The Gangis

Macie Baby?

2011-12-10T16:10:00.000-08:00

Macie has earned herself a few nicknames... mostly we just call her Macers or Macie Baby... how ever I am beginning to think she is out growing her name. She is getting so big! She is talking up a storm and even tells me when she's pooped! It's ridiculous... She is strong, can keep up with Beckett, and totally opinionated. She sings to herself, loves shoes, and my makeup... However, she prefers cars and roars at me with dinosaurs and lions...

Her absolute favorite thing to do is COLOR! This pic just made me think how big she looked... Just coloring away as content as can be!

Family Date Night

2011-12-10T16:05:00.000-08:00

We rarely go out to restaurants with the kids... not that they aren't well behaved, most of the time they are... I think we just think of it as too much work or something. However, last weekend we took the kids on a Spontaneous date to Nicks. We had never been there for dinner cause it's always so busy so we literally went around 4:30pm and there was still a line! We waited it out and enjoyed an Awesome dinner with some awesome company (Beckett and Macie). We had such a fun time (and that wasn't the two glasses of wine that I had with dinner talking).

This is Macie saying "Cheese"

Getting so BIG!

Seeing Santa

2011-12-10T16:00:00.000-08:00

So I have never been one to take my kids to sit on Santa's lap. Something about it just never appealed to me... I have no idea why???

Yes Santa is holding Becketts Head up in this Image

Putting on the Glitz

2011-12-10T15:56:00.000-08:00

So apparently San Clemente has been throwing "Putting on the Glitz" since I was a child, but I knew nothing of it till last year. And now I really love it! It's so fun when they block of the street and we can let the kids run around and see whatever event they have going on.

After an awesome day at the beach with the Leines, we met up with them to walk the street and enjoy the festivities. Emmiana is by far the nicest little girl in the world and 99% of the time her and Beckett get along great. This night was a perfect example! What a cutie the two of them together are!

One part of the street had a old time band with a harmonica, banjo, and violin to boot. Beckett was obsessed with them! We must have sat through 5 songs... his official favorite instrument was the Banjo. Banjo lessons here we come!

Thanksgiving 2011 Vacation...

2011-12-10T15:48:00.000-08:00

This year we vacationed on our very own beaches. We had 80 degree temps Saturday and Sunday after Thanksgiving and spent both those days at the beach. Last year I recall being freezing so it was quite the treat. Any day we can spend time at the beach is a win in my book.

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-12-10T15:46:00.000-08:00

This Thanksgiving was just about perfect. We had an amazing dinner and great company. Beckett was really into the cooking aspect this year and was especially obsessed with the Turkey. He was involved in ALL aspects of the dinner! Which made it even more special.

We have so much to be thankful for this year! We have two healthy amazing children, very generous and supportive family, we both started new great jobs this yearthat we love, Damon is starting Grad school and we love eachother! Things aren't so bad!

Out of Order

2011-11-20T10:24:00.000-08:00

I never realized what a pain it is to carve pumpkins... we made the mistake of thinking each "person" needs their own pumpkin this year. Well who do you think did all of the work??? Yep exactly Damon! Beckett and Macie pretty much just supervised. We had to nearly pay Beckett to put his hand into the pumpkin... Anyway, they turned out SO cute and Beckett LOVED seeing them for the 3 days they lasted.... However, now whenever we pass a house that still has pumpkins out he tells me "Halloween is over Mommy, they need to throw those pumpkins out!"

Also, I think the Freddy Krueger T-shirt is a pretty nice touch on our part....

Great Grandma

2011-11-20T10:16:00.000-08:00

Another Birthday Celebration which has to be Beckett's favorite thing... Great Grandma turned 80 something! I feel so fortunate that Beckett gets to know his Great Grandma. Grandma is such an amazing woman that has been through so much and been such a big part of our lives. And he just LOVES her! However the two of them were worthless when it came to blowing out the candles.... Took 3 people to finally get them all blown out.

First Self Initiated Play Date

2011-11-20T10:10:00.000-08:00

Up until this point I manage all of Beckett's "Play dates" which is really just me deciding which of MY friends I want to see that will entertain Beckett at the same time... However, last weekend at Noah's 3rd Birthday Beckett made his own plans. We were all sitting around playing and I said we were leaving soon and his friend Drake said he wanted to come with us and Beckett said "Yeah Mommy, can Drake come with us." So then I had to do the whole "Well go ask your mommy" etc....

It went pretty well but about an hour or some into the date Drakey was asking to go home.... they were super cute together though up until that point.
Him wanting to leave may have had to do with the fact that we were yelling at Beckett to stop abusing his sister about every 5 minutes!

Drakes parents are from Texas and it was so cute because for dinner he must have eaten half a steak and pretty much nothing else. True texan!

And then there's Beckett

2011-11-20T10:02:00.000-08:00

Beckett is AMAZING. He is so smart, happy, awesome, and sweet. He loves to do school work, cook, and play guns... but my proudest accomplishment of late are his social skills. He has gotten so much more outgoing. He will actually go up to random kids at the park and ask to play with them. It may not seem like much, but he used to be so shy and without even us trying to make him he started approaching them on his own. I really can't tell you how happy it makes me.

Beckett has also started this strange habit of only wanting to sleep on the floor. He will not sleep in his bed. We created a make shift bed on the floor that he sleeps in every night. Not sure what happened here... but for some reason he is adamant about not sleeping in his bed...

And one last really cute thing is that he "raises the roof" whenever something good happens. I am not sure where he got it from but I LOVE it!

Macie Update

2011-11-20T09:55:00.000-08:00

Macie is turning into quite the cute little Devil. She is feisty and smart and she sure knows how to throw a tantrum. She flails her arms and gets this amazing pouty face. We have already begun putting her on time outs.

She also likes to clean a lot. She will wipe her face, a table, and throw stuff away... even stuff we would like to keep, like shoes. She is so domestic. And independent! She is a great eater and is quite impressive with a fork and spoon.

Randomly she's afraid of dogs... even though she likes Ellie. But if Ellie gets too close to her food she throws a fit... She doesn't say much: Shoes, All Done, Mommy, Ellie, Uppy, Baby, Ball, Please, Open, Doggy and her favorite Mine.

Feeding herself

Cleaning the Table at a restaurant

Away Again

2011-11-20T09:46:00.000-08:00

I was traveling again last week and it is so hard to be away from the family! I miss them tons and with Damon's school schedule it has been hard on him too. We know it is for the "greater good" but it makes it no less difficult. It's amazing how much Macie grows in just one week! I left a baby and came home to a giant!

Halloween

2011-11-10T20:45:00.000-08:00

Ahhhh We have been beyond busy! I feel like I never get a second to relax and to be honest when I do, the last thing I want to do is put together a blog that is both slightly humorous and yet touching. That's a lot of pressure and the creative juices need to be flowing.

However, I have put it off long enough... so long that you haven't even had a chance to see my Batman and Robin! We spent Halloween at the Lugo's again this year! Beckett is not the kid that 2 months before Halloween announces what he is going to be and then embraces that the entire time. In fact, even after we finally just got him a Batman costume (four days before) he was still saying he would be a dinosaur, dragon, spiderman or flat out "I don't know" if people asked. Yet poor neglected Batman was sitting on his dresser at home.

