, you know you are the hot man in my life, I was just teasing about Dylan. Anyway, back to me. So tonight we decided to do something the kids would love and we went to this really fun pizza place with games and rides and stuff like that. You know, the kind of place that has you hearing loud music and game sound effects for hours after, and makes you feel like you will vomit when you leave? It was great.
Anyway, now I am up way to late, ate a huge 430 calorie chocolate cupcake, (gluten free of course.) And am going to stay up even later and eat sushi and watch the X-files with Hottest Hubby ever. Yes I am pushing the envelope I know, but i guess being 25 makes me feel like a rebel. Rrrrrar. Any hoot, Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes and I love you all!

Cutest sign ever! Love it

Robborino lighting the candles! He is such a man.

Me ready for some yummy cake after taking a nap by the pool.

Garrett hurling and whirling through space and time, (After eating mac and cheese pizza) He is so talented.

The super cool toys he got with his tickets! ( Those two little plastic toys averaged about 10 dollars.) Those "tickets" don't have this mama fooled! Good thing we had a birthday for an excuse! lol

Us after all the fun. See, my eyes are glowing from the trippy experience!

Moving to Cali!

2009-08-04T21:08:00.001-07:00

So we recently did a big move. Doug got a Job in California teaching the surgical tech program at the same collage he went to. It was such a relief for him to find a good job. I can't even begin to describe what we have been through the last month. I am sure you remember a few of the freak out blog posts I did over the past few months.

Doug's hours were getting cut more and more. In the whole month of June he only worked 3 days total. And the whole month of July he worked only 5 days. It was SO awful not knowing what to do. It was so frustrating because we kinda thought we were in a "recession proof" industry. We thought that with him working in the medical field that he would always have work. Well we sure had a wake up call! I guess a lot of surgeries these days are elective, and with all the people out of work, no one is getting surgery till it is an emergency. So a huge slow down in the O.R. Well, we looked and looked for another job in Boise. We really loved our neighborhood and didn't want to uproot the kids again, but then I realised that we needed to make a decision to move anywhere there was a job. It is so weird how it all worked out actually.

Doug applied for jobs in Ohio, Utah, Colorado, Virginia, etc... Well nothing was working out and I really didn't want to move to Detroit Michigan which is what it was starting to look like! Then we came across this job for an instructor at the same college Doug went to for his Surgical Tech program. We had a really strong feeling that this is where we were suppose to go. It is so weird how it all worked out. Doug has just earned his bachelors degree and he needed a bunch of filler classes to get it. It just turned out that he took a whole bunch of upper division teaching classes. We kept thinking that it was funny to have teacher classes when he did surgery, but it helped him get his degree. Well those teaching classes helped land him this job. There was a lot of competition for this job and he had everything he needed to give him an edge. Then we were kind of worried about how we were going to afford the housing, so we called the Bishop from when we lived here 3 years ago and asked him if he knew of anyone that was renting a house. He said that he was actually fixing up a house and he would rent it to us right in our price range. Anyway, this is turning out to be a lot longer than I had wanted so I will wrap it up.

All I know is that this has been such a hard move and I was really worried about the outcome but it has all worked out so well. I actually SEE my husband now, he gets weekends and holidays off, he only works 32 hours a week and is home by 4:30 everyday, he get paid salary so we don't have to worry about his hours getting cut, his job totally paid for our whole move, we live close to Doug's Auntie Lisa, we already know our way around and have old friends here, and there is so much stuff to do here. We don't have a whole lot of money at all, but I am grateful for what we do have. At least we have something we can count on. We had to downgrade our house a lot but I have learned that is doesn't matter AT ALL where you live. I feel more at home in this tiny old house then I ever did in that big pretty house we moved from. I am so so so proud of my husband for providing for his family. I am also so proud of him for land a job in this tough market. He is my forever hero and I love him so much. I feel as though I have seen him in a whole new light. He would and has walked through fire for our family.I have a best friend for life and I will follow him anywhere because I guess it all comes down to what the papa Brady from the Brady Bunch says, "where ever you go, there you are" :) Thank you to all of you who gave me such encouraging words during this whole thing. I love you all so much and am grateful for such amazing friends and family.

This is what I looked at for 18 hours straight! I was so scared that car would come flying off the back of that stupid yellow truck! I love the color yellow but I sure wouldn't mind not seeing it for a few weeks!
I looked at the car thermometer and was shocked at what it said!

It got hotter....

This is what London did for only about 1 hour of the whole trip. The rest of the time she was either singing or screaming. And at times it was hard to tell which one it was...

And this is what Hammy did most of the time. He was either sleeping of pooping. And at times it was hard to tell which one it was......

And hotter.......

Here we are FINALLY getting to Fresno

And HOT HOT HOTTER.

It was so nice to finally get to Auntie's house and cool off in her pool

And this is Garrett just being Garrett.

Here is our cozy new little house that I love so much.

Garrett's cool Transformer room

London's Princess room

Our Dining room. The kitchen isn't done being remodeled so I will post that one later.

Our cozy living room

My room

Going Private

2009-08-01T23:14:00.001-07:00

I have decided to go private. I just saw on the local news a lady who had a picture of her son stolen off of her blog. The picture was used on an adoption scam. Someone said they had a little boy for adoption and then used this lady's picture from her blog. I have in the past not really thought that going private was necessary. I also think it is annoying to have to sign in and not see when that blog was updated. But after seeing this on the news, I realize that there really are unfortunate dangers out there and I feel the need to protect my children. So if you follow my blog, please send me your e-mail in a comment and I will be sure to add you to my list. I will go private pretty soon, so just make you you contact me. Thanks so much! I will also be doing a huge update soon. We just moved and I have LOTS to tell! Love to all!

Puggie Play Group!

2009-07-07T16:32:00.001-07:00

We took Hammy to a pug meet up group so he could meet some new friends. It was SOOOO much fun! I was in heaven with all those wrinkles running around! This is a funny fat pug that flashed a toothy grin for the camera. He was so funny!

My mommy came to visit for fourth of July!

Ha ha!

Me and my Hammy

Funny pug socks! This is the lady that put the whole thing together

Garrett loved the whole thing. He loves his pug

Garrett and Grandma

London was by the food table THE WHOLE TIME! I don't even want to know what she ate!

Dougie made friends with this sweet little girl pug

Hammy was so happy after it was over. He got a new pugsicle. It is that blue thing tied around his neck. They have a gel inside that keeps them cool in the heat

Happy Hammy

Making friends

London petting a pug making sure not to stray too far from the treats

What a fun morning!

