Random Things

Just a quick overview of the events of the past year :)

January
We moved from Utah to Florida the first week of January while I was approximately 32 weeks pregnant. Longest drive ever - and man were my feet swollen by the time we got to Florida! Katie was a champ during the road trip. We were able to stop to visit the family in Colorado which was fantastic! While we were getting ready to head out of Dallas the morning of January 7, we learned that our nephew Owen Christopher was born!! Woo!!!

February
The biggest news of February was the birth of Kasey Thomas :) He was born via C-section on Friday the 24th of February. Brian's aunt Cathy flew out to help us with Katie. It was nice to have an extra body out here for 2 weeks to help out. And it was nice to have the company. We got to go to the beach and do a few other fun things while she was here.

March
My parents made the long drive down here from South Dakota a few days after Cathy left. It was nice to have the continuous company. Always nice to have extra hands around with a new baby. We went to the Gulfarium and the Air Space Museum and a few other places. It was nice. Humid, but nice!

April
I started back to work after having 6 weeks of maternity leave. It was nice to get back into the swing of things. I had my hands full with 2 kids at home though. We also decided to get a dog! We got Dash on April 12 and he has been Katie's best friend ever since. He is our little weiner dog and he is only 10 days older than Kasey. He was born on Valentine's Day.

May
Brian graduated from Airmen Leadership School as Distinguished Graduate. Woo!! He also turned 29. :) Kasey started sleeping more consistently through the night beginning in May. It was a nice month!

June
I just remember June being hot and we hit the stores a lot to look for good deals. Not a lot of events to report this month!

July
We celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary! Woo!! It seems like only yesterday we were walking down the aisle. Time sure flies when you are having fun :) We purchased new bicycles for anniversary gifts. Good times...

August
HOT! Jennie had her third baby girl on August 2 - Elizabeth Joelle :)
Katie started part time day care and LOVES it!!

September
Katie declared that she has a new imaginary friend, Joey. I think he is still around here somewhere...haven't heard about him for a while. We also had various creatures visit our home during this month. I wonder what creatures will stop by this time next year!

October
Katie turned 3!! She is getting so big. And she looks more and more like her daddy every day! Katie and Kasey took their first plane ride during the middle of October to accompany me on a business trip to Colorado. Kasey experienced snow for the first time and I am not so sure he liked it.

November
I got a new job! Woo!! I turned 29 AND I made my very first turkey! Our Thanksgiving was pretty uneventful, but it was also relaxing. We decided to venture out on Black Friday to take advantage of some great deals. It really wasn't too bad. We had made a list based on the ads that we had gotten in the paper and it seemed to make things go pretty smoothly. Brian went a couple of places, the kids & I went a couple places and then we met up later on in the morning. I think we were done shopping by lunch time.

December
We made the long trek to South Dakota for Christmas. It was nice! We got to spend lots of time with my family and the kids really enjoyed it. We all ended up catching a cold and the ride home was less than ideal. We had really great weather traveling both on the way up there and the way home. We also got to see some old friends which was great! I wish we could have made it up to Mitchell to see some other friends, but time just got away from us.

Hope everyone has a wonderful New Year!!

A few months ago I had set a goal to lose some weight or go down a size by the end of the year. The end of the year is quickly approaching and, well....I will not be meeting my goal. In fact, I gained back a few pounds. Ugh! The same thing happened when I quit nursing Katie. Blah! I am not normally one for New Year's resolutions, but I think this year the whole family is making a resolution - to eat healthier!! That means no more cookies (well, in very limited quantities), no ice cream, no cake, no CHOCOLATE (did I really just say that?!?!) We need to lose some serious weight at our house. The kids on the other hand need to learn to establish healthy eating habits while they are young so they don't fill up on junk food later in life. I read that it takes approximately 8-12 weeks to establish a routine. Please think good thoughts and pray that God gives us the energy and discipline we need to stick to this!

We are also going to be exercising more as a family. Kasey will be 1 in February - just in time for the weather to start getting fantastic! We will be able to put both munchkins in the "go buggy" and attach it to our bikes and go for family rides. We just need to get Kasey his own bike helmet :)

When we moved here almost a year ago, we were amazed to see so many ladybugs in the kids' rooms! They just kept appearing...2, 3, 10...but sometime in April they disappeared. I noticed one in Kasey's room the other day. Then I saw one in Katie's room yesterday. I guess they are back for a visit.

If anyone knows of a safe way to get rid of these, I would sure appreciate some input. We had at times 30 or more in each room. Kasey is really into putting everything in his mouth right now and I would rather he not base his entire meal plan off of ladybugs...

Katie took it upon herself to cut her hair again. It's really quite lovely this time. She did a number! We took her to get her hair fixed and well, there wasn't a lot they could do. Katie is just going to look a little silly for a few months until the short patches grow back out!

The funny thing about it this time is how she did it. She didn't use scissors this time. She found a pair of animal nail clippers (much like the ones shown here) and went to town! I applaud her for being creative, but next time, just leave the "cutting devices" where they belong!

Ok, so my blog has been offline for a few weeks. The code was broken somehow, but now I am back :)

A quick overview of what's been going on since my last post:
-The kids are still funny - Kasey is getting big and is on the verge of walking. Crazy! He weighs 19 lbs, 10 oz and is 28.25 inches. Short and round. Too much like his mama!!
-Thanksgiving was good. Lots of food. Too much food. Made my first turkey. It turned out GREAT!
-I turned 29! Woo! I will be 30 in less than a year. Brian has less than 6 months...hehe!
-Kasey got another ear infection
-Shopping, shopping, shopping! We only have a few more presents left to buy!

I will post more soon!

The past few weeks our applications and tools at work have been performing very poorly. (this is a huge understatement...) Frustration levels are high on my team. People are bickering all day long. Sending IMs with mad faces and other customized emoticons. We are being inconvenienced big time. I try to refrain from complaining and booing and hissing, but I vent on occassion. It's hard to do your job when your tools don't work. It seems that all I have been doing is working lately. My house is a mess!!! My laundry has piled up! I need to get groceries!

Ok. So then I stop and think. I HAVE a house. I have clothes. I have food in the cupboards. The fridge and freezer are stocked as is the deep freeze. I am blessed. I try not to focus on the inconveniences these tools are presenting me because I HAVE A JOB! There are many out there that do not and are searching for income.

I passed several people while in Pensacola sitting at the big intersections with their cardboard signs "Homeless. Please help." Sad. Very sad. I don't stop. No one stops. Sad. Please pray for these individuals...

I got some alone time this week. Me time. Very much missed. I haven't had alone time in a long time. My time is always spent with someone else in tow. Which doesn't really bother me that much since I love people, but sometimes I just need to breathe!

