James Slept Thru the NIGHT!!!!!!! WOO HOOO!!

I am doing the dance of JOY today! James slept thru the night!!!! SWEET!! I put him down at 830pm and he peeped a little bit at 230am so I popped up but didnt think he needed to eat...so I rewrapped him and popped his soother in....and I didnt hear from him again till 630am!! I couldnt believe it!! What a little sweetie! He has just been so good for us!! I dont know if he will continue this sleep thru the night trend!! But Ill enjoy the moment anyway!! Mike says...he is so good we should have another one!! LOL! I said...oh he is good and so darn sweet...but NO!! (Besides..there is no chance we would get two perfect babies in a row ;) and Im sure that everyone that helped us SOOOOOOOOOO much to get James here..will wholeheartedly agree...NO!!!)

The Jelly Bean Girls

The Jelly Bean Dancers!

The girls had the Humphrey's girls over for a playdate. They were busy in the basement working on a 'dance'. All of a sudden they came upstairs and I watched their production. They only would do it...if I promised to put them on the blog. LOL! It was so cute..they have a lot of fun entertaining themselves! They are so lucky to have such sweet girls to play with! Christy is getting her blog started (YAHOO!!)...but she needs some motivation...so click on her link and encourage her to blog!!! Hee Hee!!

James...enjoying the show...lol...no lack of entertainment around here.

Deep thoughts....

Ive been thinking all morning about actions. Weird..I know. But this morning I was driving the girls to school, and nearly got hit. The lady in front of me..decided at the last second that she needed to be in a turning lane...where 3 cars were waiting to turn. So she came to a complete stop in our lane wanting to get into the turn lane. I slammed on my brakes and then noticed a 4-runner behind me nearly miss me and swerve into the other lane. It was so close..and because we were going 60 he would have given us a good hit! Now the lady that made the decision to stop probably would not have been hit...but the 4-runner and I would have been a mess not to mention the other cars around us. The lady probably would have just kept on driving not knowing the mess she had left behind her. My heart was beating hard for nearly an hour..and I was so frustrated with her for making such a stupid decision. I have 4 kids in the car and they could have been seriously hurt because of her stupid decision. I have calmed down now...but have been thinking about how our actions affect others whether positively or negatively. So we need to be aware of the decisions we are making..and make sure we are affecting others postively and not making a mess behind us wherever we go. So those are my deep thoughts for today! Im so glad that 4-runner had quick reflexes and swerved out of the way..my day would have been very different had he plowed into us. I feel we were being watched over this morning and Im squeezing my kids extra tight tonight!

PS..I was googling for a picture of a Honda Odyssey that had been in an accident...and couldnt find any. That made me feel a little better knowing we were driving a safe vehicle...but I dont care to see all those air bags pop out...ever.

Meeting Great Grandma Smith!!

Grandma Smith is in town and we finally got to visit with her! It has been so long!! The girls were dying to see her...we are so lucky to have her in our lives. So Nonna and Claire brought her by for a visit! She looks so great!! She said James is her 75th great grandchild!! Can you even imagine what a family she has??? We are so excited to celebrate her 90th birthday next month and look forward to the celebration!!

I am so NOT Martha Stewart or Rachel Ray....

I caught a few minutes of Rachel Ray the other day..she had Trisha Yearwood on as a guest. They were making a german chocolate cake that Trisha always makes for Garth Brooks on his birthday! It looked sooooo good..and I love German Chocolate Cake...so I thought Id give it a go. Mike's parents were bringing over his Grandma to see the baby..so I thought..perfect....Ill make this cake. Well I found a few minutes in the afternoon and looked up the recipe... darn it...I was missing 1/2 of the ingredients and had no time to dash to the store. So I had to majorly cheat and use a german chocolate cake mix...but I thought ...I could make the icing. So I did..and then assembled. And this was the result...a lopsided disaster!!

Who's the cutest Teddy???????

Paige and I were having fun with James and his teddy's today..lol.

He did not look too impressed....

Fun Pictures...

Smiling!!

James has been smiling for about 2 weeks now...it is just hard to catch on camera!! We LOVE his smiles and he has even started laughing. He also tries to talk to us..with little coos and bubbles. Sometimes Ill set him down and peek at him and he will just be kicking and smiling away! He had his 2 month shots and is growing so fast!! He is tipping the scales at 12 lbs and is 23.5 inches. He is sleeping great at night with the normal night consisting of one feeding!! That just thrills me!! What a sweetie!

A Whole New House!!!

Well....here it is...the house looks TOTALLY different! Yesterday they finished two walls...side and back. Today was spent on the front. They have been working long long hours and will finish the last side tomorrow! So we will look forward to some exterior painters hopefully soon to finish the garages and front door detail and then we will look like the rest of the street!