Thoughts

2009-06-20T16:31:00.000-07:00

Thinking that my favorite word is lunch. Asking myself why my daughter locked herself in the dog crate and peed her pants( she was only in there 30 seconds). Thinking that I really like peanut butter. Thinking that hate the feel of styrofoam. Wondering if I spelled styrofoam right and if it is one or two words. Thinking that I like the smell of new paper. Thinking my dogs claws are too long. Thinking that they are going to stay too long. Thinking that I should bleach my hair platinum blond someday. Thinking not today. Remembering that tomorrow is fathers day. OH CRAP, TOMORROW IS FATHERS DAY! Thinking I have nothing for my husband on fathers day. K- bye

Bad News

2009-06-14T12:14:00.000-07:00

So Doug and I really had our hopes up for this job he applied for. It really would have changed our lives. We thought for sure he would get it! We got an e-mail today that said he didn't get it. I know you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket and that these things happen. But this one really hurt. I don't know what to think anymore......

London's New Haircut

2009-05-31T17:10:00.001-07:00

I finally chopped off a couple inches of London's narley hair. It is so much easier to manage now. I am even tempted to take a little more off. Anyway, here a few random pics.

Swimmy Swim

2009-05-30T10:33:00.001-07:00

We had a fun time swimming out in the back yard yesterday. It was so great to see the kids have so much fun. London has been really sick so it was nice to see her feeling better and smiling again!

Big Jump

Big splash.

I like this pool because it has a fun slide on it.

Love this one

He is my boy

Garrett was such a crack up.

Just Hangin Out

2009-05-25T20:00:00.001-07:00

We took the pug man out last night. He is a funny pup! We love him alot! The kids had a lot of fun playing at the park too! I love just hanging out and doing simple things with my family. It rocks!

Lol isn't this picture funny? It looks like he dislocated his eye or something. He is such a crack up!
Yes?

Weeeeeee!

He is such a momma's boy. He followed me EVERYWHERE! I didn't even need a leash for him.

He is bonding with Garret too. He is his new car buddy.

Remember

2009-05-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

As I was worrying about what color of eyeshadow to wear today, I starting reflecting on how grateful I am that I can stand in my bathroom and worry about such insignificant things in the morning. I don't want to be a downer today but the fact is there are sad things happening everyday to our sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, fathers, and mothers that fight for our everyday freedoms. There are so many who wake up to bombs and shootings and worrying about if they will live to see the next moment. It is hard to imagine all the sacrifice that our brave soldiers and their families have given. But I just thought that we should take a moment to reflect on the great gift of freedom we all have today. Thank you to all those who have given so that we can worry about eyeshadow in the morning! Thanks also to my brave brother for serving his country in the U.S. Navy! Love to all this Memorial Day.

Mother's Day

2009-05-11T09:14:00.000-07:00

I love Mother's day. I was missing my mom though. We went to church and I tried really hard to get a good picture of the family. At least I got everyone looking at the camera! Thank you so much Deedra for helping me! Anyway, poor Dougie HAD to study for a final so I spent mothers day being a mommy! Lol. I was SO not in the mood to cook so I ended up cooking T.V dinners. Now I know that you are thinking "How horrible to eat T.V dinners on mothers day!" Well, I say it was GREAT! I didn't have to cook or do dishes! My sweet husband felt SO bad but I told him to go study and not fret about it. It really was a pretty great day. I just want my mom to know how much I love her and appreciate all she does for me! Hope everyone had a GREAT day!

London made this for me and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it! You should click on it and read the little poem. It is really sweet.

Garrett drew me this sweet heart! And I LOVE LOVE LOVE this too!

He is gonna be a heart breaker!

Dougie got me these REALLY cute new dishes! I love them. Yellow is my favorite color

My Card

Yeah, I just couldn't get a great picture. But I still like these ones

I just love my family!

Ward Garden

2009-05-08T08:57:00.001-07:00

Our ward has a big plot of land that they sectioned off for families in the ward. We decided to give it a go even thought we have NO idea what we are doing. We pretty much just dumped a bunch of random seeds in the ground and we will just have to see what happens!

Yeah, Doug did most of it.

The kids just had fun playing in all the dirt! Man they were messy! We had to totally strip them naked before we put them back in the car.

I just couldn't resist!

He wasn't at the garden but this picture was in the file so I decided to add it! He is such a stinker dog!

Last Baseball Game

2009-05-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

Garrett had his last game last night and I am kinda sad to see it over. He REALLY loved doing this. I was so glad to finally find something that he loved doing. I can't wait to get him into it again next year!

New Car

2009-05-08T08:41:00.001-07:00

Our Cadillac proved to be such a money pit! It was nickle and diming us to death! So we decided to get rid of it as fast as we could and got this instead. We took it to a mechanic and they said it should be a great car for us. I am very grateful that we could find something for the little money that we had! And even more grateful that we still don't have any car payments!

Field Trip to the Zoo

2009-05-08T08:25:00.000-07:00

Garrett's preschool had a fun little trip to the zoo. I decided to go and take London so she could do something fun too. It was a great day!

London's favorite Naomi was there!

Easter

2009-05-08T07:34:00.001-07:00

I am finally getting around to the Easter pictures! Sorry I have been such a stinker! Anyway, here they are. We had a great day. Doug did EVERYTHING! He picked out all the Easter stuff, got me a basket and surprised me with it, cleaned the house, and made dinner! He even got the kids to bed! I was starting to think he had Easter confused with Mothers day~ lol.

This first picture is of the community Easter egg hunt. It was a mad place and it lasted about 30 seconds. The kids sure did have a lot of fun though. London got really cold and I accidentally left her jacket in the car so I put mine on her. :)

Every year we hide eggs and their baskets around the house and they have to find them. It is so cute to watch them find their stuff.

Nanna and Pappa Rose got the kids the CUTEST outfits for Easter and I tried really hard to get a good picture. London had the after church grumpies so this was the best I could do.

Garrett tried to get her to smile!

Garrett loves the Ham.

Coloring eggs

The cat and the do really love to play together.

Dougie made us Easter dinner and we ate outside. It was so wonderful!

6 YEARS!

2009-04-26T08:20:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we celebrated our 6 year anniversary. I can't believe how time flies! I love my husband more and more each day and am SO thankful to have him. He took me out to dinner at a very nice place and then we actually got to go to a movie too! Thanks to my amazing Auntie Irene and Uncle Bill! They watched the kids for us and even took them to McDonalds! What a great day. I have a LOT of things that I have not posted from Easter to Garrett's Birthday. As soon as I have time I will work on that. More to come. I LOVE YOU DOUGIE! HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

I am in a blogging coma

2009-04-11T15:13:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I have posted anything. And I can feel Charonne's "need a new post" comment looming. Well, I just don't know what to blog about. Garrett turned five on the second of April. My mom took all the pictures so I am waiting for her to send them so I can do a birthday boy post.
Today I took the kids to an Easter egg hunt at the park. It was really fun but it only lasted like thirty seconds. Lol it was funny cuz I have to admit that I was pushing parents and other kids out of the way to make sure London got some eggs in her basket. Don't judge me! It was CRAZY! I had a lot of fun. By the way, I am sorry I say Lol so much. I was talking to Charonne about using lol and how we hate using it but it is the only way to get my joy across. So until I can come up with something better you will have to deal with all my lol's. LOL!!!
My husband is at work right now and I am really missing him. Mostly because I just watched a romantic movie that made me miss him.
Okay, so this is really random and I guess that is why I say I am in a blogging coma. I really just don't have anything exciting right now. I will post about Garrett's birthday as soon as I get some pictures. Other than that I hope everyone is doing fab! Love to all!
Shannon

Sir Hamlet Von Wrinkle Prince of Pugmark

2009-03-30T09:56:00.000-07:00

We have our Hammy home! He is soooo much fun. We were going to wait a little longer to get him but the owners took him to the vet to get his shots and said he was ready to go. He is so stinkin cute! Garrett really wanted to name him Hamlet so that is what we did. I call him Hammy because he is such a character. I am excited to have him in our family.

