7 years!!!!

Today marks Jason's and my seven year anniversary!!! Happy Anniversary, dear!

We celebrated on Friday night, going out to dinner at our favorite restaurant, Surin. For Jason's present, I had a trick up my sleeve. I was giving him a trip to Denver, for us to go to the Great American Beer Festival that's being held Sept 29- Oct 2.

Thanks to an idea from my clever friend Susie, I whipped up my own label, glued it onto an empty beer bottle (because those are more common in our house than toy soldiers strewn across the floor, naked babies next to the toilet (yes, I've even found one there :), or half-stocked diaper bags hanging on hooks in the hallway) and arranged for the waiter at the restaurant to bring the bottle to Jason after he orders his drink.

It was cute when it arrived because as soon as the waiter placed it in front of Jason, his face struck a look of bewilderment, and he just about started to say, "Excuse me, this isn't a Bass Ale," when I prompted him, "Read the label!"

And for part two of the surprise, we met our friends Josh and Rebecca, out for drinks at Mason's. Jason got to tell them about his present, and Josh followed up with, "So, what would you say if I told you we've already bought tickets and are coming with you?!?" Jason thought it was awesome!

So, my gift-giving plans went off without a hitch - very cool!

And as for my gift, Jason always sticks with the traditional yearly themes. 7 years is "wool" or "copper." And I love, love, love what he picked out: a cashmere pajama set; but it's a tank top and shorts set, so I can wear it now. I've always wanted something made of cashmere, so it was a great, great gift!

Here's a photo of us, seven years in...




and a fun look back...

A Father's Day for the Best Daddy!

So this post is a little delayed - it's been quite a week :) To recap: we finally got an offer on our house! (it's been on the market since mid March, going on four months) And even more surprising was who the offer was from - the seller of the house we're under contract with! :0

Apparently, he was REALLY ready to get rid of his house, to be done with it, etc. and so his agent (who happens to be our agent as well), advised him that the best way to get his house sold was to buy our house; this is because our contract on his house was contingent on our selling. So, as soon as ours sold - to whomever - we'd buy his. Best way to unload his house? Buy ours! And he's under contract now to do just that...we are set to close July 21 (although we've been advised be ready for that to likely change and be even a few days after that...)

Fingers crossed this deal goes through as it's supposed to!!!!

But back to Father's Day! We had a wonderful Father's Day weekend, celebrating Jason - truly a wonderful dad! I think these photos capture it best!



It is a wise father that knows his own child.
~ William Shakespeare




"My father didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it."
~ Clarence B. Kelland



a sweet moment between Connor and Lucy!


Dad's new watch! He loves it!



Every year, I make Jason a special Father's Day album on Shutterfly that recaps the past year with his kids. Here Connor and Lucy are taking a look...Jack was running around wild somewhere :)



Look at Connor looking at Lucy :)




Fatherhood is pretending the present you love most is soap-on-a-rope.
~ Bill Cosby

Q & A with Lucy

Starting last year, I came up with some questions to ask Lucy and record her answers. It's so much fun to hear what she thinks. I forgot to post this back in April.

Enjoy!

Happy 4th Birthday, Lucy!

“May you grow up to be righteous, may you grow up to be true. May you always know the truth and see the lights surrounding you. May you always be courageous, stand upright and be strong. May you stay forever young.” - Bob Dylan

Here are your sweet, precious ideas, as expressed by you as you turn four years old! Happy Birthday, baby girl!

We love you so much!

1. What is your favorite toy?

Jack in the box

2. What’s your favorite thing to do at school?

Play with the baby dolls

3. What is something you like to say?

“I would like some candy”

4. What is your favorite food?

Peanut butter and jelly

5. How do you treat your brothers?

nice

6. Who’s your best friend?

Audrey and Claire

7. Where do you like to play?

At the pool

8. What is your favorite tv show?

Mickey Mouse Clubhouse

9. What is your favorite book?

Cinderella

10. What is your favorite color?

Pink

11. Who loves you?

Mommy

Family Day at the Lake

This past year, my Thursday mornings have been so very blessed by the time I've spent with this wonderful group of women. Our women's cgroup celebrated summertime with a great day at Tina's house on Lake Guntersville. For those of you who couldn't come, we missed you!

Wonderful company aside, I think my favorite part of the day had to be the kids using a slip and slide for the first time. Lucy and Jack, meet Slip 'N Slide...Slip 'N Slide, prepare yourself! :)

Tiffany's Baby Shower

I'm so super excited! My very good friend, Tiffany, is due with her third baby in one month. And the gender is a surprise, so I'm especially looking forward to the birth!

Last weekend, Elaine, Molly, and I hosted a "gift-card" themed shower for Tiffany. I came up with the gift card theme because Tiffany is the ultimate shopper. Seriously. I don't know anyone who shops more than her, nor who enjoys shopping more than her. Actually, my mother-in-law may rival Tiffany's passion for shopping, but it's a close call :)

And the gift cards are perfect for several reasons:
1. This way, Tiffany gets to pick out her things.