The Chila's went all out with an entire Fire Man team with a Dalmatian and Fire Hydrant to boot... made my "working mom" costume seem a little sub par... however, not much has changed since last year. Beckett is addicted to trick or treating and we literally had to cut him off after nearly 2 hours. He didn't even care if we were with him or not at the houses this year... he was knocking houses out left and right. He is almost making me like this holiday.

And Yes, everyone thought Macie was a boy... and I didn't even bother correcting them...

Wild Animal Park Run In

2011-10-22T13:45:00.000-07:00

So I wanted to take Damon to the Wild Animal park with us so he could see how much Beckett was into it. I was so impressed by how much Beckett enjoyed it and would just sit and watch the animals.... Well we were driving around looking for parking and ran into these two lovely people! It was so awesome! We really don't get to see Cora and Ken enough and we love them so much. And they LOVE LOVE LOVE our little ones. They spent most of the morning with us and took some weight off our shoulders (literally) by toting around the kids. We were so happy to have ran into them! It was obviously fate.

Not just Kids...

2011-10-22T13:39:00.000-07:00

Erika robbed the cradle and married herself a nice young man who finally turned 30 last weekend! She is trying to make the rest of us wives look bad by throwing him a huge surprise birthday bash that was awesome. However, you all probably don't remember the awesome thing I did for Damon when he turned 30 because it was SOOOOOO SOOOO long ago. (I whisked him off to Boston FYI).

Anyway, Kris seemed pretty surprised too. It was so fun to see my Sweeties and chat them up and have a night out. We all have so much going on that we don't all get together often enough, especially since Erika lives so far away (Irvine). These girls are so fun and not to mention GORGEOUS!

Dentist

2011-10-22T13:34:00.000-07:00

So it wasn't all fun and games my week+ off. I did lots of those pesty errands that I tend to avoid or ignore. Ellie finally visited the Vet after over 1 yr, I went to the Dentist after... some time off, and I finally got Beckett into see the Dentist too. He did great, was a perfect angel and our Dental Assistant went to USC so I knew we had chosen a really awesome Dentist. Not to mention they bribe them with sun glasses, movies, tattoos (just fake tattoos fyi), toys, and stickers. Um yeah, Beckett is begging me to go back...

The Zoo

2011-10-22T13:29:00.000-07:00

So here are a few pics from some of the stuff we did over the last week, these in paticular are of the Zoo with the Andersons. We worked in a lot of time at the Wild Animal Park and Zoo because I got an annual pass and because kids are free the entire month of October. I don't know what I was more amused with, the animals or watching Rylie and Beckett together.... obviously from my pictures you can tell it was the kids. But if you know me, you know I also don't believe in taking pictures of landscapes too... These two are adorable together and actually get along GREAT!

Our Little Baker

2011-10-17T21:00:00.000-07:00

Beckett is following in Damon's footsteps with a love for cooking and the ktichen. More importantly he has the patience for it too. We decided to make Ghost cupcakes and Beckett did 99% of the work. As it stands he already cracks eggs for Damon each morning for the breakfast he makes (yes you all read that correctly, my amazing sweet husband cooks me perfect over easy eggs every morning for breakfast) and Beckett insists on stirring each dish and dropping in all spices. He has a few war wounds from it and he still manages to get back on the horse and cook more...

We are busy grooming the perfect husband for all your perfect little girls. You are Welcome.

Radio Silence

2011-10-17T20:50:00.000-07:00

I apologize for the radio silence but I had the amazing opportunity to be a stay at home mom for a few days and I was busy soaking it up! I had a opportunity present itself with Stanley Black and Decker. So I have sadly said goodbye to my previous company and ventured out on a new experience and in the meantime I was able to take some time off in between the transition.

I am not sure if it was a good idea or bad idea since I absolutely loved every second and definitely took advantage of every second too. There were lots of errand running, doctors, cleaners, shopping, good will, Dentist for Beckett and for me EVEN! But mostly I spent all my time with this little lovies. It was amazing... I even cooked a few nights and Damon will attest it was delicious! (I swear I have better pictures... but for now you get cell photos)

However, now it's back to reality... and purchasing lots of lottery tickets.

Amateur

2011-10-17T20:40:00.000-07:00

So I swear I am not a first time mom but I made a total amateur move last week. Macie has just been so sad lately and unhappy. She wasn't sleeping well, had a runny nose, and was just down right pitiful. So since I had the opportunity I took her into the doctor expecting to have him confirm she had an ear infection and send me off with a prescription. So I took both kids to the docs and had him check her out... The doctor immediately confirmed it was NOT an ear infection and then asked me how old she was and said he needed to check her mouth... well low and behold she was getting these things called her 1 year molars (that's literally how the doctor explained it to me). He then proceeded to give me a laundry list of ways to deal with teething... what an idiot am I? I felt so bad that Macie had been in so much pain... a little Motrin and she was back to her perfect busy self.

I Absolutely Positively Adore him...

2011-10-04T09:14:00.000-07:00

Will seeing him in a cute t-shirt and pair of converse high-tops always make me feel so proud that he is mine??? When he's heading to high school dressed exactly like this will I admire him so much? I highly doubt it, but I must say I am one proud Mom of my cute little boy. Things have gotten much better as far as sharing Mommy time goes. Instead of trying to consume my every second, he now just says things like "You're not holding babies right now Mommy?" It is much more stable on the home front so that is nice.

I am wearing boots today and he exclaimed when he saw me "Wow Mommy I like your cool Broots." So sweet.

Indian Summer Weekend

2011-10-04T09:06:00.000-07:00

We had all sorts of plans to go to the Pumpkin Patch and see Lion King 3D... but much to our surprise we ended up at the beach all weekend. Unfortunately I took practically no pictures because I was too busy soaking up the sun. But we soaked it up and it almost felt like we were cheating... 80 degrees Oct 1st? Yes please! The Pumpkin Patch will have to wait... these pics are the only evidence we have of our fantastic weekend. Two little Cuties sharing a beach chair.

Out of Town

2011-09-28T13:33:00.000-07:00

My how the roles have reversed with Damon and I. It used to be Damon traveling all over the place and as of late I have filled those shoes... Nowhere crazy like him, but traveling is traveling and it is hard to be away from my favorite people on earth. Fortunately, I have landed the best "partner" of all time and he manages to MANAGE everything without even breaking a sweat. But that does not mean I am not missed... as you can see from the images I got sent while I was gone.

Sibling Rivalry

2011-09-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

This guy is giving me a run for my money lately. Damon and I can't quite figure it out, but we think it's linked to me being gone last week while he was sick. Literally it is a constant battle between Macie and Beckett for my attention. At first it was really cute... but we are at a whole new level. Beckett will literally line up holding time. For example "Mommy, when I am done with my dinner can I hold you and not baby sister?" and then have major breakdowns if I don't hold him.And he has been just down right mean to her... despite this cute face he is running me rampant.

I am hoping it will be getting better

to be continued....

Broadcom Family Night

2011-09-27T16:09:00.000-07:00

So far I am super impressed with Broadcom! Not only does Damon have such an awesome job that he loves, but you can tell they care about their employees. I mean they have a Mongolian barbecue chef in their cafeteria everyday... need I say more? Ok well then I will. Friday night they had Broadcom Family night at the Angels game. It came with free food and drinks and some pretty awesome company.. We managed to stay all the way till the 4th inning!