This one cracks me up so much! He was OUT!

Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

T Ball!

2009-03-18T10:36:00.000-07:00

My sweet little guy started t ball yesterday. He LOVED it! I was so surprised cuz he really didn't like soccer very much. I just can't explain what it does to my heart to see my boy so happy. I am glad he is in something he can have fun with. He is such a great thrower! I was shocked at how straight and hard her could throw that ball. He needs a little work with catching but that is was daddies and backyards are for. ;) So I am thrilled that he is excited about playing and look forward to watching him! Isn't he so cute in his little shirt and hat? He insisted on sleeping in his hat! so cute

Running running running
Waiting to catch to ball

He was so happy

Driving with my Hand Brake on...

2009-03-17T07:40:00.000-07:00

“Low self-esteem is like driving through life with your hand-break on.” I came across this quote this morning and it really stuck out to me. It is so true that being hard on yourself can really weigh you down. It really does feel like driving with the hand-break on. I have been so rotten to myself lately I have exhausted myself. It seems as though every mistake I make I just rake myself over the coals all day long. "Why is my house still messy?", "Why did I eat that?", " Why am I such a bad mom" and so on and on and on and on. Do you ever just need a break from yourself? I have been pretty miserable to be around. I could blame it on lot of things, not enough exercise, eating the wrong stuff, hormones, not enough or too much sleep. But the fact of the matter is, it doesn't matter why, all I know is it has to stop. Whenever I am down on myself my husband always says in a very serious tone, "be nice, that is my wife you are talking about!". He really has a good point. What value do we actually give ourselves? Why are we so afraid to truly love and appreciate who we are. And love us just the way we are. By always trashing on myself I am telling my husband that he made a poor choice in a spouse. I am teaching my children how to treat themselves. I always remember telling my friends " be nice to your person". I have forgotton to follow my own advice.

So this morning instead of laying in bed till 9 or 10 and letting my kids fend for themselves, I decided enough is enough. I pulled my hiney ( not going to remark on how big I think it is,) I pulled my very cute hiney out of bed at 6:30 and got on the treadmill. Did I run my expected five miles? No I did a very good hearted one mile. And I am very proud of that one mile because it broke a week long stretch of putting myself last and laying around all hours of the day. Now I am up, and ready to be a mom. It is amazing how quickly negative thoughts can become such a hard habit to break. And how contagious they are! It also amazes me how much effort and energy I have been putting into feeling down. We should be proud of who we are. A mother or a wife or who ever it is that you are is a precious, often overlooked gift that needs a lot more credit. And I am not talking about credit from the world, I am talking about credit from ourselves!

So today when I get ready for the day, instead of nit picking all my "imperfections", I will simply look at my wonderful self and say a long over due "I love you". And as tempted as I am to apologize for my cheesiness right now, I am not going to. I hope all who reads this takes a moment to appreciate how wonderful you really are and enjoy being you for the day. Try so hard not to compare yourself to anyone else because after all “Why compare yourself with others? No one in the entire world can do a better job of being you than you.” Isn't that the truth? If we spend all our time trying to be like everyone else, we are robbing the world of that one unique you. I am not saying that I wont have more hard days or that I wont catch myself longing for a smaller size or a cleaner house, but I am glad that even if it is just for today, I slapped myself in the face and said "snap out of it!" Love to all, and love to myself!

I Love You

2009-03-16T08:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I know you might be sick of the pug frenzy. But I am not!!! And it is only just beginning. Just wait till we have one of our own! So I couldn't help myself when I saw this one. Just thought you all needed to hear a good I love you today! And I love all of you!!! Have a happy Monday!

Such Joy!

2009-03-09T17:06:00.000-07:00

I have such joy to look forward too. I must be kindred spirits with pugs because I can so relate to the indecisiveness

PUG-NACIOUS!

2009-03-08T20:14:00.000-07:00

OK, so this is the first time I have ever tried to post anything on the blog, hopefully it comes out alright. This is Doug by the way. So we have been looking around for a couple of weeks for a dog to add to our family. The cat was obviously not enough! We have done a ton of research trying to find out which breeds have the best temperament, intelligence, obedience, and personality for a young family with kids. After many misses (and some near hits), after all of the puppies and older dogs we looked at, after all the trips to the pound, after the hours spent pouring over dog books, after all of the puppies that licked and peed on us, we have finally found the perfect dog! Was it the 150 pound great dane needing a new home, no. Was it the 8 week old golden retriever puppy (as cute as it was), no. Was it the boy in the accidental litter of black labs, no. It was this happy little guy!

YES, it's a pug! He is just four weeks old and is the sweetest little guy. Both his parents are registered purebreds, and they are the best dogs. He's the one on the far right in the picture down below. He will be all ready to come home with us in about a month. That should be plenty of time to puppy proof the house.

Shannon is so excited! She is usually not an animal person, but she just absolutely fell in love with the dad, his name is Woody. It was so funny, I could not get her away from that dog!

This is the Momma dog. Isn't she sweet?

We're still not sure on the name. We are looking for something that really shines. Like Yoda, Hamlet Prince of Pugmark, or Rip Van Wrinkle. Or maybe even Doctor Von Schadenfreud. Any ideas are welcome.

Gracie Meow

2009-03-03T10:03:00.001-08:00

So Doug just LOVES kitties. I have to admit that I like them too but I am in general not an animal person at all! But I finally caved and decided that a pet would be good for the kids. Especially Garrett. So we found this kitty online and she needed a home so we decided to adopt her into our family. We named her Gracie and she so far is a very sweet kitty. She has no claws so that is good for me and my furniture!

Tender Moment

2009-03-03T09:56:00.000-08:00

I let the kids stay up to watch a movie from the video store and when I came upstairs to put them to be I saw Garrett asleep on the couch but I couldn't find London anywhere! It was so scared and let I finally thought to look on the other side of Garrett. She cuddled up to brother and went to sleep. It was so sweet! I had to take a picture.

