Rock Stars

This week, we "Wii-ed" for the first time. Some friends from our ward got together and challenged each other to some Wii games. We have never "Wii-ed" before. We were told going in, there would be no mercy. It was a blast. Afterwards, we all did Rock Band and rocked out on a few songs. Cedric really got into it and actually had a knack for the drums. It got a little out of hand when he started singing "Roxanne" though. I think I pulled the plug at that point. I tried out the guitar and failed miserably. It was hilarious to see everyone goofing off. I think our kids are trying to learn from our example because today, I found them pounding on some pots, pans, pitchers, whatever they could find. They used chopsticks as their drum sticks. T was the lead singer (she ran away when I tried to take her picture). They formed their own rock band at home. It was the cutest thing to watch.

Summer Concert

T jamming out on Dad's shoulders

M enjoying a refreshing drink

Tonight, G-man stood for Grouch! Look at that sad face snuggled up against grandma!

The girls goofing off with their glow neclaces...

Last weekend, we took the kids out to a free summer concert near my parents' home. It was a cover band and so they sang any song you wanted to request. The theme for the night was '80's, so we enjoyed some old school Def Leppard, Poison, Nirvana, Weezer and some current stuff...even Miley Cirus, ha ha! T loved dancing on Ced's shoulder's. G was a different story. I think his lack of sleep this summer caught up to him because he was a grouch that night. He finally lightened up by the end of the night, but we just let him be for a while. M was bouncing to the beat too! It was nice to enjoy some music under the stars.

Introducing Baby Addison

On Tuesday, July 15th, my beautiful neice, Addison Faith arrived. She was 8.5 lbs. and 21 inches long. We are excited to have her join our family. She really did a number on her mama, who endured over 15 hours of labor. However, she is well worth it. Cedric and I both came from small families, I have one brother and he has one sister. This means we are counting on our two siblings to produce as many cute neices and nephews as possible. Right now, we have two beautiful neices.

My neice Katie (the big sis) has been staying with us while her mom is in the hospital recovering. We have thoroughly loved having her here. She's such a good girl. T asked the other day if she is in our family now. I said, what do you mean? She is your cousin, yes, she's your family. She said, no, is she our kid? I said no, she's just joining us for a while, but she has her own family too. She said, no, she has been spending the night here for three nights now, she is our kid.

We have had a blast. We ride bikes, play basketball, do sidewalk chalk, go to the pool, and even gotten our nails done at a salon. So to Katie's mom and dad...don't worry about her, she is doing just fine!

It has been one big slumber party. Cedric has officially been kicked out of our bed for the time being.

We made a cake to celebrate Baby Addison's 1 day old birthday.


We've loved hanging out and watching a good movie too.



So take your time getting better...we are having a ball!

Restless Summer Weekend

Since summer has started, I have been itching to get out and do things. I know that this is going to eventually wear on me, but our kids are at a great age where they are more "portable" now. As you can see from our previous posts, we have been going and going. I love not having to worry about getting the kids to bed in time for school. One of the perks of Cedric's work is that he gets off at noon every Friday during the summer months. We have really used this to our advantage to go places we've been wanting to go and avoid the crowds.

This past Friday, we started off with a fun mega play date at a ward friend's home. She had moonbounces and slushies, the works. The kids had a blast. Then we rushed home and I worked for about an hour and off we went to Baltimore to the National Aquarium. The kids loved the sharks the best, of course. M cracked me up because every time one came near her at the glass, she would literally shiver and cringe. We also did the dolphin show. The kids watched in awe. We couldn't get very good pictures at the aquarium because someone was always looking away, but I will share the ones we have. After the aquarium, we took the kids to the ESPN Zone for dinner. For those who have never been there, I highly recommend it...if you are a big kid at heart (like we are). We had just as much fun as the kids, challenging each other to air hockey, basketball, and even a horse race. M wanted to play like the "big kids" so we had to put her on her own game and pretend to cheer her on. She was so proud of herself, she kept giving us high fives. We ended up staying so late that we didn't get home till midnight!