Beckett is also a fan of Broadcom because they provide free Cotton Candy! And we learned very quickly that Beckett is a huge fan of Cotton Candy. He talked about it the entire weekend and honestly I have never seen the kid so happy. It's the little things in life.

Boys Being Boys

2011-09-27T15:43:00.000-07:00

Don't be fooled by this seemingly harmless laundry hamper... it is a make shift barricade in times of war. Which Beckett happens to be in, with Damon at this moment.

I would like to proudly announce, Beckett won this battle! Quite the innovative little bugger.

Visitors

2011-09-23T15:58:00.000-07:00

One of my very best friends Emily, Finally came out to visit me! She hasn't been out for 2 years! I pretty much rely on her to visit, since I live here in beautiful sunny southern California and she lives in St. Louis. Which is pretty... just less pretty.

Anyway, boy is it hard to travel with kids and even harder to try to coordinate with 4 kids and different time zones, naps etc. But we managed to do our best and at least get to see eachother and I finally got to meet her adorable happiest baby ever daughter, Sloane. As usual I sucked it up in the photo department.... But our boys get along so well! I love that we live hundreds of miles a part but we can always pick up from where we left off as if we are still 22 years old spending every weekend together!

Obsessed....

2011-09-23T15:50:00.000-07:00

Yep She's ONE

2011-09-23T15:45:00.000-07:00

You cannot officially consider your child 1 year old until the ONE year old well check. Well I dragged it out as long as possible (You all know I like to delay well checks in order to boost my kids percentiles) so today Macie finally had her well check and let me tell you she is WELL... PERFECT!

She is in the 90% for height and 25% for weight. Damon will be happy that at least one of his children still has the potential to be tall. She took 3 shots like a champ, is looking forward to chowing down on some peanut butter and honey and ready to knock out year # 2 (but in no rush please)!

After the Party is the After Party

2011-09-14T09:10:00.000-07:00

After we celebrated Macie's Birthday at the Park, Damon and I went and celebrated One year complete at The Cellar... yes I will find any excuse to go there. My parents took Beckett for the night and we headed down to meet up with the Andersons for some wine and nosh. I always used to marvel that the Andersons could take their kids to a "nicer" restaurant like The Cellar and not completely embarrass themselves. Rylie would just sit there well behaved and patient. That would NEVER happen with Beckett. Well, welcome to the world of having a little girl (they just lucked out twice with Mason)... Macie was an absolute dream at The Cellar and was content circling the table with Mason and snacking on chips and yogurt melts. Which allowed us adults to chat and relax... It was such a perfect ending to a perfect day... next time I will remember to put Macie in some shoes...

Macie Turns One!

2011-09-13T10:24:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Macie's Birthday on Sunday with some awesome Friends and Family! It was perfect weather and the perfect day! I cannot believe she is already 1 years old! This last year has flown by and she has been such a perfect addition to our family. Thanks so much to Michele for making the most amazing Cake... (yep she is for hire if any one is interested!) Not only did it look awesome it tasted great too. Thanks to Annika for being able to work with my lack of direction and designing a perfect theme! And thanks to Steph for these awesome photos...

Macie is so fortunate to have so many supportive and generous people in her life to help her celebrate!

Oh How I love thee...se three!

2011-09-08T17:02:00.000-07:00

I did a lot of great things in college but the best thing I did was make the most amazing friends. I absolutely love and appreciate these girls more than anything. I am not an overly corny or sentimental person, but I can tell you I am so grateful to have these friends and I get teary eyed just thinking about how awesome they all are! Smart, Beautiful, Successful, Funny, Generous, Ah-Mazing Girls. I am just luckily they let me hang out with them.

Ashley had us over to the magical Emery Household again... (you remember the one with the ridiculous garden and completely a DIY castle). Well, if you can believe it things got even more magical with Trampolines and Playhouses galore. It's amazing I can get the kids to ever go home (aka Damon get me to go leave).

And now our kids are becoming friends and playing together... And that handsome fellow sitting next to Beckett is about to become a Dad!! (I can say that now right Britt?). Him and Britt have literally made the most genius amazing little baby that is currently residing at 123 Britt's Belly way. You can already tell he's going to be such a great Dad. I cannot hold in my excitement for them. And don't even get me started on how amazing Britt is going to be as a mom... not to mention she is giving pregnancy quite the good name.. She looks amazing!

Boys Being Boys

2011-09-07T14:03:00.000-07:00

This may look dangerous, but I assure you I was being as safe as possible (so don't worry Ricci) and strategically using the rear view mirror to see how my aim was. I was abiding by all other traffic laws and as you can tell in the slow lane. I love how they start off so sweet and you can see where it was leading... the next few minutes were followed by a screaming contest. That was fun. And I thought it was so cute that Cooper is attempting to read to Macie.

Beckett's BFF

2011-09-06T10:34:00.000-07:00

Beckett has a best friend from school and his name is Charlie. Before this point I chose who Beckett was friends with based off my own friends.. But I could not have picked a better best friend for him! Charlie is smart, polite, sweet and they get a long really well .. Even better, he comes with an awesome set of parents! So it's obvious where he gets his great personality. We definitely try to foster his relationship and met up with Charlie's fam for a beach date. Look at Beckett on a boogie board?? Amazing! These two are two peas in a pod and it makes me happy that my son has such great taste and judgment. Let's hope he keeps it up!

"Baby" Girl

2011-09-06T10:29:00.000-07:00

Ah how is she almost ONE?? I can't believe it, yet I have totally fast forwarded this baby stage with her. She was always just a little ahead of the game any way... and by no means a baby. She never took a pacifier, never needed to be rocked and pretty much from the get go wanted to feed herself. She doesn't even take a bottle any more and is already on milk! Fortunately, she is super cuddly! Shame on me speeding the baby stage along! At least Beckett is so big that I still feel like she is a baby... but in every sense of the word she acts like she's not. She has even started walking with her arms at her side... it is the most hilarious looking thing (note to self get video) she just sorta lurks. No holding her arms out any more for balance... but she should at least swing her arms to look somewhat normal.

KISS!

The Other Big "Milestone"

2011-09-06T10:17:00.000-07:00

Macie now tells us she's ALL done.... it is so cute and so helpful. She mostly says it during meals, but she will also use if for bath time too. (And yes to the untrained ear this may sound very much like da da)

I love it! I cannot believe she's almost ONE!

Miss Independent

2011-09-06T10:12:00.000-07:00

Macie will not eat anything if you try to feed her (except ice cream). She insists on feeding herself... and well, this is what happens when you allow her to eat yogurt on her own. Our water bill is going up with how often we have to bathe her now!

Communication is key...

2011-09-06T09:46:00.000-07:00

Macie was getting a lot of important phone calls this weekend. Who knew she was so popular! This weekend she seemed to really start clicking with her communication skills. She hit some major milestones in my book! One of the biggest was being able to tell me "yes" or "no" by shaking her head! It has saved us a lot of food. Now I can pick stuff out of the fridge and she will literally shake her head yes or no if she wants it, no to string cheese, no to apple sauce, big fat yes to Milk every time.

Brave Boys (And Brave Me)!

