Beach Bound!!

We are all packed up and ready to head out as soon as Joe gets home so I probably won't post anything for about 2 weeks. We are driving about half way today and staying in North Carolina for the night and then driving the rest of the way tommorow. We will meet up with mom and dad there tommorow and hopefully have great weather all week so we can enjoy the beach!!! I am going to mom and dads for a few days after the beach as Joe is going to Alabama so I may get to post there, if she has her computer up and running!!

Dancin' Queen

So Maggie started her dance class tonight, tap and ballet, and was quite the dancing diva. She looked like a doll and she was quite aware of that. She went into her class and I was bummed that the teacher said she would prefer the parents to not stay in the room, but we could watch through the window. If your kids wanted you to stay today it was fine since some were a bit shy. Well, of course Maggie waved at me when she told them the mommy's would be leaving and said, "bye mom." So I couldn't say she would cry if I left. I got a few pictures of her in action but it was hard with Owen there. I realized even if we could have stayed in the room I wouldn't have been able to actually watch her since Owen was bound and determined to be a ballerina as well. :) He loved watching them but the second I put him down he would head towards them saying, "I ballerina too mommy." Luckily Maggie starts soccer in Sept. as well so maybe we can get him more interested in that than tap shoes. haha.

Maggie really enjoyed her class, which I was happy about, and told me she liked ballet better because she was really good at that but tap was harder. When we first got there we were listening to the teacher give instructions and a little girl walked in with a hot pink outfit. Maggie said, "ohhhh mommy, her outfit is beautiful." I agreed with her that it was quite pretty (although I was thinking more gaudy) and maggie proceeded to say, "but not nearly as beautiful as mine." Several other moms were sitting there so I just pretended I didn't hear her and contiued talking to them. I had a talk with her before hand about not saying she didn't like other people outfits which she didn't say.....guess I should have thrown in to not say hers was prettier than everyone else's. haha....that is my maggie.
I also had a talk with her about listening to the teacher and not making up her own dances since Maggie has quite the dance moves and I knew she would bust out in hip hop right in the middle of ballet. She did pretty good although I did see her a few times putting her own twist on the dances. She has followed in her daddy's footsteps with her jumping abilities. (If you are unaware of Joe's jumping talents ask him to show you next time you see him) At one point the teacher had them jump over a box and do a move. Well Maggie didn't just jump, she lept over it and actually looked really good since her legs were positioned just right. Anyhow, she had fun and here are a few pictures for your enjoyment.

Bouncing Birthday

We had a fun day today. Maggie's friend Kylie had her birthday party today at a place called "Pump it up." It is a big room that has lots of blow up bouncers/slides everywhere that the kids and adults can play on. It was a pretty neat place.












The kids had a blast and Maggie was really good at all the climbing. I think she is going to have alot more athletic ability than me...which is a good thing. Owen liked it as well but he has a few more months before he can climb by himself so poor Joe ran himself to death helping Owen get up everything. I took him down the slide twice but after the 2nd time got a feeling that this baby wasn't liking it so well so I decided to sit out after that.




























I have been totally exhausted today. I had my MOPS leaders meeting last night and didn't end up getting home until midnight. It was alot of fun but I cannot pull those last nights very often. I also worked this morning at the PEDS office so I had to be up and going by 7 so I have been totally dragging. I had the kiddos bathed and in bed before 8 tonight and am already in bed for the night.

Here is a picture I took of Owen the other day before we went to get his hair cut. He hadn't had one in over a month which is REALLY long for him and as you can see he really was in need of a good cut.















We have no plans tommorow other than church, but I need to start getting things together for the beach since we leave Friday!! I cannot wait.

We want to say Happy 2nd Birthday to Carlyn, wish we could have been at your party but we hope you had a fun day!

Good News

I had my dr. appointment this morning with the new OB and thankfully it went great. I really liked him, and it's a smaller practice with he and 2 other women so I hope they meet my approval as well. :) I figured he's either really that nice or he saw from my chart that I had already been to 3 other ob's in the area for this pregnancy. haha. Anyhow, baby's heartbeat was 170 which goes with my theory that this is a girl....we have the ultrasound in Sept. so we will know for sure then, I hope.

