2010: Welcoming another year of "Firsts"

The new year has officially started! I noticed that many people were extremely happy to see 2009 go. Yeah, the economy wasn't great and other things in the world were not the best. Yet, 2009 was really a good year to us. We found out we were expecting our third bundle of joy and welcomed him into our life! Also, LJ and LK experienced so many "firsts". They visited the ocean for the first time, rode a horse, went fishing, watched a gazillion parades, saw fireworks, rode 4-wheelers, and so much more! One of my absolute favorite mommy moments is watching my kids experience something for the first time. This year I know EJ will experience many firsts...we are already seeing some of them. He has started to coo and smile when he sees your face; melts my heart! The first year of a baby's life is filled with constant milestones and "firsts" that I can't wait to soak in. There are a few "firsts" that we already have planned for LJ and LK such as the circus and some sporting events. I really wanted to try Disney this year, but it may be postponed until 2011.

We ended the year surrounded by friends and family...which is all that really matters in the end!

Picking out the tree!

Snowman with Daddy

Gingerbread train with C-lums!

Posing for the Christmas card

Mommy and EJ

All of my favorite kiddos TOGETHER!!

LK Christmas Eve

The "fam" at Evan's baptism

Daddy and LJ playing Wii


LJ Christmas Morning

As for my resolutions:

• I have my eyes set on a new camera and a photography class.
• I really want to start getting some exercise SOMEHOW...definitely have some babyweight to lose still. It's really hard for me to make the time...but I will try.
• Do better with the whole "coupon" thing..tis the time to spend wisely!

HAPPY NEW YEAR ALL!!

Dear Daddy...

Thank you for...

• reading tons and tons of books every single day
• showing me how to swing a golf club and baseball bat
• getting my snack and juice ready for me every afternoon
• giving me horsy-back rides
• playing legos, blocks, Mr. Potato Head, princesses, Candy Land castle, Memory, Bingo, dress-up, every ball game in the universe, etc.
• letting me eat pancakes with syrup smothered all over them even though it drives you nuts
• letting me watch cartoons in the morning even though you would much rather watch Mike & Mike in the Morning.
• giving me sips of your pop even though Mommy doesn't usually approve
• bringing me Timbits in the morning after you worked nights
• giving me a bath with lots of bath foam
• wrestling on the floor with me for hours
• letting me kick, hit, throw soft balls in the house
• introducing me to Hank Sr., Hank Jr., Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker, and so many more old time country and blues artists.
• taking care of mommy and giving her lots of hugs, kisses, slurpees, Tim Horton's coffees, candy, etc.
• drawing lots of awesome pictures for me with my crayons, markers, and sidewalk chalk
• buying me surprises everytime you go to the grocery store
• loving me with all your heart!

We love you,

Logan & Lauren
XOXOXOXOXO

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Blog...my long lost friend.

Well, I must admit I haven't been motivated to post lately at all. To all my readers...sorry for the absence. I must blame pure exhaustion. Lately, I get the kids to bed and am ready for bed myself! Alot has been going on in the last month since I have posted. We enjoyed an great Easter which was followed with a horrible two weeks of stomach flu. This was followed by pink-eye. All I can do is hope and pray that next year is better in terms of the health of this family. Looking back, we were basically sick for an entire 2 months!




The highlight of Easter this year for the kids was most definitely Easter Egg hunts. Every year we have a huge egg hunt at my mom and dad's which consists of about 250 eggs for four children. I know...it's actually pretty ridiculous. The eggs are filled with money, small toys, stickers, snacks, and of course CANDY. LnL also enjoyed an egg hunt all to themselves at Pa and Grandma Lynn's house. The highlight of that visit for LK was decorating cupcakes. She LOVES cupcakes and will tell you so on a daily basis. This is my child who wakes up and the first thing she says in the morning is "Can I have a jellybean?". I posted some pics of all the Easter craziness.