2011-09-06T09:41:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I offered to take Cooper off Ricci's hands so she could prep for Cash's first Birthday. I took Beckett, Cooper and Macie to the beach by myself (Damon stayed behind to study). I told Ricci "Anytime... depending on how the day went." Well it went pretty darn well... only 1 time out per kid (minus Macie - she's perfect)... Coops for being aggressive, Beckett's for being emotional... so funny the differences between those two!

It went REALLY well when Josh and Michele showed up with boats, boards, jet ski's and the whole sha-bang! Cooper was of course Coop and Jumped on a paddle board and kayak no problem! Beckett was very apprehensive, but when he saw Noah and Coop having fun without him, he jumped on board too. It was so nice to see Beckett being a little adventurous for a change.

And at the end of the day, no one drowned... so hey I did pretty well!

Baby's Best Friend

2011-08-26T08:43:00.000-07:00

Macie has just started to notice Ellie and paying lots of attention to her. She LOVES to pet her and cuddle up next to her. She snuggles up next to her every morning... even if that means snuggling up on Ellie's Dog Bed.... eh whatever, I am building up her immune system and making sure she's not allergic to animals. I remember Beckett doing the same with Ellie when he was a baby (as seen here: http://thegangis.blogspot.com/2009/02/becketts-bff.html ; and here: http://thegangis.blogspot.com/2009/06/mans-best-friend.html; and here: http://thegangis.blogspot.com/2009/06/beckett-learning-to-share.html)

. Ellie was literally his best friend and I remember how he called her "I-ly." I cannot wait for Macie to start saying her name so I can see what she calls her. Now Beckett pretty much uses Ellie for two purposes, to "vacuum" up his messes and as a stepping stool. As you can see Ellie is so happy to have a new baby's attention and snuggles up right next to her.

And look at the big Belly on Macie!

One More Birthday Bash Photo

2011-08-25T12:09:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun with these two double mint twins on Friday night. Thanks Brandy and Michele for some birthday fun!

My Birthday Dinner

2011-08-25T11:38:00.000-07:00

The Aunties came over and cooked me some amazing pasta for my actual birthday! They also brought us a pie they owed us from a week ago.... They are such great cooks and even better company. Here is a picture of their pie and not them (but ME!).

My Birthday!

2011-08-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we celebrated my Birthday and started it off right with a night out at the Cellar. (To be honest that was my second night in a row at The Cellar since Damon took me there the night before for a pre-pre-birthday... obviously I am a fan). Anyway, I don't ask for much on my birthday... and this year I wanted 1 thing only: For Michele to sing for me! She has the most amazing voice and she should be famous. I am pretty pissed off on most days that she's not yet. I am hoping one day it will happen and I can ride along on her coattails, back up singer maybe... or play the triangle. Whatever... I am not picky. Unfortunately, the piano man at The Cellar wouldn't let her sing with him so we headed over to Taka-o for some Karaoke. First of all going from The Cellar to Taka-o is like going from Maestros to Taco Bell. It's gross. No offense Taka-o but not the finest of crowds.

I recorded her performance and this video doesn't even begin to do her justice. It's in fact a pretty bad video. You can barely see how beautiful she is or even hear her for that matter... but I am hoping to make her viral and ultimately make her famous. She can be like that girl that sings about Friday.

I am sooo proud of my best friend she has such an amazing talent! She would kill me if she ever found out I posted this here, but fortunately I am pretty sure she rarely checks this blog... so we are good!

If any of you that follow this blog happen to be record producers, ping me! She's worth it...

High Aspirations

2011-08-23T09:44:00.000-07:00

Take That Blog Doubters!

2011-08-17T16:52:00.000-07:00

This how we started our morning... two babies, two sippy cups, too cute (although this picture may not express the cuteness of this situation... bad angle)

Pumped Up Kicks

2011-08-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

What is Better than getting a letter in the mail? How about getting SHOES in the mail! Nana & Grumpa sent Beckett a new pair of sneakers and as you can see, it took him about 2 seconds to switch into them. He calls them his "fast" shoes. Literally I will bring shoes downstairs for him and he will say "No, I want to wear my fast shoes." What I Nana and Grumpa to do is find some "Slow" shoes cause he moves too fast and grows too fast and I can't keep up!

Cash's is good with God

2011-08-17T16:46:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we helped celebrate Cash's Baptism. I didn't think The Chila's could make a cuter, sweeter boy than Cooper but they went out and proved me wrong! Cash is just perfect. Always happy, always mellow and just sweet as can be. We had such a great time at the Lugo's house that I didn't want to leave. All the kids were so great! Macie and Cash played inside and Coop and Beckett stayed outside. Genius. And yes, I tried and tried to get these two to look at the same time, but it was impossible.

Additional "Awesome" Date Night Photos

2011-08-17T16:39:00.000-07:00

Lovey

2011-08-17T16:38:00.000-07:00

Macie is too Sweet. She just snuggles right up onto your shoulder. I can't get enough.

Beach Day from the past

2011-08-17T16:35:00.000-07:00

About 10 Million Years ago we went to the Beach with Rylie, Mason & Stephanie. Mason and Macie hit it off. They already have so much in common, both enjoy eating, crawling, falling and spilling. Perfect Match.

Beckett on the other hand was an emotional wreck this day (insert sad face). He did not want to have anything to do with Rylie or poor sweet Mason who didn't understand (I think Rylie is used to Beckett's behavior and ignores him). Beckett spent most of the time playing alone or trying to run away from the other kids. Fortunately I think it was just an off day...

I did find it comforting Beckett at least wanted to hang out with his sister. Well maybe not hang out, but he did allow her to sit near him. That was a plus.

3 Yr. Doc Appt.

2011-08-17T16:27:00.000-07:00

Beckett Finally went to his 3 yr apt (we try to wait as long as possible to increase our percentiles). He weighed 33 lbs and was 38 inches tall. 50% on both aspects. He did so great with the doctor! Normally he doesn't like strangers or people he knows for that matter, but he put it on for Dr. Gaitan! He talked with him, read with him and let him do his doctor thing. The doctor agreed with my diagnosis: Perfect.

Date Night

2011-08-16T11:43:00.000-07:00

Damon has been studying a lot lately for his GMAT so I have been spending a lot of time keeping the kids occupied or going to bed at 8pm right after the kids go to sleep (no complaints here). So last Saturday night I decided I would take Beckett out on a Date.

I have noticed there is still a battle for attention going on between Beckett and Macie... I guess I should get used to it. In the beginning it was just Beckett vying for my attention, but now Macie has joined in the battle and realizes when my attention is not on her. There is not a moment that goes by where my arms are empty or my lap is free. I cannot complain at all... I love my kids and love that they love me.

So anyway, I thought a date with Mommy is just what the doctor ordered. First of all, he has NO concept of what you do on a date. Can you imagine? It is my responsibility to set his expectations of a date... so yes, you are all welcome future girlfriends of Beckett. Second of all, I made it a VERY big deal... made him comb his hair and even shower... I decided to keep it secret what we were doing the whole time in order to keep it exciting! So we went to a Teppan dinner and made friends with the whole table... how could you not want to be friends with his cute face! We avoided a near disaster when he spilled an entire glass of water on his pants... that in itself was a miracle. He even ate Sushi and loved it. After dinner we went to the movies. It was so great to give him all my attention and soak him all up!

The best was last night he asked Daddy if he wanted to go on a date.

Fiesta

2011-08-15T17:03:00.000-07:00

Quick Note: These next blog updates are going to start being out of order.

