Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the best daddy in the world! It was so fun to celebrate Father's Day today with Jeff. The boys helped me make a yummy breakfast this morning and we all enjoyed having him home this morning (all church meetings were canceled) We spent the rest of the day enjoying our Sunday at church and at home together. For his father's day gift, Jeff got a new fishing pole and is excited to be able to take the boys fishing-actually I wonder who is more excited, Jeff or the boys.
More than anything I'm so grateful for Jeff and what a wonderful husband and father he is. Right from the start he had a natural talent at being a father, maybe it's because he's one of eight children, but I suspect that it's mainly because of his deep love for his children. He does such a wonderful job as a parent. I know he feels bad when the boys and I are alone while he's working and on-call; it's difficult and we miss him, but honestly I feel spoiled by him quite often..."Ang, why don't I take all three boys with me to the store so you can have some time to....." I'm so grateful for his love for me and our children-he would do anything for us and is constantly putting us above his own personal wants and needs. Even amidst his busy schedule he always finds time for me and for our boys. I'm so grateful for his example to them. I hope one day all of our boys will be as wonderful a father as Jeff is. Happy Father's Day Jeff, we love you!

Leavin'

We're leaving tomorrow morning (well...actually in about 5 hours) for a long-anticipated vacation! We've been planning it for a couple months and it's FINALLY time to go (just ask me if I'm excited) The boys are pretty excited as well, especially since a giant swim park is involved. We're glad Jeff gets at least a little vacation time. More to come in about a week....

In the meantime, here are a couple pictures from our last get-together with some friends this past Tuesday evening.

Cute babies enjoying the outdoors
Cute Babies enjoying each other!

Memorial BBQ

I'm a little slow on this one. Last Monday for Memorial Day we enjoyed getting together with some good friends for yet another BBQ. (I think we had 5 this month!) It was a lot of fun. Steve & Edith Jiminez just got back from spending winter in Brazil-they're what you'd call 'snow birds' and spend half of the year in Brazil and half here in the US depending on where the warm weather is. Eventually though, they'd like to end up in Logan, Utah near their children. (I don't think they're fully aware of the fun of THOSE winters yet...) Anyway, we sure enjoyed being at their beautiful home in their even more beautiful yard. The boys loved it, there's plenty of room to run around on the grass, lots of trees, bushes & flowers. Their favorite though? The two hammocks and bench swing. They loved swinging playing in the hammocks. Matthew just about fell asleep on the bench swing, it's absolutely beautiful and so peaceful. We sure enjoyed being with friends for the holiday. Someday they've made us promise that we'll to meet up at their other beautiful home....in Brazil. Sounds like a blast.

First Tooth

Matthew finally got his first tooth today! I’ve been wondering when they were going to come through, he’s been teething for a while now. I’m going to miss his cute little gummy smile, but it’s fun to see the cute little teeth come through too!Matthew playing with Daddy...one of his favorite past times!

Shouldn't have Complained

Shouldn't have complained about the gas at $3.57, now we're at $4. I guess it could be worse right?

Another Night for the Girls

It was another great girls night thanks to fabulous planning by Angie & Debbie. We enjoyed great food and had fun learning fun facts about each of the amazing women present. Needless to say, we all had some great laughs. I was able to stay for most of the night before Jeff got paged into the hospital!

DC Trip

We had another trip down to DC as part of our Memorial Weekend holiday. Originally we had planned to go camping with Kimber & Mike, but schedules didn't work out like we thought so we decided on a day trip. We met up at the temple again, and it was great to be there. Afterwards we headed downtown for a trip to the Washington DC Zoo. It was a perfect day, you couldn't have asked for better weather. The great thing about this zoo is that it's free. Of course they charge for parking, so we found on-street parking and walked in. It was definitely a popular day to be at the zoo; I couldn't believe how many people were there, but we still had fun. Jacob & Caleb absolutely love having Aunt Kimberly & Uncle Mike with them. Some of our favorite attractions were the panda bears, hippos, monkeys, and elephants. The best part though were the seals, we got there at just the right time and got to see a little show. It was fun and the boys loved it. More than anything we loved being able to spend some time with Kimber & Mike. It's great having family somewhat close and we're already looking forward to our next vacation with them! Hopefully sometime next month!

Preschool Graduation & More

Tonight was Jacob's preschool graduation. All the kids have been excited about it for a while now; they’ve been working hard learning songs, memorizing parts, and tie-dying t-shirts. I think the only ones more excited than the kids have been the moms! It’s sad to see the preschool year come to an end, but for me it’s been so fun to see how they’ve grown and changed throughout the past 9 months.

We were fortunate this evening to have decent weather. The forecast predicted rain and cold all day. We had a BBQ with families from our apartment complex earlier that afternoon and it started to rain at one point, I think there must have been some divine intervention because the weather, although a bit cold, was perfect for the program that evening.

It was held at a nearby park with a fun gazebo for everyone to sit under. The kids all looked so cute in their t-shirts. They were all pretty excited and I loved how they would look around for their families and give them big smiles. I love to watch Jacob, he’ll look around for us, and then give a shy little smile. I loved watching him sing his songs and say his parts. I was impressed how well he remembered them all by himself with just a little practice.