Yay for GARRETT!

2009-02-23T09:57:00.000-08:00

I took Garrett to the dentist today and he did sooooo good! I was so proud of him!I thought for sure he was going to pitch a fit, but he didn't at all. When he first walked in to the office he told them "I have no cavities and my teeth are already white" And they said that they were going to take a picture of his teeth (x-ray) and he liked that. Then they painted his teeth pink so they could see where he was missing when he brushed and that made him MAD! He said "My teeth are supposed to be white not pink!" LOL It was too cute. So they gave him a brush and boy did he scrub off all that pink! He was most afraid of the poky looking stick that they count your teeth with. But he was so brave and found that there was nothing to be afraid of after all. They said he has great teeth and no cavities. I am so proud of my little guy. He is getting to be such a big boy. Now I just have to figure out how to get his immunizations on Wed.........

Lay Off Me!!!

2009-02-20T08:42:00.000-08:00

So I have been trying really hard lately to change my eating habits again. I am doing really well and I am feeling a lot better. But I have definitely had a few moments of weakness. I ate an entire box of Andes mints for valentines day! lol. My sweet Husband has been trying to be so supportive and encouraging. Well I came across this video and It really reminded me of a recent conversation Doug and I had over my Andes Mints.......... It pretty much speaks for itself.

Valentines Day

2009-02-14T19:56:00.000-08:00

My AMAZING husband surprised us with Valentine treats today. He got me tulips which are my very favorite flower! It was so so so so so so sweet! He is such a catch. I am so glad I have him. The kids were so excited to have treats! Thanks honey I LOVE YOU!!!

Random Thoughts

2009-02-11T08:19:00.000-08:00

Well, I don't have anything exciting to report (yet again). But I am developing a strange issue with having an outdated blog. So I figure if I just ramble on about a few insignificant things that I will feel better about at least having something new up! Lol.
We just got Garrett signed up for T-ball and he will start in March. I am a little nervous that he won't like it. We got him in soccer last year and he got really frustrated with himself and gave up really fast. After that, every game he went to he just laid around on the field looking at the birds (literally) So I am really hoping that he gives himself a little more time to learn this new sport. He seems a little scared but after we went and got him a ball, tee, shoes, and a bat he was really excited. He has even gone outside on his own to practice. So I really hope it builds some confidence and helps him out. I just love that little guy so much! He and London are my whole world. I really want them both to be sooo happy.
My gym pass is going to expire in about a week and a half. At first I was really sad about it. I LOVE going and talking to all the neat people I have met there. Even the crazy workout addicts that are there at 5 am! But we couldn't afford to renew the pass. It was over 600 dollars! And Doug never could go during the hours they are open. So when we were at Sports Authority getting Garrett's baseball stuff, we saw a great deal on a treadmill. It is a Pro Form and was 1200 dollars. They got it in in Dec. 08 and so they put it on clearance so the new model could come in. Plus we decided to get the floor model because it was another 10 percent off. So we got a pretty decent treadmill for 300.00! I was really excited about it. My friend Candee has recruited me to running a half-marathon. So I have been running on a training schedule to get ready for that. It is pretty different running at home vs running at the gym. They both have their pros and cons. Working out at home strangely takes more discipline for me. I have so many distractions that sometimes it is hard to buckle down and do my workout. But I don't have to get up at four in the morning either! I can sleep in all the way too six when Doug leaves for work. So all in all I am so so so grateful to have a way to exercise at home. I hope I can get a hang of this whole running thing. I am so used to spinning and aerobics that just plain running is a little different for me. Wish me luck!

So there a just a couple things that are on my mind. If you are bored out of your mind then you can go look at some other blog! Hope all is well with everyone!

Princess Party

2009-02-08T08:48:00.001-08:00

London got invited to one of her favorite friends Hallie's birthday. It was a princess party and it was SOOO cute. The girls had so much fun. I love little girls!

Sick House

2009-02-02T10:27:00.000-08:00

So we have some NASTY bug in our house. Probably one of the "perks"of Dougie working in a hospital. Last night Garrett woke up with a 104.3 temp! I wasn't sure what to do. I didn't want to take him to the ER cause I wasn't sure if I needed to and we really can't afford it right now. So Dougie thought to give him a blessing. He called over a friend and gave little Garrett a blessing to feel better. And the next morning his fever was totally gone and he is running around playing again. It is SO great to have the priesthood in our house. I am so grateful that we had somewhere to turn in the middle of the night. BUT..... now London of course is running a 103.5 fever and I am sure it will get higher. Garrett's started out yesterday morning at about 103 and went up later that night. So I am keeping an eye of her. It is always scary the smaller they are. Especially when they don't know quite how to tell you what is wrong. So I guess this bug is just taking turns with the family. Hopefully Dougie can stay healthy this time. He just got over a HORRIBLE episode of stomach problems and had to go get on an IV. I really hope he dodges this one. Especially because he just started his new job today. He is starting out part time with the new job and staying part time at his old one. I am really hoping the new job hires him full time (prayers please!) It pays 10 dollars more an hour, so it would really be a blessing for us. Anyway, nothing too exciting other than sick kids and a new job. Just thought I would post what was on my mind today.

Are you kidding me?.....

2009-01-30T19:45:00.000-08:00

Okay here is your warning.... I am going to talk about my weight AGAIN. But seeing how this is the closest thing I have to a journal, I am going to put my personal thoughts out in the open. As I am SURE you all know, Doug and I have lost some weight. Well things were going great for about a year and now I am getting really worried. I am watching the scale slowly creep back up. Now I hope you are not all sick to death of me talking about this I know I am sick of hearing me talk about it!

This is really hard to put in public. But I saw on Oprah how she "fell off the wagon" And I have heard of the people on biggest loser gaining back all their weight. Well I am starting to fall victim to the weight cancer too. It is trying to come back! I am starting to emotionally eat when I am stressed and have stopped going to the gym consistently. I have been making excuses for the past few months and telling myself it is no big deal. BUT I truly think that if I continue on this path I WILL gain it all back. I am starting to realise that it IS a life long commitment to a certain lifestyle. And for me, a life long battle. Some people are naturally thin and others bodies just want to store the fat! My body is fighting me like crazy. So I am going to be brave and put it out there for all to see so that I know I can be accountable to something. I am going to start tracking my points and my food and start back at the gym and then once a week I will update on here how I am doing.

So here it is. When I first weighed in at Weight watchers I weighed 200 lbs. I am 5' 4 . The smallest I got to was 133 lbs. My ultimate personal goal was 130 lbs. Well now I weigh 143 lbs.I have gone from a four to an eight.(Not that an eight isn't something to be proud of) I do give myself credit for maintaining as long as I have, but the weight is definitely going up and I really am not feeling healthy. So I am nipping this in the "butt" now before I get any higher. I am recommitting myself to this and would LOVE some encouragement because I have lost my motivation. I am resetting my 130 goal so off we go. I just want to make sure I don't undo all the hard work that I did. 10 lbs is easier to fix than 60. Thanks for listening!