We went to the Fiesta Yesterday and had a Grand ol' time. However, not as grand as I may have had pre-babies. Well, we should just call it a different kind of grand... Anyway, the highlight of the Fiesta was me climbing up a giant 2 Story jumpee slide to "rescue" Beckett who decided he didn't want to go down the slide.. Oh wait no it wasn't.

So even though that type of action is totally predictable by Beckett... his Chicken loving, pet hugging behavior was not. Damon and I were floored. He had no fear! And even let me take his picture with a smile!

Amazing. STOP GROWING BECKETT! I hate it and love it all at the same time!

Garage Sales Are Rough

2011-08-10T20:26:00.000-07:00

We had our annual neighborhood garage sale this weekend and managed to unload some good stuff. This is how Macie helped out... She is addicted to climbing on things and in things and pretty much acts like a boy in that sense. You can't turn your back for 2 seconds

And Yes she is sporting a Mohawk!

I LOST MY CAMERA!!!!

2011-08-05T09:11:00.001-07:00

Atlanta Crew Farewell

2011-08-02T12:47:00.000-07:00

Uncle Donny and Aunt Shirley hosted a farewell dinner for Ashley, Aaron, Alex and Brookie (this is our Team pic from the night - and in case you don't get that joke, it's because Uncle Donny and Aaron look like they are taking their High school basket ball team photo and Beckett's the MVP).

Boy can the two of them cook! Uncle Donny made awesome Cheeseburgers that he attempted to get all of us to eat 2 a piece. Clearly they don't care about your red meat consumption in Atlanta. Aunt Shirley made the most delicious homemade ice cream and peaches pie. It put my store bought whoopee pies to shame (but that didn't stop Uncle Donny from eating 2 of them AND the pie). Where does he put it all???

If it's not evident: I Love MY Family!

Video Game Geeks

2011-08-02T12:41:00.000-07:00

Ug! Look at these two??? For Christmas Beckett got an Indiana Jones meets Lego game for the Wii which he loves. The kicker to this game is that there are two people always on the screen. So Beckett actually thinks he's playing as he sits along side Damon and Damon is in heaven since he gets to play a video game. I burned all of Damon's video games upon our wedding night (muhahahaha and this has been his first chance to get back into it all. So now he is creating a mini me with Beckett. I can just see the two of them staying up until 3am playing Call of Duty VVVII when Beckett's 16.

Truth be told, Beckett loves it and I find it so cute how content he is... scratch that how content they both are!

Buying her Affection???

2011-08-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to buy my daughters love, Ashley pulled out all the stops and went for the ice cream! As if Macie needs to be bought! However, Ashley's planned worked until she ran out of ice cream... and then it was bad bad news for me. Miss Macie has a sweet tooth just like her Daddy.

Our Macie Baby

2011-08-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

So Fuzzy but I just love this girl.

She is already feisty and loves to voice her opinion. If you take something she wants, she will let you know it!

She loves to stand up and dance on her little push fire truck... she has already fallen a few times doing so, yet that doesn't seem to stop her

She loves this little leapster music player we have and we all get to listen to it sing the ABC's over and over again. It is by far her favorite toy

She throw's both her arms up in the air during dinner and looks at us all until we do it back and then she starts laughing... probably thinking "I have you all wrapped around my little finger muahahaha"

She loves food and will never turn down a snack as long as she puts it into her own mouth, God forbid you try to feed her something

She gets super startled and scared when Ellie runs down the stairs or at pretty much any loud noise and she will start crying cause she's scared. It is so cute and girlie of her

When you take a step in her direction, she will randomly start running from you and laughing as if she thinks you are chasing her

Oh and the tables have turned... it used to be just Beckett getting jealous but now she does too! When Beckett is sitting with me on the couch she will flat out start crying and try to crawl up on us.

She is fantastic in every way.

Creative Control

2011-08-01T11:16:00.000-07:00

Since Macie has become so mobile we have had to become a little creative in keeping her in one place. This was one solution Damon came up with. Pure Genius...

Exhausted and it's not from lack of sleep...

2011-07-27T13:51:00.000-07:00

Just when you think you have it all figured out... things change. Damon and I really do get a little too cocky every once in awhile and say to each other "Two kids are easy" & "We've really got this down."

Then Macie starts walking full time. All of a sudden we can't leave her alone. She is crawling up stairs, trying to walk up the slide, standing on B's tricycle and opening cupboards playing with poison. And she doesn't even listen like Beckett

Me: Beckett, we don't touch those they are chemicals

Beckett: OK Mommy

Me: Macie, we don't touch those they are chemicals

Macie: (Blankly stare at me while attempting to drink Lysol)

Ug baby proofing time! She literally is covered in more bruises and bumps than Beckett. Let's hope we get the hang of this soon.

The Idea that keeps Giving

2011-07-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Seriously decorating B's room with Balloons was just genius (so what if they pop in the middle of the night and scare us). Even 3 days after his birthday we'd be sitting down stairs and Beckett would say:

"Mommy? Can we go upstairs and have a balloon party?"

Me: Sure

Then I just sit there and him and Macie go to town. So simple.

One final Birthday Celebration

2011-07-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

In true Gangi fashion we extended Beckett's Birthday out longer than possible. We ended up having one last hurrah with a couple of his buddies (Cooper & Noah) at Chuck E Cheese. Now I know Chuck E. Cheese has a bad rap, but this place isn't so bad. Semi OK pizza and lots of fun to be had. Let me tell you Ricci, Michele, and I left with some very exhausted kids and adults too!

I bought way too many tokens and we found the kids would rather just spend their time in the jungle gym area so we unfortunately had to play ski ball, basket ball, and football toss just to use up the coins. It was miserable.

And I Cooper is not Beckett's imaginary friend... I just sucked at taking pictures because I was busy burning tokens.

Cousins

2011-07-25T16:45:00.000-07:00

We had dinner at Great Grandma's house last night and got to visit with Ashley and Aaron who are visiting from Atlanta! We had so much fun (but not nearly as much fun as the kids). It is so nice now swapping stories with Ash and watching our kids play. Before it was just me playing with the kids and winding them up, feeding them sugar, and teaching them bad things... (all those things we hate as parents). I am glad she didn't remember and try to seek revenge on my kids. In fact, come to think of it, all she did was hold and hug them the whole time. Man pre-mom Michelle was not very nice. I promise to never do anything like that again (Until Beckett and Macie have kids).

Anyway, I wish they were closer so our kids could play more often. Beckett loved playing with Brooke (I think he is missing his Ms. G thing more than we realize). He followed her everywhere and when they would find each other in the hall after a brief bathroom break they would hug. It was too sweet.

And just to think, if Grandma Madi didn't have 5 kids, none of this would be possible. Yay for having lots of kids!

Mr. Fix It

2011-07-22T13:11:00.000-07:00

The changes in Beckett aren't as noticeable as they used to be (ie new words, new abilities etc). But this last weekend when we found him in the garage working away, Damon and I were both impressed. I was mostly impressed that he had the patience to sit down and one by one take out each screw of his batman toy. He did it with such precision. All of his toys are now basically new again since he gets to take them apart and put them back together again... what does this say? Do we have a future mechanic on our hands? Architect? Inventor? Engineer?