Caleb and Matthew were pretty good throughout the program. Matthew started to get a little cold at the end, but was great once he had a blanket wrapped around him. Caleb was a crack-up. First of all, he ran right over with all the preschool kids and joined their little pre-program “Preschool!” cheer. It took some convincing to get him to come back and just watch with us. Secondly, there is a girl in Jacob’s preschool named Maelie, she’s a few months older than Jacob but Caleb is completely smitten. At the program, Caleb thought Jacob was cool, but kept saying, “Where’s Maelie?” and would try to find a place to watch where he could see her. At the end of the night he said, “That’s my Maelie.” He insisted on having a picture with her and brought her a flower-a white one he picked from the grass. It was so funny. He definitely has good taste though, she’s a darling little girl from a great family!

It was fun to see the end of the program where each child received their graduation cap, and had some fun facts to share. Jacob wants to be a doctor when he grows up and his favorite color was yellow.

It was fun to visit with all the other families after the program, and the kids loved having cookies and running around together at the park. It was also a time to say more goodbyes to good friends. Actually they still have a couple more days, graduation isn’t until Thursday, but you can’t help but be a little sad at all of these ‘end of the year’ events.

It was such a fun evening. I’m so proud of Jacob and all he’s done throughout the year. It’s probably going to be a little sad for him not to have preschool anymore (until September) but we’re going to do some fun things together this summer. And both Jacob and Caleb are excited for preschool next year.

This morning was playgroup. We went down to the nearby park for a walk and lunch with friends. The boys’ favorite part was throwing rocks into the water and playing in the puddles. My least favorite part was nearly getting attacked by overly aggressive ducks & geese that wanted our bread. I’m going to have to take a big stick with me next time! It was also fun to do a little BBQ with some fun families that live nearby us. Once again we’re reminded how fortunate we are to live next to so many great people. I wish I would have had my camera with me, but we were having too much fun enjoying the great company.

Matthew is 7 Months

Matthew at 7 Months:

• Loves to blow raspberries, he’s always sticking his tongue out and spitting. It’s so funny to watch. He also likes to play with his lips with his fingers.
• He loves to scream and squeal when he’s really excited.
• Matthew loves to talk and is very vocal. His favorite thing to say is, “Da da” He will say it sweet in a high voice, or low and tough, or using his ‘hungry’ voice, it just depends on his mood.
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• Starting to really enjoy playing with his feet and toes.
• He loves to play with toys and grab a hold of anything within reach. He’s getting really good at hand control and likes to pass toys back and forth.
• He Finally Rolls Over From Back To Tummy!! Just decided he was ready.
• Matthew’s favorite game is for me to hold him and chase Jacob and Caleb around. He absolutely loves it. Jacob and Caleb scream and laugh as they try to run away, and Matthew just laughs and laughs when we chase them.
  
• Loves to smack his lips and tongue.
• He’s doing great sleeping at night. It’s funny, but he sleeps much better in his crib even in the room with the boys than he did in his own quiet bed in our room.
• I don’t think it will be too long before he starts to crawl. He’ll push up all the way on his arms, and push up with his legs as well. Already he’s pretty good at getting around ‘army crawl’ style and has no problem turning circles or getting to toys out of reach.
• Matthew’s a little sweetie and loves to lay his head on my shoulder to give loves.
• He loves to give kisses to everyone. He’ll grab the boys’ heads in his hands and kiss their faces.
• This month Matthew ate his first foreign object…it was the sticker from off an apple. I’m still not sure exactly how he got a hold of that one!

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Resident BBQ

Coming...

Father & Son Campout...Or Not

So Friday night was supposed to be the Father & Son campout. Jacob and Caleb were so excited and had been talking about it all week. I was also excited because Matthew and I were going to spend the evening with some other friends whose children and/or husbands were also going on the campout. Well, you can't ever count on Pennsylvania weather. It had been nice most of the week, but Friday it rained all day- and not just little sprinkles, it was pouring.
When Jeff got home around 5, I had everything packed and ready for them to go, but the weather was lousy enough that they ended up not going. I was teasing him that all our time here in the big city had turned him into a bit of a sissy, but really I didn't blame him. It would take over an hour to get up to the campsite, and Jeff had to be back early the next morning for a health clinic anyway, so spending one quick night in a drippy tent with a 2 & 4 year old (not to mention a newly potty-trained 2 year old) didn't sound very exciting. Even at that, it took some convincing to Jacob and Caleb to stay home- they were pretty set on going! Finally they decided it would be okay to stay home since we're going camping Memorial Day weekend, and because they were able to go pick out a movie together and make smoothies. On a side note, there were many others from our ward who also didn't end up going on the campout.
As a bonus for me, I still got to have a girls night out with friends, but didn't have to worry about putting Matthew to sleep there. He was able to sleep at home while Jeff & the boys watched their movie. So I enjoyed a fun night of pizza, treats, and lots of visiting with the girls. I had to head back home sooner than most, Matthew woke up and was hungry at 11:30, but most of the others stayed until about 3am. Even though it didn't work out exactly as planned, I think everyone still had a fun night. We'll just look forward to the Father & Son outing again next year.

