Eagle Fun Days Parade

Saturday morning we went to the Eagle Fun Days Parade. It was a perfect day & so much fun! This was Caleb's first parade that he actually enjoyed (we went last year when he was about 9 months old, and it wasn't his favorite thing) It was so fun to see Jacob & Caleb both so excited about all the floats, horses, and especially candy! They loved waiting watching everything and waving to the people in the parade. They got tons of candy & even some apples, water bottles & otter pops. Now the famous thing about the Eagle Fun Days parade is the water part. The last third or so of the parade is pretty much a big water fight. The people have water guns, buckets, hoses, etc & will get everyone on the sidewalks. The people on the sidewalks do the same. So everyone is spraying, squirting, soaking everyone else. You wouldn't believe some of the vehicles. They're these big trucks with huge buckets of water. People will be ducking down behind the sides and get up and fire at everyone. Then there are always the boats, hummers, etc. One of the favorites is the local fire station truck. It actually uses the big fire hose and sprays everyone in sight. Needless to say, we stood a little further back during the water part & just watched everyone else. Actually Jacob did have a little squirt gun that he used to get grandma and aunt Lacey. It was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed being able to spend time with family and visit with some old high school friends.
Afterwards, we went & spent some time at grandma's. They boys enjoyed playing in the pool & spending time with everyone. Jeff and I also went on a date with my parents while Uncle Cole babysat!

A Night at the Rodeo

Tonight we enjoyed the true “Idaho spirit” and took the boys to their first rodeo. Every year in Eagle, ID they hold the annual “Eagle Fun Days.” It’s about three days filled with a carnival, rodeo, parade, bike and running races, bands, shows, games, food, fun & lots more! Tomorrow we’ll be going to the parade, but tonight it was all about the rodeo. It was a little expensive, but lots of fun and we had a great time! Some of our favorites were the barrel racing and especially the bull riding. Jacob and Caleb thought it was great and even tried their first cotton candy, which Caleb refused to eat. He looked at us like we were crazy. I’m glad we had the chance to go before we head back to the big city where rodeos are something you’ll only see on television. We got home pretty late and the boys were tired, but we had a great night! Yee Haw!

Joe's Crab Shack

Yesterday after a long day of cleaning, organizing, and packing. Jeff's mom called us up to see if we'd be interested in meeting them for dinner. Great! It was just what we needed. So we packed everyone up and met Grandma, Janette & Kadie at Joe's Crab Shack. Jeff and I had never been there before but it was great! It was a fun little restaurant with a festive, party atmosphere. It was a great place for kids and the food was excellent. The boys really liked trying the crab and shrimp. It was also fun that we went yesterday because all day Jacob had been trying to convince me that we should go to the beach so we could see some fish & crabs. I kept trying to explain that the beach was too far away & that we would go another time, but Jacob wasn't satisfied. So even though he was eating the crabs & fish instead of actually seeing them, he thought it was pretty fun. We finished off the meal with a huge mountain slice of chocolate cake, one of the best I've tasted! More than anything it was so much fun to go out with family. The boys love playing with Kadie, they have lots of fun. And Jeff and I enjoyed spending the time with Mom & Janette. It was a great evening!

THE RESULTS ARE IN....

After a second ultrasound, we discovered that our baby is definitely not modest, just a big tease!

IT'S A BOY!!

Yes, after the second ultrasound today we found out that we are definitely going to parents of another little boy. I am so excited and couldn't be happier! It was funny, the tech doing the ultrasound said she was surprised our doctor couldn't tell (The OB actually did say he thought it could be a boy, but he just wasn't sure & didn't like to say unless he was positive because he's never been wrong). Anyway, the Tech said that the baby was not being the least bit shy today; it was pretty obvious that it was a little boy. I guess it helps when the baby cooperates though and gives you a good shot. It was sure fun going to the Fetal Fotos studio to have the ultrasound done. It's a nice relaxing place and they just make it so fun. It was Definitely worth the extra money! Especially since we were able to find out what we're having.

