Adorable

If you look closely at Abbi's ear here, you'll notice something... ya, I got her ears pierced. I was thinking of doing it for her 4th birthday so I went to the mall to look and ask the questions I had. She saw this pair of flower earrings and she wanted them pierced NOW! No fit really, she was just very sure that she was ready and needed them. Surprisingly, she picked the blue flowers, not the pink ones like I suspected she would. After the first one, she cried for about 15 seconds and then said that she was ready for the next one. She cried after that one too, for about 30 seconds, then she wanted to see her "pretty earrings" in the mirror and then proceeded to ask me if I had any money for the carousel. Anyway, she was very brave and now she shows everyone and says, "I love having my ears pierced."

Someone asked me the other day if she was a "girly-girl', you know princesses and pretties. I didn't really know how to answer that. She loves princesses and Barbies and dressing up and now earrings, but she also really enjoys the 'boy' stuff. She likes to play with Jake's trains and cars and she loves the tractors in the sand box. On the other hand, she makes a fuss about what clothes she is wearing and if they match. she is also a pretty fearless little girl. It made me proud at Lake Powell last year that she went tubing and all kinds of stuff. So I guess she is a girly-girl and then some.

The boys are really great too. John is relieved that the dressing up didn't last long with Jake. For a while there he wanted to dress up like a princess with Abbi. Now he won't, he'll put on his cowboy stuff and they pretend that he is the prince. Jake also has decided that Cars is his favorite movie, well it's a toss-up between that and old Donald Duck cartoons. He is always climbing on stuff, I turn around for a second and he's on the window sill. It's safe to say that he is all boy. And Isaac is just so sweet. He smiles and laughs all the time. He thinks everything is funny. He has been sleeping through the night since about two months old, well, except for last week. He was waking up during the night and, not only could I not figure out why, I just couldn't handle it. I get up at 5 AM to go to the gym and I just can't swing that when I am up all night with a crying baby. A lot of frustration was present merely because I had not a clue as to what was wrong. He wasn't hungry and we hadn't changed anything. Anyway, whatever it was he is over now and we have peaceful nights again.

So my princess and my boys are doing great. Too bad those peaceful nights don't carry over into peaceful days. Abbi and Jake have been fighting a lot today so I better go take care of that. I think a nap right about now would be wonderful.

Pretty in Pink

So here it is!! My helmet came this past week. I actually haven't worn it on a ride but I do occasionally wear it in the house. ( Abbi and jake think it's funny when I put it on.) John had ordered a riding jacket and some other stuff. He also got all that stuff this past week so he is pretty set. I have to say though, the helmet he got is not nearly as good looking as mine!!

Magic

When Abbi was just getting potty trained, over a year ago now, we went to a restaurant. At this restaurant she told me she had to go potty, so I took her, naturally. Anyway, when she was finished and had gotten off the toilet, it flushed, all by itself. She was fascinated. She asked me how the toilet could flush on it's own and I tried to explain mechanics of this amazing product. I realized it didn't sink in when she asked, "Is it magic, Mommy?" Not wanting to re-iterate the whole conversation I had just had, apparently with myself, I responded,"Yes, Abbi, it's a magic toilet." From that moment on, they were magic toilets and she gets pretty excited about the magical experience of using the restroom at certain places.

As far as what the heck this has to do with anything, well, my van has magic doors!! Abbi thinks it's the greatest that the sliding doors will seemingly open and close by themselves. She likes to pull the handle or push the button that starts the magical motion. While she is a bit confused about the real process of these amazing contraptions, I agree that they are magical. It is absolute magic to me to have the process of getting three kids into the car made a bit easier. That one part of my day goes a little smoother and stress free. (Well, not exactly stress free.) Have I mentioned that I am really liking my new van? I told John that the next van we get is going to have to have the automatic tailgate on it too!!

Speaking of John, I did take a ride on the motorcycle and it was a lot of fun. My pink helmet has still not arrived, I know you were wondering. On the first ride I took we noticed there was this funny noise every time John shifted or we went over a bump. We thought it was the shocks, they are, after all, older than I am. When we got back to the house John made a discovery, it wasn't the shocks that were making the noise. In fact it was the weight of my big rear on the back making the fender hit the tire!! Now, John may have thought this but he didn't say it (Good boy) and he tightened up the springs. We took it out again and it only happens if we go over a pretty big bump. New shocks are a little pricey so I guess maybe I could lose a leg or something and lighten the load on the back half of the seat.

so. . .

