Get the motor runnin'

Yup, we are on our way baby! Off to California for a week....I am looking forward to being in some sunnier weather. I hope it is warm! I am keeping my fingers crossed!
It is weird, but I already miss my kids....I worry about everything, you know. I hope they are good for Misty and Jake. I hope they don't miss the bus. I hope they don't fight like crazy. I could go on and on.
Jason is being so good already....I am hoping that lasts on the flights! Our plane is going to be full,so we weren't able to get an extra seat for Jason. Darn!
Anyway, I got lucky and Seth brought his laptop so I will be able to keep this blog somewhat updated! I will fill you in on our days out in the sun! :) See ya!

That's all folks....

I am so sorry for being so behind on blogging lately. It seems to just be getting worse! :)
I am however, getting ready to go out of town for a week... I am excited to go, but hating the prep. that goes into leaving four children behind. (poor Misty)
Thank you Misty! You have made my life SOOOO much easier, just knowing you will take care of my kids!! I do appreciate it! It is nice to be surrounded by family that is helpful and kind. I will hopefully be able to keep blogging from CA. We'll see! :) I really should get some sleep you know, I have a TON to do tomorrow still!! For now, that's all!

lovin' from the bunny...'er Mom!

Jason's first Easter

Jason pretty much only cared about the jump rope.....like it was the best thing ever! The last picture is Jason showing off his new tricks...he wants to crawl SO bad!

Easter

Well, our family had a lovely Easter weekend.....and I managed to not take a single picture of the kids Easter Egg hunting at either hunt! We had a great barbecue at Tom and Wendy's house on Friday. Then on Saturday we went over to Gramma and Grampa Galbraith's house and had a yummy breakfast and an egg hunt...Nope no pics. Sigh, I feel so awful about it. I did get a few pictures Easter Sunday, though....I will try to get some better ones in a few weeks when it warms up.
Bring on Spring baby!!!

the goods....

Annie and her friend Liz.....her cd and the balloons she got from Gramma and Grampa!

Happy Birthday!

10 years ago....I was one terrified Mama! I had just had my very first baby. She was born with a condition called gastroschesis. We knew enough to be scared, but we were hopeful our baby would be okay. There were a lot of ups and downs those first few weeks, but a little over a month we were able to bring our beautiful baby home. She was beautiful and perfect.
Annie Louise Galbraith was born March 25, 1998
she weighed 4lbs 4 oz (or so....depending on which weight was the most accurate)
she was 19 1/4 inches long
And now you would never know anything was ever wrong with her! How blessed we are!

I can hardly believe how fast the time has gone. Just look at her....she isn't a baby anymore. I am all of the sudden flooded with memories of her. When it was just her and I....she was the perfect little companion. She was happy, and would sing every song on the radio with me. (seriously....as a 2 year old!!) She was so tiny. She was so girly, yet feisty and tom-boyish.
She still is all that and more.....she is just so much older now.
Annie, I love you so much.
Because it is her 10th birthday, i thought I would write 10 things about Annie.....

1)sweet as can be
2)super smart
3)has an incredible testimony
4)has a bright smile
5)loves children (especially the little ones!)
6)loves to read...almost as much as her Dad does!!
7)she has a beautiful singing voice
8)loves to ride her bike
9)loves animals
10) is a good friend

Tonight, we just had a very small party for her. She had one friend over, Liz. Jake and Misty, Gramma Jenny and Grampa Ron came over to eat swedish pancakes. (Annie's choice for b-day dinner!!) Gramma Cindy came by and brought her a card. It was a nice evening. Jake and Misty gave her a radio Disney cd, that she LOVES!! My parents sent her balloons at school and gave her a card with a coupon in it for a movie date! Her friend Liz gave her a shower gel set, that smells like chocolate! And we gave her a new quilt for her bed....we are going to have to 'extreme makeover' Annie's bedroom when I get home from California! And she was very excited about her cards from Gramma and Grampa Mason, Gramma Cindy and Gramma Dahl.... Thanks everyone for making Annie's day so special.
Annie we love you. Have a Happy birthday.....and lets slow down the next ten years, okay!?

