Ivy's Birthday Celebrations

Birthday breakfast consists of Chocolate donuts covered in sprinkles. She opened her presents before Marley went to school which made getting out the door VERY hard! I found her the color changing dolphin (I thought she had dreamt up), Pet Shop rodents (sounds sick, I know, but they are stinkin cute!), and Barbie Thumbelina movie and some matching playsets that she has wanted FOREVER. She got to lick the beaters when I made her cake and had ice cream for dinner. I don't think she would have changed a thing about this birthday!

(In a strong English accent please,) Ivy's Birthday Tea Party at the Telford Court. The guests, Avery and Izabela, were invited to come for afternoon tea and crumpets in celebration of her majesty's 4th birthday. We all wore the most divine gowns and sipped the finest tea. Berries of all sorts were served and make up was done in the parlor. What a fine gala to remember, such fun had by all in attendance.

Grandma Sally also had a party for Ivy. The whole fam was there except for Brian and Casey... sniff, sniff. But we did get to talk to them on the phone. Grandma had 3 different kinds of cake and food galore. Ivy got a new ballerina dress up, Littlest Pet Shops, a puppy that whimpers and barks, and new dresses. Thanks to all!

"She tookded my tooth and left me 5 bucks!"

Marley's first encounter with the Tooth Fairy

Okay, I don't have any more excuses, really. I finally got wireless upstairs, even a laptop to carry from room to room. I am committing, once again, to the preservation of the day to day moments that make up my life. This week is a BIG one. So let's go.

08/07/09 Marley started kindergarten on Tuesday. She's just like me; no tears, ready to please. (Okay, I admit, I got a teeny bit choked up, only because she was so brave and knew exactly what to do; her independence scares me.) She ran to the fence right when the bell rang and waited for Mrs. Hannah. For homework the first night she recited all the rules by heart and knows all the consequences if she chooses not to follow. She gave me a big scary face regarding the call home I may get if she doesn't get on the "choo, choo, choose the rule train". I threatened her with no treats and long afternoons in her room if I EVER get a call from her teacher. I know that will never happen, not just because of my threats, but because she is a pleaser. I am completely in love with her.

08/05/09 My tiniest baby, Ivy Giselle, 4 years old. I still talk baby talk to her. She seems so little compared to Marley at this age. She still chooses to ride in the stroller for hell's sake. The cutest things she says right now are "that's totally wicket; and Mama, I love you". Honestly, there are a lot more nasty phrases like, "That's it!", "Marley, that's enough" or "I'm done!" that are just as cute but clearly are imitations of me (not so cute). The window panes literally rattle when she screams, I sometimes worry that the neighbors can hear her during her fits of rage. It is so funny to watch her come into her own but still have such a baby side. I am completely in love with her.

08/07/09 10 years of marriage. WOW. Russell, my muscle, is still the man of my dreams. When we got married, when I was 20, I think I was in love with the idea of him... his big truck, his mysterioius style, his big blue puppy dog eyes, his handsome face, the way I had to work for our first kiss. But it is so different now. I love the way he is, the way he treats everyone he knows. His gentleness and easygoing-ness, yet his determined and stubborn way. He is 100% russell all the time. No fakey. Everyone loves him, which has been an issue for me...my weakness, I admit. I know I have a great husband and my daughters have a great daddy. I can only hope that I am for him what he is for me. I am completely in love with him.

Update

So sometimes I wonder about the whole blogging thing. I start to feel guilty or something when I haven't updated in a while, but then I wonder why since I've seen pretty much everyone I know within the last week! Weird. Like you need updates on how cute my kids are. NEWSFLASH~ they are cute...and will be for the next 20 years at least! Plus, remember Dell Shanze? Yeah, that's right ~ my "Totally Awesome Computer" is acting up. I thought i had a lifetime warranty on that beast. Well~ since he went to jail (he pulled out some massive guns or something) it's giving me the big blue screen and saying it's recovering from a major system error. Since I can't really ask it why, and I'm out of warranty, I will not be preserving any of my lifetime memories on that beast. No, no. I do not trust that monster. I have concluded to saving my memoirs on shutterfly.com. I'm still working out the det's, but give me a couple weeks and I'll be back in the groove. I may have a new URL here pretty quick. Just because it's a one stop shop. Upload, Blog, Print. I love the easy button! Happy New Year!!

Back with my beauties

After a long day of traveling, I was soooo happy to be home! I missed Rusty and the kids more than I thought I would. Visiting Brandy for a few days was was great, but returning home to my family was the best. I have to say, the kids missed me so much! I never expected them to not let go of me and want to hold me and touch me. They couldn't get enough! They have both snuck down to snuggle with me every night since I got home. When we walked in the door they had a key lime cheesecake with candles waiting so they could sing happy birthday.

Why is the frosting from the waxy candle the best part?

O to the H I O

Yay! Finally a visit to see Brandy. Thanks to Grandma for taking the kids and Rusty skipping out on me for yet another significant day, I was able to take a few days and spend my actual birthday with BrandyBran. We had so much fun putting together our Christmas albums, an advent calendar, eating, talking, cruising. I miss that girl. It was a bit different being with the 3 of them without my kids. I really missed my rugrats! Izy loves to wrestle Avery which gets a little commotion going between the two. I thought this picture of them wrestling was so cute.

We went to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. As always, dee-lish. We spent the rest of the night shopping around until we got kicked out of Sephora at closing time. It was so nice to actually have a chance to look around at everything without worrying about the kids. Thanks Clint for coming home early! Love this pic of Brandy.

We had such a great time but became completely exhausted from the time change and staying up all night and getting up early. As hard as it was, it was a good thing for me to come home. Everyone back to normal schedules! Thanks for putting me up for a few days. Love you and see you soon!

Welcome to the Dirty Thirties

Thanks to all who joined us at dinner at Tres Hombres and fun at Liquid Joe's. I had a blast! I thought going out would make me feel young again but in fact it had the opposite effect. The Spasmatics are so fun to watch but watching the young and stupid club goers is even funner! It made me realize that being old and 30 is a good thing. Knowing your limits and when to stay in your chair has its plusses. Having a life partner and 2 kids is much more appealing than trying so desperately to find someone to go home with. So glad I'm not them. I'm thankful for the years past and all that I've learned. I guess that means I'm glad I'm 30.

Me and Russel my Muscle

My adorable brother Jason brought his laptop so Brian could Skype in from Maryland. So fun. It's just not the same without them.

Amy, Jeff, Casey, Liz, Jeff, Jess, Reinier, Lisa, Muscle. Not pictured but loved just the same are Angie, Jared, Trish, Clay, Emily, Creed.

Charity and Kristina dogged out after dinner to go take care of sick hubbies. Missed you!