7 years, are you itchy yet?

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MY LOVE!!!

Seven years of marital bliss... can you believe it? About six months ago a very well-meaning friend warned me about turbulent waters ahead as we entered our "seven-year itch." It paniced me. I am a less than stellar wife... plenty of reasons for you to get itchy. But I realized, I don't think we'll ever have the itch. The same well-meaning friend warned us about the "newlywed period" wearing off just after we got married. I can only speak for myself, but I still feel like a newlywed. My stomach still does flip-flops when I catching you looking at me from under the brim of your baseball hat. I still get unreasonably excited when I haven't seen you all day. And I still feel desperate when you leave, be it a business trip or a trip to the gym. To steal from ABBA, you're my vice and everything is you!


My Senior Prom

















At your Prep-school graduation

















At an Air Force football prefunk















Checking under the hood... usually that happens BEFORE you buy the goods.














If it's possible, I love you even more now than on that day!

"Oh that we might always see such spirit through the year..."

This Christmas was the best Christmas to date. Let me tell you why... we practiced what we preached. This year Josh and I committed to relish the season by serving others. We agreed to go light on the gift giving amongst our well-cared-for family and instead use our money to help others. I focused on giving of not just my sustenance but of my time and talents as well. This meant swallowing my pride/fear and singing for the Christmas Eve Devotional. This meant braving HOT TOPIC to find the perfect "Twilight" tee-shirt for my Excelsior girl. This meant that even with all that I gave to serve my Heavenly Father the scales are still tipped. You see our Savior, Jesus Christ, gave us the ultimate gift. To show my appreciation I live to serve, a small way to try and balance the scales. But there's a problem, service doesn't balance the scales, not really, because the overwhelming feeling I got as I gave freely is so all-encompassing and amazing that I am once again indebted to my Heavenly Father. Giving is so selfish!

"The new old-fashioned way..."

Someone please explain to me what this means? I seriously want to know.

Mr. Saunders turns 30

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways... 30 reasons I am grateful you were born!


1. You know the difference between there, their and they're.
2. You hate video games.
3. You come up with the best analogies to explain difficult subjects.
4. You can eat an entire batch of chocolate chip cookies (5 dozen) all by yourself.
5. Your dad's a gourmet chef and you still think my chocolate cake is the best thing you've ever eaten.
6. You love Christmas with a childlike exuberance.
7. You are an All-American lacrosse player.
8. You are getting hotter with age.
9. You think the perfect night out involves a trip to Home Depot.
10. You are the best big brother and love your siblings with all your heart.
11. You are so competitive which makes you great at everything you do.
12. You love HGTV and aren't embarassed to admit it.
13. You endure your job so that I can stay home.
14. You make the best malts.
15. You genuinely like talk radio.
16. Your dad voice brings immediate peace and quiet in a way my voice can't.
17. You have the sexiest singing voice, like Bing Crosby.
18. You understand me so completely that I feel like the best version of myself when we're together.
19. You have to finish a movie even if you've seen it 100 times.
20. You love my mom as much as I love my mom.
21. You go to the gym every morning (usually) because you really believe your body is a temple. (Which it is and I love to worship it!)
22. You watch reruns of "The Office" and laugh as though you've never seen it before
23. You have an opinion on home decor and fashion.
24. You look hot in hats.
25. You value integrity above all else.
26. You love our boys, even though they're mommas boys, and are giving them the best example of the type of man they should aspire to be.
27. You love our country and cherish freedom.
28. You made me a mother and think I am the best even though I am pretty sure I'm the worst.
29. You made me a wife and think I am the hottest... and I agree.
30. You love our Lord and Savior with such a fervor, as evidenced by everything you do.

It isn't fair to the world the amount of happiness you bring me. I can't imagine my life without you and do not wish to even fathom the thought. One post is not adequate to express how amazing you are but our friends don't want to read much more than that. Happy Birthday my love.

The new hope...

Josh captured this picture of Cole as we drove across New Mexico into Arizona. We had pulled off the road to nurse Cash and to give the boys a much needed chance to stretch.

Sunsets/sunrises give me such hope. Combine that with the confidence in Cole's eyes and I feel uplifted!

To my son...