I had to go to Pensacola on Monday to go to the Field Office to get my new computer setup as it was my first day as full-time employee with the company! Woo!! BUT...tell me this. Why does it take over an hour and a half to drive 5o miles? Crazy. The drive is very boring and seems longer than that. But I got to listen to some radio and blare it and sang really loud. I got some great looks. People were probably thinking "oh, those poor children in that minivan...their mama is crazy!" Well, I was alone so I really didn't care! :) It was nice to do whatever I wanted even if for a few brief hours. The office was completely empty - no one there. It was nice and quiet. I might just have to sneak over there occassionally to get some peace and quiet!

When I got into Pensacola there were cop cars on the sidewalks outside the Civic Center - I was like "what is going on here today?" No one was really coming or going and so I thought nothing of it. The same police officer was outside on his walkie talkie when I left town with the same cars on the sidewalks. Strange.

I learned the next day that the President of the United States was there. Nice! Way to go! I was within parking lot distance of the President and didn't even know it. I totally would have gone if I had known. I need to pay more attention!! I actually almost called Brian to see if he could find out what was going on to see if it was worth stopping by for. Man! What a missed opportunity!

I was totally overwhelmed while driving home from the commissary yesterday. I was listening to the radio and this song came on that I am familiar with, but apparently I was listening differently yesterday. I was listening to the words and just became overwhelmed. I have heard several different recordings of this song - yesterday's particular artist was Avalon.

In Christ alone my hope is found
He is my light, mystrength, my song
This Cornerstone, this solid ground
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm
What heightsof love, what depths of peace
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease
My Comforter, my All in All
Here in the love of Christ I stand

In Christ alone, who took on flesh
Fullness of God in helpless babe
This gift of love and righteousness
Scorned by the ones He came to save

'Till on that cross as Jesus died
The wrath of God was satisfied
For every sin on Him was laid
Here in the death of Christ I live

There in the ground His body lay
Light of the world by darkness slain
Then bursting forth in glorious Day
Up from the grave He rose again

And as He stands in victory
Sin's curse has lost it's grip on me
For I am His and He is mine
Brought with the precious blood of Christ
No guilt in life, no fear in death
This is the power of Christ in me
From life's first cry to final breath
Jesus commands my destiny

No power of hell, no scheme of man
Can ever pluck me from His hand
'Till He returns or calls me home
Here in the power of Christ I'll stand

Kasey amazes me! Less than 3 weeks ago he only had 2 teeth with no prospect of new ones and could not crawl. He is now able to crawl EVERYWHERE, able to sit him self up from lying down AND has 2 more teeth poking through.

I put him in his crib with a few toys this morning so I could take a quick shower and when I got out, he was standing in his crib rocking back and forth! So now he can pull himself up to standing with no help and apparently likes to dance. :) He had a big old cheesy grin on his face. Guess it's time to lower the crib mattress...

We had Katie's 3 year appt yesterday. She is so big!! She now weighs 35.5 lbs and is 39.25 inches! She is in the 90th percentile for both height and weight. Wow! I can't believe she is 3 years old already!

Just thought I would share some pics of the kids from Halloween!

Our week in Colorado was full of work and play :) I went to the office every day to do some training with 2 of our new team members. If you know me at all, you know that I get pretty darn chatty when with people. So, while I might not have trained as much as maybe I should have, I did get a chance to learn a lot about our new team members and got to meet several individuals that I have been working with, but had not had the chance to meet face to face. The good thing is that our new team members are fantastic and I didn't really have much to teach them. They have been learning over the past few months so I was happy to give them some small projects. I need to reduce some of my workload...but anyway..

It was nice to stay with Jennie and her family and meet my newest neice! She looks so much like Brooke - it is crazy! I will post some pictures soon! We got some snow while we were out there and Kasey wasn't really sure what to think of it. hehe! Katie wanted to build snowman and roll around in it and what not. But it melted far too quickly. Shucks!

The kids were amazing during the trip. Their schedules had changed dramatically and they were shuffled to different places every day for day care. They did WELL! We didn't get as much sleep during the nights as we would have liked since all 3 of us shared a bed. I love to snuggle with my kids, but they don't love to snuggle with each other, so they kept trying their best to shove me off the bed. It was great!

It was so nice to spend time with friends and family. I love going into the office and spending time with my coworkers. It gets tough not being able to see them all the time. But, I have been telecommuting for over 4 years now, so I am pretty used to it.

Katie's eczema flared up pretty bad while we were out there. I suspect that the dry air played a pretty big part. Her skin had some pretty bad spots and it felt like sandpaper. BLAH! I wish they had some sort of wonder cream that would keep it away! Her 3 year well child appt is this week and I am going to aks the doc if he can prived some more helpful hints...maybe see if we can be referred to an allergist or something. I am also a bit concerned about her pale pale skin! She is like a ghost! She spends hours out in the sun almost every day and she has no color. It just seems odd to me.

We were able to attend church while out there. I always enjoy going to church out there. I feel like Pulpit Rock is really our home church. I know we only attended there for a short time while we lived out there, but I just feel so welcome there and Armin is such a wonderful speaker! Scott is such a wonderful musician and his song selection is always perfect! That might be the biggest thing I miss about Colorado (other than family and friends of course!!)

Wow...things have been so busy! This is bound to be a HUGE blog, so please bear with me and stay tuned until the end!!! (There may end up being multiple posts so please check back!)

Saturday, Oct 14 - the kids and I loaded up our stuff and headed to the Pensacola airport. As you may know, Brian is very punctual. We got to the airport VERY early and had time to sit down at the terminal restaurant and have some lunch before we took off. There was a very sweet elderly woman sitting next to us with her mother. They were watching the plane that was carrying the daughter of the younger of the two women. It was her first plane ride at the age of 37. She has down syndrome and was going to visit her sister. Touching story...she was so excited!

So, we are waiting to board and just as they call for "early boarding for passengers with small children" I catch a whiff of something stinky. Needless to say, we had to head to the bathroom to get Katie changed. Lovely. We ended up being the last to board the plane..we were in row 19 out of 19. People were not pleased to see the big old mama with her two small children, 3 carry on bags, a stroller and a car seat be the last to board. These people must have been in a hurry. The stewardess was less than friendly and would NOT help me with my baggage. After I had gotten us situated, she said to me "We cannot possibly take off with the bags under your seats like that!" OK - sooooooooooooooooooooory! So everyone around me was quick to help. One bag went here another there and another over somewhere else. OK. All set! Let's get this thing off the ground!

Take off was great - Katie got a little freaked out at first, but I was able to distract her with some songs from her favorite shows. The lady sitting next to us offered to hold Kasey while I made his bottle. She was so sweet. She was about 20, just married to a man who had just joined the Navy. Kasey was flirting...I better keep an eye on him!

We were about 45 minutes into the flight and the lady says to me..."ummm....is he peeing on your leg?" Yep. Nice. The sad thing is I didn't even feel it! What does that mean?! A few minutes later, he proceeded to spit up all over me. Ok - mental note...do not feed Kasey immediately when you get on the plane. Check.

We changed the diaper super fast while we were sitting in those tiny little chairs. The woman next to me was amazed. It's funny the things you can do when you become a mom. I never knew I possessed such super powers!

