Greene Peas in a Pod

Toot!

2011-11-01T15:42:00.000-07:00

I am not usually one to toot my own horn but I am going to today for 2 reasons: Number one I don't have time to do this but they are just so cute and Number 2 they are just so cute! I know this is the last year that I will be able to completely choose what the boys are going to be for Halloween. So, I decided a long time ago what I was going to make for the boys (like when they were just 6 months old I read it in a magazine). Then, ANdrew read about J's costume on MSN. THe other idea that is noteworthy is that they were like 8$ total. THe spray paint and boxes and burlap are cheap and the rest was just time and effort. Toot Toot!

You know we call him tater tot so this was very fitting. He ate it up (pun in tended). THen there are the big boys-"Two of a kind." The pictures speak for themselves. I have to admit the added bonus of lack of mobility was handy and hilarious. It added to the fun factor for Andrew and I. First, they could not reach in their own bag or see what was in their bag so they kept asking what is in there? Then at the first house Drew fell and started yelling get off me! Well, after Andrew and I stopped laughing we helped him onto his feet because he was literally trapped and could not get up. The last picture is one that ANdrew snapped that showed the mobility issue. Now what to do with all this candy!

Seattle, Soccer and School-Oh MY

2011-09-16T14:32:00.000-07:00

Uncle Greg had a night layover in Seattle so we drove up to see him.

Here is Uncle Greg, Drew, and Gavin and the hammering man in downtown Seattle.

The fresh fish market in Pikes Market. There is a shark right in front of Gav and you will have to ask Greg for the rest of the story. I only saw the end with a startled Gav and a laughing Greg. Apparently the shark is on a string and when someone gets close one of the men pull the string.

Here we are behind the market at a park overlooking the Harbor. You can see the stadiums over my shoulder.

Now onto soccer! Drew scored his first goal in his first game. We were so proud. He came back over and he said, "this is the best game ever!" He loved it! He stayed right in there even though everyone else on the team is a head taller. He loved it! Gav on the other hand. . . .

This is what he spent most of his time doing. When Andrew asked why he wasn't getting in there he said he didn't want to kick anyone. He was more excited about his uniform and water bottle than the actual game. There is always next week. He is so excited about the tunnel!( They make a human tunnel for all the kids to run through and give high fives. ) The picture of Drew is through the tunnel. You can see he loved it!

We quickly learned that they were not able to be on the field at the same time. . . yes this is real. I am glad that they love each other but GET IN THE GAME! At least it had not started yet.

1st day of preschool! They are going Mon., Wed., and Thurs. this year. I have to say there were no tears from mom this year. I could not get them out of the van fast enough. I love them but as I have said before I have never had just one home before. Grocery shopping is so much easier!

In case you have been wondering what J. has been doing all this time while the bigger boys have been doing so much. Well, he has been hangin' out (literally!)

Still getting used to the new blogger. This just took me 3 days to figure out:)

What We Have Been Up To. . .

2011-08-24T11:08:00.000-07:00

Gavin is now on two wheels, he picked it up after like 2 days of practice. This surprised us both because he really has no interest in his big wheel (unless someone else is on it). Which leads to the next thing he is working on-steering. Due to the fact that he does not really ride his big wheel he is not that great at watching where he is going. We are so proud of him though!

This is what Drew thinks of this! He has no interest and yes that is a sled in July!

He wants Gavin to get a new bike so he can have the training wheels on. He is perfectly content to cruise around on his big wheel.

We had a trip to the emergency room with J. He made it without a trip until he was two which is more than I can say for the other 2. I think the third time went pretty smoothly as far as emergency room trips go. He fell on the coffee table which recently just made it's reappearance and now it is banned back out to the garage. One of our other trips was due to the same coffee table and it does not even have any sharp edges. I think a padded one is in our future or I may need a padded room! I think the blood on his shirt makes him look tough along with the hospital band. He would not show me his ouchie so this was the best picture I have. How ironic that he was wearing this shirt when he fell! He had 4 staples which went in easier than they came out! He is sporting a black eye at the moment. Are all boys like this or is it just because I have so many?

First soccer practice, notice the tongue! I think we will see a lot of this!

I also think we will see a lot of this, Gavin looking confused!

Hopping

Crawling

It is going to be a fun and exciting year. I am not sure how I feel yet about being on the other side of coaching when they are my kids. I have already had to tell Andrew they are only 4 and that they are learning how to follow directions and get to know their team. I have to say, it was pretty cute when they were doing a drill and the boys kept on passing it to one another. (I guess I can't shake the coach in me, it was actually a circle where they kicking the ball to someone after they said that person's name so maybe not really a "drill":)
I was not sure if they didn't know anyone else's name or if they just were used to kicking the ball back and forth with their brother. Either way it is going to be a fun year with a lot of learning about ourselves from ALL of us!
So this is what we have been up to. I just installed some updates to blogger and I have to say it is about time. It is easier but I still have some learning to do. Speaking of learning school starts soon and I am so ready! Again, I have learned that I like being on the other side of this teacher thing! I have to say it is weird still to not go back to school. At least now I have a reason to buy school supplies:)

The Boys

2011-07-25T08:54:00.000-07:00

So we know I am a terrible blogger. I hope I have not lost all our readers. So, I posted the boys' birthdays pretty quickly so I thought I would go back and highlight each boy and tell you what they are up to these days.

This is an intense Greene team huddle! Actually they are waiting for cake!

We will start with the oldest, Drew.

Drew is our talker. If you ever have a conversation with him you will probably hear about his mean dogs, and his truck (sometimes trucks). He loves to tell stories and sometimes I think just hear himself talk. He is my TV junkie. I think he would watch all day and be perfectly content if I would let him. It is so hard to find pictures of the boys with clean faces and not in motion so this is the best I have right now of him runny nose, dirty face and all. He is a sweet boy with a huge imagination, strong opinion, and lots of questions. He is still my non-napper but he makes up for it by sleeping from 8ish to 8ish. If we could just do away with the crankiness at 5ish I would say that I love 4 year olds. I do have to say it is getting easier with them because they play well on their own finally. they are doing it as I type. They are hunting lions around their tent (that they made) in our living room. Oh, now it is monkeys.

Gavin. Gavin is still my early riser. I think he really enjoys helping Daddy make his coffee in the morning. So, he still naps but they are sure getting shorter and if he doesn't take one it is sure nice to have them all sleep in:) Gavin is our helper. He is a great big brother and sometimes even ahead of the game when we ask him to get things he is already back with the item in hand. As much as he loves his brothers he also loves to pester his brothers but he also cares for them very much and is always willing to help them out and in the next minute he is sitting on their back jumping. He likes to know what is going on for the day (I don't know where he gets this?). He is a lot quieter until he warms up to you and then there is no stopping him. It will be interesting to see how he does in preschool this year because he has really matured. Again, sorry about the messy face.

Last but not least is Tater, J tater, J. Little Bit or when all the above fail James. He is the reason the b on our computer is not working.

He is so good at playing on his own and with his brothers (most of the time, I mean he is 2 and the concept of sharing is still new). He thinks he is already 4 like his brothers and doesn't understand why he can not do all the things that they can do. He calls them G-man, unless he is really mad and Dew. So cute to catch some of their conversations. He is a climber although he catches on pretty quickly. He fell off the top bunk while trying to get down so now he climbs up, plays and then yells for someone to come and get him. Although I also found him on the kitchen island walking around up there, and I am still not sure how he got up there. Maybe he had a boost from his brother but they are already sticking together because no one would fess us. His language is exploding and he is really trying to communicate. The hardest part is trying to understand what he is trying to communicate. Most of the time it sounds like he has something in his mouth. He loves to sing and dance. There have been several times I look in the rear view mirror in the van and he is jammin'. I am pretty sure he is going to be our comic relief. One of his favorite things to do is to say "My owie hurts me. Need kiss." This is a picture of him kissing his owie when I was not quick enough to do it for him. So of course I did the responsible thing and I grabbed the camera and told him it needed more kisses. He definitely keeps us on our toes and all he has to do is look at me with those big blue eyes and I melt (I am glad that he can't read this but I am pretty sure he already knows).

I am amazed at how much God has entrusted us with as parents. They are pretty amazing and sometimes I have to remind myself of that when they are acting up or when we have a long day. They are great little boys and I can not wait to see what kind of men God has planned for them to become. I am so glad to be their mommy and have them as my "job" even though it is neverending and sometimes tough (who am I kidding when has it really been easy unless they are sleeping). Thanks for reading and I hope you keep reading, I know I say this often but I will try to do better at posting. Have a great day!

Birthday time!

2011-06-26T15:18:00.001-07:00

birthday at the beach!

So many pictures so little time!

We had a ball (pun intended)!

Is it that time of the year again?

2011-05-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

We have been busy with everything ending and getting ready for the summer. We had a baby dedication for James at church. When I see pictures like this I wonder are my boys really brothers from the same parents?

We have had a end of school program for the big boys. Their first performance other than in front of friends or family. We are really hoping they overcome their stage fright. This was the only picture that it appeared that they were doing what they were supposed to be doing. We are trying to compensate for this by finding some instruments. We just brought a drum set. Am I crazy or just delirious from the mayhem? I have come to the conclusion that I might as well embrace the chaos and noise and just add to it!

I can't believe they only have 2 days left of their first year. We added another day for next year:) Do you think I am excited about this or something?

We have been playing with early birthday gifts. (Thank you Grandma Susie and Grandpa Denny). This has been wonderful because we have also been dealing with some weird weather and therefore been cooped up inside.

Yes, this is a hole under our front porch from rain damage during a storm. Don't we live in the dessert? Oh the many joys of home ownership! Thanks for reading!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-25T20:44:00.000-07:00

I am entering this picture under protest. J. is dealing with some diaper rash and in order to dry things out we let him go without a diaper for a while. He actually went pee in the potty for the first time and we thought, hey, this is great! That is until he peed on the floor about 6 more times in the next hour we had his diaper off and one of them was not just pee. Yep, dropped a load by the fire place. (I sound like my sister:)Definitely confirmed he is not ready to potty train yet. Now we go back to our regular scheduled program of cute pictures. Whoops, now on to the cute picture this one is just real life with the boys.

Happy St. Patty's Day!

2011-03-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T14:59:00.000-08:00

So, I have been crafting lately. I am also discovering I am technologically challenged. I took a bunch on pictures of the boys' Valentine's but I can 't figure out how to get them off of my phone and to top it off Andrew has his new lens on the camera and I can't figure out how to get it off and figure out how the change all the settings back to normal. So you will have to settle for the few that I had on the other camera that i could take from 5 feet away and okay I just got on a chair and took this one.

This was Drew and Gavin's valentines that they gave away to their friends at school and their other friends. The little paper pad and silly bands where what was in Drew's valentine and the robot chocolate was Gavin's. Yes, I did them and they had no part. Maybe next year they can help:)probably not!

The wreath is cupcake liners, can you believe it? It is a foam circle from the dollar store. In fact, everything is from the dollar store (except the felt and glue, I had that on hand). I added everything up and including the cute little reusable bag it was 4$ for the project. Then I looked at prices for wreaths and I could have bought one for less than that with a coupon:( it is the thought, right?

The heart wreath from our door cost me 50 cents. I cut a heart out of cardboard (that I had from the folder when you buy pictures) and then wrapped it in ribbon that I got for 50 cents at Wal-mart. Not bad and it is okay if I leave it up past valentine's day because it is just a heart. Something I need because I have not figured out what i want to do for St. Patrick's day.

So, I have no pictures of my Valentines from today. We have had heart shaped food all day and random kisses and hugs telling each other how much we love each other. However I do have some photos Andrew took outside a couple of weekends ago. I love my boys!

So G. is really upside down but I can't get blogger to cooperate (I know Darce, I should have used Picasa)and J just woke up!

Sorry, no pictures of my favorite valentine but this is what he got me for valentine's day! Isn't the orchid beautiful. He had one before and didn't have much luck but it matches my style of gardening which is "oh, no that plant looks horrible I better water it!" Thank you Sweetheart!

Sorry that is all I've got J just woke up! Happy Valentine's day!!!!!! Hugs and kisses from the Greenes!!!!

Birthday Party for Jesus

2011-01-26T15:05:00.000-08:00

So I know it has been forever. Sorry! My sister and mother in law have been asking for a blog so here ya go! It has been so long I don't even know where to start. We have had so much going on and one little boy who has decided he is over naps, so I have not had much time to sit down and type. So, I was thinking of a heading for this picture and I thought he would make a great husband some day. He cooks he cleans and can snack all at the same time. He is getting so big right now and the words are exploding. Unfortunately, for the last 2 days he has been stuck on "MINE" and he really doesn't just say it he screams it. He is now 19 months old and thinks he is at least 3 because he wants to do everything his big brothers do.

Gav man is such the helper. I could not resist these chef outfits for our annual birthday party cake making tradition. They loved them. Gav is now 3 and a half as he will tell you. He finds his G everywhere. He loves uncle Greg because he starts with his G and he thinks he is his sister-that is confusing. Anyway, he is getting so big and is really enjoying school and learning his numbers and letters. He is also working on his name and I do have to say he is getting pretty good at writing his G. He is also napping really well and fortunately sleeping through Drew's no napping. He is also not much of a fan of sleeping in his own bed (I can't blame him he has not slept alone since he was like 10 months and even then was only for like 6 months) but he is doing better. We have recently moved all 3 boys into the same room and hope to have pictures soon if those two rooms ever stay clean!

Drew, Drew Drew. . . He has quite the imagination. I never know what his Sunday school teachers or anyone who is watching him is going to tell me about the stories he has told. He has told his dad that he and Gavin have a house in California where they have tomatoes. We have a barn at our house with Lions in it and sometimes sheep but you really have to watch out for the sheep poop. He amazes me how much he absorbs and we really have to watch because he takes everything in and it eventually comes out and sometimes he gets a little confused. Anyway, he definitely keeps me on my toes. Of course all of them do. What can I say I am a mother of 3 boys 3 and under (I can only say that 4 more months and 3 4 and under just doesn't have the same ring to it.

So hope to blog more soon. Have a good one!

A little of this and a Little of That

2010-12-01T11:03:00.000-08:00

This is what Andrew's Grandma would say when you asked her what she was up to and if you would ask her how to make some thing. It is a sweet memory of her that I will be sharing with my boys. .

Anyway, that is also what we have been up to.

Helping with the lawn before the snow came. Wow, they are all looking at the camera that is a first.

Working on our letters. This is James' letter it is one of the few they know by name (because we call him that-J) rather than the sound or whose name it begins with. For example M is Mommy and Mary's letter. D is Drew, Daddy's and Denise's letter.

Playing pilgrims and Indians (is that PC?) sorry about the lighting Andrew was trying to take pictures last night and reset the camera and it is too complicated for me to figure out while trying to get a shot. So, you will have to believe me that there is an Indian hat too.

And this is what James has been doing a lot of. He is getting some teeth-like 4 and he is super cranky. I am not sure how much is teeth and how much is lack of sleep (for all of us). This was last night when Andrew was getting the best setting for pictures that I can't reset right now. Well, he is currently doing this now as I type because he is "messing up" his brother's tent. I think cabin fever is setting in. I know it is for me! Have a great day!

Trick or Treat!

2010-11-05T13:46:00.000-07:00

These Cowboys look like they need some candy, huh?

I hope this is the only time I will see a skunk in our court! Isn't he the cutest lil' stinker (that is what it says on the back of his costume, right under the tail)!

Cowboy Days

2010-10-27T14:51:00.000-07:00

I am pretty proud of the way my first attempt at a pattern since middle school turned out! It only took like 3 nap times (that is how I measure projects). I take that back I just made myself a shirt from a pattern. I really have been feeling like I need to blog about things that I have created lately, I just have not taken the time. So now it is out there so hold me to it bloggers! Anyway, the big boys had cowboy days today at preschool. They were not to happy about dressing up but when they saw the tractor for the hayride and the seal saddle they were in and would not take the outfit off!

Honestly they picked out their own hankies. I promise! I think I have created blue and green monsters! There were so many colors to choose from and this is what they chose. I worked out really well because their shirts matched perfectly. Now just to decide if I can make their other costume before this weekend or will they be this for trick or treating?

Put a cowboy hat and chaps on the boy and he thinks he can ride anything!

Am I biased or are these the cutest cowboys you have ever seen?

Here is the whole getup! I have to say they were more work than I thought finding everything and putting it all together and would have been easier to buy the 24$ costume but I look at this picture and it was worth every minute and all the hassle!

Of course a post would not be complete without an update on the squirt. Yes, he got stuck under the couch he is not the first, and yes, I am that mom that gets the camera instead of helping him out. Sorry about the quality he got out before I could adjust the settings. Can you tell he is my 3rd?

My boys! They were all sitting on the couch this weekend and I could not resist. Yes, J. is not looking at the camera and pestering Harp (my first adopted son) but the other pictures the other 2 were not looking. How are we going to do a family picture for Christmas cards?

I love my boys!!!!

Apple Crisp

2010-09-27T10:57:00.000-07:00

Of course we had to make something with all our apples. The boys were a big help!

Maybe a little too much help!

Due to my lack of hair cutting ability J got buzzed this weekend. His hair is so blond he looks bald! It is actually a 2 guard! I tried to talk Andrew into longer but he looks cute no matter what, huh? Sorry it is a little blurry, I know Andrew and my sister will comment but you try getting a good picture of a toddler with a new hair cut and a running nose that isn't blurry. He was finally like just leave me alone and I don't want to look at you any more! I have to say he (well they all are) is so cute!