You turned one month old in a hush only snowfall can create. I don't know why I am feeling so sentimental. Probably a mix of post-partum, Christmas and the crushing reality that this is the last time I will be the mother of a newborn. As I hold you, your head resting against my heart, I don't feel a sense of maternal serenity or ethereal calm. Instead, I feel panicked at the thought of losing you. Losing you to adulthood. You see, everyday that I get to know you is another day you move closer to manhood. How ironic that the more you become YOU the less you become mine. At what point does a boy or man stop needing his mommy? I still need my mom but is that a female bond strengthened by the shared experiences of motherhood? I always knew I would raise boys. But in raising only boys I think I miss out on a certain amount of softness or sentimentality. That is not to say boys aren't as sweet as girls, only that boys are expected to be firmer. We are breeeding warriors. I like being the mother of soldiers but does that mean in your bravery you won't need me later?

Raising children, you'll find, is about relinquishing control. Which is of course very hard for me. Not at first... in the beginning it's about setting boundaries, rules and routine. But sooner than you think it becomes letting your child fall down so he can learn to pick himself up again. I can't bear the thought of letting you fall or fail or not get your way. I look into your bright eyes and I see all the hope and possibilities stretched out for you. But is it ok if today I hold you as if there is nothing and nonone you need as much as me? You are so perfect and pure just like the untouched snow that has marked your one-month birthday.

Pre-Cash photo shoot

Our best friend, Damon, is a gifted photographer. I don't like to be photographed but Damon is so brilliant at capturing the emotion and essence of his subjects that I look forward to seeing him. We are lucky he is willing to use his talents on our motley crew. Damon came out from WA to catch the Denver/Miami game and took this series of pictures just days before Cash was born. I love them because for one brief moment my family is clean, behaved and quiet!

POLL

Josh and I recently debated this topic last night... which was a bigger change... going from 1 to 2 kids or going from 2 to 3 kids? Or is there another answer we haven't considered? Talk amongst yourselves then let me know!

The perfect night in.

So, I don't know how to tell this story without sounding braggy. Perhaps I should keep it to myself but here's the thing... I am not good at expressing myself in person and if I don't write it down he won't know how amazing he makes me feel. So either bear with me or don't read on. What I mean is that it is hard for me to show how happy/sad I am, probably because of pride. Whatever the reason this means that I have a hard time showing how much I love my husband to my husband. When he comes home from a business trip I am so excited to see him. I count down the seconds till he is home and when he walks through the door I am bubbling inside with joy. I am not, however, effusive and though I want to run and jump into his arms (which would make him so happy) I can barely manage more than a smile. What is wrong with me? Probably a lot. I am not good at expressing my feelings in person, I am however good at expressing them in writing.

We got home later than expected from our trip to AZ. We avoided the 5 hour delays on I-25 between Colorado Springs and Denver by taking Highway 83 (Parker Rd) all the way up. Nevertheless it still put us into Denver later than we expected. You can imagine after two days of traveling in the car with three crazy boys, how hungry I was to be away from them. I know that's harsh but Cole teased Finn 90 percent of the car ride and Finn's response was to scream in this high-pitched girly voice.

We got the topper unloaded, the trash out and the walks shoveled and then we put the kids into bed. Then Josh and I headed to bed where we watched "Hancock" on his computer and enjoyed sushi (which I can't get enough of since I am no longer preggers). Then Josh turned to me and said, "I want you to know how much I appreciate what you went through to bring our children into this world. Not just the labor and delivery but the months of barfing. I wanted you to know how much you mean to me so I got you something." He then pulled out a small brown and green box. Inside was the most gorgeous diamond ring. The man who HATES jewelery and everything it stands for bought me 2-carats woth of pave diamonds in the most unique and beautiful setting. And he did it just because. The ring is awesome and something I could never buy myself. I feel so glamorous doing anything and everything. I went to Walmart in it, pumped gas in it and even changed diapers in it.

I really don't know what I did/do to deserve a man like Josh. He's not perfect but he tries to be. I love my life with him and will endeavor to show him that more often.

Look out Warren Buffett!

We are officially in the real estate game! We bought our first investment property. This has been our dream since college and a result of planning/sacrifice and a great partner in Josh's mom. We are pretty luck to have her and her ability to see Josh's vision. She is as excited as we are.

