Swim Season is Here!

Yeah, I always look forward to this time of the year ... and am always happy to see it go by the end of the summer! Ha, ha! It's a lot of working hauling 4 kids to a meet, but Steve was a trooper while I did timing (sneaky, aren't I?!) and managed pretty well. Of course, Grandma comes along to help too! Couldn't do it without her!

Katelyn had a great 2nd meet (I missed the first, so no photos ... sorry!). We think she placed 2nd in Butterfly, 3rd in Breaststroke, and 2nd in Freestyle. She beat all her times, which rocks! Hopefully she can keep that up! Tomorrow we signed her up for 100's in fly, back and free ... she's not too happy about that! We're so mean!

Here are some pics from today:

bubbles ... bubbles ... bubbles

Max loves his bubbles. Katelyn won him this bubble set at school. She could have used her raffle tickets for some cool metallic markers, but instead thought of her little brother ... awwwww! (The funny thing is, Grant got to pick from the goody bag at his class too and brought home an Elmo coloring book for Max! I thought it was so sweet of them!)

Last Day of School!!! Hurray!

This year has gone by so fast, but we are happy to have summer here to sleep in (of course, Katelyn was up at 5:30 this morning!) and swim all day and play! I'm sure Max will have to adjust to having the big kids home all the time ... he's used to having things to himself! But he'll enjoy having someone to swim with whenever he wants!

Here's a picture of the kids on their last day! They both enjoyed their year at school and did great with their grades! Woo hoo!!

happy m-day

Mother's Day was so sweet ... the kids made me really cute cards and woke me up with a big "Happy Mother's Day"! Grant even made me one of his Lego creations ... so fun!

Blake's a month old ... and celebrating with a smile!

Wow, Blake turned a month today, and while taking pictures, I got a few smiles from him! That is a first. Not sure if it was a fluke or just gas, but it was fun to see him smile! And it wasn't just once ... at least 4 times!

Here he is at 1 month:

Pool Time

While Katelyn was at volleyball today, the boys played in the pool. Well, Max played in the pool mostly. Grant still thinks it's too cold (must get that from his mom). Max and Katelyn can play in there forever ... and he did! Here he is having fun!!

Blake - 3 weeks

Wow, time flies. Blake is already 3 weeks old, and I don't know where time has gone! I should be taking more pictures, but I'm lucky just to get showered and dressed for the day!

Here are a few from week 3.

Baby Blake ... finally!

How can a week seem like an eternity one week and then the next week it just flies by? It seemed like we were waiting forever for Blake to get here, and being overdue was killing me. But, in hindsight (of course), we can see God's perfect timing. Steve's parents flew into Bakersfield on Wednesday around lunchtime, and we were heading to the hospital at dinnertime!

I opted for an epidural this time, and WOW, can I say that had to be the easiest delivery ever??? After my epidural took effect, the doctor broke my water and about 45 minutes later, we had Blake. It only took about 3 pushes, and he was out. Time of birth: 10:25 p.m.

Blake was a lightweight (ha, ha) weighing in at 9 lbs., 10 oz. (Grant was the exact same weight). He measured 22.5 inches long. Because he had low blood sugar levels, they did take him away to supplement with formula and an IV. That was tough, but he was back in my room by the next afternoon. We ended up staying one more night (which was fine, as I knew the craziness I was headed for at home), so we went home Friday after lunch.

This week has flown by!! Crazy, it seems. He's a good sleeper, so nights haven't been too bad so far. It was wonderful to have Steve's parents here for the first week and then my mom has been helping me this week too, so I've been spoiled! I don't know what I'm going to do next week!! Hopefully keep it all together!

Here are some pictures of our sweet little Blake.

Just born:


















One Week:



9 Days:



With Max (9 days):

More video ...

Max tells the funniest story about his fishing adventure last week. Steve, Katelyn, Max & I went fishing over at the lake. Katelyn was the top fisherwoman, reeling in 7 crappie and 3 bluegill. We let Max hold one of the baby crappie, but he didn't throw it back in the water fast enough and the fish decided to get out of his hands on his own. Here's Max's version:

Did we miss Spring or what?

