The search begins

This weekend Ian and I looked at a few houses for rent. Our lease is up at the end of May and we are planning on moving out and move into a home. We were planning on buying a home, but now we need to show 2 years of pay stubs, but Ian has only been working for 6 months.... The place we are at now is just too expensive to stay. We are starting our search now so that we don't feel rushed when May rolls around. We will have enough to do with packing... boy, I hate packing. Id like to go through everything and get rid of things we don't use and try to organize things before we begin to pack. That's the only good thing about moving, your forced to go through everything. Cant wait to have a house to call my own though. I want to paint the walls all sorts of colors, and plant a flower garden. I'm sure the girls would love to have their own play area too...but again, those dreams will have to wait another year or two.

Well, the girls are all sleeping, so I must use this time to get things done around the house...until next time.

Fun times with Family

Yesterday, my parents came by and pick the girls and myself up to take us shopping with them. What an experience. Taylor is getting too big for her carseat, so instead of leaving her in it, my dad took her out to carry her. When in the store, she was getting a little fussy, so I decided to carry her, while Abigail and Joanna were riding in the cart. When I would walk to far from the cart, Joanna let me know. She reached her arms out for me to carry her. I then strapped Taylor in the cart, and carried Joanna....not a good idea with my bad back. I put her down to walk, but that only lasted but for so long. All the girls started to get a little cranky since it was getting closer to lunch time, but my parents were nowhere near done shopping. My dad thought it would be a good idea to get them cookies....but what he didn't realize is that you cant SHOW them that until after you pay for them....the result.....more crying. I could just feel all the eyes of the other shoppers glaring at me, while my parents just laughed. I don't know why I put myself in these situations. I know its impossible to take all three girls out in public, but I thought with my parents there, that it would be OK. I was wrong. I couldn't wait to get out of there and get back home. We were right by Ians office, so I had my parents just drop us off there.Once we were back and had lunch, I felt like we were getting back on schedule. Unfortunately, the girls were still off and not very cooperative. I found myself looking at the clock every 5 minutes wishing it was 2 o'clock....nap time. Around 1pm Uncle Alex called and asked if he could come over and play with the girls... I wanted to say "no", but agreed knowing the girls would be happy to see him.... it was just what we all needed. I got a small break while they had tons of fun. (check out the video at the bottom of post) When Alex left, I put the girls down for a late nap and started to prepare dinner.

Today, I woke up to my hair being tugged on and the sounds of giggling . When Ian left for work, he had placed Taylor in the bed next to me. When I turned to see her, she gave me the biggest smile. I loved it. I have to admit, waking up before Abigail and Joanna, I felt more prepared for the day. Unfortunately, there is no way I am getting out of bed before 8am again. I'M EXHAUSTED. Ive been yawning ALL DAY. The package Ive been waiting for came in today.... A friend told me about this really cool website where you can buy and sell stuff handmade. I checked it out and found some really great items...Ive posted some photos of the girls sporting their new accessories.

After lunch, the girls and I found our Easter decorations. We strung the plastic eggs and headed to decorate the little tree outside our front door. It was raining, but I promised them we would go outside, so I grabbed the umbrella before going out. They had so much fun. I thought for sure they would fight, or not like the fact that it was raining, but to my amazement, they didn't. They were smiling and giggling the whole time... Who would have thought a small activity like that would be so much fun. When Ian came home from work, we packed everyone in the van and headed to Walmart to buy their Easter baskets and some things for the house. It actually went better than I thought. Both Abigail and Joanna walked around the store, and for the most part, listened to Ian and I. It wasn't until we neared the end of our list that they started getting cranky.....hunger was setting in. I feel bad when we don't get a chance to take the girls out of the house often, but then when we are out, and they start to get cranky, I wonder why I put myself through the stress. Is there ever going to be a time when we can take them out without them fussing or making a scene? And why is it that when Abigail turned 3 she no longer just cries when she doesn't get what she wants, but now has tantrums. She throwing herself to the floor kicking and screaming. Joanna LOVES the word "NO". Everything you ask her, she replies with a "NO" and then she looks at you like "what are you going to do about it?" They know just when to act up. Most of the time, its when I cant do anything, like when I'm nursing Taylor, or my back is bothering me. Cant wait until Taylor joins in on the fun. She usually falls asleep during the car ride. I need to start enforcing the rules, and not let the girls get away with so much. Maybe then I can take them out in public, and not have to worry about tantrums....Well, I can hear both Abigail and Joanna upstairs crying, so Ive got to go....a mothers job never ends..

