I was tagged...

10 things that make me smile..............

1. Looking through photo albums of the kids when they were babies and having them ask me which one they were. They really grow so quickly!!

2. E-mail and Mail! Love checking the in-box or mail box outside to get some great letter or magazine. It really helps brighten a woman who's been home all day. :)

3. Seeing Lacee in her ballerina class! She looks so cute and enjoys dancing around in her tu-tu!

4. Fall...Ahhh I love this season. Pumpkins and Fall leaves. Apples galore (especially baked ones with sugar and spice)! I can't wait to start up the fireplace!

5. Naps....I feel so much better when I can get one in! ( I think I have a lot in common with you Jennisa)

6. Photography! I know I mentioned this earlier but this one is photos in general! Black and Whites are to dye for! Photos are priceless to me! Good think we have a great photographer to that will follow us through our lives! We love you Kathy!

7. The feeling you get when you've accomplished something big! Like recently I threw a fun bridal shower with 30 plus people. It turned out great and was a lot of fun. But man when it's over and everything is cleaned up...ahahhh! That makes me smile!

8. Hearing Luke talk so much these days! He is obsessed with dolphins so we hear about that A LOT! It warms my heart to hear his little voice! Stop growing up Luke!

9. My dear husband who never gets stressed out and is generally always in a good mood! How does he do it! He definitely makes me smile!

10. Talking with friends and better than that hanging out with my friends. Doesn't happen enough for me these days so when It does I really soak it all in!

Thanks Jennisa for making my blog and for making me reflect on what bring a smile to my face! Have a blessed day friends!

I tag Jessica, Tina, Rhonda ( if she gets the chance to blog), & Meghan!

10 years! What.....

Today Josh and I celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary! Hard to believe we've been married that long! I am proud of Josh in so many ways. We've come a long way in those years....our first apartment, our first new house, living with my parents while he built us our present house, having two precious children, huge job changes... Funny how God takes us down these paths we never would have imagined for ourselves. I wouldn't want to change any of it either. So much has been learned! I recently talked to someone who said she feels so glad she got her husband and not the other way around. I think I feel the same. Who else could put up with me the way Josh does! His love is so unconditional and the kids and I are so blessed to have him! I love you baby!

We are going to celebrate Saturday so maybe I can post some pics them.

Ahhh San Diego...

opps I forgot to rotate this one....
Still going strong after a long day at Sea World (10:30 am to 9:30 pm) I don't know what drags these kids down. I went to bed before they did that night!

La Jolla! That is my new dream place! The views and the beaches are out of this world gorgeous! ohhh I can just see it now! We had a wonderful little vacation to the California Coast a few weeks ago and enjoyed every minute of it! Took the kids to Sea World, Wild Animal Park & played in the ocean and pool. Ate at yummy new restaurants (my favorite part of vacation, yes...that's sad isn't it) and soaked up the last bit of summer warmth! I highly recommend the California coast near La Jolla! If you ever get a chance to go....do!!

A warm day at the Beach

Just wanted to post a few cute pics from our fun filled day at the beach Wednesday.

What is it with BOYS!

I found Mr. Man here jumping off the fifth rung of the ladder buck naked the other afternoon. For real.........I pray the boy survives his childhood. We've had a busted lip, the fall in the pool, a big sliver, a few head bumps...Jess & Rhonda I can't imagine what you girls must go through.

I've posted a few blogs tonight so be sure to scroll down and check them out!

I finally got them to do it!

Every time I see face painting I try and get Lacee to do it but she refuses. Well my little silly wish came true this year at the fair. They did it and loved it! We were with a bunch of their little friends who were really up for it so that helped! I got lots of great fair pictures and will post more soon. Just had to share my excitement!

