My 6 year old biologist

On the way home from school yesterday, Spencer showed me this little rock that he found. He was SO excited about it! To him, it was the greatest treasure he's ever found! Then a little later at home, he came to me and said, "Mom, I did some research and I found out what this is! It is a chunk of a meteor! Look! It's come from this rock right here on this page!" And he showed me a picture out of his nature book.





Now he's keeping his little treasure inside this little watch. A biologist......just like his Daddy. I swear, sometimes I think there is an adult trapped inside that 6 year old body of his!

Belated birthday cake.....YUM!!

Turning 30......

Well, I had my 30th birthday.....oh, wow that sounds weird......I'm
30 now. When I was in high school and college, I always had a certain "idea" of what a 30-year-old was suppose to be like, and I don't think I have become what I came up with in my head. I thought 30-year-olds were suppose to have lots of kids and lots of money and have all this time to do things like: craft projects, housework, take care of the kids, run kids to and from sports activities, spend time on their spiritality everyday, be happy all the time, and have time to keep themselves fashionable and cute. Wow, that sounds like "Supermom!" Needless to say, I won't be mastering the "30 year old" anytime soon. But, I can say that I'm very happy with my life right now. There is ALWAYS room for improvement, but I have the best kids and husband in the whole entire world! Get ready ladies, after you read what my husband did for my birthday, you will be dropping a lot of hints to your husbands!

When I woke up in the morning, Dan had already left for work and there was a present on my dresser. I opened it up, and out fell a bunch of chocolate kisses along with a CD that said, "Insert into your computer and put your headphones on." So, I did what it said and up popped a cute slideshow of family pictures with music in the background. I thought to myself, "this is a nice song, I've never heard this before....oh wait.......that sounds like Dan's voice.......NO!!!!......He didn't!! Oh, yes......he did.......my husband wrote a love song and recorded it for me!!!!!" I was speechless and I had to pick my jaw up off the floor. And that was just the beginning.......




After I dropped Spencer off at school, Jake, Lauryn, and I went to Target. I LOVE Target!! I thought, "It's my birthday, why don't I just hang out and shop!" It was a lot of fun and the kids were great! As I was leaving, I got a phone call from my friend asking me where I was. I told her and then she said she was waiting for me in my driveway and she was going to watch my kids because I had an appointment to get a manicure and a pedicure! I was thrilled! It was the most relaxing 2 hours of my life! This lady massaged my legs AND arms, they also give you all the drinks and candy you want while you watch TV. My friend also dropped by and brought me lunch. Holy cow was I pampered!



When I got home, there was an "Edible arrangement" (chocolate covered fruit in the shape of a flower arrangement) sitting on my table. Then when my friend left, she said, "be at my house all dressed up with the kids at 4pm." I thought, "There's MORE??!!"



So, I did just that. When I got there she had a present from Dan for me. Inside was a card, chocolates (can you tell I LOVE chocolate!), and a purple sweater. My friend showed me that Dan had picked out some sunday clothes for me to change into. Well, the purple sweater didn't fit, so I couldn't wear it. Then she told me to leave the kids with her and I was suppose to meet Dan back at the house. When I got home, Dan walked out of the house with a shirt and a PURPLE tie on!! He wanted us to match! Oh, isn't my husband corny and cute all at the same time? Oh well, I just changed into something that would fit a nursing mother better, and he picked out another tie to match, so I wouldn't ruin his plans.

He drove me to this restaurant called The Bistro, which is in downtown San Marco. It was SO awesome! The food was SO good and we had a LOT of fun! As we were leaving, I called my sister and her husband answered and said, "Hey, aren't you suppose to be going to some fancy concert, or something?" I said, "WHAT???" Oops, he ruined the suprise. It was pretty funny...thanks, Doug! Anyway, yes, it was a fancy concert.....he took me to the symphony! Okay, do I have an awesome husband or what?? I know he would've rather gone to a football game, but took me to the symphony instead!





Whew! That was a long and exciting day. I was pretty tired after all that, but I really appreciate all my husband, friends, and family did for me that day. I had one of the greatest birthdays EVER! I will NEVER forget it! I love you all!

Our Halloween

I haven't posted anything in a while because I've really gotten into the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. I'm almost finished with the 2nd one, New Moon. It's been so great to get into a novel again and get my imagination going. It's so fun! What a great Halloween book!

We had a great Halloween! We made scary cupcakes...







We went to the "Spooktacular" at the Jacksonville Zoo a week before Halloween with a bunch of friends and the kids LOVED it! Everyone was dressed up in costumes and there were TONS of jack-o-lanterns EVERYWHERE! There was a lot of work that went into it. The only part that Jake REALLY didn't like was the "Living Trees." There were people dressed up in camoflauge and fake leaves hiding in the bushes and trees....in the dark! They didn't jump out and scare the kids, they just said "HI" and reached out to us. That scared Jake to death! He kept saying, "No more live trees, Mommy!"