Then Sat. rolled around and and we lounged all day in anticipation of going to a minor league Frederick Keys baseball game. It is less than an hour away and the route is very scenic. The kids really got into the game and even got to run the bases at the end and watch a fireworks display. We are all wiped out now, but you better believe that I am trying to dream up some more quick trips for the remaining weekends of this summer! Gotta take it all in!

A huge swimming turtle at the aquarium
Baltimore Inner Harbor

Us inside a shark's mouth
I love it when they hold hands...
Jumping dolphin at the show All three are lined up, ready to race...
Here's M, insisting she do it all by herself.
On the carousel at the baseball game

G and his best bud and his sister, acting silly... Go T! Running the bases...
Now what should we do next weekend?

The End is NEAR

...for work, that is! I can officially say now that I am quitting my job by the end of this month. After enduring eight years of working full time and being a mother to three kids, I see the end approaching very closely.

I have been lucky enough for the past few years to work from home most of the time. However, I guess there are pros and cons of everything. It was eating away at me that I was home and couldn't really be with the kids. Then when I was doing something with them, there was a guilty and nagging feeling that work was being left undone. I was trying to do it all, be the "super mom"and also the working mom at once. Last night, as I was working at 10pm (there's no end when you work from home), I just realized that I have about 3 weeks left! This will be a test of enduring to the end!

I cannot tell you how excited I am to be able to do all the things I have not been able to do. It has been a great experience, but tough to say the least. My kids are my world and I can now give them the time and attention they deserve. They are small for just a short time and I do not want to miss out on these years.

So I am saying hello to the pool, the park, shopping, and everything under the sun that I've missed out on. I am saying good riddins to sitting in front of my computer all day, conference calls, tax filings, and crazy boss requests. I'm ready to just dive right in to this stay at home mom thing! I may do some side work starting in Sept., but I am limiting that to 2-3 hours a day, so I can still enjoy this time with the kids. Yea!

All Bruised Up

I know, I know, this is rather disgusting. This is a bruise that I have been carrying on my leg for almost a week now and it is actually healing. I have been answering many questions about how I got this bruise...and I chuckle because many people think it is Cedric's doing. After planning a nice dinner for Cedric's birthday, we decided to meet up at a restaurant after he finished work. I got there first and in my hurry to get all three kids out of the car, I opened the car door and slammed the corner right into my leg. When it happened, I was in absolute pain. However, I was trying to tell myself that I was just being a wuss and that I needed to suck it up. Well, apparently, I wasn't overexaggerating my pain! You can probably tell that I am utterly bored right now to be posting about a bruise. :) I guess it's a mom's badge of honor for me.

4th of July

The Fourth of July is one of my favorite holidays. It captures the essence of summer with barbecues, staying up late, fireflies, and hanging out with family and friends. This holiday is also dear to my heart because it gives me some time to reflect on how wonderful our country is. As an infant, my parents came to this country in hopes of a better life for us with nothing but the shirts on their backs. They started out as janitors, working at nursing homes, flipping burgers...any job that you could imagine (that no one wanted to do), they did. They have become successful citizens of a great country, now reaping the rewards of their labor. They have taught us to be successful by seizing the many opportunities this country has to offer, through hard work and education. I truly believe that this country is what it is through our Father's hand. I am honored and thankful to be a part of this great nation!

Here are some shots of all of us at the parade. I think by the end, the kids were ready to go, but we had a wonderful time. Cedric's family came to visit from NY and we went and saw fireworks later in the evening off of a nearby lake. This is the first year that the kids did not plug their ears or were scared, so we were all able to enjoy them. Hope everyone had a wonderful 4th!

I'm an Embarrassment...

I think I am already getting a glimpse of my kids' teenage years way too early. Today, I was cleaning up around the house in my p.j.'s. G and T are going to have some friends over later this morning. As I progressed through the cleaning, the time got closer to when the friends were coming over. Here's a recap of how it went down:

G: "Mom, aren't you going to change your clothes?"
Me: "Why, these clothes are comfortable, I like hanging out in these clothes."
G: "But my friends are coming over in a little bit."
Me (I'm totally messing with him at this point): "And? It's okay. They won't care. Don't worry about what other people will think."
G: "Mom, I care; they will think you are crazy."