Apple Picking 2!

2010-09-27T10:45:00.000-07:00

So you are going to have to scroll down and work backwards becuase I forgot blogger did this.

Apple Picking

2010-09-27T10:42:00.000-07:00

We went and picked apples with our MOPS group last week. Andrew took the day off and joined us so we got some great pictures I thought I would share.

I think I only picked one apple unless you count the ones I picked out of the bad that were not acceptable. It was nice to just let them pick away and they did a great job! I think they enjoyed the fruits of their labor the most though!

Preschool!

2010-09-22T15:04:00.000-07:00

This is what they made while we were getting information at the open house. Isn't it cute? They go to Kids Express Preschool so everything is train oriented. They are in the caboose class!

Yes, I am THAT mom! I can't just bring in school supplies for their teachers can I? Do they look ready to go?

I think they are a little apprehensive?

This is where they hang their backpacks!

Of course J was staying busy! Notice the shiner? This was the first one, he has had another in the exact same spot last week just as this one was getting better. He has to learn not to throw fits and not to go down stairs like a big boy.

Here they go! Did you notice the wardrobe change? It was nice to have Daddy with us to remind us that in the open house they said they would be doing things that parents don't let their kids do often which equals messy! Today they came home with playdough all over! I can just imagine the floor-better there than here!!!!!!! There are only 4 girls in the class of 16 and another set of twin boys so I can only imagine! I think the boys are also confused because their teachers names are Miss Shelly and Mrs. Michelle. Number one when I would ask them their teacher's name before they started they would say Aunt Michelle. I told them no this was another Michelle and with the other teacher being Shelley they are now signing notes home as Missshelley because that is what all the kids call them both! How cute!

Of course Andrew caught everything including Mommy's tears as we were leaving. At least they did not see them but of course Andrew had to snap a few so I could remember the whole day!

I think they are enjoying it. All they talk about is playing outside and snack-typical right? I don't really know what to do with myself. I keep feeling like I am forgetting something. I got my grocery shopping done today in record time though and even made a trip to Joanne's it is amazing what you can do with only one in tow.

Official End of Summer

2010-09-08T10:50:00.001-07:00

So Summer officially ends tomorrow with MOPS (moms of preschoolers) starting and Open House for preschool Friday. It was a sweet summer and I had the privledge of spending two nights a week in two different Bible studies. I learned so much from these ladies in my Mon. night group and hope to continue to learn from them. They are definitely some of my favorite people and we just don't seem to have enough time to spend together. I think we could talk for hours about spiritual things and then talk about the girly things that girls usually talk about for several more days and then mom things for a couple of months! They are an incredible group of women and I will miss spending an evening learning from them and growing in Christ.

I think Gavin is ready for school. He may not think so but he is obviously bored with the things we do around here.

Just a few parting pictures from our last days of summer. It was sure nice to have Daddy home this past weekend so he snapped a few pics.

For those of you that know our house layout, yes that is James standing on the table. This seems to be an everyday battle-he loves, loves, loves to climb and he is so fast.

I am sure the boys will keep their new teachers on their toes. Do they even know what is coming?

Sorry about the lack of blogging, I have been subbing for someone on maternity leave at work so that makes a lot of early mornings. (Actually she is up in the picture above, she looks great, can you even tell which one she is? Rachel, I think my baby belly is bigger than yours and my baby is a year not a month like in this pic!) That also makes for a lot of long days, but blogging has not made it on the to do list. She is back so hopefully I will be also! I am not cut out for working and being a mom, more power to those of you that are-I don't know how you do it! My job is only 3 hours a week or so and I am beat of course there is prep time too but anyway, my heart goes out to you! I have to admit it is nice to get paid for something you like to do and would be doing anyway!

I know there will be plenty more pictures to come with school starting and some upcoming outings! James is up from his AM nap so that means I need to stop. I keep hoping he is going to be done with it but not so. Maybe it will be nice to have him sleep while the boys are at school? At least he can sleep on the go so we won't be home bound-you all know me better than that anyway! Have a good one!

Whoa!

2010-08-18T14:32:00.000-07:00

So the title is Whoa because I looked at how long it has been since I blogged and then I just thought it was funny because the boys are riding a pig :)

We had the pleasure of having cousin Katherine and aunt Michelle visiting last week we loaded up and headed to Seattle for the weekend. We had a great time and great weather.

Here is Gavin climbing the Space Needle. It was an awesome surprise that we got there and it was free to get in-that was like 100$ savings. We also went to the aquarium which was great but not very stroller friendly. The boys were also disappointed that there were no sharks. What can I say Andrew watched some Shark week and that was all they talked about.

Here is Aunt Michelle and Drew enjoying the view. Michelle watched all the kids at the hotel and we got a date night in a real city. Thanks aunt shell!

J. has become quite the little man. He has a couple of words-all right (said as a redneck thanks to his Daddy), hot, mama, dada, the beginning of ut-oh, and almost Harper. The boy can climb! Enough said, I don't want to talk about what he has climbed because I might loose all of my Mommy points.

As far as the boys, they are doing well and also becoming little men. I know I have said it before but we really have to watch what we say. The other day Drew told Gav that he hurt his feelings and Gav said I'm sorry Drew I don't want to hurt your feelings. So luckily they are getting some of the good stuff too.

They also know almost all of the letters and they have kind of taught themselves. They know the letter because of peoples names so we are running with it and now working on the sounds they make. For instance, they know M for Mary (our small group leader), Mommy, and Michelle. They find letters everywhere! Today Drew made the connection that D says duh. They will be reading before we know it. Which leads me to another thing that just happened today. We got a call last week that they had one spot in preschool-well that does us a lot of good. Today I got the call that there was another withdrawal- we are all in! I just feel like a burden has been lifted. I can almost picture it. Grocery shopping with just one-I have never had that before. They are excited but disappointed that they don't get to ride a bus-that will also be here before we know it. They are settling for riding Mommy's bus. My Mon. and Wed. will never be the same!!!!! Today was just a great day all around. J slept until 8. I got a call and got to teach again-yes, I taught two classes today before 11! The boys have been good and then I got a call about preschool. I know I need a nap but I have too much adrenaline going right now I am so excited or maybe it is the Diet Coke I treated myself too(I am starting to blog like my sister!)?

Anyway, sorry it had been way too long but I decided to start what is going on right now and maybe fill in some stuff from the last month and a half. Thanks for reading!

3 Generations of Haircuts

2010-07-08T15:14:00.000-07:00

So after the boys had haircuts Grandpa Greene decided he needed his hair cut and he was going to let the boys do it.

Drew really did a good job and was really into it-notice the tongue. Gavin just liked to see the hair fly.

Andrew had cut his the night before, so he started this whole hairy mess!

James got a trim but we are not ready for the buzz cut yet with him. I guess we should have taken J.'s shirt off too :) Love my boys!!!!

Haircuts

2010-07-08T14:58:00.000-07:00

So we gave the boys haircuts a couple of Sundays ago. For some reason we didn't get one of Drew before the haircut so here he is during . . .

Gavin before-notice the cake mustache. He wouldn't be Gavin if he didn't have something on his shirt or face.

Poor kid sporting a mullet.

After the haircut! I am having regrets only because I can't tell them apart from the back anymore if they are wearing the same thing. I do have to say it is easy to take care of and I am all about simplicity right now.

One Big Birthday Party

2010-06-29T14:01:00.001-07:00

We had a birthday party for J. on Sat. Grandma and Grandpa Greene made it just in time to celebrate with us. We had a great time with some great food and great friends. Thank you to all who have been such a big part of J's life and thank you for celebrating him with us!

It is my party and I will cry if I want to! Or maybe it was the fact that Mommy flipped me with the string to this silly hat not once but like 3 times?

He liked the cake (I think) not sure how much it liked him. I don't know if it was too much sugar or too much birthday but he did not sleep well Sat. night.

You want me to do what with this?

He eventually got the idea!

Thank you Grandpa, we love it. Thank you other Grandpa for helping finish putting it together and Grandma for watching the kids. You would think with pictures each step it would be easy, but with no words we had our work cut out for us. I thought I was okay because it was a big box -not so much. Anyway, it is worth the time with how much time they have spent on it, minus the fighting.

My Baby is ONE!

2010-06-24T14:54:00.000-07:00

Where has the last year gone? It seems like yesterday I was planning my stay in the hospital being away from my big boys leaving them with someone other than Andrew or I. It seems like yesterday that my baby James Miller looked me in the eyes with those big blue eyes for the first time as if to say, "hi, mom sorry about all the kicking and squirming in there!"

It seems like yesterday that we brought your big brothers to meet you. They were in love from the beginning and never really jealous because they have always had to share Mommy and Daddy.

It seems like yesterday that you gave us your first smile, your first roll, your first laugh, and your first steps.

Now you are on the move constantly. God knew what he was doing when he sent you as a singleton. You can climb so well and so fast. I have several times thought about getting your pictures of places you have climbed but thought that might be irresponsible to leave you in most of the dangerous places you have climbed. All I know is I could have a really long post with a lot of pictures if I would have and blogged about it. Your favorite word is Da da and you comprehend so many things. It is amazing to see how quickly you learn things. You are now walking like crazy. You are so beautiful even with your long, crazy blonde hair and you sure have complemented our family. I thank God everyday that he has sent you into our lives. I (we) love you so much! Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday!

2010-06-04T15:28:00.000-07:00

I can not believe my babies are 3! (I also can't believe it has been since Easter that I have blogged-sorry). There has been so much going on since then that I don't know where to start, so I will just pick up right now.

The boys are 3 today! We went to the Children's museum this morning and played and played. They are so fun. They love to drive things (a scary thought 13 years from now) and there are plenty of things to drive there. They also played in the kitchen and took turns holding a baby doll (we don't have any of those in a house full of boys, but maybe we should rethink that). Gav asked me to hold her and I asked her name and he said, "baby Kyla." This their newest cousin that we met back in IN last month. Another funny thing Gav said when I asked him where he wanted to eat dinner for his birthday was that he wanted to eat at Old McDonald (I am guessing that is McDonald's. We really don't eat there but they obviously love the song.

Which leads me to Drew. Drew, Drew, Drew . . . he is really good at singing and loves to do it. The boy can carry a tune! We were driving back from IN to TN (not something I want to do again anytime soon and then crawl onto planes the whole next day) and he broke out into "Rocky Top". He knew every word and the whole melody including the Wooo! So, he keeps us humming along with him.

After hearing "We got to get me on a bus somehow" for months every time after pooping, we finally rode a bus. Thanks Jessica and Stone boys for helping us out on the adventure. To be honest I was putting it off because I had never ridden a city bus except for in Ecuador and the thought of taking all 3 on scarred me to death. So, we got on right next to their house (we almost missed it due to my horrible sense of direction) and rode it to the library for toddler story time. We had our own personal escorts and photographer. Thanks again boys.

Needless to say the boys are quickly becoming little men right before our eyes. Potty training is going so well I will venture to say they are potty trained. Drew even woke me up last night because he had to pee. They are even staying dry at night and naps.

We just had their party today. It was really nice considering there were 9 boys involved(oh and 3 baby boys -just 2 girls in the whole bunch). We had a beautiful morning so they played with bubbles and in the water. I think all the moms said how they loved the time and it worked out so well for us because James slept the whole time and who doesn't need cake and ice cream at 10 in the morning? The cake turned out well except I know now how Martha Stewart would not get frosting all over the cake base. I am glad we took a picture last night after we finished (yes, we Andrew actually does most of the decorating I just come up with the ideas and bake the cake) because there were 2 finger prints in it this morning. I was up changing J and Gave came up and told on Drew (sometimes twins come in handy) and the red frosting was a give away on his face which led to a discussion on lying-but that is not a topic for this post.

Sorry for the lack of pictures we have so many good ones to choose from that I am so overwhelmed by them all and I have little patience with blogger right now. My husband and sister are too good of photographers and I am so behind on pictures, memory books, and scrap booking-but that is not for this

post either.

Back to the party, we sang Happy birthday twice and Drew sang it to himself. Three is so fun because they understood the whole blowing out the candles. Gavin was a little confused because after everyone left he said that his friends left their stuff (the gifts). The only part that I had issues with was my own child droping his drawers and peeing beside the pool, thanks for teaching them that hon. Luckily my friends assured me that, that is just boys!

Anyway, it was a great day(s) and we are off to some graduations. I still can't believe they are 3!

Easter Egg Hunting

2010-04-10T15:22:00.000-07:00

We went to the MOPS (moms of preschoolers) Easter Egg hunt the week before Easter. The boys really had no idea what they were doing. They would pick up one egg and just kind of look at it. James was not a big fan of the grass so at least he would stay put when we put him down so that made things a little easier. We also heard the Easter story by opening eggs and having something inside to help tell the story. The boys sat pretty still for this. It was nice to have the eggstra (hee hee) candy for potty training as well. They helped me fill the eggs that we took so they were super eggcited to see what was inside of the eggs they picked up. I just told Andrew I am cracking (ha) myself up. He will get it later when he reads this.

The Saturday before Easter (the day before), we went to the Twice and Thrice -twin's group Egg hunt and saw the Easter bunny. I was a little worried about how they would react because of years past and the fact that they would just wave at the bunny at the mall and did not want to shake his hand at the the mall. They did fine. We did not get very good pictures because all the kids were crowding the poor bunny. The boys would get close to the bunny when he was holding J. but would go no where near without J. being close. I think they were looking out for their little buddy.

This time when it was time for the hunt they knew what to do. They were good. It was very windy and cold so we were pretty quick about it. Andrew gave me a hard time about buying the 1.50 buckets but I think it was an investment for the future. They will use them again next year. I didn't tell him that I really wanted to get one for J. but did not this year. I will have to look for one on clearance now for him for next year. I am lucky to have such a frugal husband, but every kids needs an Easter bucket, right? Maybe it is just because I never had one and we did the plastic or paper bag thing.

I asked if they remembered what we were going to do yesterday morning when they woke up and Gavin said, "Go hunt Easter Eggs?" I said no take books back to the library, so sorry to disappoint the little guy. I guess he was beginning to think that was an every Sat. occurrence.

We are so blessed to have such beautiful boys and such a reason to celebrate. The death and resurrection of our Savior is something we want to remember at Easter and that is not about the eggs, bunny, and candy. I guess what I am trying to say is that I don't want to downplay that and that is a little harder to capture in a picture. I hope that we instill in our boys and our readers that Jesus is the reason we celebrate on Easter. Hope you had a good one!

It's POTTY Time!

2010-04-05T10:30:00.000-07:00

After talking with a friend, I decided to start the potty training process. I am an all or nothing kind of girl and this halfway stuff wasn't cutting it. So, I cleared out 3 days that we could pretty much be at home and we began. No use putting it off any longer! I gathered all sorts of advice from those who have been there before us and set up a plan.

We went and picked out some big boy underwear the day before and got all excited about becoming "big boys". They chose Thomas the Train and a Disney variety pack. They told everyone in the store about their "underwears" and how they were going to pee and poop in the potty. I am sure everyone enjoyed hearing about it. The picture is of them the second day of training sporting their big boy pants when Mommy got tired of doing all the laundry and she just let us run around in our underwear.

So, they woke up the first morning and we put them on the potty. This was not new for Drew but up until this point Gavin would refuse to sit on the potty. We put the diapers in the trash and pulled out the BIG BOY PANTS. They were very excited. I decided to go with the timer idea. I set it and we tried every 20 minutes. I had also read to fill them up with fluids. This part did not work for my boys. I gave them REAL juice-something they never get-we always dilute it and then dilute it some more. Apparently it was too much because they were peeing every 20 minutes just not in the potty. I had several messes to clean up and luckily all but 1 were on the hardwood instead of the carpet. Lesson learned the hard way.

The other thing that needs to be said is that my boys poop a lot. When I say a lot I mean a lot like 3 times a day. I think that is what originally put me over the edge and got me thinking about the process. So, then the poop started. Drew did not get any poop in the potty and Gavin was not putting anything in the potty that first day. He did get a little pee in the potty and then 5 minutes later after celebrating he peed all over himself. That was enough for him. He has been dry and clean since that one accident. He did not poop at all the first day but he never had a poop accident. The second day he got poop in the potty but the smart little guy also pooped when he had a diaper on at nap time. He is a lot like his mommy he is all or nothing as well. The first couple of days we did a lot of running to the potty because he thought he had to poop and it was just toots. He has been a breeze- I almost hate to say that, I think I am still waiting for the other shoe to drop as they say.

Drew on the other hand, Drew, Drew, Drew. He is kind of bull headed-I don't know where he gets it :). He took a while and would get some poop in the potty and then a lot in his pants. I was really at my wits end for those 3 days and was ready to call it quits. He kept getting better and better and we are on day 3 of no accidents so it took a day for Gavin and a week for Drew. The total opposite as I would have thought. I guess I am still waiting for the other shoe to fall since it went smoother than I thought it would-if you asked me that last week I probably would not have thought that, but now I am trying to figure out how I can get a bus ride in since that is the incentive they are working towards now. It may be a first for all of us riding city transit. I guess I have gotten on city transit in Ecuador and Spain but not here in the states. I may be wrong there but I don't think that I have. Anyway, I guess they were ready.

We are still working on getting all of the poop out at once so we don't have to go several times a day but I think they like the multiple treats they get for each time they poop we will work on that at a later time.