So it looks like we're going to be three for three on the Chinese Gender Predictor chart. I'm super excited to have three cute little boys. More than anything I'm grateful that everything looks good and healthy. It will be fun to get to know this new little one!

Memorial Day Campout 2007

I've been a little slow getting this entry done. The Stevens family has a tradition of going camping on Memorial Day weekend. We were glad we were able to go this year. Jeff was scheduled to work Friday, Saturday & Sunday, but we still managed to spend some fun times up with the family. This year we went to a place called Silver Creek Plunge. It was great! We had a big group campsite with a creek running nearby. (I'm still amazed we got through the trip without either Jacob or Caleb taking a plunge!) We spent tons of time playing games, horseshoes, riding motorcycles & 4-wheelers, singing around the campfire, hiking, fishing, and just enjoying time together.
Jacob was super proud of the two fish he caught. One was pretty small as you can see, the other was pretty good sized. Jeff had a few nice fish as well. One of the highlights was our hike up to Boiling Springs Hot Springs. It was actually a pretty intense hike with some fairly steep areas & drop-offs. Jacob was sure a trooper & walked the whole way by himself. I felt great & almost forgot I was pregnant. And Jeff was the pack champ, carrying Caleb & a bundle of supplies the entire way on his shoulders. (Caleb's close to 30 pounds now & the bundle was about 20)
The weather was pretty nice, it rained a little Sunday afternoon but was pretty much sunny and warm otherwise.
All in all it was a great trip & so fun to spend the time with family. We wont have much time coming up in the near future so we'll enjoy the time now!

OUR BABY IS OFFICIALLY... unofficial

Yesterday we had our ultrasound and after five months of waiting, guessing, and wondering…we still don’t know what we’re having.

It was still a fun experience, we were able to see the baby and its cute little hands, feet, face, etc. I’m so grateful that everything looked good & the baby appears to be healthy. But as far as knowing whether we’re having a girl or boy, it’s still a mystery.

First of all, after doing the measurements the doctor said that I probably wasn’t as far along as they thought. (Just as I’ve been telling them all along, but they don’t like to factor in long cycles) so first of all the baby wasn’t quite as big & therefore some things aren’t as apparent. Secondly, the baby was not in a good position & had its legs crossed. And no amount of pushing, poking, or prodding would convince it to move around. We’ve come to believe that we either have a baby that is extremely modest or a big tease. Needless to say, I was pretty disappointed. My OB seemed content just telling me to have another ultrasound done in a month or two when we move back to Philly. Hmm, wait another month or two? I don’t think so. It looks like I’ll probably just have to pay the extra $85 and have someone else see if they can convince this baby to be a little less modest!

Chinese Gender Predictor Chart

So with our ultrasound less than a week away, my thoughts keep turning to this new baby. Will it be a boy or a girl? It's almost like Christmas, I can hardly stand it. There is a "Fetal Fotos" business not too far away, and for $85 you can take an early peek. I've exercised a lot of self-restraint and haven't gone. (It's probably mostly because my husband just wouldn't understand the need to spend extra money when I would find out a couple weeks later anyway.) So I've just tried to keep my mind on other things.
I have, however, entertained myself with all those fun internet based gender predictor tools. There are tons of old wives tales, and so called "fail-proof" methods of determining what your baby is. There is one however that I remember seeing when I was pregnant with both Jacob and Caleb. It's the Chinese Gender Predictor chart, and actually worked both times with Jacob and Caleb. According to this chart we'll be having another boy, but according to lots of other methods & charts, we're having a girl. So I guess I'll just have to be patient and wait until Tuesday when we'll find out officially.
So I thought it would be interesting to just do a fun poll. According to this chart, did it correctly predict your children? Just look at the month you conceived & your age at the time of conception. Follow the chart & it will tell you pink for a girl & blue for a boy. Did it work for you?

