Just a little update!

Wow! So I never updated about our trip to Kansas. My brother, Charlie, got married on July 5th, so we (we is Leah, Matthew, Owen, Chellie, David, Martin and myself) all hopped the nearest flight (which landed us in Denver, CO) and then put our tired butts in a van (as it was about 1:30 am) and drove about 10 hours to Lawrence, KS. We got in the day before the wedding rehearsal and had to make an unscheduled pit stop to Wal-Mart since my shampoo and conditioner and the kid's wash and lotion got confiscated at the airport because I am so forgetful (I had packed it in a bag that I planned to check and then in the confusion opted to carry it on).

The Bride and Groom.

Anyway, long story short, we had lots of fun attending the rehearsal, the rehearsal dinner, a 4th of July BBQ followed by fireworks at the state park, the wedding & reception, a birthday celebration and ended up seeing Wall-E the day before we left. We ended the trip with the drive back to Denver, CO and a mad dash (no kidding, we were literally running) through the airport. Oh and I mustn't forget that one of my bags (the one with the shampoo and conditioner, etc.) did not make it to Seattle with the rest of our things. Instead it took a detour through Albuquerque, NM and Las Vegas, NV and was delivered to me 2 days after we got back.

Our little flower girl!

It was a fun time and a beautiful wedding. Jeff and Mom made it for the BBQ & fireworks and the wedding. It was fun and a little stressful at times, but it was great getting to see everyone.

Some fun pictures we took in the car on the drive back. (In case you are wondering, those are magnetic rocks.)

Leah's Temper-Tantrum

I meant to do this one before we left. I think this is so cute...annoying at the time definitely, but cute in retrospect, so here goes.

1st Phase of Leah's Temper-Tantrum:
She won't look at you, talk to you or acknowledge you in any way. (So frustrating!!!)


2nd Phase of Leah's Temper-Tantrum:
She's starting to look at you, but only because you are threatening to take away something she really wants.


3rd Phase of Leah's Temper-Tantrum:
She's listening to you talk, but she is sooo not happy about it.


4th & Final Phase of Leah's Temper-Tantrum:
She has returned back to the happy little girl that we all know and love.

See Owen Fall

See Owen. See stairs.





Imagine Owen tumbling down stairs. We got to see it first hand; he managed to tumble head over heels a couple of times and only get a couple of bruises, a scratch on his belly and I am guessing a sore body. He certainly had an angel or 2 looking out for him. The picture was taken after he fell so you can all see he is in good spirits.

Missing Leah

The house is quieter than I thought it would be when I packed Leah a suitcase and sent her off to Montana with her Grandma, Aunt Chellie and cousin David. She has been gone since Saturday (technically Friday night, as stayed over at Grandma's so they could leave early on Saturday) and is not due home for one more day. Every time I talk to her she is having so much fun I can barely get her attention to say "I love you". Of course I knew we would miss her but I had no idea how much of the noise level around here was due to her. I am looking forward to her getting back.

We took the boys out to the drive-in on Sunday night to see Indiana Jones 4 and that was the biggest mistake ever. Owen was either wreaking havoc in or around the van or screaming his head off because we would not let him have free reign. Matthew tried to sneak in and out of trouble while we were distracted with Owen, but I don't think he did anything real bad. It was of course a good movie (well the parts I got to see anyway, I'll have to watch it again to see what I missed).

Jeff got pretty sick on Monday, what a way to spend the holiday, huh! This was, of course, made worse when he hit his head on the corner of a shelf in Leah's room while chasing Owen. I made him get in bed and stay there after that. He was feeling better yesterday and even more so today.

I was supposed to be off work this whole week, with the exception of Friday, but they called yesterday and asked if I could go in as they were short-handed. I did go in for about 6 hours to help out, but they still had a lot to do when I left. Otherwise I have been busy around the house and playing with the boys.

Happy Mother's Day!

To all the mothers of the world, especially our own, Happy Mother's Day! We love you!

So...it's been a long time since I last updated. (Whooops!!!) I guess for times sake I will just give the super shortened version. Since Owen's birthday we took a vacation to California and went to Disneyland and California Adventure. Jeff's' Aunt Pearl passed away while we where there so it was a bittersweet trip. Shortly after we got home Jeff headed back to California to help Grammy around the house for a bit, so I temporarily became a full-time "single" mom. Thankfully Mom was able to help me out a bit and it was certainly a relief when Jeff got home. Most recently we just got home from a quick trip to Utah. It was a jam packed weekend but we got to see a lot of people and help celebrate Hailee's (niece) 7th birthday and watch Larry (Jeff's Dad) receive his Bachelors in Business Management from University of Phoenix.
Through all of this Leah has been enjoying her classes at The Little Gym. She is currently suffering a slight sprained ankle from vigorous jumping on a trampoline in Utah.
Matthew is doing really well aggravating his siblings and parents, but every so often has a moment that just melts your heart.
Owen is perfecting the art of temper tantrums and loves to "jumpy jumpy" on all the furniture. He is talking better every day and loves to sing "Yo Ho, Yo Ho, A Pirates Life For Me!"
Jeff and I have been busy working and taking care of the kids and the house. We did get to have a date a week or so ago when we went to a Mariners baseball game. It was a lot of fun and I hope we get to go again this summer.
We are looking forward to quite a bit of fun things this summer and I will do my best to keep you updated in a more timely manner.

