What's New??

 I have been horrible at documenting our life lately.  Horrible at taking pictures too.  We have been busy lately.  We're smack dab in the middle of redoing our backyard.  New layout, new cement, new grass, new landscaping.  I can't wait to see it come together and done.  So far we took out our old patio slab and added new cement, a sidewalk, and a place to put our trashcans.  Hopefully we will be laying sod this week and building our barbecue/table and fire pit.  It's going to look awesome!!

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A couple of weeks ago we went to the fair.  I love the fair.  I love everything about it.  The memories from when I was a little girl, the rides, the exhibits, the farm animals, and my favorite...the food!!  We actually went twice in one weekend.  The kids liked it too.  Mackenzi and Quinn loved the rides.  Jace wasn't easily convinced that they were fun.  He did enjoy the genie ride though.

Quinn on the dragon roller coaster

Quinn again.  He kept his hands up for the entire ride.

Jace was just happy riding on Daddy's shoulders.  :)

(Quinn in the front, Jace in the back)

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This past weekend we celebrated my Mom's birthday.  We picked up Vince's Spaghetti and met my sister's family and brother's family at my parents house.  It's so nice to get together and hang out with everyone.  The kids have been really enjoying playing with their cousins lately.  They have been getting a kick out of simple things like paper airplanes, climbing trees, cartwheels, and spinning around and around.  It's so fun to watch them all play so nicely together!! 

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I have been having some cramping in my belly lately.  It got me quite nervous last week, but I went in today for my monthly check up and he assured me that everything looks great.  He thinks that the cramping is just intense round ligament pains from stretching.  I am carrying extremely low ( I always carry my babies low) so that puts added pressure on my ligaments.  I was so relieved during my ultrasound that sweet baby sister was still looking nice and healthy!!  I was also nervous that sweet baby sister was going to be a sweet baby brother today.  The tech said that she couldn't get a clear shot because baby was not cooperating, BUT from the glimpses that she did see...it looked like a girl. WHEW!!  Good thing, because we are all super excited to be adding a baby girl to our family!!  I am 19 weeks today, so I will add a new belly picture next Monday!!   I have lots and lots of ideas swirling around my head for decorating her room.  I'm thinking soft pink and light gray are the colors.  I searched the web today and got even more ideas.  I'm excited to get started on her room!! 

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Hopefully I will be better at updating my blog from here on out.  We have lots of fun things planned in October: My birthday, the pumpkin patch, fall activities/decorating, our annual pumpkin party, and Halloween!!  That should give me lots to say!!

The Start of Something Great...

Today was the boys' first day of preschool.  They were so excited to go to school and even more excited to wear their new school shoes!!  It's amazing to me that they're old enough for preschool.  I'm  looking forward to the skills that they'll learn/reinforce at school.  Skills like listening, following directions, sharing, & self control.  I'm also excited for the opportunities they'll have at school like painting, playing with new toys, cooking activities and much more.

Jace (left) and Quinn (right) with their teacher, Mrs. Sonrisa

They were all smiles as we got ready for school and dropped them off.  They didn't hesitate at all to start playing in their classroom.  We gave them a kiss and left them there to play.  When I picked them up this afternoon, their teacher said that they both had a very good day.

Jace had a little issue.  He told me he got in t.r.o.u.b.l.e.  He didn't want to stay in line while walking and the teacher had to usher him back into his spot in line.  He didn't like that too much and gave her a bit of attitude.  She said he then listened and recovered from the situation quickly.  He said he liked playing, making cookies, and playing cars.

Quinn had an awesome day.  His teacher told me he did very well following the routine of the class.  He liked playing in the sand and stamping chocolate chips on a craft.  He was SO tired when we got home and fell asleep in record time!

I hope that they're as excited to go to school on Tuesday as they were today.  I would love for them to love school as much as Mackenzi does.  I'm so proud of my big boys!!

On Friday evening, we got a phone call that my Aunt Penny had passed away.  She had been very sick for all of 2011, battling bouts of pneumonia and other infections.  She was in and out of the hospital, rehabilitation centers, and nursing homes throughout the year.  It was hard to hear all that she went through.  It gives us peace knowing that she is in a better place now. 

 Aunt P has been a huge part of our lives.  Growing up she often stayed with us and babysat my sister and I.  We sure gave her a run for her money.  She would frequently tell my mom that she just couldn't watch us anymore because all we did was fight.  We weren't always the nicest to her growing up!  One time she even called a taxi and threatened to leave because we were punching each other and rolling around the front yard fighting over Monopoly money.  I'm sure Dana and I gave her quite a bit of those grey hairs.  She was always at every event, holiday, celebration and important part of our lives.  She never married or had children of her own, so she loved her neices and nephews with all of her heart.