Kasey just spit up all over me again - this time he got not only my shirt, but my pants and shoes. Lovely. He's not much of a spitter, but boy when he does it, he does it RIGHT!

OK...time to land. (I hate the landing...it always feels like you are going WAY too fast!) Breathe. It's wet...ok. This will be fine. "Katie, you might feel a little bump. It's normal. Don't be scared." It's ok if I am freaking out on the inside, right? Just don't let Katie see that I am weak...

Phew! We made it.

I think there were at least 6 people offering to help me. HOW NICE! And they were all like "I don't know how you do it!" Truthfully people, I don't know either! This is my first plane ride with kids...we'll see how we do the rest of the trip especially after our 3 1/2 hour layover in Houston! People took my bags off the plane so I could grab the kids. It was nice. Some of you may ask how I could be so naive to accept help? I figure, what's important is either tucked into my carry on or I am holding on tight so if anything vanishes from the other bags, it is replaceable. That was my rationale. And I've learned that it is OK to trust people in certain situations. There aren't a lot of places for people to run as you are getting off an airplane...now once you hit the terminal that's another story...

There were so many wonderful people offering assistance. So, picture this...Me. Kasey in a little baby carrier attached in front of me. A 40lb backpack holding 2 laptops, a bunch of DVDs, cell phones, keys, money, boarding passes, random cables...pushing Katie in a little umbrella stroller. 3 bags draped over the handle bars of the stroller and carrying a BIG car seat. OK, people. If you are NOT laughing, you should be. I am sure I was quite the sight to see!

OK...3 1/2 hour layover. What to do. WHAT to doooo...let's call Brian. Hi. We are in Houston...I have a bunch of stuff that I am carrying. Kasey peed, spit up on me...blah, blah, blah...talk to you soon.

3 hours and 25 minutes to go...tick tock tick tock. Ok, let's walk around. (because it's fun to push and carry all this stuff around!) Bad idea. Ok, let's get Katie a little book to read or color for the next flight. WOO! SpongeBob SquarePants Sudoku with stickers! What a novel idea! :) (I think I left this at Jennie's house - Jennie, if you see it, please send it back. Brian would like to see it.)

3 hours to go. Let's go to the bathroom. Diapers changed, bladders empty...let's go fill up on food. So many restaurants. We choose McDonald's. Blah. Katie spills her milk on the floor, then proceeds to slip and fall in it SEVERAL times. I did try to clean it up. Honestly! Brand new shoes look like she's had them for years. Nice.

OK...2 hours to go! BLAH! We just sit there at McDonald's and watch all the people come through security. Everyone looks so crabby! Well, I for one am glad they take all the security measures they do. It's not hard to take your shoes off and have your bags x-rayed. And it really doesn't take that long. We probably had 4 times as much stuff as most people and it only took us like 7 minutes. Not long in the grand scheme of things and if it protects us, I say - way to go!!

All right, countdown! We got wait at the gate. There is a small family there with a 2 year old boy. Katie hits it off with him right away...go figure. They watched Little Mermaid on one of my computers while we waited. Perfect time to feed Kasey again. No spitting up on me this time, mister!

Both kids fell asleep as were taxiing. Nice. The rest was much needed for both of them and I even got to dose off for a bit. It made for a short flight!

This flight was fabulous - little turbulence when we got closer to the mountains. It was raining and cold when we got there and I LOVED it! After getting all our stuff gathered and made the phone calls to Brian and Jennie, we made it to Jennie's house about 9pm. A little later than I had hoped, but it was nice to be there!

Cathy and Rebecca were there so we got to visit with them for a while. As soon as we got in the house Katie disappeared with Brooke. I wasn't surprised. She just loves those girlies :) They played with the hamster, I told funny stories to Jennie and Cathy. Talked to Brian again and then we went to bed!! It was a long day, but we only spent about 4 hours in the plane. It would have taken us at least 24 hours to drive...

I will post more as soon as I can!!

We ate lunch at Olive Garden yesterday. Mmmm. We were all pretty hungry so we decided to order some appetizers. We ended up ordering the appetizer that inlcuded 3 items. It included the mozzarella cheese sticks (shaped like triagles), chicken fingers and stuffed mushrooms. We weren't sure about the stuffed mushrooms, but thought we would give them a try. Turns out neither Brian nor myself were big fans. So we offered them up to Katie - she's always up for something new. She looked at them and said "Is that snails?!" Hahaha....snails....

Be sure to stop by Chris's blog and wish him a happy birthday! He turns the big 3-0 today! :) Yay!!!

Wow...this week was full of work, work, work! I can't believe it is already Friday!

I found out that I will be flying out to Colorado Springs to train a couple of our new employees in a couple of weeks. It will be nice to spend some time in the office with my coworkers! I really love Colorado Springs so any chance I have to make it out there I've just got to take. (I'll be sure to take pictures!) And it's also fabulous that Brian's whole family is out there so I am going to be bringing the kids with me. I really don't think they would welcome me into their homes if I didn't bring my children with me. :) Hehe. So this will be Katie and Kasey's first ever plane ride. The tickets have been purchased so there is no turning back at this point. We are flying. We will be spending approximately 4 hours inside an airplane versus 24 hours inside my mini-van. I am just a little nervous about how Katie is going to react. I am getting her all excited to get in the plane and she even said to Auntie Jennie this afternoon "I am coming to visit you, Auntie Jennie! And I am going in an airplane! With mommy and with Kasey!" I am worried that she is going to get freaked out during the take off and landing portions (and of course if there is any turbulence). So I am opting to give her some dramamine. It might make her a bit drowsy, but that's ok! I'll take drowsy over screaming hysterically any time!

I received a job offer today that I couldn't possibly pass up! I will be doing my current job, but instead of being a contractor, I will be an employee of the company that I do projects for. I actually am not sure of the start date as HR has to work out a few things and we have to follow a certain process to get everything rolling. At least the transition will be easy. :-) I won't have to learn anything new which is fabulous. And I got a fairly large pay increase so you will hear no complaints out of me!

Katie accompanied me to the commissary this afternoon. On our way, I was flipping through the radio stations and stopped on "Stairway to Heaven". Katie says "I love this song! This is my favorite song!"

Haha...I think this was honestly the first time she had ever heard it. What a goof!

This week has been crazy! I have been so busy with work this week - but it really made the time fly by!

I found out Monday morning that I did not get the job I had applied for a few weeks ago. But it's really ok because the person it went to is totally qualified and will do a great job. If it would have gone to someone that I felt was less than competent, I may have been disappointed.

Brian re-caulked the bathtub this weekend. Woo hoo! It was getting kind of gross...we thought we might have a mold problem as it appeared that the last person who caulked did NOT remove the caulk behind it and it was disgusting. But Brian did a great job of cleaning it out and applying the new caulk. It looks fabulous :)

Sadly, we had an issue with water dripping from the shower down to the kitchen and now have a big hole in the ceiling. Thankfully, the maitnenance guys were on duty this evening so we called and they came right over and fixed the leak. WOO! Now, they are going to give it a few days before fixing the hole in the ceiling to make sure the problem is fixed. I can live with that. At least it is no longer dripping!