We didn't think we would hear so fast about the property we made an offer on, it is bank-owned and the banks are usually the slowest in accepting offers. Plus they started jerking us around on Friday with a weird kind of bidding war. But Josh stuck to his offer and they accepted! It's a pretty scary... I didn't want to get excited about it because it is such a great deal and I didn't want to be disappointed. The risk is high, but it's easier for me to handle because I have never seen Josh so excited. He loves home improvement and is looking forward to getting in there and gutting the place. It needs work. But after the renovations we've done in our own homes we feel ready to tackle it. The inspector comes in this week and I hope there is nothing major. If it goes smoothly we will close in like two weeks. We plan on renting it out. Here are some pics, it looks awful but remember it's all cosmetic!


Upstairs bedroom with laminate wood floors (needs new paint)










One of the baths, that wallpaper is awesome right?










Family room with burnt orange shag carpet!










Kitchen...paint and new appliances.

The house is quiet...

...the boys are at church and Cash is asleep in his swing. Josh and I agreed to keep Cash home from church, for now. Church is one place I have a hard time stopping people from touching my brand new baby. I have never had a newborn during cold and flu season and perhaps I am a little paranoid about germs. I remember when Cole was 6 months old and got the flu. He threw up so much that he lost 5 lbs! There is nothing worse than a sick baby, you can't tell them that they need to stay hydrated or they are going to end up in the ER with an IV in their little hand/arm.

Cole and Finn were up/showered/fed/dressed by 9:30 a full hour and a half before church. No thanks to me. My Heaven-sent-husband did all the "heavy lifting" this morning. Josh is just as tired as I am after a rough night with Cash. A night in which Josh awoke with me at each feeding and tickled my back as I nursed Cash (I didn't ask him too, that's just how thoughtful he is). A night when Cash had a huge blow-out that Josh changed on his side of the bed resulting in yellow poop all over his side of the sheets. I came downstairs this morning to find the boys looking very respectable (not always the case when daddy dresses them, he picks the weirdest outfits sometimes) listening to Chopin and eating breakfast.

I just want it on record so that if/when things get rocky I can remember my amazing husband and his true Christ-like example in my life. He loves his family so much and is the hardest-working man I have ever known. Thank you babe for what you do for me and our children.

Twilighting

Just got home from seeing the 10:00 am showing of "Twilight." The theatre was packed, why aren't kids in school? A lot of teens who actually cheered and clapped. Perhaps their excitement rubbed off on me. I really enjoyed the movie. I can say I rarely like books-turned-movies, the book is always better. I have to say that was not the case for "Twilight" I think the screenplay was even better than the book. Sorry to the "Twi-hard" fans. Stephenie Meyers is great and I love her creativity and imagination but I think her books become repetitive and stale. The movie had to cut for time so a lot of the repetition was removed. I found the writing to be witty (especially between Bella and her friends and Bella and her dad) and the casting was spot on. Of course Edward on screen will never be like Edward in your dreams but Robert Pattison was beautiful and I cannot wait to see him in "New Moon." I have always loved Kristin Stewart and was impressed by her ability to carry the movie.


Before you "Twi-hards" murder me remember that this is just my humble opinion.

***ADDED*****
This pic is LOL funny to me. This is my cousin Daniel (red hair) who read the book cause he wanted to know what the hype is about. He read it all over Provo like in waiting rooms and on busses. Women would come up to him and just gush about how they loved seeing a man read the book. Anyway, he took his mom and bro to the midnight showing. These are their shirts. I love his the most.

Size matters...

not in that way, Libbie get your mind out of the gutter. No I am talking about matters of size. A baby makes you reflect on size not just in the physical sense but in the evaluation of what's important in my life. Here are a few examples.

Physical: Finn is not my baby anymore. He is huge! He takes up 3/4 of his crib now and when I change his diaper I might as well be changing an old man's diaper when compared to the newborn swaddlers on Cash.

Metaphysical: How big is it if I bathe Finn in the sink after an explosive diaper because I am too exhausted to walk upstairs?















Physical: Cash is my BIGGEST baby, yet, he is too small to fit into newborn clothes let alone the 0-3 months hand-me-downs from his big brothers.
















Metaphysical: It is no small thing the love you can feel for someone you've only known for a week.

Physical: My belly is so big that people on the street are still asking me when I am due.