Perspective

2009-01-28T17:13:00.000-08:00

One day, a wealthy man took his small boy on a trip to the country with the purpose of showing him how poor people live.They spent a couple of days and nights on the farm of what would be considered a very poor family.On their return from their trip, the father asked his son, "How was the trip?""It was great, Dad.""Did you see how poor people live?" the father asked."Oh yeah," said the son."So, tell me, what you learned from the trip?" asked the father.The son answered:"I saw that we have one dog and they had four.We have a pool that reaches to the middle of our garden and they have a creek that has no end.We have imported lanterns in our garden and they have the stars at night...Our patio reaches to the front yard and they have the whole horizon.We have a small piece of land to live on and they have fields that go beyond our sight.We have servants who serve us, but they serve others.We buy our food, but they grow theirs.We have walls around our property to protect us; they have friends to protect them."The boy's father was speechless.Then his son added, "Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are." Isn't perspective a wonderful thing?

Makes you wonder what would happen if we all gave thanks for everything we have, instead of worrying about what we don't have.Let's appreciate every small thing we have!
-Author Unknown

Bath time!

2009-01-28T09:04:00.000-08:00

It was late last night and after having a long tiring day, I decided to take a hot bath. Well my kids had left their bath toys in from the night before. Call me crazy but I found my self playing pirate ship in the bath! I must be losing it! Oh well, it was fun! Lol

P.S. I really love having new shampoo bottles to read in the bath. And I always find myself reading all the bottles even if I have read them a hundred times. Just thought you would like to know.

Do you feel it to?

2009-01-25T18:09:00.000-08:00

Lately I have felt like we really need to make sure our family is prepared as far as food storage. We are starting out with a humble supply to say the least, but we are being a lot more mindful of it these days. I just feel something in the air that makes me want to make sure we have at least something in an emergency. Since I have started couponing I have been able to store more than we ever have before. I still don't have much but it is definitely improving. I truly believe that if we try our hardest to follow the council to have food storage, that we will be blessed. I have said it so many times, but if the Lord can multiply fish and wine, then he can multiply my food storage! Our ward does a big order every month so we can get things in bulk at a cheaper price. Doug and I are making a goal to order with the church every month so we have a year supply of that item. So this month we are buying four lbs of yeast and 12 gallons of canola oil. We are going to have to scrape really hard to be able to afford it, but like I said, I really feel strong that we should be thinking of this. I hope nothing bad happens and that we just end up with a whole lot of yeast and oil, but the church seems to really be pressing this issue lately. Well, I guess I have been on my soap box long enough but I just wanted to write how I was feeling. We are in scary times and I am so thankful to have good guidance in my life. Love to all!

I am SO addicted!!!

2009-01-14T20:12:00.001-08:00

So I have gotten SO into couponing this last week. My friend Charonne has been trying to get me to do it forever but I never thought it was worth all the trouble. But then my friend Candee invited me to a coupon class and I decided to give it a go. Well let me tell you that I am blown away! These pictures are of just one SMALL little trip. Yes I said SMALL. This trip cost me a total of 36 dollars!!! I saved over 150 dollars! And I did one other trip before this one that was our big shopping trip and we payed 130 dollars for 600 dollars worth of stuff! I feel like this is SUCH a blessing for us right now. I can not believe how much money we were spending before! Now I might have a chance at getting a little food storage going. I am totally sold. Thanks Charonne and Candee for showing me such an amazing blessing that couponing can be!

ALL OF THIS WAS ONLY 36 DOLLARS AT ALBERTSONS!~

Somthing is better than nothing......

2009-01-07T16:08:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I found a little something to blog about. This kinda made me laugh. I love it when someone can take a tense situation and laugh about it! So there, I blogged!

Not Much....

2009-01-07T08:13:00.000-08:00

Well, I wish I had something fun to blog about but I don't. Things have been pretty blah lately. So here I am blogging about having nothing to blog about. I just wanted to put something because I hate having an un-updated blog. So...... there it is.

2008-12-29T11:56:00.000-08:00

There are more posts after the Christmas ones. So keep scrolling down so you can see them all! :) Love to everyone!

Christmas Eve 08

2008-12-29T11:09:00.001-08:00

Every Christmas Eve, we open presents that say "From Nini" She always loved wearing jammies so we thought she would like the idea of giving jammies every Christmas Eve. Anyway, the kids were SO excited for Santa to come. Garret made sure the fire place was turned off. Lol. (you have to know Garrett to fully appreciate that) Doug read the "Night Before Christmas" that his mom sent us and we told this kids about Christ's birth. I really hope that they grow up knowing the true meaning of Christmas. But it is still so fun to do Santa!

I got Dougie some super hero jammies, because he is my super hero! He got some ACDC jams too. I also made him some froggy jammies but I can't find a picture! They were the first real thing I have attempted to make, and they were too big and one leg was longer than the other! LOL. He said I could wear them for him. :)

Yay slippers! Thanks honey! He also got me pink star jammies!

Garrett in his new Jammers. He also got some Batman Jammies

London got Tinker Bell Jammies and Sponge Bob jammies and she wanted to wear them both at the same time. lol

So sleepy!

I had to get Dougie up so we could play Santa. It was so magical when we were all done! I just love having kids at Christmas! Don't you love Dougie's legs sporting his new Jammies? :) Fun times.

Christmas 08!

2008-12-29T10:02:00.000-08:00

So here it is, Christmas morning! Doug and I were so excited to watch our kids have a great Christmas! This first one is of Garrett coming down the stairs. I thought it was funny that he found it necessary to bring his toy gun. I'll bet he would have shot poor Santa if he was still there! Lol! He is always very cautious. :)

Here is London coming down to see if Santa came.

So cool!

Wow!

"For me?"

Christmas buzz!

This is what I got for Dougie. He is really into history and about a year ago he saw this and really loved it. It is of Benjamin Franklin signing the Declaration of Independence with tears in his eyes. I framed it all by myself! I think he really liked it. It made him cry. This country means so much to Doug and me. It will be nice to have a reminder of all the emotion and love that went into forming it.

Making dolly pretty pretty

Playing dolly with daddy

I got this in my stocking. So cute!

Yay a transformer!

Jammies from Robbie! Yay!

Yes?

Nanna and Pappa Rose sent Garrett some much needed new clothes! Yay!

Grammy Stephanie had these ADORABLE dolls made for the kids. London got Raggedy Anne and Garrett got Raggedy Andy. Well..... Garrett was really scared of his. He wouldn't even let me take a picture. So I told him we could keep it in London's room. LOL I am sure it will grow on him! I thought they were darling! Thanks Grammy! Don't take it personally, Garrett is a funny kid!