Happy Day!

Happy First day of Spring, everyone!! It is shaping up to be a beautiful day around here!! We might reach 70 degrees!! Wee haw! I can not tell you how excited I am. I am going to get the rest of my Easter shopping done, and maybe buy a few shirts for myself. :)
I still haven't had my hair cut yet.... Have a great day y'all! (stay tuned, I could have some crazy, wild, amazing, scary news for you!!)

The sweetest thing....

I just love a mellow, sweet baby! He brings so much joy to our family, it is a wonder what we ever did without him. Really, that is how I feel about all of my kids! I am truly blessed!

Ummm...

Not really sure what is going to come out as I type this. I have alot of things running through my head right now. I have seen several self-portrait challenges lately and this has been one of those things I have avoided. Well, today has been a great, busy, pretty happy day for me despite several factors that could be really depressing! :) Either way, I have been very upbeat, and I just figured what the heck, lets do that self portrait thing.
I held the camera as far back as I could and this is the best I got. But let me tell you, this was worse than looking in the mirror for me. It is strange to try to explain the emotion I felt, looking through and trying to edit one of these images. I really don't have a lot of pictures of myself, and to be quite honest I don't spend a lot of time in front of the mirror. Have you ever really looked at yourself....deeply. I mean really studied your face? As I did this I wondered who I was, who I really was. Things like, what makes her tick, what makes her happy, what is her talent? I felt so sad for her. I felt happy for her. I felt confused.
I see someone who wants to be happy. Who wants to help people, be creative, who wants to be a good Mom. Someone who wants to love and be loved. Someone who wants respect, acceptance, someone who is dying to be thin, who wants loyal friends, and especially wants to laugh. What do you see when you look at yourself?

I did not intend on this being so emotional. It is a weird feeling to be so raw, so open with myself.
I want to see that twinkle in my eye. I didn't. I think I have lost my twinkle. Bummer.

Happy St.Patty's Day!

Hopefully you are wearing green. Once when I was young and oh so cool, I wore blue and yellow, since together it made green....I still got pinched all day. (even though I thought I was SO clever) hahah!
Have a great day, and I wish you all the Luck 'O the Irish!

Does this make me old?

Obviously, I am consumed by the weather. Today's forecast is Thunderstorms, with a high of 40 degrees! Brrr! Maybe I have that seasonal affective disorder....hahahahah!! I am just beyond ready for some warmth! (and honestly, I am sick of the mud!!) The one good thing I like about weather like this is, it is perfect 'project' weather!! I always feel like getting something extra done when it is stormy! I will keep you posted...
So this week,I am looking forward to:

1) maybe getting my haircut tomorrow....What do you think, chop it all off? I am looking for some change. Since I am not losing weight, I am thinking I can distract people with a bad haircut. :)

2) we are having an Barbecue at my Uncle's house on Friday. Haven't visited that side of the family in a while, and am looking forward to seeing everyone!

3) An Easter egg hunt and breakfast at Gramma Galbraith's on Saturday. That will be fun! We all have a good time when we are together.

4) I am excited about the goodies I got for my kids this year for Easter.

5) scrap booking with Misty! Come on over, Girl! Let's get started!!

That's my week in a nutshell! What are your plans for the week, do tell!!!

Do you see it!??!?!

In all honesty, you can barley see it....but I can definitely feel it!! Mr. Jayjay has cut his first tooth!! (on Friday the 14th) He was a little grouchy that day, and by the evening I could feel that little sliver of a tooth! He is very proud to be sporting a pearly white, and we are pretty sure he has at least two more ready to break through.

The Pokemon Club

We have been seeing a LOT of this lately! It is one of those 'crazes' I figured we wouldn't get sucked into. But lo and behold, we have a full fledged Pokemon Club at our house! Apparently, to be in the club you have to have lots of blankets, a table and chicken. (Hmm, I wonder why they crossed out chicken.?) Anyway, I had been throwing these annoying cards away, until I took Jared to the store and he wanted to look at them, and I realized they were $5.00 for 10 cards! Holy Cow! Now,I respect them a little more! :) Hope you are having a great weekend!! We did get snow last night.....but looky here, I am NOT going to complain about it! Aren't you proud of me!?