Metaphysical: I have three little boys, did you get that? THREE LITTLE BOYS! I get to raise boys that WILL become stripling warriors, serving missions and taking brides to the temple. The magnitude of that blessing/burden is ginormous! I feel so blessed to look upon my little family and realize that this is my eternity. Yes, there will be additions down the road, but for the next 18 years this is us moving forward!

A wonderful Saturday afternoon!

Of course I am referring to the 16 hour labor that ended Saturday, November 8th at 4:00 pm with the birth of Cassius Opal Saunders. He was by far the longest and most difficult labor of all the boys which can be attributed to his size 8 lbs 11 ounces and the enormity of his head 15 inches (the average newborn's head is 12). I say it was the longest and most difficult for me but in retrospect I only pushed for 6 minutes which seems like an eternity (I only pushed twice Cole and Finn) and though labor was 16 hours, contractions only lasted 6 and I had a great big epidural to help me out!




I am relieved to be unpregnant! I haven't thrown up once since he was born and I no longer feel like I am going to die during childbirth! Of course I am still a weepy mess (thank you hormones) and I forgot how little sleep a new mommy gets. However, I am so grateful to have a healthy baby and I feel so much hope and excitement moving forward with my new little family. Since this is our final baby I have been particularly sentimental and manical in my photojournalism of this event. Sorry for so many pics, I couldn't help myself.

Get this baby out of me...

MOM DON'T READ THIS, IT'S NOT VERY LADY-LIKE

I don't want to sound ungrateful. I feel blessed to be able to carry children and birth healthy babies, but for me it takes an incredible toll on my mind and body. Lately our home life has been pretty disrupted by my frequent teary outbursts and insane fear of dying during labor and delivery.

Josh went with me to my appt yesterday, I think he wanted to make sure that I didn't put on a brave face for the doctor, don't worry I didn't. I broke down into a hysterical tear-soaked rant about having a giant 12 pound baby and a brain aneurism and dying. You see I have this fear that since my first two labors were so short and easy that this one is going to be terrible. I've had it to easy and I am petrified that while pushing I will have a stroke or aneurism and die. I am not irrational, I have never had that kind of fear and now it is so real I can taste it. I don't sleep at night and like I said, I cry a lot during the day. Doc was great. His solution, AMBIEN. He said I needed to get some sleep, that not sleeping can make things seem a lot worse. Hearing this helped a little and after a full 8 hours of wakeless sleep last night I do feel better. However, after my exam (cervix check,etc) he said "trust me this baby is probably just going to fall out." I don't know if that was an insult to my vagina or him trying to make me feel better. It's not very often that your ob/gyn calls you "loose."

We did the mash, we did the monster mash!

So my favorite time of the year culminates at our annual couples party! We have a great group of friends and an evening of fine food and fun. Josh loves games (duh he's Mr. competitive!) We give out prizes for costumes,but this year we wanted people motivated to really go for it so we upped the prize to be gift cards! Next year we are going to try and up the ante even more by giving out awesome hotel stays to those who really get into costume.

We are at a loss because we thought of at least 6 other couples we would love to include. We may have to move the shindig to a hotel but we might try next year to do the games down in the basement.

My favorite part was the entertainment. I had set out in August to find performers and such only to realize that I have the most talented friends around. So my talend and gracious friends performed the crap out of some great theatre pieces and my scary story readers entertained the crowd with gut-busting horror and terror! Next year I really want to hire a fortune teller, how do you find a fortune teller?

Brace yourself for more Holiday revelry! Putting together a little glimpse of our Haunted Mansion!

A photo of another messy child...

I feel like my blog has fallen into the trap I feared it would. It has the same stereotypical pictures and stories that all mom blogs have. I can only hope that in my golden years I will appreciate having blogged so much about my children.

I was not so appreciative of my kids today. And instead of cleaning up the mess, my dear husband (who really is a dear) decided it was more imperative to take a picture. Finn got into the dish soap (RANT: JOSH PUT UP THE CHILD-PROOF LOCKS). He loves to rub lotion, gel, soap on his head. I think he thinks he is helping mommy by getting himself clean. Anyway, at least he smelled like granny smith apples which are one of my faves!

