Pictures of the growing baby belly

Here I am at 16ish weeks (AKA 4 months) and feeling a little big already. Camden reminds me daily of that fact!!!

These kids LOVE some Firetrucks!!!

Over Spring Break my brother and I took the kids to visit a fire station. Yes - we are crazy! It was Chris, Jack, Camden, Reed, cousin Itoria, and me. But they behaved so well! And the firefighters were so great! We got to sit in the trucks, wear helmets, hold a water hose, look at their special gear, and they even taught us what to do if the firefighters need to find us in a dangerous situation. What an awesome day!

And just in case you don't know, Jack would KILL to be a fireman! Isn't he the cutest one you have EVER seen???

Sorry for the picture overload - they are just so happy in these shots!

Easter pics - better late than never!

Man! The Esater Bunny hooks it up better than he used to!!!

A special surprise weekend!

Guess who showed up last Friday for a surprise weekend? Nana and Papa! All the way from Florida because WHY? They can't get enough of their grandchildren! Isn't that awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

More pics of our favorite baby

We were lucky enough to have a visit with Michelle and Baby Olivia on Momday. It was the first time the boys have met her and they loved her. Jack has been asking to play with her for weeks even though she was still in her Mommy's tummy. But when she got here he checked her out and went back to his Fireman show. Amazingly, Reed took to her. He showed me her eyes, nose, ears, and hair

How is it time already for kindergarten?

No, no, no! There is NO WAY my baby is ready for this! Okay, so maybe Camden is ready but Mommy is certainly NOT!

Today we went to the first day at our new school. It was Kindergarten Registration and we stuck out like a sore thumb. New parent alert! But we made it through the whole process. We filled out all the paperwork, Camden was tested for kindergarten readiness, we reviewed the test (she ROCKED), and we toured the school with the principal.

Camden got to go with her friend and neighbor, Brynn, and she knew 2 other girls from preschool last year. One of our neighbors also works there as an aide. So knowing a few people should help, right? It's really exciting but very scary (again for me not her!) I know Camden will do terrific and I will continue to hide my ridiculous fears. Enjoy the pics of our "big" girls!

Introducing Olivia...

She's here! She's here!

Michelle and Jim welcomed Baby Olivia on Saturday at 6:40 pm. All went VERY well and they are heading home today. She weighs 7 lbs. 11 oz. and is 20 inches long. Not bad at all for 37 weeks. We are ALL over the moon with her arrival and just know that Mason is watching over them! Enjoy all the pictures! I can't stop taking them and am completely in love with my new "niece!"

A year ago

Has it been a year already? Michelle and I were talking about it earlier today and we've decided that some days it seems like it was a few months ago and other days it's surreal, almost like it never happened.

One year ago tomorrow I received the worst news. A pain that no parent should ever experience. My closest girlfriend lost her 1st child to stillbirth. The news was, and still is, devastating.

The weeks that followed were hard, to say the least. But Michelle and Jim are amazing people who have fought through this together. Their daughter's memory will be forever engraved on my heart.

I love you Michelle and think of you and Mason Olivia often.

Valentine's Day cuties

Holy cow! These kids are C-U-T-E!!! (Yes, I am biased!) And they are growing up way TOO fast!

Seven years already?

Where has the time gone? Yesterday, Eddie and I celebrated our 7 year wedding anniversary. My sister-in-law (who ROCKS!) came over and we went out to dinner at a non-kid-friendly restaurant and a movie. It was great to be alone and we have promised to do it more often.

I am so thankful for my husband! He makes make laugh and loves me more than I deserve! And he's given me the greatest gifts, our children. It's hard to believe that in 7 years we have 3 children. Wow! We are so very lucky!!!

Visiting Santa

My sister-in-law, Nichol, and I took the kids to visit Santa this year! And to our great surprise, everyone liked him and there was zero crying.

Jack asked for "presents, black ones" although we don't know what that means. And Camden requested yet another doll. At least they're not asking for a Wii or a computer, yet...

Christmas with the O's

Can anyone spell C-H-A-O-S? That's what you get when you have 3 kids under 5 who can now all open their own presents. Keep in mind, that 2 of them, can't read and think that every present is theirs. So what you get is a lot of confusion and a TON of presents!

We had Christmas in VA a week before we went to FL. It was awesome! My parents were here, Eddie's older sister, Nichol, and my brother and his fiance, Chris and Katie. We had a terrific dinner followed by about 2 hours of present opening. We had a great holiday and we all love the new toys.

