cottle family fun

boys and football

2012-01-23T21:55:00.000-06:00

what do you think is keeping the boys so entertained? yep...football.

my oldest turns 6

2012-01-23T21:51:00.000-06:00

j's birthday is a whopping 3 days after her birthday. i always feel bad for her because i'm afraid the day will get overshadowed by christmas. and every year her birthday drags out for weeks because we make such a big deal over it :) i think i am finally learning that it may be odd timing but she is just fine :) one thing that is wonderful about her birthday is that russ is usually able to take off work, letting us do something as a family...this year we took the big girls to crown candy for lunch. j has such a sweet tooth we thought she would really enjoy going for a milk shake...oh, and a hot dog and chips :) our plan was to take j, e and c with us and leave the baby with grandma but c was sure she wanted to play with grandma so we ended up letting her stay and play and take w with us instead. great decision - we had to wait over an hour (mostly outside) and i know she would have been bored out of her mind! overall a great day, but really could have planned crown candy a little better...

that evening grandma and poppy took j to pick out a new bike helmet and elbow/knee pads. then we all met up with the barrett's, grandma and poppy and uncle johnny (who just happened to be in town visiting) at one of her favorite places ---- red robin's!! she loves that place for the simple fact that you get an ice cream sundae :)

we weren't really planning on having a big party for her this year but she was determined to celebrate with friends so we compromised on a pretend slumber party :) we invited 5 little friends over for a couple of hours on a saturday evening, played, ate pizza and cupcakes and then got out sleeping bags/air mattress turned on a movie and popped popcorn. all the girls had so much fun and it was great to see her playing with her new school friends. best part? parents came at 7:30 for pick-up and everyone still got a good night's sleep :)

i love you my amazing 6 year old...but guess what, it's the middle of january. i'm officially declaring your birthday celebration over.

christmas 2011

2012-01-13T22:31:00.000-06:00

we had a great christmas eve and day...we started at church christmas eve....i'll say overall it went well. middle of nap time, all 6 of us plus my parents in church, an hour and 15 minutes, we did it. my parents and grandpa came over for christmas eve dinner, we opened presents from grandma and grandpa and got ready for santa's visit :)

christmas morning arrived before we knew it. russ and i got to bed at a "reasonable" time and w slept through until about 5:30ish and fell right back to sleep. my parents came over around 7:00 and believe it or not all the girls were still asleep. j and e woke up around 7:30 so we compromised and told them they could come downstairs to open stockings but that were going to wait to open presents until c was awake. they were so cute trying not to look at the christmas tree as they came down the stairs. even walked through the dining room and kitchen to the family room so they didn't have to turn towards the tree. more restraint than i would have had at 6 and 4!!!

we finally woke c up around 8:00. she was one tired little girl but once she saw what was going on she came alive :)

we spent the morning opening presents, my parents headed off to church, we finished up, had our traditional egg casserole, mimosa breakfast complete with monkey bread and a little happy birthday jesus. for the afternoon we headed down to russ' parents to spend the afternoon/evening with his whole family.

christmas eve

c turning into a cow girl...hee haw.

e and her twins. she's named them lollipop and michael?!?!

j and her kanani doll. she has wanted this "doll of the year" since she visited the AG store in Chicago last january. she just had to have her before she was gone forever!!!

christmas morning...santa came!!!!

big girls trying not to peek and see what santa brought...love it!

we finally woke up little bit...she was exhausted.

didn't take long for her to see it was worth it :)

e's favorite gift...a booster seat. i guess she took it as a sign that she is truly getting "big"

j loved her itouch. it was so fun for santa to bring something she didn't even know she wanted...she was absolutely thrilled!!

***so i'm posting about christmas on jan. 13th and just noticed two things***
1) i don't have a single picture of w on his first christmas. he slept through the morning opening of presents and i guess it just never clicked
2) apparently we didn't take a camera down to grandma and poppy's because there isn't a single picture of the second half of christmas.

so disappointing. i'm blaming it on the fact that *we have a lot of little people in this family* and *haven't had a solid night's sleep in months (literally)*...all that being said, i guess we are lucky we just forgot the camera and not one of the little persons in our lives!!! (although my parents stopped by the house late afternoon to let the dog out and the lights were on, the back door was unlocked, the breakfast casserole was still sitting on the stove....)

love you

2012-01-11T20:58:00.000-06:00

december 2011

2012-01-11T20:55:00.001-06:00

christmas this year was great...we got the house decorated thanksgiving weekend. lights on the outside of the house and everything. we celebrated december 1st with the arrival of both Cheeky the elf and the good deed jar. cheeky arrived with krispy kreme donuts (thoughtful little guy :)) and the good deed jar went over well again. over the month we did something every day - simple things like give your sisters and brother a hug, draw a picture for a friend, etc. to more "exciting" things like drop off flowers at a nursing home, take donuts to the fire station, donate something to an animal shelter, even surprise daddy with lunch. it was great fun :)

one of our christmas highlights every year is the kids christmas party at russ' work. the girls get along great with all the other kids and probably the highlight of the evening is a visit, complete with presents, from santa. our little 2 year old could hardly contain herself when santa started passing out presents! check out that smile :)

the big girls did great also....didn't need to sit on his lap, but we've come a LONG way from the years of tears and anguish over santa

and baby w...well, he did great too. check out how he spent his evening.

can not believe that baby slept through the screaming and running and wii playing and pizza eating and laughing and all that good stuff

we finished off our month of christmas parties and prep with an evening at some old family friends. we had a great time and were out much later than anticipated. all the kids did great....i probably wouldn't have mentioned in my post except we started snapping pictures before we left the house and ended up with some good christmas card pics...here are a couple of my favorites. each of them reminds me how blessed we are to have this amazing family...

my big girls - 6 (almost) and 4 years old...you are so precious to me...you both have welcomed another distraction into your daily life with such grace, love, and patience. thank you for being AMAZING daughters and big sisters.

my little 2 year old...who doesn't want to look at the camera....you are an amazing little firecracker

what can I say....I just love this pic. E loves her baby bro even she sometimes reminds me she really wanted another sister (is she crazy or what?!?!)

the men in my life...

still not looking at the camera, but you are sure sweet.

bell ringing

2012-01-07T22:47:00.000-06:00

i took the girls to help grandma and grandpa "ring the bells" for the 2nd year in the row. so nice to give a gentle reminder that the christmas season is supposed to be about giving. they all did great and it was fun for russ to spend some time one on one with our little guy....

E's first field trip

2012-01-07T22:26:00.000-06:00

E had her first field trip this fall to krispy kreme. i was able to work it that grandma kept the little's and j was in school and it was just the two of us (and her whole class :)). it was so much fun to spend some alone time with her. she is such a sweet, lovely little lady. here she is with her best buddy.

big sisters

2012-01-07T22:14:00.000-06:00

this picture was taken by my mom the day will was born. just saw on my phone and makes me smile every time...love these girls!

great grandpa turns 90

2012-01-07T22:11:00.000-06:00

we were able to have an all family birthday party for my grandpa's 90th the first weekend in november...the schwabs were able to make a quick trip in and we had an awesome day at the cabin...

Happy Birthday Great Grandpa!! We Love You!!

happy halloween

2012-01-01T23:00:00.000-06:00

ready....set....catch up!!

2012-01-01T22:44:00.000-06:00

so life has been a little hectic since the little guy entered our world but since it's the first day of 2012 thought i would catch up on what's been going on around here....

we played soccer....

J went to cheer camp and got to perform at a high school football game....

and C turned 2!!!!

we had a fun, busy October!!

the new love of my life...

2011-10-21T15:32:00.000-05:00

16 days ago I thought I was prepared for the arrival of my little guy. the day got off to an early start - the hospital calling at 5:15 to let us know they were ready for us to come in and start the induction. hours later I was just kinda hanging out - waiting for the pitocin to kick in and decided to flip through a magazine. my horoscope read...."get ready for a serious love affair like you've never experienced before - an epic, mind-blowing romance is headed your way." YEP. i'm head over heels in love with the newest man in my life. Welcome to the world William John.

and the stats...William John (named after my dad and russ' dad), born 10/5/11 at 3:31pm. weighing in at 9 lbs. 1 oz. and 21 1/4 inches long! he's such a handsome little guy :)

and the countdown begins...

2011-09-28T17:23:00.000-05:00

had my last dr. appt today and we are scheduled to induce this little guy on wed. oct. 5!!!! a week from today we will become a family of 6. i am SO EXCITED!!!!

getting our last bit of fun in before baby boy arrives :)

2011-09-23T17:48:00.000-05:00

we are on official countdown before this little baby arrives and with the two big girls in school mon-thurs afternoon i've tried to do something fun on friday morning for the past couple of weeks. last friday we headed to the magic house for special "member only" play. it was awesome - we were practically the only kids in the children's village. no field trips, no crazy weekend crowds. my kids could run around and i could be relatively confident that i wouldn't lose anyone :)

today we headed to the zoo. we invited grandma with us because 1) she's fun to do things with :) and 2) i admit to being a wee bit nervous about heading to the zoo 38 weeks pregnant with a 5, 4, and almost 2 year old. thanks for coming grandma!!

it was the first day baby asian elephant "kenzi" was out in the river's edge for everyone to see. she was the cutest little thing ever. all my girls were crazy over her :)

after watching the elephant's we headed over to stingray cove for the first time ever. petting stingrays must have been a topic of conversation a couple of weeks ago in kindergarten but j has been very interested in seeing the stingrays for the first time ever. in the past they were just happy as could be to pass by without looking twice. i have to say it was so cool! of course j kind of put the brakes on and wasn't so sure and e would have been just fine staying far away, but that little c of mine was the first to get her hand in there to pet the stingrays :) once grandma, c and I spent some time petting them j decided she was going to be brave and put her hand in the water. it takes a while, but if you're patient and don't stress she is so willing to try things. it was such a good reminder for me to try and remain PATIENT and POSITIVE and all will be GOOD in the long run!!!! the best i could pull off with e is some intent watching and a couple of times her fingers actually hit the water - just not when there were any animals around :)

to top off the stingray exhibit, we were there during feeding time and even though j was totally interested, there was no way she was going to hold raw fish in her hands and so big chicken that i am stepped up and fed those stingrays. ugh. not my thing. holding raw fish pieces between my fingers so they could slide over slurp up. gross. and once i truly thought i was going to lose a finger :) told the girls after that i was glad i tried it because it's important to try new things but that mommy probably would NOT be doing that again!!

before you knew were were out of time...wound our way out of the zoo and got to the car just as the rain started falling. drove through mcdonald's and got j to school just as they were lining up. talk about timing.

what should be do next week? should be last friday before this little guy arrives!!!!!!

this child of mine...

2011-09-18T22:01:00.000-05:00

what are we going to do with her????

here she is pretending to walk like "grandma"....with a cane...where did she ever get this idea? both grandma's walk with a spring in their step :)

here she is after her sisters got her all dressed for dance class...only she's two years too young. she is determined to get into someone's class someday. she doesn't care if it's dance, preschool or kindergarten, she is ready to be a big kid!!

here she is on a pony at the st. lucas ice cream social this afternoon....her sisters thought she should go first...no problem. in fact, don't even bother holding on dad, i'm ready to take this pony on a ride, or two, or three :)

Watch out world...E turns 4!!!

2011-09-18T21:43:00.000-05:00

so my peanut turned four years old in august. not sure where the time has gone but she is getting big on me :) she is such a sweet little thing with a hint of stubborness in her! for breakfast we went to krispy kreme in our pj's. she thought it was so cool not to have to get dressed and loves watching the donuts being made.

I asked her a couple of weeks before her big day what she wanted to do for her birthday and she suggested we take two of her friends to monkey joes. and to take them to mcdonalds for lunch and then drive them home in the van...why that was such a big deal i'll never know but one of the best parts of her birthday "party" was having 6 girls in the van (poor russ - as if he's not out-numbered enough).

her actual birthday was on friday so she had her first two days of school and then was off for her actual birthday. it turned out great. that evening we had russ' parents, the barrett boys and my parents over for pizza and cookie cake. grandpa was working at an offsite job so he wasn't able to make it, but we were fortunate to have great nana and just by chance aunt karen in town for a visit. it was great evening playing and celebrating family style :)

school's cool...before i forget!

