The "Free Spirit"

Alex is my free spirited child. She really does march to the beat of her own drum. On Monday evening, I was finishing up the folding of "mountains" of clothing mentioned in my previous post, when Maddy calmly says to me, "Mommy, Alex is drawing on your purse." I was like, "huh? What did you say?" Then I shot up and went to the table where sure enough, my not to inexpensive Dooney & Bourke handbag, had 4 different colors of crayon scribbled all over it. I was PISSED. It might not of been so bad, had it not been a gift from my Mother in law. I mean, my thoughts are if you have kids then don't expect to keep everything perfect all the time, cuz it ain't gonna happen. But I know that my purse was not cheap, and it was a really special gift from her to me, and Alex just ruined it. I think I gave her something like 5 whaps on the bottom, and yelled at her to go to her room, and that "I will deal with you later" following it. So, she sat on her bed. And sat, and sat, and sat. Finally, after about 30 minutes, I went up stairs to dole out the as Alex called it "pushment".. Here is a re-play from our conversation:
me: "I am very very disappointed in you Alex."
alex: "yeah"
me: "Why would you do that to Mommy's purse? Do you think that was a good choice?"
alex: "Cuz..Cuz...Cuz..I dunno why"
me: "Alex, what is REALLY important to you?"
alex: "Popsicles"
me: "ok, you are grounded from Popsicles. What else do you REALLY like?"
alex: "treats from the tweasure box" (treasure box is a box of treats they can earn)
me: "Ok, so you are not getting Treasure box for a LOOOONG time. Anything else?"
alex: "Sowwy Mommy... But you're pretty and beautiful."
me: "gee thanks, is there anything else you need to add?"
alex: "I won't pee in my bed anymore."
me: "well, I guess that's somethin."

She still understands that what she did was very wrong.. and her attitude has been pretty decent these last 2 days. She is currently singing and doing her job assigned to her.(wearing pink cammo pants, and a head band around her head, over her hair and nothing else) Singing, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer at that.. Leave it to my kid to sing a Christmas song in June. Like I said, Free Spirit.

That crazy baby

Peyton is officially on the move. She is now doing the "army" crawl. It is really pretty cute. I would have never thought that one of my girls would be crawling at 6 months. Maddy didn't crawl until 9 months, Alex at 8 months. She is wanting to pull her self up too.. Hopefully that will remain a goal of hers for a good month or so! I don't know if I could handle another milestone so quickly. Pey is also a crazy girl. She gets in her, what we have dubbed, "baby jail", and just goes wild! She rocks it back & forth, jumps, squeals, laughs & just has a good ol time in it. We both love the thing. Me because it can entertain (and contain) her for a good 15-30 minutes before she, 1. falls asleep, or 2. starts to fuss because she wants out. And her because she loves all of the activities on it.

OK, so I have to complain for a minute.. Does anyone know, I mean really know how much laundry 3 girls can produce? I mean seriously.. I did, 9, yes 9 loads of little girls clothing yesterday. In our huge front loader machine that can wash something like 15 towels at once. Does that tell me something? Yup. My girl are spoiled, and have way to many articles of clothing. The really pathetic thing is, they were not even out of clothing to wear. I still have not finished folding all of them. I have been thinking about taking a picture of the mountains of clothing I have sitting downstairs. I don't think I will though, just because I don't feel like I should document something like that. It's pretty embarrassing to me that my daughters (and I) have so much, and there are kids in the world who have nothing. I wish that there was somewhere other then the Goodwill I could take those clothes. Somewhere, where they give them to actual needy people. I know Goodwill sells them for "cheap", but they are still sold. Do you know what I mean? If anyone knows... Share the knowledge..

And guess what? No pictures this week. Weird huh.. Guess I just wasn't in the picture takin mood. :-( Ah, well.. Maybe this week.

What a weekend

My sister Charity finally had her baby girl this Saturday. Olivia Ann was born on Saturday June 14th at 5:36 pm. She weighed 8lbs 2oz, and is 19 1/2 inches long. She looks quite a bit like her daddy! Here are some new pics of my beautiful niece..





Then on Sunday, which was Fathers day, we went to church, then we went to my in-laws for brunch before Trav, his bro's took their Dad golfing. When they left, I took my girls up to see their new cousin for the 1st time. :-) They loved meeting her, even though they couldn't remember what her name was... I was able to snap a couple really good pictures of my girls on Sunday morning too.





