Party Pics

Just a few pics from the Family Get-Together we had for Carlie's birthday. I think she had a great time.

Waiting for the ball to begin...

The princess cousins in their ball gowns

Pinata Fun

Notice the 16 year old boy cousin grabbing all the pinata candy

Make a Wish

Me Like Cake

4 Years Ago Today

A beautiful girl was born...

Happy Birthday Carlie!!!

Why Bother?

I am starting to wonder why I am watching American Idol this year. It is so obvious who is going to win, and it doesn't matter what they sing. Case in point, last night David Archuleta, who is clearly the next American Idol based on popularity, sang very poorly. There are several other singers who have been getting better each week, and they are better performers on stage. However, if you follow dialidol.com which measures the busy signal, David got twice as many votes as the person in second place, and everyone else is virtually even. Don't get me wrong, David is cute, does sing ballads (he should stick to those) very well, and the tweens adore him, but it is obvious vocal performance each week is not what people vote on. I'm sure I will continue to watch until the end, but if David continues to sing as he did last night, while others get better, the voting format will definitely need some adjustments if the show wants to stay on the air. Anyway, that's my Idol two cents for the week.

Just Call Me Sawyer

Well, with Christmas posted in February and this post, all these flashbacks are beginning to make this blog look like an episode of Lost. Still, this was such a fun time, I had to post some pics. Several weeks ago we actually had some warm weather in between all the snow and rain. So Carlie and I had a little one-on-one time while Noah was napping.

I'd been wanting to get Carlie out on her tricycle to practice pedalling. She got out and was able to pedal pretty well. She was very excited about it, and we've made it out a couple of time since then. She keeps getting better at pedalling, but steering is still a little bit of a challenge. Neither of us can wait to get out again.

After biking, she wanted to break out the lacrosse goal. Yes, it was her idea, not mine. She's getting pretty good at shooting. If you scroll through the pics below, it actually looks animated since they're all from the same shot. (I love our new camera.)

Daddy's little girl lighting up the goal with a bounce shot!

Daddy's All Star

It's March, That Can Only Mean One Thing

Let the Madness begin! It's that time again, when my rearend will quickly become permanently embedded in our couch. When my Dad and I can sit for more than 12 straight hours without getting up so we don't miss any "Bryce Drew" moments. When others, we won't mention by name, get as they call it, "basketballed out" after only an hour or less. Puzzling, I know. When paying way too much for pizza delivery isn't that big of a deal. When teams that play like crap all year suddenly win one, two, even three games, and suddenly your bracket is shot to you know where. Yes, this is a great time of year.

I guess I will go ahead and give you a sneak peek at some of my bracketology in case you need help. If I were filling out my bracket today, I would have Louisville and (as much as it pains me to say it) Michigan State in the Final Four. Although this could change. I won't tell you my others, you'll have to figure those out for yourself. I can't end this entry with "Go Illini" because they aren't going to make the tourney. So, I'll just end it.

In Case You Didn't Believe Me...

I have just come back in from shoveling the driveway a second time. I think I should inform some of our neighbors that it is much easier and faster to shovel off 4 inches + of snow twice, than to wait and try to shovel off 10 inches all at once. We can't all be as genius as me, I know, buwahahahaha... Our street has yet to be plowed. I wonder if school will be cancelled again. I wonder if the Aces will lose in their MVC tourney game Thursday night. Ooooh, that is a good lead in for my next entry.

You Must Be Joking

If I didn't see it with my own eyes, I would not believe that we now have approximately 10 inches of snow on the ground-- and it is still snowing!!! It started around 9am and hasn't stopped since. Yikes! But, fear not, it is to end by rush hour and warm up to a balmy 40 degrees tomorrow. Guess I better go shovel the driveway-AGAIN - so Mike can actually come home.

The Perfect Day

We had just absolutely beautiful weather today, so we took full advantage and went to the zoo. The animals were out, and I am sure thankful to soak up some sun.

Carlie making sure she has all the necessities of a zoo trip.

Noah's wondering what this place is, and why there are so many people here.

One of these days I'm gonna break out of this joint.
This is the face of a kid who has just been told there is no room on the train, and we have to wait for the next one. Pitiful isn't it??
Carousel Time...

Another, in case you forgot what I looked like, photo.
Meerkat Manor

Christmas Part 2

The next day we went to the school playground to burn off a portion of the calories we had taken in. I am off to put cream of tartar on my list because I am craving snickerdoodles after posting that last entry. Mmmmmm.... snickerdoodles.

Christmas in February

Because Christmas is only 300 days away, I figured I should post the photos from Christmas 2007 (or at least a sampling of them).

Mmmmm..... Snickerdoodles

Carlie and Grammy make a pecan roll... sampling is definitely a part of this activity.

Time for presents...

Crazy Weather

I was going to post some pics of the kids playing in the 8 inches of snow we got on Friday. But, the fact that it is 72 degrees outside today and the ground is yucky muddy with no snow in sight, it just doesn't seem appropriate. It is supposed to get cold again, so maybe I will upload them and post them later this week.

WANTED!!

We all received our passports today, well all except Noah. I guess he has been placed on the terror watch list or something. (I would add another comment here, but that would be profiling, and we don't want to do that do we?) Hopefully his will come soon or I will have to make some calls. I will say the DHS processed these in record time as we just applied for them last week. One can only hope the IRS is as quick on their toes as the DHS, and we get our refund that quickly.