2011-09-16T07:45:00.000-05:00

so the start of school has gone fantastically!!! i was starting to get stressed about my future kindergartener and preschooler until the first day of school when they went running in to their classes and never looked back. grandma stayed with C and i had asked Russ to meet us at school. pregnancy hormones and the chance of having two unwilling to go to school and I really wanted some back-up...happily, it was completely unwarranted but still nice to have hime there! I have been thrilled with the school and teachers and feel like my girls are thriving. Amen!!

they are both in afternoon school so we have our mornings to take it easy (which is a good thing for us), run an errand, play, whatever. By 11:30 it's time to start thinking about lunch and getting ready for school. Off we go to school for the big girls and C and I head home so she (we) can nap for a couple hours before it's time to pick everyone up...not too exciting but it's nice to have a schedule :)

a few funny stories about miss j...

a couple of weeks into school j told me about how during story time a little boy would leave her alone and kept trying to tickle her so finally she turned around and gave him her "mad face" (good lord) and that after she kept trying to get him to stop....and i quote..."mom, i had had ENOUGH!" (heaven help me). uh...j, what did you do next??? "i raised my hand i told mrs. s and she told him to stop and apologize!!!" great.

yesterday was our first early dismissal day so afternoon kindergarten goes in the morning and stays through lunch. it was a bit different for us and j walked into school by herself for the first time. i saw the new principal at the main entrance so i figured she would be well taken care of....after pick up we were talking and j says..."mom, my principal says whenever she sees me I just make her day!" i bet you darlin'...i just bet you do :)

Gulf Shores - Part 2

2011-08-17T21:26:00.000-05:00

the second half of our vacation we spent as a family of 5 plus grandma. everyone else headed back to the real world while we kept playing :) russ and my girls do not have the best complexions for hours and hours spent on the beach so we kept ourselves busy with lots of different activities. it was great at their ages and there were a couple of times grandma was able to stay at the condo with little c sleeping while we took the big girls out. we had a great week and the girls were great...

the big girls got to play putt putt one afternoon...hot but fun!!

pirate breakfast....treasure hunt and all!

some beach time...

ALLIGATOR ALLEY!!!!

Gulf Shores - Part 1

2011-08-17T15:09:00.000-05:00

We got to spend the first few days of our summer vacation with grandma and grandpa, aunt katie and cousins...it was SO much fun!! cousins are 5, 5, 3, 3, 2, 1. can you even imagine?!?! they get along so well and we are so thankful to my parents who put the whole trip together. love you!!

Family Beach Pics

2011-08-17T14:22:00.000-05:00

We spent a wonderful week in Gulf Shores this summer and one evening i decided it would be nice to try and get some family shots...should have known it wasn't going to be easy with a 5, 3, and 1 year old (esp. since the littlest won't put her feet in the sand)....top it off it was a hazy evening and well.... no matter, they're pretty sweet girls :)

4th of july

2011-07-06T22:56:00.000-05:00

we had a great 4th of july weekend. we started early with our annual fireworks show at delmar gardens on tuesday. yes, we go to the nursing home for fireworks :) believe it or not, it's a ton of fun. they have a great event for the public - cotton candy, snow cones, bouncy slides, games, drinks, all sorts of things. and a great fireworks display at the end of the night. the girls love it, it's enough for them to go "wow" without the noise and the craziness of other fireworks displays. personally, i love the mile drive home at the end of the night :)

picture quality isn't the best - that's what you get with the phone at night...

she was loving the fireworks...laughing at the noise and ka-booms :)

loves the fireworks...just not the noise :)

hanging out with the boys....what a little ham :)

saturday we were at friends for fun and food...the girls did sparklers for the first time. what an experience. the pics totally show their personalities :) little c was not going to be one of the "babies" that watched. jumped right in she did!!

sunday we headed over to grandma and grandpa's for a great dinner and sunday we headed down to terre du lac for some cottle family time. some friends from lima were in st. louis for the weekend so they came along with us and got to play in the lake, have a great lunch and some good old fun with the barrett's and grandma and poppy.

we are completely exhausted over the many late nights and are hoping to rest up before next week...vacation here we come!!!!

one month later...

2011-07-06T15:34:00.000-05:00

wow. it's been a whole month since i've posted anything on the blog. guess time flies when you are having fun :) we have spent the month swimming, playing, going on walks, vbs, magic house, going for ice cream and snow cones, t-ball, parties, fireworks, you name it...

quick recap:

swimming -

j figured it out....she is swimming under water!!! not for long distances and is most comfortable where she can reach, but we are making progress :)
e is on her way....still likes to wear water wings but is more daring. jumping in, going under, not a big deal to her!!
little c....well, she loves the water, hates any type of flotation device but doesn't want anyone holding on to her. it's a quandry :)

ice cream and snow cones -

yummmyy!!!! we love our treats and have enjoyed tropical moose, spanky's, the malt shop, DQ, the ice cream truck, you name it :)

t-ball -

well, j started off doing pretty well this summer. but it seems to be a few weeks to long for us.
two weeks ago j didn't have her pink helmet and needed to borrow a friends helmet and we bombed from there. let's just say she never put her feet on the field and watched the entire game with tears in her eyes from the dugout.
last week she was prepared and ready to play until she got hit in the mouth with a ball. ouch. i managed to talk her into going back out on the field for the last inning and hitting one last time. she ended the game on a good note - hit the ball without the tee and (since she was last to hit) got to have a "home run" :)
i think we are retiring gracefully for the season. this weekend russ will have to miss, and all other family is busy - out of town, etc. so i'm not sure i'm up to taking all 3 girls for a questionable game. the last game of the season we are on vacation. so....we'll see if next summer is another t-ball season or not. who knows.....

vbs -

another fun week at st. lucas with vbs!!!
j ran off each morning to meet her class and play with her buddies. LOVE that she has made such good friends at church :)
e did great for a 3 year old. we had one rough start where i think she was just darn tired but got it pulled together and really did a great job participating in all the activities :)
c managed pretty well for someone who is not used to any type of daycare. she was in the toddler room all week and her favorite activity by far was the music. that girl loves to dance :)
i survived. we had a great weeks in crafts with lots of hard work. russ was travelling again this year during vbs week so it really took a lot of energy to survive the 24/7 while pregnant. needless to say, i crashed on saturday.
vbs sunday was basically a bomb for us - j refused to sing with the other kids, e wasn't sure what j's problem was, and c couldn't sit still or keep her mouth closed. she and i lasted about 15 minutes before i had to take her out of the sanctuary. good times.

that pretty much sums up the major highlights of june. we'll talk 4th of july another time...now we are getting ready for vacation. will i ever get it all pulled together?!?!!?!

lima

2011-06-05T23:09:00.000-05:00

we headed up to lima last weekend to visit friends and had a great little vacation. russ played in a golf tournament supporting a friend in need of a kidney transplant on saturday and then we played until the drive home on monday. we stayed with some great friends who also have a 5-year old daughter so j and e were well entertained.

it was great to see everyone on our yearly visit to ohio. j and e are more and more comfortable with the other kids each time we go and little miss c just adores jeremy and liza (who refers to as 'nana'?!?!?!). our one low point all weekend...j was convinced there was a killer cat hiding under the house and absolutely, positively, 100% refused to go outside. we had pure hysteria on our hands. it was ridiculous. HOURS later, when everyone had given up on reasoning and trying to explain that the stray cat had left the yard and was not to be seen, i just picked her up and took her outside. held her on my lap for about an hour (against her will) and then, wouldn't you know it, as soon as one of her sisters got hurt from playing too rough she was good to go and i was able to go fix that problem :) love that kid to death but told her if she ever asked for a cat again i might go nuts on her....seriously. no cats for this family. ever.

on a completely random note...russ was really enjoying the fact that he was in ohio, staying at a buckeye fan's home, when it was announced Tressel resigned from Ohio State. Go Blue!!!!!

the official end of j's preschool years....

2011-06-05T22:32:00.002-05:00

this was the end of labeling my oldest as a "preschooler"....exciting and sad at the same time :) next year we officially enter the elementary years!! j is super excited but it's hit her that while kindergarten is going to be super cool, she's also leaving her teachers of the last two years and all her friends. she had two years of school with most of the same kids and unfortunately she will be moving to her elementary school with only one little friend. who's not going to be in her class. total bummer. she is child who enjoys consistency and "change" is not to her liking. sorry kiddo. get ready for a whole new world :)

towards the end of school her class had a little music/art show. i was able to go watch without the little's (thanks mom) so i could actually pay attention and take a few pictures! here she is in all her glory!!!

typical.

tootie-ta!!

After the show we headed outside for a picnic and games....

j and her best buddies comparing popsicles. each one is heading to different elementary...boo.

and then finally the last day of school....j thought it was totally cool that the whole family was there. we were heading out of town so the car was packed and we were ready to hit the road. fun for russ to get to pick her up.

lining up for the last time...

j and Ms. Pam. lordy this lady was wonderful for our j. we are so sad she is retiring this year but good gracious...after 20+ years of teaching preschool she deserves some rest!!!!

our poor puppy...

2011-05-25T21:26:00.001-05:00

isn't that the most pitiful site?!?!?!

about 6 weeks ago russ was giving cobb a little attention and saw that one of his ears was swollen. almost like a puffy pocket on his ear flap. strange. so we took him to the vet and they said it was a hematoma and needed to be drained. poor guy. they took care of it and had his head wrapped. he had a check-up in a week and wouldn't you know it...the darn thing came back.

so...week 2 at the vet and this time they put him under and basically sliced his ear open and cauterized all the vessels in his ear so none of them could bleed. poor baby. he had to have his head wrapped (because he kept bleeding) and was sent home with a huge e-collar, or lampshade as my girls call it, for 3 weeks. one week post-op we had a check-up and they ended up keeping him for about 4 days because his ear wouldn't stop bleeding. turns out he had an infection in his other ear and they think it was itching so much that he kept shaking and making the "trouble ear" bleed. and supposedly this is all because of allergies. ugh.......

post-op week 3 check-up and he's looking great. they remove the stitches and he's officially lampshade free!! this lasts for less than 6 days until he goes out back for 10 minutes, rolls in the grass, shakes off the morning dew and pops another vessel. within 30 minutes that darn ear was all puffed up again. damn it. seriously. damn it.

he got to go back to the vet on monday, they did the surgery AGAIN and when it was time for russ to pick him up that evening...yep, he went crazy again and started bleeding all over the place. they kept him over night and i picked him up on tuesday. he's in the lampshade for another 3 weeks. let's hope this is the end of it. but seriously, not holding my breath...

btw, each time russ has picked him up after the surgery cobb's ear has started bleeding like crazy. the vet's best answer...when that silly dog see's russ his blood pressure sky-rockets and he gets excited so excited the ear goes crazy. he doesn't get to pick him up anymore. doesn't happen when i pick him up :)

i feel so bad for this dog. he's so sweet and just can't catch a break with this ear lately. he really has been a good patient but this is seriously reeking havoc on my family. j has decided she should be his nursemaid and is the first to get after him for shaking or trying to scratch his ear. c is mesmerized by the collar and can't stay away from him. i am just waiting for him to say "enough!!" and snap at her. hope he doesn't, but wouldn't blame him at times. e....well, the poor kid has been traumatized. she won't go near him. is all jumpy around him and man should you see this kid when she has to come with me to the vet for a check-up. he has to sit in the front seat with me and there have been moments of pure hysteria at the vet's office. it's exhausting.....

a couple of typical scenarios at my house these days...

would you leave that poor doggie alone?!?!

how she sits whenever he moves...you would think he was contagious :)

a picture's worth a thousand words....

2011-05-25T20:46:00.001-05:00

BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

oh gosh that fountain looks like fun!! grandpa can try and hold me back but he's going to have to work hard :)

seriously mom...i sat quietly forever. let a girl have some fun!!!!

