Carson's 4th birthday

Carson didn't really want any pain inflicted on him for his birthday (although a few people have told me that he's told them he gets to get his ears pierced when he's 5...uh...no!) Actually he didn't really want much except a chocolate cake with chocolate icing and sprinkles and Car movie on top....ask and ye shall receive!

Because we moved to an area where the kids can ride their bikes lots (we have a great driveway for it and great neighbors with kids their ages), we decided that they no longer could share the 1 bike they had been sharing, so Car got a Spiderman bike for his birthday. He loves it and rides it just about every day!!

A cute picture of Matt and Carson "fixing" the bike. They were adjusting the seat for monkey boy's legs :-)

Delaney's 5th birthday

Delaney has asked to get her ears pierced for a few months now and because she was persistent and we could tell she really did want it done, we decided to let her do it on her birthday. I took her to the mall (after calling and having a nice chat with the girl working at the piercing place as to whether or not she could really handle my emotional daughter and get the second ear pierced following the melt down I knew would occur...not joking about the call!!) Well, wasn't I shocked when this is all that happened....this is the look following both ears being pierced in a matter of maybe 5 seconds...the girl was amazing! Delaney looked uncomfortable, but didn't shed a single tear...WOW!!!
However, this is the look when Jenny's hair got stuck in the earring later that night!!! Priceless!!!!

Delaney really took time to read her cards this year...thought all of you who sent her cards would like to see her actually appreciating them :-)

We're havin' a party...

Okay, we already had the party, a few of them actually! We caved and had the family party at my parent's house b/c I just couldn't imagine having everyone at my house 8 days after we'd started moving in (and only 2 days after we'd actually finished moving out of the old house).....thanks mom and dad ~ don't we look well rested and happy, not stressed out or crazy at all!


This year's party had a Wizard of Oz theme because both kids are obsessed with all things Oz!! We have read the book, been to the play, and watched the movie half a dozen times. They love to act it out using costumes and props...it's fun! Here is cousin Seth getting some time in the Lion costume the day of the party!!
Prior to the party we asked our family to consider contributing to our Disney trip so that we could make that happen this fall as the kids REALLY want to go. Since we were moving in between their birthdays, a bunch of extra toys to find places for was not tops on my list and the kids don't really need more toys (I know, they are kids, they can never have too many toys!!!). At the end of the party we shared the big news with them that they had been given enough money to be able to go to Disney World in September...this was the look when they finally "got" what we'd said....I can't wait for the looks when we finally make it there. So, now the waiting begins....

The good, the bad, and the.....

part of the house I want you to see. I love the character (otherwise read as "oddities") of this house. Some people would NOT put up with it, but I'm kind of fond of most of it. As we were going through the buying process and looking at houses that are not typical for a couple our age to look at, someone wise said to me, "just wait until people find out you use water from a well, your waste is buried somewhere in your backyard and you don't have walk in closets!!" I, however, managed to steer clear of that whole list, but have since come up with my own list of "things people just wouldn't believe."

1. I have to walk down 12 steps to get to my washer and dryer which means I carry it down there and then back up...usually 3 loads in a day....I view it as a workout, not an inconvenience!!

2. I have water that magically appears in a corner of that basement everytime it rains...it's not much, but it's there and it makes it smell musty even with a dehumidifier running 24 hours a day.

3. I'm pretty sure my furnace is older than I am (okay, that one makes me nervous b/c I see dollar signs everytime I look at it!!), but they just don't make things like they used to, so maybe it will outlast me :-)

But, check this out...

1. I have window boxes that (thanks to my mom's help) have gorgeous flowers in them.

2. I have a nice size yard with trees taller than my house, MUCH taller than my house!!!

3. When I describe my house to people coming over they can pick it out b/c it doesn't look exactly like the one next door (had that problem a lot in the old house!!!)

4. I have arched doorways and REAL wood trim!

There are definitely perks to my 79 year old house!!