The winter blah, blah, blahs!!!

So yesterday was a lovely day.....70 degrees. I was so excited and energetic. Today is a different story! It will only be in the 50's and getting colder for the weekend! Darn! I really am ready for some sun! I am not normally a whiny person, but this winter has just really drug on, to me! And it is bringing out my inner whiner! (not pretty)
So, the kids have the day off of school tomorrow and I am considering bribing them....you know the old fashioned 'get your room clean and I'll take you to the movies' number!! :) I think we will go see Spiderwick Chronicles. Has anyone seen it? Is it good for kids? Any other recommendations?? I would love to hear your opinions! You know of course, that it totally depends on if the rooms get cleaned or not!! hehehe!!
Well, I think I will go for a walk again today, before it gets too cold! I hope you are all having a great day!

Saving money!?

Gotta save money on gas somehow, right!? Don't be jealous. Embrace it. If gas prices keep going up, I am afraid we will be seeing alot more of this!

the new big thing around here....

Ella is totally into taking the 'clip' basket and using all the pony tail clips for bracelets and dressing up her baby dolls....Katie is all about brushing and fixing hair. She tells me she is practicing. Katie even wants to do her own hair for school.....scary. I have had to 'help' her out a few times! :)
Girls just wanna have fun, I suppose! (and look really weird in the process!!)

Brrr!

It has been spitting snow all morning. Not the big accumulating kind, just the small annoying kind that isn't very pretty! Who knows though, it just might accumulate if it keeps up!
Anyway, I have been so bad about blogging and I apologize! Things have been so crazy and busy...... I am so glad it is Friday. I decided I would leave you with a list of things I am looking forward to and can't stop thinking about.....

Looking forward to:

...sleeping in. i know for most of you, you wouldn't consider getting up at 7am, sleeping in. but for me, it is!!
...family movie night ( a Friday night tradition, around here)
...roller skating tomorrow. (love it)
...going to CA for Jessica's wedding March 28
...baby shower next weekend (haven't been to one in a while...i get to take pictures too, so that will be fun!!)
...getting my jewelry i ordered from Lia Sophia (pretty much i am dying for this!!)
...having Hillary CLOSE!! 4 hours is nothing, baby!!
...my eleventh anniversary. crazy, i know....i have been married eleven years (3.28)
...spring
...scrap booking
...girls weekend in April
...Jason's finalization
...Easter. i got the cutest matching dresses for all three of the girls! yes, I am very excited for the matchy-matchy event of the year!
...Alan coming home for a visit (now where are josh and Darrell)

Have a great weekend everyone!!

oh, and aren't my kids so cute out there helping their dad cut wood!? i love that they are so helpful, and that my man is such a hard worker!

Happy Tuesday!

This is a picture I snapped of Jason before we went to church on Sunday. He was smiling and laughing, and the moment I get the camera out, he stares at it and watches it. It is actually really funny. I can't believe how fast the time is going! He just turned 5 months old. Crazy!

Lucky you...

I can't get a hold of Mom tonight....so I am not going to close the show till tomorrow. You have until noon. So for heavens sake, get your order in! :) MOM!

IS this a sign??

A sign that spring is coming!??!!? Annie has been growing these 'paper white's ' that Grama Jenny gave her, and watches and waters and stresses about them. Finally this week we could see that they were going to bloom. Annie was so excited. So we are hoping that this is a sign of spring....cause, I am ready. Yesterday was beautiful...today is expected to be even better!! The mud needs to dry up, and the grass needs to turn green. Please.
On a side note....if you are going to order some jewelry either do it online or email me your order info by tonight. I am pretty sure we are going to close the show tonight, unless I get some desperate email asking me to wait....:) Hillary ended up emailing her order, because she wasn't able to get the buy two, get two half off deal through the website. Either way let me know. Have a lovely day!