They really are good little boys and I am so proud of them. If you asked them Drew will also tell you he is proud of drewgavin too. (Yes he says it as all one word-still haven't had the time to research to see if I need to stop that). The potty training has also sparked a new milestone. The boys are now praying without our help. It is amazing how good they are getting at it and what they are asking prayer for. Maybe they realized how much praying Mommy was doing during this time.

Something I failed to mention is that the pictures of them on the potty are simultaneous. It always seems to happen that when one of them has to go so does the other. Sometimes J. even goes then too. I guess that is what a schedule does for you-synchronized bowel movements-ha!

I will have to post more about Easter later because J. needs to get up and this has turned into quite the lengthy post. Thanks for reading!

9 Months

2010-03-24T14:11:00.000-07:00

My baby is 9 months! I can not believe he has been a part of our family for a year and a half (the 9 months I carried him). He has been out longer than in! I also can not imagine our family without him. He is such a happy little guy and has such an easy smile.

Some facts on J.:

He still has his blond, blond hair and it is getting kind of long but I can't even think about cutting it.

He still has piercing blue eyes. We hope he keeps them like Daddy's since the other 2 have Mommy's green eyes.

He is probably about 17 pounds-he is small but mighty!(we see the Dr. tomorrow). He is growing out of some of his 9 month clothing because he is so long!

He is a pain on the changing table he does not like to sit still or be on his back so you have to be really quick.

He has been babbling Da-Da for just a little while now. I was worried because he was so quiet but he has now come out of his shell. I can't say that I blame in sometimes you can't get a word in around here!

He sleeps really well. He goes down about 8:15 and sleeps until 7 or later. He also takes 2 hour and a half naps if we are not out and about. He goes down without fussing and it is as if he says-"thanks, mom, I needed to stop and I just could not by myself."

He has just cut his 3rd tooth. He has his two front bottom teeth and one top-we call him Fang.

He loves his brothers as long as they are not in his face for too long and then he lets them know he is done.

He is a great eater-when he feels like eating. We have not found anything he does not like, but he has let it be known that he would rather feed himself. So we are cutting up everything I can think of that he can mash and grate with his 3 teeth.

He has many nicknames : J. J-baby, J-man, and the big boys just call him Baby.

I think the biggest thing is that he can crawl for real now but reverts to the belly crawl when he wants to get there quickly or when he is on the hardwood. He doesn't crawl very much because he would rather be walking around things and cruising from furniture to furniture or along the walls.

He has also discovered our steps. He goes up all of them without even batting an eye.

He loves the walker and knows how to use it! I can no longer keep a gate up because he crashes into it to knock it down so he can get through-he is going to be a handful.

We are working on some sign language because he has started mimicking us.

He we finished with the pictures this morning. I had to keep telling him no because he kept biting the woodwork on the window sill. I guess I hurt his feelings because look at those crocodile tears!

He is a beautiful baby boy and so many people-total strangers- tell us how cute he is. We love him so much and are so blessed to get to know him more and more every day!

Happy Belated St. Patty's Day!

2010-03-18T20:48:00.000-07:00

We are just getting over the stomach flu-fun fun! The boys seemed to bounce back quicker than I did. I thought I would show off some shots I took the other day. I said I would post some after pictures of their haircuts so here we go.

I was looking back at pictures of the boys in this same shirt (thanks Mark and Linda). They were having trouble just sitting up. J. is a lot smaller than they were, but he is now cruising around the coffee table and couch and pulling up on everything so much that he doesn't crawl very much any more he just stands up and hangs out. I am sure that it helps that he has 2 big brothers to watch get into everything. By the looks of this picture, he may need his haircut soon too.

Last but not least is Harper on St. Patty's day. He is on the couch he is not allowed on and on the pillows he is not allowed on. He is also not wearing green. I should have pinched him. He has such a rough life!

Speaking of rough life, I have to admit it I have it pretty sweet. Classes are going well and I am having fun and starting to relax and Andrew is sitting here rubbing my back. I think the hardest thing I had on my task list today was to work with the boys on learning "Rocky Top". I found M& Ms work well. It is a hard life. Don't get me wrong I got a lot accomplished today (changed sheets for the 6th time this week; 3 loads of laundry; cleaned a bathroom; meals nad snacks; unloaded the dishwasher with clean dishes twice; so many diapers I lost count; a trip to Target and Costco; 2 times playing outside, once with friends down the street; and plenty of hugs and kisses along the way-and several disciplinary moments) but I must say that is my crowning achievement for the day. Good 'ol Rocky Top-whoo!

Hair Cuts and Pulling Up

2010-03-10T10:59:00.000-08:00

The older boys finally got their haircut yesterday. This was before:

This was during. They loved it! You never would have guess that the last time they got their hair cut it was a horrible, horrible mess-both them and us. They are still talking about the Jeeps they got to drive while they got their haircut. It was hard to see those pretty red curls fall, but the tangles were more than I could handle in the mornings when trying to get them ready. I will have to take a picture of the after, they are asleep right now. It is such a hassle to take all 3 of them anywhere that I was just ready to go and they wanted their suckers.
As for the standing up, that is all the little man wants to do. Yesterday I picked him up from the nursery and he was standing there at the gate like a big boy. No desire to let go and we are so okay with that! He also figured out his walker so he is all over the place and has figured out if he rams into the gate he can knock it over and be on his way. He is into everything and I thought 2 were bad! The bad thing is he has two examples to show him everything. In fact, he is standing here beside me playing with Harp's collar. Now if he could only just sit down without screaming or falling. I can't believe he is almost 9 months. He is on his way to the laundry room so I better go catch him.

Started my first official class today with a partner (I am still working on the rest of the choreography but after doing it 3 times -yes all 3 hours 3 times Mon.- it should not be as tricky as I thought). We had 8 wonderful people there this morning at 5:15. I still can't believe they are going to pay me for this. He is back in the laundry room so I guess I need to sign off.

Working World

2010-03-03T14:37:00.000-08:00

So, I am back in the working world. A friend told me about a position available for Body Pump at a local gym. It is really close to our house and the only reason I did not join when I was looking for a gym was that it didn't have classes. They are now adding classes in their new aerobics room and were looking for teachers. So, the boys and I packed up with a few days notice to a Les Mills Module to get trained in Body Pump. J. will not take a bottle so everyone had to come with me. It was a physically demanding weekend as well as a mentally demanding weekend with family in tow and learning the choreography. We all survived and will definitely remember the weekend- right, sweetheart?

There is not a much to do in Stanwood, in fact there wasn't even a hotel to stay in there. So, the boys spent a lot of time hanging out in the car. It did not help that our instructor was not the best at time management. We worked about 8-9 hours those three days with a half an hour breaks and 10 minute breaks here and there. J. learned to crawl just the week before so he got a lot of practice and learned to pull up onto things.

They (the big boys) got to throw rocks in the water (as well as getting their feet wet). They spent some quality Daddy time.

Needless to say Andrew did not have a very good weekend, but I passed and now the work begins (for me). I will be doing a 5:30 a.m. class with a friend on Mon. and Wed. and then we are alternating Saturdays between all of us. It has always been a little dream of mine to do this and the opportunity kind of fell into my lap. I can't believe they are going to pay me to work out. Andrew gets a free membership too so he will now be able to reap the benefits from his challenging weekend. It is just awesome to know that God is in even the details of our lives. He knows are hopes and dreams and most of the time he fulfills them in ways that we could not even imagine. Thank you, Andrew, for enduring the weekend and believing in me. Thank you, God, for being my everything.

Thanksgiving Recap

2010-02-12T13:28:00.000-08:00

So, I am a little behind. I should have posted this a while ago. We went to our friends' house-Brenda and Eric for Thanksgiving. After dinner, the boys (they have 2 boys) needed to get out some energy so they did what any boys would do- they wrestled. Andrew calls this the "call out." He is now planning his attack, and hopefully try not to jump on Drew.

Then, he leaps and Brenda caught this at just the right time. He got some air- he definitely has some ups. (It has been a long time since I have said that. It makes me miss my coaching days).

We had a great time and will have some great memories. Thanks Eric and Bren.

Mother of the Year

2010-01-27T15:39:00.000-08:00

I went to 2 different stores and had several phone calls with Aunt Darcy to get the "perfect gift" for James. Joya loved this toy so Darce thought James would love it as well. It is supposed to promote crawling and eye hand coordination. Well, it might do those things but not for J.

He does not like his so much. He did it the first time we started it up and so we put it away for a while thinking he is just overwhelmed. Well, I tried it again this week and the result was the same. So I did what any mom would do and turned the thing off so I could go get the camera. I may not be winning any mother of the year awards any time soon. Sorry Darce, for all the time you spent looking for this on the internet and the phone calls from me, but I think this may be a toy that may just have to be put on the shelf for a while. Drew and Gavin love it so maybe we will play with it while J. is asleep in the mornings. Thanks again for trying!

7 Months

2010-01-24T21:32:00.000-08:00

I was negligent on posting for his 6 month so I HAVE to post for 7 months.
He is such a pleasant baby. He is very sweet and has such a contagious smile. I don't know how many times we have had total strangers tell us how cute he is. He is funny in that he tries to catch your attention so he can smile at you.
He loves watching his brothers. He also recently discovered how to bounce. We got out the bouncy seat and he bounces non-stop (as long as you are watching) for as long as we keep him in it. He is also rolling all over the place. He has give up trying to crawl because he has figured out he can just roll wherever he needs to go. Today at church he even tried to pull himself up from seated. He landed on his face but I was amazed at his trying. He is not very graceful at getting onto his belly from sitting but he is getting better-he is doing it on purpose now instead of just falling over and hoping for the best.
He is a good eater. He loves everything we have given him. He is cutting his front teeth right now so he wants to gnaw on everything. He is not nursing very well because he is afraid he might miss something and sometimes just wants to talk to me.
I asked Andrew what he had to say about J baby and he said, "he is just fun." He also said that he liked just getting to spend time with one and focus the attention on just one. We are having to be careful because I think we have a little bit of spoiledness on our hands. He is happy and content to just sit on your lap and play with your hands or watch his brothers-including his gray furry one.
We are so blessed to have him in our family and love to get to know him more and more and realize just how unique he is and what a little blessing he is in our lives. I know I was a little disappointed when I found out he was a boy, but I can't imagine my life without him. All I have to do is look into his eyes and knew that God had a plan when he brought him into our lives because I just love him more and more everyday. He completes our family and I now know that I am a blessed mother of 3 beautiful boys (and a gray furry adopted one).

OCD

2010-01-18T13:35:00.000-08:00

We all know Harper is Obsessive Compulsive. Here are some pictures that prove his issues. Our wonderful neighbors from TN (notice I did not say old neighbors, Mark and Linda) have always given Harper a "baby" for Christmas. This is a stuffed thing with a squeaker in it. He does not rest until the squeaker is out as well as all the stuffing.
We gave it to him this Christmas while we were opening gifts to give him something to do. Big mistake we forgot that he wants us to hold it while he destroys it so he continually puts it on your lap but gives you the evil eye until you throw it back to him. Look at those beady, bulging eyes.
He is pretty intense during this whole process. As you can see it makes a mess, but at least it keeps him occupied. Along with his obsessions is the couch. He loves to sit on the couch and sleep. He is now sitting beside me giving me the eye because I am on the floor and not on the couch with him.
The last time we had him at the vet they told us he is a little over weight. That is an understatement. He is huge! He is also out of shape. Andrew tried to run with him this weekend and he ended up limping home and slept the rest of the day due to exhaustion. I would not know why he is over weight? He only has two little ones feeding him on top of his regular food that he obsesses over. In fact, just today he had two cupcakes-yes 2 almost whole cupcakes. The boys could not finish their cupcakes and wanted to put them in a bag for later. While I was getting them the weasel (Andrew's term of endearment for him) stole it right off the table). It doesn't help that his head is the perfect height for the table. He does not have to jump at all and can do it without any noise. The only noise I heard was, "N0, puppy. Mommy, he ate my cupcake" from Gavin. So, I told him no and said he was not obeying Mommy by getting food off the table and I turned to get the bag for Drew's cupcake and he proceeded to nab Drew's cupcake again the only noise heard was "Harper!" 2 cupcakes! At least they were made with applesauce and not oil.

Well, I am hearing, I am poopy Mommy in the monitor and they are supposed to be sleeping so I better see if this is true.
One last thing about Harp is that he is a much better dog with the boys than I ever could have imagined him to be even with his quirks and tubbyness he is a pretty good dog overall. He finally gave up and is sitting in my spot on the couch looking at me with his sad eyes.

Happy Birthday, Jesus!

2010-01-12T13:40:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Jesus. We made a birthday cake for Jesus and the boys helped decorate it. Excuse my hair and sweats, I had just had a shower and have given up on my hair. Andrew likes this picture because we all are licking the knives. You have to try it out, right?

Of course we had to sing it twice because that is how we sing things around here (at least twice). I think we have found another tradition!

Christmas Cont.

2010-01-08T10:15:00.000-08:00

James showing off how big he is getting. Yes, I missed his 6 month posting. He 6 months on Christmas Eve. I promise I will make it up (someday).

Grandma and the boys!

Cheezin for the camera with his new slippers from Grandma and Grandpa.

Opening the gift they are currently fighting over as I type. They didn't want to open anything else after they opened the keyboard and guitar.

He was very excited!

Rockin out!

Cryin' it out!

(We made him put it away so he could open another gift-I know we are horrible parents.) If you are wondering what that is above his head it is Harper's Christmas gift. That is a post all on its own. Still plenty of pictures to come!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-04T16:52:00.000-08:00

Not much time just a few pictures!

Stuck inside!

2009-12-15T10:55:00.000-08:00

So this is what goes on when Mom is away. We always said Harp was our little pony. I just can't believe he stayed that still.
I am just glad that J. was with me! I would say poor Harper but but he deserves every bit of it for all he has done for or to us! The most recent will have to be a post of it's own.

We went to a birthday party the other night and the boys were so excited. I recently prayed for thanks for Jesus' birthday coming and Drew insisted we make a cake and I thought that was a great idea so we are planning on doing that. So, they were so excited for this birthday party because they knew they were getting cake (they associate cake with birthdays) and it was at their favorite place-the Children's Museum. They had a blast and yes, I am one of those mom's that dress their kids alike. It is much easier to find them when you are out and about. Also, for those of you that know me I have problems making decisions (that is an understatement) so this makes it easier when I just have to make one decision about what they are going to wear. It think that is one of the many reasons God gave me boys. I say that because it was a set of twin's birthday and there was a set of triplet girls who were the boys age- and that was my thought, I can't imagine how long it takes them to get ready when adding the whole hair factor. It is sad that this is like the only new outfit that J has because he has so many clothes from his brothers. Anyway, Drew has developed this huge cheese grin when the camera comes out and this is one of the few pictures that his teeth don't take up his entire face. Gavin is the opposite, he is all business when the camera comes out-he gets so serious- I don't know where he gets it?

These were taken this morning when we were playing downstairs while J. was napping. I had Bunco at my house last night so the table was up and I thought-we have not made a fort yet. They are still playing! That is why I am able to blog. Just a minute, they are on the table.

So the fort just got bigger and they are entertained for a little longer (I added the coffee table-the chair is next). As you can see Harper even got in on the fun or was it because they had their bananas in the fort? You may be asking why are they black and white, well I don't know how to use our high tech camera so it was on the setting for the Christmas tree lights the other night. I called Andrew and he helped me fix it over the phone (I am so blessed with a tech savy husband) but the pictures weren't as good as the first ones so I just made them black and white.

Drew just said he was in a car driving so I asked him where he is going and he said Japan. That is a long drive. They are saying such funny things everyday that I can't remember everything. Oh, the fun of two year olds! Well, I better get J. up and feed him so the rest of us can have lunch as well. Have a good one!

COPN

2009-12-01T20:51:00.000-08:00

Just doesn't have the same ring as corn night, does it Mark and Linda? They used to have what they called Clean Out the Refrigerator Night (corn). I am not feeling very creative tonight so we have Clean Out the Pictures Night.

James is now just over 5 months old and he had his first bit of rice cereal last night. He seemed to like it. He also did pretty well again tonight. I was hoping to put it off until he was 6 months but he has been waking up pretty early for daddy and mommy really needs her workouts in the morning. So, I gave in and it is a whole lot easier to feed just one! Of course I am feeding two others on top of the one, but it is still easier. He lasted until 7 this morning so we will see how tomorrow goes. He is really into his toys now but still hates his belly. He is now attempting to get out of his bumbo so we have had to move him to the high chair. Here are some pics from last night:

"this is new what is going on here?"

"mmm this is good gimme some more. . . "

"I'm so full!"

So is it just me or does he look like his cousin Joya?

He is a really good baby just a little too attached to mommy at the moment.

The boys are really excited about the Christmas lights. I am sure there will be more pictures to come. They HAD to wear their Santa hats to target tonight-as if we don't get enough stares. They loved the Christmas area. I am amazed what little sponges they are. They have only been exposed to Christmas words for 2 days now and they were naming everything they knew at Target. Snowman, Christmas tree, socks (stocking-Drew wanted to put them on his feet), and lights, lights and more lights. It is going to be a fun year. We went down the toy isle and they were very good, Drew just wanted to "take home" everything.

Back tracking a little bit, we went to a dear friend's for Thanksgiving. They have 2 boys-5 and soon to be 3. Let's just say I am slowly realizing what it truly means to be a mom of boys. It was wrestle mania and they had a blast. They got their fill of tractors and toy guns. It was a wonderful evening with great friends and great food!