REALLY???!?! I can go play?!?!?!?!

hot dog! This was worth it :)

a ballerina in boots...nothing better :)

dance recital 2011

2011-05-22T06:40:00.000-05:00

i'm off to get donuts as a surprise for my beautiful ballerina's but have to take a minute to brag on my beautiful girls... the big girls have been in dance class all year and we've been talking recital for months...yesterday was the big day!!

i admit to being nervous pre-show...would they get on stage and do their thing or are they going to look like deer in headlights. will they even go on stage?!?! my girls are so tough to read...j was meant for the spotlight but there are moments when the "unknown" causes her to freeze up and not try new things. e....well, she's three. a big stage, lights, costume, make-up...it can all be overwhelming. i get that. and on top of all of it...little miss c got to attend two dance recitals in one day.

what a day. the forecast called for rain so i was cool with t-ball being cancelled. at least we would have one less thing to fit into the schedule...so i wake up waiting for sound of rain drops but for a change there was sunshine. so...off to t-ball, home to eat, change and head off to show #1. elle belle in her first dance recital ever!!! she was such a peanut. my heart just squeezed. she was so precious and did absolutely fantastic. my goodness i love that girl :)

after show #1 we went out to take pictures in the beautiful weather. headed home, changed out of show #1, ate, got ready for show #2 and on to j's turn to shine. and oh wow did that girl shine. that kid discovered her natural stage talent. she's such a ham when she loosens up and let's herself enjoy new things. she did a fantastic job doing her dances and oh my did she enjoy the paparazzi of pictures and flowers after the show. she was on such a high. who knows what's in store for her now?!?!?!

on a non-dancing note, my little c ended up at both dance recitals with us. she loved the music and dancing. she did great sitting quietly through all of e's recital and was cute as a button. she was so good i just couldn't resist the plea for water time in the fountain during pictures for show #1. call me a sucker but she was SO HAPPY and what does a little water hurt?!?! she's 19 months old. if we strip her down to a dry diaper for the ride home, who cares?!?! show #2...different story. poor kid barely napped, barely ate and was dragged to another recital. who can blame her. she lasted for about 8 dances and russ had to take her out. he got to see all his girls dance and that was the most important thing. you could just see it in her face...been there, done that, no more.

and on an audience note, we are so blessed to have family live near to us, who care about these girls and their activities. we had a full house of grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins. even a great-grandma was able to come watch the show!! i love the support and unconditional love my girls are learning family provides. i can guarantee there were three boys in st. louis that were bored out of their mind but they were so excited for the girls and couldn't stop taking pictures of their little ballerina's. LOVE.

so this supposedly short note turned into a novel. really am off to get donuts. pictures will be posted soon.

here's another one...

2011-05-22T06:09:00.000-05:00

i tell ya....those 5 year old's really come out with some funny comments. they are old enough to start seeing the big picture and really say it as they see it :)

....as we drive by a senior living bus/van....
e: "what's that mom?"
j (who obviously considers her answer as good as mom's!!): "oh, e - see, when you get old and can't live by yourself and can't drive by yourself, then if you're rich you live someplace where that will drive you where ever you want to go..."

funny girl. i don't have any idea where the concept of "rich" has even come into her vocabulary. yes, we have talked about all our blessings and how we should help others who have LESS....we've bought cups of coffee for the homeless, etc. but we have NEVER discussed rich vs. poor. could this truly be a result of peer interation?!? kind of makes me stress over what she's going to hear/learn next year with her kindergarten/elementary school environment...ugh.

on a lighter note, my first two thoughts after my "where in the world did that come from?!?!?!" were 1) since great grandpa rides one of those buses on occasion i guess he could qualify as "rich"...wouldn't he get a kick out of that :) and 2) i guess i should start dropping hints that some times it's up to the "old people's" children to support them in that lifestyle :) let's hope she makes some good life decisions!!!

god bless her.

easter 2011

2011-05-18T16:56:00.000-05:00

just found this in my list of posts that never got loaded. guessing i started and was distracted by something (easily happens these days). thought i'd go ahead and finish it off. some day we will have a good laugh over our children's inability to look at a camera at the same time!!

what a great easter this year. we did easter on saturday with one side of the family, including easter egg hunt at church, easter baskets and lunch at grandma and grandpa's.

sunday we headed to church and then down to terre du lac for brunch, easter egg hunts and a nice afternoon with grandma and poppy and the barrett's.

about the best we do with all three together :)

gets even harder when we make it all 6 of them...but there you go. the motley crew :)

our daily conversations...

2011-05-18T16:40:00.001-05:00

we've been busy around here and i haven't had a chance to post much, but i thought i would recap a couple of conversations the girls and i have had this week. they just make me giggle :)

j (as we drive down 141): "mom, see that ice cream place out your window? i'd like to go there some day.
me: "oh yumy. i'd like to try that too. can i come with you?"
j: sure. in fact, when i get married we can go there after the wedding and i'll buy everyone ice cream to celebrate.
me: "sounds like a plan. make sure you mention this to your dad. he will be thrilled to have a reception at Youngs Fried Chicken and Ice Cream!!!!"

me: "it sounds like there are a bunch of kids from school going to the zoo tomorrow. we're going to have a great time."
j: "mom, I've got a great idea. maybe we can break up into two groups so we don't lose anyone."
e: "yeah! I've got it....all the moms can go in one car and all the kids can go in another!!"
(sounds like a GREAT plan to me :) i'm still trying to figure out how we could pull that off!!!)

me: "c, are you ready to eat lunch?"
c: "nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnooooooooooooooo."
me: "how about a drink? are you thirsty?"
c: "nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnooooooooooooooo."
me: "do we need to change your diaper first?"
c: "nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnooooooooooooooo."
you get the picture...

a quick taste of summer...

2011-04-26T21:33:00.000-05:00

well it didn't last but a couple of weeks ago we had our first taste of summer weather...needless to say, we all enjoyed ourselves :)

St. Patty's Run

2011-03-23T21:32:00.001-05:00

I did it!!!! things have been crazy around here (more on that later) and I haven't been running like I hoped but am happy to report that on a beautiful saturday morning in march I ran my not-so-little body for 5 miles.

Russ has been trying to talk me into running half marathons with him the past few years and I've always told him to let me try st. patty's first. well, then last year I decided to go ahead and give the chicago half marathon a try - and the night before we left I had a massive gall bladder attack ending up in the ER. no running took place.

now I've signed up for the st. louis half marathon in april. for different reasons (the reasons we'll talk about later) I won't be running 13.1 in a couple of weeks...but at the very least I can say that I ran 5 miles in 2011. baby steps....right?!?!

a beautiful day in the city with friends was an extra little bonus :)

my kind of farm.

2011-03-04T16:12:00.000-06:00

last weekend we were invited to spend the night at some friends "farm" which is not an actual working farm but what i describe as a play farm. we got their friday night and headed out to the bonfire for fireworks and smores. stayed up late playing and dancing and then, after we finally got the kids to bed, enjoyed a little adult conversation with some great friends that we don't get to spend enough time with.

saturday morning we all got up and had yummy waffles, got the kids bundled up and went out to play four wheelers and tubing and just good old fun. once the kids were ready to warm up with some hot chocolate the guys went off to paintball in the woods.

even cobb got to come play at the farm. i didn't want to put him back in the car to go home after 24 hours of running in the woods, splashing through the creek and getting into who knows what. old dog - couldn't move for the next three days.

it was such good fun i didn't have a chance to take any pictures :) truth be told, russ had been traveling the week before - in fact, we met him up by the airport on our way to the farm - and well, i'm just not with it enough to bring a camera that had a charged battery. on top of it, my phone spent the night outside by the bonfire and wasn't found until the next morning. i have no idea on earth how the thing still works - snow, mud, fire, four wheelers. it's truly a miracle and i will probably keep this phone case forever and ever.

and besides, can i say 9 adults and 14 kidss - girls age 7, 5, 5, 5, 3, 3, and 1... my girls were in heaven!!!! and we were totally outnumbered :)

this is all i've got for memories sake...thanks to the chilly iphone and pictures i copied off facebook (shhhhh...)

3.5 years old...

2011-03-04T15:45:00.000-06:00

my middle child is officially 3.5 years old :) we love celebrating half birthdays around here. this year, russ was travelling so we decided to indulge our sweet tooth and had cupcakes and ice cream for dessert!!

to top it off, since E's birthday is in the summer (august to be exact), the dance studio celebrated her half birthday. it was so fun for her because in the past she hasn't started school by her birthday so she doesn't get to do birthday snack or anything. (this will change next year and i am so happy for her - she will have 2 days of preschool before she turns 4!!!)

my elle belle!!!

E with her dancing buddies....she looks like a little peanut doesn't she?!?!

american girl place

2011-02-28T14:36:00.001-06:00

for J's 5th birthday grandma and grandpa wanted to take her to chicago and visit the american girl place. some good friends of ours have a beautiful condo right across from navy pier and were kind enough to let us stay there for our visit.

it was a quick trip - got there friday eve, spent saturday experiencing american girl, went to rainforest cafe for a late lunch, and then went back to the condo for the evening to play with our new doll and and have yummy chicago style pizza for dinner. sunday we got up and went to brunch at the american girl place and then headed back to stl. we had so much fun spending this special time with j and i know j had an incredible time having 3 of her favorite adults all to herself :)

introducing..."katie haberberger" (named in honor of the teenager who lives across the street :))

j with grandma and grandpa

j and katie haberberger - they look just like each other, right?!?!

spent hours playing with her new doll.

brunch at american girl. it was so fun!!

love!!!

a special thanks to my mom and dad for giving j and myself such an amazing weekend. i have not had her to myself in over 3 years and it was great to spend one-on-one time with my first born :)

and a special hug and kiss to my amazing husband for taking care of the two little girls for the weekend while we were galavanting around chicago!! things were a little hectic that weekend, his dad ended up in the hospital for a couple of days, plans were changed and he just rolled with it!!! love you!!

fancified.

2011-02-27T21:59:00.000-06:00

isn't this how every 3 year old comes out of her room after quiet time?!?!?!

the great meltdown.....

2011-02-27T21:57:00.000-06:00

we've had a lot of snow and ice this winter. like crazy lots for st. louis. a few weeks ago we were supposed to have the "blizzard of the decade"...didn't exactly turn into what they expected but let's just say it was enough...and to top it off, cold enough that nothing melted for what seemed like forever.

and then finally the warm up came. and we headed outside to enjoy the meltdown!!!!! love these pics because 1) it shows just how big my "baby" is getting and 2) it reminds me how much fun we can have just hanging out on the driveway!!!!

COME ON WARM WEATHER!!!! WE ARE READY!!!!!!

V-Day 2011

2011-02-27T21:47:00.000-06:00

since it's still officially february i thought i could still post about our valentine shenanigans :)

we decided to have a little party to celebrate valentines this year and invited two little girls that are in J's class (that E is friends with also) to play, do crafts and have a little lunch. it was great fun and the girls played so nicely together.

both the big girls exchanged valentines at school this year. while i'm anti-store bought cards, i just didn't have the energy to really "make" cards this year, so we compromised. we'll go with semi-homemade :)

let's move on already...

2011-02-08T15:35:00.001-06:00

yes, it's almost v-day....but, i have two lasts pictures to post for j before we can move on from the christmas season. what can i say...it's a busy time of year for us with lots to cover :)

first, just because it's cute. here's a picure of j's preschool christmas (scratch that, 'winter') party.

