Happy GratiTuesday!

Things we're thankful for this week:

1. Friends who helped us celebrate our kids' birthdays this weekend! I'll post pictures soon (hopefully tomorrow--HOLD ME TO IT!!). There's nothing more endearing to us than knowing we have friends who are as crazy about our kids as we are.
2. Friends who have stepped in to watch the kids this past week unexpectedly.
3. The boys seem to be adjusting to their new beds great! So far they've stayed in their own beds all night.
4. Both of us still having our jobs--we are grateful for this EVERY DAY. We know how lucky we are.

More tomorrow...

BIG BOY BEDS!!

The boys have almost mastered climbing out of their cribs, so it was time to move them into big boy beds. (Are they REALLY this big already?! Where did the time go??) Brent had some good help putting them together:

Putting them to bed:



They did remarkably well for the first night! I'm guessing that will change once they get a little more confident getting in and out of bed! We went into their room right away when we heard them stirring this morning, and this is how we found them. Still in their own beds, at least!

Happy GratiTuesday!

Since our possessed refrigerator isn't working AGAIN, I thought I needed to sit down and type out a GratiTuesday list right away:

1. Dad and Brent did some troubleshooting over the phone about the refrigerator, and think they've figured out the problem. Hopefully Brent will be able to get the part tomorrow and crutch it along for a while longer!
2. Zip 'n Steam bags by Ziploc--these are awesome! On days I work, getting a healthy dinner on the table isn't such a challenge now. Last night I washed some potatoes, cubed them (skin on), tossed them in the bag with a little seasoned salt (no butter/oil necessary!), and....voila! 7 minutes later the kids had a healthy side dish the perfect size for little hands!
3. There was a lady at Sam's Club the other day who was parked next to me. We were visiting as we were loading our cars, and she came over to help me unload the rest of my basket and take my cart to the cart corral. God sends the nicest people on rough days, doesn't He?!
4. The patience of the gymnastics teachers at Sophie's tumbling class! She's had two sessions so far, and the teachers are wonderful. Sophie is the youngest person in the class, and she has...ummm...a little problem staying in line and following directions. She's a bit of a free spirit! They haven't kicked us out of class yet, though, so for that I'm grateful. :-) Kelly, Brent and I got a kick out of them last night, because the teachers had to ask each of the other kids their names, but they KNEW Sophie's name. I'll post pictures soon!

The boys are 2 today!!

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY BLAKE & GRAHAM!!!!

The last two years have flown by! Your entrance into our family has made our lives exponentially more fun. We love you so much!!

They had cranberry muffins with strawberries for breakfast--they were pretty excited!

Fun foods for kids

My friend Ashley is talking at MAPS this week, and her topic is entertainment and fun foods for kids. I wanted to send her a couple of ideas I've found, so I thought I'd share them here, too! These are a BIG hit with the kids, and so easy!

1. Hot dog "squid": Cut hot dog into chunks, poke hard spaghetti through, then boil until spaghetti is done. You can even add a little food coloring (like green) to the water, but be prepared that the hot dog turns a funny color. Kids seem to love crazy colors like that, but it's less appetizing to adults. :-) I've found that cutting a jumbo hot dog into 4-6 pieces, then breaking the spaghetti into 1/2 or 1/3, it makes the perfect size for the little hands at our dinner table.

2. Painted butterflies: Cut refrigerated biscuits in half, then let the kids "paint" them with a mixture of egg/small amount of water/food coloring. Bake as directed on biscuit container!

3. Pancake stacks: You've already seen this from the post about Sophie's birthday, but thought I'd add it to the list. What is it about stacked bite-size food that gets kids excited?! Sophie ate almost her entire stack, and usually only picks at a regular plate of pancakes. It's all in the presentation, I suppose?!

I'm sure Ashley has a ton of ideas like this, so I'll be posting more after her talk on Thursday!

Spangles

Brent is such a HOOT!! Spangles (local burger joint) is having the grand opening of a new store tomorrow morning, and the first 100 customers will get a free meal each week for a year. Brent got there at 6am TODAY and is #13 in line. The kids and I took him lunch and dinner, and there are a lot of fun people there! Someone brought a big TV (they were watching Biggest Loser, which I thought was comically ironic), people were grilling out, some were tossing footballs around...it's just kind of a "tailgating" atmosphere.

All of the participants are assigned a wristband with a number, and the group has random rollcalls periodically throughout the event. They have to be present for every rollcall or they're disqualified. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Brent--he looooves Spangles!

Here are a couple of pictures from today:


On the way home tonight, this was the awesome sunset the kids and I saw. Gorgeous, isn't it??

Our first broken bone?

Graham fell while playing on the swingset, and the doctors have him in a temporary cast until we see an orthopedic doctor tomorrow. They believe it's a fracture of his radius (bone in the lower arm), but want the orthopedist to check him over. Here's a picture of his temporary cast!

More tomorrow on him after the appointment with the orthopedist!

Happy GratiTuesday!

Wow--this is just one of FOUR posts for today. I've gotten a bit behind this weekend! Things we're grateful for this week:

1. Sunday was the preview session for the Dave Ramsey class at church, and there was a GREAT turnout! We'll have approx. 40 students in the class! I am such a nervous speaker, and am looking forward to becoming more relaxed and proficient at it. Any tips??
2. We had a gap in babysitting coverage this week, and Kelly came to my rescue by leaving work in the middle of the day to watch the kids for a while. It's support like this that keeps our "tight ship" from falling apart!! Thanks Kelly!!
3. Graham's healing, and the care we received at the Urgent Care Center (see other post for today)
4. Brent's sense of humor and his enthusiasm for doing crazy things! (see other post for today)

I feel like I'm missing some this week...if I think of them I'll add them to the list...