Joe took the kids to the pool this morning and I met up with them around 11 or so. We stayed until about 1 30 or so since several of Maggie's friends were there and she was having so much fun. They loved having Joe there as well as he can take them down the water slide and I cannot being prego. I got a little lay out time but with it being 102 degrees today it felt much better to be in the water. We are probably going to a Louisville baseball game tonight which should be fun. I am hoping it cools down some before or it may be a short game for us.

More pool fun

So we have spent the past 2 days at the pool again and it's been awesome. School started here yesterday so we have the pool to ourselves. Yesterday it was seriously just NeilaSusan and I and the kids with the whole pool to ourselves. It was great since I didn't have to keep up with where the kids were since they were the only ones! I got some pics of them playing and as you can see Maggie was quite the model yet again.


















Today there were a few moms there with little ones and we met up with my friend Becky and her kids. Her little girl is Maggie's age and her little boy is just 3 so they all played great togehter and had alot of fun. Owen tried to keep up but spent more time dumping water in a bucket on the side of the pool. We ended up staying until almost 2 since they were having so much fun adn being so good which meant Owen didn't get down for nap until right after 2 which is over an hour late for him...so he should be asleep right up until dinner time. I am trying to get some ideas togehter for MOPS this year as I am hospitality leader. I thought it just meant making all the food but I am begining to get the feeling it entails a bit more than that. I will do my best but being pregnant and having to get Maggie to preschool before I go to MOPS (both start at 9) may make it a little difficult to do much more than food. Not to mention having Owen in tow as well! He always makes things even more interesting. We are having stuffed shells for dinner which are smelling great so with dinner in the oven I am just relaxing with Maggie a bit before finishing up some laundry.

Joe is taking the day off tommorow to go to the pool with us so that will be fun and very relaxing for me. I have a doctors appointment in the morning so I hope that all goes well. I felt the baby move yesterday for the first time, more of a flutter than anything but I am looking forward to more of that!

MOVING UP!

Today was move up day at church which is where everyone is moved up to the next age level of class. This means that Owen was promoted from nursery to the 2 year old class which is much more structured. Since he still isn't a huge fan of the nursery, I knew this move would either be really good or really bad. Maggie moved up to the 4 year old class and at one point each Sunday she and Owen go to the same area for singing. Well, it was a hit for both of them. Maggie was with all the same kids and did just fine which I knew she would. Owen walked right in his class like he was big time and when we left he was standing at the door with the biggest grin on his face and waving. When I went to pick them up they said he got sad a few times for a minute or two but all in all did great. He was playing and happy as can be when I got him and Maggie had enjoyed her self too as usual. They looked really cute today and Maggie told me she hoped someone told her she looked beautiful. How funny.

HAPPY 6TH ANNIVERSARY

Today is Joe and I's 6th anniversary and we both have spent the day working! I worked this morning at the peds office and he went in to finish "closing the books" once I got home. We did get to go out and celebrate last night though and had a great time. Joe had bought us tickets to a counting crows concert awhile back as this was our favorite group when we began dating 7+ years ago. It was a very sweet idea, but since neither of us have listened to them in forever and I am still in the "sick prego" phase I decided all the smoke (cigarette and other) would probably not be so great for me. So he sold them and being Joe of course made money off of them! We decided on a nice dinner and a movie instead. Joe had wanted to try out this spanish restaurant in louisville that had great reviews so we went there and I must say I was not thrillled at the menu.






It looked like a place my sister and mom would drag me into. Everything was quite "exotic" sounding and not my all american steak place. But I decided to branch out and try something new and I was very much happily surprised as it was all great. We started with a cutting board of spanish cheeses' and different sausages.











We both felt as if we were back in Germany as both of these were very common dishes there. We also had sweet potato fries that you dipped in honey that were great and I got a steak served with onions that was really good as well. We ended our meal with spanish donuts dipped in chocolate sauce and I must say we both will go back there again. After that we went to the movies and saw the Bourne Ultimatum which was great. We didn't get home until almost midnight and we owe a big thanks to Neila for keeping the kids and letting us have such an enjoyable evening. So....6 years, 3 (almost) kids, 2 states, and 2 countries later we are as happy as ever and I love my husband more than I did when I said I do 6 years ago....and I am pretty sure he would say the same! Happy Anniversary Sweetheart!