OK, so I'm not too happy with our weather situation now! It's not supposed to be almost 90 in March! I don't want to be horribly uncomfortable during my last month of pregnancy, and I didn't buy any short-sleeved maternity shirts! However, it has been fun for the kids, and as crazy as it seems, Katelyn and Grant have already been in the pool this last week (March 16 on). Max even jumped in his little pool when I was filling it up ... fully clothed of course. The big kids call his pool the hot tub because it's so much warmer than the big pool. I know Katelyn was in the pool when it was 60, but now it's getting up to 69, so it's really warm! ;)

Here's Max in his pool:

Goofy Dog

Izzy is so silly. We never knew this before, but she loves bubbles. We were doing bubbles with Max, when she came out of nowhere and kept trying to "eat" the bubbles. Ewww. Grant was worried she'd be sick, but I don't think she ate enough to make a difference! Here she is.

just because ...

wow, I'm on a roll today ... two posts in one day. Here's a picture I took on Sunday of Grant. No particular reason for posting ... just that he wasn't goofing around, just looking cute :) Now to catch Katelyn!!!

They always surprise you ...

When Max got this present for Christmas from our dear friends the Naworski's, I thought to myself that it was something he wouldn't be using for quite awhile ... boy, was I wrong! He loves this little game of matching the chunky letters to the cards, and I can't believe how good he is at it. His favorite letter is "B" and knows many of the other letters too! Now, I'm so glad he got that gift! It's one of our favorite toys!

Naughty Max ...

Well, it's hard to get too mad at him when he's naughty, because he makes the cutest little face, but I'm doing it anyway. He's getting away with tooooo much, and is turning into a bully :( Here's the scene ...

I had a photo session today, and in order to keep it neat and clean, Max was told to stay out of the studio room (where his cars are in the cupboard). He had a really hard time resisting (as you can see by the pictures) ... and obviously didn't succeed in obeying. But the lighting was nice there, so I had to take some pictures :)

Last Minute Trip to Disneyland

Well, I had about an hour to pack, but that's OK ... the kids were elated that we were going on a little overnight trip to Disneyland. Steve got some complimentary tickets from work, so we went down Tuesday night after work and then got up bright and early Wednesday to play at the Happiest Place on Earth (or as Steve's coworker likes to say, The Most Crowded Place on Earth). We got on most of the rides with less than 30 minutes to wait, so it wasn't too bad. Some of our favorite things were the Buzz Lightyear ride where you got to shoot at targets while riding in the cars (see pictures). Grant was always the high scorer (imagine that!) ... but it was definitely fun! The other thing we enjoyed was the Jedi Training Show. Grant didn't raise his hand (very high anyway), so he wasn't selected to participate, but I think after seeing what they got to do, he wished he would have!! Katelyn too, I think! They first taught them a couple moves with the lightsabers and then Darth Vader and Darth Maul (along with clone troopers) showed up to fight the Jedi Trainers. Very fun, but that Darth Maul was a scary looking guy!

Max loved It's a Small World, but wasn't quite sure of the Tea Cups (wonder why ... check out the video!). It was fun to take him on his first (well first that he could enjoy!) trip to Disney. We all had a great time and were pooped when we got home!

click on the text to see the video: TEACUP VIDEO

12 years ... already?

It seems hard to believe that Steve and I have been married 12 years already. Where does time go ... and what have we made of ourselves in all that time. Some days I wonder if anything! It seems like we're just trying to get through life, but those are the times I have to reflect and see what has truly come out of 12 years ... 3 kids we love dearly, many jobs that have stretched us and taught us how to grow through our circumstances, and once in awhile a quiet moment to spend with each other and enjoy the moment ... as short as it may be. Here's to 12 more years together (plus some!!).

And it's a good thing that Steve came in with flowers, because I totally forgot it was our anniversary! Of course, Steve's parents didn't forget (neither did Julie). They said they were getting a blizzard in Lincoln on Sunday, so they knew it must be our anniversary :) ha, ha! It didn't snow that bad on our wedding day, did it? snicker! Thanks for remembering!

Here are my tulips ... one of my favorite flowers and our wedding day flowers.