Something I noticed...

We have been running across a lot of Vince Vaughn movies recently and have noticed that in every single one, he uses the word phenomenal. Pay attention the next time you watch a movie with Vince Vaughn in it - he'll probably say it!

We have encountered numerous creatures during the past week...

Sunday - I woke up super early on Sunday to get some work done and took a peek outside just after the sun rose. There was a rather large coyote just hanging out right outside our fence. Maybe it was waiting for me to let Dash out again...it looked a bit hungry.

Monday - I woke up, got showered, dressed and got Kasey ready for the day. We went downstairs and when we hit about the third step from the bottom, I saw a big old nasty cockroach. Eeeeeeeeek! I thought...ok, I will let Dash out of his crate and let him go to town on it. So I put Kasey down in his exersaucer and let Dash out. He didn't want any part of it. Ok. What do I have here that I can throw at it or on it? Hmmm....oooh! A new pack of Katie's pullups. WHAM! Nope - missed. Hmm...oooh! There is one of Brian's big old boots - WHAM! Nope - missed again. (see a trend here?) OK, one more boot...WHAM! Nope - missed again. Now it's under the hutch. Great. Like I am going to try to get it out from under there. Ha!

Katie wakes up about this time and so I go up there and get her ready for day care. We come downstairs and I warn her of the roach. She doesn't want any part of it either so she opts to eat her breakfast in the front room. Fine by me!

Ok, Katie is at day care...keeping my eye out for the cockroach. It's gotta come out eventually, right? Tick tock, tick tock...THERE IT IS!! OK, time to kill the dang thing! Alright, let's see...ooh! Another pair of shoes, let's try those again. This time I stand on the couch so I can try to hit it from above. (Ha!) Shoe #1....WHAM! Close, but no cigar! Shoe #2 - WHAM! Woo hoo!! It's not dead, but it is severly injured. Ok, what else? Hmmm...oooh! A big notebook. OK, Ready....Aim....DROP! YAY!!!!! Perfect drop. OK...that does it for me. Unless I see it crawling around again, I am going to wait for Brian to come home and dispose of it. I did the hard part, right?

Tuesday - We have had this tree frog hanging out on our window almost every night. He is back. Tonight he has a visitor! A praying mantis - cool....

Wednesday - After I pick Katie up from day care, we are getting home and Katie says "Mama, there's a huge cockroach on the door!!" No, there wasn't. Phew! It was just one of the BILLIONS of lizards that hang out around our house...no biggie. I will just spray it off the door with the hose. I know it sounds mean, but would you want to touch it? No, thank you!

Thursday - The praying mantis is back! Not the best picture. I took it from inside the house through the window, but you get a pretty good idea. Sad thing is that it died later on that evening. Not sure how or why. Maybe it was a female that just laid some eggs...

Friday - We saw a couple of Blue Jays outside. Those were pretty cool. And of course the billions of lizards and other random bugs. There are a TON of

Katie's impression of my standard photo pose...

mmmmmmmmmmm............sweet potatoes anyone?

Katie got some new toothpaste today. (Aquafresh for kids Bubble Gum flavor) We were tucking her into bed tonight and I told Brian that she had used her new toothpaste. So he asked to smell her breath (he's too trusting) so she exhaled her hot breath so he could smell it. She proceeded to tell him "It smells stripey!"

Hahahahaha...

Today is my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday!!!!!!!! We will call you a little later as Katie really wants to tell you happy birthday. ;) Have a great day!

Kasey cut his second tooth during the night! Wow!

Kasey has officially cut his first tooth! We noticed it below the gums last week and have been keeping an eye on it and it broke through the gums sometime in the middle of the night. Wow! His first tooth cut so much faster than Katie's did. It seemed like it took months for her first tooth to cut. She was 9 months old when she cut her first tooth. Needless to say, he was a bit moody today as I am sure he was in pain. But he still smiled 95% of the time he was awake. :) I'll try to get a picture of it, but it may be a few weeks before he lets me. Hehe...

Well, it seems that either no one wanted to post a guess or my parents are the only ones who read my blog!! Hehe...

Well, BDM, you are absolutely correct! You nailed it. We can always tell when Katie has eaten enough food when she strips down and runs up and down the hall screaming. You get a cookie... Thanks for playing!

How can you tell if Katie has eaten a good dinner?

A. She politely says "I'm done. Please, may I be excused?"
B. She says "I want some dessert!"
C. She pushes her plate away and just leaves the table.
D. She runs down the hall, takes off her clothes and then proceeds to run up and down the hallway screaming.

Post your guess in the comments area. The correct answer will be posted tomorrow (Monday) evening.

The lucky winner(s) will receive nothing :)

Katie has a new friend, Joey. He is not real. It's her first imaginary friend. I don't remember if I ever had an imaginary friend...

I found out about him yesterday and forgot to tell Brian about it so I let Katie tell him all about it. Their conversation went a little like this...

You have a friend named Joey?
Uh huh!

What does Joey look like?
A bunny. He has big ears!!

What color is Joey?
Silver. (pronounced like swiwver)

Where is Joey?
Over there. (pointing behind the couch)

Is Joey a boy or a girl?
A boy.

Katie likes to carry him around with her and she gets mad when he gets to her room before she does. She says "Joeeeeey! You are naughty! That's my room!" Hahaha...

I forgot to post Kasey's 6 month stats.

He weighed in at 17lbs, 12oz and 26 3/4 inches. He is finally in the 50th percentile for both height and weight. He is a little butter bean :)

He was also diagnosed with eczema. His isn't nearly as extreme as Katie's and maybe we can get ahead of it this time around. I do have to say that Katie's skin has gotten much better since being here in Florida.

Ok...I have been too busy lately and have not had time to update this as much as possible. I will try to be better at posting, even if it is a 1-liner or something.

Things that have been going on during the past few weeks...

We took the bed rail off of Katie's bed because we think she is finally able to sleep in her bed without falling out. It has been just over 3 weeks and she has not fallen off yet - phew! She woke up in the middle of the night and her feet were hanging over the side, but she hadn't fallen off yet. Woo hoo!

The day after I chopped all my hair off, Katie thought it would be fun to attempt her own haircut. So, she found some scissors upstairs while she was supposed to be taking a nap and snipped it off! We ran to the mall for an emergency haircut and it is super cute. I will post some pics soon!

I was upstairs nursing Kasey early Thursday afternoon and I started to smell gasoline...I started walking down the stairs and noticed that the back door was open. Not good. The smell was getting stronger and stronger. Katie was outside pouring gasoline out of the gas can for the lawn mower - nice!!!!!!!!!! So, I got her inside and bathed her real quick, called Brian to come assess the situation and we all left the house for a while to let the smell wear off. Well, it was still bad when we got back home so I had the Pine Sol out went to town scrubbing down any surface Katie may have touched. I sprayed off the patio out back in the areas that Katie said she poured the gas and got the smell under control. Man, I guess we need to keep her on a leash!! We are definitely not scoring any "Parents of the Year" points this year...