Yeah, they got spoiled.

So Nanna and Pappa Rose sent us this Rock band!!! As you can see we were really excited!

Doug's mom sent him a scrapbook with all the pictures of him growing up. It was SOOO thoughtful! It had me crying right away!

Doug's mom sent me a ring and a pair of earings that belonged to Nini. It meant so much to me! I was very touched by it. I can't remember the last time I cried and Doug's mommy got me crying twice in one day!

Dougie gave me this adorable purse. I love you baby!

So all in all, we had such a great Christmas. All the presents were great, but the greatest gift of Christmas is the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I am always SO grateful to feel the spirit of Christ during these precious holidays. We are all so blessed for the great sacrifice that he gave us all. I hope to always remember him above all else every Christmas season. Merry Christmas everyone!

Ward Christmas Party

2008-12-29T09:47:00.000-08:00

We had a little party for the kids at church. They got to play a few games and see Santa.(Again)

Daddy and London made a paper reindeer.

So cute!

Garrett and one of his best buddies, Travis

Santa again! My kids must look at sitting on Santa's lap as a business meeting. They take it so seriously! lol

More fun in the Snow!

2008-12-29T09:24:00.000-08:00

We have had SO MUCH snow latley. We could harldly get out of the driveway! But, we were so lucky and excited to have our friends Eden and Halley come play with us. ( We also got to have little Morgan but she is too little to brave the snow. ;) Anyway, the kids had lots of fun playing in the snow together!

Halley and London

Eden- I love this picture of her. She is such a sweetie

The snow was so deep by the fence! He almost got lost!

She is such a girl!

Early Christmas Present....

2008-12-23T12:03:00.000-08:00

I made this tutu for London and wanted to give it to her for Christmas. Well right after the sour cream incident, she managed to find her tutu and put in on while I was cleaning up the sour cream mess. So I just went ahead and let her have it early. It was really cute to see her dancing around! She knew just what to do with it. :)

One of those days....

2008-12-21T18:08:00.000-08:00

As I was working on a previous post about my oh so dear two year old, (scroll down to see after you read this one) it was strangely quiet in my house. It was strange for two reasons, 1. London has been throwing an eight hour tantrum and she finally stopped screaming, 2. Any time kids are quiet and they are not asleep, there is big trouble.

Now normally in this messy situation, I would have thrown a tantrum much larger than she can throw, but... I was so relieved that she was finally happy! Even if it meant that she was painting the kitchen with sour cream. I am learning to embrace and love every moment of motherhood, even the grouchy messy toddler moments. So I end this with a smile on my face and sour cream on my dress :)

My Boy

2008-12-21T17:50:00.001-08:00

At least he was in a good mood today!

Trying to take a two year old's picture during naptime....

2008-12-21T17:31:00.000-08:00

Mommy- "Turn around London, you look so pretty pretty" London- " AHH" Mommy- "Hold still and let me take your pretty picture" London-" WHAAAAAAHAAAAA NO!"

Mommy- " Here is an M&M, now can I take your pretty picture?"

getting closer......

Good enough.

***Note, the grouchy screaming child, Note- the slightly crooked bangs. Oh the joy of two years olds! See Candee, I have one too! And aren't you glad I didn't end up cutting your hair after all? :)

Thanks Holly!

2008-12-19T11:15:00.000-08:00

I got my holiday planner in the mail yesterday. It is sooo fun! Thanks Holly! I hope I win another contest!

Santa

2008-12-18T09:24:00.001-08:00

We went to a work party for Doug last night, and they had a Santa there. Garrett was so excited to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas (three transformers and a bionical). It was so cute to see him. London told Santa that she wanted a baby bottle for her dollies. So I guess the big man has his list!
"Mrs. Claus" was a crack up! My kids are always so serious!

Ha ha

2008-12-15T09:35:00.000-08:00

My mom sent me this song. I thought it was cute. I just hope I don't sound like that to my kids! :)

Playing in the snow

2008-12-15T09:20:00.000-08:00

Kids love snow

New Car

2008-12-15T09:04:00.001-08:00

So we have gone the last 4 years with just one car. It really hasn't been so bad. We loved only having to take care of one car, pay only one insurance, register only one car. But the time has come where we just couldn't swing it any more. Doug's new job in Boise is going to complicate things in that department, so we decided to cave and get a second car. Usually a new car is really exciting to most people, but I have to admit that I am kinda stressed about it. We were already really tight on money, so this is REALLY pushing it. We decided we had about 3000 to spend on a car, so we found this one for 2900. A 2000 Cadillac Deville. It is a big car for a second car, but we really love big cars. They feel so much more solid and safe. I was really hesitant to get this one because of the gas mileage. I was picturing a little junker that could zip up and down the freeway! Most the cars in our price range really were little junkers. But when we found this one we couldn't pass it up. I have had a lot of people tell me that we got a steal on it! I sure hope so. Heavenly father must have been looking out for us to get a good car for a decent price. We sure can't afford any huge mistakes right now.! ;) So all in all I feel really blessed that we have a car for Doug to go to work in that is safe. And I am excited for things to start coming together for us. :)

I WIN!

2008-12-11T06:11:00.001-08:00

My cutest friend Holly that used to live across the street from me, has this really neat cooking blog. She posts the BEST recipes on there! Anyway, she has these really fun little contests and she gives away prizes. Well, I won one! I am really excited. But it wasn't that hard to win cause only 3 people entered! So we all won something! :) So everyone needs to get reading this blog because the recipes are great and her contests are really fun! It is http://grandmasanderskitchentable.blogspot.com/

Doug's Birthday

2008-12-07T10:58:00.000-08:00

For Doug's birthday I decided to make him a chocolate cinnamon whip cream cake. I was proud of myself because I did it completely from scratch. EVERYTHING was from scratch. :) It wasn't a perfect cake but it was pretty yummy and I was proud of it. So we went to Souper Salad with some friends and ate dinner. (Yummo!) and then we went and saw the new James Bond movie. It was a lot of fun! All in all I think he had a great birthday! Happy Birthday Baby! I love you.

Yes my daughter is naked again. I am aware.

Okay Mom

2008-12-05T08:51:00.001-08:00

My mom got mad at me for not having a Christmas background. So I give! I guess I am done ba hum buggin! Merry Christmas!

Finally Figured it out but.....