Yesterday was Owen's 2nd birthday. We (meaning Jeff, Leah, Matthew, Uncle Martin, Aunt Chellie, David and I and of course the birthday boy himself) went to Chuck E Cheese to celebrate; he loves to put the coins the machines and pull the tickets off. He is very good about holding hands and not wandering off so we all took turns escorting him around the place and helping him spend his tokens, as well as the other kids. As expected he was spoiled by all that were there and a few that weren't. Owen and Matthew both haircuts yesterday; Matthew's just got trimmed up, but Owen got most of his hair cut off. It is super cute; you can see his handsome, though somewhat marked up, face. He has a tendency to walk into things or fall down stairs so that when one bruise or scratch is about healed up, he adds another one. Oh well, that's the way it goes.

As for the rest of us...Matthew is finally starting to act like himself again after running a pretty high, unexplainable fever for almost a week. Although now it is my turn to be the sick one the family, with pink eye and the start of what feels like strep throat (I have a doctor appointment tomorrow that will confirm or deny). Leah is doing great and still has an amazing appetite since getting her tonsils removed. Jeff is also doing good, he is currently over at Martin's with Leah and Matthew so he can help with some yard work over there. We have had super weather all week, sunny with no rain, we are keeping our fingers crossed that it will go a few more days.

I am going to go rest a bit before I head over with Owen (once he wakes up from his nap). I will add some pictures from Owen's birthday as soon as I get them on a disc.

So Super Excited!!!

I'm not sure if anyone knows this about me, but I love, love, love Harry Potter. The reason I say this now is because last night I got all 7 audiobooks for my Ipod; now not only can I read them anytime I want, I can have someone else read them to me. Thank heavens for nice people...I work with someone who had them already and he said if I gave him the discs then he would copy them for me and I did, so he did. WooHoo!!!
Leah is doing so much better. She is back to eating all the foods she could not have but wanted and she is feeling much better...still a few pains here and there but overall doing great.
Haven't said much about Matthew and Owen lately; they are both doing good. We are looking forward to Owen's 2nd birthday coming up in 2 short weeks. He is talking very well, almost always in complete sentences and he loves to drive his brother crazy (and his parents). Matthew is all completely potty trained expect at night he wears a pull up...but it is more often than not dry when he wakes up in the morning. Not only is he potty trained but he always uses the big potty and he stands up like a super big boy. We are very proud pf him and excited at the prospect of buying less diapers. Hooray!
Jeff and I are doing okay...trying to get as much time together as possible on the weekends because we do not see each during the week at all. Oh well...gotta run, it's just about nap time.

Leah is doing okay after her "T&A" procedure. Everything went fine, she did okay with the anesthesia and she took her pain meds the first day or so without a fight. She then went out medicine strike and is refusing to take any thing for the pain. She is afraid of the Tylenol w/Codeine that the doctor prescribed; she doesn't like the way it makes her feel and she thinks that the medicine caused her bad dreams that she had the first couple of nights. Also, (I think as a result of the first medicine) she will not take even regular Tylenol. She is also struggling with dehydration...she is really fighting us on drinking enough of anything. I have tried everything I can think of...Popsicles, kool-aid, warm drinks, water, Gatorade, Slurpee's, you name it and I have probably tried it. We have to take turns sitting next to her and every little bit reminding her to take a drink and consider ourselves lucky when she does. We are hopeful though that it will get better...she is on the other side of the "pain hill" and will hopefully have an easier time with swallowing. The boys are a little confused at all the extra attention Leah is getting, but other than that seem to be okay with the drama that has been going on around them.

We are all getting excited for our break from the "norm" when we head to California in March. The kids are especially excited for Disneyland, go figure!! Jeff and I are definitely in need of some of R&R...we barely have time to sit down and eat let alone relax with all that is going on...because wouldn't you know if we are not reminding Leah to drink we are rescuing Hot W heels from the toilet (thanks to Owen) and toilet paper from the cat. Not to mention the dirty dishes, laundry and toys all over the house. ) Can you imagine it?? Gotta run and make lunch for the boys (and maybe for me if I have time)!

Leah's Surgery

Leah is going in on Thursday, January 24 to have her tonsils and adenoids removed. She is looking forward to all the popsicles she gets to have...but of course she does not know how much her throat is going to hurt after it is done. We will have our work cut out for us trying to keep her from getting bored while she is recuperating.

Anyway, not much to else to say...everyone is pretty much the same. Leah and Matthew are both looking forward to starting classes at The Little Gym in February and we are now planning a trip to Southern California to visit Grammy, Aunt Betty, Aunt Pearl and hopefully Autumn, Martin, Audrey & their newest, Boyd.