(Waterfalls with Uncle Alex)

Meet me at the park

Yesterday when the girls woke up from their nap, they wanted to go for a walk. I told them I had to do a few things around the house, then we would go before daddy got home. I bundled them up loaded the stroller. The park that is here in our plan doesn't have baby swings and is quite small. Even smaller now that they are building more townhouses next to it. I decided to take them to the community park that was a little farther away, but worth it. Abigail held onto the stroller while I pushed Taylor and Joanna. While we crossed the street, Abigail said "MOMMY, WE GOT TO HURRY, LOOK, A CAR" the car was about half a mile away. Better safe than sorry, so we ran the rest of the way across the street. We called daddy to let him know we were going to the park, because he was leaving the office to come home very soon. Abigail called him on the phone and said "Daddy, meet me at the park, with the baby swings" this way he knew which park we were talking about. As we neared the park, Abigail saw it and got all excited, and even though Joanna had no idea what Abigail was excited about, she got excited too. When she finally saw the park, she wanted out of the stroller right away. She ran straight for the slide. It was cute watching her run to the steps, slide down the slide, and then repeat multiple times. Abigail enjoyed swinging on the baby swing to keep Taylor company. She wanted to go "higher" and "higher". Taylor enjoyed the swing as well. She would giggle every time she swung closer to me. She had all the other mothers at the park giggling with her high squeals of happiness. It started to get a little chilly, so I decided to pack them up and head back home. Abigail wanted to hold my hand, so I had a difficult time maneuvering the stroller. As we headed down the hill, Abigail saw daddy coming to meet us, and she took off running after him. Daddy outreached his arms and caught her. He lifted her up, and they twirled in circles in the middle of the street. Joanna wanted to dance too, as she reached for Ian to pick her us as well. They are all daddy's little girls. We walked back home to enjoy dinner, give baths, then bedtime. The evening went so smoothly, I almost didn't want it to end.

Shaddow Chasing

I just transferred photos from our camera to the computer and forgot to mention in my last post about shadow chasing. Thursday Emily came by the house to see the girls, so we decided to take them to the park. The girls had so much fun. We went down the slide and swung on the swings. Emily held onto Joanna so she could swing too. On our way back to the house, Abigail yelled "I SEE MY SHADOW", "I SEE EMILY'S SHADOW" and then the shadow chasing began. Emily stepped on Abigail's shadow then said "CAN YOU STEP ON MINE?" When Abigail ran to step on it, Emily began to run. Abigail quickly picked up speed to catch the shadow. They giggled all the way up the street, stepping on each others shadows. It was a site to see.

Emily came over again on Friday to help out with the girls because my back was acting up. I woke up in the morning with NO FEELING in my right leg. I couldn't move it. Ian canceled his patients for the morning and stayed home with me. After lunch, Emily came by to give me a hand. Luckily, by that time, I regained some feeling, and was only wobbling around. Again, I don't know what I would do without family.

Catch Up

So, its been a few days. I have rearranged the house. Moving furniture from one room to the other and having Ian move things from upstairs, downstairs. I'm sure he is glad we are done. I don't know if my need for change every few months is due to the fact that I'm ALWAYS HOME.. I have no car, so I'm at home 24/7. We moved the girls playroom up into the loft, and our bedroom is now in the master bedroom. Yeah, its finally ours... and less steps to do at night. The girls seem to like the change as well. I'm sure they are a little tired of being cooped up in the house as well.