Fun in the Sun

Today we headed back to the pool since it was supposed to be nearly 100 outside. We met up with Neila and Carson there and hadn't been there 5 minutes when the blew the "break" whistle. We all got out and then I realized this wasn't the scheduled break time, turns out somebody had not obeyed the rule and put a swimmy in their baby and it had pooped in the pool! This means they have to clean the pool out and add all new chemicals and let them sit awhile, which meant it would be 2-3 hours before we could get back in. So here we are the hottest day ever and can't get in the pool.. We went into the indoor pool a bit but it was way too crowded so we decided to leave. I had actually taken my camera with me to the pool today which I never do to get some pics of the kids and went ahead and got a few anyhow, although I had wanted them in the water!

















We ate our lunch we had packed and then decided to head to Neila's and get our some little pools and let the kids play.

















They had a blast and we hunt out there all afternoon. Between the hose, balls, pools, and baloons they did not want to leave at all. I promised them that they would get to see Neila and Carson after naptime since they are coming over to keep the kids tonight while Joe and I go out for our anniversary.

Evening out

So Joe had to work late yesterday evening and Nick had a late meeting at work so Neila and I decided to pack up the kids and head out to the Summit to shop a little. I am in need of a new bathing suit to take to the beach since this baby is showing itself sooner than my other 2 did. We hit up Old Navy where I got a cute maternity bathing suit for 4 bucks so I was pretty excited. We just shopped around after that and let the kids play a bit. I got some cute pictures of them by the fountain there.


















The picture of all 3 of them was quite a feat since Maggie kept waving her arms and I just knew she was going to knock Owen into the fountain. We didn't get home until almost 10 last night which is a super late night for our 3 kiddos. It was alot of fun though to get to hang out with them and even with 3 kids it was relaxing and Neila and I got to visit alot! At one point Maggie was acting somewhat wild and I was having to get onto her, at the same time either Owen or Carson were crying a bit. Two older ladies walked by and looked at us and sort of smiled with a "glad it's you and not me" look. One said, "ahhh, I don't guess you guys will get to go enjoy a nice meal and conversation like we are. But don't worry, we were in your place at one point and now we can enjoy our time out." I smiled back and thought to myself.....I am in no hurry to get past this point of my life, and I wouldn't trade a second of it for all the relaxing meals in the world. I guess motherhood wasn't all that great to them, but I can honestly say I was and almost always do enjoy my time out with my kids. Sure it is nice to get to shop alone sometimes, but I have a fun time when I am out shopping with them too. You just have to know ahead of time that a few tears and 'time outs" are probably part of your trip! :)

Today we were back at the pool by 10ish and had a blast. It was pretty dead too, aside from a day camp that was there. Maggie has amazed me how she plays in the entire pool the whole time, just because the water is warmer. As hot as it is I did stay in the pool as well almost the whole time. Maggie got a buddy at the pool today, who wouldn't have been my pick. She and some litte boy hit it off and of cousrse he was the pool "menace". He was spitting water, spalshing people, and even pushed a few kids under water. Maggie thought he was just great and he seemed to think she was as well. They ran the pool and she watched as he annoyed the others. At one point they were playing and he pushed her under water, so of course I go to the rescue and told him to keep his hands to himself and of my kid. Maggie says, "mom, it's okay. He's my best buddy and I didn't mind it. It was sorta fun." So I am thinking, GREAT! Hope this isn't a sign of what her taste in boys is going to be! They are both resting now, although I can hear maggie singing away in her bed.

