KATY PERRY!!!

This had to be one of the funnest nights I've had in a long time!! Alesha, Stacie and I started our girls night at dinner and ended in the 12th row of the Katy Perry concert. It was a BLAST!!!

At the Cheekcake Factory. Not the best service that night, but oh so yummy. And it was Alesha's birthday :o)

Had to get a picture of her in every outfit. Here are most of the pictures, but not all.

The ET song

California Gurls

She sang Whitney Houston's song, I just wanna dance with somebody, and invited a big group to dance on the stage with her.

Doing a little free-style

Waking up in vegas

Peacock song

At the end of the concert. SO FUN!!

We had an amazing time! We were dripping with sweat and smiling like fools! It was a BLAST!!

1st Tooth!

BIG NEWS at our house...Tessa lost her first tooth!! She is pretty darn excited!

The Tooth Fairy was good to her as well...left her $3. (I wasn't there to monitor that, haha)

Harmons Lagoon Day

Every year Harmons, Steve's employer, has a big Lagoon day. They offer cheap tickets, free food, prizes and fun things for the kids to do on top of enjoying the rest of the park. This is the first time I've ever been able to go :o) I've always been pregnant in past years, haha. Anyway, we had a great day. One of the services offered was face painting and the kids were in heaven.

Our poodle, Tessa

And our scary vampire, Beckham. He cracks me up!!

Our big adventure of the day was when Tess decided to take off on her own and was lost for 45 min. Needless to say we were all stressed, scared and a touch angry. Thank heaven for good people who found her and took her to the security office. We had a good talk and cried and we thought we were good for the day. Then, what does the little diva do.....she takes off 3 more times!! What was she thinking?! When asked she told us that she had to go on her own because otherwise she knew we'd tell her no. Oh dear...what are we in for?

But in all it was a blast and something we will look forward to every year....as long as we have a leash for Tessa, haha

Really Not Good At This Anymore

So I am REALLY horrible at this blogging thing these days. Not sure why...life gets busy. Just wanted to say that all is well and give updates on what everyone is doing. Pictures will follow as soon as I can find my camera, haha
Steve- my wonderful husband is such a hard worker. He's working 2 jobs, so 50+ hours a week, and he still comes home and works hard on his "honey do" list. He's been happy to have played golf a few time this spring and has started playing early morning basketball with his brother and a few buddies. He's also excited to be riding in the MS 100 bike ride next month.
Laura- I've kept busy with the kids and keeping up with the house. Have found that I am IN LOVE with Zumba and attend classes 3 to 4 times a week. It's been a great stress release for me and fills my need to go dancing (since I have a husband that hates going dancing, haha). Steve and I also ran in The Race for the Cure at the beginning of the month (along with my sister). Steve finished in 23 min, a 7 min. mile. Em and I finishing in just under 30, a 9.5 min mile. For being the first time I'd really run all season, I feel pretty good about that. Other than that we've been busy with projects around the house, working on church callings and just figuring out how to make it through our days happily.
Tessa- She is becoming quite the little lady and quite the diva. Trying to find her place in the family and figuring out what the roll of the big sister is. She's my mani/pedi buddy and it's been fun to have our "date nights" together. She's very excited to begin kindergarten in August! I can't believe she's old enough to even go to school!
Beckham- he is my trial in life right now, haha! I love him dearly and he's a joy and so much fun when he's happy, but this little man has a side of anger and attitude that I couldn't even begin to tell you where it comes from. Beck is a daddy's boy for sure. He adores Steve and follows him everywhere, like a little puppy almost. I am grateful for the glimpse of the funny, happy guy every now and then just take his other side one fit at a time. I can only pray this is something he'll grow out of.
Will- he is my doll! But he too has his moments where I feel I could give him away and not feel bad about it, haha! It's so fun to watch him figure out new things. He's a champ at walking now and tries his hand at running, which is pretty funny to watch. He loves to play with Tess and Beck and, I'm happy to say, they are really great about including him in their games. He's figured out that he LOVES being outside and he will try to ride and/or push anything he sees that has wheels on it.
In all, our family is doing well. Each day is a new adventure...sometimes good, sometimes bad. But we do our best the manage through. I am grateful to be a mother and thankful to have a wonderful man in my life to share all the joys and heartache that we're hit with. We feel so blessed and happy to be in our home and in the neighborhood we're in. We are surrounded by wonderful friends and family. And though we (I) may try and find it, we have no reason to complain, life is good :o)