I am a domestic goddess

Ok, not really seeing that I had to call a friend to tell me what the inside of a zucchini was suppose to look like. Perhaps you could say I am a domestic demi-goddess. I can clean and decorate like no other but I am not very confident in my cooking skills. My "Best of" cookbook includes a Guinness potroast, Southwest steak salad and a chocolate cake. I will try any food once and I will attempt any recipe. But that's the key, I won't venture past the recipe. That's the point of this story. Sorry it's taken this long to get to it.

My bro-in-law Morgan brought be 7 ginormous zuchs from his mom's garden and I really had no idea what to do with them. In an effort to impress my incredibly gorgeous and culinary-advanced husband I decided yesterday to make zucchini bread. Morgan said the zucchini's got too huge and it may have messed with the flavor, I don't know about that but it felt wrong to let them go to waste. (I am amazed by what Heavenly Father has provided us to eat). One zucchini yielded 6 cups of shred. My recipe called for 2 cups of zuch to make 2 loaves. I didn't want to triple the batch because I am huge preggo monster and really could not stand the heat of the oven being on any longer than necessary. But I felt like 2 cups wasn't enough zucchini so I was brazen and I added another cup to the recipe. It was fun to digress from the recipe. Though in retrospect I probably could have used all 6 cups because while the bread was delicious I didn't really get a zucchini vibe from it. Josh and Morgan loved it but that's because in my zeal to throw the recipe to the wind I decided to add a crumb topping to the bread, you know the kind you add to blueberry muffins? I made it with brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, flour, walnuts and a lot of cold margarine. It really made the bread. So it was a small culinary victory for me and my recipe-following strictness. 6 more zucchinis to go, tonight we are making zucchini brownies.

Delaney Farms Pumpkin Festival

It finally feels like fall! Nostalgic for the awesome pumpkin patches of Seattle, Josh and I decided to try out the Pumpkin Festival at Delaney Farms. It was cold but a lot of fun. Delaney Farms is off of Chambers and Alameda and the highlight of the festival is the pumpkin launch. Different age-groups compete to make a catapault/gun that flings pumpkins the farthest. It is quite the spectacle, each team apparently takes it very seriously with team names, costumes and pre-launch skits. The boys loved it. The festival also had story-telling, pumkin carving demonstrations, pumpkin patch and scarecrow stuffing.





Now onto something embarassing. Josh spent Tues-Fri in Seattle for work. Josh has always traveled a lot for his job so I have gotten used to the things that go bump in the night (the heater turning on, sump pump pumping). However, Friday night was different. It was the first night that actually felt like Halloween to me. It was cold, grey, foggy and I loved it. Cole was spending the night at Aunt McCall's apt so it was just Finn and I sitting on the couch in the blue room watching "The Starter Wife." We were cuddled under the quilt my grandma had just made for Cash (it is too soft to pass up)and we had the fireplace on and all the Halloween lights aglowing. All of a sudden I hear "whooo...whoooo" right behind us in the backyard. I muted the tv to see if I was losing my mind and as clear as a bell "whooo...whoooo" sounded right behind us. We have huge windows that look out to the backyard. I could feel someone looking at me, you've all felt it. When you can tell someone is looking at you. I thought "that can't be an owl, why would there be an owl in suburbia?" And again the "whoooo...whoooo" came even louder. I got up from the couch to go look out the backdoor. I flipped the lock just to be sure and turned on the back light, as I did I saw someone hop over the fence into the neighbor's yard. I instantly went into panic mode. I was like "who would be making owl noises in my backyard and why would they run away?" I grabbed Finn and ran to the front door to make sure it was locked and I dialed my bro-in-law, Morgan, who lives in Tuscany just two minutes away. I was trying to be calm but I didn't want to be alone. He could sense my urgency and said "I am coming right now." I called my mom and she latched on to my anxiety and said "I don't want you to hang up till Morgan is there." Her concern sent me into hysteria, she was trying to calm me saying "it was probably your imagination." Just as I was saying "no I swear..." the "whoooo...whooooo" started again and my mom goes "Was that it? I just heard it!" So I am standing with Finn against the front door, too petrified to even go back into the blue room, crying and hoping the owl-sounding psychopath doesn't know that the back window won't lock and I need Josh to fix it (which he did after this scare). I see Morgan speeding up the road and he pulls in front of the house and runs to the door. Just as he steps on the front porch I whip open the door and he goes "holy crap there's a huge owl out here!" Sure enough there is a ginormous great-horned owl. Morgan heard it go "whooo...whooo" as soon as he opened his door and as he got out the owl flew over his head from our yard. I was relieved that it was an owl and not a psychopath. We think now that he must have been sitting on the fence when I turned on the light and the person I saw was actually the owl swooping off the fence. Morgan stayed with me till 11:00 pm and then went to pick Josh up at the airport. While he was here the owl came back and we heard him in the yard again. This time I went outside and we could see his amazing silouette backlit by the moon. When he swiveled his head toward us you could see the glow of his eyes. He flew off the neighbor's roof right over our heads. It was pretty awesome. Morgan Googled the great-horned owl and we found out that they hunt prey 2-3 times heavier than they are, ie. our cats. Morgan realized the owl must have been watching Eddie and Terrell. So my perfect Halloween night ended appropriately with an encounter with fear and a spooky owl. It's a little embarassing to be so irrational but I love Halloween and have an active imagination. Sue me! On Sat the Plains Conservation Center had a booth at the festival displaying some of Colorado's predators including, the great-horned owl! We got to see its sharp talons and feel its feathers.