And other then driving up to Portland 2 times this weekend (and spending $45 in gas doing so) my weekend was super short. I can never seem to get all thing things I want to get acomplished, well, acomplished. I guess I shouldn't be to hard on my self. I really was not home at all this weekend. I got up at 7:00 am on Saturday, spent all day at the hospital, left the hospital, went to a BBQ, left the BBQ, got home at 10:30 pm, got up at 7:30 Sunday, made Trav breakfast in bed for, as Maddy wrote it, Farters day, got in the shower, bathed all 3 girls, got ready, got them ready, feed Peyton, went to church, went to the in-laws, drove up to Portland, had a pit stop in Newberg at Fred Meyers, cuz Mommy I need to go potty weally weally bad, walked around Fred Meyers for a while, got back in the car, drove the rest of the way up to Portland, got all 3 girls out again, trooped into the hospital, cuddled with my new niece, talked with my sisters in-laws, left the hospital, went to my sisters house in Tigard, met up with my Mom & Dad, went to lunch with them at Baja Fresh, then got some frozen yogurt at TCBY, got all 3 girls back into the car, drove home, started a load of laundry, did the dishes, switched the laundry x2 more times, sat down, and didn't want to get back up.... Ever.. We watched the movie Bucket List last night too. GREAT MOVIE. I actually teared up a little at the end! Ok, so I cried.. Who gives a flip? I had a really long weekend, I needed an emotional outlet.. Hah!

Waiting..

I am at this very moment sitting at the hospital waiting for my sister to deliver my very 1st niece.. I can not tell you how excited I am! Anyways.. I just wanted to document this.

I'm gonna be an Auntie soon!

Yay! My sister went to the doc today and she is almost 4 cm dialated! I am so excited to be an Auntie. I have always just been the "mommy", so how cool is it to finally get to spoil & send home?! Please be praying that she has an easy & safe labor & delivery.. Thanks!

We also had a major hit in my family this week. My Mom, after 31 YEARS at her job for the same company (the very same on I work for) was fired. For being 30 min late of all things. Needless to say I am appaled, disgusted, broken hearted, frustrated, and a bunch other things about this. Obviously her boss was out to get her for some reason.. NOT cool. It is so hard for me to go to work everyday knowing that they could let this happen. Fortunatly I have a very supportive boss & even VP over my division. Not to mention my coworkers. They understand that I am having issues with it all, and are being really great about it. So be praying for my Mom too. That she will know that even though it may not seem like it right now, the Lord has bigger plans for her. It was really fortunate for me, the day it happened (I was having a really hard time with all of it), we go to our small group on Wednesday nights. We had been doing a fairy quick study of the book of Philippians, and we were finishing it up that night. The Chapter we were reading was Philippians Chapter 4. There were two parts that really stuck out in my mind.
They were:
Philippians Chapter 4 verses 4-7: Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be Anxious about anything, but in everything, but prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the Peace of God wil guard your hearts and your minds in Jesus Christ.
And also:
Philippians Chapter 4 verses 10-13: I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you have been concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in pleanty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Those 2 parts really helped me. It affirmed yet again that my Lord & Savior, is who I can rely on in every situation. I just need to give it up in prayer. One of my prayers is that I will be able to be there for my Mother, and help her during her time of need.
Wow, so that got a little deeper then I thought it would... Thanks for listening! Stace

Ahoy Maties!

I took the girls up to the Rose Festival this Saturday, where we met up with one of my Uncles, who is in the Navy. He gave us a tour of his ship the USS Preble. The girls had quite a few questions.. Such as:
"Do those things spit fire?"
"Do they sleep AND eat here?"
And my favorite...
"Where is the swimming pool?"
It was a fun and interesting afternoon. The only problem was at the very end when we were off the ship, Maddy & Alex were running around a rock sculpture of sorts and Alex totally ate it. I was sure she was going to have a concussion. Thankfully all that she had was a huge goose egg and bruise on her forehead. Whew! Here are some pictures from our afternoon.









And I have to give a big kudos to my sister Charity.. She braved the ship too, and at 38 weeks pregnant, that was quite a feat! I know that when I was 38 weeks pregnant I could barely walk... Let alone navigate the narrow halls & stairwells of a Navy Destroyer! We were hoping the activity would put her into labor, but no such luck.. Hoping to see baby Olivia soon!

Peyton is 6 months old!!

