Thursday, March 31, 2011

Warm Day

Today it was warm! Now, I remember why we put all that time, effort and funds into the yard. The girls were out there all day and we all loved it! They played with friends in the play area in the backyard. The trampoline is no longer frightening, just fun! Well, maybe it still is for Eliza, but not for my flying big girls!
We had a great time eating treats and getting good and messy! Eliza particularly enjoyed this part of outside.
I enjoyed working on the front garden. My helleborus have finally decided to all bloom and the little trees are just coming to bud. I love the spring, the sunshine, and the smiles on the faces of the girls!

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Party-Time

This weekend was filled with wonderful parties for the girls. I realized I didn't have any gift bags left (that weren't Christmas) so we went shopping! Sara and I were able to have a lot of fun with the bag for Creed's "bee" party!
It was a super fun party - as Steph's always are. Sara loved it so much that she ended up playing bees and wearing her shirt all Saturday - the next day! Someday I want to throw kid parties as cool as Steph throws!
Then, Laura had her first late night (the modern version of a sleepover) on Friday. She had an amazing time.
Oh, and the parties didn't end there! The next morning her class had a primary party (she has an AMAZING primary teacher) that was so much fun. Then she had another bowling birthday party. Yep, her weekend rocked.

My weekend literally rocked. I got hit with a kidney stone Saturday evening and passed the "rocks" last night at about 6:30. Good to have that out of my system.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Sara's Recovery

Sara's recovery from her tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy has been a lot slower than I anticipated. She didn't communicate her pain very well and we had a very difficult time getting her to eat, drink and sleep enough. Sara has spent a lot of time coloring and eating "cold things", sitting on laps, and laying on the couch.
Oh, and then she got infected in her wounds. That's what happens when sister goes to school, I suppose. Fortunately, she finally seems to be coming out of it - she's been on antibiotics for 3 days now. Hopefully, next week we will be out of isolation (germ-phobic is what we are now) and she will be a positive, happy girl again. Hopefully mommy and daddy will be sleeping again also.

Monday, March 21, 2011

Other People's Babies

So, I'm baby hungry. Alas, I have been told, in no uncertain terms, that having another baby is completely unsafe for me. Fortunately, many of our friends are having babies (and all girl ones too) and are wonderfully willing to share them with our family.

Sara could've held baby Jace all day. And since I held her a lot the night before, I let Sara take her time!
I got to meet Deb's new baby girl hours after she was born and another couple times as well. Yummy. A few nights ago, most of us got to snuggle that precious, adorable girl again.

Also, we met Andy and Marie's beautiful new daughter. We all adored spending time with her and the girls also loved playing with her big sister.
Ahh...much better now. The baby hungries have lessened. Thank you for sharing, everyone!!

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Baby Laura Eleanor

After much debate and me (Jason) feeling dumb that I couldn't remember how much Laura weighed when she was born, we decided to look it up. And since she came in the pre-blog years, we decided to add her stats here so we would always have them.

Laura Eleanor
Born at 9:34 am on October 4, 2003
8 lbs. 8 oz.
19 1/2 inches long

She was a beautiful and alert little baby and a true miracle in our lives.




Trampoline - Playing Outside

With all the new space in the backyard we "needed" a trampoline. After much research, we decided on an 14' octagonal, All American trampoline. (Multiple jumper safety, good size for our space, warranty, etc.) It snowed the day we set it up. So, we've been spending a lot of time staring at it from the window and much more time on it in big coats.
We did have a few beautiful days in the mix and spent TONS of time outside on the play area. Jason and I love to play with the girls - mostly from off the tramp. And the big girls are taking to it so much. They are spending hours on the trampoline. So much better than being stuck in the house!


Eliza enjoys the trampoline as well. However, her patience and balance wear out quickly. So, she spends a lot of time watching her sisters from the swing or the rocks.
We can't wait for warmer days!

Friday, March 18, 2011

St. Patrick's Day 2011

I love little holidays. I love that only a few small efforts can result in a fabulously fun time. We dressed in green of course, but we did a little more. This year I went for a really fun St. Patty's day meal.
Western Family helped me with the corned beef. Then we had mashed potatoes because Sara had to be able to eat something with her ouchy throat. Our veggie was not cabbage, it is one of the few foods I don't enjoy, but green broccoli. However, my favorite touch was the pint of St. Patty's brew - really good cream soda. I used Benign Objects printables and they made it so fun! My cutouts with my cricut to go under the plates failed; I'll try again next year!
For dessert we had mini cupcakes with green frosting. They were chocolate mayonaise with mint cream cheese frosting. Laura LOVED them and ended up eating 4.
Sara's favorite was the awesome Bingo game my mom brought for the girls to play. She has even continued playing it today.
Yay for little holidays and fun family time!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Tonsil-Free Sara

When we switched around Sara's bedroom furniture, I slept right next to her for the first time in years. I was shocked to hear that she not only snored, but also had sleep apnea. I recognized the sleep apnea from when Jason had it in our second year of marriage. Three days later we had seen a pediatric ENT and had her scheduled to have her tonsils and adenoids removed. The surgery took place today.