Next, we headed to FL for 8 days of warm weather and our second Christmas. It was great seeing everyone one and catching up. Between my kids and the rest of the family, there are now 7 grandchildren. 5 of which are 2 and under - WOW! but it went really well and the kids loved playing with all of their cousins, aunts, uncles, etc. We even had lunch on Christmas Eve with our high school buddies. How fun!

Among the favorite toys were:
Camden: dolls and doll stuff, a picture board, and make-up
Jack: fireman stuff, a scary dinosaur, and Spiderman
Reed: a puzzle,chapstick, and candy (Can you tell that he's only 1 1/2?)

So now we're home and searching for places to put all of our new stuff. All I can say is that Santa has nothing on Mimi & Pop and Nana & Papa! We are so lucky!

A little update on Camden

Okay, so in "better late then never" news here is an update on The Princess!

Miss Camden is now officially 4 and a half going on 16! She is soooo girly! She loves dressing up, wearing jewelry, painting her fingernails, playing house, having babies and getting married. Good times for a preschooler! By the way, she is almost a kindergartener. When did that happen - yes almost 5 years ago! We are trying to get Camden ready (but mostly Mommy) for the big transition. We know where she'll be going so we're driving her by the school every once in a while and talking about it on a regular basis. According to my family, Camden was ready for kindergarten this year so I just hope it all goes well. Bear with me people, she's my first and she's going to school!!!

In 2 weeks, Camden will be starting gymnastics with her girlfriend, Tatyana, and a neighbor/friend, Brynn. It will be great for all of us to get out together on Saturday mornings and for the girls to release some energy. Since Eddie works almost every Saturday, the boys and I will hang out with the other Moms and Livi.

So, there is our girls update! Enjoy the picture - isn't she adorable!

My Irish Twins

Someone was asking me about this the other day and I had to share. YES! They are 11.5 months apart! YES! We know how this happens!

And by the way, do you think the term "Irish Twins" offends the Irish?

A little update on Reed

Okay, so I have decided to do a little update on each of the kids as not to overwhelm you or me! Up first is Reed since he tunred 18 months old yesterday - that's right! He is now 1 1/2!!!

Mr. Reed is about 29-30 lbs. these days and proudly wearing a size 2T! YES, strangers at the mall, grocery store,... He IS a big boy! He can talk so well that his pediactrician was blown away. He can repeat most of what we say, uses sentences, follows commands, and finally understands the words coming out of our mouths - it rocks! He must realize he's the youngest and we are a little busy because he can handle himself. Take him to the playground and he can get himself up and down, go down the slide on his own, and even wants to ride the big kid swing. But do not cross him or he will literally yell at you. Guess the 3rd kid's got to demand our attention!

He enjoys giving kisses to everyone and everything (think Halloween pumpkins!) And he still walks like he just started. We like to say he's just following his feet as they are obviously in control. And Reed and Jack finally like each other! Before, they were mostly in competition for the same toys but now I think they like each other. They even hold hands in the car!

And Reed's big news is - he has moved to a toddler bed!!! Not by my choice (Camden and Jack moved over closer to 2) but he was crawling out of his crib and wouldn't stay in it. It seemed more dangerous to allow him to keep climbing out. So we took the front rail off his crib and added the guard and a pillow and there he is! Happy as can be! And that's an update on our little Reed! Gotta love him - look at those eyes!!!

By the way, the brown bear in the pictures is Reed's main man, RJ!

Our Halloween chaos!

Oh man! Do I LOVE Halloween! Every year we make the same meal - sloppy joe's, chips, veggies and dip, cupcakes. Just a little tradition! And for the least 3 years we have been going to the Fall Festival at Camden and Jack's preschool. So that's how we rolled this year, too!

We had dinner with my parents, by brother and his fiance, my sister-in-law, the Cooper's, and the Dyer's. We ate lots of food and then headed out to the Fall Festival - which is in our neighborhood (how convenient!) My played games, saw friends from preschool, jumped in the moon bounce, rode the train, and got lots of candy and prizes. Then off to trick-or-treat! The kids basically walked home the long way and hit every house they could! The crazy 4 year olds eventually learned not to run, not to ring the doorbell 15 times, and to say thank you. The 2 year olds just followed in awe of free candy. And the 1 year olds had to ride in their stollers most of the way beacuse the parents had their hands full (not big fans.) Overall, it was very successful and we have way too much candy!