Perfect week

So this week has been the perfect summer week thus far. Monday we woke up and saw it was a gorgeous day so we headed to the pool to meet up with our friends. It was in the 90's and I suppose that is what it takes to get that pool to warm up some. Maggie spent the entire time in the pool playing great and Owen didn't wonder out much at all either. It was what every "pool mom" dreams of. I was able to sit by the pool and talk with my mom friends while our kids played for several hours. If only this was how the whole summer had been! We ate lunch there and went back for some more swimming time and headed home just in time for naps. While the kids were sleeping I got dinner ready so when they woke up we played some on the toyroom. We had a great spaghetti dinner and then played outside until bedtime. Tuesday we woke up and planned on heading back to the pool so I sent the kids to play upstairs while I got things together. They were playing so well I decided to get some things done around the house adn ended up cleaning the entire morning while they played the whole time. I got all more floors mopped, baseboards, cleaned, dusting done, even cleaned my cabinets and closets out! So our missed pool day was well worth it since you never know when you will have a full uninterrupted morning to clean. I made roast, potatos, and carrots for dinner since I have been craving that for awhile and it was delicious! I also made Joe's favorite strawberry pretzel dessert which he was happy about. After dinner, Nick and Joe headed out to hit golf balls adn Neila and Carson came over to play a bit. We took them on a big walk around our neighborhood and they collected a ton of rocks from the new edition they are working on. Today the kids and I got up and headed back to the pool for the day. Once again it was awesome and the kids played great the entire time. It looks like August is going to be a great pool month for us. This morning I had to call and register the kids for story hour at the library this fall. Our library is awesome and registration is only one day and fills up within about 2 hours...so the librarian had told us at the last story hour to just keep callling today until we got through. Well, I began calling at 9, when it opens and didn't get through until 930 and I signed up maggie, Owen and Carson since Neila had to work today and wouldn't be able to call. I then realized after hanging up that I had told Shannon I would register Bella as well for the same day and had forgotten so I called back and it took another 30 minutes to get through but I did and got her in the last slot so luckily they are all in the monday morning group, although Carson will be in the baby group and the rest of them in the toddler/preschool group.
I got Maggie all signed up for her dance classes that start in 2 weeks. she is pretty excited about it and I am hoping she really likes it. Her preschool teacher called yesterday to make sure maggie was still coming and introduce herself. Her name is Mrs. Boyd. When I told Maggie, she said, "oh no, is she a boy?" I told her, no, it was boy with a d on the end and that seemed to ease her mind about it. She has been practicing writing her name and is getting better at it. Owen is picking up all kinds of things, I suppose from Maggie. He was counting the other day and counted to 15 several times. I knew he could get past 5 but not that far. He also began singin his ABC's the other day, which I didn't know he knew! I guess Maggie teaches him when I am not watching.

The kids are sleeping now so I am going to rest a bit and then cook some chicken for our enchiladas tonight.

Fun at the park

We had a fun day today, but boy am I exhausted tonight. We got up this morning and I had promised the kids they could play with play-doh after breakfast so I stuck to my word and got it out for them. They haven't played it in along time so they really had fun and thankfully Owen didn't eat any or throw it. We got cleaned up and dressed and headed to the park at 10:30 to meet up with Shannon and her girls. The kids had alot of fun playing and the weather was perfect outside as it wasn't too hot or sunny. So I didn't have any complaints from Maggie about being too hot! Owen was all over the playground so I ran the whole time trying to keep up with him and not let him fall off and break something.












Maggie also learned a new trick today as she tried out the monkey bars for the first time and did a pretty good job.









She was really proud of herself. I tried to get some good shots of the kids and Maggie was all over that, but Owen as you can see was not so much in the picture taking mood.















After the park we headed over for free lunch as it is over this week for the summer. School starts next week (aug. 6) which seems so early to me. We got home in time for nap and Owen must have been worn out as well because he slept 4 and a half hours. I should have woken him up earlier becuase here it is 9 30 and I can hear him in his bed talking and singing. Every now and then he will say, "mommy, do you hear me?" Yes, I hear him, no I am not going to join his night time party. :)
Maggie and I cleaned up the toy room and her room while he slept today and played candy land about 10 times.

I let Maggie pick what we had for dinner which meant we would have 1 of 3 things. Potato Soup, Spaghetti, or homemade pizza. Her choice tonight was the pizza which I wasn't thrilled about since we had just had that a few days ago. But it tasted pretty good once it was made. So, a funny story. Maggie got in trouble the other day adn I made her stand in the corner and told her to keep her nose in the corner. A bit later, Owen got in trouble and when I got onto him he ran over to the wall and stood just like this.






How funny is that.







A maggieism of the week... we were in line at Krogers and the lady in front of us was buying organic milk whcih had a big cow on the front of the container. Maggie doesn't drink milk at all so she isn't up on the milk containers I suppose. She is checking out the ladies grocries and says to her, "so, is that the food you feed your cow?" I thought it was so funny, not sure why but it totally cracked me up.