OUT WITH THE GREY...IN WITH THE?????

Well today is the day!! We are saying goodbye to the grey cement house!! We have been the ugliest house on the street for quite sometime...so we are nervous to see what color our house ends up. I say that..because we are the last house on the street our choices of stucco were limited. Architectural control dictates are such that it made it hard for us to get a normal color because they were all chosen!! So we are nervous to see what it ends up to be.....however...I feel safe to say we wont be the brightest....a house down the street was just stuccoed...and it resembles a pineapple...with light pineapple trim! So phew...we wont be the brightest!! Ill post a picture when its done....stay tuned!!

SLEEP GLORIOUS SLEEP!!!

Oh Im just so excited this morning!! James had a GREAT night and only woke up once to eat!! He has been quite regular eating every 3 hours on the dot until he turned 6 weeks. Then all of a sudden he was eating every 2 hours around the clock....after about a week of that..I was sooooo tired and couldnt keep that schedule. So I tried to figure out what the issue was ...and wondered if maybe I didnt have enough milk. So I started alternating feedings with a bottle...and WOW what a difference! He sleeps at night now!!! He has had 3 great nights..but last night was the BEST! I put him down at 9pm he woke at 4am and then again at 8am! Now that is a schedule I can live with!! I am seriously doing the dance of joy this morning. Amazing how a little sleep makes you feel like a million bucks!!

Peek a BOO!!

It just cracks me up everytime we are getting ready to head out the door. Ill get James in his seat all bundled up. Then I rush around getting everyone ready and come back and just see these little eyes peeping out...so cute! He is so patient while the rest of us try to get organized and out the door. Luckily he loves his car seat because he is in it ALL the time now that Im driving the girls 3 times a day! He was so good on our trip to Montana...not a peep! We are so lucky to have such a patient little guy!!

Spring Break in Montana!

We spent the week of Spring Break at the cabin! We were thrilled that Mike had the whole week off! The girls and Mike did a few ski days with fresh snow..and Mike did a few on his own! He totally scored on our last day there as there was a nice blizzard dropping loads of snow! The van couldnt even make it up the hill to the ski lodge...so he hitched a ride and enjoyed two feet of powder! We saw movies, played games and just relaxed together! It was so great to get away!! It felt like Christmas with all the new snow and the christmas tree was still up...lol. However, we are glad it is April and we are looking forward to summer! Ill post ski pics when I get them off the other camera!

First Church Day...Easter!!

James and I finally made it to church...and it was Easter Sunday! It was so nice to go back and nice to meet a new ward! Mike had been to our new ward a few times with the girls and had already met a few people. We are thrilled that there are lots of kids and lots of girls in activity days for Emily and Steff to meet! It is a large ward with surprisingly lots of spanish speaking...so we feel right at home as we had lots of spanish speaking in our Florida ward as well...too bad we dont speak spanish...LOL! It is amazing how you miss that spiritual uplift each week when you arent attending church. It was nice to be back and we look forward to getting to know the ward as we plan on settling here for awhile! We will surely miss Parkland ward tho!! We have always loved being in that ward on and off my whole life!

Phew!!!!!

Emily had to make an emergency trip to the childrens hospital yesterday (It is a brand new hospital and so nice). She woke up with pain in her stomach and I told her it was probably due to the pilates work out she did with her sisters and I the night before (LOL). Well she could barely walk and was in tears..so I kept her home from school. She slept all day and then started with fever and vomiting....so I asked her about her pain..and when she said it was in the right side only...I called Mike. He came home and examined her...and was suspicious also. So they headed off to the hospital to take a look. Emily was scared to death to go to the hospital..she has quite a fear of them (I dont blame her) so it was hard to send her off. Luckily it was not appendicitus...blood work was normal and ultrasound was normal. So after pumping her full of fluids and some observation...she was sent home :)! Yeah...we are so relieved...we dont need any more hospitals, surgery or drama around here. She is much happier today and spending the day with me!! She just got out her human body book to read up on appendicitus (we never told her what we were suspicious of...we just said we needed a picture of her tummy). She read the symptoms and said...wow...this sounds exactly like what I had. I said..I know..that is why Dad took you to the hospital! LOL...then she says you know yesterday was April Fools...I said...I know...were you trying to April Fools us?? She said NO!!! I would never choose that as an April Fools joke! So no april fools...but no appendicitus!! YAHOO!!!!

