Flying Pigs

yes, we had the swine flu. thankfully for our household, it didn't last too long and really wasn't too terrible. i'm glad we had the weekend to rest up and get well. everyone is doing fine now, other than a little coughing here and there. Olivia had two really rough days but then woke up saturday at 7am bouncing off the walls. She is headed to school tomorrow! WOO HOO although, we did have a slight injury over the weekend. If you could see me today you would ask me what on earth is wrong with my face. it happens to be a burn mark from where pancake batter and oil splashed onto my face and chest sunday morning while i was trying to make breakfast for my girls. yes, i look like I have the mange or something from the corner of my lips outward. i'm hoping it will not leave a scar. i screamed and olivia looked over at me while she was playing her webkinz, but obviously she thought i was okay since she never even got up from her seat. maybe i should've screamed louder. ha.

I'm so excited about the temps falling...for several reasons: 1) the heat has been tough on me and my extra __ pounds, 2) it gives me fall fever and helps me get motivated to decorate and organize!, 3) reminds me of all the wonderful happenings of the season...birthday parties, babies being born, holidays, football, etc. I just love it!! We got baby Owen's room cleaned up and organized better. now we are waiting on the curtain panels to arrive so we can hang those, have rocking chair cushions recovered, and hang the shelves on the walls. After that, the room will be done...just waiting on baby. About 6 more weeks to go.

Thank the Lord for sunshine and cool breezes. It doesn't take much to refresh the soul. And the older I get, the simpler my needs become. love to all! have a good night.......

Crafty Project #1

Well, I admit that I do have some talents around the house, but they usually don't include any craft or home improvement project. That is usually Lee's department and I stick to the picking-stuff-out and organizing chores. But now, I'm so thrilled to say I've accomplished one thing: finally deciding to recover our dining table chair cushions. Ms. Joyce actually recovered them the first time years ago when she first got the table and this fabric has held up through their home, our home and with two kids and even a cat. But man it was time for a change!!! And Lee and I did it together on Saturday and it felt great. Just a simple little project has given me such motivation to do more things around the house myself!


So i give you the BEFORE:




































and AFTER:

The look changed dramatically when we changed the fabric and i'm so excited. however, i may not have thought about the possible damages to the cream color if we actually USE the chairs when we eat! HA. ....we'll see how long they survive. but i wanted to share...

Stay tuned for more exciting project news. LOL

Of course...........we had a helper or two......

This is Rachel's photography and she directed me as to exactly where to place my hands in the shot. crazy girl.

and Olivia...assisting in her own special way...

We're Pierced!!!

Ok, so i was really not ready for this milestone just yet, but at almost 7 years old, Olivia was ready for her ears to be pierced. We had planned to do it for her birthday, but she insisted that she was ready now. (I had really put it off because I just KNEW she would back out at the last minute.) But she was strong and determined. The tech even did them one at a time, and I was very nervous that we would have only one done!!

And if it looks like Rachel is stressed out...she WAS! and she didn't even get hers done. She was so worried for Olivia.

She did so good!! only a few tears were shed, and most of them came from Rachel!! HA HA Now, in six weeks she can change these out for some new "real" earrings, as she calls them. And that's just a few days after her birthday, so she is very excited. It still makes me sick to my stomach to know my little baby Olivia is so big! Sigh...........

More Random pictures....

these are just some random pictures we've taken over the past few months and I can't remember which ones I've posted or not. Nothing too exciting to share...just random shots. Olivia at school.....the girls at the reservoir at our life links picnic.............then me and dawn, one of my pregnancy mates this time around.

Pump it up earlier this year.......
I believe this was Jacob's party.

Olivia modeling her new ensemble, thanks to Nana. I still can't believe she wore this. She has been so picky with clothes lately!!!

Then there's me...just minding my own business trying to simply make coffee and rachel snaps another picture.

Baby Owen seems to be growing steadily. He's still very active and has been having the hiccups regularly. My legs have been restless and have been cramping during the night and i alternate between being wired all night and up for no reason, to falling asleep on the sofa anytime I'm still for more than two minutes. I know this is just part of it and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Looking forward to the next few weeks getting the baby's room ready and the girls' birthday parties planned. This is such a busy time of year for us............but oh so fun!!!!!!!!!

Baby Owen

This is baby Owen...a full facial view, chubby cheeks and all! He is measuring about 2.5 weeks larger than we expected, so hopefully he will arrive sometime in early november instead of around thanksgiving.

This is his profile shot. he kept putting his hands over his face while we were trying to get a good picture of him. he is a busy thing! and is estimated at weighing 4 1/2 pounds already. of course, these things can be off either way, but he looked very healthy and active, which is all we care about. he has definitely taken over my midsection. he rarely stops for any length of time and really kicks it up a notch around 9 every night. let's hope that changes once he arrives......