Aunt Penny's Service will be on :
Tuesday September 13, 2011
1:00 PM
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The Church of Jesus Christ Latter-Day Saints
1271 W Badillo St
Covina, CA 91722
All are welcome to join us

16 Weeks

As of Monday, I am now 16 weeks pregnant.  I am still feeling great, although the heat D.R.A.I.N.S. me.  I'm talking seeing spots, heart pounding through my whole body, need to sit down NOW drains me.  So we've been spending a lot of time hanging out indoors, which is fine by me (I'm so ready for cooler fall-like weather). 

I went to the doctor today for my monthly check up.  I gained 4 lbs. this month.  I'm not going to sweat the weight gain, I didn't gain any last month!!  Also, I've never gained  outrageously on either of my other pregnancies and I lost all the weight both times...so it's not really a big deal to me.  :)  I'm measuring exactly 16 weeks and I heard her heart beat for the first time today!!  I have my next appointment and Ultrasound scheduled for the end of this month.  Hopefully this technician will tell us it's still a girl!!!



Just for fun, here's a comparison from last month to this month.



Wordless Wednesday

Our Sweet Baby

I got a sweet surprise from our good friends Dusty and Emily.  It was an early birthday present to get an ultrasound to see the gender of our sweet baby.  I was THRILLED, to say the least.  The kids, Matt, and I were all in the room to see this sweet baby.

My favorite picture...look at that face.

 The kids were so excited...Mackenzi especially.  She was able to point out movements and body parts like hands, feet, and the head.  The baby even got hiccups for the last half of the appointment.  Just like big brother Jace (who always had the hiccups).

 The technician didn't hesitate at all when she found the body part to show if it was a boy or a girl. She said there is no doubt in her mind.

 It looks like we'll be wrapping up this sweet baby in lots of silky PINK blankies. 

That's right....a beautiful baby girl will join our family in February!!!

Hi Sweet Baby GIRL!!! 

We can't wait to meet you.  Until then, you keep growing and growing.  We will be busy getting all ready for you.  We have lots to do...a nursery to decorate, clothes, essentials, and baby gear to buy, and most importantly....figure out what to name you!!

Labor Day Weekend

We had a wonderful weekend.  We spent part of our weekend at Balboa Beach, Matt played in his uncle's annual horseshoe tournament while the kids and I hung out with my parents, Mackenzi and I got pedicures, and we found out the sex of our sweet baby (but, I'm not telling yet!).  Here are some cute pictures from (a chilly) yesterday in Laguna.  We checked out the tide pools before meeting some of Matt's family for lunch.

Sweet Baby Madison with her sweet little smirk

The Worst.Day.Ever

Yesterday, Mackenzi's day started off great.  She had sold enough items in the school fundraiser to collect all 6 rubber ducks on a fancy schmancy necklace.  She also received a special rubber ducky with spiky hair and a led light inside.  She was entered in a drawing for a $25 gift card to Target too.  I told you it was a pretty good day!!  These rubber duckies are apparently a HUGE deal to a Kindergartner!!!

After school we went to Mackenzi's dermatologist appointment.  This is where her day turned BAD!  She was a very brave and big girl while the derm. looked at the weird bumps on her face/neck/chin/chest.  She was a big girl when they checked out her tummy and back where her skin has lost pigmentation.  Then they told me that they had to remove all the bumps because they each contained a virus (molluscum contagiosum virus, to be exact).  The removal was done with a circular shaped scalpel....Here's the end result.

It was the WORST 15 minutes of her life...heck, it was the worst 15 minutes of my life!!  Hopefully they got all the MCV bumps and we will NEVER have to do that again!!  She was very brave and patient, but it was really a painful procedure.  She was pretty upset afterwards for the whole evening.  

This morning she woke up excited for Teddy Bear Day at school. 

She got to bring her favorite teddy bear to school. 

Today was a WAY better day than yesterday!!!

A Perfect Summer Activity

Last Sunday, we headed to my parent's to visit with my grandparents (visiting from Yosemite) and Uncle & Cousins (visiting from Orange).  The kids went swimming, then they begged Daddy to push the pirate ship close to the climbing tree so they could climb.  They had so much fun...especially Jace, our little monkey-boy.

So proud of himself

Quinn got pretty brave too

Mackenzi had to get in on the action

What a perfect way to spend the afternoon!!!