Sal and Katie came over yesterday. I was having a bad day, so they decided to stop by and see how I was doing. They ended up taking me to Giant Eagle to get dinner. It was nice to get out of the house, even if it was only for an hour. No girls, no stress.. I have to do that more often. Sal made Chicken Marsala over noodles....yummy!! Then I made some strawberry shortcakes.

Weather is changing. Cant wait to be able to leave the windows open at night. The girls are wanting to go outside more and more, but I have a hard time juggling all three. Ive been trying to get them out after lunch, since Ian is around, but depending on time, we don't always get out. The other day, we took the girls outside to play. We brought out the sidewalk chalk and Abigail even got to ride her "Bike-a-sole" I love seeing Ian play with the girls. I don't know what is is about seeing a father play with his kids, but it makes me fall in love with him all over again. Sal came over as we were outside and decided to take us to Cold Stone to get some ice-cream. Joanna's mouth dropped as she saw all the choices...flavors, candy...she was in Heaven. Abigail knew what she wanted. (cotton-candy with m&ms) But as always, they told us EXACTLY when it was time to leave. 7:30pm they started to fuss letting us know it was past bedtime, and time to go.

Back pain is a little better. Some days are worse than others. Ive been trying to take it easy lately, but you can only do but so much lying around when you have 3 little ones running around. There are good days and bad. I have an MRI scheduled for tomorrow, so we should be able to see whats going on.

Well, I'm off to make dinner. Then maybe to the park.

Beautiful Weather, Beautiful Smiles.

A gorgeous, sunny day here today. The girls woke up full of energy! Defiantly back to feeling normal. We played in their room all morning, and I was even able to sort/fold some clothes, a task not so easy to do when Joanna is around (she likes to unfold and move them...sometimes even try them on..) When Ian came home, we all sat down for lunch...yummy perogies! We then got our shoes on and went for a walk around the neighborhood. Funny how we went out and bought a double stroller when Joanna was born, but now that both Joanna and Abigail are able to walk, we don't need it. I was pushing Taylor in it today and was thinking "why do we have this?" Last week, I was thinking now that Taylor is getting too big for her car seat, we can sell the car seat/stroller combo. But now, I'm wondering if we should? Maybe we could sell both strollers and get a single. Id hate to keep the combo when we are not using the car seat. But then again, we have held on to it this long, whats another year.....Then I think we still might need the double for when we go to the zoo or some place where there is lots of walking and someone may get tired (I wish someone would push me when I get tired) What to do, what to do....

After our walk, we quickly scrambled to the back porch to wave to daddy as he headed back to work. Then it was upstairs for afternoon naps.....got to love nap time. I especially love it when ALL three take them at the same time. Most of the time, I can get 2 out of 3 down....today, I was lucky and 3 went down. Finally, some time for myself, and what a perfect day for it too. I grabbed the laptop and headed to the back porch to sit on the swing and enjoy some fresh air. Occasionally our neighbor came out for a smoke, but I took that time to run in and check on the girls. They look so precious when they are sleeping. Who knows, maybe after dinner we can enjoy more of this great weather and play in the driveway. I'm sure the girls will be happy to see their sidewalk chalk again.

Well, I'm off to do some house cleaning, please enjoy these photos of the girls I'm attaching. They are from the other day at dinner....and as always....Until next time.