Country Wedding

This ones for you Mrs. Rodriguez! I was in a dear friends wedding this last weekend. She was beautiful and the ceremony was so Christ centered. I stood there on that stage in aw, just knowing that the Lord was present at that ceremony. I wish them nothing but the best....besides they were suppose to leave for Jamaica Sunday. Dang Hurricane!! Can't wait to chat with her in a couple days! Can't believe this is the only picture I took. Maybe I can get some from another bridesmaid. The church was in the middle of no where. It was so peaceful and serene. All I ever heard were goats and the wind blowing. I loved it!!

Multnomah Falls

Herman the Sturgeon

(He is 65 years old and weighs 450 lbs)

My Mam-Maw and Aunt Cindy are visiting from Texas this week so we've been playing tour guide. This is the first visit for my Aunt and it's been 8 years for my Mam-Maw. We are enjoying all the time we can have with them and giving lots of hugs and kisses while we can!! Spent a rainy August day at the falls the other day. I couldn't believe how many people were out and about on such a yucky day. I guess it is summer vacation. We had a yummy lunch in the lodge and then went to Bonneville Dam to watch the salmon climb the ladders. My kiddos had a ball. I really should take them to do this kind of stuff more often.

Our HERO!!

Tonight we had a birthday party for Grammie and GGma. It was a special evening with all the family to celebrate Moms 59th and grandmas 89!! Next year should be a fun party!! All the adults were sitting in the house chatting when Brandon (4) came running in with a frantic look on his face telling us Luke had fallen in the pool!! Not everyone heard him but we all noticed something was wrong. Everyone ran outside and I grabbed the phone ready to dial 911. Dad was the first to reach the pool and praise the Lord Luke was holding on to the edge! The cover was on and we think Luke thought he could walk on it. He must have stepped on and feel but was able to grab the edge before going under. Bless his heart he was shivering and scared. As was little Brandon. He saved Lukes life tonight! We love you B!! Poor guy wouldn't let Luke out of his sight the rest of the evening! After a few tears were shed by most of us on how lucky we were tonight we decided to take the party outside, so we could keep an eye on the children. I hate to imagine how awful this evening could have been and so grateful our little man is okay! Thank you Lord!!

Our Saturday Adventure!

The house boat they are remodeling.........a work in progress! They are giving the hand statue high five!

Lacee wanted us to wait and see if the princess might come out of this house! I told her there might me one spoiled princess that lives there! :)

We hit a huge wave and the water came over the bow and I was unexpectedly cooled off! No one warned me it was coming.......how nice!

The row of houses the that Josh is working on.

What a day we had! About 1:00 we decided to go for a boat ride, which is kinda random in itself because that is normally Luke's nap time. He hasn't been taking good naps lately though. The boat was already in the water because Josh is doing a boat house remodel and used the boat for a barge or something. The owners had mentioned to Josh that they would love to meet the kids and I so Josh called and let them know we were coming. Mrs. Gerber wanted to go for a boat ride so we cruised up and down the Willamette for a few hours. It was nice getting to know her, she is hilarious. A professional organizer too, cool huh? We also found out her father is the owner/creator of Gerber knives. My dad loves them! Josh gave us a tour of the house and the kids ran all over the place! I think it would be fun to live on the water like that! After I got use to the rocking all the time. For dinner Lacee was determined that she wanted Lobster........uhh who knew. Josh wanted Red Lobster but there wasn't one near by so we decided Newport Bay would be better. However parking was going to be an issue cause we were taking the boat home this time. We found a great spot and I jumped out to help Josh navigate into it. In the meantime this man pulled up and asked me if we were going to take both the open spots! Are you kidding me! There was a car and a boat, yeah that's two spots! I tried to stay nice but he kept arguing with me about how rude that was! We were paying for two so what does it matter. In the meantime a Limo pulled up behind Josh and he was getting ready to back up...yep! He hit a Limo with the boat! Thankfully it wasn't anything big and the driver said no worries! By this time I said forget it and lets find somewhere else. Which made everyone else unhappy. Josh suggest we go to Manazas which was right on the way home. Bear with me this is the best part! First we ran into some people from Church and them at dinner we noticed this older gentleman who knew everyone who worked there. All the wait staff would go over to his table and chat with him. He also took a liking to Luke and chatted with him about all kinds of stuff. Well I am very noisy and love to try and figure out what is going on at every table except the one I'm at. I saw this man tell our waiter he wanted to pay our bill for us. I leaned over and told Josh and he didn't believe me. Josh finally asked the man who he was since everyone seemed to know. Some big shot investor and he was just a friendly guy. They talked business for a while and I finally asked another waiter to find our waiter to get us our check. He came over and sure enough said Oh it was taken care of! Wouldn't tell us who and just walked away. So Josh asked the man, Doug is his name and he finally admitted to it. Said we looked like a nice young family with well behaved kids (he got us a on a good night) and wanted to take care of it for us. We both thanked him and shared handshakes . Can you believe there are still people out there like that! I almost started crying..........which isn't to uncommon for me. Maybe God had this all prearranged so Josh could meet another potential investor! Who knows but wow it was one crazy day! I think we will have to pay it forward to someone next time, keep a good thing going maybe. :) Thanks for hanging in there and reading this all..........bye!