Yes, that's right, he got his motorcycle. I finally caved on the motorcycle given the inexpensive one he was looking at and, with gas at nearly four dollars a gallon, the 50-60 mpg was looking really great. One of John's employee's spouse was selling it so we did get a good price on it. It's a 1979 Honda something or other and it is actually in great condition with only 6500 miles on it. So John took the class to get the endorsement on his license and he drives it to and from work everyday. I have yet to take a ride on it but I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my pretty pink helmet.

More importantly, I have a new minivan. I have wanted an Odyssey since the day I started driving a minivan, come on it's a Honda minivan! Anyway, we have been seriously looking for a few weeks and we have gone back and forth about another car payment. The Windstar has been an okay van (besides having to replace the tranny a year ago, and the recent check engine light appearance) but it was creeping up on a hundred thousand miles and I am pretty sure a Ford minivan with that kind of mileage might be more of a problem than an asset. Anyway, we had planned on running it into the ground but we figured if we can get something out of it for a newer one then, why not? And besides, Father's Day is coming up and I am due for an incredible gift!!

Anyway, it's a 2000 Odyssey and I love it. Out of all the bazillion that we looked at this was the prettiest (color) and the best deal, by far. I was wanting one a bit newer (brand new would be nice!!) but, being a Honda and all, the price jumps the newer you get. Besides, it would be a real bummer going from no car payment on the van to a huge one, so I am happy with the van and the deal we got. And I must say that whoever invented the dual power sliding doors deserves an award of some kind.

Given the recent expenses, our dates will now consist of trips to the driving range (I have his old clubs) and rides on the motorcaycle. The unfortunate thing here is that driving my van is going to be sparse given the price of gas. So, John has his motorcycle and golf clubs, and I have my 'new' van. I think we should be set for a while.

Okay, so we were unbelievably close to buying a new car this weekend. John had looked at the Kia Spectra with my dad. Well, it gets better gas mileage and the payment would be close to what we have on the Impala anyway and Kia has that good warranty. We didn't buy one though. Now he is trying to convince me to let him buy this motorcycle that one of his employee's brother (or something like that) is selling. The crazy thing--I am actually considering it.

Gas is so expensive and he drives 25 miles to and from work every day. While the Impala gets better gas mileage than our minivan, it's not that great. I could cram all the kids into the Impala and be a little better off with mileage if I want to take them down to Denver to the zoo or museum and stuff like that. I don't know though, motorcycles make me nervous. My brother has had a number of them and gotten into an accident or two that weren't his fault. Motorcycles are just dangerous and I need that man around. Mostly just to work and provide for me in the lifestyle that I am accustomed to.

We are definitely going to have to give it more thought. Meanwhile, my adorable baby boy laughed for the first time yesterday. Like a real 'haha' laugh. He actually did it on a couple different occasions yesterday. Apparently he really likes rap music, at least the kind his daddy makes up for him.

The Lake

Well, John got a new set of golf clubs for Mother's Day. How does that happen?! He did get me some beautiful flowers and a made to order breakfast yesterday. We did decide this past weekend though, that we are officially, 100% going to Lake Powell this year. We were kind of going back and forth as to wether we should go or not. We are trying to save money. But with that in mind, Lake Powell is the least expensive thing we can do with the kids this summer. Besides, I love it and the kids love it too. The verdict is still out for John. The one year he came with us, the beach was terrible and the weather was awful.

We purchased a new tent and some cots for the trip. Cots? You might ask. Well, no matter where we go, it's all about the sleep with John. He needs to get a good nights rest or he doesn't enjoy the trip. Not me, I might be a tad sore in the morning, but I can sleep anywhere. We also had some major issues with the air mattress last time he came, so cot it is. The beg tent is nice, we can all fit with ease, the cots too.

I am so looking forward to going. It's my vaca. Yeah, sure it's camping, but it's also a week chilling in the water and spending time with family. On top of that, I slack on my mothering too. We have but two rules at the lake - life jackets and liquids. The kids have to wear a life jacket always, unless sleeping, and they have to drink lots of water. That's it. John doesn't really believe me when I tell him how much the kids enjoy going to the lake, but come on . . . they get one whole week where they can eat what they want (or don't want), go to bed when they want and play all day. What toddler, or kid for that matter, wouldn't just love that? That's their dream, right?

Isaac

So this is my son!! He always makes the funniest faces. My brother-in-law, Taylor, just happened to catch this one on our trip to UT a few weeks ago. When we showed it to my mom she thought that John had tampered with it somehow. Nope. That's our boy!!