If only my iPad worked well

... I'd have all kinds of pics to post and stories to tell. I like the ipad, but it's frustrated me more than anything. I'll spare the details, but am looking forward to whenever I get my next laptop. We have been busy bees, yet still have days that feel like they are never ending. But today, which started out horrible with sassy attitude from Jamie, ended on a very good note. Since the girls are getting older, they are playing outside more and more. The neighbor kids, which are all boys, come over and play a lot. At first I felt bad she didn't have any little girls to play with, but now I enjoy that her and Sami get to be the princesses, and the boys do treat them both pretty cute. This afternoon the two boys across the street came over, and I watched them and Jamie play on the swing set while I washed dishes and Sami napped. It was a peaceful moment for me. Yesterday we got Jamie a big girl bike,(again, would post pic if I could!) and watching all the kids ride around while Sami scampers after them is pretty cute. Even though life is really hard with two emotional and loud girls, I love my life. Billy is starting a new job Monday. He's leaving his company he's been wi for 6yrs. In those 6yrs, we've owned 2houses, briefly lived in an apartment, had two babies and many other milestones. Its sad that he wont be with all those familiar people and be doing what he has been for so long, but we are both excited for this next chapter. Time is flying even though some days it feels like it's standing still. Will post more soon!

here's the final

took these this morning! and here's a random facts about this swingset, it had 1,500+ screws. i am such a blessed girl that billy and my dad know how to do this stuff!

The Swingset

Whew, since my computer stopped working i have been wanting to post about the swingset but couldn't until now~! We decided a swingset would be a good addition for the girls, they loved going to parks but we'd always have to drive bc there isn't a good one within walking distance, and then we'd have to put up with other kids (who usually are strange :-) haha), and there are many other reasons parks aren't the best: germs, no bathrooms, always having to pack the necessities just for a quick play time. so we found a swingset we liked, then changed a bunch about it (hehe), and on my dad and billy set to build it! here's some pics:

wood delivery and planning

billy cutting the wood, then using chairs to assemble a roof (safe right?!)

jamie helping :)

girls look so small and cute!

time for a swing after the hard work!

the girls absolutely love it! and i do too! and so do the neighbor kids :-) and of course, i go to all this trouble of this post, and i don't have a finished product shot! that will come in the next few days!

Loved this

i get emails from Mops every now and then with little stories, and this one really struck me.. it seems like i am always feel inferior because of comparison in someway everyday. this was inspiring to me:

Greater Than, Less Than

By Heidi Rogers, mother of one

Have you ever noticed all the comparisons we make in a given day? We compare prices, movies, schools and doctors. And we also compare ourselves to others. We compare ourselves to Facebook friends posting pictures of themselves on their exotic summer vacation (yes, she’s wearing a bikini, and well) or other moms who blog about their latest craft, recipe or general spiritual accomplishment with their children. We even compare our children’s milestones to other children as we simply try to figure out what we should be doing to encourage their growth and learning.
I have to constantly remind myself people are different. I am different. My son is unique. We do things at our own pace and we do the best we can. Who does it really matter to if I don’t have an elaborate (or even balanced!) meal on the table every night? Who really cares if I feel comfortable in a bathing suit, let alone look good in one?
Me. I’m the one who cares. And I’m beginning to think I care too much. I make time for my son, my husband and myself everyday, placing importance on what I think is for the well-being of my family. Isn’t that what I should really be concerned with? I’m doing the best I can with what God’s given me. And it’s turned out pretty well so far, if I do say so myself. I think it’s time I gave myself a break from all the comparisons. -

adventure in babysitting

last wknd i got to watch two of my nieces, thea and livie for a few hrs. billy was out, so it was just me with 4 girls ages 17months-5yrs. they were very good girls though! it is fun watching all their different personalities and how unique they all are.. they are all so different! the night went as good as it could except when the power all the sudden went out and we were in the dark. luckily no one panicked :-) i found my way to the candles, flashlight and lantern and jeremy and amber were almost here anyways. not sure what happened, but my whole neighborhood was out, even the street lights. i called billy and he came home asap, got the girls put to bed as usual, although jamie was a bit scared, but she was a champ and went to bed like a brave girl. funny how stuff like that ALWAYS happens to me it seems. but all was good in the end. here's some pics and a video of the girls playing