2. If it's another girl (she and Matt already have two adorable little girls), she can use the gift cards for diapers, wipes, etc. and if it's a boy, then she can go crazy picking out boy clothes. And this will take her an immeasurable amount of time, as she always has her girls perfectly coordinated with their daily outfits. If it is a boy (which I'm really hoping for :), Tiffany will be scouring the Gymboree clothing lines to find things that go with what Audrey and Claire have :)

3. Taking home her "gifts" were super easy and lightweight, as the cards fit into her purse :)

4. Giving a gift card is super easy, so it's nice for the guests too. I did make a suggestion on the invitation to use the stores, Target, Babies R Us, or Gymboree.

At the shower, we all made predictions for the gender, date of birth, and weight. We'll see who the winner is. We also took a "Third Time Around" baby quiz, and wouldn't you know, Tiffany answered the most questions correctly - Perfect!

Here are some pictures from the fun event!

Molly handmade these adorable party favors. They were delicious and almost too adorable to eat!

(The paper and envelopes on the right side are for guests to take home and send Tiffany a congratulations or encouraging message when the baby arrives.






Isn't that an ADORABLE summer maternity dress! I love it!



Diaper Cake! I love making these; they're so fun, and quite simple!

Connor

Connor is four months old today!

We haven't had our four month checkup quite yet, so I'm not sure of his weight, but I can tell you this little guy is all about MOVING around! If you lay him on his tummy, he's flipped over - and back again in a flash. He loves his play mat, although he scoots himself off of it and then gets frustrated :)

My memory is already foggy, but he does seem to be the very happiest of all our kids. He absolutely LOVES to sit in his bumbo atop the table when I tutor. I sit him in front of the student I'm working with, and he just stares, stares, stares, and SMILES! There's one particular 2nd grader I'm working with, and when he reads out loud, Connor coos and giggles - big open mouth smiles. So adorable!

Truly a delightful baby!

A box of goodies!

Our friends Dave and Jeri just moved to Denver a few weeks ago, but Jeri was kind enough to leave a box of size 5 and 6 clothes for Lucy. And, Lucy, being the fashionista that she is - absolutely FLIPPED OUT when I gave her the box. I gave her the box when she woke up from her nap around 4:30, and I didn't see her the whole time I was getting dinner ready; she was playing in her room. Anyhow, about 5:30, I put dinner on the table and went to get her to join us, and this is what I found:


She was taking out the clothes, piece by piece, and laying out her "styles" she calls them. I think her favorite part was the shoes, and I was so tickled seeing the ensembles she pieced together. My favorite was a bright orange, Charlie Chaplin tshirt with a long, ruffled, purple and white polka dot skirt (which is the "spinniest skirt she got"!) Oh yeah, and the shoes to match, white mark janes.

You can see that outfit in the picture below on the right hand side :)



The silver glittery shoes are my favorite. She was so excited and enthralled with what she was doing, I didn't even make her come eat dinner at that time. I told her she could come eat dinner whenever she was done making her "styles".


It was another half hour before we saw her again :)

Jeri - thanks a million! The clothes are adorable; I can't wait 'til she grows into the "fishbowl" outfit -that one is my favorite! :)

My little Monet

This is what I found on Jack's bed this morning...



Oh. My. I'm not sure how long it's been there - it really could have been days. I told him that he'd have to show Daddy what he did when he gets home. That put some healthy fear into him.

All I have to say is thank goodness for the Magic Eraser!

Kids Say the Funniest Things!

This one's a goodie!

Recently, I took a hiatus from tutoring - from January through May - so I could better handle Connor's difficult pregnancy and take a breather during the transition of going from two to three kids (which in my humble opinion, was WAY easier than going from one to two kids...but I digress). I really missed my students, so I've been very excited to resume tutoring this week.

Several of the kids I worked with before are returning, but I have a new student - a sibling of a kid who I already work with. He is going to start kindergarten this Fall, and today was our first session.

Not knowing much about this little guy, I started out with a very informal interview, so I could get an idea about his likes and dislikes, what he likes to read, etc. His answers are absolutely precious, hilarious, unexpected, and wholly entertaining! And I quote:

Me: So, W. what do you like to do?

W: play with nerf guns and color

yep, typical boy :)



Me: Tell me what you are good at.

W: Pickin' up stuff, putting stickers away, and pickin' up glass.

Glass? wonder what the story is behind that :)



Me: In school, what are you really good at?

W: sharing, picking up

humm...he sure likes to pick up a lot...maybe I should invite him over for playdates with Lucy :)



Me: What's hard for you?

W: Going to middle school when I'm five and I don't know what to do...
(a flash of fear spread across his face...)

aw, poor dear...I let him know he has a while before he has to worry about locker codes, crowded lunchrooms, and choosing electives and after-school clubs.



Me: What do you like to read about?

W: bats, snakes, spiders, cows, horses, and God.

awwww, sweet kid



Me: We're going to spend some time together this summer reading and learning. What do you want to happen during our time together?

W: I hope your little tiny baby grows.

Love the honesty! It's not me he's going to be looking forward to seeing, but little Connor. I think we'll make a science experiment and measure Connor each week and chart the growth :-)


I love kids, love 'em, love 'em!