J has had such an awesome year at school. she has grown and matured so much - is caught up in play dates with friends and loving life as 2nd year student :) we will be sending E to a different school (same program/curriculum) next year because of kindergarten logistics. i am excited for her but praying continually for her to have as good an experience as J has had. those perschool teachers have the kind of patience I could never dream of!!!

the next picture is of j and her dance class. once again showing her maturity this year. she loved having her birthday celebrated by the other girls in class, singing happy birthday, getting a balloon....i love that the dance studio recognizes how important it is to make each little girl feel 'special' :)

ringing the bells

2011-01-26T23:00:00.000-06:00

the girls and i had the opportunity to help grandma and grandpa ring the salvation army bells over the christmas season. it is so awesome to see the bigger girls - especially j - starting to see the bigger picture. santa is fun and all but to see the true meaning of christmas - the giving and sharing of jesus' love and our love for him...well, amen. we spent the month of december doing a good deed each day. the girls each had 'good deed' jars and got to pick new deed every morning. they were so excited each day to see what they got to do - helping with laundry, holding the door for someone, giving a hug, baking cookies for the neighbors, we got pretty creative :) ringing the bells was a definite highlight of the season and i'm sure we will be doing next year and the next year.

one last post on memphis...i promise

2011-01-26T22:26:00.001-06:00

must have been a little reminiscent this evening. i was looking back at pictures on my phone and came across some fun memphis pics i never thought to post. quality is not top notch but they definitely capture some of the good moments :)

the girls on the hill of autozone park. thank goodness the playground was open for play while russ had his meetings. it was a great way for everyone to play and spend some time!!

our first night in memphis the girls saw these carriages outside the hotel and we knew we'd never get out of town without taking a ride. they loved it and felt like real life cinderellas :) (even though we were out way past bedtime!!)

one of my favorite moments of the weekend. c and her ducks. quack quack.

Before it's too late...a little new year eve recap

2011-01-25T22:21:00.000-06:00

i realized tonight january is almost over and i never posted about our fun new years eve. we didn't really have plans for the night - my personal opinion is that the night is a bit over-rated, overly expensive and i'd rather stay home with my kids where we are all safe and have our own fun in our own little world :) we got in touch with some friends last minute and they came over from a night of mexican fare and just dance 2. the girls got the new game for christmas and wow has it been a new hit with everyone in the family!!! too much fun for kids and adults....seriously.

my biggest issue of the night - darn it, i'm the one with 15 years of dance experience so why is my dear husband (who will admit to little to no rythym) beating the pants off me on every song!!!!

the kiddos checking out the game for the first time

j and e doing tik tok. e's thinking "what in the world??" j's thinking "i think i like this game!!"

jeff and chrissy...so totally funny to watch this in person

the boys doing what j now refers to as the "date song". feel the love...

our new "just dance" chica...the other kids tired very quickly of dancing but j rocked out with the adults for hours. she truly is becoming a "kid". heaven help us!!!

the girls are getting just dance FOR KIDS on valentine's day. a few more kid-friendly songs that i am hoping gets e a little more interested. i know c will go nuts - she's already screaming for possession of the wii remote.

cabin fever averted...thank goodness!!

2011-01-11T22:31:00.000-06:00

as forecasted, snow came last night and today was declared a snow day across st. louis. didn't really affect us much because no one has school on tuesday's to begin with but, well...i admit to going stir crazy when i'm 'stuck' at home. didn't have anything we needed to do today, but the fact that the roads were bad enough to cancel school and it was darn COLD made me realize we should just settle in for a cozy day at home. yea! and ugh....

and then around 7:30 every thing fell into place. to back up a bit, russ left this morning for a business trip and is travelling with a good friend of ours that has two girls (5 and 7). they were driving to to indy together and she texted if they could leave a bit later than planned ecause she was scrambling to find someone to watch the girls (what with no school and all). hello! here i am with a 5, 3, and 1 year old....bring 'em over and we will play!!!!

she gratefully accepted the offer and we were grateful to have fun company for most of the day. my big girls had a fantastic time playing with their girls. we even got to do a little sledding while c was sleeping, came back for a little hot chocolate and tinker bell and we were good to go. (selfishlessly speaking, one of the best parts of the day was an easy bedtime since they were exhausted from playing so hard. aaaaahhhhh....peace at last :-))

our biggest problem of the day...my poor little c really wanted to be included in big girl play :) the girls would run up to their rooms and she would cry at the bottom of the stairs to go with them. sorry pumpkin, not gonna happen when they bring out the nail polish and make-up, polly pockets, squinkies, you get the picture. then they would run to the basement and slam the door shut (for safety purposes) and she would hang on the door crying to go down but once again, we're talking barbie shoes, cash register coins, etc. you get the picture. they had no desire for me to be included in the play or to be responsible for a 15 month old. i get it. she was stuck with boring old mom. sorry c.

7 year old puppy...

2011-01-06T22:49:00.001-06:00

some friends of ours had to say good bye to their 11-year old golden retriever today and it got me thinking about my own little buddy. russ' only male companion in this otherwise female-ruled house :)

my first baby, cobb is one of the best doggies i've ever known. he is calm, patient, sweet, loving, fun...i could go on and on. yes, we took him to puppy school but i am serious when i say this dog was born with the best "family dog" personality. i could not have asked for a better dog to help raise my girls. they crawl on him, pull on him (at least c does), boss him around and he just goes with it.

i regret that we do not pay more attention to him. i hate to admit this but, yes, there are times i forget that he's outside when we run out the door (running late as usual for school, church, dance). and yet when i call his name he comes running with love. what a good boy. love you cobbers.

cobb in today's world...

our very first night with cobb....what a little peanut :)

a last edit to the post. i found a picture of cobb and c. they are practically best buds these days. she is almost guaranteed to stop crying if you mention his name :)

my guardian angel deserves a break.

2011-01-01T23:54:00.000-06:00

i've had all sorts of quick little 'in and out' type things that needed to get done for a couple of weeks (which i despise doing with all three girls in tow). so... while russ was home i took advantage of the opportunity to fly solo and skeddadled. i knew there was rain forecasted on new years eve so i decided to get out early and get all my errands finished as quickly as possible before i got drenched in rain. turns out i kind of had my timing all backwards...

while returning a broken glitter barbie at walmart i noticed the first tornado sirens going off. strange, i thought but decided it would be fine to run over to toys r us to make a couple of other returns i needed to take care of.

once again, wrong choice. had no luck and by the time i walked back to my car the sky was not looking good and the wind had really picked up.

here's a pic of the scene maybe 2 blocks down about 10-15 minutes later...

so to top off my brilliant decisions for the day i decide to run into dierbergs really quick so i can get dinner stuff and not have to get back out in the rain....yep. that would be my fenton dierbergs in all her newsworthy glory.

here's a picture of what the parking lot looked like when i came out with my groceries...

and the church across the street (st. paul's)....

and the neighborhood i drive past on the way home (summit heights)....

the church across from the just mentioned neighborhood (solid rock ministries)...

so thank you little angel for keeping me safe during my silly errands. i have never been so grateful for the little nudges that helped me get home to my family safe and sound. (who were happily playing in the basement completely unaware of the tornado damage one mile away.) dierbergs can lose power any time and i will never ever complain about the time it takes to get the checkout lanes back up and running. i was nice and safe in a dimly lit grocery store instead of mid-route when everything went crazy.

here's praying that everyone else stayed safe and suffered minimal damage on new years eve...what a way to leave to 2010!!!

(and thanks to ksdk.com for the incredible photos. you all should be proud of me and know i had my hands on the wheel at all times and never took the time to take pics with my phone...safety first!!)

decorating advice from the resident five year old...

2011-01-01T22:26:00.001-06:00

so it comes time to take the christmas tree down and i find j has been adding 'ornaments' to the tree all season long.

she wants to box them up with the rest of the ornaments. you know, for next year. here's to hoping mommy wins that battle!!

party hard or go home...j's 5 years old!!

2011-01-01T21:42:00.001-06:00

tuesday was a big day in the cottle household...my first born, my baby girl turned 5. how in the heck did that happen!?!?! this year we planned a big 'friend' party for her at a local gymnastics studio and scheduled smack on her birthday. why the middle of the week? because the weekend before her birthday was christmas, the weekend after her birthday is new years and well, was there really a better choice? these christmas birthdays are not easy. luckily we had a great turn out. almost all her school buddies made the party, some family friends and the very best part...all cousins under the age of 5!! ended up we planned this party perfectly and j was able to celebrate with her atlanta cousins along with mickey ;-)

is that a morning dazed look, or what?!?

the morning started great. yummy cinnamon rolls and she was thrilled her birthday presents - gumball machine and belly-button swimsuit (hee hee). what else would you get a girl that just had an awesome christmas? the girl has been waiting to chew gum for years (the rule was she had to be 5) and nothing better than a belly-button swimsuit (thanks target for thinking all of us in stl need swimsuits in january).

all the kids had a great time at the party - 3, 4, and 5 year olds love gymnastics, birthday cookie cake and presents.

check out e's smirky little face...she hides her feelings well, doesn't she :)

i think my favorite pic of the day. isn't she beautiful!!!!

we ended the night at j's favorite birthday dinner location - red robin. she could not wait to have her very own ice cream sundae!!!

she had a great day and two special presents - a big girl bike from grandma and poppy and a trip to chicago to visit american girl doll with grandma and grandpa. lucky, lucky girl.

christmas day

2010-12-29T15:05:00.000-06:00

all i can say is 'wow'. loved having christmas at our house this year. both sets of grandparents. all the barrett's. crazy fun. probably one of my all time favorite christmas'. i have always wanted to have christmas at home (like i did growing up) and russ has always wanted to have christmas with family (like he did growing up). so this year, both of best worlds!!! everyone was healthy. everyone was happy. we were well blessed.

waiting to see if santa came!!!

yep. lots of good girls and boys this year :)

c loves her joe joe

cousins. can you believe mickey is only two months older???

j hugging her new pink golf clubs. she thinks she may give up baseball and focus on golf. smart choice at 5 years old :)

c lovin' her new train...

the girls and their pillow pets

post sledding christmas: chillin' around the house

j and grandma practicing her needlepointing

a little toy story kerplunk

the boys and their football cards

christmas eve

2010-12-28T23:27:00.000-06:00

we had an early church service on christmas eve and then headed over to grandma and grandpa's with great grandpa for dinner and presents. it was a great, relaxing evening. for the first time in several years we headed home (yea!!) to put cookies out for santa and leave reindeer food on the front yard. loved getting to see my girls do these traditions since in the past they have fallen asleep on the way down to grandma and poppys and miss out on tracking santa, etc.

we knew the barrett's were coming christmas eve to spend the night but not until late so we put c to bed and told the girls they could fall asleep in mom and dad's room. even have a little show on. j gave up pretty quickly and went to sleep - she was exhausted but e, well, the little scrapper stayed awake until everyone got to the house. i'd say she probably crashed around 10:30. i was ready to fall asleep around that time also :)

spent some time visiting and then got to sleep asap so that santa could come!!!!

e loves her dip...blue cheese and all.

j diggin' her new watch. pink is so cool :)

yes, i included a pic of myself (bc i'm lovin' my new wine glasses!!)

j handing out heavy presents...the girls love their great grandpa

c just could not keep those little hands off grandpa's train set...

ready for bed but not falling to sleep for hours. and hours. and hours.

reindeer food!

picking out cookies for santa. yummy.

Christmas Day Sledding

2010-12-28T22:59:00.000-06:00

so i think i am going to have to break up the last week into a few posts...starting with christmas day sledding, not because it was the most important moment of the holidays but because the pics are downloaded off the camera and well, I'm tired :)

to back up a bit, we had christmas at home this year with grandma and poppy, the barrett's, grandma and grandpa and mama moe. it was great fun and we had the perfect amount of snow to go sledding with the kids. C lasted through presents and the the big kids hit the awesome hills in the neighborhood!!

snow angels in the making

sledding with daddy

joey successfully sledding downhill :)

now he has to walk back up the hill...

russ attempting snow boarding. don't ask.

all the fun

jimmy attempting the snowboard. a little more successfully

e says 'bring it'...she's ready to sled this year!!

Memphis

2010-12-09T22:06:00.001-06:00

What a fun weekend. But lordy is it hard to travel as a family of five. One hotel room for all of us tight quarters. Especially when a certain one year old has trouble sleeping in a pack n play :)

We headed down on Thursday. Russ had meetings Friday morning, so we basically hung out and explored walking distance Memphis. We stayed at The Peabody so the hotel itself was a big hit. C loved the ducks and there was so much entertainment. A local choir singing Christmas carols had J mesmerized for what seemed like forever. We found a little playground inside Autozone Park (home of the Memphis Redbirds) and had a fun lunch where we got to make our very own s'mores (yum!!)