Getting Big

So I wake up this morning and look over at the clock and see it is 8:45 and thankfully everyone is still sleeping soundly. Usually I would enjoy this time and roll over until someone called out "mommmmmaaaa." But I suddenly remembered that Owen had his 2 year well child check at 920. And keep in mind we live about 20 minutes from the doctors office. I jumped up and threw on some clothes and pulled my hair back. I then went to the kitchen and threw together some snacks the kids could eat on the way there, which means their breakfast consisted of grapes, raisens, and peanuts. I got Maggie up first since she is pretty much able to get herself ready and after she was up and getting dressed I got Owen ready and we headed to the doctor. We got there about 5 minutes late and probably looked more WT than we ever have before in public......but we were there. We got called back and Owen was at 30 pounds which puts him in the 70% for weight. He is just about 6-7 pounds behind Maggie now. He is still in the 95% for height so he is following Maggie in being tall. He did great and he and Maggie talked the entire time to the doctor and nurse and they seemed quite impressed with Owen's ability to carry on conversation. Maggie seemed a little envious of the attention Owen was getting with his check up until it came time for his finger stick. She seemed pretty happy then that it wasn't her turn. Owen didn't seem very phased by it all, he looked at me and said, "it hurts." and I said, no, it's okay and he goes..."okay mommy." After that we just headed to Kroger and ran into Neila and Carson who were shopping as well. They invited us over for lunch of veggie pizze and fruit pizza which sounded great so we spent the afternoon over there until we headed home for naptime. I had planned on getting things done during naptime but instead spent the majority of the time listening to a guy from ADT tell me about his security system he was giving for free if we would advertise with a sign in the front yard. We only had to pay the monthly fee. Well, he had no idea who he was talking to and that I would have signed up without the big spill in a heartbeat. But when Joe got home he veto'd that one and the poor guy who was pretty sure he'd just made a sale was sent packing to the next house. We had a pretty boring evening and now am just getting ready to go to bed. We have no big plans tommorow, i am hoping it is pretty so we can get to the pool, but it isn't supposed to be. Well, hopefully I will get some pictures up soon, I know I have been slacking.

What a week!

Our week started out pretty much uneventful other than Maggie was a mess Monday morning. She stayed up a little late Sunday night with her MiMi (1130 to be exact) and my kids are both SLEEPERS, and need their sleep desperatley. So sleepng in until 9 didn't do alot for her the next day. Like I said in my last post, she took a nap from 10 30 until about 2 or so and seemed alot better after that. I was supposed to work Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday this week but they called Monday and said they didn't need me Tuesday so that gave mom and I another day to hang out and get out of the house. We headed into Louisivlle Tuesday morning and shopped a little and grabbed some lunch at Panera Bread. I dont think either of us got anything but we had fun and lunch was great. We came back and Owen went down for a nap and Mom and Maggie ran a few errands. With mom here you would think I would have gotten alot done around the house but I have been exausted latley so I didn't get anything accomplished other than resting up. I don't remember being this tired with my other pregnancies but maybe I have just forgotten? Anyhow, I worked Wednesday and Thursday and had 2 busy days. It seemed all the problem people showed up those day which kept us going all day, which I don't mind. We had one family there that I have seen a few times working over the last month. This has been a case I can't seem to shake out of my head and after this week it has only gotten worse. This mom I saw the first time about a month ago when she came in for a weight check for her twins. She also has a 1 and 2 year old. The twins were 4 months old and when I saw them I was in shock...they weighed 5 lbs. 14 oz. Only 2 oz. more than when they were born.........FOUR MONTHS AGO. Well, without going into major detail, mom claimed they vomited everything they ate and that is why they wouldn't gain weight. She left that day with a new formula for them to try.......and told me she had no clue where she was going to get the food for them tonight since the WIC office was already closed. Keep in mind, these babies are skeletons.....in every sense of the word. They have depleted all their fat stores and are in real terms...starving to death. They looked just like babies you would see on a "save the children" commercial. I worked out getting her formula for the night since these kids are to eat every 3 hours around the clock. Well....move on to this week...the babies came in last week and hadn't gained but maybe an ounce or two so they came in again this week and had LOST. They were down several ounces and for some reason the doctor didn't see this as a big enough problem to admit them to the hospital. Several of us in the office who had talked with the mom some and sensed something wasn't quite right decided to take it into our own hands and call child protective servies to check out the situation. Turns out we had the right hunch...mom is a registed sex offender, has had numerous calls about her older 2 kids to CPS, and her name is an alias since she moved from Florida. Well, they went to the apartment and found the kids in day old diapers, hungry, cockroaches in the house and filth every where. To move on.....turns out they are just not feeding the babies....they were admited to the hospital and guzzled down 3 bottles in less than 4 hours without so much as a wet burp! After 24 hours the doctors at the hospital decide since the babies have no insurance and are costing the hospital money.....they can find no "physical" evidence of them needing to stay in the hospital and tell the social worker they can't keep kids becaues of social issues. I am not sure when malnutrtion and failure to thrive quit being reasons to hospitalize but somehow this doctor felt okay sending home these babies to a home filled with filth and a mom who is a sex offender. So I have seen first hand the way our system SUCKS and, despite what they say, do not take the kids interest first. It seems you have to kill your kids before anyone will take them away from you, and in that case it's only to take them to the morge. I am unsure about the status of the case right now but can't seem to let this one rest, so I am trying to find out what I am allowed to do without getting myself in trouble (HIPAA). So if anyone has any ideas, aside from kidnapping them, :) feel free to let me know. This is a huge problem here in this country and I really am sick of these kids being brushed under the rug as "someone else's problem". I am not sure who came up with the idea that the biological parents are always the best place for kids to be.......but they were DEAD WRONG! Okay, so that is my take on all that.