A Stress Release

It feels better getting all of this out there... I would NEVER be able to say any of that stuff in person. I would probably just smile, and say, "I'M FINE", or "I'M OK". I really don't know why I wrote it either. And its not like I'm wanting everyone to feel sorry for me, or to come up with the solution. I just really needed it to be said (or written) to get some stress release. I don't want you to think my parents don't care either... they do, they just cant help physically, they have their own things to do, and cant just stop to help me. I remember when I got into an accident a few years back. I was making a sharp bend, and an oncoming car was too far into my lane, as I turned my wheel to get out of the way, I hit a telephone poll. Now my mother didn't know any of this when I called her, but the first thing she said when I told her I was "in an accident" was "I CANT COME GET YOU" I know she didn't mean it that way, but at the time, I thought, "how heartless, you don't even know if I'm hurt" but I know that if I really needed her to, she would have. The day I found out I was going to have a c-section with Abigail, I was on the phone with her telling her it was going to be the next morning, and before I got off the phone, my parents were packing to make the 12 hour drive to Iowa.... they arrived within an hour of the surgery...they drove ALL NIGHT just to be with me. As much as I want them to help, I know they cant. All they can do, is give their advice, and they do, but unfortunately, their views are against chiropractic, they just don't understand it. As with many others. "I" don't fully understand it myself...but I know enough to at least TRY it before getting some doctor to prescribe a pain medication. Pain medication that is only going to cover up the symptoms. The problem is still there. Whats going to happen? I'm going to be on pain meds for the rest of my life.... I don't think so. Then they would prescribe me more meds for the problems Id receive from the side effects of the pain meds.. Id be a walking around like every other American out there with 20 prescription drugs in their purse. Sorry, not me.. And surgery, like I said before, its NOT an option.

OK, OK, I think that's enough from me.. I'm getting worked up over here. This was supposed to be a stress release. I think Im going to call Ian and see when he is getting home. Maybe we can get the girls outside a bit to enjoy this nice weather. I feel bad for them....with the way my back has been, they've been cooped up indoors. ...."Until Next Time"

DEAL WITH IT

So for the last 8 or 9 weeks, as many of you know from my previous posts, Ive had back pains. Some days worse than others. To many, the pain seems to be better, but to tell the truth, NO, it hasn't. Ive just been "DEALING" with the pain. Every time I feel like screaming, I don't, because I don't want to scare my children. I just get over to a couch or chair as quickly as possible and take deep breaths. I hate showing weakness...especially in front of others. Ill smile and act as though everything is fine, when really I'm screaming inside. The past few days, I couldn't hold it in any longer. In my last post, I mentioned how after my bath, the pain was so bad I couldn't move.. what I didn't mention was that I was crying so much, and in so much pain, I told Ian just to shoot me, so I wouldn't have to deal with the pain. I know he felt horrible...and helpless. He didn't know what to do, or how to help me with the pain. We haven't been able to get me into the office because now that Brett is gone, we only have one car, and when he gets home at night, its bedtime for the girls. It would be a nightmare if we took them out. Ian NEEDS to be doing everything possible to get patients in the door. We NEED the office to pick up, to cover the bills, office and personal. We only have one car which Ian takes to work with his everyday...which the transmission died last week and is going to cost money we don't have...He is trying everything to help out around the house, but with everyone sick and everything going wrong all at once, things get stressful and VERY OVERWHELMING... I couldn't let him see the pain I was feeling. Last night, I broke. We were watching television before bed, and just drained from all that's going on. My leg had been going numb from the moment I woke up, and now, it was to a point where I would hit my leg, HARD, just to get a different feeling in it. Ian went and brought the adjusting table upstairs from the garage and took a scan....pattern.. funny thing is it was EXACTLY the SAME as one taken March of LAST YEAR...only a bit warmer. So, he adjusted me. A change, but nothing to get excited over...yet. We will have to see how it looks tomorrow. We decided to call it a day and go to bed. Within minutes, I heard snoring coming from Ian....MINUTES..If I could be so lucky to fall asleep that fast...and STAY asleep for that matter. Every night, I toss and turn, trying to get comfortable. When I finally do, it only last a few minutes before shooting pains run down my leg. I cant remember when Ive slept more than an hour without waking up.. I laughed when I heard Ian snore. I hated him for being able to fall asleep so fast. This night, was one of the WORST nights in my life with the back pain. I couldn't get comfortable, the pain would be so intense at times, that I just wanted to scream, but I knew Id wake everyone in the house...maybe even the neighborhood. I just have to keep telling myself "its fine, you have to deal with the pain, there is nothing you can do, DEAL WITH IT". Ian is trying his hardest to do everything possible. I wouldn't even be able to do anything else even if I wanted to, because I don't have a car, and who would watch the girls? I really think we've used up all our "help cards" with family. I feel bad, Ian's parents have been over so much helping, that I feel like we are taking them away from other things they have to do. Every time I ask my parent to help, they are unable due to other commitments or obligations, but Ian's parents always find a way to help. Id send them away on a cruise or something if we had the money...but they've helped SO MUCH and so often, that how can I keep asking? Id have someone here EVERYDAY, ALL DAY if I could, its that bad...but I again, don't show it, because I know its impossible. People have their own lives to live, they cant be helping with mine everyday for months....My mother says I should just go to the hospital and "get another opinion" I already know what they are going to say....surgery. And I cant do that.... I don't want to do that....who would watch the kids while I'm recovering? Do you know how LONG the recovery for back surgery is... Do you know what the effects of the surgery will do later in life? We just need to let Ian try to help, We've never really given him a chance. We would go to the office, get checked, but then not go again until a week or two later. We just cant find the time to get me there with everything that is going on. Now that he brought the table and scanner home, we can start checking me every night, and see how that goes. For now, I just need to deal with the pain, and see if this works. There is really NOTHING else we can do...

