Arms are overrated

She carried him around like this all morning long. It made him feel "pecial", according to her :)

LLC; Bug Day!

I haven't brought my camera out much these days, mainly because I'm feeling like crap still and don't want to lug it around. But we went to my friend Kelly's house today and I brought it along for your viewing pleasure :)

Today was the Little Learners Club Bug Day. The kids brought their shovels and containers and we made bug habitats. Lauren and Jake LOVE LOVE LOVE bugs, so this was right up their alley...


They could have spent allllll day playing with the worms and getting all dirty!


After collecting their earthworms and ants, we ate some snacks; "ants on a log" and "ladybugs":


Right after snack time, my camera died :( So I didn't get pictures of the kids playing or crafting, but I did get pictures of the finished product hanging in their rooms. It's a bug-mobile, and the kids had a fun time making it :)


I'd say Bug Day was a success!

Friends 'til the end...

Granted, she's not as popular as 'white b', but Cocoa and my girl are best pals. They find every opportunity to snuggle :)

LLC; Forever Wild!

Last week we visited Forever Wild Exotic Animal Sanctuary with our Little Learners Club. I had seen this sanctuary on Extreme Home Makeover in 2009, but hadn't been there to see it myself. Anyway, it was SUPER hot the day we visited (hence the red faces, sweaty kids) but I'm so glad we went. The staff and volunteers definitely have a love for these wild animals... animals that were neglected and abused and treated horribly (you should have heard some of their stories. Heartbreaking!) But now, they're livin' the life thanks to these dedicated workers and those who give generously.

Just a note... I didn't take many pics of the big cats because we were behind fencing and it was hard to capture them on film. It was much easier to capture pictures with the Piranha's and the venomous snakes :)

Girlfriends

I've mentioned before that I never really had a lot of girlfriends growing up. But after having Lauren and discovering the NEED to get out of the house with a fussy infant, I quickly made some friends. Some have gone in and out of my life, others have fallen off the radar screen, and then there are a few who have stuck with me though the good and the bad.

Within the past week, my girlfriend Dawn offered to watch Jake for me while I went in for my OB physical. I had the whole morning to myself, and although I was at the doctors, I got to sit by myself and read... ALONE. It was bliss, well, until the nurse called me back to weigh me :)

The next day my friend Sarah wrote me an email telling me that I was to pick between three meals and she would be delivering it to my house for supper dinner (ha!) one night. And at the end of the email she said, "DO NOT debate this fact because it will be happening so you might as well at least order the food(s) that you'd like". And so I picked the Chicken Cordon Bleu with homemade "mac 'n noodles". She also brought some strawberries and a batch of homemade cookies for dessert. A delicious home cooked meal that I didn't have to make. And to be honest, I wasn't planning on making dinner that night. I was nauseous, exhausted and super hot, so it was going to be another date with Cheerios... for the whole family. They LOVED Sarah that night :)

And then Friday night, Justin tells me that my girlfriend Jamie called him and said that she'd be surprising us with dinner that night. SCORE! And so, I didn't have to make dinner again. We were treated to freshly made cheeseburgers, pasta salad and homemade cookies. Again, it was awesome. Night two without the ole' standby, Cheerios!

And then this weekend, a coffee date with my girlfriend Mandy. Normally we go to a local coffee house and chat, but this time we kept it low key at her house. On my way, I picked up a Caramel Frap for her, and a Java Chip Frap for me... both with whipped cream of course. And then we sat on the sofa all night, talking and gossiping and laughing at the goofball she calls her husband :) I needed that...

And so, I'm left feeling so overwhelmed and blessed by the wonderful girlfriends in my life. Friends who stop what they're doing to help their friends out, to listen, to talk to, to share life with.

Thank you girls. I love you.

Bye bye curls!

Remember this post?

Well, things have changed since then, rather rapidly. At first, Jake's hair began forming into tiny little ringlets and they were adorable. But because of this awful weather, his hair is no longer curly. Take a couple days ago for example:


It's a FRO. Like a frizzy, out-of-control mop that looks as though he stuck his finger in an outlet.

And so, we said goodbye to the Albert Einstein 'do last night. Here is my boy, lookin' all suave and handsome:


Studmuffin comin' through!

First Pregnancy craving...

I'm not really a seafood eater. It doesn't necessarily bother me, but I definitely prefer other things (hello Olive Garden!).

But last night all I could think about was crab cakes. CRAB CAKES! I've had them maybe once before a looooong time ago, and they weren't even that good. But I HAD to have them last night. At 10 pm. Poor Hubster called Red Lobster and placed an order and by 10:30, they were all mine ;)

Last night I loved them... this morning, notsomuch. The mere thought of eating those things sent me running to the bathroom.

Weird, weird hormones...

According to Jacob...

I'm reading Jake a book today called "Where Does it Park?".

Me reading:

Where does a car park? In a garage.
Where does a bus park? At a bus yard.
Where does a plane park? At an airport.
Where does a truck park? At a truck stop.
Where does a train park? At a train yard.
Where does a boat park?

And Jacob chimes in, "far, far away."

Good point...

Paint!

Last Thursday I was feeling crappy. Actually, I was feeling M-I-S-E-R-A-B-L-E and had no idea how I'd manage to not only care for the kiddos, but make it fun for them as well. And then I had a brilliant idea; I called Tereneh, the world's greatest babysitter. She came over from 8:30-12, and I slept. It was just what I needed. And so, while I was asleep in the next room, the kiddos played and played and played outside with her (complete with paint, a pool, and some bubbles. Fun!)


The best part? The only evidence I found when I was awoke were the pictures of the camera. How awesome is that?!? Thanks Tereneh for saving the day :)