Walking Machine

2011-07-20T13:45:00.000-07:00

So Macie has moved walking up to her preferred mode of transportation. Which is awesome but exhausting at the same time since we always have to be prepared to catch her. Last night at the restaurant she was all over... yep that's right we let her walk barefoot (and crawl mind you) on dirty restaurant floors. She's our second so it's OK.

And I apologize for the sideways video...

So overwhelmed

2011-07-20T13:15:00.000-07:00

Beckett has this weird trait of being shy. As if being shy is such a completely abnormal thing for a 3 year old. So I guess I wouldn't call it shy but just not good with attention (obviously something he inherited from Damon and not me). During the crazy loud exciting dinner extravaganza at Farrel's last night - they entire restaurant (yes 4 people) and a big drum come over to sing him happy birthday... the drum did not sing.

I managed to catch his reaction and him covering his face was his reaction... and he was honestly just so overwhelmed and shy. I love this about him. I really do, I mean absolutely positively love this about him... even these pictures make me want to squeeze his sweet little face for being so completely taken aback.

More Birthday Celebration

2011-07-20T13:07:00.000-07:00

So we did our best to make Beckett's birthday as FUN as possible. After the exciting balloon party to start the morning we decided to head over to Surfin Donuts for breakfast before work. I am pretty sure we set him up for a pure sugar high.

I sent him to school with a bunch of cupcakes (homemade by me even) to share with his friends. Oh yeah, I consider homemade out of a box not from scratch or anything... so don't get too impressed.

He came home with a Crown and a huge smile and off we went to have dinner with Laura and Neal at Farrell's Ice Cream Parlor. Let me tell you, this is the perfect place to go. It's loud, crazy, full of treats and FAST FAST FAST. I am pretty sure they had our dinner out in about 4 minutes. So if you have a raving lunatic of a child you will totally fit in and no one will judge, plus you will be out of there in 15 minutes flat... genius. But don't worry neither of my kids are raving lunatics (yet)... just merely a recommendation for you other unfortunate moms out there. (A big Thanks to Laura and Neal for dinner, tons of presents and the dinosaur balloon which was a huge hit).

Once we got home Beckett spent the rest of his night playing with his new toys. It was nearly impossible to get him to bed and equally as impossible for him to determine which of his many new toys to take with him to bed (you all remember that's his thing).

Thank goodness Damon and I just got him shoes...

How to start a Birthday Morning

2011-07-19T09:33:00.000-07:00

What the heck is going on?

So I mentioned this before, but Beckett is not a morning person... or let's just say a "Wake Up person." He is grouchy and we always hold our breaths when he walks in the room to see how he is going to act. He usually likes one of us and it's almost a competition to see who it is. However, I have figured out the trick. Decorate his room with balloons and you will get a kid that wakes up on the right side of the bed and is as happy as can be. Why didn't I think of this before??

I want in on this!

So yeah, I stole this idea of decorating his room from some blog and it is genius! He love love loved it and so did Macie. He was happy and we were happy to get such a smiley cheery boy first thing! Bring on the Birthday Celebration!

3 Yrs Old

2011-07-19T09:17:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Beckett! Our Favorite kid (just kidding...maybe) turned 3 today! Where have the years gone?? Wasn't it just yesterday he was rolling around on the ground barely being able to walk or saying his first word "Mamma" (Fine it was Dadda... but I think I will make my own history).

At 3 Yrs old I like him even more than ever. He is smart, interesting, funny and I even enjoy spending time with him! He is grouchy in the morning (And I mean serious grouchy) and very standoffish when first seeing people. He wants his sister around for everything, but doesn't really want her to have a good time. He never calls her Macie, only "Baby Sister" or "Babies." "Do you want this toy Babies?"

He loves to sing and makes up songs about monsters, clouds, trucks, batman, firemen and anything else that crosses his mind. He loves to spin and jump and run and always says things like "Remember you do this Mommy..." and then makes up some new move I've never seen before. He does not enjoy dancing.

He yells at you to "Heads up" (Which really means wait up, when you are walking ahead of him.) He will pull you aside and tell you that telling him "No" is a bad word and you have to tell him yes. Such a negotiator.

He still loves his vegetables and is all around super easy and awesome. How could I say any less on his big day.

LegoLand

2011-07-18T14:52:00.000-07:00

Nana and Grumpa are in town for Beckett's Birthday and they were sweet enough to take Beckett to Legoland today! Here are a few mobile uploads of the day. He was so excited and he has not stopped talking about it for the past week.There is no doubt that this kid is Super Mega Ultra loved!

New look

2011-07-18T14:48:00.000-07:00

Before He's really selling the whole "Before I was miserable"

After Not nearly as miserable... all due to his new cut

We finally got Beckett a "Professional" Haircut. Now I don't know how cutting a kids hair in an airplane makes you a professional... but whatever. Let's just call it a professional speed cutter cause it took her 2 seconds flat. I have been the most stubborn about cutting his long locks. I love his fake surfer look he sports. But I have to say his new cut is great. He is one handsome kid and I just couldn't have him turning 3 with such straggly hair.

But seriously, I know he's mine and all but he is so so so so handsome and looking like Damon more and more every day (hence the handsome part). I am one proud mom that's for sure... mostly cause he's smart too. He's obviously perfect.

Yep this is it....

2011-07-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

These are the only 3 pictures I took from the 4th of July. Awesome photo opps on my part (that is Blog sarcasm). This can only mean two things:

1. We had way too much fun to worry about taking pictures

2. We were behaving inappropriately so all pictures have been destroyed

Obviously we are an option 1 sorta group. We had such a great time and marvel at how well the kids do when we take them on marathon beach days. Everyone kept talking about how the 4th is their favorite holiday and it is finally growing on me. Move over Thanksgiving (for obvious reasons) and hello Independence day. One this is for sure - Holidays are so much more fun with kids!

Thomson Pool Party!

2011-07-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

Michele made this amazing and tasty 4th of July cake. Let's just say there were no leftovers!

The Thomson's had us over for a pre 4th of July Pool party and it was an absolute blast. The kids had fun, the adults had fun and no one drowned (which is a huge fear of mine after I read a story about a kid drowning at a pool party right next to his parents - OK so that's rather morbid). Anyway, the Thomson's know how to BBQ! Beckett is a bit shy with most people, but since he goes to school with Tyler, Drake and Noah he was so comfortable! It was so great to see him in his element and playing and swimming with his friends.

One this is for sure, Beckett may not love the Ocean but he loves the pool! He made me catch him jumping into the water for nearly an hour! I think we may have a future swimmer on our hands just like his Daddy... no if we could only get him to go to Waterbabies...

Perfect Weather

2011-07-18T14:27:00.000-07:00

Our Fourth weekend was beyond Great and obviously I am still trying to catch up. We had amazing weather and a fun packed weekend with all of our friends. Lot's of Beach time, pool time and no sunburns! That is a win in our book.

Both my kids LOVE them some watermelon. Delicious. And each day they are starting to play more and more together. I love it! Yet they are still such opposites! Macie LOVES the ocean and Beckett wants nothing to do with it.

These days are honestly as good as it gets.

What Mom???

2011-07-01T11:44:00.000-07:00

It's so fun to have the two of them are already making huge messes together.... Beckett thought Macie wanted to read some books and Macie (holding the diaper and what appears to be a non-toy) could care less about them. Yet you can see him reaching for more, because she clearly doesn't have enough.