We carved pumpkins the day before Halloween...







And we went to the Trunk-or-treat at the church....







We hope y'all had a great Halloween!

My first tag.....

(my cute hubby, Dan, holding his first baby girl)

I've always thought that these tags I've read about were fun, but I've never been tagged.......until now. Thanks Brooke! It's been really fun thinking about my eternal sweetheart, especially in the "olden days." I've gotten really wrapped up in everyday life with kids and a husband who travels all the time and I've forgotten what it use to be like. Dan, we need to find a babysitter and go out on a date this weekend!

1. Where did you meet?
We met in Arkansas. He was investigating the church and was dating a friend of mine. I always thought he was cute, but he was already taken! There's just somthing sexy about a cute, sweet guy asking questions about the gospel.

2. How long did you date before you got married?
Um.....let me think......we dated for about 6 months and then he broke up with me! I was SO devastated and I will NEVER let him live it down! He got scared and went running. I always knew he was the one for me, so I was VERY hurt and confused when he did this. Then he came back a couple months later and wanted to be "FRIENDS," which was very hard for me because I had such strong feelings for him. Then I left with BYU Singers on tour to the West Coast of Africa and Italy for about 6 weeks. When I got back, he was on his knees with roses and chocolate begging me to come back and telling me he realized that he loved me and wanted to spend eternity with me. (Such a romantic) I guess "Distance DOES make the heart grow fonder." Then 6 weeks later, we were married on August 11th 2001 in the Louisville, Kentucky temple. (Almost exactly a year to the day from you, Amy!)

3. How long have you been married?
7 years and 2 months

4. What does he do that suprises you?
He does a lot of things to suprise me......he is very thoughtful. A couple of them are: He will call up my parents sometimes just to talk. He will clean the house AND take care of the kids if I have to go somewhere for a couple of hours. And for special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries he always puts a lot of thought into the gift and I NEVER know what to expect. I'm a little worried about what is going to happen on my 30th birthday coming up!

5. What is your favorite feature of his?
His hands. They are big and strong and always calloused, which shows what a hard worker he is.

6. What is your favorite quality of his?
His big, kind heart. He is ALWAYS kind to others. When you meet him for the first time, you'll be best buds. He genuinely wants to get to know people, so he'll play 20.......or 30 questions with you.

7. Does he have a nickname for you?
Babe.......it must be a guy thing because all of your husbands call you that too! When we were dating, he called me his "Lindsay-girl." On the inside of my wedding ring it says, "For my Lindsay-Girl."

8. What is his favorite color?
NOT green. His mother made him wear a lot of green when he was young because it made his eyes look greener, so now he doesn't like it anymore (sorry Sherry). I think he looks really good in green too.

9. What is his favorite food?
I've tried to get this out of him for 7 years and all I can get out of him is meat and potatoes with a lot of gravy. He is a southern boy and he likes his Mama's cookin', which I don't do because it's all FRIED! YUCK! Sorry, Dan.

10. What is his favorite sport?
I don't know because he likes to watch them ALL on TV (football, basketball, tennis, but not baseball). His absolute favorite game to PLAY is raquetball.

11. When and where was your first kiss?
I'm still bitter about this one....just kidding, Dan. He teased me for WEEKS when we were dating. He would come really close, and then just kiss me on the cheek. I was going CRAZY! So, one time when he was just talking to me really close and rubbing noses and teasing me, I just went for it........and BOY was it worth it!!! He is one GOOD kisser!

12. Favorite thing to do as a couple?
Rent a movie, he makes the popcorn, and we snuggle up on the couch after the kiddies are all snug in their beds.

13. Do you have any children?
Yes....Spencer is 6, Jacob is 3, and Lauryn is 4 months old and they LOVE their Daddy!

14. Does he have a hidden talent?
Yes......he is a poet.....and VERY good at it! I have a whole box full of poems that he has written for me over the years and some are funny, some are spiritual, and some are very mushy. I LOVE IT!!!

15. How old is he?
He just turned 30 in March and doesn't like it.

16. Who said I love you first?
I think I did.

17. What is his favorite type of music?
He listens to all kinds, but his favorites are Jack Johnson and Coldplay. There is a new one that he just told me about, but I can't remember the name of it.

18. What do you admire most about him?
There is A LOT that I admire about him, but the one that came to mind first was that he is a VERY hard worker. He's always had to work for what he's had in his life and that has made him a very humble man.

19. Do you think he will read this?
Oh, yes. He is always checking my blog to see what story I'm going to tell next.


I pass the tag to my sisters: Alissa, Heather, and Joanna.

WARNING!!!!!!!!