Let's see the boys are talking about anything and everything now so I don't know where to even go from here. They are fascinated with the moon right now. They are also concerned about the turkey's sleeping habits. A neighbor has a giant inflatable turkey and of course during the day it is deflated. The other day we drove by and I think it was Gavin who said, "Mommy, turkey sleeping." I could not have said it better myself.

Drew is calling me "mom" now. Not "mommy" sniff, sniff. He really thinks he is a grown up. They are playing pretty well lately. They even play catch with the football. In fact, Drew had a plastic bucket on his head today running with the football. He said it was his helmet.

Oh, I almost forgot what is taking up all my time. Drew is potty training himself. I am in no way shape or form ready to start, but of course he has a mind of his own and his own agenda. Still not pooping in the potty but I will spare you the details (-not naming any names, Darcy). I know my sister thinks she is always cleaning up poop but my boys are each pooping at least 2 times a day. The last two at least one of them has pooped 3 times. James is at least taking a pooping break, but his are the easiest to clean- unless he has been saving up for a couple of days. Anyway, I said I wasn't going to talk about it. I really am not sure that he is physically ready yet but he stays pretty dry-as long as we are at home. Gav is not that interested. He will sit down on the potty but nothing is going on. He is very good at reminding me when I don't give Drew his chocolate.

I am sure I will think of a million things that I wanted to add but I am going to sleep. Harp is stealing my blanket and Andrew is fishing so I don't have him as a blanket either. So, I am going to cuddle up with Harp until he gets home tonight. I am not going to proof read so sorry for the errors and lack of pics-we got a new Internet carrier-long story. Good night!

Halloween!

2009-11-16T10:55:00.001-08:00

So I am a little late! We were not going to dress the boys up and go trick or treating because we (andrew and I) are not big fans of the whole Halloween ordeal. I think the biggest factor was that the Vols were on during that time. Our neighbor gave him a hard time so with that and the thought of potty training chocolate in mind we threw them in their costumes (same as last year) and headed out to conquer the court.

Don't they look like they are going to play catch with the pumpkins? We had to convince Gavin to leave the pumpkin at home. Once they got the hang of it they were good. At first, they weren't too sure about it. The candy is coming in handy because Drew is peeing in the potty first thing in the morning. Gavin isn't interested in anything but Drew sharing his chocolate after he goes. He has gone once but isn't wanting anything to do with it now. I am in no hurry to clean up all those messages. They aren't even 2 1/2 yet!

Here is J. on the excursion. I wonder what we will torture him with next year? Probably the same costume the boys wore this year:) Yes, we are cheap!

Well, I have a hungry baby and two munchkins that are done with mommy being on the computer. I hope someday the boys will find their princess so they won't be a frog forever!

Happy Monday

2009-11-02T11:11:00.000-08:00

It is just after 11 and I have worked out this morning, taken a shower and given one, fixed breakfast, fixed Andrew's lunch, emptied the dishwasher, stripped the sheets off the boys bed (that was also why the shower was needed this morning),vacuumed the whole house, washed the sheets and put them back on their bed, and just finished reading my 20 emails and my favorite blogs-again I will repeat all before 11:00. I forgot I also nursed the baby and gave some love to all the boys who seemed to have needed a little extra this morning. It is amazing what you can get done when you are up at 5. Anyway, I was going to post pictures of trick or treating but realized the visit to the pumpkin patch should come first.

It was a beautiful day and the boys were really good. The were not big fans of the actual pumpkin patch but they had a good time climbing the hay pyramid and in the corn maze. They were not big fans of the animals either. I know next year will be a whole new ball game.

J. was suppose to be sleeping but I think there was too much going on. I am so glad Daddy got to go because there was no way I was going to attempt it by myself. I may feel like super mom after all that I have gotten done this morning but I know my limits and my kryptonite. Did I mention the boys enjoyed the cookies too? They also downed the real juice mommy always dilutes it at least 50%! This was the real VBS juice! What is it called like TANG or something? I am sure the florescent orange color is all the vitamins in it!

This is one of the few pictures we have of all three boys. Two year olds and infants don't always mix. Our biggest problem is they love him too much!

Trick or treat photos to come! J. is awake and hungry again and I guess I just blogged all before 11:30! All I have left on my to do list is read my Bible study while the boys nap. What a productive Mon.!

Has it Really Been Two Weeks?

2009-10-19T07:44:00.000-07:00

Has it really been that long since I have blogged? It seems like yesterday, forever ago! At lot has gone on since we took our trip around the Olympic Peninsula. Andrew has been to Japan and back, and we have had several outings, some cold weather and I don't know where all my time goes!

I thought I would show some pictures of our adventure. We dropped off Miss Lori at the Seattle Airport and Drew cried all the way to the "big boat. " He didn't want Miss Lori to leave. We then took the Ferry to Bremerton. The boys thought it was cool that we were in a car on a boat. It was an hour ride so we went up to the top. To have a look.

Then we drove onto and stayed the night in Port Townsend. The boys were throwing rocks into the water (San Juan de Fuca-careful how you say that!) . Something they are really good at and love to do.

This was a great little town but it is a place where we said we would love to go back without kids. It had some really neat restaurants and shops and it was not the kind of place that really welcomes 2 year olds and a 3 month old. If fact, a lot of the hotels said no children under 12.

We then drove on and went to the Olympic National Forest and made a little hike. The weather was beautiful and we could see all the way to Canada. Before children, Andrew and I went to CA and drove quite a bit of highway 1o1. We got on it again clear up at the top in WA. We would love to drive the rest of it someday but we made some progress on this trip. The picture of the boys throwing rocks is on the coast so it is the actual ocean- J's first view!

this was a picture of us at the Quinault Lodge next to Lake Quinault and the Olympic Rain Forest. Who knew there was a Rain forest in WA. We live in the dessert then we went to Seattle where it rains a ton and then to an actual Rain Forest. It was a really nice lodge. Andrew laughs but it is what I would call roughing it. No TV and only a claw foot tub. Anyway, it was really awesome weather and we had a great time.

Then we took the Hike to Irely Lake. As I said before, I think it was the longest mile of my life. I love Drew's expression and the fact that Gavin is pointing at the 30 mi. hike. Then, even though Andrew was ready to head home, I insisted that we stay the night in Seattle and head to the zoo. The boys were looking so forward to that, in fact that was the topic of conversation between them. Drew, " I go to the Zoo". Gavin, "No, Dew go to zoo." They had the same conversation about motorcycles. I love the look J is giving the Camera. I think he enjoyed the zoo too.

Maybe we can talk Andrew into posting about China? We are going to the pumpkin patch Thurs. barring sickness or bad weather. So, more recent pictures are to come! Have a good one!

What were we thinking?

2009-10-01T13:55:00.000-07:00

We were literally climbing the walls and had to get away. I (Denise) had a dear friend from TN visiting. Lori had never been to Seattle so she landed there and we had a weekend (well, I had one night and 2 days) seeing the sights. The next weekend we took her back and we (meaning J and I) had another long weekend as a family. We drove the Olympic Peninsula. What were we thinking taking 3 little ones? I don't know how many times we said this would be a great place to come again without kids! There will be more of a post sometime about our trip but I thought I would post J's first laugh. He would only laugh for Lori and he finally laughed for me the other day. Here is his second laugh, we got the first but the older boys were there and all you can really hear is their laughter. I miss you already, Lori!

3 Months!

2009-09-17T14:52:00.000-07:00

As I promised it is an all about James post. We have been calling him J and the boys have picked up on it too, so J is easier to type than James anyway.

J is about 15 pounds we are guessing and he is eating a sleeping superbly. It is hard to believe that at this point with the boys we were moving into our house. Anyway, he is very good natured and loves to smile and be talked to. He loves faces and things to look at. We are also having issues because he will crane his neck and try to watch TV. It seems no matter where we turn him he tries to watch. He gets his last feeding at 9 and he sleeps until 6. He takes several naps and sleeps very will during those naps during the day. He is an awesome example of what Babywise can do.

He also loves to "talk" he is still trying to laugh out loud and it just won't come out. He has not rolled over, but until the last couple of days he went through a phase of hating tummy time. He enjoyed it today and I got some great shots after his bath while the older boys slept. I am not sure how to use all the settings on our camera. I am a point and shoot kind of girl and the lighting was not right for that so black and white will have to do.

Here is another one I got before the big boys woke up from their nap. Yes, that is a Mohawk and you can really see how much hair he has. It is so light sometimes in pictures he looks bald. I just got done scrubbing his forehead in the tub so it is still a little red and peeling. The picture does not do his beautiful big blue eyes justice but only seeing him in person would I guess.

I love the rolls. Don't you wish people said that about adult pudge rolls? I am sure I will think of a million other things to write about but I have two two year olds climbing on me and asking for snack-they woke up from nap early. J. and I are going on an excursion tomorrow to Seattle. It is my first time traveling with just one and Daddy's first time alone with 2 (or any for that matter) all on his lonesome over night. I am not sure which one of us needs more prayer. Let's hope it goes well so I can get away more often!

I will tell you more about what we are doing in Seattle later when I have pictures because the pleading for snacks is getting louder, but sweet because a please is being added to the plea. I am also being slapped in the face with the smell of poop, the story of my life right now!

It has been a very blessed and happy 3months getting to know you, J!

What Am I Doing?

2009-09-11T09:22:00.000-07:00

I think I ask myself that question a couple of times a day along with "what do I need to get done today" and "where does all my time go"? I know the answer most of the time for instance it is not even 9:30 and I have already changed 6 diapers 3 poop and 3 "no poopy just pee-pee" as Gavin would say. We are also starting things up at church so there is all the prep and stuff that goes along with that. James will be 12 weeks next week so I will post more about him at that time. He is a great baby and I am so pleased to get to know him more and more each day. It also helps that he is sleeping at least 8 hours every night-that makes us all happy! Anyway, sorry for lack of pictures and stories-there are too many to choose from because it has been too long. Goodbye for now!

G-man!

2009-08-17T13:40:00.000-07:00

So it is Gavin's turn. Gavin is a very active little boy. He is always on the go. He is very concerned about his brothers and very thoughtful. He is also very obedient. With him all you have to do is raise your voice and he will stop and do what you say. I think the biggest problem we are having is that he loves his little brother too much!

Because he is so physical he also is always getting hurt. He falls constantly and if something could get hurt it will probably be him. Just when one ouchie clears up he seems to get another one. With his porcelain skin every little bump and bruise shows too. In fact, we were at the pool the other day with some friends and his foot fell in one of the drains. He was fine, just startled. The life guard said she had never seen anyone do that, leave it to Gavin. He still loves to wrestle and be close to his family.

He is also so strong. Yes, he climbed up by himself, but Daddy was there for support.

He is starting to talk more, it is just not very clear and sometimes he needs a translator. I am amazed how observant he is. The garage door, air conditioning, and the washing machine all sound the same and every time one of them comes on he says it is daddy (the garage door). The other day he said it is "just the air conditioning" when it came on because that is what I always tell him when it is the air.

He has the most contagious laughter and he laughs often at his brother or when he is tickled. He is such a sweet little boy with a huge heart.

Drew Funny

2009-08-07T13:32:00.000-07:00

So, I stole the title from Gavin even though this post is supposed to be about Drew. Gavin always says this when Drew does something and then he starts laughing. I decided to post a little segment about each of the boys so I will start with the oldest (by a minute) Drew.

So, Drew is our talker. We have had people say repeatedly OMG they are talking and yes, they have started and Drew has not stopped. He talks a lot about bounce houses popping; things he does and doesn't like; bikes; lawnmowers; and trucks. I am amazed at how much he knows, is learning, and remembers. We can not go to Wal-mart without him saying he wants to play on the slide because there is a Burger King on the way in, with a playground that we frequent.

He loves to dance and is so observant. We were reading a book the other day and he said messy hands. Sure enough on TV there was the faucet commercial where they were cleaning their hands. Just today he saw puddles (does not happen very often here except due to sprinklers, but it rained this morning) and he said he needed to clean them up because they were wet and messy.

He (as Grandma Susie said) thinks he can converse on a grown up level and would like to think he is a grown-up. He is strong willed yet lovable. He loves to make people laugh. He has even started praying with us which is awesome to hear from a 2 year old! He even mentioned Jesus the other night so I guess our Bible reading every night even though we don't think they are listening they are. He also loves books and can point out so many things and talk about them in the books as you can see. I am amazed by him every day! I can't imagine my life without him. I just realized we waited for him for two years and now we have known him for two years and it was so worth the wait for him. I know God had a plan when he had us wait for the creation of Drew. I look forward to seeing what he becomes and the young man that he is.
Here is "Drew funny" trying on Daddy's basketball shoes:

Love you, Drewly!

Birthday!

2009-07-18T14:18:00.000-07:00

So this post is not for the faint. I am giving you fair warning so don't say I didn't tell you so.

I didn't post on James' one month milestone so I will post about his birthday.

We went in for a scheduled C-section at about 9:30 on Wed. morning the 24th of June (his b-day). This is our last family photo as a family of 4. Grandma Greene took it right before we left. I don't think the boys knew what was going on but they did not like Mommy leaving which lead to tears from me also. I think there is that part of me that felt bad because their life was about to change and they had no idea what was going on. I still don't think they completely understand because they always ask if the baby is going with us. They still don't really call him by name, but occasionally we have a breakthrough.

We arrived at the hospital around 10 by the time we found the birthing floor and found our chart we checked in and prepped for the surgery. My doctor does not usually deliver at this hospital but does have rights to do so. So when we got there we found out that he thought it was 12:30 not noon like we had thought. We also found out that it must have been multiples month because there were twins born the previous day and a set of twins and triplets born that day as well. Anyway, of course I was starving and anxious which led to an eventful time of getting my IV in. What is a little sweat and light headed when they can't find a vein-there had to be a little drama. Poor Andrew, he wiped my brow and face and neck as the sweat poured out and I struggled as they tried to find a vein. So they took blood and it stopped and finally they called the nurse anaesthetist in to poke me in another spot. So we finally get into the room and the epidural was much easier this time-no pain. I forgot to mention an important facet. I wished for natural childbirth and some contractions and I got that-be careful what you wish for. Andrew really thought we were going to have to go the night before and have him but I slept like a baby (well as good as a woman who is 39 1/2 weeks pregnant can sleep) once I fell asleep. So by this time of the day the contractions were about 15 to 20 minutes apart and pretty painful. So the whole almost fainting thing and poking around in my veins was not enjoyable.

Anyway, we get to the OR and I get my epidural and Andrew got suited up. Then I look up and the nurse anesthetist looks just like my future brother in law. It was really creepy how much he looked like Will. Andrew said the same thing later so it wasn't just the drugs. Again I just wanted to sleep so Andrew tried to keep me awake. The doctor rolled in at about 12:45 and he got cleaned up and suited up. James Miller Greene came into the world at a little after 1. They had to do quite a bit of pushing this time because he was head down and there was not as much fluid as with the twins. So here is the picture. Isn't that amazing. This was right before they suctioned him.

It was nice to see later because of course I can't see anything that is going on. This was my first glimpse of him and the first thing I said was look at those long fingers and toes-just like daddy!

This was the view that I got when they were cleaning him up and weighing him. I did not get to see that with the boys, Andrew got some great pictures but it was neat to see for myself. Isn't Andrew a great photographer?

The Will look-a-like was also a great photographer, you could tell he had some practice.

So Andrew went with the James back to our room while they stapled me up. Then they wheeled me back, which I don't remember and I got to hold our little guy for the first time.

We took a little cat nap and then he was ready to eat. He looked at me with his head raised for a little and then he was all business. He latched right on and nursed like every hour for the first 10 hours or so. Anyway, I can't believe that was just a month ago.

He is now smiling and I even heard a chuckle the other day. I know people are down on Babywise but he is sleeping around 7 hours consistently- from 10 or so to 5. We are still working on the awake time-he is a drowsy little boy. He had gained back to his birth weight in less than a week. -He also managed to pee and poop all over the scales and wall at the Dr. Andrew said he would have been way over his birth weight if the weighed him before the blowout! Anyway, we are all adjusting to the new addition. We are just the 5 of us this week and surviving. Let me leave you with a picture of James taken last night right before his first bath. His belly button just fell off yesterday, I don't remember the boys' taking that long. Hope to get announcement pictures done soon, this month has slipped away!

Happy one month Baby J!

4th of July

2009-07-10T12:52:00.001-07:00

We had a great 4th of July and did not even have to go anywhere. It was our first time alone with all 3 boys and we lived to tell about it. We did learn some things about our big boys. They don't like bounce houses and fireworks. I guess when I think about it that doesn't sound like a good combination anyway does it? Our court had a big party with a huge water slide and 2 bounce houses and of course fireworks. There was also plenty of food. The boys and I made and appearance but retired early.

Here are some pictures to remember the day and James' first holiday!

Our New Little, Sweet Pea

2009-06-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

Our first family picture

James Miller Greene

Born at 1:02 PM

Wed. June 24th

7 lbs. 10 oz. 20 inches long

Happy Father's day

2009-06-22T13:55:00.001-07:00

So, the boys put Andrew to work on Father's day.

I guess next time I post there will be another pea in our pod. Stay tuned!

2 by 2 cont.

2009-06-09T07:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the party Sat. They had a great time and they were so good even with a very, very short nap.