Katie has been using terrible table manners at day care - doesn't use a fork and puts her feet on the table. Oh, and of course the whole yelling when she is told to do something she doesn't want to do. It's lovely. So we have been working with her on those items pretty heavily the past few days and she is starting to oblige. Phew! I think part of the problem is the size of the toddler size forks - they are either too big, too small, or just plain shaped weird and won't stab the food. If you know of a good place to buy toddler size forks, please let me know!

Have a great weekend!!!!

Well, we had to make a Sam's run today. It's getting to be that time of year for colds to strike and Katie has caught her first cold of the season. She used about a box and a half of kleenex yesterday so we needed to run to Sam's to load up. We like to buy the 8 pack of the big boxes...doesn't really last that long around here as there are a lot of stuffy noses.

So while at Sam's I decided I might as well stock up on a few other things. Diapers. What can I say...I have bought many diapers in my days and today I saw a deal I couldn't pass up. Normally, I like to buy the Pamper's Baby Dry box of 160. Today...I actually purchased a Huggies box of 200 for the same price. TWO HUNDRED! That is a lot of diapers! Great deal. Brian was like - are you sure you need that many? Ummm....yes. Kasey likes to poop and I'd prefer that he did it in a diaper versus some random spot on the carpet or in his exersaucer or whatever. 200. Wow. He will probably be out of that size by the time we finish. Hehe.

We didn't do a whole lot of other things today...I scrubbed the kitchen down. Yippee. Talked to mom and dad because Katie wanted to call. She is such a munchkin! I had received the CUTEST message on my answering machine today from my niece Brooke. She said she needed to "discuss" a few things with me...haha! She really cracks me up.

Have a great Labor Day weekend!!!!!!!!!!

OK...some photos!

My new hairdo - yes, I admit I look a little like I've had one too many cups of coffee, but let's face it...I make this face a lot and one day my eyes might just actually pop out of my head! Oh, and I took the picture myself...guess I won't be trying that again.

Dash is getting big...just look at him compared to that shovel!

Kasey was laughing pretty good for this picture!

Ok...so the floater story has been out there way too long...it's time for an update.

Kasey is 6 months old now and is getting bigger and blonder every day. He weighs about 18 pounds now - can you believe it? Wow! He is sitting up really well and thinks he wants to crawl. But...he just can't quite grasp the concept yet. He grunts and then moves like 2 inches at a time. He sticks his little butt up in the air and moves like an inch worm. Hehe!

He enjoys eating oatmeal cereal (not a fan of the rice cereal at all!), green beans and just can't get enough carrots! He loves to make a mess and get food everywhere! Dash will soon learn that his chair is the one to sit under, not Katie's!

Katie started day care on Monday and absolutely loves it. She has been doing crafts and bringing them home. They are so cute! I know that soon our house will be overrun with crafts and other random projects. I am going to have to invest in some quality keepsake boxes...

It has been easier for me in the mornings to get work done with the quiet in the house. Dash doesn't quite know what to do without Katie. He runs around looking for her and whining for about 30 minutes then camps out in his bed until she gets home. Kasey has been napping quite nicely while she is gone and I have been able to enjoy listening to music while I work versus the child proramming on Noggin. Which actually doesn't bother me too much anyway...I am still a kid at heart and don't know if I will ever officially grow up! (I think I inherited that from my dad...)

It has been raining almost daily again, but we didn't have any power outages this week. Phew! Katie tends to get scared when the power goes out. It's a good thing it usually comes back on within a few minutes.

I have some pictures I will probably add tomorrow - some of the kids, my newest niece, the dog, my new hairdo. Yes, I chopped it off again. I just needed to do it! Brian doesn't like to pose for pictures. I am going to have to try to think of creative ways to get some pictures...

Tonight was Katie's bath night. She played for a while and it was just about time to wash her. She told me she was going to tooter. I was expecting bubbles...

...and then there it was.

A floater.

She had pooped in the bathtub.

Nice...

I had to laugh. It was the first time she had done it and it freaked her out. Poor little thing...

I was pleasantly surprised yesterday when the fedex guy knocked on my door. He delivered a box of flowers to me. I had no idea who flowers would be from. It turned out they were from some of my coworkers - my Team Leads to be exact. They were fighting for me to be Employee of the Month, but I guess I lost out to someone else, and they wanted to send me some flowers to show their appreciation of my hard work. That was nice! They sent a dozen roses - they are a peachy/orange color. They are a light red around the bottoms of the petals and fade into orange toward the top. They are very pretty and have gotten so huge. What a nice surprise!

I haven't had much to blog about lately..

Work has been keeping me pretty busy. It seems that when one fire gets put out, 2 or 3 more pop up. Oh, well...keeps me honest!

We met with a day care provider on Friday to start Katie in part time day care. She is just too bored with me here and needs some kids to play with. She loves to learn and I can't spend the time I need to during the day to help her. Not to mention that she needs some "germ exposure". She is almost 3 and has only been sick a handful of times. I think she needs to catch some stuff now so that she doesn't miss out on half of Kindergarden catching everything then. Not that I want her to bring everything home to Kasey, so we'll see...

Not much else for now...I will try to hae somethig new this week! If not, have a great week!

I was looking through some of the images I have saved on this computer today and thought I would share some of them with you!

This is the first picture that was taken of Kasey when he was born. Look at those chubby cheeks!

Here is my grandma with my nephew Owen. I think my dad sent this to me. This is a great picture!

Katie thought she needed to hang out in a Rubbermaid tote at Jennie's house. Haha!

I am taking Katie in for a haircut tomorrow (she is definitely due for a trim) and I am thinking about chopping my hair off again. It's gotten to the point once again where it gets put in a pony tail day in and day out. So, I guess it's time for the old chop, chop again. Funny thing...so we got an Old Navy ad in the mail yesterday and this is what got me thinking about cutting my hair off. There was this woman in the ad with the cutest hair style and I thought to myself that that would look fabulous on me. Haha! So we shall see...

Update - I decided against the haircut for the time being. I am looking into donating my hair to Locks of Love so I will need to grow it out a couple more inches to meet the minimum length.

It has been raining a lot this week! We need the rain! Everything is green and beautiful! This morning the thunder was super loud. I kept hearing car alarms going off. Hehe. I was very surprised it didn't wake the kids up.

Dash is not a big fan of wet grass...or even better, the rain. I think he thinks he is going to melt if he gets wet. So I had a lot of fun standing out there with him this morning to make sure he went potty. Come ON! It's just rain, you little runt!

I've done 17 loads of laundry since Monday...how is that possible?? There are 2 adults and 2 very small children in this house. I just don't get it... Thank goodness for the big jugs of laundry detergent and fabric softener from Sam's!