She dreams of a small dog...

Lacee is in-love with small dogs. She still tells me how Sampson had to go be with Jesus, Jess. Her daddy isn't ready for another dog around here yet so she will have to enjoy dressing Sophie until the time is right.

We, well Lacee, found this green polo shirt at Old Navy the other day and just put it in the cart like mom were buying this and no will not be an option! I thought Josh might enjoy taking her for walks with it on anyway! :) Not so much.... Poor Sophie, I think she could have used the XL!

I was tagged!

8 very random things about me:

1. I don't like to eat meat very much because I think about how it was made. The killing doesn't bother me and the taste doesn't either it's just the whole processing stuff. Grosses me out........I try to hide this about myself because I hate it when people are picky about food. I still eat it.....we have a family full of hunters.

2. I'm obsessed with Hollywood entertainment magazines. I buy one pretty much every time I go to the store. Why I care about Hollywood gossip, I have no idea?

3. When I run and I'm on a quite country road I belt out praise and worship songs from my ipod. I even raise my hands..........I bet people think I'm a nutso!

4. I am obsessed with photography! I would love to invest in a good camera someday (like how I said invest, that justifies it for my husband :). I scour photographers blogs and websites. Pictures are priceless to me!!

5. I have often thought about being a foster parent.

6. I will lose these last few pounds before my next birthday. I have a hard time committing to things long term but I will do this before next spring! For myself!! I will brag about it when its accomplished!!

7. My husband and I got married when I was 19 and he was 21. I still don't know how our parents allowed us to do that. They must have felt a peace from God knowing it was right for us! I couldn't imagine my life without Josh! Love ya Babe!

8. I like to be organized! I mean I like every thing to have a place. It doesn't in my house right now and I am working on it but I hate lots of extra stuff. I always tell Josh that he better clean out his bedside table drawer because if he dies who knows what our family may find in there. He thinks I'm crazy and it really won't matter. Our family will laugh and cry all the same when they discover the g-string underwear he got as a wedding gift is still hanging around our house. I know TO MUCH INFORMATION!! Its says random facts :)

I think he would want me to tell you he has never worn them!!

Thanks Tina for tagging me and allowing me to spill the beans on myself a bit!

You wanna know how to get one?

I love my new blog page, don't you?! I love to spend hours searching every ones blogs and have been following www.mysweetlittlefamily.blogspot.com a few weeks now. Jennisa recently posted about wanting to start designing new pages for any one who was interested! I had looked into it a while back and found it to be quite expensive. Well Jennisa was only charging $15.00, she wants to fill up her pay pal account so she can purchase some new back to school clothes for her sweet daughter, Avery. You must check her page, The Princess Diaries, she is adorable as well as her little sister, Livvie. So I finally left a comment and she return it very quickly! It was a super fast and fun process. I encourage any of you who want to do this give her a e-mail. She is enjoying it and as you can see quite talented. You can't beat the price either!!
Thanks so much Jennisa, I feel so fancy now!!