My boys...

I like the sound of that. I can say "the boys" and refer to everyone else in this household including the cats. I am blogging this photo because Josh loves it. The boys love Josh's lacrosse gear, especially Finn. He is always getting Josh's helmet on and wearing it around the house. I know how the pride swells in Josh's heart when he sees them playing lacrosse. He sees little All-American NCAA attacks, although I think Finn is going to be really big like his Uncle Nate so he will probably end up being a long-pole, defense. Cole is built like Josh but doesn't show as much interest in sports as Finn. However, he is fast and he really wants to be stronger than daddy so he is very concerned about how healthy things are. This last week his new thing is to drink just white milk instead of "protein milk" (skim milk with ovaltine) because daddy only drinks white milk. I love these boys!

My baby "sprinkle!"

In case you were wondering, I have the best mom. She not only takes amazing care of her family but she is brilliant and creative and throws the best parties. Her latest venture was a baby shower for ME!!! Ok, it's not exactly PC for a family member to throw you a shower and it's not exactly appropriate to have a shower for the third baby... but she didn't throw a shower she threw a "sprinkle" and it wasn't for the baby it was for ME!!! She invited 15 of my nearest and dearest friends and threw a very fun afternoon celebrating my third and final pregnancy. It was at a country club and the decor was divine (blue and brown like the baby's nursery) and the food was amazing. The icing on the cake, she flew my best friend, Libbie, all the way from Washington! If that wasn't enough my grandma (Red-haired grandma as Cole calls her) surprised me by coming in from Arizona. It was so amazing to be together. Thank you to all my friends for indulging me during my final pregnancy!!! McCall, I know how much you helped mom and I appreciate your creativity and hard work. I can't wait till you have a baby so I can return the many favors. Mom, there are no words to describe what you mean to me! Thank you for making these last 9 months so much easier and more enjoyable.



Even the lemonade was colored blue to go with the color theme!

U-shaped table

Each place setting had a hand-painted charger, hand-sewn napkin, two tea-lights and a baby bassinet cupcake

Thank you so much mom and sis!

Me behind the amazing fresh flower arrangements mom slaved on!

My BFF Libbie. What a hottie she is!

Pointy-shoed girls

I am reading a fantastic series called "The Last Apprentice." It is for young readers so it moves very fast and I think it was written for boys. Anyway, it is about a Spook and his apprentice. They travel their land ridding the people of all types of cratures of the dark; witches, boggarts, fiends, etc. Well the Spook has warned his young apprentice to never trust a girl who wears pointy shoes. It is good advice as it foreshadows all kinds of trouble they have with witches. Well I love Halloween and I throw a witches' tea for my gal pals. Here is a pic of my new shoes for my party. Never trust a girl who wears pointy shoes.

Summer is officially over...