You can see the theme. They were not sure what to think about everyone singing to them, but we had practiced blowing out the candles on their real birthday. They look like such big boys. I know they will look even bigger in two weeks when they are not longer my "babies". I have some scrapping to do so I will show more pictures later and I just can't seem to get the video camera out. I think I am afraid Andrew will get me in the pictures so I need to do it so I won't be in them. Anyway, speaking of Andrew didn't he do a good job on the cake? It was my idea and I baked the cakes and he put my thoughts into fruition. Yes, I made the shirts too, I told you I have been in a creative mood. Anyway, I have some pictures to order so I can scrap before I have no time to scrap. Have a great week!

Two by Two

2009-06-04T08:33:00.001-07:00

That seems to be the theme of this post.

I can't believe my babies are 2! We waited 2 long and lonely years for them and now we have had the pleasure of knowing them for 2 years. They are every bit of 2. They are very curious and talk constantly-except around new people and new environments. They are two very different little people. These pictures were taken this morning at breakfast. Notice the big boy boosters.

Let me tell you a little about Drew. He is our people person. His favorite new saying is "See ya." He is very verbal and yet very sensitive. He is also the dominant twin. He doesn't know it but Gavin could easily take him down, but he is in charge. He is cleaning my floors and playing with a box as we speak. He loves to play with his trucks and make coffee in his kitchen. He is very independent.

Gavin has such a sweet heart (most of the time). As a typical younger brother (by one minute), he likes to instigate things though too. He doesn't know he could take down his brother either. He is very physical and loves to be held. He is also a close talker and likes to know he has your attention when he has something to say. He loves his brother and always tries to take care of him. I think he is going to be my little tattle tale. Which will be nice because his brother already needs it.

The picture of the family above is from last night. The other 2 that we have been blessed with is our care group for the last 2 years. They are not only our spiritual family but also our family away from family. We had a baby shower/boys' birthday party/ and final bash last night. We had a great time and they are a great group of people who are great to our boys and us.

Well, I think that is all I am able to write now. We need to head out to a brunch with one of my mom's groups. I will post more next week on their birthday party Sat. and maybe we can get some video between now and then. Have a blessed day! We love you boys and happy birthday!

Nesting

2009-05-22T13:20:00.000-07:00

Okay, so we have a date set. Wednesday the 24th of June at 12:00 our baby buddy will be born, unless he decides to come earlier. That is kind of weird to think about. It is less than a month away now. Wow!

I have titled this post nesting. I think I have a different kind of nesting. It is not as much cleaning as it is creating. Whether it be sewing, scrapping, or decorating. I just can't seem to get enough of it. Unfortunately those are things that I really can't do when the boys are awake so I am naturally limited. This is probably a good thing, because I think that would be all I would do.

Anyway, here are the promised pictures of the baby's room. The theme is "Oh, the places you'll go" from the Dr. Seuss book.

The pictures on the wall are all places that Andrew has been and I have been to a few of them. I love to think about all the places our boys will see throughout their lives. Didn't the stripes turn out cute? Thank you Grandma, Susie. She taped and painted some
of the stripes and painted them and Andrew also painted some. It is hard to believe there will be another Greene boy sleeping in there soon.

I need to figure out how to make the letters pop out more. The one in the middle will have his name on it, but since we are only telling family bloggers will have to wait until the 24th.

This is another project I completed a couple of months ago. It has been sitting in our garage and I just recently put it in the baby's room until I figure out how to secure it to the walls without putting huge holes in the wall to please my husband. We are going to have to add another marker in 2 weeks because the boys will be 2!

So apparently I am not the only one nesting. I was in the kitchen moping the floors and I came down and Drew had put everything up on the table off of the floor and was "vacuuming." That is what the zube tube is, he had sound effects and everything. (Yes, Greg, Darce, and Dad it is the infamous Zube Tube. How did it end up all the way in WA?) I had to take a picture. Gavin had to get in on the action. So they are helping me nest.

The boys have not really paid much attention to their clothes. They would in fact rather be naked. Sunday I put on some UT overalls and they loved them. They discovered pockets and I have had to watch them because they kept getting them out of the dirty clothes hamper. Andrew was so proud. He snapped a few pictures of them and their beached whale of a mommy. This is a sweet picture though.

Thank you Grandma Greene for our new favorite outfits!

Happy Birthday, Andrew!

2009-05-15T09:51:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday, Daddy! You are such a great Daddy! You help us stay clean and full. You are great at playing and wrestling. We have so much fun with you. We know how much you love us. You work so hard so we can live comfortably and you take care of our house-you are the greatest! We see how you love Mommy and you are teaching us how to respect her. We also see how you love baby buddy and even though we don't really understand what is going on we know from your example that he is going to be really special.

We also love that you read us a Bible story every night and pray with us. We hope we will become half the man that you are when we grow up. We appreciate you taking us to church so we can learn more about Jesus and we love that you pray for our family. We could not ask for a better Daddy!

So, Daddy we will try to be good today for you an Mommy and we hope that you will have a great birthday and we look forward to celebrating many more with you!

Love, Big D and G-man! (Aka Drew and Gavin)

Things are Changing . . .

2009-05-09T08:07:00.000-07:00

Thought we would show you some house pictures. I have been nesting and the sewing machine has been whizzing. I added some pillows to the furniture on the front porch. (Thanks Mark and Linda for the furniture did you recognize it?)

The back yard now that all the trees and rock are in. You can't see my magnolia it is closest to the camera in the corner along with a pine.

The fence! It is great! The parts are all in, thanks dad for your help. We have enjoyed it almost every night. It is so nice to let the boys and Harper run! As you can see Harper is posing.

Speaking of Grandpa here are some pictures of Grandpa and his boys. Big Bean and Little Bean (for those of you that don't know my dad inherited the nickname Bean from his dad and Gavin looks so much like a Replogle he has now inherited the name from his grandpa.) Drew and Grandpa are looking at the Dry falls. Apparently we were at what used to be a huge waterfall. It was on our way to Grand Cooley Dam. Of course Grandpa is reading everything. This was the man who got in trouble for reading the Constitution! Thank you Dad and Susie. We hope to finish the baby's room this weekend so maybe pictures will be posted later next week (that is the goal anyway).

As far as everything else. The devotional is over and it went very well, thanks for your prayers. Andrew is still recuperating. The mornings are rough and he is still not able to eat much. I think he has overdone it since he went to work part of the day Tues. and the rest of the week. Hopefully he will get some R and R this weekend.

As far as Mother's day this is the first Mother's day we have spent together as a family. I am so blessed! To the rest of you Mothers have a great weekend!

Busy, busy, busy

2009-04-29T14:34:00.001-07:00

We are staying pretty busy since getting home. Andrew is having surgery tomorrow (Thurs) if you could keep him in your prayers. He is having his tonsils and adenoids removed and having his sinuses Rotor Rooted. (Don't you like my technical terms?) It is not major but as we have been told kids seem to bounce back much quicker than adults do. I guess I should ask for prayers too as I take care of my 4 boys-wow that is the first time I have said that. The boys have not been sleeping well therefore I have not been sleeping well. It also seems that when I get up baby buddy thinks he needs to be up for a while. So on top of all the bathroom trips, I am not getting very restful sleep because he is squirmy. I guess it is a sign of things to come.

I would also like some prayer for a devotional I am giving with a friend for a pretty large group of women. I have never done anything like this and Satan has been getting in the way. The topic is-chores, the ministry of housekeeping. It is very humbling because I don't know what I am doing in that area and I have not been doing it very long. Anyway, the sermon topic this past week was spiritual warfare and thank goodness I have some defense because Satan is working pretty hard on me when it comes to fear and doubt with this devotional as well as whether I will be capable of taking care of another baby. I guess it is a little late for that and I am relying on God because he must think we can handle it.

On another note, the boys are growing so fast. They are putting words together constantly, playing together well, and just becoming little boys right before our eyes. The terrible twos are sometimes coming out, but it is nice that they can play on their own or together for some period of time now.

We are also almost finished with baby buddy's bedroom thanks to Grandma Susie and Andrew painting. We just have some furniture rearranging to do and I am working on some wall art. There should be pictures soon. We also have a fence now! It looks great! It will also come in handy while Andrew is out of commission for the next couple of days. Harp is not very happy about being contained, but the boys love the gate. Hopefully the weather will be nice soon so we can be out and enjoy it. Thank you, Papa Denny!

I think that is about all that is going on. I will leave with a picture of the boys taken while we were in Knoxville. I may just have to post a few because there are so many to choose from!

We are back!

2009-04-23T21:14:00.000-07:00

We have been to Knoxville and then to Johnson City. Then the boys and I went to Indiana while Andrew had to go back home to work. We did a lot while we were there and we saw a lot of people that we miss and love.

Here are a few snapshots of our trip:

Andrew decided two weeks before we left to run a half marathon with his sister, niece, and Will (Michelle's boyfriend). This was at the finish line in Neyland Stadium.

The Aquarium at Gatlinburg. It may appear that they are having a good time but they were not very fond of the fish especially the turtles.

The annual Easter Egg hunt with my mom's family. As you can see it is not really a hunt.

That is all I really have the room for and the time. I will try to get back next week! Thanks for looking!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2009-03-17T13:23:00.000-07:00

Hope you are having a great St. Pat's Day!

You should See the Other Guy . . .

2009-03-09T20:33:00.000-07:00

So Gavin had a rough week. He scratched himself on the face, while wrestling Drew scratched him, he ran into the sliding glass door -which is the mark on his forehead, and last but not least he fell on the bench at our table and broke open his eyebrow. Do you like how Drew got into the picture? He added a bump on his chin at the playground yesterday. Hopefully this week will be a little easier on his poor little face. Although, he does love to wrestle. Andrew has big hopes for him, he is actually a natural according to my former wrestler and UFC fan husband. I see many more black eyes and bumps and bruises in his future. What am I saying in our future, we have 2 other sons! Pray for me!

6 years

2009-03-04T14:28:00.001-08:00

I have been getting up early these last couple of days and my thought have gone to my mom. It is hard to believe it has been 6 years. To steal the phrase from my sister, a lot has happened in 6 years. I met the man of my dreams, we went through some tough years trying to have our two little boys, and we then moved across the country to a place I had never seen. Then of course we have had the little surprise with this third little boy on the way (I still think I don't fully comprehend that we are having another one.)That is not counting what all has gone on in my mom's family's life. I have decided that if I could have just a couple of minutes with her I would have to ask her so many things:

How is your new body (or whatever form she has in heaven) since the old one failed you?

Spiritually, what advice do you have for me?

What advice do you have for me as a wife?

What advice do you have for me as a mom?

You left such a legacy, how do I come close to doing that?

The thing is I am pretty sure mom would send me to the Word. She went there for everything. So, I guess I know how she would answer each of those, but I would just love to hear her voice. She was a "truth teller' whether you were ready for it or not she would tell it like it is. I miss that so much about her (most of the time). I don't know how but some how she always managed to do that in love.

Also, like Darce said I know I had to go through her loss to make me the woman that I am. I know that I would not have found my husband if she would not have gotten sick because I would not have been in Johnson City when I met him. I actually have an interview set up with the department of defense dependent schools and a job offer in Mexico when the we discovered the first round of chemo did not work. Who knows where I would have ended up or who I would have ended up with. I can not imagine my life without my husband or my boys, but I know they would not be with me if I had not lost my mom. These are just some of the big things that I know I had to experience, which was all a part of God's plan for me.

I also know and cherish that I will some day see her again. I know where she is and I know where I am going and we will be reunited not only as mother and daughter but as sisters in Christ. I have to say that is what makes the ache of missing her bearable. I know that is the promise we have as believers, it is not goodbye forever it is just see you after a while.

I could go on and on about how much I miss her and how wonderful she is, but I just needed to write some thoughts in order to not only share the legacy she has left but encourage you if you don't know Jesus then you don't know where you are going after you are gone. I know that was why my Mom had so much peace. If you want to experience this peace or want to know what in the world I am talking about please ask me or ask someone, because now is the time.

I don't have any pictures of mom that I can load so you will have to take a glance at Darce's blog to see the peace on my mom's face even though she was in a world of hurt when the picture was taken. http://darcyholsopple.blogspot.com/

I do have a picture that would make Mom smile:

Talk about a mug shot! They are getting so big! I think she would also say, they need haircuts!

We have been studying Revelation at church and small group and I have realized how important it is for my friends and family and for that matter everyone to know Christ because you don't want to have to endure what is going to go on here on earth in the end times and I want to keep everyone I know from having to endure those times just because I didn't take the time to say it for whatever reasons. (Excuse the run-on sentence because IT IS that important!)

Thank you for helping me heal and mourn the loss of mom and thank you for caring enough about us to read some of my thoughts and hopefully comment. Most importantly though if you don't know Jesus now is the time because we never know about tomorrow unless we know about Him. So, I started with questions to ask mom. I have a couple of questions to ask you:

Do you know where you are going when you leave this world?

Have you accepted Jesus as your Savior?

What are you waiting for?

Happy Valentine's Day

2009-02-14T20:33:00.000-08:00

Although most of you are probably reading this after Valentine's Day since I am posting so late tonight. We stayed around home today except for a chilly walk this evening. Before I go any further I have to brag on my husband. He, after 5 years of marriage, got me the best gift ever (okay, so it has been the only Valentine's gift) It is so pretty, a sterling siver charm bracelet. There is a catch though. After he ordered it, he read that there have been issues with the sodder used to make it and the charms. So, I am not going to be able to wear it until we don't have kids who put everything in their mouth, but it is sure pretty to look at! He is so sweet. I thought I was giving a cool gift in that I framed a cool picture of a clock tower that he drew in Charleston in '04 on a paper table cloth. I have wanted to do it for some time, but I came across it again when we were switching rooms around.

Speaking of switching rooms around. The boys are in a BIG BOY BED! They have been in them for 2 weeks and the first night was rough but after that things have gone pretty well. Then they started naps in them and the first day was rough and now that is going well also. They are now asking to go to bed (nigh-nigh). They fell off the mattress several times the first couple of nights, but now they are getting the hang of it and if they do fall it is not waking them up. They are siting in them for the pictures. I decided to get two shots out of it, Valentine's day and Big Boy Bed. It is getting even harder to take a good picture of them because they are constantly moving.

Poor Harper! He is great with the boys. Most of the time he just takes it. Their new thing is to sit on his back and ride him like a horse (while he is sitting down of course). They tend to go flying when he has had enough. They really love him, but I am afraid that unless it comes to their constant feeding him, the feeling is not mutual. He looks so humiliated!

Who can resist that smile? Will you be mine?

It's a . . .

2009-01-28T15:51:00.000-08:00

It's a boy! Here are the pics. We have everything but a name, I guess. He may be like Gavin and not have a name until he had to. No, we are closer this time than we were with the older boys. (That sounds so weird!) I have to get used to the idea that I will be surrounded by testosterone! It will be easier at prom time though. Anyway, everything looks good. In fact, the technician kept saying what a good looking baby he was. Looks like the due date is right on and he is about 8 oz. right now. I guess my hunches were wrong and Andrew was right! -I hate to have to say that.

So, I am having trouble making out the prospective of these, but after seeing the boys so many times, I think I have it figured out. The first is a side view. The second is a crotch shot. The third is a foot and a butt (I think).

Well the boys are needing some mommy time apparently. Have a good one!

It Has Started Already

2009-01-24T14:35:00.002-08:00

Andrew had the wonderful idea (I do mean wonderful) to give the boys some old cell phones. They have played for hours with them. I am amazed at how much they pick up.

I have no idea what Gavin is saying to whomever he is talking to, but it must be important with all that pacing. Isn't Drew's smile contagious?

We went to a place called the Children's museum last Friday with one of my moms' groups. The boys had a blast. Excuse the greasy hair. They have figured out how to open their closet door and while I was brushing my teeth they got into the Vaseline. Who knew how hard it would be to get out of their hair! They look like they had not bathed in weeks!

We ended up getting a season pass since there won't be any playing outside for a while. It snowed again today. We went again this past Friday with a neighbor and her kids and the boys again were great and minus the greasy hair. Looking at the pictures, I can't believe I went out with them looking like that. so here are some better pictures.

This is Gavin playing a piano on its side with the top off, it makes a pretty neat noise.

This is Drew eating a piece of pizza that a little girl served him in the train cafe. As daddy says he loves the ladies. My guess is he is thinking this is not very good but I will try it anyway.

I noticed Drew is eating the play food in both pictures. I promise he does more than put the germ infested plastic food while we are there! That just seems to be the only time he is sitting still.

What do you think?

2009-01-13T14:44:00.000-08:00

Not much is going on right now. I thought I would post my new favorite pictures. These were their 18 month pictures taken last month by Andrew. They are now over 19 months and amazing me everyday! Their new thing is saying who everyone is. They know Mommy, Daddy, Pup-pup or puppy, and buddy (Which they call themselves and their brother, sometimes it comes out bubba-so cute!) Gavin also says Drew sometimes, which sounds more like dew.
We have just 2 weeks until we find out what we are having and I am getting so excited. I am afraid to say what I think we are having because I hate to be wrong and I don't want to get my hopes up, which probably gives it away. Andrew says he thinks it is another boy. This pregnancy is so different than with the boys and I know everyone is different, but there are so many differences. There was 24 hour nausea from 4 weeks until about 13. I crave chocolate where as with the boys it was mac-n- cheese (don't get me wrong I still love a good bowl of the stuff and I have become a pro at making it- I use extra cheese and yogurt instead of milk and butter, good stuff!). Anyway, I am ready to start decorating the nursery and with that the boys will be moving to a big boy bed which I am sure I will talk about later. I am excited to put a face with the kicking and movement. Although I have to say, there is not as much of either and I have panicked a couple of times and Andrew gently reminded me that there is probably only one in there so there may be half the movement. He is so smart, I had not considered that-maybe because we are still not sure there is just one. It is also strange because we had already had several ultrasounds with the boys at this point. Anyway, I am writing in a lot of dashes and and parentheses so I guess that is my clue to close. So what do you the readers think? Boy or girl? Aren't those pictures great of the boys? It so much shows their personalities! What do you think good scrapbook titles would be for them since Darce will be scrapping them soon?