lovely day

this morning we went to church to watch our niece get dedicated. it was very sweet, the pastor was also our pastor who married us. when we got married his message was personalized just for us and today when he spoke about lilly it was the same, just for her, i teared up a little bit.. very sweet! after church we stopped at panera and got some brunch. we all sat in a booth and jamie and sami were so fun to watch. even standing up, sam couldn't see over the edge, jamie could and was peaking and saying hi to everyone. when we got home we played outside and enjoyed the beautiful weather for a long time. then, a wonderful little treat, we all napped! i love these days when the windows can be open and fresh air flows through the house. i woke up to sami babbling her cute baby sounds.. she sleeps with her puppy and always kisses it over and over and barks at it when she wakes up.. she has a love for puppies like jamie has a love for her george. so i went upstairs to get her, picked her up and then sat down in the rocker to snuggle and she ended up falling asleep on me for another 40minutes. i just soaked it in, she's growing so fast.. soon she will be the age jamie was when we had sami.. which is so bizarre to think.. was jamie really that young when i had sam? while she was sleeping on me, i just watched her and listened to her even breathing.. babies are so sweet, but i love this age so much.. their little personalities are so developed, but they are still somewhat baby. after awhile i whispered "do you want to go see daddy" and she said no, then i asked "do you want to go see jamie?" and she said no. she just wanted to stay snuggling.. so we did.. until we heard jamie wake up crying bc she had peed while she was asleep on the couch. so down we went, and after jamie settled down we resumed our nice day, went outside and the girls and billy flew a kite and we made dinner and played. one of my favorite times of the day is before bedtime, the girls LOVE to run around naked and just be silly before they put their jammies on. i cannot help staring at their cute jiggly butts.. especially sami's bc she is so chubby. i love when they play together and when jamie makes sami laugh, her laugh is so hilarious. it was just a nice day and these are the types of days i cherish and know i will miss in the future.

i think i'm gonna write a book

i actually have many ideas for books, and websites too (but that is another story that always gets held up by my lack of computer knowledge!). it's just sticking with completing a whole story that gets me, i get sidetracked or talk myself out of whatever i am writing. But the reason i am saying i am going to write a book is bc jamie is so funny with her imaginary friends lately and i think we are going to draw pictures and write a story of the characters she comes up with and then make a photobook of it. The two things she has come up with lately are "Coyk the pink dog" and "Kink the stink dinosaur" Seriously those came out of her mouth and imagination.. Kink the stink dinosaur cracked me up, how funny a 3yr old can be! So i think this week we shall set out on a picture and story adventure of Coyk and Kink. We'll probably work on it during Sami's naptime so we can really focus :-) Plus once we create the photobook, she'll be able to have it forever and remember. I'm excited to make it with her. Will put up pics of our creations once they're complete!

girls

aren't they sweet? love these moments.

i am still here..

i've sat a few times trying to think of something to blog about.. which i don't really prefer, i like my blogs to be a natural thing, something i want to talk about or share. alot has been going on, but nothing at the same time. I went with my mom to visit my sister in CO a few weeks ago. I hadn't flown in like 7yrs, so that was an adventure in itself. we had a good time while we were there, i loved being able to see where tammy spends her life and we got to see the new house that they are going to be moving to. it also was pretty nice waking up slowly and not having to attend to babies for days! i wish we lived closer, i miss my sister.. when we were younger we were not close at all.. enemies even :-) but that was all due to immaturity and age difference (cool 18yr old vs annoying 10yr old is a bit hard to make work) but as we've grown, we've become very close and i love it. maybe one day we'll live in the same town again.. luckily we can talk/email or skype to make it through! coming home was great and the girls were on excellent behavior for billy (as always). why do they like to save their "bad" behavior for me only? :-) actually they've been sweet lately, and i'm proud of both of them. Billy's sister niki had her baby last week! and going to see their sweet newborn baby girl Lilly just amazes me and makes me think my girls were once that small.. it doesn't seem possible! can't wait to have more babies, but we will for a little while, my 2 girls keep me busy enough! next month is my bday and i'm already planning my day away (my bday gift to myself!) billy is going to take the day off and i'll do whatever floats my boat during the day, probably shop, maybe a massage or haircut, then we are going to go to dinner and an improv show. i love my bday.. who doesn't love a day that is like a dedicated personal holiday that you don't have to share? haha. well i guess i did have some stuff to say afterall! will try to get some more stuff up sooner than later.

baby shower!

billy's sister niki is pregnant with her 1st baby and i helped throw a shower for her last weekend. i think it went amazingly well! the theme was "under the sea". i totally ran with it. i found the perfect under sea invite and then made this diaper cake which i was very proud of. i also bought little turtle, starfish and shell mint molds. back to the diaper cake.. my original thought was just buying little squirty bath toys and putting them on the cake, but after a visit to miss niki's, i saw she already had those, so i set out to make my own sea creatures. i had no idea how much i would enjoy making them! i got so excited after i completed each one and thought they turned out so cute. i actually kinda miss them! like they were my little friends. :-) but am happy to hand them over to a sweet baby.. who i can't wait to meet and see what he or she looks like.

it all takes me back to when i was pregnant with jamie.. oh the anticipation.. and oh how niave i was! but it was such a wonderful time.. i miss being pregnant.. i loved it, even though towards the end it gets uncomfortable, and those first 3months are soo tiring. we definately want more kids, but for now, the 4 of us is quite fufilling! i think just holding niki's baby (if my girls will allow!) will be enough for me at the moment.