Friday night was a pasta dinner for the St. Jude heroes...absolutely touching to hear about the millions of dollars raised for the hospital and the personal stories of patients and their families. Heart wrenching. If I'm honest, it was frustrating to hear these stories of "what could be" and all you want to do is hug and love and hold your children and instead I have a one year old throwing food and pulling my hair, a three year old that is so exhausted she falls asleep fork in hand, and an almost five year old that has to be coerced into taking x number of bites of her dinner so that she can have the brownies and cookies she is driving me nuts asking for....ggggggrrrrrrrr. Really makes you realize how we get caught up in the small, mundane moments of parenting when there is really such a bigger picture. They are healthy. They are happy (most of the time). They are the biggest blessings in my life.

We enjoyed being spectators for Saturday's run. Enjoyed beautiful weather and good friends. Par for the course we missed seeing Russ run past us, but managed to cheer on all the other JL runners. After a little rest time we headed out to dinner as a big JL group celebrating everyone's accomplishments. We had 7 running the full marathon and 9 running the half. WOW.

My middle girl...she is a trooper trying to hang with the big kids but not *quite* there :)

(On a different note, didn't realize my lack of sleep was so apparent until I saw the pics...ugh.)

My C was so happy to see her daddy post-race and have a broad shoulder to lay her sweet head on...she slept like that forever!!

And my big girl....with her new BFF Ashley :)

Headed home Sunday after a quick swim. Stopping at Lambert's with two other families travelling with us. Yummy.

Overall, a great getaway. A perfect way to put the Christmas season into perspective. We have three beautiful girls who are healthy, growing, happy. I am blessed in every way imaginable. But I gotta tell you, next year our plans are for Russ and me to run the half and leave the little ones at home. I think all the moms and dads agree that it was fun to have the kids participate, but when it comes down to it you are too consumed by all the weekend 'adult events' to have littles along for the ride!!

My Crafty Side...

2010-11-30T11:34:00.002-06:00

My craftiness is about non-existant. LOVE everything I see others do but when it comes down to it, well, I don't have it in me to come up with crafty ideas and if I try and replicate someone else's crafty ideas they usually turn out a little....unusual. Maybe because I let a 4 and 3 year old participate and they have a way of taking over??? Well, we can put the blame on them regardless :)

I mentioned it in my last post but this weekend we are headed to Memphis for the St. Jude's marathon to watch Russ run. There are about 10-15 people from JL running and many are bringing their whole families. Dinner reservations for Saturday night is for 45 people ranging from 1 - 50 years old! It is bound to be an incredible experience.

Anyways I'm sure I made some comment in passing to J about supporting daddy with "go daddy go" t-shirts or posters but I should have remembered she has a very focused memory and wouldn't you know it...we are not leaving the Lou without personalized t-shirts.

Cool. Great idea J. I'm on it...except there's nothing out there that I like. And then I realized we are coming up to Christmas and J's birthday and we just don't have the $$ to throw around having shirts embroidered, especially if they are going to wear it for one special day. Do It Myself???? Is it possible??? Well, I gave it a go and have to say I think they turned out pretty cute - and for less than $10 a shirt!

The girls are so proud of their daddy and I am so excited (and nervous) to take them to see such an amazing event. Thousands of people running to support an incredible organization. At the same time, how in the world am I going to explain this to my girls?? How to get across the *good* of St. Jude without exposing them to the *sadness* of cancer...with kids...and the fight for a cure??

We will do it. And they will be better for it.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2010-11-28T22:42:00.000-06:00

Wow...what a great holiday weekend! Feel like there is still lots to get done but when I look back on the weekend, it was a whirlwind of productivity!

Tuesday we spent the afternoon making Turkeys for everyone at our Thanksgiving dinner...turned out cute but lots of cutting for mom and lots of gluing for the girls. Have to say I was pretty impressed that my big girls stayed focused on the project for 2 straight hours. Never expected all the great help (note a hint of sarcasm?? the did great but well, they're 3 and 4.5)
Wednesday the big girls went down to Grandma and Poppy's with the Barrett's. Gotta say life with just one little stinker is pretty sweet :)
Thursday we headed down to Terre du Lac to meet up with the family and celebrate all we have to be thankful for. We had a great day with the Cottle clan.
Got a little Christmas shopping done late Thursday night and a bit Friday morning (online at night and not CRAZY early...just early enough to get some good deals :))
Christmas tree and decorations up on Friday!!!!
Saturday was Michigan v Ohio State day. Bummer of a game but the girls had fun making signs for daddy.

We also managed to fit in a little Tangled Friday afternoon. E's first movie and she says she had fun. Honestly, we had no idea what she was thinking - the kid was a statue for 1 hour and 52 minutes. She was either completely enthralled or a deer in headlights.
Sunday morning we joined St. Lucas UCC. We are thrilled to become part of our new church family.
Outdoor lights up Sunday afternoon!
Headed up to Jimmy's hockey game Sunday night hoping to see a great game....Turned out to not be a winner, but love our #6 Shark!!!

We've got a few days here in STL and later this week will be heading down to Memphis for the St. Jude Marathon. Russ is going to have a great run, we are going to support an amazing cause and the girls are going to have a fun "mini holiday" at The Peabody!

E's Quiet Time...

2010-11-03T21:26:00.001-05:00

My little E decided over the summer that naps are completely unnecessary for a big girl like herself. Not even 3 years old and they were completely boycotted?!?! Why in the world would a person do that to herself? Me...I would LOVE someone to tell me it was time to get in bed for a couple of hours each afternoon. I'll give her one point...sure makes bedtime a lot easier :) There were many a night this summer E fell asleep at the dinner table.

We have moved on from that for the most part. She has resolved herself (after a couple of really rough "quiet times") that she has to stay upstairs, in her room, quiet, for one hour. And she does a pretty good job. She waits for me to come get her most days, except eventually the lack of sleep catches up with her and there are days when she actually falls asleep. **Yea!! She will be well-rested and that stubborn little person that takes over my sweet child will disappear for another 4-5 days!** But she's obstinate and will not admit defeat - which means she won't get in bed and fall asleep comfortably. We have found her asleep lined up against the wall, in the upstairs hall, she's blocked her bedroom door by falling asleep in positions that prevent us from opening the door and today was the best one by far...the top stair. Good thing she stayed still. Rolling down the stairs would NOT have been a good way to wake up!!

So I go check on her tonight and, yep, sound asleep in the hallway...sweet dreams baby girl!!!

Come on Halloween...we've waited for you long enough!!

2010-10-23T00:05:00.000-05:00

I enjoy Halloween as much as the next person, but come on already...if feels like we have been waiting FOREVER for this holiday to arrive! Thankfully we are closer and closer. This past weekend we headed to the pumpkin patch. Good times but whoosh...busy with these three little girls. Guess it didn't help that everyone else in STL had similar thoughts on Sunday afternoon plans :)

This morning was J's Fall party. We had tons of fun painting pumpkins, playing Pin the Nose on the Pumpkin, Fall Bingo, yak yak. My most favorite part of the party, by far, was seeing my J in her classroom setting. I can not even begin to express how my heart swelled seeing her so well adjusted and happy at school. Last year I helped at Fall party and she was attached to my side...today I don't think she even cared who was there :) She is an absolute hoot. Sooooo chatty. It cracks me up how comfortable she is in her class - it was so hard for me last year to see this bubbly little girl clam up at school...this year she is shining with personality!!

Tonight we headed to Grant's Farm for our annual Halloween Dance Party. Tons of fun although we sure missed the Schwab's {this is the first year they haven't been in STL dancing the night away with us}. J was by far our rockstar of the evening. Guess I didn't realize but the kid can do a killer "worm" on the ground :) E hit a wall early and spent most of the evening resting on me or Grandma. C was her typical trooper self - clapping and dancing to the beat of the rockin' music. We wore everyone out and all 3 were asleep before we pulled into the driveway. And yes, J fell asleep mid-conversation.

Lots of Halloween fun to be had this coming week. A little trunk or treating at church, a chili dump party at friends and of course neighborhood trick or treating!! Fingers crossed I will get some pics of our resident Spider Girl, Lady Bug and Little Chick...

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!

2010-10-18T22:39:00.000-05:00

It's hard for me to believe, but last week my baby girl turned 1. How is that even possible?!?! She has been an incredible blessing to our family. As her parents we know and love her as no one else can...except her two "big" sisters. Those girls are in LOVE with little miss C and I can not wait to see how their relationships blossom as the years go on :) She is itching to be one of the big girls (although she doesn't seem to mind that walking is still a foreign concept). She is a happy, go-with-the-flow girl as long as things go her way - she definitely has a mind of her own but you can almost always turn frustration into belly laughs.

C has had a rough couple of weeks...ear infections, bronchitis, thow in a little constipation and well, you get the picture. But, I am happy to say that she is doing so much better. We had a great day on her birthday. The girls and I took her to the mall and played on the playground, did Build-a-Bear, snuggled and watched a little dance class. She got to open a couple presents on her actual birthday. Have to admit there wasn't anything too exciting since it's hard to find something for the third daughter born in 4 years.

On Saturday we had her little birthday bash with family and some friends. I think everyone had a good time and we were able to do lots of outdoor playing since the day was beautiful.

She had her 1-year check up today and she is doing great...21.5 lbs., 29.5 inches, 4 shots and what a trooper. Wish her *almost* 5-year older sister had seen how awesome she was with her shots. J has been worried about the 1 shot she gets at her check up this winter for the past year...geesh.

How was your weekend?

2010-10-10T22:44:00.000-05:00

Well, in a nutshell...fun but busy.

Friday J got to go with her dad to Summit's homecoming game. He was planning on taking both the big girls but a certain 3 year old decided to throw one of her famous temper tantrums at quiet time and lost the chance to have a fun night out with dad...bummer. She had a great time and ran in to all sorts of friends (old and young)

Saturday was full of soccer. J's game was in the morning so we were able to go so Mickey play his game Saturday afternoon. Little C is not feeling well so she got to stay home with dad (who also got to watch the Michigan game real time)...isn't she a cutie???

Sunday I kept C home from church since she's got herself a pretty good fever right now. Russ took the big girls and the Barrett's surprised them and visited St. Lucas. Apparently the girls were rockin' at choir practice. We'll see what they do when they are actually supposed to get up in front of everyone and do their thing :)

In the afternoon we headed up to Grant's Farm to enjoy such an awesome October day. It's been crazy warm here!! First thing the girls wanted to do was feed the goats...

Think they enjoyed it?!?!?!?!?!

Luckily the rest of the day we had smiles!!!

Here's to a good night's sleep. Russ is traveling through Wednesday and we have a busy, busy week ahead. Let's hope the birthday girl is feeling better soon!

Crack Goes the Clavicle - Or Not...

2010-10-05T13:36:00.000-05:00

Last night after dinner I ran up to the store and Russ stayed home with the girls. Nothing out of the ordinary - they were on a walk when I drove out of the neighborhood. 45 minutes I returned home to find one asleep (like she should have been), one in the tub (like she should have been), and little E crashed out on our bed....huh.?!?!?! "What happened to her?" I ask. J lets me know they were doing log rolls down the neighbor's yard when E started crying that her shoulder hurt. Cried herself to sleep, in fact. Great. No biggie. Already struggling trying to hold down the fort while I recover from my gallbladder surgery. Sure, we can take on an injured shoulder.

And then she's up half the night crying over a hurt shoulder. So a quick visit to the Dr. this morning and an order for x-rays looking for a broken clavicle and ..... whew. All is good. Just a bad sprain. She's in a sling as it seems to help with the discomfort but otherwise she should be all good.

Quite a year I tell ya...it seems like we have had just enough to go wrong to change up some plans, but thankfully nothing bad enough to be of great concern. Amen.