What? Say What?! She couldn't be, it just isn't possible.. Oh but it is. Peyton is a half a year old. So, what has my 6 month old been up to? Well, she has been getting up on all 4's starting to rock back & forth. I bet crawling will happen sometime this month. She just today started solid foods.. And boy did she love them!! She talks all the time too. Ok, so its more like a high pitched squeal, then talking, but you get the picture. She is rolling everywhere too! I will sit her up in the middle of the living room, and she will be content there for a while, but as soon as she eyes the newspaper, she is laying down & rolling over to it just so she can eat it. I am not kidding. The baby girl loves to shove newspaper in her mouth. It is like her favorite thing ever! Thats about it in Peyton world.. Here are some of the 6 month pictures I took of her today & yesterday. :-)







And here are some more pictures of Peyton eating her very 1st foods!





That's all for now, I hope everyone is great!

I am tired of the ickies!

Here we are, a week since our girls had the stomach flu, and now finally, we are on the last family member to get it. Travis.. So I was sick on Saturday, alone, with all 3 girls. What fun that was... I badly wanted some sprite to settle my tummy, but I couldn't exactly pack up the girls to drive to the store, to get the girls out and walk in the store to get some. I mean, HELLO, I was feeling terrible! So I just dealt. Trav, mmmm, not so much. He gets sick, and I have to run to the store to get him some Sprite & Chicken noodle soup. Sheesh. Such is the life of the wife & mommy. Gotta love it! Which I truly do. I am very blessed, to have the family I have. Thank you Lord for everything you made Travis to be. He is a hard working, gentle spirited man, who loves his family more then the world. So, I guess he deserves to be cared for when sick huh.. So there you have it. I just now made my self feel bad for the thoughts I was having. Hope everyone else is healthy!

Lets go swimming swimming swimming...

This past weekend was a busy busy busy weekend. Friday night was spent running around, dropping Maddy off at a gymnastics birthday party, then going to a few stores to get everything else I needed for my older sisters baby shower that I threw on Saturday morning. After I got home I had to make shortcakes, a breakfast casserole, & little wiener wraps for the next mornings brunch. Woke up early on Saturday, finished up the casserole, got the kiddo's & my self dressed & ready, packed everything up in the car to be at my mom's house at 9:00 to set up for the shower which started at 11:00. The shower was beautiful, the weather was warm, but not too hot so we held it outside on the patio. She recieved some really nice things too. It was a great way to honor Charity, and her baby girl Olivia who is due in June! I am so excited to be an Auntie! After the shower, it was really hot out, so I decided to go buy the girls a small inflatable swimming pool. They LOVED it! It took me a while to blow up, and then fill up, but once I did, the girl were splish splashing about. With zero care that the water was freezing cold hose water. Brrrr. Then on Sunday, we spent a good part of the day at my in-laws house working on a quilt for my midwife Lisa. She delivered all 3 of my girls, and is having her 3rd girl in a few months herself. Unfortunatly she is leaving her practice in a week or so, and I won't be able to see her as my doctor anymore. :_( I am just very glad that I had her for all of my girls. She really became a friend during the 7 years I was a patient of hers. The quilt turned out beautifully, and I was able to give it to her on Tuesday at my fun lady appointment. She loved it, and I am very glad. Oh, and I haven't said anything about Miss Maddy riding her bicycle with OUT training wheels yet have I? Yup, I have a two wheelin babe now. She was so tickled with her self the other day when she finally balanced on those 2 skinny little wheels. What an acomplishment! Good Job Maddy!
And finally here is a little clip of Peyton I took today of her laughing and playing. She is starting to move around ALOT! I don't think it will be to much longer before she is a scootin around the house! I took it with my little sony digital camera, not a camcorder, which is why it's pixly.. Hope everyone is well! (oh yeah, the girls are feeling MUCH better today. Whew!)

The Phone Call...

So, I got one today.. The dreaded daycare phone call...

"Hello, Stacey?", "Yes, this is Stacey." "Hi, this is Diane. Maddy just threw up her entire lunch." "OH Yay, I will be there in a few.."

Words cannot express how much I dislike kid vomit. Baby vomit is one thing, grown up vomit is another, but kid vomit is its own seperate entity. I think the worst part about it is, they can't seem to determine when they actually feel like they are going to throw up and 99% of the time its on the carpet, or the couch, or in bed. It's like they can't remember WHY they are holding a big plastic bowl! And, did you know that children really don't chew their food? NOPE, they don't. For those of you who read my blog who only have babies, just you wait. You will be here one day. And when you are, my heart goes out.