Brian's sister called us this morning a little after 6:00 to share the good news! They have a healthy little baby girl born this morning at 3:30. She is 6 pounds, 6 ounces and has little blonde curly hair. YAY! I don't have any more information now, but will be sure to share when I know more.

UPDATE!!!
I have learned that she is 19 inches long and her name is Elizabeth Joelle. :) CONGRATS Brian & Jennie!!

Happy Birthday to Big Daddy Mills!!

Today is my dad's birthday - stop by the comments section and send him your own birthday wishes :)

The kids and I had to run to the post office to send off a couple of packages the other day. After we were done we decided to stop by Brian's office quick because Katie just had to see her daddy. :) On our way to the office Katie says to me - Mama, there's an ant on the back of the chair. OK, whatever. She says it again only a bit louder this time and sounds a bit freaked out. We will kill it when we stop, OK? OK.

So we get to the office and are getting out of the vehicle. Katie is telling me that the "ant" is crawling up the chair. Ok, fine. Let me get a kleenex and come over and get it. I don't see it...

It's right there!

Nope, still not seeing it.

....and there it is - the biggest cockroach I have ever seen hanging out on the passenger side seat belt. EEEEKKKK!!!! (Have I mentioned that there are a ton of bugs in Florida and that I have a small bug phobia??) So I encourage Katie to jump out of her chair without disturbing the cockroach of course. So she gets out and tells me to kill it. Yeah...I'll get right on that. It's only 900 degrees outside, the humidity is unbearable and I totally have the heebee jeebies.

We close and lockup the van and temporarily forget about the cockroach...

Brian is in a meeting and we conveniently disturb it. Aww...everyone likes a "cute kid" break, right? I proceed to inform Brian about the cockroach HINTING that I would very much like it if he would come out and kill it. He flatly declines. Thanks, hon!

I decide to be brave. I am going to kill the cockroach. OK...I have my paper rolled up and ready. You are going to get it Mr. Cockroach! Any minute now...breathe...

OK...and..SMACK!! Oops! missed...dang! Not trying that again...

I take the kids back into Brian's office and kindly ask the first young airman I see if he could do me a favor. He politely accepts without question. I handed him my rolled up paper and wished him luck. Apparently he does not suffer from a bug phobia - thank goodness! He flicks it out of the van and squishes it with his steel-toed boot. THANK YOU!! He was my hero for the day.

Here are some updated photos of my little munchkins! :)

I don't have anything exciting to put out today. I've already worked over 20 hours this week and it's only Tuesday evening...I guess it's true what they say - when it rains, it pours.

Be sure to check out my bro's blog (millerzblog link on the right). He has started fresh with a new look. I will be checking frequently to see how the Miller's are doing. :)

I went for a short bike ride today because I had some time to kill before dinner and didn't want to do anything productive. It was nice! If I could, I might use it as my main form of transportation. Unfortunately, that won't happen because most times when I go anywhere the kids are both with me. Not that I am complaining! I am very blessed to be able to stay home with my children and watch them learn and grow every day. Not a lot of working moms get to do that!

Poor Katie is getting eaten up by the mosquitos - she has had a few bug bites the size of quarters on her legs...very bad. She loves to play outside with Dash, but the bugs out here must love her. Her arms and legs are covered in bites. Dash is apparently covered too...the other night he didn't sleep most of the night (which of course meant we didn't either) because he was itchy and crying. His back looked really creepy with all the raised bumps on his skin. Thankfully, the worst is over and he is now healing. That would be miserable.

I'll try to post a couple of pics of the kids this week. They are growing like crazy! :)

So I was plucking my eyebrows last night and I found my first gray eyebrow hair. Is that even possible? Can you be 28 and have random gray eyebrow hairs? Strange...

I am super excited and PROUD of myself - Brian and I have started eating healthier and doing a bit more routine exercise since Kasey was about 3 months old. (Can you believe that he will be 5 months old tomorrow already?!) Anyway, we went shopping and my pants have become quite loose so I decided to buy the next size down - guess what?? 2 of the pairs were too big and one fit just right - woo hoo! I just had to share! It makes me think that weight loss IS possible. You just have to work a little harder at it than maybe you are comfortable with. Currently, I am 16 pounds less than I was when I got pregnant with Kasey. Hopefully, I can continue to lose. I would like to lose an additional 13 pounds OR go down another size by the end of the year. Think good thoughts!!

Check this out! Pretty cool!

We got our bikes yesterday! They are FABULOUS! I've never had a bike with shocks before...very interesting. And might I add that it is actually comfortable to ride. The gel seat is awesome and while I only rode for a short amount of time yesterday, my butt is not at all sore today! Always a bonus...

Another American wins the Tour de France!

If you are a big NASCAR fan, you might enjoy reading this. I found it to be pretty funny!

Woo hoo! Our bikes are in at the shop and have been built! We are planning on picking them up today. I am excited! Sadly, I haven't ridden a bike in quite some time...but they say you never forget how to ride, right?

Tomorrow is my friend Karen's birthday - happy birthday, chica!!!!!

Brian and Jennie will be celebrating their wedding anniversary this weekend. I believe it has been 12 years!! Woo hoo!! They are expecting baby #3 any day now! The doctors are wanting it to stay put for another 2 weeks. Please keep Jennie and family in your prayers for a healthy delivery!

A 2 1/2 year old, a stick of butter and a dog...that's all I have to say...

These are quite possibly the world's most comfortable shoes... I saw that they had some specifically for diabetics...interesting.

So any of you that need some ideas for my birthday or Christmas gifts..I would LOVE more of these shoes!! Any color will do :) They are fabulous and I recommended them to everyone!

Have a great weekend!

Look at these little munchkins. Are my nieces cute in their ballerina costumes or what?

Katie cracks me up! We were eating lunch a bit ago and our conversation goes like this:

Mama, we need another boy.
We need another boy?
Yeah....ours is broken.
Kasey's broken, huh?
Yeah...he cries a lot.
Hehe...
We need a new boy, ours is broken!

Too funny!

Brian and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary on Saturday! We didn't do anything very special. We went over to Destin (this seems to be our weekend trend lately) and had lunch at O'Charley's. I have to say that it wasn't the best steak place. I have definitely had better. But the kids meal had a HUGE burger for a kid. Seriously, this thing was huge! Katie did pretty good and ate about half of it which we very surprised about. We did a little bit of shopping and ran over to Tropical Smoothie for some yummy smoothies. :) I guess we are bah-humbugs...nothing romantic on our list. We tried to get the Pay-Per-View UFC fight, but there were issues with our cable service. That is a story for another day...

I picked a million weeds out of my flower beds today and pruned my hyndrangea's out in the front of the house. They were really starting to look sad. Katie rode her little bike while I was doing this and had a blast. She has recently begun to pick out her own clothes everyday and pretty much refuses to wear what I would like her to wear. She does a pretty good job most of the time, but today she picked out a long sleeve olive green shirt with turquoise blue shorts. Lovely ensemble!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!!!!