Can I just complain a minute about red eye? I realize I am not a professional photographer, nor do I have a super nice camera. But the one I am using is a 10.2 mega pixels intelligent LCD Samsung camera (yes it's called intelligent I am not just giving the camera that adjective). So shouldn't a camera with Intelligent in the name prevent red eye? Furthermore, shouldn't red eye be a thing of photography history??? And don't even get me started on the red eye edit function on the computer, clearly isn't correcting it, instead just making Macie look creepy like she has one white eye.

Catching Up Time

2011-07-01T10:28:00.000-07:00

So I have a short list of my favorite people in the whole world (sorry everyone I am sure this news may be crushing for some of you). Anyway, The De Clercks happen to fall on this list as two of the elite few. They are smart, funny, devilishly good looking, up for anything and goofy! I truly believe Britt is my "friend" soul mate... she likes to go to bed early, eat crappy food and watch even crappier TV. My dream world!

Macie and I had the fortune to spend some time with them. It was so perfect because first of all Britt had never even met Macie (bad friend) and apparently neither had I since I felt like I didn't know her at all as we started out on the adventure (Apparently Beckett does consume all of my attention).

Macie LOVED Matt & Britt too, which is weird since she hates strangers. But she let Matt carry her everywhere and carry her he did!

I also got to learn a lot about Matt and Britt. First of all Matt is obsessed with Maps and Fly Fishing. Britt says he always likes to look at the "Big Picture" hence his need for maps. I just as well get out mapquest... but no need for this guy. He was an Eagle Scout just like Damon - ah bonded for life! Yay wilderness! As for Britt I pretty much knew everything about her already (obviously why I like her so much). But I also realized that she hasn't changed one bit... which is awesome since she is so awesome. She is still the smartest person I know, still afraid to play board games against me and still laughs at poop jokes... which comes in handy when you have a baby.

They also passed on their ingeniousness to Macie by teaching her several important things: pointing, cheersing, and half high fiving. Matt and Macie also wrote a song together entitled "Ah Da." It is very catchy (is anyone still reading at this point?)

We honestly had such a great time with them. I only wish we were able to spend more time with them! I can't wait for these two to make a baby because they will be some darn good parents one day (plus create my future son/daughter in law).

Thanks for the adventure my friends! We love you and cherish you muchos.

Beckett what do you want to be when you grow up?

2011-07-01T09:28:00.000-07:00

A Pirate.

Parade

2011-06-30T11:48:00.000-07:00

Beckett had a parade at his school today for Independence day. We were instructed to have the kids wear red, white and/or blue. My question is: What's with the kids in the yellow and green? Do their parents hate America or something? How hard is it to put a boy in blue or red? Those colors are staples in a little boys wardrobe.

Also, notice the pure excitement and joy on Beckett and Noah's faces? They love America too obviously.

Lost Camera = No pics

2011-06-27T10:36:00.000-07:00

The only evidence of Macie and My's super fun weekend with the DeClercks! Hopefully my camera is recovered. More to follow (assuming the camera is found).

Damon & Beckett's Weekend

2011-06-27T10:34:00.000-07:00

Was spent pretty much like this.... Beckett has been sick since Wednesday (FINALLY feeling better today).... Poor guys were both stir crazy but the high fever held the poor kid down... good news looks like Macie is hot on his tail to get it... the joys of two kids = twice the sickness!

Yeah we did...

2011-06-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

We went ahead and celebrated one more day for Gavyn, on her Actual Birthday! We went to Pizza Port which was new for us, for an impromptu family dinner. I had only been there one other time when I was 8 months pregnant on a drunk scavenger hunt for my best friends 30th birthday (and no I was not drunk) but doing a scavenger hunt while 8 months pregnant with a bunch of drunk people requiring you to do a lot of shots and random things you would only do when drunk is... interesting to say the least. But that's a whole other story.

Anyway, Pizza Port is pretty good especially if you have very thin blood and are cold all the time (yes that means it gets hot in there). However, the kids run around putting quarters in every machine not really knowing how to make them work and they are pretty much content the entire time while you and whomever you are with can actually have a conversation!!! Ding Ding Ding - yes Pizza Port we will be back! However, I am going to need to brush up on my conversation skills because not having normal non-interrupted conversations for so long sorta makes you forget how to have a regular one. Oh and bring hand sanitizer... those video games are not clean.

By far the best part about Pizza port (besides being able to have a conversation) was Gavyn's Birthday cake! Her Gramma Seuss made this amazing rainbow cake (see image to your left - doesn't do it justice). Not only did it look awesome it tasted awesome too - so much for red dye #40 - we ate it up. Can't wait to steal that idea.

Oh yeah and Macie Baby was there too.

Did I mention Beckett it obsessed with Gavyn?

2011-06-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Gavyn!

2011-06-22T10:37:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we celebrated Miss G's 6th Birthday. Ami went all out and threw her an amazing yellow, pink, and orange bash. Everything was beyond perfect (and unfortunately I didn't snap any pics). However, nothing was as perfect as little miss G. I had the privilege to take her to get her hair done (and feathers put in!) and she was such a perfect girl the entire day! She looks like a little angel in this picture.

Off to the Pool

2011-06-22T10:34:00.000-07:00

I am loving watching these two little kids get closer. They are interacting more and more each day. I love this photo on the right because you can see Macie is holding onto B's leg. Throught out the whole wagon ride he was making sure she didn't fall and feeding her crackers. He is already protecting her!! Although Beckett HATES swim lessons, he really loves the pool and could easily spend hours upon hours there.

This Guy

2011-06-21T08:32:00.000-07:00

This Guy is amazing. He seriously adds such a little bounce in my step everyday. He is really big into saying "Don't say that Mommy" when ever I tell him something he doesn't want to hear (ie nap time, eat your dinner, don't throw the ball in the house). He also is really big into asking us how are days were even when he asks first thing in the morning.... rolls out of bed at 6am and about 15 minutes later says "How was your day Mommy?"

For some reason he has taken to calling Spider Webs "spider Pals" or "pallets" I am not quite sure. It is so bizarre but literally that is what he calls them and he loves them! He also loves one other thing a lot right now and that is his sweet cousin Gavyn. I don't have the heart to tell him she's moving. He literally will do anything I want him to do as long as Gavyn's doing it or it will lead him to see her.

He recently had a gymnastics show and I have come to realize Beckett will not be the next Justin Beiber (contrary to those of you that think his hair is similar). He just does not like to be the center of attention (obviously he did not get that from me) and pretty much shuts down when it comes to performing. That's OK bud!!! You still make us smile every day!

Daddy's Day

2011-06-21T08:16:00.000-07:00

I know I've said this before, but somewhere along the line all my lame bad choices led me to one really great one: Damon! Not only is he the most amazing husband but he is one top notch Dad. I often marvel at how I chose so well because he really gives his Daddy duties 100%. He is so committed and involved with our kids and amazing at it all the same. Pardon the corniness about to go down: But I feel honored to raise our kids together.

If they don't end up half OK it will be evidence that it is nature and not nurture that prevails.

We celebrated Damon by not letting him cook or clean (and the kids survived) and I even took Ellie out for him! And the Red Sox won. I have to say it was a perfect Father's day.

Beach Days

2011-06-20T15:06:00.000-07:00

Butt Check... guess the trunks are a little big.