She's lovin' life today....let's say she gets her grumpy face from her dad :)

Hello Schwab's and Bye Bye Gallbladder...

2010-10-02T15:24:00.000-05:00

Two weeks ago Aunt K was a brave, brave mama!! She packed three little children (4, 3, and 1) and drove all the way up from Atlanta to STL by herself!! Uncle J was on a medical mission in Africa (cool, I know), two of the three kids had fall break, so Kate decided to brave the 9 hour drive and spend an entire week with us. Oh My Goodness am I glad she did! The kids are all so close in age that we have ssssooooo much fun with them. Of course, the picture taking was limited because, really, who has a hand free when you are chasing 6 kids under the age of 5 around STL???

And while we missed daddy while he was on a business trip, it was kinda nice to know there was no schedule to keep. No dinners to think about. It was mom and dad, me and my sis, and all those little cuties. Our week included park playing, Magic House, Under the Sea lunches, Zoo, Faust Park, the Carousel, the Butterfly House, etc, etc. And it was super special because their visit just happened to overlap J's VIP night at school (guess who she took) and Ansley got to go to dance class with us. My least favorite part of the trip....saying good bye on Friday night. We know they've made their home down South and they love it there, but after a week of having them close...well, it just reminds me how much I love my sister and her beautiful family.

On a completely different note, this week I got to say "see ya later" to my gallbladder. Pretty routine surgery on Thursday but just to spice it up a bit Russ left Wednesday for a conference that lasted through Friday. All went well and we called in the troops to help out. Grandma L took care of the girls all Friday while Grandpa L hung out with me at the hospital. Grandma S and Poppy came in late Thursday night to stay with us on Friday until Russ got home. All in all I would say recovery has been pretty good. The hardest is my little peanut who just does not understand why her mama isn't snuggling her like usual. Hopefully I will be back to normal in the next day or two.

One last parting note...ever wonder why SAHM's itch for the day when they can stay in bed all day and let someone else take care of the kids and then when it is imposed on them and you truly just need to rest there are a MILLION things you would rather be doing???? Pumpkin patch, birthday parties, running errands, cleaning windows, anything except lay around!!!

Campfire and Smores...

2010-09-24T22:36:00.000-05:00

Russ and I have been talking all summer long about how fun it would be to "camp out" in the backyard one night with the girls. We decided to give it a go this weekend and I have to say it was a pretty fun night. We set the tent up, ate hot dogs outside, sat out by the campfire, roasted marshmallows and gobbled up s'mores. The girls had so much fun!!

And the best part??? At 9:30 when the thunder and lightning rolled in we moved sleeping bags to the basement and the girls and Russ had a fun camp out in the comfy, dry house. Life was good. Nobody woke up until 9:00 the next morning. Yippee!!!!!!

Welcome to the World of Soccer...

2010-09-21T22:42:00.001-05:00

The girls school district offered a new 4-5 year old soccer program for the first time and we decided it was a great way to introduce J to the sport. 6 weeks. 30 minutes of practice and a 30 minute game. Perfect.

The first practice/game was Saturday and it was great! Russ is "Coach" and I think he had as much fun as the kids.

Things Don't Always Go As Planned...

2010-09-21T22:20:00.000-05:00

I ran and I ran and I ran. And then I was ready. Packed. Girls ready for mom and dad to go out of town for the weekend.

Russ and I were heading up to Chicago for the weekend and for the first time EVER I was actually running the half marathon instead of spectating (is that a word??) And then.....1:30 am and I woke up with the most excruciating pain I have ever felt (and yes, I know what pain feels like - I was dilated to 9 cm with Jane before an epidural). Finally 911 was called, went to the ER and guess what....gallbladder. No running for me. No trip to Chicago. No fun food or drinks.

What's a girl to do? Amen my parents were able to make it to the house before I left for the hospital. Amen my children slept through the ENTIRE ORDEAL. Amen that, while I have been uncomfortable, I have not had another attack like that friday night. Amen that surgery is scheduled for next week.

So....we decided to make the best of it. E woke up at 5:30 in the morning complaining of an earache. 5 hours later we had antibiotic for her first ear infection in 10 months and she was all better. J woke up disappointed that Grandma and Grandpa weren't there and so Russ dropped her off on the way to the doctor and she got to spend the day (and night) with them. C got to have a day playing at home without any errands, school drop-offs, etc. Everyone was good. We all got GREAT sleep that night and were ready to go on Sunday.

We decided we might as well have a "different" kind of fun and spent Sunday afternoon at the church Ice Cream Social. We brought Mickey with us so Grandma and Poppy could take the big boys to the Rams game.

First Time Ever On Horses!!!! E wasn't so sure but she was the first one to ride (She's tells us she's "very brave" J hopped on like it was no big deal :)

Relay Races!!

Ice Cream!!

Pig Races!!

And Finally....WHEN IS IT MY TURN?!?!?!?!

Out with a Bang!

2010-09-07T16:45:00.001-05:00

Well...I guess it's official. Summer is over. We enjoyed our Labor Day weekend so much. Uncle Johnny came in from Washington DC - it's the first time he has met C and almost a year and a half since he has seen J and E so it was great to catch up. We spent Saturday with the zoo with some friends from Ohio. It was absolutely GORGEOUS (unfortunately, the rest of STL thought it was a great day for the zoo also!!)

Sunday we headed down to Grandma and Poppy's and spent the day with the whole Cottle clan. It was great to spend time with the whole family and I know Russ' parents were really enjoying having everyone together. We brought Cobb with us and he was, as usual, in heaven. We didn't head down to the lake right away and he was as patient as he could be, but when he saw Jimmy head that direction on his bike....well, he was gone! We found him splashing around having the time of his life :) The girls got one last lake swim in this year. I'm sure next year C will be joining in on the fun.

Monday we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa's for some more BBQ fun. It was another gorgeous day and we spent as much time outside as possible. We brought Great Grandpa with us and it was great for him to be able to enjoy everyone's company, the outdoors and the kids playing.

Everyone has slept VERY WELL this weekend. I don't blame them...we have worn everyone (including ourselves) out!!!

Three...

2010-08-24T16:35:00.001-05:00

My 2nd baby girl turned 3 last week. It is so hard for me to imagine her becoming more of a "kid" than a "toddler"...but she's running towards that direction so I best hurry and keep up with her :)

My Elle Belle was born August 19th, two days after her due date, in which I basically forced this baby to be born. On a Sunday morning I decided she was cooked and we were going to meet this little peanut. We went to the hospital where my L&D nurse took one look at me and said, "wow!! you're huge!" I am not kidding. Is that what any 9-month pregnant woman wants to hear??? My E was born 8 hours later weighing in at a whopping 10 lbs. even. A healthy little girl :)

We brought this baby girl home and we had a one and a half year old and a newborn baby and I didn't know how I was going to do it...what I found out was that God blessed us with one of the easiest newborns I've known. I kid you not when I say this sweet baby slept the first 4 months of her life. And when she wasn't sleeping she was happy! She was a good sleeper, good eater, she was my prayers answered. We cruised through the next year as the girls grew and flourished...and then my sweet E developed her very own personality :)

Today there are parts of this little girl that completely surprise me and there are parts of her that are me reincarnated. She has the sweetest, most pure voice and is quite the talker. She is truly easy to please. She is so grateful for the smallest prize, treat, kiss, you name it. For her birthday she wanted a cookie cake with pink and sprinkles. So I ordered a cookie cake with pink and sprinkles. We go to pick it up and the baker opens the box to show her. E sees her cookie cake with pink and sprinkles, looks up at the baker and with all sincerity says, "Oh Thank You...It's just perfect"...and my heart melts. She asks if someday she can ride a horse and I say, "We can do that someday" and she says "Oh Thank you Mommy, Thank you!!" Not when, how, why not now...just thank you.

And then there's the little bit of stinker in her that makes her E. Getting in trouble doesn't bother her. Her older sister gets in trouble and immediately starts crying and the 'I'm sorries"...little E gets in trouble and looks at you like "bring it...what's the worst you can do"...she plays independently for hours and hours and can get caught up in her pretend world. There are days when I'm not allowed to call her by her name because she is "MOM" She is STUBBORN. She is determined to be one of the big kids. I like to think that as she grows up she will be immune to peer pressure and will think for herself. She will want something and nothing will be able to stop her. She will be a go-getter :)

And just to remember that she's 3....she's scared of bugs in the car and will cover her eyes and scream until you stop the car and get rid of it - doesn't matter if it's on the inside or outside of the car....she's scared of car washes...she's past being scared of big dogs but little dogs, well, don't even think about it...one of her favorite sayings "good save mom, good save"....she is my early riser and will stand next to the bed staring until you can feel someone watching you (it's her)....she is fantastic at driving a Power Wheels car - turning, reversing, 3-point turns, you name it....she will never forget the time I fell in a pothole while holding her - I swear this little girl watches where I step better than I do...she loves her sisters and so far enjoys being stuck in the middle :)

She is my Elle Belle.

I love you sweet girl and can not wait to see how you grow this coming year!!! (P.S. I am hoping you grow out of your fear of bugs and car washes :)) XOXOXO

Happy Birthday Elle Belle

2010-08-19T22:51:00.000-05:00

More to write later, but today is my E's birthday...my sweet Elle Belle turned 3 today and I don't have one picture to capture the day. Full of Krispy Kreme, the park, the carousel, swimming, McDonald's, and a dollhouse she absolutely fell in love with...the camera battery is completely dead and guess who can't find the charger?!?! I love you sweetheart and this is in no way a result of you being the middle child!!!!!!!

Second Year of Preschool

2010-08-19T22:47:00.000-05:00

J started her second year of preschool this week. WOW. What a difference from last year. There's still a little hesitation over meeting new kids and being in unfamiliar situations, but she is a year older and a year wiser :)....J bopped on into class this year and seemed to have a great day. I am hoping for a fantastic year!!! We are going 3 days a week and I can already tell a routine is going to take a little getting used to....

Yes...someday my children will ask me WHY did you post these pictures...and I will answer honestly..."because you did not cooperate and let me take the picture I wanted"...I have determined it is be impossible to get a decent picture of a 4, 3 and almost 1 year old for quite a while. Bear with me.

Here's a peek into our every day

2010-08-19T22:38:00.001-05:00

And Yes!!!! these were all pics taken in the last month (that would be August)...can you tell we don't dress for the weather :)

Chi-Town...Woo Hoo

2010-08-19T22:25:00.000-05:00

Russ and I took the girls to Chicago for the weekend a couple of weeks ago and had an incredible time. Friends of ours have the most amazing condo in Chicago and we were able to stay there for the weekend and take full advantage of the city. All I can say is WOW....lakefront view, 34th floor overlooking Navy Pier...I repeat WOW. The girls were loving living the high life :) On a personal note, a condo is such the way to go with three small children - 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, complete kitchen where we ate breakfast and had pizza delivered one night, a place for Russ and I to hang out after the kids fell asleep...I mean I could go on and on and on....

Get ready for a montage of pictures to recap the weekend... Shedd Aquarium, Navy Pier, Millenium Park, Rainforest Cafe, Grant Park, Pizza with friends, a boat ride (in the rain), fireworks, checked out the filming of Transformers, Rick Shaw ride (Russ and J), taxi cab rides, lunch at The Greens at Grant Park (while listening to Lollapalooza)...the list goes on and on!!!

Happy Birthday Joey B

2010-08-19T21:41:00.000-05:00

The end of July was Joey's birthday and he had an awesome party at the Gateway Grizzlies. Such a family friendly place the girls, Russ and I had a super night. Joey got to throw out the first ball, the girls had their face (arm) painted, hot dogs, cupcakes, playground, and oh yeah...a baseball game :)

Check out that form!!!

C hanging out with the "big kids"

E loved her "kitty cat" (and I loved that she chose to have it painted on her arm instead of her cheek!!)

Cupcakes aren't messy...nope, not at all...

Just about the perfect spot for little girls to watch baseball. They actually found it interesting at times!

The girls love playing with their Joey

5, 6, 7, 8....