The Joys of being sick.

So for the past few days, Abigail and Joanna has come down with some sort of stomach virus. They have been so snugly. I feel so bad for them. They haven't been able to keep ANYTHING down. We've tried the Pedialite and only had to clean grape smelling stains from the floor. I was hoping I would not catch it, but was not so lucky. Friday night I got chilled and after getting out of the tub, I felt horrible. I ended up sleeping on the couch, because my back pain was so bad that I couldn't move, not even crawl. Ian basically had to carry me to the couch. I felt helpless. The next day (yesterday) I ended up throwing up, which only made the back pain worse. I screamed the entire time. But luckily, I'm feeling 70% better today. I'm still very hot and VERY weak. If I stand, I get very dizzy. The girls seemed to be doing better yesterday, being able to hold down water and some bread. Unfortunately, this morning, they both threw up and have been lying on the couch all morning. Depending on the weather, I want to air-out the house, because the last thing we need is for Ian to get sick. Things have been going well for the office (except that his printer/fax er broke due to a generic toner) That's about the only "good" that going on in our lives. Last week, my cell phone died, our vans transmission died which is going to cost money which we don't have, and due to everything going wrong, Ian has been extremely stressed dealing with us sick girls. I'm hoping things are better by tomorrow because Ian will be gone ALL day, and wont be able to help out. His parents came by the other day to help out a little (tons of laundry) but Id hate for them to get sick by coming over. Well, I think I'm going to close my eyes for a little.

There are good days and bad days being a mother.....today is a bad day.