2008-12-03T15:16:00.000-08:00

I finally figured out how to fix my blog. I know a lot of you are probably thinking Duh! But there was really something wrong with it and it made it a pain to fix it. And p.s. I know I didn't put up a Christmas background. Ba Hum Bug!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-01T13:30:00.000-08:00

We did Thanksgiving at my house this year. It was the four of us and my mom. I had a 2o lb turkey and only 3 adults to eat it! Lets just say that I have had to get pretty creative with the leftovers. You can only eat so many turkey sandwiches. My turkey did turn out so perfect if I do say so myself. It was so tender and juicy it just melted in our mouths. We also made sweet potatoes, rolls, veggies, mashed potatoes, stuffing and pumpkin pie. It was really yummy. It was fun to cook and Doug is SUCH a good cooking partner. We made a good team. Too bad we didn't have more people to enjoy such a delicious meal! I just realised that I don't have any pictures of London. I promise she was there!

Garrett adores his grandma

cooking away

Carving the turkey

Here she is, the best turkey we ever had!

Going to the Zoo!

2008-12-01T13:10:00.000-08:00

My mom wanted to take the kids to the zoo when she was here. So here are a few pictures.

Missing You

2008-11-24T08:32:00.000-08:00

On Sat. Night Doug's Grandpa passed away. A year before that we lost his Grandma. We called them Nini and Bop. We loved them so very much and will really miss them a lot. I can still smell the cookies in the oven from Nini's constant baking, and hear Bop running after and playing with the kids "I'm gonna get you!" Nini and Bop were a huge part in raising Doug, and they were extra special to him. In a way, he feels like he has lost his parents. We are comforted to know that they are now together and are no longer suffering from physical pains. We just wanted to share with everyone how amazing these two people were and that we will always love and miss them. And in honor of Nini we will always open jammies every Christmas Eve! Forever in our Hearts!
This top picture is Nini holding London. She was 3 months old

This next picture is the last time I ever saw Nini. This was right before we moved to Idaho.
This is Nini and Bop with Doug's Aunt Lisa (Nanna) and Doug's Uncle Robert (Pappa) and their son, Robbie.

Picture Tag From Rose

2008-11-18T08:00:00.001-08:00

This is what the tag said to do. "The idea is to go to your pictures and go in the fourth folder and pick the fourth picture and post it. Then, go to the six folder and get the sixth picture and post it." It was kind of funny to see what pictures they were. My upload rearranges them in alphabetical order. So the order is different on the upload than on my actual computer. So these are def some random one's. This first on is on me and my sister from another mister, Charonnie. She came to stay with us last year. Come back!

This picture is a 3d ultrasound of London's face. It is a close up of her face. You can see her little eyes closed and then her gigantic lips. I love this!

Now I tag Charonne, Courtney, Candee, and Holly

Trip to Utah

2008-11-10T12:35:00.000-08:00

We went to Utah this past weekend. Doug had to take his last BIG test in Pocatello, so we decided to just drive on through to Utah since we were already half way there. Doug passed his test by the way!!!! Yay for that. I am so proud of him. He has been so stressed about it and we are finally done taking tests. Now we just need to find a job. We have a few prospects, so we will see what happens.
So anyway, we got to see my mom again, and it was really fun. Garrett just LOVES grandma. And London just loves her "framma". She watched that kids for us while we went and played with my dear friend Charonne. We visited an old friend from high school and stopped at one of our old teachers houses, coach Biggs. It was great to see old friends again. The next day, we saw another old friend, Soffie. Then we went and let London ride on my moms horse. She had soooo much fun, that child is fearless! Garrett on the other hand preferred to stay planted firmly on the ground. He is so funny that way! Then later that night we went to Charonne's 25th birthday party. It was really the most fun I have had in a long time. I didn't have to worry about my kids (we RARELY can find a sitter here) and we could stay out as late as we wanted. And I actually played games, and really loved it! The best part was seeing Charonne. So all in all it was a great little trip. It was hard to leave so soon but I was surprised to find I was happy to be home.
I will post some pictures later. I didn't take any because my camera was dead, but I think my mom has a few of London on the horse. And Charonne might have some from her party (most of them accidentally got deleted).

Thankful

2008-11-04T10:01:00.000-08:00

I just voted at a local elementary school. As I was standing in that long line with my daughter crawling all over the floor I remember thinking " Is my vote even going to count?" I stewed in my frustration of the large crowd and my restless child right up until I handed my vote to one of the volunteers. "Shannon Hughes has voted". As soon as I heard these words my eyes welled up with tears and I was surprised to find myself overcome with emotion. I thought of all the women who fought so hard for our right to vote and I was proud to have participated. This is such a special country and it is so amazing that we have the right to vote in it. I am truly touched by the spirit of what this country stands for. After this experience I realise that I would stand in line one hundred times over again to exercise my right to vote. This is a right that so many men and women fought and gave their lives for. I am proud to be an American.

Happy Birthday London!

2008-11-03T07:13:00.001-08:00

It has been such a CRAZY weekend! We have been running all over the place for Halloween and London's birthday. On Sat. my baby turned two! I can't believe it! She is such a joy in our lives and I just couldn't be a luckier mom. I LOVE YOU LULU!

We went to an indoor playground. They had so much fun stuff to do. Garrett just disappeared into the playground and I hardly saw him till it was time to go! I think he liked London having a birthday too!

I got to go inside the playground and follow London around. She was a little to small to be by herself.

Doug decided to join in the fun

Then we went to TGIF's for lunch. It was fun because they brought her some ice cream and sang to her. That place is expensive though! I don't think I will go there again.

Here I am making London my famous strawberry weight watchers birthday cake. It is so yummers!

I love my little man!

Well I guess he is my not so little man!

Daddy's Girl

Yay! Presents!

Present from brother.

Grandma got here this adorable stroller. She is in heaven!

Daddy picked out this really cute dolly! She calls her baby Ally

Feed your baby

Yay cake!

Halloween

2008-11-03T06:42:00.000-08:00

Halloween was lots of fun. We walked around the neighborhood with our favorite next door neighbors. We had candy coming out of our ears after that! Now I have to find someone to give it all too!

My mom doesn't like her picture taken. But I managed to sneak one in.

London collapsed on someones yard. She just couldn't wait anymore!

Have to have it NOW

Ward Trunk or Treat

2008-11-03T06:31:00.000-08:00

We went to the ward trunk or treat party the sat before Halloween. It was so much fun. I was really glad we could go a week before because Doug got to go with us. He was on call and worked all of Halloween night. Big strong Batman!

My little lady bug

Preschool Halloween

2008-11-03T06:21:00.000-08:00

Garrett had a Halloween part at preschool. He was so cute! I love having a preschool for him to do fun things with.

Carving Pumpkins

2008-11-03T06:01:00.000-08:00

So here we are carving pumpkins only two days before Halloween. We wanted to wait till my mom got here. She was the picture taker. This is Doug's. It was really cool.

London's and Garrett's

Yes that weird looking one is mine. I started to do a really fancy one I got most of the holes poked for the picture then I ran out of patience and carved this creation. What can I say, it was my favorite pumpkin.

I should have posted these ones first. I always do that!

