Personal Days

Both Carly and Joiner have been sick the past two weeks. Nothing major, just a fever that drops them for a day or two. Carly got her fever two Mondays ago, so she was still low on Tuesday and stayed home with me while Joiner went to school. They love school, but there is something special about staying home with mom alone. Carly and I took long walks, went to the farmer's market, and to the library. She had to stay home a second day because I just thought she was too puny. Joiner got her fever on the following Saturday, so she was better by school, but she is very pitiful and her nose was running. I kept her home last Tuesday and she wanted to go to the library like Carly and to play the computer and pick out books. I need to get these books back to the library because I can not read them again. I am thinking about hiding them until I can get them back!

Anyway, I was getting ready for one of our walks with Carly. She asked if she could put on purple eye shadow. I said yes because it usually doesn't even show. So I come out of the bathroom and she is covered brow to brow in glittery purple eye shadow. Apparently she didn't think it showed either because she almost ruined my good Bobbi Brown brush grinding it into the shadow to get good coverage. Look carefully at the pictures and you can see it! You can also see that she wasn't too sick!

Check Out Our New Yard

In November, Mamie and Pops came and helped me re-landscape the front yard. It has really turned out well. I was trying to take some pictures of it the other day, but I had to let the girls also take pictures and then they had to be in most of them.

Here is Carly's picture of the yard with a running Joiner

Joiner's picture of the geramium pot

Carly posing with Encore Azaelas in the background. In the week since I took the picture, they have really filled out.

Joiner with Pieres(sp)

Both yard models with the rhodedendrons (sp)

Sitting on the bench

The yard looks really great. Even the sewer line part has gotten good grass this year. We just need some rain. So much for a rainly Spring. I hope the summer will bring more regular rain for the veggies I need to get in the ground. It will also be nice when the bulbs grow down again. Thanks for your help, Mamie and Pops!

Swagger Wagon

I love these commercials. This should be my theme song! I am not that cool however! I have tried a million times to embed this video on the page and it doesn't work, so go to this link to see it!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql-N3F1FhW4&feature=PlayList&p=30DA2DAB5702C7D1&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=7

Strawberry Picking

It is prime strawberry season here, and the girls and I look forward to this time almost more than anything else. We got a gallon from our grower at church last Thursday, but they were gone by Friday. What is it about fresh strawberries? So the weather was really nice and cool on Monday, so we headed to the strawberry patch after we went to the Y. We each got a gallon container and got to work. The girls did really well, and have gotten almost too good at picking berries. They are so picky that I am almost asking them to pick sub-prime berries. We finally filled all three containers. Then we headed to a park for lunch. Weirdly, we were the only people at the park. But we had a nice afternoon together and a whole bunch of berries. Unless the weather is bad, we will be back for more on Monday! I like the freezer full and with the rate we are eating them, that will take a while!

Marching to the path!

Joiner is trying to figure out how to navigate the irrigation pipe

Carly high-stepping

Carly picking

Joiner and her choice

Showing me their catch!

Can you see the strawberry stains on their face? I don't think we ate as many this year while we were picking.

Carly coming down the slide

Joiner on her way. These slides were sheet medal. It was a cool day, so they were comfortable. I do not know why slides are made this way because in the summer, they will be lethal.

Is Algea Eater In There?

We had a great Mother's Day weekend. I don't have any pictures, but it was a really nice time. Mom and Dad came in on Saturday just in time for the soccer game. Both girls had a great game and a lot of fun. Then Dad started working on the house. He is our plumbing expert and he started by fixing a drip with our shower faucet. Then he moved on to replacing the toilet in the same bathroom. Mary and Tom brought us their old, but still water efficient, toilet when they remodeled their bathroom. We had a nice dinner on Saturday night with a Green Egg grilled/ raosted chicken (Andy's best yet), my favorite lemony orzo, roasted cauliflower and broccoli.

On Sunday, the girls and mom and I went to church. Dad and Andy stayed home to hang new molding in the foyer and to grill the burgers for our cookout lunch. Margaret, Bruce, Jarrett, and Miriam joined us for a great lunch on a really beautiful day. It was a wonderful Mother's Day!

Then last night, Andy thinks the newly replaced toilet might be running and need the components replaced after all. So he lifts off the top of the tank to check out the situation. It is bath time so both girls are undressing. Carly leans over him and says "is Algae eater in there?" He looks at her like she is crazy. I start laughing so hard that my pregnant bladder is endangered. She was referring to the many algae eaters that have not survived the "spicy" water in our tank and we have had to return to God via the toilet. I guess it is hard to understand that they don't just hang out in the toilet! We tried to explain that like Finding Nemo, all drains lead to the ocean and the algae eater is buried in the ocean. She seemed mollified by this answer, but I am still laughing!

Happy Mother's Day!

Rock Stars

The other day we were in the car going somewhere and I look behind me and I start laughing. The girls had on the outfits they design in the mornings, sun hats, and sun glasses. When I laugh, they both say "We are rock stars, mommy." Yes, baby, you are!

The Big Purchase

Andy won $250 for a poster presentation in February. I really thought that he should use that money for something he wanted. We so rarely have money like that and he works really hard. I suggested a new TV as he is always looking at them and talking about them. I even offered $100 extra to help with his budget even though we really shouldn't do that. So, anyone who knows Andy knows he was immediately at Best Buy, Target, Sams, Costco, etc. looking at the differences and sizes. He dragged the three of us with him and we would meander around the store looking at things that interested us more.

To my surprise, he decided that the budget wasn't big enough and he thought we should shelve the TV idea until he could get what he really wants. Well, I am not a big TV person, so I was a little amazed, but it was his reward. So, he was left with a huge sum of money (to us) and it was literally burning a hole in his pocket. He was researching headphones, speakers, and all sorts of electronics. Again, we were dragged to the stores to look at options. We started to notice that the girls always ended up at the Wii station to play whatever game was in the display. One night when Andy took them alone, they came home telling me about this Just Dance game with their favorite song, Girls Just Want to Have Fun. So we start to get the idea that maybe a Wii would be a nice family present. I have always wanted a Wii, but not $200 worth. Our dilema comes that we are not video game people and we rarely let the girls even watch TV. We did think that it might be nice with Mistletoe coming that we could put him/her down and go downstairs and have fun and be loud. So, we looked at deals and thought about it for another month. Finally, the money just went through Andy and he came home from soccer on a Sunday and said he was going to get his Wii. The girls pile into the car and off they go to Best Buy.

$250 later and...It is really cool. We are all having a blast. We did buy them the Just Dance game. If you know our girls, we play Dance Party almost every night, so this was very fitting. Andy is a master tennis player and he is delighted to know that my tennis malformality extends to video games as well. I need to practice on my own and school him! The best thing lately is bowling. We can all play with our Mii (your personality) and the girls are amazing. Golf is fun, too. Joiner got a hole in one the other day! So, I am a convert. I still don't love video games, but this has been really fun. The girls tell everyone that daddy got them a "little Wii."

Here is Carly dancing

Joiner getting the moves down

And if you have never seen Andy dance, it gives new meaning to the "white Man's Overbite!" And boy does he get into it!

Daddy teaching Carly to bowl