Springtime Fun

This morning for playgroup we went to the Smith playhouse again. We got lucky today and had absolutely beautiful weather and spent all of our time outside on the play equipment and slide. They boys really love all the different swings and rides. Today their favorite was the big tree slide. It’s a big old wooden slide that’s been formed around a tree. Each child takes up a gunny sack to slide down on. The outdoor playground is closed during the winter months so it’s been a little while since we’ve been out there to play. This was the first time that Caleb was able to go down by himself and he loved it! In fact, I walked up with him the first time to help him and show him what to do. I shouldn’t have even bothered; Caleb ran up way ahead of me and was straightening out his sack and going down before I even made it to him. He’s such a little dare devil with absolutely no fear-I loved watching his face. Jacob loved the slide too and had fun running up and sliding down with friends. Matthew just enjoyed being outside. And I always love being able to visit with great friends.

Preschool Happenings

At preschool, Jacob’s class has been observing caterpillars transform into butterflies. It’s been a pretty fun cycle to watch. We saw them from the time they were tiny caterpillars, to big fat caterpillars, to chrysalis’, and finally saw them coming out as butterflies. Today was the big day that they set the butterflies free. It was fun to see them come out and fly away. Some of the kids were even able to hold them before they flew away. It was fun for everyone. It was also class picture day and Miss Jamie, Jacob’s teacher, got a few fun shots of the group.

Happy Mother's Day

Today was Mother’s Day. It’s still amazing to me to think it’s my fifth one (if you count the one when I was expecting Jacob). I don’t know what it is, but I look forward to and even find myself getting excited for Mother’s Day more and more every year.

More than anything, for me Mother’s Day is a great reminder for me of how blessed I am to have such a wonderful husband and children. I really feel like I am the luckiest woman in the world.

This morning I got to sleep in until 8:30. Then Jeff prepared his fabulous annual Mother’s Day breakfast of crepes filled with yummy strawberries & whipped cream, and grapefruit on the side. I wasn’t the only one loving it, Jacob & Caleb were in heaven with all those strawberries! Matthew was an angel baby, although he spent the entire morning chanting, “da da” despite my futile attempts to get him to say, “ma ma.” That morning Jacob was excited to give me his present, a beautiful little bracelet that he had made for me in preschool. (You’ll notice it in the pictures) and Jeff surprised me with a new paper cutter-the fancy kind with a rotary cutter on one side and a guillotine cutter on the other. As well as a brand new awesome and stylish ‘Fossil’ sports watch. I was so excited, now I don’t have to borrow his every morning when I go running. I really have a super thoughtful, super sweet husband!

Phase two of the day, church, didn’t go quite as perfectly as the morning. Jeff got paged in to the hospital to see a couple patients so after staying for the sacrament he took off and I was on my own with the boys. Jacob sang with the primary, “Mother, I Love You” and did such a great job. It was his first time doing anything like that, and of course, my first time as a mother watching my child participate. I can understand now why mothers get so excited about the Primary Program. Unfortunately we didn’t make it through sacrament meeting. Matthew was starving and wouldn’t wait 20 minutes for the meeting to get over, so I had to march our little troop out into the hallway so Matthew could eat his baby food. I did get my nice little potted Mother’s Day flower though. During the 2^nd and 3^rd hours I spent my time between moving all our bags, carseat & books to my various classrooms, taking Caleb potty a few times, assisting Jacob with a couple ‘issues’, and trying to get Matthew to sleep. He’s usually such a good baby, but today he cried most of the time. So the church period of Mother’s day was, to say, less than ideal. Jeff didn’t get back to pick us up until 4:50pm, almost an hour after church was over. And to top it all off, someone ripped off my flowers! Really…stealing flowers right off of the pew when they’re sitting on top of my bags on Mother’s day…..? Please. Apparently the demand for the flowers was greater than the supply, I wasn’t the only one whose flower was swiped. Oh well.

We headed home where we hurried and got dressed, cooked up some corn on the cob and put together an apple crisp before heading over to have dinner with some friends. We met up with the Newells and Sanders for a BBQ. It was a lot of fun, we had a good time visiting with the adults, the kids had a blast running around together and I was just grateful it didn’t rain. It was fun to be with friends.

We finally headed home around 9, put the kids to bed and called our moms. Even though some parts of the day were crazy, all in all it was a great mothers day. I had told Jeff that one of the things I wanted more than anything was just some pictures of me & the boys together. It doesn’t happen too often, especially when we’re dressed up. We ended up getting a few before church. It was also a good reminder of how difficult it is to get a good picture with everyone looking at the camera with a smile. We didn’t quite accomplish that feat, but we had at least one of each child looking at the camera with a decent look on their face.

I’m sure grateful to be a mother, it really is the best blessing I could ask for. I’m also grateful for my wonderful mothers, grandmothers and amazing women in my life.