Happy 2009!

2009-01-05T17:09:00.000-08:00

I can't believe another year has gone by. We have been doing a lot of hanging around due to the weather here. I have not seen this much snow and ice in I don't know how long. We had a wonderful Christmas and I will post just a few pictures. Of course the boys were more concerned with the boxes rather than opening their gifts. We expected that so we did not get them anything too exciting. They do love their tickle me Cookie monster and Ernie from Grandma and Grandpa Greene and their instruments from Uncle Greg, Aunt Natalie, Jett and Brayden.

We had a very nice visit with Grandma, Grandpa, and cousin Katherine. They got here a day late after spending a night in Denver because of the weather and their luggage didn't make it here for like another 5 days. We are glad they came and luckily they had an uneventful trip back home.

Since the weather was horrible we were unable to do a little get away. We did however get away for an evening. We saw the movie Marley and Me. Okay, so bring a box of tissue. It was a tear jerker. I was crying so hard and trying not to boo hoo so loud that I almost made myself sick. I had read the book years ago and I think we had either just gotten Harp or were in the process, anyway, it was so us. Let's just say the couple gets married, gets a dog, and then has kids. Unfortunately, dogs don't live as long as we would like and I will leave it at that. We had a wonderful conversation afterwards over a tremendous dinner and it was a great night. I have to add two more things about why the movie was so much our lives. 1). Harper was almost a Marley due to Bob Marley but we opted for Ben Harper because that is who we were listening to when we were dating. 2). Harper ate a diaper that morning we went to see the movie much like Marley did. (Okay, so 3 things) 3). The family was two boys and a little girl-(sigh). The Grandparents also watched the boys on New Years Eve for us while we attended a party at the neighbors. It had been a long time since we were up that late.

Speaking of #3, I had a doctor's appointment right before Christmas. When he went to examine me his first words were why are you so big? That is not really what I wanted to hear. He then went over my previous pregnancy and realized oh you had twins do you know if this is another multiple pregnancy? I said no, I was hoping you would be able to tell me. He then listened for the heartbeat several times and said they were all a couple of beats apart every time. -This still does not define anything because the boys were always less than 5 beats apart the whole pregnancy. He said my weight looks good-something I like to hear- I have only gained 2 pounds. He said he thinks it is just one but only an ultrasound could tell. We then discussed that we could do an ultrasound but that I already have the anatomical one scheduled for the end of this month. So what is another month? We then also discussed VBAC vaginal birth after cesarean which we are still looking into.

While we are on the pregnancy topic let me clear up a few things. Unlike my sister we are positive we are going to find out what we are having and have been all along. I am finally feeling better and sometimes forget that I am pregnant with two little ones running around. It is so much different the second time around. The kids will have 2 years between them and to just answer this right away I am not even thinking about potty training until the baby is here in the world for a while. Last but not least, we-I was not expecting to get pregnant so soon. As you know we waited for 2 long years and needed 10 pills to have the boys and this time-1st month! I know God has a sense of humor and likes to remind me that he is in charge and I need to let him be more. Anyway, I think that clears up all the questions I have been getting. We look forward to seeing the little guy or girl the end of this month. I am sure I will post more on this later because we are really excited to see him or her and start putting a name with the "face." It is so strange to not have seen this baby yet. With the boys we had already had about 3 ultrasounds! I think that is all I have time for now. I am sure I am forgetting something that the boys have done recently or something along those lines because they are definitely keeping us entertained. It seems like they are learning a new word every day! 19 months yesterday, where has time gone?

Boys Will Be Boys.

2008-12-19T16:32:00.000-08:00

I have to keep telling myself that there is a possibility that we will have more weeks like this week. Especially if baby #3 is a boy. Although, from the stories I have heard about Andrew's sisters and getting hurt it may not matter.

The week started out by the boys (well, Gavin) waking up earlier than he had the past two weeks. This is not my idea of a way to start the week. I was getting so used to some alone time before I started the day. I guess I just need to get up earlier. Then that morning (Monday)after getting the boys dressed we went downstairs and were going to play in the family room. Well, I married someone much like my father in that his reply to it is cold is to put on more clothes. So, I got the boys downstairs and then went upstairs to get a sweatshirt. While I was getting a sweatshirt Gavin started crying. I thought great, Drew has taken something away from him or he has tripped over something. Nope, I wish that were the case. I came down to Drew standing at the gate with a stocking weight in his hand. I went around the corner and saw Gavin screaming and blood running down his head. Needless to say, I panicked. He had a pretty good gash on top of his forehead but as with head wounds it was just bleeding profusely. I then felt horrible because I thought I had them taped down and up high enough that they could not reach. No, Gavin had the jingle bell from the toe of his stocking still clutched in his little palm. At least that way I knew that he pulled it over on his own head and that Drew just tampered with the evidence. Gav calmed quite easily and we got a band aide on it and two band aides later the bleeding stopped.

The next day we spent a wonderful meal at Olive Garden for my birthday. That was the only way I could get Andrew there even though I have been craving their salad for the last month. The boys were delightful for their first real restaurant experience and we went home happy and stuffed. Harper got a little excited and knocked Drew down on the stairs while he was still in his puffy winter jacket and he did a face plant into the stairs. He had a pretty good bruise the next day on his cheek.

Then for the emergency room injury. Thursday Drew got up early from his nap which one of them seemed to do all week. We were enjoying a snack as we were sitting on the couch. He fell off the couch backwards and hit his head on the coffee table. The impact split his upper ear wide open. I could tell right away that we needed to seek medical attention. I quickly woke up Gavin and got them all bundled up (it has been snowy and cold this week as well.) We loaded in the van and called Daddy. We first tried to go to a clinic that was just around the corner from our house. -A different one that turned us away 15 minutes before closing time with Gavin. They also turned us away saying that a plastic surgeon may want to stitch him up so his ear will not be deformed or badly scarred. So the nurse helped me load up again so we could head to the ER. Andrew met us there, thank goodness, and they saw us rather quickly. I called my dad crying and asking him to say a little prayer because I was afraid of being reported. He reassured me that they know what to look for and everything was going to be all right- I have a great Dad! The only problem we had at the ER was that the staff kept walking in and asking which one was hurt due to the bandage on Gavin's head. They glued him up and we found out that he actually had split open the front and the back and was very lucky that it did not cut all the way through. They told us they would see us again because boys will be boys. Oh boy! Or as my Grandma would say boy oh!

Here is a shot of Drew we got today where you can see his ear. We didn't want to get too close because it is not very pretty. His bruise is on the cheek that you can't see.

I came down stairs the other day after chasing Gavin from downstairs to hear the sound of a man's voice. This is what I found. He actually pulled the chair over and started a sermon we had on the desktop. I guess he needed to hear some preachin' that morning.

Gavin is doing his Santa impression. Mommy thought they were handling their spoons pretty well so she gave them a new kind of yogurt. Needless to say it was a little less thick than the stuff we were using before. They had fun though afterwards drawing on their trays in the yogurt.

We took this today at the Twice and Thrice Christmas party(the twins group here). Gavin was not going anywhere near Santa unless Mommy was with him. Drew did really well and we luckily did not have another Easter Bunny experience. We are looking forward to a relaxing week with Daddy home all week and Grandma and Grandpa Greene and Katherine coming on Monday.

Happy 5 years, my love. 5 years ago you made my dreams come true. I love you more and more everyday!

So I haven't blogged in a while. . .

2008-12-12T13:35:00.000-08:00

This might explain why I have not posted in so long . . .

As you can see we are all in shock after waiting two LONG years with the twins. If that does not make it clear maybe this will . . .

. . . coming the end of June 2009.

3 kids 2 and under.

3 in diapers!

If I would have been this sick with the boys we may have just had 2!

Unlike my sister we HAVE to know. We will hopefully find out in mid Feb.

More later but right now I need a nap!

Is it Spring yet?

2008-11-19T14:03:00.000-08:00

I am already ready for Spring and the weather has not even been bad here. The boys just love being outside and it has not been ideal for them to be out. It would also be nice if we had a fence so we could all relax outside-hint hint, my wonderful husband.

So I have been telling the grandparents that I would post some video and this is the best we have. The boys are on the go all the time now and we were trying to keep it short for the blog and it just was not working. We try to keep it short so we don't loose past posts-if anyone knows how to avoid this please share your knowledge. We did get some cute footage of dancing to some marching band music-Gav has got some moves, but either Harp was barking or Drew was mad or Gavin was pounding on some metal bowls and you could not hear anything. So this is the best we have. They have identified some of their body parts for a while but I have just not tried to get it on video. Drew was not having anything to do with performing on this day he just wanted to sit on my lap but of course he is "talking" through the whole thing. I know I have talked about his obsession with lights and now you can hear just a glimpse of what I am talking about. Gavin would also not do anything without his pacey that day. So here it is.

Speaking of pacey the boys have also been working on following instructions. We are trying to just let Gavin have his pacey in his bed, but it is not going so well. When we leave their room I always have him put his pacey in bed. He usually obliges and we are on our way. The other day he was just not cooperating. He stood there testing me probably wondering what I would do if he did not put his pacey in the bed. I told him twice and was about to take action, but Drew took care of it. He pulled the pacey out of Gav's mouth threw it in his bed (the one Gav was sleeping in that week) and made his way out the door. I did not realize that he was catching on to the directions that I was giving Gavin to do. I had never told him to put anything in bed but he obviously knew the routine and was ready to move on. It amazes me what little sponges they are! I hope we are having them soak up the right things-that is my prayer!

Tagged

2008-11-06T08:16:00.000-08:00

Jodie tagged me a while back and I am just getting around to posting about it. The tag is to blog about the 4th picture in your fourth file. I had it pretty easy because we have not had our computer for very long.

This was just the beginning of Drew's climbing in things. He now has moved onto bigger things. He loves to get in the cabinet that you can kind of see in the picture and his truck toy box. It is nice that they are playing a little more independently now. The only problem is they are a little clingy right now. Especially Drew, it could be due to the fact that he has been suspended from the church nursery for biting so he rarely leaves my side, or the fact that he is cutting 4 teeth (again). It is so neat to see them grow. They seem to be adding words to their vocabulary everyday! Anyway, the people I am tagging are Darce, Sue, Beth, and Natalie. Thanks, Jodie.

On another note, we have been playing catch up here. While Darce was here Andrew was in Europe for work for 10 long days. Then, Gavin woke up the night after Andrew got back with the stomach flu. It was so sad because he had no idea what was going on and looked at me as if to say, "Mommy, fix it!" That was Wed. night. Friday (Halloween) Andrew came home with the stomach bug. Drew had it Sat. and I had it Sunday. It was not the best of weekends. So, needless to say I feel so behind. So, here are some of the few pictures that I have from Halloween:

I know it is kind of hard to tell but of course they are frogs. Greene frogs. So where is my true love to turn me back into a prince?

Thanks for reading!

Busy Week

2008-10-25T13:01:00.000-07:00

Before we went to the airport to pick up our guests, we went to a pumpkin patch with a mom's group. The boys played with some toys they had there, they walked a little in the hay bale maze, and took a hayride to pick our pumpkins. We also saw some farm animals they had there and had a sweet snack. The boys had a great time, but Mom was exhausted! Keeping up with the boys is tiring. They seem to be going in opposite directions most of the time now.
Straight from the pumpkin patch we went to pick up Aunt Darcy and cousin Adie. They overall had a great flight and were glad to be on land. We showed them around the house and let them adjust to the time change the first evening.
Tues. we went for a walk and kind of just hung out and Gavin and I went to my women's Bible study. Wednesday, we went shopping and to the mall in the morning and then just played around the house in the afternoon. Darce braved watching all 3 of them while I went to our small group. Thurs. morning we ran around again (Costco and Wal-mart). We had a babysitter lined up for Thurs. night so Darcy and I could go play bunco, but there was a propane leak so we were unable to play.
Friday morning we went to a gymnastics facility with another mom's group and the kids played. We then went out to dinner and hung out with some of my friends last night. Today we are just kicking back and taking it easy because there has not been a night where everyone slept all night. Last night was really bad for the Greene boys.
I need to add some of the pictures with the boys and Adie but it is going to have to wait because I need a nap. Darce put a new program on our computer and I am still trying to get the hang of it so, I don't know how to add any more pictures right now. We plan on going for a walk later at a park so maybe we can get some good ones there. Hope you have a great weekend and have had a great week. I know we have, it has gone so fast!
Never mind I figured it out and added pictures!

Hello, Grandma?

2008-10-14T13:17:00.000-07:00

Thank you, Grandma, we love our phones! We talked on them for over an hour when Mommy gave them to us. She was able to make dinner without having to step over toys in the kitchen. Drew walks around talking on speaker phone while Gavin prefers the conventional way. Thank you so much! Now whenever Mommy gets on the phone so can we!

Grandma also got us some Vol outfits and we can finally fit in them, but we really did not want our picture taken. We were just not having it. (I think they knew the vols were not going to win). Maybe we will try again. It is funny they get so much attention around here in these bright orange outfits. It is not like in TN where everyone is sporting their obnoxious orange this time of year. It kind of stands out here.

The pictures are not that great but entertaining to go through. Can you think of a caption for these?

I thought of one for Drew's "How could I see that and the refs could not?"

Maybe one for Crompton (Is that how you spell it?) "This is a football, dude. You are playing Division 1, surely you can hand it off!"

I am sure you all can think of some better ones!

We have a busy schedule next week so I will hopefully have some pictures to post. Have a great week!

What's new?

2008-09-24T16:15:00.000-07:00

We are trying to adapt to just one nap a day. Just when I think they have it, they fall asleep and mess up the rest of the day. I know that sounds a little too structured, but when you have two, you really rely on a break during the day and the only way that happens is if they nap at the same time. The boys are also working on some more teeth, so that too upsets everything. Gavin is working on a front tooth and a molar and Drew is working on like 2 molars. So, we have had some interrupted nights which also messes with their schedules. Enough about that. I should not complain because they are sleeping from about 8:00 at night until 7:00 in the morning and taking at least a two hour nap sometime during the day.

So, they get up around 7:00 and 7:30 if I am lucky. I try to run on Tues. and Thurs. so that gives me just enough time to get a shower before Andrew has to leave at 7. If I am lucky they will sleep until 7:30 and I can get Harper fed and get things ready for breakfast and get dressed while they still sleep. Then they have a sippy cup full of warm milk while I get their breakfast ready. They love french toast with butter, waffles, and just recently cereal. Sometimes I can get them to have some egg. That whole process and clean up takes about an hour. Then they get dressed and another diaper change (they usually have a dirty diaper at this time) and then we either clean, they play in their room, or we have to head out somewhere. They are really getting good at playing by themselves now, so sometimes I can sneak in some house work while they play. Gavin loves to play with hats and Drew loves to jump in the pictures now. I promise that is not dust on the end table it is a glare!

11:00 is time to start lunch. They are great eaters and except when their teeth are really bothering them they will eat pretty much whatever I put in front of them. They love PB &Jelly sandwiches, quesadillas, and yes, mac and cheese is still their favorite. These are just a few of our lunch favorites of course served with a veggie and a fruit. Then it is time for another diaper change and nap time around 12:30 or 1:00 if they have not fallen asleep earlier. Hopefully they will sleep for at least 2 hours. This gives me some time to get some things done and sometimes if I am lucky scrapbook. I am about to post the first page that I have sewn on and that I am actually liking.

I will have to go back and read some of Darcy's pointers on taking pictures of pages. The boys were just waking up from a nap when I finished, so this was the best I could do.

Then when they wake up it is hopefully after 3 so it is snack time. Okay, so this is what I am excited to share about. I know I am probably not the only one who uses this idea because I actually stole it from church. I help out in the nursery and I am always amazed at how well the kids do during snack time. So, I adapted it for our use. This is a picture of where I keep the snack blanket. Gavin when he hears the word snack goes to the closet. Drew followed because he loves to be in pictures.

I then give them their snacks in a little cup on the blanket. They know to stay seated on the blanket and if they get up snack is over. Ten, I just pull up the blanket and shake out the crumbs outside. It is great! The coolest part is I really didn't have to teach them anything, they learned it all at church!

After snack it is play time. Here they are sitting at their table and chairs that they got from Grandpa and Grandma Susie for their first birthday and I am just now posting them sitting at it. They love to play in their room.

After that, play time and I pray that time will pass quickly and Daddy comes home quickly. The boys eat and then we eat and then it is time to get them ready for bed. That is a day in our life. There are times when of course things change. Like today for instance we went and picked apples with a mom's group and now Gavin is sleeping and Drew is playing. So, everyday is definitely not the same. It is exciting to see them grow. Drew loves to say uh-oh and Gavin loves to say hi. It is amazing how much they pick up, they are little sponges. Gavin talks constantly and we are still trying to figure out what he is saying. Drew is becoming quite the climber and is still such a people person. Thanks for reading about us, I would love to read comments or suggestions of things that work for other moms. Have a great day!