Why is it that one day your kids are like little angels, and the next they are completely different. Today, the girls slept in until 10am...usually they wake around 7am. I thought that they would be well rested and play well together, but I was wrong. They must know when I am not my usual self. Today, I woke up with a lot of back pain again. It was getting better for a while. I think it was about 5 days where I was able to stand straight and get back to doing my normal duties around the house, but not today. I could barely get myself out of bed. Taylor of course exploded through her diaper, and I had to not only clean her, but also take EVERYTHING off the bed. Thank goodness for plastic mattress covers. I then had to lift Joanna out of her crib, which is not as easy as it sounds when you have extreme pain in your lower back. When I put her down, she started to SCREAM, not cry...she wanted me to carry her. I cant! I hate the feeling I had, knowing she just "wanted her mommy" and I was unable to provide that for her. I tried to sit on the floor with her, and that worked for a while, until I had to get Abigail out of her room. Joanna screamed again, as I walked away from her to get Abigail. We went downstairs for breakfast, which there really wasn't any, because we need to go MAJOR grocery shopping. So I divided up some yogurt for them to share. I left the room for maybe 3 minutes to change Taylor's diaper again, only to come back and see Joanna WEARING the yogurt. Oh, they joys of having toddlers. Once again, I had clean up duty. Crawling on the floor, scrubbing yogurt from the carpet. The past few days, I have been trying to get our house back in order. While I was out of commission, due to my back, Ian has taken up the responsibility to clean house and do laundry... I think I would have rather hired someone. I know he means well, but he doesn't realize there are reasons behind doing things the way I do them. When Brett left last Friday, we moved Joanna into his room. We are just now moving clothes from one closet to the other. Of course, the girls somehow know I have things I want to do, and they seem to always act up more when I try to get things done. I THOUGHT with them sleeping in this morning, that I would be able to get things done, and they would be little angels for me, but I was wrong. I put them upstairs for their afternoon nap EARLY! Usually they will go down around 2 or 3, but today I put them to bed at 12:45pm. I know people say "kids go to bed when the parents are tired" that's because usually the parents are tired of all the fussing and the wining. There is no need for fussing. I HATE fussing, and I wont tolerate it!!! They fuss, and they go to bed. I don't care if they go to sleep or not. Most of the time, they do, but if not, then at least they had a little time out, and so have I.

Cant believe its only 1pm, and I am already ready for this day to be over. I think I am going to lay down and try to give my back a rest....advise for all you soon-to-be-mothers I know....DON'T have more than one...and if you do, wait 5 years. Having 3 under 3 is a nightmare. I'm really hoping that when they get older things will get easier, but right now, I just want to rip my hair out (which by the way is turning white...I'm 26, I shouldn't have white hair yet.) The joys of motherhood.

Im going to miss this....

As I lye here in bed typing of the days past, I cant help but smile as I am listening to Taylor LAUGH in her sleep. SO PRECIOUS!!! I am now torn between putting her in her own bed once I am done typing, or leave her to sleeping next to me, knowing she will soon take up the whole bed... she likes to turn sideways and spread out while she sleeps.The other night when we let her sleep with us, I ended up falling on the floor because she took up so much room. But how can you put someone so cute in a crib at the other end of the room? They are only this tiny but for so long. I am sure going to miss this.

The things kids say/do...

This past weekend was full of activities. First, we held a "Healthy Living" small group at the office. We are going to meet once a month, and have discussions as well as go for run/walks around the lake at North Park,and maybe do some capoiera. Emily came home for the weekend from college. She went with us to my parents restaurant for dinner. A long drive, but well worth it. On Sunday, we almost forgot about the time change.Good thing we remembered, because I was being baptised at church. Of course, I forgot a towel and was in the bathroom grabbing all the paper towels to try to dry off. When I finally got back into the sanctuary, I had to turn right back around to nurse Taylor. I snuck in the nursery only to be discovered by Joanna, who came running saying "MA MA...UP" reaching her little arms out for me to pick her up. I juggled both Joanna and Taylor (who by the way was nursing) on the rocking chair.As Abigail came over with a book for me to read to her...talk about multi-tasking. When Taylor fell asleep, I went to leave the nursery, but Joanna did not want me to go. I then juggled them again, as I headed to the sanctuary. I struggled to open the door, while holding two kids in my arms. Then quickly handed Taylor off to Ian AND then headed back out of the sanctuary. Joanna never does well sitting quietly. We went back into the nursery to hang out until service was over. I think Abigail is going to make the switch from nursery to pre-school next Sunday. I spoke with the church's preschool teacher and she suggest I sit in next Sunday with Abigail so she can get used to it. I believe this will be a good change, although I wonder how Joanna will do in the nursery without her big sister.