Don't they look sweet!

Oh my what a day! Underneath these beautiful smiles and high spirited little bodies there are some scary little children. I know that sounds harsh but it was one of those days. Hitting, pushing, crying, and few ugly words were all accomplished today. If I hear my self say no or I'm getting the spoon anymore today I may lose it. I realized today that I am saying those words to much and not always following through with it. This afternoon the kids got a quick dose of reality. I am hoping they will realize mommy means business now. I don't want disrespectful children who are no fun to be around. I want joyous respectful children that everyone enjoys! Don't we all.... This evening at dinner we had a special time of prayer about attitudes and actions that make Jesus happy! I hope for a better tomorrow!

I got a Makeover!

Yes the other day I guess I was in the need of a new look. I was given a free session by...........my kids who else! Did you really think I would get so lucky! Well I had quite the treatment. My nails, hair, makeup, some nose work?!, even my back was massaged! Bet your all envious now! Whatcha think about the new me?

This is funny...

I ran across this in a recent issue of parenting magazine.

Gadgets a mom could love

Brawler I.D...........
Determines which child actually started the fight

Poke detector..........
Automatically signals when your child starts prodding each other in the back seat of the car

"Mine" sweeper.........
Scans the playroom and hides any toys your child and his friend are likely to fight over

Meddle detector..........
Sounds an alert as your family members, next door neighbor, sister-in-law, ect. pull into the driveway.

I could use all these right now!!

Aggravations

* ANTS........arghhh. We have these little black ants all over our kitchen. They started on the floor underneath the table, now they are crawling on the cabinets to the kitchen sink. It's gross and I'm tried of it. They don't kill very easy either. You can smash them and then they start crawling again. Vacuuming is the best I find. I've tried the borax- yeast thing, not working. This evening I got some ant bait things. I hope they are gone in the morning! Any ideas?

*Head Lice....argggghhhh. Lacee is in VBS this week and there was a note this afternoon when I picked her up. Yes, in one of the classrooms head lice was discovered. My sister use to get it a lot growing up so I know the routine but we have yet to have to do that with Lacee. I can see it coming sooner than later with her starting preschool soon. Please pray we don't get it with this VBS outbreak.

*Yearly Doctors Appointments....arghghghhhh. Tomorrow morning is my lucky day! I can hardly wait. Although I've already been twice this month with these crazy issue I've been having. Hopefully everything will check out at fine and tomorrow and I can put this all behind me. I might need to celebrate!!

*Boys & Shopping....I had a couple free hours this morning and really wanted to run into the mall to get a gift for a shower I have to attend this weekend. Luke was not going to allow that to happen. I think I'm better off just staying home with him for a while. I really don't like taking him out in public anymore!

*Trying to decide what it eat for dinner that is going to make everyone happy. Not to fattening ( so tired of chicken), pasta (carbs love um but they say we need them in moderation), takes to long, kids only want DINO nuggets. Josh will eat anything though. Even the DINO nuggets. I need some new fresh ideas.

Alright, done venting...............thanks for reading :)

However, grocery shopping this afternoon with Lacee was great! She sang her little heart out all over Fred Meyer. A new song she learned at vacation bible school. Maybe a non-believer heard her words of praise to the Lord. :) Ahhh life as a 4 year old. May I always encourage her to love the little moments!!

Baylee Mae

Four beautiful girls....

We have a new little one in our family. My sister-in-law had Miss Baylee Mae in the wee hours of Monday morning. She is adorable and looks just like her mommy (to me at least). Everyone is doing fine and adjusting to having number 4 at home. Praise God for a healthy beautiful little one!

Lazy Days of Summer!

Beautiful Oregon Coast Sunset............
Fun with Friends

Hots Dogs & Smores.......doesn't get much better!
We had these silly races to see you could get the furthest without toppling over. Josh usually always won, I never did! :)

Hope you all enjoyed a fun weekend! We sure did!