The Beach- A Big Sandbox

2008-09-15T20:44:00.000-07:00

When we were little Mom and Dad recorded us, yes with a cassette tape. This was long before the days of video cameras readily available and CDs. We enjoyed listening to them as we were growing up and Dad always threatened us with embarrassment by playing them for our friends. In one of the recordings, we had gone to the public beach at Milford (for those of you that don't know it is not much of a beach, but it was big to us). Dad asked Greg where we had gone that day and Greg referred to the beach as a "a big sandbox." That saying stuck in our family and anytime we talk about a beach we would then say a big sandbox.

The boys and I (all 3 of them) went to Cannon Beach, Oregon this weekend. It was the boys' first trip to the ocean and first time playing in any sand. I think they were a little over whelmed-at first. Drew loved the sand and the water and we had a hard time keeping him out of both. Gavin was not so sure he would just stand there and cry after he was in it for a while he would warm up to it but I had to be right there with him. He didn't like that he could not walk very well in it. The water he hated, but so did I because it was freezing! That did not stop Drew and Andrew. Andrew actually body surfed. I guess Drew did too but not on purpose.

This one of Drew was right before he got drenched. If you click on it to enlarge he is making his
mad face. He was not happy we were trying to keep him out of the waves. The other one of the three of us was typical of our beach time. Me holding Gavin and drew playing in the sand. At one point he was making sand angels face down. I guess that is one way to learn not to eat sand. Especially when you have a running nose. What a mess!

Isn't this a great picture of Gavin? That rock is called Haystack rock behind him. We had a great view of it from our hotel.

We had a great time and the boys were great despite all the sand and snot. Did I mention it was cold? We got a lot of great pictures that you may see some day in your mailbox, and a lot of others that I will have to hang on our wall. It helps when you have cute little models and a beautiful backdrop.

I started with a story about Greg so I will dedicate this picture to Greg. Yes, Uncle Greg I am looking at an airplane. I don't know how he learned how to do this, but he does it every time he hears one. We never showed him one or anything but he points now and looks for it every time.

Where did last week go?

2008-09-03T15:12:00.000-07:00

Tuesday was a long day for the Greenes. I had a tooth extraction in the morning and of course they were running late. Andrew had 2 fillings in the afternoon and of course they were running late. So, Andrew and I were in some discomfort and so Andrew decided to cut his hair and while he was at it Gavin's. Poor Gavin has been called a girl three times now and Andrew was having nothing to do with that, not to mention his hair was getting a little out of control on top. So, he shaved it . . .

Before

and after

Daddy and Gavin with matching hairdos!

I have to admit it was hard to see his beautiful red hair falling, but I saved it for his first hair cut in his baby book. He was strutting around as we were telling him how handsome he looked and I noticed that our new patio furniture had some sharp corners. I should have gone with my mommy intuition. Not even five minutes after I had that thought he tripped and hit the corner just under his eye. It was like the Brayden fiasco all over. (He fell on Darcy's coffee table while I was home visiting in May and cut his eye in the same place and had to get some stitches.) He bled and cried, but only for a little while-his new hair cut must have made him tough. So, we packed up to go to a clinic just down the road. This was about 7 o'clock and we new the place was open until 8. So, we get there and I am a mess thinking about my poor baby's face and the possible scar and they tell us they just took their last patient. It is 7:15 aren't you open until 8? Yes, but we take our last patient at 7:15. Can you not see he is bleeding? So, they tell us that the emergency room has this new program yada yada yada. We get back in the car and Andrew insists we just go to Walgreens and fix it up ourselves. I am on pain killers and have not eaten since the morning and I am upset about my baby's face. We get the stuff and I am still not convinced we don't need to go to the emergency room. When we get home we agree to see our neighbor who is a physician's assistant and see what she thinks. Well, she says she has everything we need because her 2 year old just did something similar a couple of weeks ago, so she had brought some stuff home from the office. She fixed him up with Andrew's help-I had to go play with the kids because I was feeling a little queasy and needed another pain killer. So here is the after, the next morning.

The moral of the story is trust your mommy instinct and now we know about the 8 o'clock closing at 7:15 at all the clinics in the area. Something I will have to take a note of as the mom of 2 boys because I am sure we will be back! Also, neighbors are great-we have definitely had some great ones!

You may ask what is Drew up to? Well, Drew is Drew and that will just have to be anther post!

Sorry it is a little blurry. We are all healing and doing fine and it is Wednesday already of the next week! Where has the week gone?

Lil Vols

2008-08-21T21:32:00.001-07:00

We are back home after a great trip to Tennessee. Andrew is starting them early at Neyland Stadium (Home of the Vol's football team for those of you that are not from TN). I know Drew looks like a thug here with his hat and band aide. I leave him alone with Daddy for 2 days and look what happens. Actually they both have bumps and bruises from learning how to walk-that is all they want to do now!

We had a great time with friends and family. It was a great trip. We got home and I realized this was the only picture we (Andrew) took.

We are finally back into the swing of things now and back on this time zone. Now we are wondering what are we going to do now that the Olympics are over. Well, the boys have answered that. They are everywhere. Drew has figured out that he can climb up on the couch now and get into things that I didn't think he could reach. Gavin loves pushing things. I don't know how many times he has re-arranged the chairs and bar stools in the kitchen. He also loves to push the stroller, we got some great footage of this with Michelle at the park but it takes so much memory to put video on I could put it on if I get enough requests, but I won't if I don't.

Anyway, I hear Gavin stirring upstairs so I guess I better get him a snack after his nap. I will try to take some more recent pictures, it seems like they are changing everyday! Thanks for reading!

Happy Birthday, Grandpa

2008-07-31T21:31:00.000-07:00

We are walking! Well, kind of. We look like we have had a couple too many but we are doing it! We started on Grandpa Bean's birthday. Happy birthday, Grandpa. Wish we could show off in person but this will have to do. Thank you for watching. I will have to get some more footage of Gavin. They are walking just in time for our trip to TN!

Dog Days of Summer!

2008-07-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

When Sandee (Grandma) was here a couple of weeks ago, we heard a strange noise upstairs while the boys were playing. I called for Harper and I heard a commotion and he would not come. I called again and I heard more noise, so I went up and investigated. This is what I found.

Needless to say he got caught in the "cookie jar". He loves paper towels and Kleenexes and apparently he got more than he bargained for. He was very confused because whenever he moved it would sway and he could not figure out how to get through the door.. Now that I think about it he has not tried to get anything out of that trashcan since this escapade.

Drew has had this fascination with getting in things lately. I have missed a couple of good photo opportunities of him getting in clothes baskets, laundry baskets, drawers, and boxes. One of his favorite places to get in is the drawer on the bottom of the oven. Well, he invited his buddy yesterday.

I don't know what it was yesterday, but they were everywhere together.

Yes, this is Gavin pushing his brother in the Hippo. Drew was sitting down and riding, but when I went to get the camera he stood up and rode it like a scooter.

Through the view finder of the camera I realized the gate was not up and they were playing with this right by the stairs. Rest assured the gate went up right after I snapped the photo. Their socks also came off for better traction.

I have two exciting pieces of news!

#1) The boys are walking or trying to walk. They love to hold on to our fingers and walk everywhere, but recently have let go. Drew has taken as many as 10 steps (well, running steps) and Gavin has decided he wants to learn to stand before he takes off. So he can get up without holding onto anything and then when he goes to take off he falls and then gets back up and does the whole routine again. So, I have a feeling they will be walking very soon and just in time for the other piece of news.

#2) The Greenes are heading to Tennessee! We will be arriving in Knoxville on Sat. the 9th of Aug. and driving to JC for a long weekend. So, we would love to see as many people as possible so email me if you would like to see us so we can set up a time and place. We are really excited to show off our handsome young men and see some friends we haven't seen the past year.

I think that about does it for now, if I figure out how to put videos on here, I will put on some great footage of the boys walking. Hope to hear from you soon!

Sleepless in Seattle

2008-07-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

We made our first adventure to Seattle this past weekend. We had a really good time during the day, but two one year olds in a hotel room is not the most enjoyable in a getaway weekend. The boys were great during the day, they just didn't want to sleep because they were afraid they might miss something. It was sure nice to have Grandma with us for the extra set of hands.

I guess Gavin did a lot of sleeping when we were out and about so he ended up missing a lot. He slept at pretty much everywhere we went. So, most of our pictures are of Drew and then Gavin sleeping. Needless to say Drew has been pretty grumpy these past few days trying to catch up on sleep, but he got to see a lot. You can see the Space Needle in the background of the picture of Drew and I and the one of Andrew and I. We did get this one shot of Gavin awake and having fun with Daddy. This one is Drew practicing his walking with Grandma on the Pier. We were hoping the boys would start walking while she was here.

We walked a lot on Saturday. We walked along the waterfront. We walked to the Space Needle and then walked back and did some shopping along the way. We stopped at the Adidas store and the boys got a new soccer ball and I got a running skort. We headed back to the hotel for some swimming on the 26th story of our hotel, what a view!

On Sunday, we walked to the Pike Place Market and saw them throw some fish. The flowers were amazing! Drew liked the bronze pig that we took a picture with. He kept eyeing it every time we passed it. At least we did not have an Easter bunny incident. You can even see the fish in the background.Here is a picture of Andrew and the boys. Can you tell Gav just woke up? If you look closely you can see some of the beautiful bouquets.

We then went back to the hotel and packed up and drove to ride the Ducks. The boys and I had never been on one. It was a neat way to see the city and all that was on the water. Gavin slept, of course, but Drew had fun. We even saw the house that they filmed Sleepless in Seattle. It could be yours for only a couple million dollars, it just went on the market. This is another Duck we passed on the water.

- The Greenes, Grandma even got in this do-it-yourself photo. Of course Gavin is asleep. Drew just has his eyes closed.

We then went to a Trader Joe's and then headed home. I had to keep telling myself we live here- this is only 3 and a half hours away. It was a great weekend filled with a lot of memories.

Thank you!

2008-07-08T10:05:00.001-07:00

Thank you to all of you who commented on the last post. It is so nice to know who is reading. It was nice to hear from people I had not heard from in a while and some that I had no idea were reading. Thank you for taking the time to check in on us because sometimes it can be pretty lonely out here and it is nice to hear from a familiar face.

This is one of my favorite pictures of the boys. They were so happy that day and we had so many good pictures to choose from. That is not usually the case for those of you that have ever tried to photograph twins. Thank goodness for digital photography! They are growing and learning so fast.

I was a bad mom and have no pictures from the 4th. We went to a church picnic and had a neighborhood party so I did not have time to grab a camera. Thankfully, Grandma was here so I was actually able to grab some food and talk to some people. We did find out that Drew does not like fireworks, but Gavin slept with them literally right outside his window.

Since I have no 4th pictures and still no pictures of the backyard, I will post some that I forgot on the last post. I guess I didn't really forget them, I finished the first one the day I blogged and the other I did forget and when I remembered the boys were asleep so I could not take a picture.

I love this verse and I love to have a reminder of it. I was sure using it when I was running the half marathon! Right now it is in our guest room eventually it will be in my craffice. (What is a craffice? It is a word I made up for my craft room/ office. I should wickepedia it see if I am the first.) I originally painted the canvas and Andrew thought it needed something so he tweaked it. It is the first thing he has painted for me since we have been married. (He used to paint and draw a lot and he is very talented.) I take it back he did a clock tower once in Charleston on the paper tablecloth while we were waiting in a restaurant. Which is a great reminder that I am still trying to figure out how to frame it. Okay, enough of that rabbit trail.

This other picture is of the canvases in the boys' room. The ones of the circles and stripes I did a long time ago and thought I would touch some places up. I should have left them alone because I had semi gloss paint this time-same color just a different finish. Whoops- I don't know how long it will be until I get to fix that mistake. The other canvas is a constant reminder of how blessed we are. I have people tell us all the time "double trouble" and I respond that we prefer to say, "doubly blessed."

Is Anyone out there?

2008-06-30T12:48:00.001-07:00

I am not really doing this blog to get more and more people to read it, but it would be nice to sometimes know that it is being read. I get people that tell me all the time, "well, I read on your blog . . " It is not a lot of work to keep this up, and I would probably still do it if no one was reading but sometimes just a "thank you for the recent pictures" or "they are growing so fast," would be nice. If you want to correct my spelling or grammar that would be fine too, although you may have to remind me that I asked for that. It is really simple to do, all that you have to do is click on comments and then type what you want to say and you can click on anonymous if you don't have a sign in (but be sure to leave your name in the comments). This goes for you too, Grandparents. It would just be nice to get some feedback. You don't have to comment every time you read but once in a while would be nice.

Okay, enough of that, I will stop criticizing my readers because I do appreciate you reading.

There is not much going on here. We are getting ready for Grandma Greene to come this weekend. I have been taking some time for myself which means doing things that I think are fun around the house. Like sewing, painting and decorating. so I will post some of my recent projects.

This is some of the Uppercase Living lettering that I got at my party. The "Faith, Hope and Love" is on what I call our dust catcher. The "One day at a time", is a phrase that I had to have because it was something we said a lot with Mom's illness. I hope to paint that hutch black soon. I made the curtains a couple of months ago for the sliding doors. The pillow was something I did while messing around with some cloth napkins and my sewing machine. I made another one just like it (I had 4 napkins) and I made the pillow behind the embroidered pillow a couple of months ago. I have one more thing that is not quite finished. Andrew finished it last night and the paint has to dry really well before I put the lettering on. It is nice to have the boys taking decent naps and I can't clean all the time! I still have not taken pictures of the back yard yet because we are not finished and it is so stinkin' hot here-105 degrees today! So, hopefully soon we will finish and get some pictures taken!

I will close with a picture of Drew and then one of both of the boys. Drew loves to climb. Of course he had to take everything out before he could get in. They tend to do this a lot lately. We are ready for the phase that Jett and Bray are going through when they like to clean.

Anxious!

2008-06-24T08:40:00.000-07:00

Our church has been doing a series on anxiety. I don't know why I have felt so anxious since we have moved here. I know it is something that is a true temptation for me. Last Sunday pastor Dave pointed out that the Bible specifically says, "BE ANXIOUS ABOUT NOTHING". That is pretty clear on top of being a command. What he also pointed out was that anxiety and worry is a lack of faith. Jesus says a couple of times in the Bible, "O you of little faith." The times he said that was because the people he was talking to were showing their lack of faith by worrying and not trusting in Jesus. Peter walking on the water, when the disciples thought they had nothing to eat, and the disciples again during the storm while Jesus was asleep on the boat. All of those times were examples of not trusting in Him to take care of their basic needs. Everyone knows the verse about not worrying because he even cares for the birds and the grass. He even knows the number of hairs on our head. He is going to take care of our bodies and our minds. I have never really worried about my body as much as I have started being worried about the boys'. I have worried about their bodies and minds. Are they getting enough sleep, tummy time, nutrition? (the list goes on) Sunday was a great reminder that God created them and I need not worry, He is going to take care of them. That does not mean I am going to let them fend for themselves right now, but he has entrusted me to do what I think is best for them. Worrying is not going to help any of us. In fact, me worrying is not a good example to them or for them. I took this picture because I thought it was cute but then I started wondering if I am projecting my anxiousness on them?

Anyway, I think truly they just liked the light in the oven. The same verse that talks about being anxious about nothing also says-GIVE THANKS IN EVERYTHING. So, I want to give thanks for these beautiful boys and the chocolate chip cookies we enjoyed. Also, for an oven that does not get hot on the outside while it is baking.

I wanted to post a picture of our back yard which is being worked on even at this moment, but I will wait until it is finished. There I go again being anxious. So, you will just have to stay tuned to see that.

On a lighter note, I have been pretty serious on that last 2 posts. When I was pregnant those of you who were around me or that I talked to often knew that I could not get enough mac-n-cheese. Sometimes I would have it 3 times a day. I craved the stuff. Andrew thinks that is why Gavin has red hair. Seriously, I could not get enough if I would have been swimming in it. Well, I wondered if the boys would have a strong like or dislike because of all that I ate. Well, it turns out they have a strong LIKE for it. It is their favorite meal. I used to make it with sauteed squash and zucchini when I was spoon feeding them and they would eat so much it would almost make them sick. Well now that they are picking up their own food. . . Well, I think they picture says enough.

I could not decide which picture to use. I especially like the thumbs up in the one, but the cheese in the eyebrows is great in the other one. Now that I have shown 2 pictures of Gavin, let me tell a story about Drew. Drew has been waving for a while now, but it would take some coaxing. Yesterday as we were walking through Costco, Drew started waving at everyone. Most of you have heard me say that the one thing I was not prepared for when I has twins even though I was warned was how it takes longer to get anywhere when you are out in public. People are always asking you questions or wanting to tell you about twins they know. Well, now Drew -I guess has come to like the attention because now he is bringing it on. I don't know how many times I heard, "look, he is waving -oh look there are two. They are so cute!" Apparently, Drew would catch some one's eye and then start waving. I do have to admit, they are cute! I think Drew is going to be like his uncle Greg and be able to talk to a wall or like his Grandpa Garvin and go up to strangers and ask for a bite of what is on their plate. I guess I am just going to have to plan for even more extra time on our outings.