We took her to Primary Children's (SDS in Riverton) to make the experience as easy, kid-friendly, and comfortable as possible for her little body and nervous parents. It was the right move!!!
The staff was amazing. The environment was fun with games, wagons, toys, books, etc. All the medical equipment, medication, recovery process (go slurpees) was specifically catered to little kids and it worked. She was never scared, though rather hilarious on a medication they gave her to calm her nerves. She has been remarkable and has yet to complain of pain - we're pretty sure that will change tomorrow. Hopefully her build a panda bear will continue to help...she got her tonsils out too.

The doctor told us that her tonsils were huge before he went into surgery - he called them "kissing tonsils". However, when he got out, he told us that her adenoids were some of the biggest he's ever seen and that even with post-operative swelling, she is probably already breathing better than she ever has. We have both noticed this as she is sleeping without snoring and sleeping without the apnea - she's SOLID!
We hope that this truly will affect every aspect of her life for the better.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Food, Friends, and Fun

You know what makes everything all better?! A lot of love, yummy food, dessert, laughter, chatting, and very little sleep. Yep, these girls are therapy for me! Thank you, ladies!!!!
We tried out The Chocolate and I highly recommend it. We sampled a lot of items and every one was good. They do a new version of a pizookie that looked amazing, the brownies were delicious and I was inspired for my cupcake adventures. I think it may become a standard girls night activity and beat out chocolate dipped cones. Who's ready to come with me??
Also, we went to the watch Andrea perform at Spring Fest at the fairgrounds. My goodness that girl is beautiful. We loved being able to (very loudly and obnoxiously) cheer her on and watch her perform.
What a blessing that I was put into a presidency with these ladies!

Tuesday, March 08, 2011

Room Rotation - Sara's

Eliza slept so much better on our vacation than she does at home that we thought it might be time to put her in a big girl bed. This means that Sara got new bedroom furniture. (We think that twin sized beds don't last long and didn't want to purchase another.)

After much searching and discussion we decided on a white bedroom set for that room - it's the darkest in the house, and white is always in style. Our favorite ended up being the Hemnes set from IKEA. We've been trying to purchase "Made in the USA" goods lately and this was not, but we just couldn't justify triple the cost; at least it was made in Europe.
Sara selected her new bedspread from Target. I used simple purple pillowcases to dress it up and used a flat sheet in the same purple to make her curtain. She also decided that she was done with her Minnies and passed them down to Eliza.
Assembly of the bedroom set was a lot more intense than anticipated - thank you Dad and Andy for your help! But I think it turned out beautifully and so sturdy! We moved around Sara's flower light, hung her hand drawn "Alice" from Disneyland, swapped out her black magnet board for a white one to match her new decor, and voila; Sara has a new, grown-up room!
I think we would still like a mirror in here and it'll be fun to add more characters to her wall as she selects them. But, the room looks like Sara and should definitely be able to grow with her!

Thursday, March 03, 2011

Happy Birthday Grandpa Dan

We weren't so punctual with Grandpa Dan's birthday celebrations this year. We have been really sick. So, we ran over his birthday gift the Sunday before his day. We couldn't stay long, but the girls gave him a few hugs and we got him a Jazz shirt. (So glad that when we bought that shirt in December that it wasn't a D-Will shirt. He is wearing it in pictures below.)
Then we had he and Grandma Linda over for dinner and the Jazz game the Friday after his day. I made a roast chicken and root beer float cupcakes. The cupcakes were amazing and I think they may be my new favorite.

Wednesday, March 02, 2011

Music Makers

One of our favorite parts of the week is on Fridays. It is music makers. Karyn runs it (we rotate assignments) and many of my other friends attend. We do finger plays, songs, use instruments, learn about music, dance, play with a parachute, read, and have a snack!

It is an hour long and probably one of our favorite hours of the week! The girls get out their wiggles and I use my training as a dancer and my love of little ones. What a highlight.