Wow...I haven't had a new post for a while...we have been busier than expected I guess. Last weekend we enjoyed a 4-day weekend. Saturday was filled with running errands and window shopping. We went bike shopping and narrowed down our choices. We ordered them today! They should be at the store in about a week. Woo hoo!!!

Sunday was about the same as most Sundays...we went to the Commissary and spent way too much on groceries. But we did stock up on some more canned goods. I think Sam's needs to get more of a variety in some of their packs of canned goods. I don't want 12 cans of the same soup if I have to live off of it in the event that a hurricane rips through here and our power is out. But of course, my concerns aren't on the top of their list...hehe. We ended up running over to Sam's to pick up a few things anyway. You can never have too much toilet paper!

On Monday, we went shopping and got some GREAT deals for the kids at Carter's and the Gap. Katie was in sort of a bad mood while shopping so we didn't get to hit as many stores as I would have liked. But that's a good thing because I probably would have ended up just buying them more clothes for next summer. They should almost be all set for next year! Katie is getting so big...I am putting her in 4T and most of the time the stuff is too small - well, the shirts are anyway. Pants still seem a bit long on her, so I have been buying her 5T tops and 4T bottoms for next summer. I just hope they fit when the time comes!

Tuesday, we stayed at home and spent some time in the yard playing and what not. We watched an interesting event on ESPN. We also watched the space shuttle launch. Katie thought that was pretty cool! Brian made some AWESOME steaks that night and we got pretty eaten up by the bugs. Katie has so many bug bites on her legs, arms and face. Poor little thing! Brian had set up the telescope so we got to peek at the moon. Katie thought it was pretty cool. We didn't stay up late enough to see any fireworks...I guess we were pooped!

The rest of the week was pretty uneventful. BUT we did get Kasey in for his 4-month checkup. He weighs in at 15lbs, 10.5 oz - is 24.75 inches and his little noggin is 35cm. The nurse was asking me what I am feeding him - I said, "Cream, apparently!" He has gained 8 pounds in 4 months. That's pretty awesome! He's our short and round little man :)

I missed out on my 10 year high school reunion last weekend. It looked like everyone had a lot of fun. But I am pretty sure I would have been the only sober person there. I was able to look at a bunch of pictures that were taken there. It's amazing how much some people have changed in their appearances! I didn't even recognize a few people. Seriously! I wish I would have been able to make it out there, but driving with 2 very young children for a minimum of 24 hours driving time would have been near impossible for me. I hope to make the next one!

Yay! We have a fence! Thanks to our PCSing neighbors, we now have a fence - they gave it to us for free - that is the BEST price!!! Brian spent the entire day outside on Sunday putting up the fence. Sunday was VERY hot. He had Dash outside with him most of the day so he was pretty pooped and slept almost all day yesterday. Dash is so small that he can squeeze under the gates...we'll have to do something about that. He likes to go outside the gates and hang out just on the other side of the fence. What a goober!

Kasey is 4 months old now - can't believe it!! He can officially roll over from back to tummy. He demonstrated this quite nicely on our bed on Saturday - he was reaching for the big Gap bag I had placed on the bed - major sales going on at Gap and Old Navy in case you were interested! I got lots of GREAT deals!!! Anyway, Kasey apparently liked the Gap bag and was trying to grab it and so he rolled over trying to get it. Very cute...

It's hot outside. That's all I have to say about that.

Happy Anniversary to Chris and Mindy!!! 4 years of wedded bliss today! :) Let me know how Owen is doing with the tubes...

I got an email the other day saying that my 10 year high school reunion is 10 days away...well, now it is only 8 days away. I will not be attending. A 24 hour drive with 2 very small children in blistering heat...not my idea of a great time. It would be nice to see some of my old classmates...

Katie and I went on a walk last night...I pushed her in a stroller that she is really too big for. It was hot. I sweat like a hog! It felt like a really long walk, but turned out to be just over 2 miles...2 miles! It felt like at least 10. Bugs were out like crazy - naturally. Thank goodness for bug spray! But since I don't know how safe bug spray is for a nursing mama, I went with the long sleeve and pants to avoid bug bites. Worked great! But it was so darn hot! Welcome to Florida, eh?

Our anniversary is coming up! 6 years! We have decided on buying new bikes this year - strange anniversary gift, but it should be fun. I think Brian is going with an orange one and I am going with a pinkish/purple sparkly Schwinn! We are also going to be getting one of those trailer things for the kids so they can enjoy a family bike ride. And of course if we ride on base, bike helmets are mandatory. I hope I can find a cute one to match my bike! hehe...

So Katie's two (or tuna half as my dad says) and sometimes she doesn't speak clearly. Here are a few of my favorite things she says along with their translations...

smay rose = cinnamon rolls
shungebob pairspants = SpongeBob SquarePants
batch-er-a-shus = bad gracious (we think she says this because we say goodness gracious a lot)
chicka yiddow = Chicken Little

Here are some common sayings that escape her mouth...

"Hi! I'm two and a half!"
"Oh, Dash!"
"I'm pooooooopy!"
"5 minutes!!"
"Hup 2, 3 ,5, 4..." she says she gets this from Brooke :)
"I got sneezers, mama."

Kasey doesn't say a whole lot just yet, but he sure likes to drool! I can't wait to hear all the funny things that he will say when he gets to be "tuna half".

Wow...many of you have called/emailed/IMd me asking if we are in the middle of a hurricane. We are going to get lucky and miss this one! :) We have had some rain, but I don't really know if we are getting a bit of the tropical storm or if it is another storm blowing through here. Either way, I welcome the rain as it makes it easier for most of my flowers to survive. I tried to get quite a few that were "drought resistant", but there are several that have died due to the heat. Oh, well...lessons for next year I guess.

We purchased an exersaucer type toy for Kasey and he absolutely loves it! He just twirls himself around and around and plays with all the toys. I do believe he has broken each one in with mounds of drool. He has gotten quite talkative over the past week or so and it has been so fun listening to him. He makes me laugh!

Katie is just about as funny as ever! She has developed quite a skill of imitating people and pretty much anything that makes noise. She does a great impression of the dog and can also imitate Kasey quite well. hehe

I talked with my friend Jess yesterday! I haven't talked with her for quite some time. She is one busy lady! Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers as she is struggling to find a job. It is always nice to hear from old friends! I was thinking about how long I have known her and realized that we have been friends for 17 years! That is amazing! I don't feel like I am old enough to have known someone for that long...

Some of my favorite things...