Mom left out Thursday evening when I got home for Ohio to go help Amanda, Dad, and David move her into her new place. The kids had fun with MiMi and had soup every single day she was here, along with banana bread on Thursday so Maggie was happy with her food selections. They took alot of walks and both had a bucket of flowers and rocks at the end of each day they had collected. I am not sure how mom got Maggie outside in the heat so much but she's better than me! Friday morning I had a doctors appointment and thought I was going to have to take both kiddos with me since everyone I leave my kids with had plans already. I wasn't thrilled about this, but knew it would be fine with a few snacks and cars. Maggie went with me to numerous doc appts. when I was pregnant with Owen...but I am guessing she would have many more questions about everything now........so I was pretty happy when Neila called me to say her plans had changed and she would be home so I could drop the kids off. They were happy about that since they love going to Neilas house. She alwasy has a fun plan of the day for them to do and didn't let them down that day either.....even with short notice. Anyhow, my appointment went fine I suppose....but I am once again in search of a new OB. I have tried to give this practice the benefit of the doubt but she lost my chance friday when she was in the room less than a whole 2 minutes. She got the babys heartbeat for all of 15 seconds and didn't even ask how I was. So when she walked out and said she'd see me in 4 weeks I smiled and thought, "no actually you won't." So this will be my 3rd try for a doctor that meets my criteria around here.