Yummy pumpkin guts

Wheat Bread Pull a Parts

2008-11-03T05:51:00.000-08:00

Tried this recipe from a friends blog. They tasted just like the center of a cinnamon roll. SO YUMMY! SO NAUGHTY! SO GONNA BE A WHILE BEFORE MAKING AGAIN! ( Because we ate way to many of them!)

Feeling Better :)

2008-10-28T05:55:00.000-07:00

I guess I had kind of a "poor me" moment yesterday. I feel much better today (especially after a good morning workout.) I feel like everything happens for a reason and you just never know why things turn out the way they do. I am so grateful to have such beautiful children and an AMAZING husband. And I am SO blessed to have such great friends and family like all of you. Thanks for the encouragement! LOVE TO ALL
Shannon

Field Trip to the Pet Store

2008-10-26T10:30:00.001-07:00

Garrett had a trip to the pet store with his preschool. He liked looking at the animals but he did keep a little distance from them. Kinda like his mommy. It was a lot of fun. No touchy!

London and Naomi were not afraid to touch anything!

Tagged

2008-10-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

I was tagged by a miss Rose Graves. So here it is.
I am...... Shannon
I miss....... Charonne
I think...... games are lame
I know....... I am special
I want......... to go to the movies
I search.... for my car keys and the remote all the time
I wish...... The best for my kids
I hate......doing laundry
I am.... eating a cookie
I fear..... instability
I always.......brush my teeth
I love.... Dougie
I feel..... sick from eating too many cookies
I hear....... Garrett saying he is thirsty
I smell.... Cookies
I don't.... Want to talk about cookies anymore
I wonder..... about the things I find in London's diaper sometimes
I care..... about people
I regret..... nothing, I am grateful for my mistakes. I learn too much from them to regret them
I am ..... proud of myself
I believe.... your life is what you make it
I dance..... rarely. Well, I guess I dance when I clean
I sing..... in the shower and when I am doing dishes
I write... love notes to Doug
I win.... At board games but I don't like playing them
I lose.... whatever I am looking for at the moment. Mainly my keys and the remote control
I never...... go to the bathroom in front of my hubby
I listen..... I am a bad listener
I can...... cook pretty yummy things that are healthy

Um I guess that if you read this and haven't done it then I tag you.

Lovin Our Aunt Charonne!

2008-10-23T10:50:00.000-07:00

Charonne sent these adorable clothes for London's birthday. It was SO SO SO nice of her. WE LOVE YOU AUNTIE CHARONNE!

2008-10-23T10:34:00.000-07:00

Garrett had his last soccer game on Saturday. He was so cute playing in his little uniform. I loved watching him at his games. It was a fun experience. I am not so sure soccer is his thing though. ;)

This is Garrett making goggle eyes when he is supposed to be playing soccer.
Go get it!

Making goggle eyes again.

Go team

Yay! The End!

Pumkin Patch

2008-10-16T10:47:00.000-07:00

Today we went to the pumpkin patch for Garrett's preschool field trip. It was so much fun to watch them pick out their pumpkins. I always love this time of year. I would have to say that fall is my favorite season. I wish it lasted a little longer than it does. Here are all the pumpkins we picked out. We even got one for when grandma comes to visit.

There were cows there too.

This is Garrett with his best buddy Travis. Not only are they in the same class but they also live right next door! We are so lucky to have them as neighbors.

This is Garrett walking with his teacher and his class
He got this pumpkin for free
London was excited to get suckers. Good luck finding any at home

This is London best little friend Naomi. She is Travis' little sister. She lives right next door too. Isn't she the cutest little thing?

Big pumpkin
She was not sure what to think of a pumpkin being bigger than her
Giving Naomi loves

More Baking

2008-10-10T18:42:00.000-07:00

I made this a few days ago. London and Garrett helped. Since I have been on the topic of baking, I thought I would throw this one in too.

Pizza!

2008-10-10T18:22:00.001-07:00

So if you scroll down my blog you will see that we have been baking all day. My friend Candee also taught me how to make homemade pizza. Since I already had wheat dough coming out my ears, I thought "why not?" . So we had super delicious completely homemade wheat pizza and bread sticks! We had a great day today. Daddy and Garrett put on all the toppings.

London was helping with the bread sticks

Done Baking Bread

2008-10-10T18:10:00.001-07:00

It didn't rise as much as I wanted it too. But that is because wheat bread it really tricky. It did taste really yummy though! This one has sesame seeds on it. (p.s. I kinda posted these backwards. So if you scroll down you can see me making the bread.) This one was a cinnamon roll loaf. It was especially good.
And here is Dougie eating the yummy bread. I wish I could post how amazing the house smelled after all this baking. Perfect for a cold day!

Cleaning Up

2008-10-10T18:07:00.001-07:00

Doug is the best at helping out in the kitchen. He always jumps in and helps me when I need it. Baking and cleaning all in one day. What a man!

Baking Bread!

2008-10-10T17:52:00.000-07:00

I have the cutest neighbor that is really good at making bread. So I decided to pick her brain a little and have her show me how to do it. I am definitely finding that it is an art. Especially when dealing with wheat flour. But you know me and wanting everything to be healthy so I really wanted everything to be whole wheat. It is a work in progress but I am determined to master this one day.

I even roped Dougie into pounding the dough a little. He said it was therapeutic and he got a little aggression out. When angry, beat the dough.

Temple Date

2008-09-26T18:06:00.001-07:00

Doug and I went to the Boise Temple today. We have not been in over 3 years if you can believe it. Honestly, I have had such a negative attitude the past year that it has almost been like a rain cloud looming over us. So the thought of going to the temple just didn't excite me. That sounds bad I know, but when you have a negative energy around you I guess the last thing it wants is a positive light. That might sound weird but that is the best I can describe it. I have heard people say that they felt a weight lifted from them and that they felt so much better after going to the temple. I never really understood that. Well I am here to tell you that I understand it now! I never really needed the temple as I did today. It brought all things into perspective. That is really all I will say about it but it really was a neat experience.

APPLE PIE

2008-09-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

I had all these apples that I didn't know what to do with. I knew my kids wouldn't eat them because they didn't taste the best. But they were perfect in a pie! My crust turned out PERFECT. I always have a hard time getting the crust right but this time I did good. I haven't made one in a long time, so it was really nice to indulge a little! We ate half the pie and gave the rest away. Yummy!
Don't mind the hair- It was a stay at home day anyway.
Doug made the little leaves on it. They are so cute!

Missing my Mom!

2008-09-13T15:01:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking a lot about my mom today. Even though I am 24 years old, sometimes I still find myself saying "I want my mom"! WE LOVE YOU MOM! Thanks for being there for me.

Babies having Babies

2008-09-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

I went up to check on London before I went to bed and this is what I found! I thought, "Oh No! My baby is reproducing!" Ha Ha- I had a good laugh and just had to take a picture!