These pics were taken from a beach day a few weeks back. It was such a nice quiet day on the beach, sometimes I wonder what the heck else you could/would be doing in the universe then spending it at the beach on a nice sunny day. This day was so perfect because if you notice above Beckett and Macie sorta played together. And by sorta I mean, Beckett didn't immediately take away whatever Macie had and let her sit near him. It was awesome. I also love how Macie decided to just lounge about on her side.... She was so happy and so content. You obviously read this a lot on here and that's because she truly is such an easy happy baby.

9 Months Old

2011-06-20T14:49:00.000-07:00

So good news, Macie made it to 9 months! She is thriving and brilliant just like her brother. She weighs in at a whopping 17lbs! Yep that's the 25 percentile (We will take it). And to Damon's delight (and just another example of how she is a mini version of him) she is in the 75% for height at 28 inches tall. The doctor said she was practically perfect in every way... way to go Kid!

Oh Me oh My

2011-06-20T14:40:00.000-07:00

Our little Macie took her first steps! She has been taking a few steps here and there and pretty much taps out at 5. It is so fun to watch her because she really is so happy to walk (although this video may suggest otherwise). She just laughs and giggles and get's sooo excited.

My Favorite Time of Night

2011-06-14T18:08:00.000-07:00

There are a few minutes each night, right after Macie goes to bed and just before Beckett's bedtime that I get a calm, snuggly little love bug on my hands. He asks for a movie, grabs the USC blanket and cuddles in. Maybe he realizes that the closer he cuddles me the less likely I am to make him go to bed or maybe he wants his Mommy time now that Macie's out of the way, whatever the reason may be I will take it! Sometimes I will even give him a piece of candy just to make him stay longer... sneaky. I absolutely love this time of night... even if it only lasts 10 minutes.

I'm Serious

2011-06-13T17:23:00.000-07:00

I am serious about making the kids think I am the super fun parent! Thursday night Damon was out late so I decided to have a picnic instead of heading straight home... so yeah maybe it isn't the prettiest nicest park. But it has bunnies, bushes, and spooky paths for Beckett to explore and it's not the house! Michelle: 2 Damon:0

(side note: I am not super competitive and I do not invent my own competitions.)

Grocery Store

2011-06-13T17:12:00.000-07:00

We have found the best time to hit the grocery store with two kids is on your lunch break during the week. Ok not really. They are not demons or anything (most of the time) but they can get loud and antsy pantsy. So we basically decided an hour after they wake up is the best time to go!

#1 reason why???:

They wake up at 5am and I can tell you there are not a lot of people at the grocery store at 6am on a Saturday Morning.

So now we are a two seat cart toting family.

Ok and one side note: Do any of you parents give your kids the milk Beckett's holding? Does it confuse any of you that it doesn't have to be refrigerated?? Not Normal (yet, yes I still allowed him to drink it.)

It's been far too long...

2011-06-10T09:57:00.000-07:00

The Emmery's have to be some of my favorite people in the entire world and sadly we don't see them nearly enough. Even when we lived 2 blocks from them we didn't see them enough. Maybe it's because you could never get enough of this family...

First of all Ashley is Amazing. The story goes we met in college (but little did she know I had stalked her at Traffic school a month before we started). At said Traffic school I became very weary of USC (she had USC license plate holder) and I thought to myself I would never be friends with girls like her... however 5 yrs later we were in each other's wedding. Silly me knew nothing.

Ashley is so fun, supportive, humble, happy, outgoing, such a great mother and wife and a ball full of laughter. She gets an A+ when it comes to being a human. Fortunately, she married someone equally as amazing and procreated 2 awesome children that round out this perfect family.

This is Ashley

Going to the Emery's house is like stepping into something from the 19th century (or 18th - Centuries always confuse me). They have their own full blown Garden/Orchard (having a peach tree and lemon tree qualifies as an orchard in my book). They build everything on their own and don't even have cable television. You would think they were hippies but they aren't.

Anyway I could go on and on... but most importantly I love them and we had so much fun with them but finally had to put our husbands to bed (yeah that's right I said husbands and yeah it was only at 9pm). Hopefully it won't be another 8 months before we see them again.

The Girl's playing together!

Their house was spotless before we showed up

Ok Mr fix it himself took their old new born bathtub and created a trailer out of it... this is what I am talking about. Pure genius with this family!

Snuggles

2011-06-09T12:28:00.000-07:00

Beckett has become much more interested in holding Macie. I always thought it was so funny that every time we see Gavyn or Rylie they want to hold her because Beckett could care less. Now he is much more into it and doesn't understand why she won't sit still when he's holding her. And Macie is just so happy that he is finally paying attention to her.

Best Friends

2011-06-09T12:26:00.000-07:00

Cuddle Up... Ellie makes the perfect night time companion. I love how she has become Beckett's side kick. She sleeps with him every night and during his nap. They are two peas in a pod.

Trying to live up to her brother

2011-06-07T09:48:00.000-07:00

Damon claims that Beckett took his first steps exactly on his 9 month birthday. And although I have a notoriously bad memory I really don't believe him. I think it was more like sometime in his 9 month of life... But Damon is adamant that it was on the very day. Well Macie's 9 month birthday is fast approaching and I have been stepping up her walking efforts in order to live up to her father's lofty expectations. So do you think by Saturday she will take a few steps?

On a side note, walking like this makes her so happy. She gets super excited and just charges towards the walker and is so proud the entire time.

Walks

2011-06-07T09:35:00.000-07:00

In order to enjoy our walks together we need to be some what prepared. This usually requires snacks, water, bathroom run and toys for Beckett. For our walk this weekend, Beckett thought it extremely important to take all of his cars... pretty much every one he could find. Take note of the 15 or so hot wheels piled up on his lap. Macie on the other hand does not need to take a thing. She is very content and she knows by the end of the walk she will have her hands full.

Beckett likes to share or maybe he just gets claustrophobic.

Macie Macie Macie

2011-06-06T14:59:00.000-07:00

Boy this girl is the best! She is almost 9 months and continues to be the perfect little addition to our family. Let me just tell you a couple little things about Macie. She is all girl - dramatic, needy, cuddly, whiny, LOUD (OK fine all me girl that is), happy, sweet, calm, and manages this all in the same breath. She loves to eat and has a bottomless pit. Literally I have never seen her turn a bite of food away (as long as she is feeding herself).

And she loves 2 things a lot right now: Food and ME (which I just love... separation anxiety may be my favorite stage!).

Memorail Day BBQ

2011-06-06T14:27:00.000-07:00

After our long day at the beach (as you can see from the look on Beckett's face) we headed over to Ami's house for a BBQ. What better way to honor the holiday than with our own Local Hero who fights to keep us free and has experienced first had losses of his own friends and heroes.

Anyway, this is why Ami and I should never organize a BBQ amongst ourselves:
1. We never chose a time so around 5pm she wondered if we were still coming and so did the other guests she had invited
2. We never chose what to cook... so we ended up with a smorgasbord of 2 piece of salmon, 5 hot dogs, 2 turkey burgers, 5 pieces of chicken, stuffed mushrooms, and macaroni and cheese... yeah maybe random but all delicious.
3. When we show up and get ready to cook we realize there is no propane. Oops.

Details Details. It was all delicious and perfect!