I proceed to go upstairs and shower. G follows me upstairs. I said, "Can you please leave me alone, I'm trying to take a shower." G: "Mom, you will put some clothes on." Me: "No, I like my jammies, they are way too comfy."

I get out of the shower to find a pile of clothes that he had pulled out from my drawers. He greets me with, "Mom, I am putting my foot down. You put these clothes on. If you love me, you will do it." I said, "Of course I love you. Why do you care so much about what I wear?"

G: "You embarrass me."

There you have it. I never thought it would start so soon. I didn't know kids his age knew how to be embarrassed about things like that. This is a kid who will wear bright red shorts with a yellow shirt, or even worse, socks with his Crocs. I always thought of myself as a "cool" mom, but I think I just got put in my place.

Old School Summer Play

Do you remember the good old days of slippin and slidin? I have fond memories of flopping down on that piece of wet plastic, and off I went, barrelling down the path of a wild, watery adventure. Thanks for taking a little walk down memory lane with me :) Well, we broke out the slip n' slide the other day. My neice Katie was visiting. They all had a good time. M loved drinking the water that squirted out the sides. Whatever floats your boat, I guess! I was tempted to set it up on our big hill in the back and let them slide down even super fast, but the instructions said to only do it on level ground. I then thought of what G might try to do if it were on a our hill, and images of a visit to the ER flashed back at me. Needless to say, that thought was quickly killed. We opted for the flat ground and ended up with some safe and fun memories.

Chocolate Lovers

In line for the big coaster...
The coaster
T on the swing


I have a weakness for sweets...especially chocolate. A few years ago, we took a trip to Hershey Park in Hershey, PA. It is a beautiful drive there and only 2 hours away. Our family has been hooked since. Because this past weekend was stake conference at church (which means a get out of teaching day for us teachers), we were feeling a little sponataneous and decided to pick up and go on Friday afternoon. It was the first weekend of summer, so I thought there was no way we'd find a hotel room, but we lucked out. The place wasn't the Ritz, but it wasn't a dump either. We got into the park after 5pm, when people were basically leaving. If any of you go there, I highly recommend this because it is less crowded, less hot, and half the price!

G rode on a good sized coaster. I was pretty surprised that he actually initiated going on it and enjoyed it as well! I, on the other hand, cower at coasters. I think it's something that has come upon me as I have gotten older. I used to love riding coasters...or maybe I really didn't love them, but rode them to avoid looking like a chicken in front of my friends!

The day after Hershey Park, we went to the train museum and also took a buggy ride through the Amish country. Everything is so close and there's so much to do there. Anyone who lives in this area who wants a quick family friendly trip, this is the place!

I am posting one picture above with my one complaint...sharing a bed with some crazy sleepers. I had a bed with the girls and Cedric shared one with G. I did not get a wink of sleep. I saved each kid from falling off the bed probably a gazillion times. The pic. above was taken at 3am. Love how T's head is right up against M's bum!

Ode to the Man

Okay, so I don't want to get all sappy on the blog. I just want to say that I have an important guy in my life who is an awesome father and husband. Happy Father's Day! We love you! Here's a little something we put together for ya!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Awards and Field Trip

It's starting to bring a tear to my eye thinking that the school year is almost over. These past few weeks it has hit me that my babies are growing up! T had her last day of preschool. She has come a long way this year. I remember how my heart broke as I had to leave her in an unfamiliar place with strange faces. The teachers had to pry her off of me as she cried tears of terror. Despite a rough start, she really came to enjoy it. T will go again for another year this fall before starting Kindergarten. She learned how to write and sound out words. We are so glad we stuck with it!

Her last day was a fun one...moonbounces, snowcones...what girl could ask for more? Then they had a cute slide show and she got her certificate.

I also had an opportunity to tag along on G's field trip. He went to a farm nearby. He was able to go on a hayride, jump on a huge moon bounce, ride tractor bikes, do mazes, and feed animals. It was a blast!

G had his awards ceremony today for Kindergarten. He got an excellence award for spelling.

Here's a proud mom saying, I am so proud of my kids for giving their all this year. Summer, here we come!!!

Here's a little montage of our events...

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com