Joe left Friday for Alabama for a golf tournament and the kids and I packed up to head to WV to visit MiMi and Jaja for a few days. My 10 year high school reunion was Saturday night so I was going to go to that as well and see some friends. We headed out about 1 in the afternoon and I was alrady exhausted. We hit Lexington and decided to get some lunch before going on so I took the kids to Chick fil A and let them play there for over an hour. I figured since I was already in Lexington I may as well hit up some of my favorite places and about that time mom called and said they were still in Ohio and going to stay and help amanda a little more. So since I was already beat and didn't want to go in to a empty house we just spent the evening in Lexington and headed back home for the night. Now, as many of you know I HATE staying home alone at night. So as soon as we got home I got the kids in bed and barred up all the doors. (this means putting chairs in front of everydoor and my door alarms in place. I laid down and that is about all I did. I slept on and off every hour and was totally exhausted when I heard Owen about 8:30. We deided to get some sunshine and headed to the pool for the day with our neighbors. It was beautiful outside, but the pool was totally empty all day.......once again the water wasn't even on the charts for temperature. It was freezing. So we spent the majority of the time in the indoor pool which the kids love. They both are great swimmers, Owen actaully has the whole blowing bubbles, kick your feet and move your hands thing down. Maggie does great, but being Maggie is a little more cautious. My friend's husband had Owen in the pool and couldn't figure out why Owen was holding his hands and throwing his legs up in the air. He said, "I think he's trying to drowned himself." I laughed and said, "no, he wants you to let him go to the bottom adn pull him up." So thankfully they have no water fear which makes days at the pool pretty easy and enjoyable, at least inside. If only the would heat up that outdoor pool my days would be a cinch. We came home for naptime and the kids both slept about 3 hours. I tried to get a little sleep while they were but the phone kept ringing so I finally just got up and got ready to head out when they woke up. We headed into Louisivlle for the evening and went to the mall that has the big playground for kids. They had a blast, but it was packed so I was constantly trying to keep up with where they both were. I must say I have a bit of a pet peeve with parents of kids who are #1 too old to play on this kind of playground, and #2 let them run wild and terrorize everyone trying to play normally. There were about 4 school aged kids who were all over this thing running wildly and jumping around. There were lots of toddlers on there as well (as it is geared toward toddlers and preschoolers) and I counted them knocking down 3 toddlers in about 2 minutes. Well, it annoyed me watching this, but when one of them plowed into MY toddler it was a different story. I walked over to where Owen had gotten knocked down and told them they needed to quit running and watch the little kids or get off. One of the kids' moms was sitting there watching the whole thing and shot me quite a look. Anyhow, the kids had fun depsite the out of control kids who finally left and let the rest of them have fun. We then went to California pizza which was great, at least Owen and I thought so. Maggie thought it looked funny so she just ate a box of raisins and a piece of bread. They were great through the meal so we ended the night with cookies and shopped a little at Old Navy. I got them both a pair of water shoes that were clearanced for when we go to the beach in August so they don't have to worry about stepping on anything in the ocean. Last night I went right to sleep about 10 and slept great until about 1 am. I kept hearing a bang in the basment and just knew it was someone coming in a window. So I got both kids and put them in my bed and locked my door and laid there until about 6 when I fell asleep. We got up about 9 or so and just hung around the house since I was not up to getting us all ready and to church. Joe got home this evening after nap and the kids were really excited to see him so they have all been playing. Tommorow Owen has his 2 year doctor appointment and we have no other plans for the day.

HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY OWEN!

I can't beleive Owen is 2 years old today! I love watching my kids grow up and learn new things but I hate how quickly the time goes. Owen has been a total joy to us and is so much fun. He has a ton of energy and is as "boy" as they come, but he fits just perfect in our family. We had his birthday party this weekend and he enjoyed it totally. He was perfect all day and you could tell he loved everything about his party. He woke up from his nap right at 4 when his party started and came down and was in awe of all the CARS decorations.










Amanda didn't let me down in the decorating department and with the help of David, they made Owen's seat a race car












and decorated the rest of the kitchen in the CARS theme.





















He loved his CARS cake, and it turned out pretty cute, although I wasn't much in the decorating mood that day.

















I had planned to do a bit more to it, but by the time I got this far along I had done about as much as I felt like for the day.
We had alot of fun with everyone here, but I didn't get nearly as many pictures as I would have liked to of everyone. Maggie did really well with him getting all the attention for the day and gifts, although she made out quite well in the gift department as well. Owen did better this year opening his gifts, but had to have some prompting to move on to the next present.



















Maggie had fun with Kylie there to play with, and Owen got a birthday kiss from his favorite girl, Bella, beore she left.











So his birthday turned out great, I told him happy birthday this morning since it's his real birthday today, but it seemed to confuse he and Maggie somewhat. Mom is staying this week to keep the kids so I can work a few days at the pediatrician office. We were going to take them to the pool today but Maggie stayed up way too late last night and had quite a meltdown this morning so she was back in bed at 10:30 and slept for 3 hours. Mom and Owen played outside and took several walks since it was such a nice day. Maggie seems to be in better spirits since she woke up so I am hoping this evening goes better than this morning. Well, here is a little view of Owen's last 2 years.....I can't beleive how big he's gotten.., and how much better his hair has gotten. :)