Hubby and I managed to sneak away this last weekend for some much needed relaxation and together time! Thanks SO much to grandma for keeping the terrible trying twosome while we were away. We managed to play 36 holes of golf, enjoy some excellent dinners, and even gamble a bit. Oh...how could I forget? I also pampered myself to a facial and pedicure. It was a REALLY nice getaway! I must have really needed a getaway because I forgot my camera on this trip - sorry no pics.

On a final note...today is my dear niece's (ZoZo) 7th birthday. As always, I must give a blog birthday shoutout! I can hardly believe how fast she is growing up. We think of her and the rest of our SC family on a daily basis. Everytime I get to see Zo I am just astounded by how absolutely smart she is. We love you so much Zo and hope your day is EXTRA special!!

Getting back into the routine...

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Well, with 2 weeks off for holiday break it sure is hard to get back into the swing of things! The break was really nice...I wish I could say relaxing; although it really wasn't. Are the holidays ever really relaxing? They sure are fun, though!!! It seems we were on the go every day! We visited our local jungle gym, played with some toddler pals, enjoyed the snow, hung out with the relatives, visited a favorite city, and headed over to the children's museum. We rang in 2009 with our relatives from South Carolina. The kids were pretty excited that their cousins were able to sleep over...even though the adults really didn't get much sleep at all!



Christmas was SO fun this year. LnL really got into the whole "gifts" thing. They couldn't wait to open their next present! It was so fun Christmas morning when they realized that Santa came! They received lots of fun toys and two fish...which, I think Santa is already regretting. I believe LJ's favorite present would have to be his tractors, even though he really liked all of his gifts. LK really loved all her toys...her art supplies, babydolls, and dress-up clothes probably top the list!

So, another year has ended. I look back on 2008 and cherish all the wonderful memories. It's hard to believe how fast my babies are growing up!!

Don't Call Me a Slacker..

Yeah, I know it's been awhile...my apologies. Quite a busy week with grades due, kids with Strep, Thanksgiving, and SHOPPING!


We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year. So much to be thankful for... not just on Turkey day...but every day of the year. Case in point...TODAY I am thankful:

• that LJ is not seriously hurt after taking a dive down our staircase yesterday. Can you say HEART ATTACK??!!
• for the wonderful Thanksgiving dinner we celebrated over at Pa & Grandma Lynn's house...especially the stuffing.
• for not sliding into the very scary ditches on our way home from dinner (winter storm warning happening here)
• for the Elmo Saves Christmas movie that kept my kids occupied today while I had a chance to do some laundry
• warm house
• enough money for food
• healthy family and friends (EVERY SINGLE DAY...thank my lucky stars)
• online shopping + free shipping

Friday my mom, sister, and I headed out to the shopping centers for Black Friday! Hubby had the kids at home and I had a good time fighting the crowds. Most of the awesome deals were already gone by the time I got to the stores, but I did end up with some pretty good deals.

Overall, our holiday weekend has been busy and wonderful. Now, the Christmas season is upon us and I feel the pressure to create our cards and get our tree and decorations up. The kids are SO excited for Christmas this year. I am not sure if they truly understand how great the holiday is...but the are loving all the holiday songs, lights, decorations, and looking forward to meeting Santy Claus!

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday...kinda

Halloween is fast approaching and that means it is time to start thinking about costumes. I am full aware that I may only have a year or two to have a say in costumes before they start choosing for themselves! Hubby and I have pondered this and can't really decide. We want something that they will have fun with and are familiar with the character. So...there is a poll located on the right side of my blog where you can choose your favorite. Thanks a bunch!

As you can tell...there were many Halloweens where I ended up w/ a "hand-me-down" or custom-made costume. Most of the time...that was great...as long as it fit. Here you can see me in my revealing cat costume.

Celebrating the Fourth...with new teeth??

Even though The Fourth of July is my favorite holiday, the last 2 years have been seriously low key. 2 years ago I spent the 4th in the hospital on bedrest...severely depressing! Last year we made a day trip up to Gladwin to the in-laws cottage.