Food:
Yogurt - my newest favorite is Yoplait® Light Apple Turnover
Chocolate!!
Strawberries with Splenda®
Peanut Butter

Drinks:
Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper
Smoothies
Water

Movies:
Office Space
The Sweetest Thing
13 Going on 30

TV Shows:
That 70s Show
CSI
Everwood (which aired the series finale last night...ugh!)
Gilmore Girls

Scents at Bath & Body Works®:
Cherry Blossom - new favorite
Peony
Jasmine Vanilla
Sweet Pea
Sun-Ripened Raspberry

Christian music artists:
Chris Tomlin
Steven Curtis Chapman
Josh Bates
Third Day
Avalon
MercyMe
Casting Crowns
many, many others

Hey...let's try something new. Post some of your favorite things in the comment section. I think it will be fun! :)

I went to bed last night just after 11:00. Kasey woke me up for the morning just after 5:00 and I brought him to bed with me to try to get him to go back to sleep for a little bit. Brian had gotten up to take a shower and get ready for work. He went downstairs to iron his uniform and he came back upstairs and said, "Sarah, can you please come downstairs with me for a minute? I have something to show you." I was like...hmmmm....so I started to get out of bed and he said, "Put some shoes on." So I thought - oh no! There's water all over the floor or something. So I get downstairs and Brian leads me to the kitchen where I see one of the strangest things I have ever seen. The glass on our oven door had completely exploded all over the kitchen floor!?! When did that happen? How did that happen? Why didn't I hear it? I have no clue...so it looks like I will be getting a new oven today. I just thought that was really strange. Thankfully, I was able to clean up the mess before Katie walked in there and stepped on the glass!

There was a Promotion Ceremony yesterday for those advancing in rank here on base. Brian was promoted to Staff Sergeant yesterday and Katie got all excited when Brian was up on stage. She said, "There's my daddy! Hi, Daddy!" It was cute. I wasn't able to get a good picture because the lighting was terrible in the theater where it was held. Brian is officially a Staff Sergeant now :) Yeah!!

Last thought for today - today is the official start of hurricane season. Think good thoughts for those of us who may be in the path of one some day...

We had a nice long weekend! I took the day off Friday as did Brian and we took the kids to the beach early in the morning to avoid the rush of beach go-ers. It was quite nice. Brian and Katie found a few hermit crabs while "swimming". I sat in my chair and read some of my book while Kasey sat in his car seat and slept. He likes the beach. hehe

Saturday we spent most of the day cleaning up the house. Oh, what fun! Katie and I sat in her pool for a couple of hours in the afternoon. She just loves the water. I wonder if she will be a swimmer like Brian. Brian put his new Florida license plate on his truck. He decided against the "Save the Manatee" plate and went with the Air Force one. I will probably do the same when it comes time to get new plates for the van.

On Sunday, I took Kasey in for his 3 month pictures. He looks so blonde in the pictures! I couldn't believe it when they popped up on the screen how blonde he looked. We got ready for the hurricanes in the afternoon. Well, at least partially. Hurricane season officially begins on June 1. So, we ran over to Sam's and stocked up on some water, canned goods, batteries, flashlights and things of that nature. We still need to get gas cans/water cans, gas and a generator. But at least we are somewhat prepared in case one hits us!

Yesterday was Brian's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRIAN! He woke up crabby as can be because the one thing he really wanted for his birthday was to sleep in. Well, the kids wake up by 6:00am every day and we were being loud yesterday so he couldn't sleep in. Sorry, honey! We drove around the base to find the beaches here on base and the camping areas and stuff. We were under several planes when they took off. That is still so cool! Then we ran over to Destin and went to Bass Pro Shops and had some lunch at the Tropical Smoothie. Yummy! After we got back home, Katie and I sat in her pool again for a couple of hours and we brought Kasey out to the pool for a few minutes after his nap. I think the water was just a tad bit too cold. He liked it for a few minutes then Katie started splashing so he got a little sour look on his face which told me he was done. It was very cute! Then I made some dinner and we sang "Happy Birthday" to Brian, had some VERY chocolate cake that I made and some chocolate ice cream (you can't have too much chocolate, can you?). Then it was up to the tub for the kids and finally bed time for us. I was pooped!

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Everyone in Florida has a pool in their backyard, right? Well, Brian stopped at the BX before coming home today and picked up a pool for our backyard. Katie was having a blast! She went over and invited the neighbor boys over, but the older one was too shy and the little one was still napping...

Here is a little picture of Kasey. He really is a happy little baby. He just loves everyone and smiles and smiles at everybody. He really likes to stare at his big sister and watch her run around being a silly little thing!

The other night after work we were at the BX to pick up a few things. We decided that neither of us wanted to cook so we ate over in the food court. While we were sitting there, an older gentleman came over and asked Brian if he was active duty. He replied, "Yes, sir!" The gentleman stuck out his hand to shake Brian's and thanked him for serving our country. He also gave him a Thank You card and in it he had written, "You're appreciated very much!!!! Serving our country, and helping to protect others makes you a remarkable person....someone truly worthy of our deepest gratitude."

I watched the gentelman hand out several of these Thank You cards and the reactions of each active duty service member was the same. They all got great big smiles on their faces and said "Thank you very much, sir!" Several members said to their spouses or whoever they were with, "That was very nice." A simple thank you goes a long way. That man sat there at his table filling out more cards and each time someone passed, he asked if they were active duty. The majority were, of course. He must have handed out a few dozen of those cards while we were sitting there. That man looked so happy.

For those of you who know Katie, know that she hardly ever leaves home without her yellow pillow. Well, yesterday the dog bit a big hole in it and it is now headed to the landfill. Goodbye, yellow pillow!

Today is my grandmother's 84th birthday! Happy Birthday, Grandma!

We had a nice weekend. We spent almost all of Saturday outside which was nice. Katie and I went to some garage sales in the morning and picked up an outdoor slide toy for $10. I thought it was a pretty good deal since the slide was in almost perfect condition. Then we planted a bunch of flowers in the back and Brian planted the grass plugs. Sadly, he had to give up on the beautiful grass he had been working so hard on because come July/August, the grass would have died due to the heat. So, he got some St. Augustine plugs since that is what the rest of the yard is. He is hoping to make it look the best that he can.

We were outside for the majority of the day from 8:00-3:00. I am happy to report that Katie is still the whitest little girl in Florida due to all the sunblock I rubbed on her.

We went to Olive Garden for dinner and Katie was just cracking us up. You know how you get all giggly when you are overtired? Well, Katie just gets plain silly! We were eating our appetizer and when we finished the waitress came over to take our plates. She got about 3 steps away and Katie yelled at her, "Hey! Give me my dinner back!" The people around us were all laughing as was the waitress. It was pretty funny. She said that again when the waitress took our food plates away.

Sunday was pretty lazy. The kids and I went to the commissary to get some groceries and Brian stayed at home to either take a nap or clean. He managed to clean and vacuum the front room. Thanks, honey! :) It's amazing how much sand we bring in on our shoes. Our carpet is always full of sand. Brian made some steaks for dinner and we finished that off with ice cream and a family walk around the area of base housing where we live. It was beautiful outside last night. The kids were both asleep by 8:00, I got the kitchen cleaned, finished up some last minute work stuff and went to bed. Kasey woke me up at about 4:00, but went back to sleep for a couple of hours, so it was nice.

Hope everyone has a great Monday!