Mother's Day Part 2

On Thursday Jeff had a surprise for me. For Mother's Day he had done the sweet breakfast & some beautiful potted flowers (which I thought was a great!), but he had one other gift that he hadn't been able to give me. Apparently he had gone to the store to pick it up, but it wasn't available for a couple days. So he surprised me on Thursday with the incredible new Provo Craft Cricut machine! He knows I've been admiring them for quite a while now and thought it would be fun. I couldn't believe it! It is such a fun machine to use. It's so versatile & makes creating die cuts so simple with the press of a button. Thanks Jeff! You're the best!

FOR SALE

As of today, our home is officially For Sale! I can't believe the day is already here. I figured since we've been having pictures taken for the listing, I might as well post some pictures of our home sweet home. It's amazing how different it looks now versus when we bought it. There were two gigantic ugly trees right in the front yard (if you could call it a yard), and the inside pretty much needed to be gutted & redone. We did all new floors, carpet, paint, lights, doors, kitchen, bathrooms, windows, garage door, grass & yard, etc; doing most of the work ourselves. It's taken a lot of time & hard work, but it's so rewarding to see how great it's turned out. I only wish we could enjoy it longer.

I found a picture of the outside of our home before we started doing the work. Doesn't give quite the same "Fixer-Upper" look as in person, but it's come a long way!

Mother's Day

I was a little unsure of how Mother's Day would be this year. Jeff's schedule just happened to work out that he is on-call today until Monday afternoon. I was a little disappointed. But I just have to say that I have the best husband ever. This morning, even though he had to go into work early, he got up and made me breakfast before he left, and not just basic cold cereal & toast. He went all out and made delicious crepes filled with fresh strawberries & whipped cream, cut grapefruit & orange juice. Then he gave me a cute card & some beautiful flowers. Ever the romantic, even under a busy schedule. I felt so loved.
Church was a little busy, but hey, I'm used to being alone so it wasn't much different. Our bishopric was released today though & sacrament meeting went 30 minutes overtime, so the boys were definitely rearing to go to nursery. During the 3rd hour they had a special Relief Society meeting for all the mothers that was really neat. And to top off the church aspect of the day, Jacob & Caleb presented me with their sweet little gifts. A paper with their painted-stamped handprint & the little "Fingerprints" poem. How sweet.
After church the Stevens had a little dinner at their home, so we all met up over there & enjoyed the dinner and time together, then gave gifts for Mother's Day. After spending time with the Stevens, I headed up to my parents where we pretty much repeated the same. The boys were excited though because we're spending the night with the Tanners.
Although it wasn't the Mother's Day I had imagined, it turned out pretty well; allowing me lots of time with my two little boys, celebrating the whole idea behind the holiday. I'm so grateful for Jacob & Caleb (and for our upcoming baby), so grateful to be a mother. Although it's a demanding role, it is wonderful and so rewarding. And I'm so grateful for a loving thoughtful husband. Happy Mother's Day!

Elder Tanner

After weeks of anticipation; Elder Houston Tanner has received his mission call and will be leaving on August 22nd, 2007 to serve in the Concepcion, Chile mission.

It was a fun celebration tonight. My mom called me this afternoon to let me know that Houston had received his mission call in the mail. She said they would be inviting a few friends over for him to open it tonight at 8:00. We showed up along with about half the neighborhood & tons of family. It was a pretty big gathering & fun to see all the support for Houston. Everyone was super excited when he read his official call, and there were a few who had even guessed right. Houston has a cousin, Tyson who is also serving in Chile so the family is pretty excited.

I'm just bummed we wont be here for his farewell. But we're so excited for Elder Tanner!