This year we celebrated the 4th with what I can only believe to be serious teething pain!! Proof of misery pictured above. Starting Thursday LK came down w/a fever. LJ followed the next day as they always do when they get sick. The strange thing was there were no signs of runny nose, cough, etc. So, we waited it out...but things just kept getting worse! After we had a horrible night last night up every hour w/LJ we decided it best to take 'em in to Urgent Care this morning (we frequent that place WAY too much). They both have history of ear infections and I was also worried it might be strep b/c they weren't eating. So, long story short...they're fine. I guess the only thing we can chalk it up to is teeth. DAMN THOSE TEETH!!!!! Teething has never been a big problem in our house until now...and they have a TON of teeth. Anyone out there that wants to fill me in on this toddler teething bit?? Help!!!

By Friday LK was feeling a bit better...

LJ still feeling cranky...

Also...we are pretty pumped b/c our family from South Carolina is in town for 2.5 weeks!!! I am sure you will be seeing lots of pics of our outings in the next few weeks. Here is "K", Coop, and Zo just hanging out 2day...

Happy Father's Day!

In appreciation of my Hubby and all he does for us I will be showcasing a little Smilebox below for your enjoyment.

I was lucky enough to celebrate Father's Day with my own DAD! My sisters and I took him golfing and had a great time! We even took lil "Z" man to drive the cart. I'll have some pics of the family fun later in the week.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Happy Mother's Day!

This is my second Mother's Day and I can't believe how the time flies. Here is a picture of my sis, myself, LJ, and LK from Mother's Day last year. Wow...I can't believe how much they have grown and changed since then! Today we will be celebrating over at my parents house...just hangin' out and enjoying each others company. I wish it wasn't such a gloomy, chilly day.

Lots of new bling!!

Hubby and I just got back from dinner...an early Mother's Day celebration. Since he will be working all weekend he offered to take me out. Before we headed out, I received this awesome bracelet from him, LJ, and LK. He picked this out with absolutely no help...so I LOVE IT! I always tell him that if the gift is thoughtful and he picks it out on his own I will absolutely love it, which is true! Of course, Mother's Day isn't all about receiving gifts, but it is nice to have something which I can remember was given to me for Mother's Day. I had never heard of the company where he ordered it from; Tiny Sugars. I checked out the website and there is tons of cute stuff!

Also, I forgot to mention this last week. I won another contest!!! I try to sign up for Free Bling Fridays over at Happy Shack Designs (a fellow twin mommy) every now and then. Well, I won some wonderful handmade earrings!! When I receive them, I'll be sure to snap some photos and share!

Blog Notes

You will notice a couple new additions to my Bloggin' Buds section. My friend, SB (The Barrons), who is currently on bedrest awaiting identical twin girls. Also, my sister-in-law (and along comes three) who lives so very far away from us in NC. It is so nice to be able to check into what's happening in the lives of friends and family w/just the click of a mouse!!

** Also, I have so much to update on LnL...tomorrow...hopefully.

Happy St. Patty's Day

Hope it was nice and green!!

Christmas memories to remember!

This past Christmas was one filled with great times, family, friends, and also some unexpected moments. I was hoping the babies would tear into their gifts...not so much :-). They were interested in opening one gift at the most. Then, playing with the wrapping paper become a main focus. LJ was still happily content playing with an old ball, as was LK with her old books. Oh Well! Needless to say, my nieces and nephews did not complain about this since they opened all of the leftover gifts. Christmas was magical for me as a parent. I can't explain how amazing it is to watch the awe in their faces when a Christmas tree lit up, or the excitement of seeing so many people in the same room at the same time, or the absolute contentment of listening to a packed church sing Silent Night. Next year, we hope to start some family traditions...we just have to think of what they will be!

Also, I started a fire in my parents new oven on Christmas Day. I decided to make a sweet potato casserole that called for marshmallows on the top. Well, let's just say, my one minute broil should have been more like 10 seconds. The house smelled of burnt S'mores. There were actual flames...thank goodness my dad has some serious lungs and blew out the fire! We were all dying laughing once the flames were out. Another Christmas memory that will never be forgotten. Oh yeah, and once I scraped off the burnt mallow, the casserole turned out to be pretty yummy-believe it or not!