Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween from our lil' stinkers!!!

This week has been so, so, so crazy!!! I will update you with all the events over the weekend.

Headed to The Martha Stewart Show

I am headed to a taping of the Martha Stewart Show tomorrow with 9 of my mommy friends. I am extremely exited but there is one small problem...the weather! The high in the city is supposed to be 47 with wind and rain. Yucky! The rain not only poses a problem in terms of maneuvering the city on foot but also for my hair. My hair goes totally limp in anything but the optimal weather, which is the cool, crisp fall air. I hope I don't look like a drowned rat on national television...if the camera pans to me. So set your channels to the Martha Stewart Show and look for me...I'll be in a dark pink shirt and I may possibly look like I have been through a typhoon!

Saturday Morning Traditions

Every Saturday morning, Ben wakes up early with the kiddos and takes them to Home Depot and then returns with Dunkin Donuts...all the while I sleep in. It's just one of the million reasons why I love Ben so much. It just dawned on me that my dad used to do the same thing with my brother and me. He would take us to the local hardware store on Saturday mornings where they would have donuts for the patrons. It just so nice that my kiddos have the same tradition that I had as a child...purely by accident.

Wordless Wednesday - Two of a Kind

Cami playing with her friend, Adam. Cami and Adam were born nine days apart.

Have You Seen My Pumpkin???

I noticed yesterday that Cami's pumpkin was not on the front porch where I had so thoughtfully placed it the day before. Immediately I thought that the dog must have eaten it so I took a walk around the yard but I didn't see any pumpkin remains. Could the dog really have eaten the entire pumpkin...even the handle? So I called Ben to ask him where he put Cami's pumpkin, he told me he had not moved it. So where o' where has her little pumpkin gone???

I have two theories:

1. Pumpkin-nappers

2. Pumpkin-eating animals

I don't know which theory freaks me out more. Let's start with theory 1: Pumpkin-nappers. First of all if the neighborhood kids think it's cool to steal a pumpkin from an infant, that's just pathetic. Secondly, I would hope they would of set their sights higher. I mean they took the smallest of all four pumpkins. Kids, if you are going to steal...go big! Finally, what really freaks me out is the fact that at some point someone who was not invited, came onto our property and up to our front door. That's just too close for comfort in my mind.

Theory 2: Pumpkin-eating animals kind makes me shiver as well. I mean, it was a small pumpkin, but that was really in comparing it to the rest of the pumpkins (don't you all buy one pumpkin for each member of the family...biggest for daddy, medium-sized for mommy, small for Brayden and the smallest for Cami). It was way too big for a squirrel or rabbit to carry away so it would have to be a rather large animal and there are no pumpkin remains so I know it definitely took it to another location. What type of creatures leave in these woods? But we don't have woods so what type of creatures inhabit this subdivision?

It's a mystery...that may not be solved any time soon. In the meantime, I will be going back out and buying another pumpkin for my sweet baby girl and hopefully this time it stay put on the porch.

All the Picking Rolled into One

We finally found some free time this weekend and took the kiddos apple and pumpkin picking. It was a gorgeous fall day...maybe a bit too windy but the sun was shining, the kids were bundled and we had a great time.

Ben and Cami waited for the shuttle to arrive while Brayden and I went and looked at the animals in the petting zoo, although there was NO touching of the animals. Petting zoos freak me out. They seem like a breeding ground for yucky germs so we just looked.

We took the shuttle out to the apple orchards. Since we were late in the picking season, most of the apple trees were pretty much picked clean. Brayden found a few apples close enough for him to pick off the tree but his favorite part of the trip was eating the apples. You will notice in most of the pictures he either has an apple in his mouth or very close by it. Granny Smith's were his favorite...Mommy's too!

Next stop was the pumpkins. Brayden immediately found the pumpkin he wanted but that didn't stop him from trying to pick up every pumpkin in the patch! We decided to only pick one pumpkin in the patch and get the others back at the store since Ben and I only have two hands and it really didn't seem plausible for us to maneuver the shuttle with two kiddos, a 1/2 peck of apples and multiple pumpkins.All in all, we had a great day. I can't wait until next year when Cami will be able to chomp on an apple and pick a pumpkin of her own.

Why does my butt smell minty fresh?

As I have been lathering both my kiddos up with Destin these past few days, a really funny story keeps popping in my mind. So I thought I would share because a) The story doesn't involve me and b) The story doesn't involve my stupidity, which frequently comes ripping through the seams of most of my stories lately.

Brayden had an ear infection the entire month before I had Cami and with his ear infection came many different kinds of antibiotics, which in turn caused lots and lots of unpleasant diapers and with these unpleasant diapers came some pretty nasty diaper rashes. Three days before my scheduled c-section, we had finally gotten rid of the ear infection but Brayden came down with a nasty stomach bug! Let's just say it is really hard to care for your sick, whiny toddler when you are 5 days from your due date.

