Life goes on

First of all, I'd like to give a shout out to my brother, Mikey. It's his 40th birthday today! Hooray!

I hope this post finds everyone in good spirits. We all are surviving over here. Okay, that sounded rather gloomy. Things are pretty good, but I have a bad sinus infection at present and it's making me miserable. Yuck! But, life must go on. It's something I learned after I had Natalie. It doesn't matter if mommy is sick. The kids still need to be dressed, fed, and entertained. The chores still need to be done. There is no time for mommy to rest and get better, especially now that I have Ryan. Natalie seems to understand that mommy doesn't feel well so she has been quite the angel. There are also other factors that make life a little dim, like my cousin's wedding this weekend that we are unable to attend. She was in my wedding and we had so much fun! I feel crappy because I am unable to return her kindness and fun. The wedding is in Oregon and we can afford neither the flight nor the hotel accommodations. Though she is quite the liberal, I love her to pieces! I admire her for all she is and will be.

Natalie is as spunky as ever. Kids really do say the darnedest things. The other night, while eating at my parents' house, Natalie passed some gas. She said "excuse me" and I asked her, "Did you toot?" She looked at me like I was stupid and said, "No, mom, I farted." We couldn't help but laugh! She also has a few imaginary friends. She either calls them 'friends' or 'the princesses.' They have tea parties, play house, and some evenings we are blessed with their 'presence' at dinner. I had yet to inform Daniel of this new development when he saw Natalie talking to the back door. He looked at me, confused. I told him about her new friends and he was relieved. He thought there was something wrong with her. =) There is a break in her swim lessons for the rest of June, but they start again on Monday afternoon.

Ryan is still our happy, healthy boy. Out of curiosity, I took him into my mother's work this past Friday to have him weighed. Our chunky monkey now weighs 15lbs 15.5 oz! Good grief! That's about two pounds in one month! The boy does love to eat. We introduced sweet potatoes to him last week and he liked them but not as much as the green beans. My parents have a garden and we have been using the fresh green beans for Ryan's meals. He loves them! He is also trying to sit up on all fours. Trying is the key word there because every time he gets up on his knees...he face plants into the floor. Hey, he'll get it eventually.

The new Chevy dealership will be opening soon. Daniel has good feelings about it, even though everyone is worried about the economy. He's been doing well at his job, but he is hard on himself and wants to do so much more for his family. He already works so much I don't know what else he can do. Hood is having a big sale this week so come on out! I continue to love my job. Most of the people I work with are church-going folk. They are so kind and genuine. We are always smiling and laughing during work. I've also joined the Survivor Fitness Challenge that will be happening at the YMCA. I convinced one of our new members to join, and he said he would if I would. So, there ya go. We will be on a team and we are trying to recruit his wife and some other members to join us. We'll have certain tasks we'll have to do fitness-wise, and if we miss one, we get sent into exile. On August 16th, we'll have our Final Challenge. I'm actually excited about this! I've been going to the YMCA almost everyday to utilize my free membership. It is beneficial for the kids as well because Natalie loves the care center (Kids Korner). The employees know me now and take extra good care of my babies.

That's about it. We have some family coming in this weekend for Mikey's party and I'm beyond excited to see them! It's going to be a great weekend!

Pics of the Kids

They look so much alike. Yeah, Daniel and I make pretty babies!

Natalie showing her love for her brother. =)

Her hair is getting so long!

Ryan likes to chew on his feet.

She says, "I can't smile right now." Still a great picture of our pretty girl!

Uncle Mikey likes to feed Ryan. (that high chair has been in our family over 40 years and was used by all of us kids)

Natalie loves to play outside, no matter how hot it may be.

more pics

Just a few more pictures I wanted to share.

Happenings

I posted some news pics of us below, so be sure to scroll down and check them out. All is going well here. It's been quite humid and hot lately. We did get some rain to cool it down, but the humidity gets worse. Natalie finished her first session of swim lessons and did very well. Her instructor was very pleased with her. This past week Natalie jumped into the pool with her head going under water. She did it 8 times! I know, I'm such a goob because I counted. But we are so proud! It looks like she is slowly overcoming her fear of having water on her face. We have signed her up for the remainder of the summer. Ryan's second tooth came in this week. Those two teeth are sharp! Ouch! He is rolling and scooting everywhere. He loves green beans, though we did introduce squash as his second food. Not so fond of that vegetable. He is our little piggy and acts like he is always starving. Daniel and I are doing well at our jobs. We both enjoy what we do and consider that a huge blessing. Not many people get up in the morning and look forward to a long day at work. I'm sure there is more to tell, but it's late and I'm tired. Whenever I remember, I'll just post another blog. A hug thank you to all who support this blog! Love you!

pics

weekly wrapup

So far, so good in our little world. Natalie is doing well with her swimming lessons, though she is quite hesitant about putting her face in the water. She will blow bubbles but refuses to completely submerge. She has been that way her entire life, even as an infant, hating water on her face. But it is practiced at every lesson and she starts crying. It breaks my heart to see her tears, but I know that she needs to overcome this fear. She jumps off of the side of the pool into the instructors arms as long as her head doesn't go under water. Hey, I'm just happy she will jump! We practice her swimming in my parents' pool and she loves showing us all what she has learned. The other day she even swam around with just a noodle...no floaties! Natalie has also become quite the story teller. She is still into princesses and fairy tales and that is what her stories consist of most of the time. Today she started one story "Once upon a time, there was a lovely princess in a cage." We all smile and make sure to pay close attention to her tales. She is so cute!

Ryan is cutting another tooth. He has been gnawing at his pacifier like it's going out of style. We started him on a new food this week and chose squash. He isn't as fond of this new veggie as he is with his green beans. On the evenings my parents watched the kids this past week, Mikey helped out by feeding Ryan. Mom told me it was precious. She didn't take any pictures but promised to do so next time. She says that Ryan will chase the spoon with his mouth. How cute! He is scooting now during his tummy time. He will dig his knees and feet into the ground and move, surprising himself. He'll be crawling in no time. He reaches for and grasps toys like a pro, always putting them in his mouth, of course. And, as always, he is all smiles and giggles. He is developing a lot more quickly than we imagined. And we love every minute! If you look really close in his picture, you can see his tooth!

Daniel continues to work hard and long hours. Daniel made Salesman of the Month for May. Woohoo! He even sold three corvettes...at one time to one buyer. Wow! He sells more corvettes than anyone else. I really enjoy working for the YMCA. Did you know that the YMCA has been around since 1851? What a great company to work for!

God is in Control pt. 2

I just realized that I need to point something out to everyone. I did not write the previous blog 'God is in Control.' It was sent to me from a dear friend because I am dealing with some stress in my life right now. She couldn't have sent it at a better time. God is truly in control of our lives. That is why we hear people tell us to 'let go and let God.' We think we can control our universe, our environment...but we cannot. Reality hits us and we become painfully aware that we are unable to predict or manipulate life to produce our selfish results. Life cannot be planned, just lived. And we must live it according to God's will for us.