Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The cutest pics we have had for a while.


What's a happenin'

I am almost thirteen weeks - thank heavens!!  I have had enough of the nausea and mind numbing fatigue.  I think I am on the upslope now.

In the meantime, Mike is recovering from back surgery  - he is doing really well.  We are going to post some pictures of the events that lead up to the surgery.  Let's just say that for a while he lived like a slug - he didn't leave the ground very often.  Now however, he can walk and sit and eat at the dinner table with us.  Which is a big step forward.  When Mike went to the ortho surgeon the doc told him that he had one big a** extrusion.  Basically his option was to live in constant pain or get the surgery.  There was no contest.  Now Mike can't lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk and I think he is relishing this - it means he doesn't have to take out the garbage (a point of contention in our marriage).  I am not enjoying this new chore AT ALL because of my newly acquired sense of smell.

Oh well, I will live with it for now.  As long as he can lift the baby when it comes - that's what really matters. The garbage chore will be returned to him soon enough.

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Grilled Pizza night - yep that's right - GRILLED


One night Mike was determined to grill some pizza on the grill.  I must admit, it turned out beautifully and it was very tasty!  Here we have the white pizza with Italian sausage.  YUM!

Ben's first tooth for the tooth fairy


Ben's first day of school


My funny little munchkin.  He is such a goofball.

Labor Day Weekend




On Labor Day Weekend we went to Hickory Run State Park with some friends and hiked to a waterfall.








Camping in August


In August ( I know so long ago) Mike took the little men camping.  But it only lasted for a couple of hours.  It rained and rained and our tent was not sealed very well so the water started seeping in.  This put the boys in quite a state.  The made it through dinner but at about 9:00 Mike called and said he was coming home.  That was the extent of the camping trip.

Announcement

Hello Friends and Family - it has been a long time since I last posted. I decided to get off my duff, which has been doing a lot of nothing lately, and post some pictures and stuff.

The reason I have been on my duff is that I am pregnant. Due date May 30th 2010 - a loooong way away or so it seems.

We are excited, though. When I told the little boys, Ben said he was so excited to have a baby brother or sister and Gabe said he was so excited to have a baby lizard. Gabe thinks the possibilities are limitless.... he is always telling me that when he grows up he wants to be a shark, or Clifford the Big Red Dog.

In the meantime I am soooo tired. I take a nap every day and still go to bed around 8:30 or so. Not to mention the ickiness all day. Oh well - it will pass.

On to other stuff.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

Tales from the Shore and Sunday Talks

On Monday, Aug 17 we went to Island Beach State Park. The weather was perfect - hot and steamy. The ocean was cool and the breeze coming off the ocean was refreshing. We arrived at 10:00 and stayed til 5:00.

Ben was a fish, of course. He has taken up body surfing and loves it. Gabe spent the first several hours running away from the waves. Eventually he warmed up to letting me or Mike hold him while he kicked at the waves. The waves were pretty exciting too - not 5 foot waves like this weekend, but still some good body surfing waves crashing on the shore.

Before we left we headed to the showers to wash off the sand and change our clothes. I stood outside the men's bathroom waiting for Mike to finish up with the boys. There was screaming, loud screaming and I knew there was trouble that starts with a capital B. Ben came out (fully dressed thank heavens) and announced loudly that he hurt his penis for the fourth time. Apparently he had a bad case of shore rash on his nether regions. Also, according to Ben, Mike had been a little rough with the zipper (we had forgotten underpants) and nipped the little bugger where it hurts most. Hence the screaming.

Not only did I hear the sordid tale, but so did everyone around me - about 15 people or so. I love Ben's complete lack of self-conscience. Whatever is happening at that moment is his experience and it doesn't matter if the President of America is standing right there - if he needs to let it all out, he will.

Which also brings me to the next experience. Today Ben had the privilege of giving a quick talk in Primary. I was there to help him and prompt him - well how it ended up working is I told him what to say. Ben was acting very strangely during the talk - he was shaking acting kind of nervous. Also, he was grabbing himself - again in the nether regions. By the end of the talk he was shaking and I thought he was just really nervous. After the talk was over (about 1 minute long) he looked down at his pants, looked at me and I knew exactly what was going on. He was peeing his pants on the primary podium.

I tried to usher him out as quickly as possible. He turned around - with legs spread, and whispered to me, "I just peed my pants!" My goal was to get him out of there ASAP. The funny thing is, Ben wasn't embarrased at all! He was just telling me what had happened. He had peed his pants and now they were all wet and he wanted to go home and change. That's all. I suffered all the emotional consequences. I felt terrible for Ben and chastised myself for not taking him to the bathroom before primary. But, Ben was already putting it all behind him. I am sure that embarrasment will come in due time, but I wish it wouldn't. I wish I could be more like Ben and simply not care - or even think about being embarrased. Just deal with the situation and move on.

Tales from the Shore







This is about the only time that Gabe will fall asleep on me. He slept for about 2 hours like that. I loved it!

Our Setup - Umbrellas, beach chairs, lots of snacks, good book to read - I was feeling good!


By the end of the day Gabe was covered in sand from head to foot. He would roll around in it like a seal.







Friday, August 21, 2009

Day at the 4-H fair











While Mike was in CO having the time of his life without us we spent some quality time at the 4-H fair in Skippack. The boys loved the goats and chickens. The pigs were a little smelly and Ben, with his super sensitive nose, couldn't handle it more than 30 seconds.


































Beltzville State Park
















On some Monday in August (a couple of weeks ago) we drove into the Pocono's with the Anderson's for a day at the lake. It is beautiful there - picture perfect. A great way to spend a summer day!

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Please Touch Museum Adventures

Last week we headed into Philly to the fabulous Please Touch Museum with Sophia, Sydney, and Tamara. Of course we had a fantastic time. We had a tea party with the crew from Alice in Wonderland. We journeyed into space. We were in drum parade. We rode on the carousel. Ben rode on a moving animal (a pig, not a horse) for the first time in his life. This is the boy who loooooves roller coasters, but apparently is terrified of a horse that goes up and down. Fun Fun Fun!!