Miss Maddie

This is the newest addition to our family! She's a mini schnauzer and her name is Maddie. She's been a doll, so far. Loves to be with the family and is great with the kids. Has done really well with potty training and is getting there with the kennel training. She's not a barker, thank heaven...unless she's in her kennel and that only last about 5 min. and then she's done when told to be quiet. We're loving having her in our family...
Now, some of you may be thinking...wait, don't they already have a dog? Well, we did. 2 previous dogs in fact, haha. So I'm going to clear the air on this before you hear the "untrue" tales of what happened from my husband or someone else, haha! When we got married we bought a mini schnauzer, Eli. He was great. But I got pregnant and was hormonal and emotional and we were moving in with my parents and we had to get rid of him. Always felt like that was a mistake, but it is what had to happen. About 3 years later we got another dog, Wally. He was a Yorkie/bichon mix. He was so cute, but had SOOOOOOO many issues. We found out about the time he was 1 that he came from a puppy mill and was inbreed, which explained a lot. But his issues were too much for me to handle with 2 toddlers and a newborn, so we sold him at the beginning of 2010. So here we are with Maddie :o) It feels like a great fit and with having our own home and a great, fenced backyard we're looking forward to all the fun and love that a new puppy/dog will bring to our family.

BIRTHDAYS!

February is a big month for our family :o) We have Tessa and Will's birthdays, 2 days a part. Tessa turned 5 (on the 6th) and Will turned 1 (on the 4th). I can't believe I have a 5 year-old nor can I believe that my baby is 1!

At 5, Tessa is a very much our little/big girl. She's the second mom and a great help (when she wants to be, haha). She's full of giggles, songs, dances, make-believe, and sass! 100% girl! We're so grateful to have her in our family...not sure what I'd do without my Tessie :o)

At 1, little man Will is pretty much the ruler of the house, haha! His mood often directs mine and then in turn the household. He's such a love bug and has the best smile and laugh, but is often a very serious child with a furrowed brow and deep stares. He's got 8 teeth and is a part-time walker...I think crawling is still faster for him to get where he needs to go. He LOVES his brother and sister and adores the family pet(s). He's been a great eater and of course loves any kind of treat...though he wouldn't touch his birthday cake, haha! Though he's been my toughest baby, I wouldn't trade even the worst days with him. Love you Wilbur man!!

(note: Wilbur is just a nickname, haha)

We're still here

So, it's been FOREVER since I've posted. There feels like there's been a lot going on, but I'm having a hard time figuring out what has taken up all my time. So, I'm just gonna give a run down of last year and make a promise to make at least one blog post a month in 2011. Here goes...

We started off our year (2010) with Steve being busier than ever doing rotations for his last year of school. It was rough, he wasn't around a lot and I was 8 months pregnant.
In February we welcomed Will into our lives and have loved every minute he's been in our family. Even though he has been the hardest baby we've had yet, haha. Will turns 1 in a few weeks and I can't believe how fast time has flown by.
March came and with it a contract on our very first home. It felt like such a grown up moment for us! And we can't believe that it all worked out.
Come May it was time for Steve's graduation from Pharmacy school. He and I and Will flew out to Erie, PA and were joined by Steve's parents and brother, Wayne. It was such a great week. What an accomplishment for Steve and our family!
June brought a new job for Steve. Working as a pharmacist at Harmon's grocery store. And the closing off and moving into of our new home. There aren't many things in my life where every time I look at them or think of them, I repeat to myself how grateful I am for it/them...but our home for sure makes that list.
Our summer brought a lot of fun! Lots of swimming and family time. Steve got/killed his first dear during the bow hunt in August. And Gracie, our kitty, joined our family in August as well. Steve and his dad and brother built shelves in our garage and I ran in a few of the local races.
The fall brought the start of Tessa's final year of preschool. She loves it! And keeps telling me she never wants to leave preschool, haha. Fall also brought a new calling for me at church to work with the young women in our ward. We also hosted our first Thanksgiving dinner at our home.
Winter came quickly, but we have enjoyed it. Christmas was wonderful! It was nice to be close to family and enjoy decorating our new place and starting our own family traditions.

Can't begin to express how grateful I am for all the wonderful things our family was blessed with in 2010. It was a big year for us! We look forward to what 2011 has in store for us!!