2010-08-19T21:21:00.000-05:00

So dance class didn't go over so well last year. I'm chalking it up to J's first year of school, a baby sister entering the family, yadda yadda...We lasted through September and October and then decided to wait another year before trying again. This summer both the big girls were able to take a week dance camp at the studio where they will start fall classes. It was kind of a "trial run" to see if they were ready to boogie :)

E on "Olivia" day...she loved her Red Bow!

The girls got to be partners for the day...too much fun together

J next to a little friend with matching leotards

E showing off the "Yellow Brick Road"

I think they had fun!!!!

Another First to Remember...

2010-07-23T15:53:00.000-05:00

So...I was going through paperwork from Preschool last year and came across something J brought home sometime during her last week there...her first little "note". Honestly, so cute but not sure I am ready for this to come!!!

Fun at the Botanical Gardens

2010-07-23T15:37:00.000-05:00

Grandma and I took the girls to the Botanical Gardens for a day of fun....they have an awesome Children's Garden and all 3 of my girls had a great time!

They have an awesome splash pad that E and C enjoyed playing on...J had skinned her knee a couple of days before and was just sure the water was going to sting....not so sure about that one :)

(What can I say...didn't plan on her getting wet but couldn't resist the happy squeals!!)

Happy 4th of July!!

2010-07-14T16:05:00.000-05:00

Thought I would mention our 4th in a pretty condensed version...fireworks at Delmar Gardens, a BBQ at Grandma and Grandpa's (including homemade ice cream the girls, Russ and and Grandpa worked their tooshies off for), some more fireworks, you get the picture.

Snug as a Bug

2010-07-14T15:47:00.000-05:00

Every morning for the past year we have woken in the morning with a certain 2 year old screaming at the top of her lungs in a VERY demanding tone "Mommy come and get me!!!" Not my favorite way to wake up. So...I thought I had the answer and we took the side off of her crib with the thought that each morning she could wake up, get out of bed and come and get someone without shaking the rafters. Good idea, right??? Yes, except for one thing. The kid falls out of bed every single night. Bless her little heart, doesn't even wake up - you just hear this big THUNK, go in, pick her up and lay her back down.

Think she need a big girl bed???? So I am happy to report that 1) we now have two big girls sleeping each night in their own beds and 2) E gets a good night sleep each night :)

VBS

2010-07-12T22:22:00.000-05:00

My big girls did VBS this year and they both loved every moment of it! I volunteered in the Craft area and, while it was crazy busy at times, have to say I think I enjoyed it every bit as much as the girls. It was extra special because my mom was able to help on most days also so we got to spend lots of time together (especially since she was my super helper while I was hobbling around on a hurt foot while Russ was MIA). I don't have any pics of actual VBS. Quite honestly, it was enough to arrive dressed and hair brushed most days but this is how we spent our afternoons at home...you can tell the week was a big hit with J :)

Sunday morning all the VBS kids sang songs and of course my children looked like deer in headlights, but I guess that time will come :)

Father's Day!!!

2010-07-12T22:01:00.001-05:00

Well...what an interesting day this Father's Day turned out to be....

The girls and I had planned for weeks a day of fun for daddy (or at least what they consider a day of fun to be :)). Church, Grant's Farm, eating outside, playing in the slip n slide...you get the picture. We started off the morning doing well, until we were leaving church. As we were walking in the parking lot, I was carrying E and was actually mid-conversation about how she was too big to be carried around for no reason and that when we got to Grant's Farm she was going to WALK so that she could enjoy seeing all the animals and that C was going to be in the stroller and that we were going to have FUN doing it, when I stepped into a pothole and wiped out. I mean pants ripping, ligament tearing fall on hands and knees...wait, strike that, forearm falling because I kept my peanut safe and took myself out in the process. Ignoring the pain and trying to utilize all my mommy toughness, we continued on to Grant's Farm but realized halfway through it wasn't such a great idea....hopped my way through the park unable to put any weight on my right foot/ankle and headed for Urgent Care. Turns out there was no break but a pretty severe sprain to the foot/ankle. Good Times.

Even better that Russ was leaving for a week in California and I was supposed to be on my own with 3 little girls for a week of VBS. I just have two words..."Thanks Grandma!!"

Notice the leg already propped up on the tram???

The Girls can't wait to feed the goats until it's time to actually feed the goats...Dad does a great job

There's still a smile on his face, even though he is working awfully hard on Father's Day :)

Cute little babies make everything worth it...

At least the toes look good....

Well, it was definitely one to remember...here's to the best daddy ever!!! I love you!!!!

PJ night at The Magic House

2010-07-05T11:31:00.001-05:00

Grandma and Grandpa got the girls a membership at The Magic House for Christmas this year - it has been fantastic! We are a little young to have free reign at the House, and most days it's so busy it almost more work than it's worth for me to track all three girls as they run crazy. However, there are all sorts of "member only" events that we have been able to enjoy! I have to admit that now we've been a bit spoiled and can't imagine going to the House on a jam-packed day without doughnuts or cookies to snack on :)

Our latest outing involved PJ night at the House...complete with story time and milk and cookies. It was way fun and extra special because Russ was able to join us after work for a little play time...

Driving a Smart Car...

Can we take these home..they are SO Pretty!

Climbing through tunnels...great way to hide from mom and dad!

Another ride down the spiral slide...

Ignore the mommy...don't I look cute in my jammies :)

Let's Go Cardinals!!

2010-07-03T10:58:00.000-05:00

We were able to go see a baseball game this year on "Affton Night" - which meant J got to walk the field before the game. E and I tagged along for the experience and it was tons of fun! It was a 6:15 game and Russ had a late meeting so he made it in time for the game but missed getting to walk the field. It was too bad he missed out, especially since our little E wiped out on the ramps just before entering the field and decided walking was a bad idea :)

The girls love their Uncle Jim!!

E is just not so sure about this whole thing...

Daddy has arrived! (Notice the seats - could we have been any higher???)

Nothing like some nachos - aka cheese chips - to put a smile on E's face

Baby C stayed home with a babysitter. Our only child to be left alone with a sitter before she turned one..but well, she had more fun with Katie than she would have at the stadiumfor 6 hours in the blazing heat!

Fun in the Sun and 'Baby Girl'

2010-07-01T22:13:00.004-05:00

My big girls have turned in to little fishies this spring/summer. Here we are enjoying the water before the pool opened this summer.

And just in case you start to wonder if something happened to baby C...she's doing great. Usually in my arms as I also try and snap pictures. Here's proof that the happy little girl really exists :)

This happens within 2 minutes of rolling on to her belly...EVERY SINGLE TIME!! She is not a tummy time girl in the least. I'm going to venture that she doesn't spend much time crawling. Standing is her position of choice these days. I'll have to work on getting a picture of that in the next couple of days. With my luck I should have posted to the blog around Christmas time :)

Memorial Day 2010

2010-07-01T21:58:00.001-05:00

So again, don't have many pictures of Memorial Day. We had a great weekend of swimming, etc and headed down to Grandma and Poppy's with the Barretts on Monday. We were able to swim in the lake, go on a boat ride (minus Russ and Cobb - long story), eat great bbq...basically everything you expect Memorial Day to be. Here are my favorite pics of the day (also happen to be the only two of the day but I captured the priceless moment :)). To preface the pics, let's just say that J loves Cobb. E, well she likes him..from a distance. He has grown on her over the past 2 years and 10 months but she would be okay if we were an animal free household. Here is her face for the entire hour drive toTDL...yes, it is hard to see but let's just say POUTY!!!

Why?? You guessed it. Because our sweet dog rode down with us. E was super excited for Cobb to come until she realized that meant he was in the car with her!! That is J holding her hand. When J finally asked if she could let go because her hand was hurting E took up the chant "WHY IS NO ONE HOLDING MY HAND?!?!?" for the rest of the trip home. Honestly, she is too much sometimes. The poor dog didn't even go near her (he was blocked by swim bags, coolers, you name it).

Doesn't he look like trouble?!?!

May 2010

2010-07-01T21:47:00.001-05:00

So I feel like every post starts with an apology over my absence from updating our family activities...I guess I am coming to terms with the fact that I will always be playing catch up. That's just the way it goes :) So, without further ado, we have been a busy family the past couple of months. Here are some pics from the month of May - Mother's Day Tea Party at J's school, End of Year Bash, along with J's last day of school.

End of Year Bash - Russ was traveling so thank you Grandma for keeping C for me. My hands were full with hula hooping, jump housing, face painting, hot dog eating....you get the picture!!!

And the very last day of school. Good luck to our friends moving on to kindergarten and looking forward to seeing our friends in Mrs. Maikranz class next year!!! We can't wait!!

Hi...My name is Chubby Wubby

2010-04-29T14:43:00.000-05:00

6-month checkup went great! C weighed in at an impressive 19 lbs. 3.5 oz (92 percentile) and 27 inches (86 percentile). Her cousin Emmy just had her 9-month checkup and charted at the 10th percentile for her weight...combine the two little girls and we've 100% of baby weight :)

E came with us and painted her nails while the pediatrician checked the baby out. I'm just sure the doctor was super impressed I'm letting my kids walk around with nail polish. Oh well, you do what you have to do to keep some smiles around.

On a side note, day 4 of potty training and we've yet to have a successful 'pee pee' in the potty. Good times...

Sitting Pretty

2010-04-28T22:00:00.001-05:00

Oh My Goodness...my baby is 6 months old and sitting pretty :) She has her checkup in the morning and I'm looking forward to seeing how big she is getting.

Could she be any cuter?!? Goodness, I love this baby girl!!!

Happy Birthday to You...and You...and You

2010-04-28T21:48:00.001-05:00

It was a busy weekend a couple of weekends ago in which the girls and I got to celebrate three birthdays in 24 hours...guess it's just a preview of the future...

Kennedy's 4th birthday - complete with Snow White and Sponge Bob. J loved her princess look-a-like, but Sponge Bob was enough to end the party for E. Have to admit he looked a little freaky :)

Later that afternoon we got to celebrate our Chickie's 3rd birthday. Oh my goodness was E a happy little girl to spend time with all her JoAnn buddies - especially her Chickie :)

Chickie and Elle Belle

On Sunday we celebrated Jimmy's 10th birthday. Can't believe that kid has entered double digits :) We don't have any pictures of the party but here's a pic of him and his mommy for posterity's sake.

A little Easter prep...

2010-04-04T22:43:00.000-05:00

A little hunt...some easter eggs...good times.

Easter bunny...not so much. At least not in the eyes of our little E :)

We love ourselves some "saucer" time...

2010-04-04T22:16:00.000-05:00

A little random but she's so cute I can't help myself....C loves being in a excer-saucer and bouncer. Guess it makes her feel like a "big girl"

Batter Up!!!

2010-04-04T22:01:00.000-05:00

We are a baseball family this year! J decided she wanted to play t-ball with cousin Mickey this Spring so Russ signed her up for mini-rookie t-ball. She is super excited for the season to start and had her first practice Thursday. She had an absolute blast in her classic J form - dressed in all pink including pink helment, pink glove (which also lights up - woo wee), and pink bat. An absolute riot. On top of it, she had great form and decided the best way to get on base was sliding. She walked off the field after practice covered in a film of dust. Russ had a great time helping the kids and the girls and I had fun watching :)

Slow Down...You're only 5 months old!!!

2010-03-25T22:24:00.000-05:00

In a matter of 24 hours my baby has rolled over on her own and I felt her first tooth....It's there people, she's growing up and I can't do anything to stop it. She is such a sweet baby and I admit there is a part of me that doesn't want her to grow up. She is (probably) my last baby and there's just a little part of me that is so sad that she is hitting these milestones so quickly. Don't get me wrong - I celebrated, full of love and pride, clapping hands and showing her sisters. And then I got tears in my eyes. There are so many things that I am thankful for - three healthy girls, sisters that love each other so much, my ability to be home with these girls and to experience all of her "firsts"...the list goes on and on. I guess my next investment should be three bricks - one for each girl when I've decided they're "big enough"!!!!