Our Television Debut

We made our St. Louis television debut yesterday on Show Me St. Louis. We happened to be at the Y on Friday swimming, and they were there doing a story. You can watch on the link below. It is just a few glimpses of us in the pool. More shots of Grammy and Carlie than me and Noah.
http://www.ksdk.com/video/default.aspx?aid=67515&sid=139233&bw=hi&cat=78

Happy New Year

Yes, I realize this is several weeks late but who cares. In case you forgot what the kids look like, I have posted some pics. We have been pretty busy, mainly because we have been sick off and on since the new year and haven't had a ton of time to get much of anything done. Carlie started swimming lessons at the YMCA which we joined at the first of the year. She's doing well so far, but does have a little fear of the water. She's always making sure the teacher is holding on to her. It's great to be able to workout and not have to worry about childcare though.

As far as what we have been up to. We did place second in the latest trivia night we participated in. I have also been trying to get a little more organized. Mainly just dumping all the paper we have laying around and getting ready to do the taxes. Our Alaska cruise is now booked- Yippee!!

Noah can walk- he just doesn't know it yet. He basically will just stand in one place with his hands up and whine until you come and hold his hand to walk- oh brother... He also eats more than I do. Although I can still drink more milk and eat more cookies- hee hee. Carlie is becoming more and more curious everyday. Over the weekend she asked us how Noah got into my tummy. Hmmm... how did he get in there?? She said "Did God cut you open and put Noah in there like he cut Mary open and put Jesus in her tummy?" I just said yes. Well that was a mistake because then she wanted to know how big the cut was. On the way to school today she told me Barbie had Lacey and Courtney in her tummy. If you have not seen Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses, you do not know who that is, but you do know Barbie-- let's just say Carlie has some kind of imagination.

Better post these pics so I can pick Carlie up. Grammy and Pawpaw will be here in a few days so I will try to take good pics of them while they are here.

The Bug

Noah had his latest check-up on Wednesday, and he is 31.5 inches (60th%) and 22 lbs. 3 oz (25th%). Looks like he will be tall and thin, I'm guessing tennis and swimming lessons will be in order. He did also have an ear infection, but he is now on antibiotics and doing much better. He has definitely changed a lot in the past year, and his personality is really starting to show.


Here he is a year ago at this time...



And Now...

Elf Yourself

Christmas greetings to you from our little elves. A lady at work did this for Mike. It makes me laugh. http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1523943809

The Night It Rained Tears

Unless you are from Evansville, Indiana, you probably do not remember what happened 30 years ago today, December 13, 1977. I remember watching the news that evening with my family on the little black and white television that we usually used to play Pong. The news was bleak. I remember the snow falling around a broken up plane. I remember seeing gym bags scattered about on the cold ground. I remember seeing athletic shoes and other things as well. The University of Evansville was to play a basketball game in Murfreesboro, TN. The plane took off from Evansville's Dress Regional Airport and crashed shortly after take-off. There were no survivors.

I remember my parents were to leave the following day for Australia and being scared the plane would crash. I remember going to a game prior to the crash and sitting in the bleachers. I remember hearing Mike Duff was as good if not better than a player from French Lick (Larry Bird). One player failed to make the flight due to illness- he was killed in a car accident one week later. In my opinion the basketball program has never recovered from this tragedy. Please remember the families involved as I am sure this is a difficult time year after year.

Anyway, if you haven't seen We Are Marshall, I highly recommend it. It really brought back the memories of the Aces tragedy which is why I decided to blog about it today- so they would not be forgotten. Go Aces!

St. Charles Christmas

Last night I was blessed with the opportunity to spend some quality mommy-time with a friend. Thanks to my wonderful husband for watching the kids so I could wander the streets of St. Charles in search of many non-necessities to add to my wish list. Although a bit misty out, the company- Mrs. B., was fantastic. Being able to spend unlimited amounts of time in stores without being asked for a drink or a snack is something I definitely appreciate. I learned of a new children's illustrator, Tasha Tudor, as well as many other books of which I was unaware. I did find a sweet, magical book called A Princess Primer that Carlie will definitely get for her birthday if she doesn't get it for Christmas.

The decorations are so beautiful at Christmastime.


No visit is complete without a stop at the Sweet Shop.

Some carolers singing to us by the fire.

Carlie's Christmas Program

We had a nice visit this week with Grammy and Pawpaw. It is so nice to not have to do laundry or ironing this weekend as Grammy helped get it all done before they left. So, I can relax and get some other stuff done like Christmas cards. Last night was Carlie's Christmas Program for school. She had been practicing and practicing singing Hark the Herald Angels Sing and Silent Night. She would sing Silent Night to her baby dolls in bed. Very sweet. All the kids did a great job.




I guess he was bored...
Carlie and her friend, Lauren

Christmas is Coming!!

We started off this week making a Gingerbread House that we picked up at Costco. Grammy and Pawpaw were coming for another visit, and their Ford (Fixing Or Repairing Daily) SUV broke down on the highway in Illinois and Mike had to go rescue them. Good thing this gingerbread house was able to pass the time while we waited. I had never done one before, and I think it turned out pretty nice.