If you need a good laugh.....

.......checkout this article.  It made me laugh. It is so true.  Every mom has been through this or will go through this when their children are old enough.  You never know what your 3 year old will do, say or how he will act that day.  All you can do is laugh at the end of the day and remember they are only little once and then when your 3 year old out grows that stage, the next one will be there to take over :)

Happy reading.

We had some visitors last weekend.  Adam's sister Beth came out with Tatum and Jude.  We had a fun time and Thad loved playing with Tatum even though they fought some of the time like they were brother and sister!  

We went to the zoo on Saturday.  It was our children's activity for Mended Little Hearts so we went with some of our heart friends.  

Tatum

 Jude 

Oliver liked to be able to look out at all the action.  

 Jude got to feed the giraffes!

 Mary, Melissa and Me.  Melissa has been our fearless leader for Mended Little Hearts for this past year and just got a great job opportunity in another state (tear, tear).  We are going to miss her so much!  

 We always have to ride the train when we come to the zoo.

 Thad waiting patiently to ride the horse's.

Tatum loved riding the horse.

 Since Tatum went by herself Thad decided he would go by himself.  Usually Adam walks with him but he wanted to be just like Tatum and go by himself.

 They had fun feeding the chickens

The monkeys put on quit the show for us.  There was one who was very ornery and was antagonizing the other two in there.  Everytime the monkey would swing over to the glass all the kids laughed.  I think we stayed in that spot for 15 minutes just watching them.

Tatum wanted to ride the sky ride really bad so we all braved it.  We wanted to ride together but couldn't so Beth, Tatum and Jude rode together and our family rode together.  I have been on it before when Thad was almost 2.  It gives me the heebie geebies!  I was clinching onto Oliver so tight and would barely move because I didn't want the seat to swing anymore than it already was.  Thad did very good and sat like a good little boy. They have a playground at the top where the kids played and climbed.  

Beth, Tatum and Jude are in the seat above us.

Oliver and Jude had fun together too.  Every time Jude saw Ollie he would just smile.

We had a fun weekend and so glad Beth came out to visit us.  Thad was sad when Tatum left.  I think he has told me about 15 times "Mommy, I miss Tatum.  But she will be back next week right?"  I guess we'll have to make a trip to Kansas soon so he can see his cousin again. 

 (Beth, I will send you the pictures I took from the weekend-there are a lot!)

Team Lightning

Thad started soccer a few weeks ago and LOVES it!  I don't think he is going to be the next David Beckham but he still has a fun time.  Adam is the coach and I'm not sure if that is a good thing for Thad because he thinks he can get away with anything since Daddy is the coach!  

This was the first practice

 This picture says it all! All the other kids are listening to Coach Adam and what is my son doing......he is looking in the sky at a bird or plane maybe????

 The kids got to pick the name of their team and they chose Team Lightning.  I think it was rainy that day and one of the kids suggested it and they all went for it!  They like putting their hands in and saying "TEAAAAAMMMM LIGHTNING!!!!"

 We couldn't play soccer without Jesse and Chloe on our team!  These are Thad's best friends from Rhonda's house.  Poor Jesse looks like he is getting smooshed and screamed at! They all ended up on the ground after this shot.

 This was their first game.  I love this picture of Thad and Chloe.  So sweet.

Thad loves when the other kids fall down because it gives him a reason to dog pile them!  Before every game I have to tell him two things:  1. Don't touch the ball with your hands and 2. Please don't jump on any kids if they fall down.  It doesn't help because he is the first one to fall on top of them when they go down.  I got a couple good one's on video :)  Thad scored a goal at his first game.......but it was for the other team.  

 The best part of the game is the snacks and juice after!

 This was at his second game and I love this picture.  

Thad being the goaly (not sure how to spell that one!)  He stopped the ball a few times but as you can see he was running over to me to ask me if I was watching him!  Good thing it takes the other kids a while to get the ball back to his goal!

If you haven't watched 3 year olds play soccer I highly recommend it.  It is very funny to watch them try so hard to kick the ball.  Most of them get confused on which goal to kick it in but it's all for fun.  Thad has a great time playing even though he gets very distracted sometimes!  He told me after his game "playing soccer is hard work!"

Fun Blogs/Websites

I have found some neat blogs/websites recently that I thought I'd share.

One of my favorites is: Money Saving Mom - http://moneysavingmom.com/

Deal Seeking Mom- http://dealseekingmom.com/

Blog of fun food ideas- http://meetthedubiens.blogspot.com/

The Budget Mommy- http://www.thebudgetmommy.com/

I'm sure there are tons of websites out there like these.  I found these through face book and they give some really good advice and let you know what deals are out there.  I have even got a few ideas for working at home jobs.  They won't make you rich but it gives you a little more income each month.