THIS WILL HAPPEN TO YOU IF YOUR KIDS DON'T PICK UP THEIR TOYS OFF THE FLOOR!!!!!









TRY TO CONTAIN THE LAUGHTER!!!!










What do you think? Broken? Yup, you're right! Last night I just walked into the family room from the kitchen, caught my toe on a toy, and fell down. As soon as I looked at my toe, I just knew. I screamed,"Dan!!! I BROKE MY TOE! I BROKE MY TOE! IT LOOKS RETARDED!" I can't stop laughing as I'm writing this even now! It didn't hurt that bad when it happened, I was laughing at how it looked! After the doctor put it back in place and the numbness wore off, it hurt pretty bad. I've learned how to take care of three kids while crawling on my hands and knees and limping around. (I wouldn't recommend it) Just call me "Gimpy!" Best of all, Dan is out of town until Friday........so convenient!

He's making progress!

After our big "Drama King" incident, things have gotten a lot better. Spencer actually WANTS to practice riding his bike! He has done it for a couple of minutes after school everyday and has improved a little more each day. He likes it when Dan pushes him and lets go on the grass because if he falls, it won't hurt.

He's gettin' there! Hooray for Spenc!

Lauryn is 4 months old.......already?

Lauryn had her 4 month check up and got the dreaded 4 shots in the legs! She is at a healthy 17 lbs. and 26 inches long. She is 97% in height and weight....perfectly perportionate. I can't believe how perfect and beautiful this sweet little girl is. The Lord has truly blessed our lives with 3 healthy children that keep growing and growing and growing and........


She is only 6 days old in this picture. Look at that black hair!


All her black hair has fallen out and I think I might have a blondie on my hands!


We started a little bit of rice cereal and she did really good!


I'm starting to see a little bit of her personality come out now. She is very content if she has had a good nap and a full belly. She is a VERY good sleeper! She absolutely LOVES her brothers! They can make her smile and laugh so much easier than I can. She likes to sit in her bouncy seat or lay on the floor and watch them play. She is getting pretty good at grabbing things with her little "iron-clenched fists" as Dan calls them. And I think she is teething because she has her hands in her mouth ALL the time and if she grabs a toy, it goes straight to her mouth. Everywhere I take her, I always get compliments on how beautiful she is. The doctor even said that her eyes are stunning! Her eyes are still a really pretty dark blue and she has really long eyelashes. I hope they stay that color! We just love our little (big) bundle of joy!

Our poor lizard, Izzy

WARNING......



MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR THOSE WITH A QUEASY STOMACH!!!!!



We don't really know what happened, but...........

I was teaching a piano lesson last week and afterwards, the siblings and my boys were all playing together in their room and they asked to play with the lizards. I said sure because they have before. I went to check on them and everything was fine. After they left, I went back in the room and our lizard, Izzy, LOST HER TAIL!!!!! GROSS!!!!!! SHE WAS WALKING AROUND WITH A BLOODY STUMP! AAHHHHHHHH!!!!! What's even worse, Dan was out of town and I just couldn't bring myself to throw it out! I couldn't even look at it! It was like a cut off finger!

When Dan got home I made him throw it out and, of course, I just HAD to take a picture! But, there is good news out of all this.......lizards grow their tails back!









I WARNED YOU!!!!!

Our General Conference Activity

This is what we did while watching General Conference. What did you do?

No more binkies!

 

It has been a week and 3 days since Jacob gave up his binkies and I am proud to say that he is doing suprisingly well! I was a little worried on the first day. We gathered up all the binkies and put them in an envelope for the "Binky Fairy" to pick up and give to all the babies who needed them. (Jake had to draw on the envelope too)

 
 

He was very, very sad. (as you can see in the pictures) We let him pick out a stuffed animal to cuddle up and sleep with and he chose a cute little doggie and named it "Coco." After we put the envelope in the mailbox, he cried, "My binkies, my binkies!" all the way back into the house and then some. I felt so bad for him! They were his best friends, and he had to give them away! But I had to be strong and stick to my guns.




The next day, "The Binky Fairy" left Jacob something really exciting! There was M&M's (his favorite) and a blue power ranger (he's going to be that for Halloween) in the package.

Naptime?? Well, let's just say there wasn't any unless we were in the car going to pick up Spencer and by the time we got back, it was over. Bedtime?? Well, it was VERY hard for about 3 or 4 nights. When I laid with him, he would just squirm and say, "I can't sleep, Mommy!" But when Daddy laid with him, he was asleep within 5 minutes! It must be that big warm body of his.

Everyday is a little better. Today I laid with him for naptime, and he fell asleep within 5 minutes and slept for 2 1/2 hrs! Tonight for bed, he cried for his Daddy (Dan is out of town ALL week!) for a couple of minutes, then talked quietly to himself for 10 minutes and fell asleep. He has done A LOT better than I thought he would!