Blessed

2008-06-17T08:23:00.000-07:00

I was running this beautiful morning and realized just how blessed I was. I have a wonderful husband who is a terrific father (Happy 2nd Father's Day, Andrew). He provides so much for our family and especially for me. He is my rock!
Then I came home and the boys were up early and the kitchen was a mess and I was just feeling overwhelmed and said okay God, I guess Satan is trying to tempt me into having a bad day and calling Andrew and complaining. So we are going to have to get through this together because I know I can't do it alone. Then, I got online while the boys were eating their breakfast and read a wonderful email from a counselor from the school I used to teach at who also has twin boys. Her boys are 16 now and I started thinking ahead and started getting overwhelmed again.
Then I started reading through my usual blogs. I don't think I have mentioned it but a college friend of mine, Beth, noted a blog on her blog about a family who really needed some prayer. You can read up on them on his blog, but a long story short. The wife of the man who writes the blog has cystic fibrosis. She has really been struggling after the premature birth of their daughter and then she (the mom) had a double lung transplant. Well, if that is not enough, she has just been diagnosed with post transplant lymphoma. Yes, cancer after all that they have been through. It is amazing after all this they are still praising the Lord. They are truly inspiring when it comes to their faith. Then, I realized how shallow I was thinking about how awful it was that my kitchen was a mess and the boys were up early! I am so blessed that they are here and they are "safe and sound." Nathan's re-post of a video clip he did makes me cry every time I watch it. (Listen to me talk like I know him, all I know is that he is a brother in Christ).

http://cfhusband.blogspot.com/

It was posted for Father's day so it was a couple of posts ago.

I realized by listening to the words how blessed we are to be children of God where we are also safe and sound. I hope I can live up to being the kind of parent that God would want me to be and to keep my children safe and sound. I also know that I can not do it with out Him. Anyway, I know that was kind of all over the place and I hope that it kind of made sense. I just feel led to share their amazing story and what I am learning from it. I hope you will also gain something from their story as I have and also keep them in your prayers.

Birthday Party Take Two

2008-06-09T14:58:00.000-07:00

Get it? Their second party and there are two of them? Okay, so I am stretching a bit. We had a birthday party at our house for friends, neighbors, and some of Andrew's co-workers. Gavin was a pro. He ate the cake like he has been doing it his whole one year. Drew decided he didn't need his hands he would just avoid the middle man and just eat the cake. They had a great time and so did we.

Sunday we went to a local park and took some shots of the boys. They were loving the sunshine and all the attention they were getting because they were so cute. This is a sneak peak of some of the pictures we took. They got the sunglasses from our JC neighbors Mark and Linda. Gavin loves his. He wore them all the way home. He knows he looks good.

This last shot is a picture I took of Drew the other day. He has become quite the climber. The other day I heard some shrieking and I was in their room with Gavin and Drew escaped to the bathroom. He was scared to death because he had climbed up on the stool I use to sit on when they take a bath and could not figure out how to get down. I know this is just the beginning. They also enjoy climbing on the hippo that Aunt Darce and Uncle Darin got Gavin for Christmas. Except the hippo is supposed to pick up blocks when you push it and so they keep getting their feet and legs caught and can't figure out how to get out. I would take a picture but they freak out when they can't get out. Well, I guess I am done because Gavin is pushing the Hippo away from Drew and he is in hot pursuit fussing all the way. I just read that they don't know how to share yet and that is truly the case. They do know how to take things from each other and will get frustrated and try to bite! I know it has only just begun!

Happy Birthday, boys!

2008-06-05T10:16:00.001-07:00

The boys had a great first birthday! We started off the day by seeing their photo on the news. Here is the link.

http://www.kndu.com/Global/story.asp?S=4706062&nav=menu484_11_5

I think you may have to click on Wednesday, June 4th birthdays.

Since we have moved to WA, Andrew has had this fascination with the birthdays played daily on the local news. He watches everyday. So we sent the boys' picture in. We almost forgot and he came running down the stairs and said "birthdays!".

We then had a party and baby dedication with our small group. We were gone when the church had their baby dedication service so our group prayed for us as parents and our boys. The boys enjoyed their carrot cake cupcake. I thought Drew would be the one to chow down but it was Gavin. He ate the whole thing. He loved it! Drew held his own on the cake eating though too as you can see.

After cake, they boys crashed. Too much sugar and too much birthday!

Happy Birthday, Linda! Can you believe it has been a year?

On and interesting side note, some friends of ours had a baby boy on the boys' birthday. I was supposed to be in their wedding a year ago but it was on the boys' due date and in IN so travel was not feasible. They named him Gavin and he was same weight as our Gavin. He was a 1/2 in taller but his parents are much taller than Andrew and I. Welcome Gavin Douglas Maiden!

What a month!

2008-05-29T11:04:00.001-07:00

We are finally back home! We have had quite an adventure the last couple of weeks. Andrew and I completed our mini marathon and had a great time doing it. You can see Darce and Natalie's blogs to get more details and pictures. It actually felt better than I thought it would. There is another thing we can cross off of our list. I also saw a friend I used to teach with so it was nice to catch up with her. She and her husband also ran the mini.

We did a lot of playing with cousins. We were there for cousin Jett's 3rd birthday and cousin Adie's first birthday. I had lunch with a high school friend. We saw our mom and dad's best friends aka "the gang". We had a campfire with my mom's family at my cousin's house. My college friend Sue even drove over from Ohio and spent the night with us. In other words, the boys got to meet and see a lot of people who helped make me the person that I am and have been very influential in my life. It was nice to just spend time with family even though it was stressful at times. Between the stitches, my kids having a biting problem, and some fevers here and there it was a very wonderful trip. We made it back in one piece and now we are trying to settle down.

We made our first trip to the emergency room yesterday. The boys had not been themselves since we had gotten back and both had a case of diarrhea. Well, yesterday when Gavin woke up from his nap he could not hold his head up. It scared me to death. He had a fever the night before so I was panicked. At the ER we found out he had an ear infection and bronchiolitis. Now Drew has been running a fever so we are going to take him to the Dr. this afternoon. Between the time difference and being sick, I have not had a full nights sleep in like 2 months. I realized how spoiled I was before. They are also cutting two teeth each so they have been pretty cranky. They did sleep in until 8 this morning so I got to sleep in too.

We had a really nice visit with Aunt Michelle and cousin Katherine. It was very nice to have an extra set of hands for the week and catch up with them. Drew learned to sign more this week so he has been very entertaining with that. They both have found a love for climbing the stairs so it was nice to have someone else be able to follow them up. We miss them already. Andrew, Katherine, and Michelle went for a day hike a couple of hours a way where they took this picture.

We are now gearing up and trying to get everyone well for their birthday parties this week. We had hoped they would take their first steps before then but I think we are going to have to wait a while for that. They are crawling fast enough to get into enough trouble. Speaking of trouble, they are sleeping so I better get some things done. I hope to post later this week for their birthday!

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

2008-04-25T07:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Grandma Greene! We love you!

It's in the Genes or should I say Jeans?

2008-04-23T09:31:00.000-07:00

Gavin must have read about cousin Adie and her pantlessness(I think I just typed a Darcy word because spell check denied it). I was getting Drew dressed the other day and I turned around and he was waving them over his head and he was so excited as if to say "Look what I did" because of course I had just put them on him. Silly boy! It must be in the genes. Can't wait to swap ideas with you, Adelyn.

Busy Boys

2008-04-23T08:42:00.000-07:00

The Greene boys have been busy since last time I blogged. Let's start with the oldest. Andrew was home for almost 2 weeks and we enjoyed having him home with us. He got so much done on the yard and hauled a ton (literally) of rock. He also planted several trees. (I didn't know how expensive trees were because we had trees in TN). Then, with the help of some wonderful friends he got the sod down. So now we have grass and by the time we get back from IN we will be able to play on it! We still have some more landscaping to do and put in the fence and then even Harp will finally be able to enjoy the back yard.

While Andrew was off we also went to Walla Walla, WA. It was a nice little town and only and hour away. We took a walking tour of Walla Walla which has some of the oldest houses in WA. The boys also got to go swimming for the first time. They weren't to sure about it at first and then they were splashing and laughing and having a great time.

It was a nice little get away and it was the first time we stayed over night somewhere with the boys. Mom and Dad were exhausted after the little trip.

As far as what the little Greenes are up to, they are moving everywhere. I am having a hard time keeping up with them. Gavin is pulling up on everything. Drew had invented his own form of crawling so he is into everything. He has never liked his belly so he scoots on his butt and somehow uses his feet and arms. He is pretty fast at it. The wood floors help too. He also pulled up the other day and was so proud of himself. I was so proud too. These picture were taken this morning while I was posting.

We are all looking forward to heading to IN next week (wow time flies). I feel like I have a million things to do between now and then so there may not be a posting for a while. I will definitely post pictures from our big trip and Andrew and I at the half marathon. So, I will try to keep you posted (pun intended).

It's official!

2008-04-04T09:24:00.000-07:00

It's official, the boys are 10 months old and we have a crawler! The boys are 10 months old today! Gavin is now crawling EVERYWHERE! He still tends to do the army crawl, but he is getting up on all fours more often. Just yesterday he figured out how to get from crawling to his bottom. So Mommy has to stay on her toes now. I do have to say he is a much more content little boy now that he can go get what he wants. Drew really has no desire to be on his belly. He rolls around to get where he want to go (from belly to back), but he has not put it all together yet. He does like to scoot on his bottom on the kitchen floor (hardwood) to get where he wants to go when he is there. I am really not pushing the issue even though Andrew is. Getting used to chasing one has been hard enough.

There he goes!

These pictures were taken just this morning!

Daddy is going to be home next week so we are excited about that! He does have a big task ahead of him though in the yard so I hope we get to see him some of the break. I took pictures of the pile of rock he has to haul to the back yard wheelbarrow by wheelbarrow to the new flower beds and bean shaped bed around the house. I hope he will break down and rent a tractor. The pile of rock is 2 dump trucks full. That is a lot of rock, I forget how many thousands of pounds. At least the weather is getting better. You can see the new curbing that was done last week.

For those of you that may be curious, Andrew and I both did our 10 miles last Saturday. We ran it separately because it was too cold to take the boys out. That is a long way! I did pretty well except for some reason I got stuck taking Harp and he tripped me on the last mile and I still have the skinned up hands to show for it. At least no one was around to see me fall. Andrew did well up until the last mile too. Now he is dealing with what we think is an IT band issue. He ran today and he said it felt alright but he doesn't really want to push it. I guess I could have added this to the official list. It is officially one month from tomorrow that we run in Indy. Time flies! We only run 7 miles tomorrow. Listen to me ONLY 7. Before this training the most I had ever run was 6.2. It is all downhill from here until the big day! Andrew and I laughed the last time we ran together. He said just think this time last year you could not have even run 6 feet. He was right, I had to laugh at remembering my Fred Flinstone feet that started right about now. Have a blessed weekend!

New toy!

2008-03-28T09:54:00.000-07:00

The boys got a new toy. Andrew's boss let us borrow their bouncer for as long as we need it. The boys love it and I know it will help their leg strength. Right now they try to pull up but they use mostly arms so this should help. It was Drew's turn in the jumper and he had a blast today. He jumped and laughed and played with the propeller. (Uncle Greg would be so proud.) Meanwhile, Gavin is playing while Mommy was sending some pictures to Daddy of the backyard. Harp does not like the jumper so he was using Gavin for protection. Yes, he sat down there. He is really good with them. They play with his ears and pull on him and he just sits there. I think he is ready to play with them now though. He keeps bringing them his toys and jumping around them like come on let's play. I know it won't be too much longer and they will be chasing him and he will probably be hiding from them instead of behind them. So while I am thinking about all that, I look over because I am not hearing the laughing anymore and Drew is asleep. He jumped so much he wore himself out. It was really cute he would bounce and smile and then he would zonk out. Then he would bounce and try so hard to stay awake and then he would sleep. I got some really good video and I can't wait to show daddy. If I would take the time I am sure I could somehow post that video here. I guess the operative word here is time. If I had the time I could do a lot of things. Maybe I should say if I would MAKE the time.

Speaking of time. There are only 5 weeks until the half marathon. We run 10 miles tomorrow so please pray for good weather and strength. What was I thinking when I volunteered to put myself through this? What am I saying Andrew is the one pushing the stroller and keeping Harp under control. Speaking of that I guess I need to go do some yoga and drink some water to prepare for tomorrow while the boys are still asleep. Have a great weekend.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-21T14:22:00.000-07:00

We went to our first Easter Egg hunt last Sunday. The "Twice and Thrice" multiples group had an Easter egg hunt and a visit by the Easter bunny. The boys took and early nap on the way there and slept through part of the party to wake up just in time for the snacks. There was not much for them to eat even though they tried, they had some Mum-mums and stars. Then the Easter Bunny arrived and his outfit was a little small so he could not sit down. This was probably a good thing because, they sat in front of him. All was well until Drew turned around and saw the big white furry thing and he freaked out. The picture is just the beginning of the crying. I wish we had the video camera. I thought for sure if we would have a problem it would be Gavin but he was fine. We did get a couple of good pictures before the melt down.

Then we went outside for the hunt. The boys pretty much just played with the eggs in front of them. I think they really liked being outside and it was their first time on grass. So, they were really good and took another nap on the way home they were so worn out. We had a really good time and got some really cute pictures out of the trip. I only posted a few pictures due to lack of time. Thank you Gramps and Grandma Susie for the pants and jackets and Miss Lori for our shirts.

The washing machine went out and I am expecting the delivery of the new one any minute. I never thought I would be so happy to get and appliance. Those of you with small children know what I am talking about. We have been without it for over a week!

Hope you have a wonderful Easter and remember that He is risen and He went through it all so we can be forgiven and have eternal life. He died even though we don't deserve it and never will but He loves us that much. Having boys, I can not fathom what it could be like to give up your son. I can't imagine watching my son go through something like the Crucifixion and even more for people who don't acknowledge it or take for granted this great act of love. We are so blessed and loved and I hope you feel it this Easter season as we remember the great debt Jesus paid for us with His life and God paid by sending and giving up His Son. Hallelujah He is risen!

I Guess I am It

2008-03-13T15:27:00.001-07:00

I don't know if I have ever played tag with my sister but I guess I am it. Thanks, Darce . . .

The rules are- to quote my sister because I have never heard of this: Rules are:

* Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

* Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names.

* Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So, here we go:

I am currently training for a half marathon. I have never run more than 8 miles which I did two weeks ago in training. I don't like to run, I am not a runner, and for some reason I like to torture myself with running. I do like the runner's high. Growing up running was always a punishment for not doing something right or to get into shape. Now, it is actually something I do for fun-kind of. 13 miles is a long way! We are supposed to run 9 tomorrow and I am praying for rain- I think. I guess that could be another number, I kind of like pain. I know I am weird for that but it doesn't really bother me. I like to push myself to the limit, the threshold. Psychotic, huh?

I got my first real haircut in the second or third grade because a classmate sucked up my hair in the vacuum cleaner at school. I had a haircut appointment that night but we had to take a little more off than expected because of the whole ordeal. It was kind of weird being that close to a vacuum cleaner for so long. It took a while to get out because it was one of those with the brushes so my hair went around and around the brushes. Thanks for the experience, Kurt.

Some one recently pointed out that I tend to make big life changes in threes. I got year older; changed my name (which is big when you are a teacher)and got married (I guess that is pretty big too); and left the country for Europe for the first time, all in the same week. Then recently I quit my job, had babies, and moved across the country to a place I had never been -all within about 2 months.

I love to stay at home. I love the cooking, sewing, and taking care of the house. Not so much the cleaning part of it, but I guess that comes with it. It was what I wanted to be when I grew up. Does that mean I am finally grown up?

Fact number 5-this is getting harder. I hate seafood. I can't get past the smell. Andrew says I am crazy to have some aversion because of getting sick when I was younger on fish once. I wish I liked it because it is so good for you, but I smell it and want to throw up. Just writing this is making my stomach churn.

I have only had 2 cavities in my life. The first when I was 20 and the second when I turned 30. They were both discovered right around those birthdays too. I am fortunate because I take horrible care of my teeth and I hate to floss. Andrew, on the other hand, is obsessed with oral hygiene and he has horrible teeth. In fact, Darce, we could buy you three SLR cameras for what we have spent on Andrew's teeth. It just doesn't seem fair. We hope the boys inherit my teeth, but his habits.

Last but not least, hmm this is getting tough. I got the choir award in high school and was not there at the banquet because it was my only night off in months. I felt bad because Mr. Beckett had given some excuse like I was probably at some sporting or church event but no, I was at home with my feet up. I found out about it the next day when he announced it in class. I had no clue! Another award from high school where I was caught off guard was at our 10 year reunion. I was named "best kept". I don't know what that meant exactly. Was I that bad in high school? Of course that was before kids. I was pretty caught off guard and embarrassed with both of these awards.

There are my 7 and the last ones were pretty hard. I look forward to hearing from my tagees. (Yes, I can make up words like my sister-it must run in the family).

Here are my seven tags:

Natalie and Greg: http://reploglemania.blogspot.com/ (Darce didn't tag them)

Sue Dog http://jsmoseley.blogspot.com/ (since you haven't blogged in a while

Beth and Brian http://whitepartyof3.blogspot.com/ (since I like the way Beth writes)

Mitzi and Jason http://www.piercerockstar.blogspot.com/ (since I wish we were closer)

Kelley http://www.kearneyfam.blogspot.com/ (because it has been nice to catch up since high school)

Katie and Nate http://thehaughs.blogspot.com/ (I feel like we are in this together with the twin thing!)

Jim and Joanna http://www.thefivenashes.blogspot.com/ (because I miss hearing from the Kingsport people)

What would a post be without a picture or two of the boys?

"mmm you taste good, so do you!"

"I am glad I can always lean on you little bro"