sledding

billy is a wonderful daddy. he does such fun things with the girls and i love it. i sent them outside to play with daddy while i stayed inside, later i went outside to see what they were up to and i found this:

such a tired baby

so sami has been going through a minor sleep issue. nothing big at all, but usually she's a champ sleeper, never wakes up, never complains when you put her down. but last week she was up at 4am for some reason, so i went in and tried to calm her down, we sat rocking together, but that lasted about 10min, then she sits back and grunts and smiles at me, which basically means "mom, i'm not going back to bed!" so we were up at 4am. she played nice and she went down around 9am for a nap. billy was working from home that day, so he shot this video while i took jamie to school. she was so tired!

since then she's been a little fussy everytime i put her down, and i've heard her crying in the middle of the night, but it's always just for a minute or so and then she goes back to sleep. i just think she's either teething or discovering her power. hopefully she'll be back to her normal self soon! especially bc i need me some good sleep!

in jamie news, we had a really rough couple weeks with her acting out and not listening. i lost my temper a few times and felt extremely guilty for it. so after that, i decided to make some more changes, just little things, like planning activities so we don't get bored and irritated, but also i started a good behavior chart. this thing has been a great motivator for her. she get so excited to earn stickers for being a big girl. and after so many stickers, she gets special treats and prizes. she has been my sweet girl again lately and i love her so much!

typical

the last week i have been having a really hard time with the girls. both are just trying my patience in every way. so in turn, i have been in a really bad mood and can cry at anytime, anywhere. billy has been so sweet and supportive. he knows like no one else how they can be. he's encouraging and helpful and lets me take time outs if i need. so last night i went to a tastefully simple party at a friends house and there was a game. well i "won" the priviledge of hosting a party. i do no want to host a party. so after the party i made my way out the door and the host was like "i'll contact you to set up your party" i replied, "well i don't think it'll happen" and she says "well you kind of have to", i said "i don't have to do anything" she said "well it was part of the game" and i just stared for a minute, then said "well bye!". i just was so annoyed. i came to the party to support my friend period, not to buy food, or "win" a prize of hosting. there is no way i am hosting a party.. especially after it going down like that. i think it's so rude! then, today i was making a smoothie. i couldn't find the stirring thing that fits into the top of the smoothie maker. (the girls like to take it and hide it from me). so i grabbed a hard plastic spatula and used that. so i loaded it up with fruit and juice and yogurt and was quite looking forward to my smoothie. well as i was blending i was using the spatula to scrape the sides and of course i put it a little too far in and it hit the blade, breaking the spatula and ruining my whole smoothie with hard plastic shrapnel. i was annoyed not so much bc of the ruined spatula (bc it was cheap) but bc of all the ingredients wasted in my smoothie! money down the drain, literally. after that, i decided i need fresh air. so do the girls. so we bundle up and go outside. we last about 2minutes. sam takes a dive. as i'm cleaning her up, i hear another scream and jamie fell. jeez. so in we go and meltdowns begin. finally now sam is napping and jamie is content with a movie. although she hobbles in here every few minutes reminding me she's still hurt. :-) all of these stories are just how my days have been going lately. i try to do a simple thing. and somehow it turns into weirdness. typical. but as grouchy and negative as i can be, i still know i'm one lucky girl and wouldn't want anyone else's life.

3

yesterday my jamie leigh turned 3. can't believe it. last week we put her big girl bed together and she has transitioned so well. she has woken a few times and yelled bc she can't find one of her many things she sleeps with, but daddy goes in and finds it and she goes right back to bed. some times she seems like such a big girl, but there are also times when she definately doesn't :-)

for her bday we made obnoxiously pink cupcakes bc obviously pink is her favorite color. she was too cute helping me add the ingredients and frosting her cupcake (more like her tongue). we went to pizza with my family like we do every week and we sang to her and she stood there with her hands over her eyes the entire time we sang. she got lots of presents and i think had a great bday. love her so much! i remember the day she was born like it was yesterday.. the day that changed my life forever. the saying that keeps replaying in my head is "the days are so long and the years go so fast" some days (ok most days lately) i feel like the days just drag and we get bored, but here i am and jamie is 3 already. sigh. i will try to make the most of the days and appreciate this time i get to be home with her, bc before i know it, she will be in school and i will be missing these days.. at least that's what everyone tells me. haha.

2011 is here

well well well... a new year, what should my resolution be? and i know i listed a bunch a few posts ago.. that was when i was in a mood to conquer the world. today, not so much. billy is headed back to work with no vacation in sight (so far) compared to the last like 3 weeks of having him around much more bc of the holidays. sigh.. i will miss it. it's so nice to just be able to have him around helping and taking turns with the girls and having my best friend to talk to all day. but i am quite thankful for his job. anyways.. back to resolutions.. i think i just want to be content with knowing i am trying to better myself everyday. i want to work on getting out of debt. maybe see if i can get a part time job. i want to make my house look pretty. i want to have a schedule for things, like cleaning and chores. but i guess mostly those are just lifestyle changes.. mostly i just hope in 2011 that it will be alot like 2010, just being blessed everyday knowing all the things we have, not even material things, but my family (the 4 of us, and our extended family), our health, a great job, and being married to my best friend. i never want to take any of those things for granted! happy 2011!