Monday, today, I spent most of the day trying to re-organize the house. Yesterday we moved Joanna's crib into the other room and gave Abigail and Joanna their own rooms. (We will move Taylor into Joanna's room once she stops waking up at5am) Anyway, I left the girls to play in Joanna's room, as I did A TON of laundry (7 loads total today). I placed a baby gate at the top of the stairs so that they would be able to walk from room to room, but Abigail likes to close doors, so they were mainly in Joanna's room playing. As I was placing towels in the hall closet, I heard the banging on the door to get out (we have a baby door nob cover on the inside). I heard them both say "UH,OH" and then Abigail peaked out the door. When she saw me, she said, "I'm VERY sorry mommy, I didn't mean to break the door". As I entered the room to see exactly what she meant, I heard her say, "HERE Joanna" Joanna was holding the 2 pieces of the door nob cover in her hands.This evening after dinner, Ian gave the girls a bath and then had run out for a while. I was left to tuck the girls into bed. Joanna went down nicely, but Abigail wanted me to read her a story. Unfortunately, all the books were in the cabinet which is located in Joanna's room. I decided to make up a story. I began telling her a story of a little princess named Abigail, who was going to have a birthday party (her eyes lit up) I told her of the many balloon the princess was going to have and all the birthday gifts....but when I finished telling of the birthday party, and began to tell the rest of the story,she looked up at me and said, "Mommy, just read from a book!" I guess she didn't like my story... We prayed and then I tucked her into bed. Next time, I am going to have to bring a book with me when I tuck her into bed.

Park Days Return

So it was 67 degrees today. We turned off our furnace and opened the windows...love the smell of fresh air (until the neighbors go outside to have a cigarette). Joanna woke up this morning like a ray of sunshine. Full of smiles and giving tons of hugs. I made her pancakes, which she devoured. We then went upstairs to take care of Taylor, who was happy to see her big sister. When Abigail woke up around 9am, Joanna and I went to say "good morning". Abigail was so happy. She gave Joanna a big hug and then held her hand as we went downstairs to make Abigail's breakfast. We normally have breakfast together, but yesterday Abigail went with my parents to the pizza shop, so she was more tired than usual. Anyway, Abigail pulled a kitchen chair over to the stove and climbed on to have a view of what was cooking. "PANCAKES!!!" she said very enthusiastically. She even told me when I needed to flip them..."mommy, the bubbles.....flip it, flip it"

After Joanna had her morning nap, I started lunch. Soup and salad are great for days like this. Then when Ian went back to work, the girls wanting to go outside. I quickly got them dressed and ready to go for a walk around the neighborhood. We made a pit stop at the local park, where Abigail and Joanna had a blast going down the slide. Last summer, Abigail was afraid to go down the slide, but this year, she went down like a champ, and had a huge grin on her face. Joanna was a little nervous, but watching her big sister do it, she got the courage to go down...she LOVED it. "more.....more" she said, as she climbed the stairs to the top (which were too big for her to hurdle, but she was determined). They were not to happy when we had to start the walk back, so I told them we would go the LONG way home. We went out on the back porch for a little just to calm down before sending them up to bed.

As I am typing this I can still hear them giggling and talking to each other (an hour later). Cant wait until I can separate them. Although, I wonder if putting Joanna and Taylor in the same room will be a good idea. Well, I can smell that our dinner is almost ready, so "Until Next Time".

March 1, 2009

Taylors Baby Dedication


the gift from Uncle Alex and Aunt Beth


Great Grandma and Princess Taylor

Princess Taylor with Uncle Seth

Mommy with 2 of her 3 Princess's

"The Bulows" take 1...2..3..4...

....AND FINALLY 5.

Joanna received a gift so she wouldnt feel left out...

and here is the Birthday Girl!

"Im THREE years old"

....and a Rock Star!

Daddy just LOVED this gift...

...and this one....

When Abigail opened this one, she said "I dont have a Bike-a-sole".....and then

"OH, MY BIKE-A-SOLE"

She took her "BUBBA" for a ride around the living room.

Joanna didnt want to be a doctor, but liked the idea of a Biker Babe.

Joanna playing dress up, then Uncle Sal got a kiss.

Nonno taught the girls guitar..

then they dropped the pick inside.....

It was SOME party...