Our pool closed on Saturday. It was a sad day for the Saunders' family. The pool has been our life blood this year and the site of some major accomplishments for our boys. Cole began the summer petrified of the "big pool." Most of May and June was spent in the kiddie pool. Our kiddie pool has fountains and sprays so it is not completely tragic but can someone explain to me why people let their kids eat in the pool? There are always bloated teddy grahams and goldfish floating around. I also hate the kiddie pool because the moms don't pay attention to their kids and I just want to yell "a child can drown in an inch of water!" OK, I am off on a rant and I am suppose to be convincing you that we will sorely miss the pool.
Finn is so aggressive at the pool, the kid has no fear, so I gave in and bought water wings for him. He loves to jump into the big pool all by himself and gives strangers a heart attack when he does. I hope we can get him in lessons so that he will always be a little fish. For Cole he is too smart for his own good. He knows the dangers of the pool and nothing I could do would convince Cole that he could swim in the big pool. Anyway, by the end of July, with much help and bribery from Momo, Cole was SWIMMING in the big pool! He loves it so much and it was a major boost to his self-esteem to be swimming in the big pool no floatie and no wings! He won't even let us go in the kiddie pool area. I love the pool! I love summer! I will miss my glorious tan, the exhaustion inducing effects of the sun in children and the summer nights! Scroll to the bottom of the page for a slide show of my favorite summer pics!

I will never have to leave suburbia

IKEA IS COMING TO CO!! Ikea applied for a business permit/building license from the city of Centennial. That's basically in my backyard. I am so happy. I must be really pathetic if that's the best news I've heard all week!

Just call me the Hallowqueen!

Yes, Halloween is still two months away and I have already purchased our Halloween costumes and made the invitations for one of the three parties I will throw this year. Maybe I am an addict. Can you believe Halloween decor is already in the store? I am so elated and I am in trouble. I have already purchased things I don't need and don't have a place for, I have 9 bins of Halloween packed to the brim. Here are some pics of my purchases! I am so excited!!

I do what it takes...

...to keep my kids alive but that's about it. This last week has been really rough. All I can figure is the baby is in a growth spurt and my body is being bombarded by hormones so therefore I am once again throwing up everything I eat and sleeping away much of the day.

Where are my kids your ask? Well, like I said I keep them alive. Cole is the best big brother, he plays with Finn all day and is happy because I let him eat whatever he wants as long as it requires no work from me. I feel so bad because he has been eating so many graham crackers and goldfish lately that he finally begged me yeasterday to make him some green beans. That's right, Cole begged me for some veggies. I do get people to help me take them to the pool that way they can play and have fun while I vomit in the pool bathroom.

Yesterday the boys played in the backyard for the whole day. It was glorious and I knew they were causing trouble because they didn't bother me every five minutes to come back in. However, I could hear them laughing and having fun so I let them play. On the way back from a barfing trip I looked outside and they had both disrobed and had turned the garden plot into a mud pit. They were covered, head to toe, in mud and grass. I didn't clean them up immediately I let them play for another hour before I finally hosed them off just in time for their naps. I do what it takes to keep them alive but that's it!

Don't be jealous...

but my husband is HOT!!! He works out every morning, eats really healthy and drinks only water. So it's no wonder he is still so smokin' hot. He definitely is one of those men who only gets better with age. Standing next to him could make you feel like a total mismatch if it weren't for the fact that in addition to be hot he is the kindest, funniest,smartest man who would do anything for anyone.





So what inspired this ode to my husband's hotness. Hormones probably. But seriously I started thinking about it last night. I was lying there with my huge belly exposed watching the baby and his nightly acrobatics and Josh walked into the bedroom. I looked up and the physical reaction I had was like a check to the gut. My stomach did a flip flop as I looked at Josh brushing his teeth. He was wearing a tight t-shirt, jeans and bare feet. I felt like I used to feel 11 years ago when Josh first kissed me. I lay there wondering why at that moment he could inspire such a reaction. And then it hit me, he was barefoot. Josh hates being barefoot. He hates when people make him take his shoes off, he wears socks to bed and slippers in the winter. He will wear flip-flops to the pool but generally he prefers shoes. So seeing his barefeet was like seeing something forbidden. Something about the way his jeans just skimmed the top of his foot! I don't have a foot fetish, in fact I find feet gross, but on Josh it just looked good!

So don't be jealous Josh is hot and he's all mine.

Oh and enjoy this post while you can, cause when he sees it he'll make me take it down. Just another thing that makes him great, he's humble!!!

Baby's first picture

I just looked at my baby countdown widget and saw that I have less than 100 days before baby boy #3 is introduced! Weird! We still can't agree on a name. Here is our latest ultrasound picture with a great view of his profile.