Must run now, more vomit to deal with as both my big girls are voiding themselves of their lunches in 2 different places. Will post later, after the ickiness has left the building. Chao.. Stace

Mothers Day

I had a wonderful Mothers Day! We started the day by going to church with both of our families to dedicate our little Peyton Leigh to the Lord. What a wonderful time that was! Our friend and Pastor, Bill Wertz did the dedication for us, and it was very special. Here is a picture of the 5 of us after the service.



After Peyton's dedication, we all went to Trav's parents house for a BBQ. It was a really nice time, spending Mothers day with both of our Moms! My Grandma Scott was there as well.

When we left the BBQ we headed home to change for a quick afternoon trip to the beach! We went to the outlet mall, where I found Peyton a bunch of new clothing that she desperatly needed! The little punchkin munchkin is growing so fast, that I can't seem to keep her in clothes that fit. I did really good too, getting her about 10 or so outfits, more if I were to mix n match for around $60! Yay for the Carters store! Then we headed out to the beach for some fun in the sand & semi-sun. The girls LOVED flying the kite & splashing in the water! Here are some pictures of them from our afternoon.







I feel truly blessed to have such a wonderful family. My girls are so sweet & my husband, well, he is just awesome. Couldn't have asked for a better day.

Peyton is 5 months old!

Oh my, how can it be that almost a half year has gone by since Peyton's birth? I guess the old saying "Time flies when you're having fun" really is true! Lets see.. What is Peyton up to now... Well, she's rolling everywhere. She is just starting to get up on her knees, but when she's up on her knees, her face is in the carpet! So that's a negative on the crawling right now. But I imagine that will be coming in the next 2 months or so. She is the happiest baby, just so smiley all the time! She has found her feet too. They are almost always in her mouth if she is laying on the floor on her back. Which isn't often, because she prefers to be on her tummy. I have not started her on foods yet, but I will start introducing them to her on her 6 month birthday. She had her 1st taste of ice cream from our friend & pastor Bill the other day, and boy oh boy did she like it! She is being dedicated at church on Mothers day this coming weekend, with Bill doing the dedication. I am very happy that we get to do it on mothers day! What a blessing! I will post pics from that next week.

Otherwise, we are all doing great.. I am feeling just about normal again. Thank goodness! Mastitis really stunk. I missed almost an entire week of work. Maddy is almost done with kindergarten. I am going with her to the Enchanted Forest at the end of the month for her field trip there. We are both pretty excited. I have never been, so it will be new to me too! Alex is great.. I can tell she is trying really hard to be a good girl, but it's just really hard for her! Hopefully it will get easier to obey.. One of our new favorite sayings is, "you get what you get, and you don't throw a fit" Which seems to work, most of the time anyways..

Well, I am going to close with some pics of my fam.. Check back for updates! I am going to try to be better about posting. It's just my life is so hectic now that I am back to work.. Oh well, It is what it is..

Again?

So, unlucky me has mastitis AGAIN. I am feeling terrible.. I went to the doc yesterday, and I had a fever of 104.. When I woke up this morning it was 103. I can't believe I got it twice. It totally sucks. Anyways.. Just wanted everyone to know how lousy I am feeling.. Talk to you soon. S

BUT I DON'T WANNA GO!

Thats what I am feeling right now.. I do not want to go to the soccer game today! It is freakin freezing out. I am even cold IN MY HOUSE! GRRR. When will the sun be out? Only 3 more games until the end of the season. Thank goodness!

Blah b blah b blah blah blah

Not much new here.. Just getting back into the swing of things at work, and trying to keep up the house and dinners. It is so hard to be a working mom sometimes. I know, cry me a river.. or, would you like some cheese with that whine.. I am really wishing that I could stay home with my girls right now, but at the same time, I am very blessed to have the job I have. It was nice to get a paycheck the otherday, but I would much rather get paid in baby smiles. Oh well, it is what it is.

And in Peyton news, we have a roller! She is rolling over both ways now. She rolled over for the 1st time from front to back while we were on vacation, and then just last week she rolled from back to front. The girl is also the biggest flirt! If you just catch her eye at all, she will smile at you. And not just any smile either. A GREAT BIG toothless grin. I love it!

Maddy is great, doing fantastic in school. Just about ready to move on up into the
1st grade! Crazy isn't it. Alex will be going into 4 pre-school in the fall as well. Just this afternoon, after Maddy was done with her reading homework she has everynight, Alex came up to me and told me she wanted to "read" it to me as well. Not thinking anything of it, I said, "sure kid, come on over" and what does she do? READS the entire thing! Ok ok, I know she probably memorized what Maddy had said, and the pictures helped, but still.

So, that's it for now. See ya, S