Happiness book

Click here to view this photo book larger

Labor Day Weekend

We went back to Kansas to my parents cabin at the lake for labor day.  Both my sister and brother's family also made it back.  

The weather was beautiful and I probably didn't pack enough long sleeves! Thad discovered a DS Nintendo.  He wouldn't let that thing go all weekend.  He LOVED it.  Luckily he has forgot about it for now but I see us buying one in our near future!

 We always get a picture with all the grandkids but this year didn't go too well.  I got that new camera and all I wanted was to take pictures of them all together!  

This is the best we got...... Of course my child has his eyes closed! Oh well, it's still a good picture of with them all and it will be funny to look back on later.

This one didn't go well either. Thad and Avery were screaming the entire time! Dawson and Jae look like they are so far away from the others but oh well!

 I think there was something about pictures this weekend that didn't go well.  Thad already had this big brother shirt and Oliver just got the same one from my aunt.  In every picture that Oliver was smiling, Thad was either crying or looking away.  In every picture Thad was smiling in, Oliver was looking down.  It still turned out cute.....

 Thad and Dawson are good buddies! They played so well together all weekend.  Dawson is such a good little boy.  He is 2 years older than Thad but they have such a good time together.  Dawson says the cutest and sweetest things too.  There was a scare at the lake this weekend with a jet ski- luckily everyone was just fine.  When we saw all the commotion by the water with the cops Dawson says "I just said a prayer in my heart that the person will be okay."  I asked him what his prayer was and his response was "I don't know, I already forgot, but it was a good one!"  He is just so sweet.

There was alot of climbing and wrestling with Papa.  He always gets beat up on and the kids love it!

 (Not sure what Thad is doing in this picture but it reminds me of a cheer move....shhhh don't tell daddy)

 We played Phase 10 and Oliver jumped in to play with us.

 Macie was making Oliver laugh so hard here.  It was the first time he really laughed out loud.  It was so cute.  I wish I would have gotten it on video.

 The boys love driving the barbie car! They wear it out so much it has to be on the charger every night.  

 We all sat around the fire and had smore's.  

The last day we were there we finally went in the water.  My parents have a fishing boat and the guys went fishing a few times.  The neighbor was selling his boat and my parents ended up buying it that weekend.  It is a nice boat to take out and fish and cruise around the lake.  

Adam, Thad, Mike and Dawson went tubing and about gave me a heart attack watching.  I knew Thad was in good hands but it still makes me so nervous seeing your child go that fast in a tube!  

The guys were saying faster but I was saying No! After awhile the little ones wanted to get out and the water was pretty chilly.  Adam and Mike went in a different tube that spun them around constantly and they were both sore after that ride!

We had a fun weekend with my family.  It's always a good time getting together with them even if it is chaotic!

3 Months

Ollie is 3 months old today! He is such a happy and mellow baby.  He hardly cries except when he's hungry(which seems like all the time!) or see's me walk by him and not stop!  He LOVES Thad.  You can see it the way he looks at him.  His face lights up every time Thad starts talking to him.  I know they are going to be best friends!

Checking out his arm!

He is such a happy baby.  He loves to smile and loves to talk.  You can tell he is just itching to say something.

I was in the store the other day and someone asked if he was about 6 months old! When I told them he was 3 months they were very surprised and said oh, he's a big boy! He doesn't have a checkup this month but I'm sure he is 15 lbs by now.  He is wearing anywhere from 6 months to 12 months in clothes.  The onsie he has on now is for a 12 month old.  

He loves chewing on his hands and is already drooling everywhere.

  Two peas in a pod!

I remember Thad sitting on this exact same couch and falling asleep sitting up.  I looked over and saw Oliver in the same position sound asleep........

Happy 3 month to my sweet healthy boy.  We are so blessed to have him in our lives.  

Leave of Absence

I just realized this week on Tuesday I would have had to go back to work.  I am taking a 1 year leave of absence from my job.  I am so blessed to be able to do this.  After a year we will see how our finances are and hopefully be able to keep me at home permanently.  My job will be waiting for me after a year if I would need to go back to work.  I couldn't imagine going back to work right now.  Oliver is only 3 months and I couldn't be without him during the day.  I am so greatful to my work and everything they have done for me over the past 8 years I have been there.  They have been so generous with time off during births and the women there are good friends.  I will enjoy this next year and cherish every moment!