Happy birthday, Johnny!

Today is my brother's birthday! Everyone now calls him "John", but he'll always be Johnny to me (and my kids...and probably their kids...let's face it, he's never going to be rid of that nickname...)!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOHNNY!!

More posts as the day progresses--I'll have our GratiTuesday post up later today. It's been a busy few days around here--lots to catch you up on!

Busy Thursday!

MAPS (Mothers and PreSchoolers) started back up at church yesterday, and the kids were thrilled to get to play in the nursery while we had our group meetings. It's nice to be back in the swing of thing and have a Tuesday/Thursday routine again. There are a lot of new faces in the MAPS group this year--it will be fun getting to know everyone.

Yesterday also included a birthday for one of Sophie's friends, Sofia. We got her a pair of wings and made her a tutu for her birthday--they were a big hit! The girls all embellished crowns with foam glitter stickers and jewels, then we had a princess cake. It was a lot of fun! Here's a picture of the party girls, and one of the birthday girl in her outfit:

The boys had SO MUCH FUN playing in Sofia's play house. I've hemmed and hawed about getting the kids a play house for downstairs or outside, and I really think it would be a wise investment. I'm kicking myself because I saw several of them at garage sales this summer for $100-125, and I'm afraid we're going to end up paying...(gasp!)...RETAIL. We considered getting one of the cardboard houses from a packaging store, but the Mr. Destructos would have it demolished before the end of the day... What to do, what to do, what to do?

Happy GratiTuesday!

What a week. It's weeks like these that I really need to sit back and take inventory of blessings! Here they are:

1. The kids had a very musical holiday weekend! Grandma & Grandpa Schuler brought a guitar, harmonicas and a drum for the kids' birthday gifts (see the first picture of them sporting their new jean jackets and Elmo slippers!), then we were invited to a cookout on Sunday night where they got to play on a full-sized drum set (see pictures 2, 3 & 4)!

2. My friend Laura showed up during the kids' naptime on Sunday and brought Diet Cokes and candy bars. I've decided that a couple of hours kicked back on the couch with a friend (plus chocolate) is the equivalent of many, many hours on a therapist's couch. Her timing couldn't have been more perfect.

3. Brent was off work Monday to spend the day with us! We spent the day at the zoo!

4. Kelly and Roger returned from San Diego safely, where they spent the weekend celebrating their oldest son Brandon's wedding on the beach! They welcomed their newest addition to the family, Meghann. We're looking forward to the reception to hear all of the fun details!

On a LESS fun note, today was the boys' 2-year checkup at the doctor, and they each got THREE shots. Sophie got one, too, which was unexpected. (Flu shots for all.) Brent had a doctor's appointment of his own, so it was just me and three VERY unhappy toddlers. ALL of us needed a nap after that debacle! They seem to be feeling ok tonight, though, and don't appear to be too sore.

Pictures from the weekend:




I've spent years trying to convince Brent that we don't need a drum set, but maybe now...we do??

Happy 3rd Birthday, Sophie!!

Our sweet baby girl turns 3 today!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SOPHIA ADELINE!!!

It is an honor to be your Mommy & Daddy. You changed everything in our lives for the better.

WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!

We started the morning off with celebratory pancakes. They were a big hit! More celebration pictures soon!

Wanted: One Beautiful Boat

Brent "built" us his dream pontoon boat online. (Actually, his dream boat wouldn't probably be a pontoon boat--that part is my dream--but he added enough bells and whistles to his design so that he'd love it, too.) It's pretty fabulous, isn't it?? We love sitting outside and hanging out with friends (alfresco dining is at the top of my list of faves), so why not do it while zipping over the water with skiers behind you? Sign me up!

Sadly, this boat is NOWHERE in our Dave Ramsey lifestyle right now...or for years to come...but maybe by the time we have grandkids?! :-)

By the way...sticker price for this beauty? $ 31,565 . Yowzer! ("Dear Santa, I've been a VERY good girl this year...")

• 26" (66.04 cm) diameter multichambered tubes w/full-length deck support
• Aft full-width swim platform w/fold-down ladder
• Aft padded sundeck w/pop-up changing room
• Aft plush L-couch w/underseat storage
• Color-keyed 11' (3.35 m) polyester Bimini top
• Refreshment center w/sink, on-demand freshwater, drawers & storage
• Fiberglass-reinforced console w/tinted windscreen, easy-to-read gauges, CD storage tray, compass, depth finder & cooler storage
• Sirius Satellite Radio®-capable AM/FM/CD stereo w/MP3 jack & 4 directional speakers
• Oversized adjustable, reclining driver bucket seat w/self-leveling arms, storage pouch & swivel
• Midship reclining lounge chair w/arms
• Port & starboard plush bow lounges w/storage, lockable arms & integrated drink holders
• Easy-access trash receptacle in lounge arm
• Removable table w/fore & aft base locations
• Retractable bow boarding ladder
• NV performance logs w/strakes
  

Happy Birthday LeAnn!

Today is my cousin LeAnn's 36th birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LEE!

We love you!!

Happy GratiTuesday!

What a week! This week we're thankful for:

1. OUR EXTERMINATOR. He came and zapped the ants right away!
2. We signed up ELEVEN new couples for the Dave Ramsey class last weekend at church! We're hoping for a good response this weekend, too...then class starts next weekend. We're excited and prayerful for everyone signing up--I'm hoping it makes a big impact on their financial mindset!
3. We are so blessed with the greatest friends who do nice things like treat me to lunch at work and bring canteloupe or goodies to the kids.