Surfer Girls Room

Mike made a quick trip to Montana to pick up our kitchen table (FINALLY)! He found he had a lot of space left in his uhaul..so he hit costco and filled up! One of the things he picked up was bedroom furniture for Steff and Paige's room! I was nervous when he called...because I tend to be picky about such things..and what if I didnt like the color. But luckily I took a peek online and gave him the go ahead! I love it! I need to order the night tables still. So we set up most of the surfer room..I still have things to go on the walls...Im just too nervous to poke the first hole in our walls...so nothing is up on any walls yet...Im sure I will give in soon and start hammering away! I wish this set came in queen so we could do it in Emmy's room too. So Steff and Paige are the first to get bedroom furniture! Mike and I are jealous and hoping to find something for our room soon. I guess after 15 years....it is time to get some furniture in our room!

Oh NO...its Diaper Time!!!

This is the face I get everytime it is diaper changing time! James does NOT like to be changed...and whoever is changing, races to get the diaper back on so the crying will stop. So I thought I would share that face with you....we will call it...'OH NO...its DIAPER TIME'! Other than diaper time...James is a trooper. He is such a snuggler! We all just fight to snuggle him! He is by far our best baby! Sorry girls...I speak the truth! He went for his almost 6 week appt today and was just over 10lbs and 22.5 inches. It seems everytime I blink he looks bigger! He was so good at his appointment. I have found doctors appointments so stressful in the past because baby fights the exam..but he just kicked back and relaxed the whole time! It was a pleasant experience....besides the fact that while being weighed he peed on the nurse....ooops sorry about that! The new fun experiences of having a boy!

My Little Camo Girl....

This is my little camo girl! She LOVES camoflauge! She found some fun camo pants at pumpkin patch last summer in arizona...she wore them often and they quickly got holes! Luckily auntie Kristin found them on clearance and brought her another pair! She was THRILLED! Then she found a camo hat and sunglasses and thought she hit the jackpot!! She always has them on now! Mike and I just chuckle! I was unpacking some of Steff's clothes to pass down to Paige, she was telling me if she would wear them or not... I think only 2 shirts got the nod of approval. Ugh! No girl colors, no curly sleeves and nothing with flowers on it! But Paige thought her cousin Hallie would LOVE them! Little did Mike know he would have to buy a whole new wardrobe for this camo girl! Girly girl....she is definately not!

JAMES IS 1 MONTH OLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

James

1 month old!!

I cant believe James is one month old already! Mind you the whole month has been a bit of a blur! I have had many 'momnesia' moments! I went to download pictures the other day and realized I had no memory card in the camera for the past week!! DUH! So frustrating! Then I went to a school to register my girls for next year and I was meeting a fellow for a tour...went to the front desk and asked for a guy that is supposed to install a fireplace in our basement!! DUH!! So embarrassing...hopefully when Im not so sleep deprived my brain will return and I can function somewhat normally...I really dont think Im safe to be in charge of 4 kids!! LOL!!

We have so enjoyed little James! He is such a good baby and SOOOOOOO patient with his sisters. He gets passed around and flipped and flopped and squished and cuddled every which way and he just takes it! Im sure that will change...but it sure helps me out when they can hold him for a few minutes so I can get something done! He is getting bigger already and just lost his hair! I gave him a bath...and washed his hair..and it just seemed to slide off his head...poor guy! Hopefully it returns soon! It just happens that I have scheduled his pictures for this week...darn it...maybe we can spray paint some hair on. LOL.

We are all doing great! Im feeling better going into this 4th week. There are definately rough days and better days. The fatigue is never ending...but Im doing everything I can to rebuild these red blood cells. My sister felt sorry that I was looking so ghostly so she got me some cream that is supposed to bring out my 'natural glow'.....I need about a gallon of it!!! Thank you Thank you Thank you to my mom and sister for all their much needed and appreciated help!! And thank you to so so so so many that have been so great to help us in the past months!!!! We are so indebted to soooooooo many!!!! Thank you!!!!

Funny story......

When Kristin was here...she was being so careful to watch Ben carefully...as this house isnt baby proofed yet. Well she was upstairs with Ben and Paige and I was downstairs and I just heard a loud crash and tumble...and Kristin screamed. Ben had taken a little tumble down the stairs...luckily only half way due to a turn in the staircase. Kristin rescued Ben and cuddled him...he was fine..but all witnesses were quite scared. Kristin commented to Paige....Oh, that scared me! Paige replied, YAH, I was so scared my eyes almost POPPED OUT OF MY HEAD!!

Vampire Hands

This is a picture taken when I got home from the hospital..my hemoglobin level was 74. I just got a call and as of last week Im at 98! So there is improvement! I think the normal low is 120...but ideally 140ish...so still a bit to go. But at least Im not this white anymore!! And thanks to my 'natural glow' lotion...I should be glowing again in no time!!