As you can imagine, my hospital stay felt like a week long trip to the spa and yes, I was recovering from major abdominal surgery...that's how bad it was at home! Brayden stayed with my parents during my quite lovely hospital stay...lucky them and yes, he did infect them and my visiting brother with the stomach bug. They brought him to visit me in the hospital and told me about the mornings activities, one of which involved lubing my son's bottom up with toothpaste??? Apparently, Brayden had a poopy diaper so my dad got stuck with diaper change duty. Papa (my dad as he is known to Brayden) took him upstairs, changed his diaper and applied the cream that my mother had given him, which turned out to be Brayden's toothpaste.

When they told me this story in the hospital, I couldn't stop laughing...not good for a c-section recovery, as some of you may know. Although lack of glasses and general confusion have been given as reasons for the mistake, I think it may have been from the over tiredness that having a toddler in the house generally causes...that a senility...just kidding Dad (and Mom too!)

Wordless Wednesday - Bumpy Slide

Here's Brayden and Owen having lots of fun on the "bumpy" slide at the park. Brayden shot down that slide like a rocket. His landings were pretty funny.

My Personal Training Success

Remember way back when I promised to update you on my work with my personal trainer, Diane. If you don't, check this out. So here is your update...Diane rocks the personal training house! I have had so much fun with getting in shape with her. Here is the success story she asked me to write for her website:

After having two children and two c-sections, my body was a wreck! I decided that it was time to get back in shape and do something about the extra pounds and flab. I turned to Diane for help, not only because she is a great trainer but also because she is a mom too and would understand exactly what happens to your body after having kids! When I decided to start training with Diane, not only did I want to feel good about my body but I wanted to set a good example for my children about health and fitness. How could I expect them to take care of their bodies if I let mine fall by the way side! It was time for me to take some time to take care of myself.

Working with Diane has been a dream! Not only does she tailor each workout to your fitness needs but she makes it fun to workout. In only a couple weeks, I started to see results. My clothes started to fit better and I had friends and family commenting on how great I looked! I think the defining moment of my success was when I bought a pair of jeans in my normal size at the mall but when I took them home and wore them, they were literally falling off. I went back to the mall and tried on the next size down and they fit perfectly. I couldn’t believe it! I hadn’t worn that size since before I had kids.

Diane has really helped me to understand that it’s not only about the number on the scale but also about how your clothes fit and how you feel about yourself. Since I started working with Diane, I have more energy and in taking time to take care of myself, I feel like I can be a better mom and wife. Diane is a great trainer; she really takes the time to listen to your needs and work with you as an individual. She puts together work outs that fit into your life. The focus is on you, which is exactly what I needed. I would recommend Diane’s services to anyone. She really has changed me…not only my size but also how I feel about myself and for that, I am forever grateful.

Here are the Before and After pictures that Diane took of me. The picture on the left was taken six weeks before the picture on the right. Although the outfits are not the same, I can definitely see a big difference!

I'm Back...

No, I haven't forgotten about all of you in the blogoshere! I just haven't been able to get my act together and post. Maybe I have been in a bit of a blogging rut, maybe I have just been busy watching all of my shows, or maybe I have been reading a great book...whatever the reason, I promise to fill you in on a more regular basis.

Since I don't have time to do that now, I will give you a cute meme that I saw over at But Wait It Gets Better. All you need to do is find the 6th folder in your picture files and then find the 6th picture and post it. Here is mine:
This picture is from my May folder so I guess the hat is from Memorial Day. I remember the hat was bought at the Target Dollar spot, which Brayden is allowed to pick out one thing from at the beginning of the trip. It's really the only way I can get him in the cart. Sad, but true.

Feel free to play along. Just leave me a comment and I will hop over and check it out.

My Beautiful Little Princess

We took Cami to get her sixth month pictures (even though she is 7 months...we don't need to be exact here!) taken last week and I wanted to share them with you all. Never mind the watermark...we don't have a scanner so I stole them off the photo studio's website. She just looks so beautiful. Don't you agree?

Help Me!!!

I bought Brayden a new CD for our trip down to Florida in August. I thought that he was a little too addicted to the DVD player in the car, so I push (and push) and he finally stopped asking to watch his movie and was fine listening to the CD.

So we have been listening to the CD now for 4 weeks and I want to rip all the hair out of my head! This CD is apparently toddler crack. He begs for it, cries for it, screams for it...it is really insane. I mean, it has good songs. I like "Under the Sea" and "The Tiki Room" but I am only allowed to sing along when I am instructed by my master Brayden. Sometimes I forget that I am not allowed to sing until told and Brayden says "No Mommmy. You no sing. I sing." It was cute at first but now it's irritating. I will sing when I want. If I have to listen to this CD, then I will darn well enjoy myself and sing along!

Brayden's favorite song is a version of Davy Crockett by They Might Be Giants. Davy is an astronaut and the words are really cute but I mean how many times can a person listen to Davy Rocket on repeat before they totally crack up. I am seriously getting to that point. Either I am going to go completely over the edge or Brayden needs a good month in the nearest Disney rehab facility. Help me, please. What CD are you currently listening to with your kiddos or are you all driving around happily listening to the radio?

Wordless Wednesday - Do you mind!!!