Addi's sick

So just because I had such a great day, I had to have an equally bad day because that is how life works. So the morning after my fabulous day I arrive home to Addi saying, "Mommy! You have to clean up my mess cuz I keep spilling from my mouth and it is really gross!" Sure enough, it was really gross. Poor little girl. It is much worse to have a sick kid than be sick yourself. But she is feeling better, so we will take it easy for another day and then try again tomorrow for a most beautiful day.

Kaden Mikal 7 weeks old

Addi and her buddy Julian

In case anyone was wondering, Addi is completely potty trained for a while now. She just decided she was going to do it one day and hasn't gone back. I knew she knew what was going on all along, she just had to do it on HER terms, in HER time. Thats ok. She is her mothers daughter. :o) And boy do I love not buying pull-ups anymore, they were way too expensive. She makes me sing a song with her after she goes that was inspired by her favorite show Nai-Ho Kia-lan. It goes a little something like this....You did it! You did it! You know just what to do! You did it! You did it! You know just what to do! You went pee in the potty---pee in the potty---Thanks for giving it a try, try, trrrrrryyyyyy! She likes to sing along with you too. She really loves it and feels so proud, grinning from ear to ear. And just in case you were wondering, Tony sings the song too, but only when he thinks I'm not listening :o)

A Beautiful Day...

Today is the most beautiful day. It is really no different than any other beautiful day, but on this particular one I happen to have such a positive perspective on life that the combo of the two create the MOST beautiful day. A few factors have contributed to make this so. The weather has been getting nicer by the day, and after a long winter sun shining days have a strong force in lifting your spirits. Maybe it's the warmth it brings to the body, or maybe it's the exercise I get pushing my kids around town enjoying these beautiful days that makes me feel so good. One thing is for sure, there is a lot of beauty to take in this time of year with all the pretty flowers and rolling green fields. Another factor of this most beautiful day is that I finished a really good book this morning at work. And a good book has a way of getting inside your head and making you think about your own life in relation to the character in the book and the lessons they learned through their struggles. This book reaffirmed the notions of cherishing your family and friends and being a good person. Because this book ended on a high note I suppose that rubbed off on me as well. Another contributing factor was a tidbit of a Nickleback song that was playing as I headed home from work. It said "my best friend told me the best advice, every day is a gift and not a given." Wow. That line just sunk in and has been replaying ever since. It is the kind of line that inspires you to do great things. How can you have a bad day with that line stuck in your head? Then when I was driving home I got pulled over. Yikes. That is never good. But he was really friendly and let me go, even though he could have cited me for about four different things like illegal lane change, texting while driving, expired tags and lack of proof of insurance. Boy am I glad I don't have to throw all that money away. But I tell you what, I am going to take my kids on a walk over to the DMV and renew my tags, then stop at the park on the way home and let Addi run wild until she needs a nap. Then when she is home and napping I will print off my insurance card and put it in the car. Then start a new book and enjoy the peace. All the while, enjoying this most beautiful day. :o)

Yesterday we took advantage of the nice weather and packed into the car and took off into the great outdoors. We drove through Laird Park and Tony got a chance to shoot his new gun, and I even got a turn. We drove down White Pine drive went on a short hike and then headed for a park where Addi could play. It was a beautiful day with the family.

My pretty birthday flowers

Crazy little 3 year old with a marker

27 and counting....

So here I sit, 27 years old. So far everything has gone well and life has gone pretty much as I planned: high school graduation, off to college, meet the man of my dreams, fall in love, graduate, get married, have babies, live happily ever after. I may have gotten married and had babies younger than I had originally planned, but now that I am a parent of a toddler I understand that you need to be young for this job, they really wear you out!! I was visiting with a friend and told her how I remember every one of my birthdays since my third. They sure have changed dramatically over the years, but all of them were very special and perfect and memories I will have forever. I hope I can give the same to my kids. This year was the mellowest of them all, but that ended up being just what I needed. We spent the day together as a family and went out to a nice lunch, then went on a drive out to a county park except the weather turned sour and both kids fell asleep so we just drove on back country roads talking and enjoying the peace. It was perfect. Then he watched the kids that night and I went to a nice sushi restaurant with a friend. Came home just in time to watch American Idol, and then read my new book. Yep, things have sure toned down. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Spending time with family

The past couple weeks have flown by. I went to work for the first time last night for 3 1/2 hours and Tony had both kids for the first time, and it was my first time away from the baby. All went well, except I am still putting my house back together from the tornado that flew through here while I was gone.....I spent the weekend in Spokane visiting friends and family and had a wonderful time. Tony worked and stayed here in Moscow. He planted some beautiful flowers for me on Mothers Day and made me stuffed mushrooms for dinner. My Grandma bought me a cake from Costco for my birthday, so looks like we will be eating that for the next month or so.......Addi has gone the past 36 hours using the potty with no accidents. Let's hope that continues. All it took was some good old fashioned bribery. Now she can take gymnastics. WhoooHOooooo. The baby is getting big, and he has formations of baby fat rolls now. Let's see if he gets the Michelin Man rolls that Addi had. He has started smiling at us now, non- gas related. So cute. He is the best baby, so calm and chill. It has been snowing off and on today, grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr. So we are stuck inside. Oh well, a day of laundry, cleaning, cooking and baking, puzzles, coloring, books, kisses and hugs and internet time wasting sounds great to me!