Did I mention that Halloween was then end of a very busy couple of days that included Fall Festival at Tatyana's school, The Goodwyn's 5th Annual Halloween Bash, and a trip to Busch Gardens in Williamsbug? I am STILL tired!

Enjoy the pictures!

Halloween is almost here!

Oh, you all know how much I LOVE me some Halloween!!! Here a a few quick shots of Camden and Jack in costume. Reed can't sit still long enough for his picture to be taken! Camden is a bride (she's thrilled but not my choice), Jack is a fireman (he loves firetrucks as much as air), and Reed is either a lion or a dalmation (can't decide.) We're also building a fireturck to fit over the stroller - hope it turns out!

Okay, so no post in quite awhile! Here is a quick, easy, and hopefully fun one!

4 Jobs I’ve Held
1. Stay-at-home-Mom (hardest & BEST one)
2. Social worker
3. Retail clerk
4. Temp (oh, the fun)

4 Films I Could Watch Over and Over
1. Steel Magnolia's
2. The Wedding Crashers
That's it - I really don't like to re-watch movies)

4 TV Shows I Watch
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Law & Order: SVU
3. Law & Order: CI
4. Lost

4 Places I’ve Lived
1. Richmond, VA
2. Daytona Beach, FL
3. Atlanta, GA
4. Hagerstown, MD

4 Favorite Foods
1. Aything Mexican
2. Pizza
3. Chick-fil-a (it's fast and has a play area)
4. Brownies

4 Websites I Visit Everyday
1. Celebrity Baby Blog(www.celebrity-babies.com)
2. Peyton's website (www.hope4peyton.org)
3. Us Weekly (www.usmagazine.com)
4. Baby Center Birth Clubs (www.babycenter.com)

4 Favorite Colors
1. Purple
2. Pink (Camden has turned me onto it)
3. Red
4. Black

4 Places I Would Love to Be Right Now
1. Taking a nap
2. Paris
3. Florida
4. A spa

4 Names I Love But Would/Could Not Use for my Children
1. Olivia (Olivia Olowiany - yeah right)
2. Any names my friends have stolen (ha-ha)
3. Anything really different as Olowiany is already "different"
4. An animals name - too weird (you know like Marly, Henry, Abby,...)

Hope this was neat!

Bubba goes to school (AKA Jack)

My big man did it! He went to preschool today for the first time. He was supposed to start on Tuesday bad had a nasty virus. So now we're calling him the "school skipper" - kinda like his Mommy!

Jack had a hard time with me leaving but the teachers swear he was fine after the first few minutes. He's a bit of a Momma's boy!

Also, he's not much into telling me what he does yet (remember: limited vocabulary.) But he did answer my questions so here it it and it's much different than Camden's explanation of her first day.

Me: Did you color today?
J: Yes.

Me: Did you eat a snack?
J: Yes.

Me: What did you eat for snack?
J: Fish (goldfish.)

Me: Did you have anything to drink?
J: Yes, water.

Me: Did you play outside?
J: Yes.

Me: Did you see Sissy?
J: Yes.

Me: Was school fun?
J: Yes.

Me: Do you want to go back?
J: NO!

So there you have it! School was fun today but he had enough! Also, Camden told me that she saw him on the playground and he wouldn't come to her side to see her. And he was playing with the boys in his class. Leave it to Camden to tell me all about Jack's day!

On another note, Reed and I had our first real morning without anyone else and it was HEAVEN! We went to play at the mall play area, had lunch, and walked. It was so nice to be just the 2 of us and SO EASY with just 1 kiddo. It was a really special time for us - Reed was all smiles!!!

Camden's first day of preschool

Conversations with 4 year olds ROCK!

Me: How was school today?
C: Great! We take naps in the 4 year old class!

Me: Why?
C: Because being 4 is a lot of work!
Me: I agree, 4's are a lot of work!

Me: Do you like your teachers?
C: Oh yeah, Mrs. Franklin's face is differemt from last year. She has the same body but her head is different. (She has a new haircut)

Me: What did you do?
C: We colored, played outside, played home living (house), and I told Lyssie I love her.
Me: That's sweet! Did she tell you she loves you, too?
C: Yes! We love each other! (How cute is that?)

Me: Did you introduce yourselves in class?
C: Yep, I told them I am Camden and I like to eat and drink!

It doesn't get any better than that! This year, Camden goes 5 1/2 days a week. Only one more year until the dreaded Kindergarden!

I will post about vacation tomorrow. Lots of stuff to share but zero pictures - guess I was relaxing too much!