Spring Break 2010

2010-03-25T22:08:00.000-05:00

Last week was Spring Break for the girls and so I decided it was a great opportunity to get down to Atlanta and visit the cousins. The kids are all so close in age I knew they would have great fun!! Russ and my dad stayed in STL to work so Grandma and I drove down with the girls - stayed a couple of days - and drove back. All in all it was a wonderful experience. I couldn't have asked the girls to be any better on the way down, everyone stayed happy and healthy during our whole stay, and the drive back - well we could have ended an hour earlier but not too bad :)

Our first morning in Atlanta!

Emmy loved her cousin - kept giving her hugs and more hugs :)

Everyone going for a ride

Ansley had a quick auto repair to perform

The girls had quiet time watching Barbie and the Three Musketeers...Bennett watched too but stayed by Grandma :)

Our second day in ATL enjoyed some park time after breakfast at Chick Fil A

Grandma brought everything for an Easter Egg Hunt

Bennett loved his chocolate

The girls play dress up - J was the photographer

C tried to keep up... :)

Is it a preschool??? Nope...just the cousins on a walk

Emmy saying good bye to her buddy

The Three Musketeers - "One for all and all for one!!!"

Just a little side note - Bennett was such a trooper. The only boy in the house, he played great with the girls until he had enough and then he just went to play by himself. What a great little guy. Someday he will make a fantastic boyfriend/husband!!!!

Too Busy for Pics...

2010-03-09T22:01:00.000-06:00

Why were we too busy for pictures??? Because if was absolutely BEAUTIFUL weather this entire weekend!! As quoted by stltoday.com, "For persistent cold, this winter has been one for the record books. Friday marked the 94th straight day that temperatures did not climb higher than 55 degrees here." Say what??? This winter has been brutally cold. Not huge amounts of snow, but constant, bone-chilling cold. This weekend, Mother Nature gave us a beautiful present and presented us with 60-70 degree weather...aawwww, the beauty. We couldn't get the girls inside and it was great.

We spent almost the entire day Saturday at the zoo with good friends of ours. I am somewhat positive C was confused by this thing we kept calling "the sun" shining on us. She has not seen much of it in the 4 months of her life :) Grandma and Grandpa came for dinner and barbecued. Completely rejuvenating...

We spent Sunday morning in a block of ice (otherwise known as the Chesterfield Ice Rink) to watch Jimmy play in the state championship game for hockey. They played a great game but came away with 2nd place. Once we got out of the cold, we spent the rest of the day taking walks, playing garden, etc.

It's gone back to cooler weather and some rain but I will take it versus the gross cold we have lived with for months on end.

Our Chunky Monkey

2010-03-06T23:34:00.000-06:00

I'm determined to get pics of C in all her chubby glory, but until then I am going to leave the rolls to your imagination. She had her 4 month checkup a couple of weeks ago and weighed in at a whopping 17 lbs. 1 oz. In the past, we have waited until both the big girls were 6 months before starting them on any type of cereal but new studies have come out and I guess the good news is there's no "wrong way" of doing it. She's had cereal just a couple of times and, while she's eaten it, is not too sure what's happening. Gives a little shiver when she gets a big bite :)

She has been a great baby - so easy going and is almost guaranteed to giggle when you blow raspberries on her belly.

Here are just a couple of sweet pics to enjoy this beautiful baby.

Look at those big, beautiful eyes

Baby C is Baptized

2010-03-06T23:19:00.000-06:00

Four years ago, Grandma Sandy knit a beautiful baptism gown for little Miss J who fit into it perfectly on the day she and Mickey were baptized. Two years ago, I squeezed E's chubby body into that same gown and we celebrated her baptism. Last Sunday, we were blessed with a beautiful day in which we celebrated C's baptism and the fact that she still fit that gown :)

The Church service and baptism was wonderful - we had all the Barrett boys in attendance and between the six kids involved - everyone handled the service great! Once the sermon started I had to take C out, but everyone else was on their best behavior. We would love to get a video of the service - when it was time to go up to the alter for the baptism J realized she was on stage and had a captive audience. She struck a couple of fancy poses and once Pastor Carl congratulated us and little C she let out a great big squeal in celebration. Really too cute :)

After Church we had everyone back to the house for brunch and enjoyed a really nice day. We count our blessings that both Great Grandparents, all the Grandparents and the Barrett's were able to be part of the day. Grandma L gave C an embroidered handkerchief that was her namesake's. It was so special to me now and I know that someday will be very special to our Clara Lillian.

(Doesn't that look like an unruly group of cousins?!?!)

E has a big couple of days...

2010-03-06T22:44:00.000-06:00

My 2 year old has offically hit a milestone - she's 2 1/2 years old!!! A lot of "first" things have happened over the past couple of weeks.

What made her the happiest? Her first day of school!!! E has been dying to go to school since J started. She goes once a week for just 2 hours but she thinks it's totally cool....She has absolutely loved it and has been going for the past two weeks - no tears, loves her teacher and classmates. Russ and I were talking about how different she has been from J. When it comes time for C to start school she will just ask me to drop her off in the parking lot :)

On the other hand, she was not so fond of her first haircut. Once again, totally different from J who totally dug her getting her hair cut the first time - having adult attention focused on her, getting to watch a movie, sit in a fun "car chair"...E, well, not so much. I finally talked her into sitting on my lap. She did it - no tears, but no fun either...we finally got a smile out of her when it was all over.

J took the pic for us - our budding photographer. C slept through the whole ordeal. Sweet baby.

Valentine's Day 2010

2010-03-06T22:23:00.000-06:00

We have discovered that Valentine's Day is a GREAT holiday for the girls. There is no Santa to spook E, no Bunny that J is "allergic" to, you get the picture. The first two weeks of February were great fun for all of us! It started with a great day at the Magic House for members only. Yes, Clifford the Big Red Dog made an appearance but we did our best to focus on the other aspects of the day :)

We also got to have a great "party" at Grandma's with Miss Susie and Natalie. I don't have any pics (I'm hoping some day Miss Susie will send me some) but it was great fun having breakfast for lunch and making Valentine's for all our friends. We had heart waffles, fruit kabobs, and heart donuts! J made special Valentine's for Caitlyn, Megan and Anna (which she and daddy personally delivered) and E made a special Valentine for daddy.

Finally, we had a great day on V-day itself. The girls loved their fingerpaints (and I love Color Wonder products) and then we got to have a super fun birthday party for Kole at Bounce U. You gotta love the bouncies :)

Summer in the Winter

2010-03-06T21:51:00.001-06:00

I can officially say my girls are finished with Winter. J had a rough time coming to the realization that long sleeves and something on her legs were necessary when it's 20 degrees outside. So we've compromised all winter long but now we are sick and tired of this season.

So....the other day we decided to pretend it was summertime! We grabbed our swimsuits and went swimming in the tub - the girls loved it and thought it was a riot that no wash and rinse was necessary. Swimming was followed by a "picnic" lunch and watching The Little Mermaid...good times for all.

Even Baby C decided to play along, BTW - is this the first pic posted of C awake??? Doesn't she have beautiful eyes?!?!

The Myers Come for a Visit

2010-03-06T21:39:00.000-06:00

This winter we were lucky enough to have the Myers come visit on a spur of the moment trip to STL. It was a great time and we are so thankful that good friends were able to spend some good quality time together.

Friday night was full of pizza and baths, Saturday was spent at the Magic House and Sunday was basically a quick breakfast and sad farewell. All the girls got along really well and E is still talking about her buddy Catherine and the good time they had playing house together.

One of my personal highlights of the weekend - Saturday night, after a 2 hour dinner at Dooley's, the kids are downstairs playing and E decides to get sick all over the basement floor. Absolutely lovely. Got her all cleaned up and she was never sick again, but I am SURE it was enough to make the Myers think about packing their bags and hitting the road :)

Snow Days

2010-02-21T22:23:00.000-06:00

It seems as though STL has been covered in snow for the past 2 months...I mean no massive amounts of snow, but just enough to see all white when you go outside. At first it was tons of fun for J and E. Our first big snow of the year, we called across the street and Katie took J sledding since we couldn't take C out in the frigid temps. The second big snow happened on the weekend (hallelujah) and Russ took the girls - and half the neighborhood - sledding all over.

Our last big snow, we made snowmen in the kitchen.

I guess you can say we are ready for Spring....bring it!!

A Quick Look at the Birthday

2010-02-21T22:13:00.000-06:00

So this birthday 3 days after Christmas is not the best timing ever. This year we decided to have a small family party with just a few family friends at the house. Well, turns out the stomach flu was going around STL around Christmas so it really turned into a family party with the Remmings joining in on the fun. She had a great time but I can tell she is ready for a birthday party with school friends next year. She will be 5 so I think it will be a good year to have a fun birthday bash.

On her actual birthday, Russ took off work and Grandma came over to watch the Little's so we could take J to her first movie in the movie theater. It was a great hit and she loved Princess and the Frog. E - well, not so thrilled to be left behind. After the movie, we came back home and got all the girls to go to Red Robin's for dinner. This seems to be the place for birthdays (at least according to J). She had a great time and got a special sundae and birthday song. She loved having the attention while her mom still got splotchy at everyone staring :)

That kid has got some CRAZY hair!!!!!

Happy Birthday Big Girl

2010-02-21T22:04:00.000-06:00

At the end of December, my big girl turned 4...I can hardly believe how time has flown. Not only is she a whopping 4 years old, she has two little sisters. I know we expect so much out of her as "the oldest" but I am so proud of her in so many ways. She has welcomed each sister in this family with pure joy and excitement. I am sure she does not ever remember life before E and soon will harly remember a time when it was just the four of us...J is such a sweet, bubbly little thing who, even though she would live in a world of pretend if possible, stops whatever she is doing to grab a pacifier for C or help E open a yogurt. She is my helper 100 times a day and I hope she knows how very much I appreciate every act of kindness

She has fallen in love with school and we can see that little mind of hers making all sorts of connections every minute of every day. She loves doing "experiments" and measuring and writing and reading. The Pretend area in school is a commercial bakery these days (had a field trip to the Schnucks bakery and all) and the other day when I picked her up she was covered in flour from head to toe. They had been making wedding cakes and she had to make them super quick for all her customers. She was so unsure at the beginning of the year and it just squeezed my heart a little to see her blossoming at school.

She had her 4 year old check up this week (yes, I am about 2 months behind on these things but it still got done) and she is a peanut at 33 lbs and 39 inches. It seems so big and so small at the same time. She has a ways to go before a booster seat can even be considered (something we are really interested in these days) but the good news is she put 4 lbs on this past year. I told her I she won't have to go to kindergarten in a 5 point harness. I figure that is good enough for now :)

J, E and I have had this recurring argument lately - seems we all want to marry daddy! J has decided the following should occur:

Grandpa walks J down the aisle, she gets to marry Daddy
Daddy walks E down the aisle, she gets to marry Grandpa
Daddy walks me down the aisle, I get to marry Poppy

Let's see what she thinks in another 20 years :)

Merry Christmas!!

2010-02-15T22:45:00.000-06:00

This was our second year in which we spent Christmas Eve with the Lowry's and Christmas Morning with the Cottle's. And each year J has LOVED it, and E has been sick. Last year with an ear infection which kept her up most the night and this year with the stomach flu that kept her pretty lethargic for most the holiday. I am hoping and praying that everyone will be healthy for Christmas 2010, especially my little E who will be old enough to really, really love the holiday. I am also hoping to wake up in our own beds next year...we'll see :)

This was our gingerbread house for the year - a total and complete disaster. J still had a ton of fun decorating and tasting (okay more tasting than decorating but it was still fun :))

Christmas eve with Grandma, Grandpa and Great Grandpa. For as girlie as J and E are, they have LOVED that train table!!

First thing in the morning - E was not ready to participate in a pic

J's handprint she made at school for mom and dad. She was so excited it was the first thing she wanted to do. I admit it squeezed my heart a little to know she was more excited to give than to receive!!! (I was also really impressed that she was able to keep the secret for so long - it sat under the tree for over a week and she didn't tell a single person!)

This is how E spent most of the day...poor baby

Great Nana holding C...