Bike for Four

I've been procrastinating putting gas in the car for a while until I got to a gas station that had better prices. Unfortunately, one of those "better-priced" gas stations is nowhere to be found at the present time. As the 'Check Gauge' light went on, I had to stop at the most convenient location & just put in a couple gallons; enough to go to a somewhat cheaper station. I just spent $11.50 for a little over 3 gallons of gas! At this time I'm imagining having to sell off all of our possessions just to afford trips to grandma's house, which I figure, costs about $5 a trip at this point. Hmm, I'm seriously contemplating a bicycle for a family of four; although it might make trips to grandma's a bit interesting.

Our day today...

Today was a Tuesday and yet another day for Jeff to be on call. It’s amazing to think he’s already on another month. Those elective months just go by way too fast! We have been lucky though, Jeff had a three day weekend which was really nice. So we'll miss him today until tomorrow afternoon.

I decided to try and just keep as busy today as possible and squeeze in a few fun things for the boys. This morning we started out with a trip to the post office.

Side Note: I came across some ink cartridges, normally $37, that were only $3. I decided to check them out on ebay, and then bought 8 cartridges. I listed them on ebay, and they’ve sold for about $45 a pair (with shipping). Anyway, it’s been fun to have some money for extra things, like a new pair of needed Sunday shoes for Jacob, a pair of maternity jeans that are actually long enough & look cute, etc. Anyway, that's what the trip to the post office was for this morning, I had to ship another package. And let me just say how much I love being able to print shipping labels online! I love being able to just walk in & set my package on the counter without having to wait in line with very impatient 3 & 1.5 year olds! After selling things at Christmas time & having to deal with 45 minute lines, I decided that was it! No more lines at the post office for me!

After the post office we made a quick trip to the store to pick up a couple little toys. Yesterday while picking out a toy for Cole’s birthday party, Jacob found a little fishing set with the magnetic fish & pole that I let him have. It was an instant hit, the only problem was that both Jacob & Caleb wanted it, and it was causing some problems. We’re still working on sharing better! Anyway, it was $2 for the set, so I decided to just go back and get a couple more. They’re fun toys & great for baths anyway.

After the store, we went to the gym. I’m trying to take advantage of all the time I can before I get too big to be at the gym without getting too many looks. I’m not showing yet, so right now is perfect time. I enjoy it too. Even though it’s a workout, I always feel so much better & have so much more energy when I do go. I think it’s a nice break for the boys as well, they enjoy playing at the daycare for the most part. Lately it’s taken some persuasion to get Jacob to want to go, but he always ends up having a good time.

When we were done at the gym it was time for lunch & a nap for Caleb. Jacob then played with his fish in a bowl of water while I got some things done during Caleb’s nap. I also had someone come to pick up a chandelier that I sold on craigslist. The owner of our house had put it in brand new when we moved in, but we went with brushed nickel fixtures, so the other light went bye bye. We did a few more miscellaneous things, and then when Caleb woke up we went on another quick trip to the store to get a few things.

After the trip we had to hurry home again because there was another lady who was stopping by to pick up another fan/light I was getting rid of. It’s so nice to get rid of things in the garage!

We then had a quick & easy dinner. On nights when Jeff is on-call, we usually do fun simple dinners. Many nights it’s “Breakfast” for dinner. Tonight, Jacob really wanted corn dogs he had seen at the store, so he & Caleb had corndogs with peas & apples. I had a subway sandwich-gotta love Subway’s $2.49 Tuesday deals- And then to enjoy the rest of the day, we went to the park to play for about an hour. Both boys love getting out & there is a great park just minutes from our house. It had cooled down enough that the weather was nice & it was a perfect time to be at the park. Their favorite activity tonight was racing up the big playground & down the big tunnel slide. I love it when they play well together. We finished off at the swings, and went home for Popsicles & a much-needed bath. And finally it was time for bedtime! I had great plans of scrapbooking tonight, but I think I might just call it a day & go to bed early myself! Hopefully Jeff has a good night tonight & gets some sleep! I know the boys are excited to see him, almost as much as me!