Randomness & some birthday pics

A few nights ago, Daddy heard commotion upstairs about 10 minutes after bedtime.  He yelled up to Emerson to see what was going on, and she informed him that she was helping Jax get a booger out of his nose.  I think they were both in one of the bathrooms, and she was totally taking charge to help him dig for gold.  Classic.

Jax turns three on Friday!  That boy has been cracking me up lately.  His new favorite phrase?  "Pickle-hoppin."  Used as an adjective.  Don't ask me what or why... we just go with it.

Hayden is just as mean as ever.  She loves to scream at her siblings, usually for no reason.  Her left molar has almost completely broken through, and the right one is at that horrible swollen phase.  My favorite times with her are on preschool days when we get one-on-one time to read books and play together.  

Emerson has been as sweet as pie lately.  I'm loving her sweet attitude and helpfulness.  Let's hope it sticks around for a while!  Tonight we were playing in the back yard after dinner, and she was using sidewalk chalk on the patio.  No lie, she started writing her name upside down so that I could see it from my vantage point.  My jaw dropped.  That is hard to do!

Happy belated birthday to my sweet husband!  Turned the big 34 on Monday, and we had family over on Sunday night.

Instead of cake, Jason asked for one of his very favorite desserts.  It's a chocolate pudding/cake/cool whip/heath bar concoction that is out of this world.

Preschool Easter parties tomorrow, worship practice for me tomorrow night, Jax's birthday on Friday night, hopefully going to a sunrise service (after sunrise, though, with little ones in tow) on Saturday, more worship practice on Saturday for Easter, Easter dinner at the in-laws' on Sunday p.m..... whew!  I'm tired already just thinking about it.

Heather & Kyle

My friend Heather got engaged last week!  I've known her since I was in middle school, and we finally got to meet her fiance Kyle.  They came over for dinner last night, and between sessions of ogling the stunning rock on her finger (see it HERE under her St. Patrick's Day blog), it was so wonderful to catch up and get to know Kyle.

Hayden's first little molar was breaking through yesterday, so she was quite the beast during dinner.  The other two were waaaay excited to have guests over.  Emerson started asking at around 1 p.m. to know when 'our guest-es' were going to get here.  Jax started asking around 2 p.m. 'what duh-thert' Miss Heather was bringing.  She didn't disappoint with cake pops and cookies!

The boys were still chatting when I got my camera out, so I only got Heather in a picture with the kids.  Emerson went upstairs after dinner and changed into this crazy ensemble... at one point she even had a Christmas doll scarf tied around her head Rambo-style.  Looked like Belle on crack.  

Congrats again, my friend!  You're gonna be one beautiful bride.  And Kyle has our official stamp of approval... good catch!

A good, sweet, emotional read

I just can't stop crying after reading Ashley's latest post.... the journey of adoption is just so emotional.  If you don't follow her blog, you need to.

http://ashleyannphotography.com/blog/2012/03/26/opposite-sides-of-the-world/

So Tired

Sometimes the end of a week seems to hit me like a ton of bricks, and tonight is no exception.  I am blasted tired.  Spring break ended up being one of the rainiest on record, and I think we had 6-7" inches of rain total.  So being cooped up inside was no fun.  We did get to escape for a few play dates, and on Wednesday I dropped all three off at GiGi and SueSue's for two hours while I ran errands.  Alone.

Today was non-stop from the moment we woke up.  It started with a meet-n-greet for our new gym.  Did I blog about switching gyms?  Can't remember.  Anyway, we are joining Lifetime Fitness, and I couldn't be more excited.  I have thoroughly enjoyed Sky, but having access to everything Lifetime offers is just too hard to turn down.  And because we don't have a neighborhood pool and aren't members of a golf club yet, having unlimited pool access was a huge plus.  I signed up the older two for swim lessons today.  

After that, it was a mad dash home for a quick lunch, then dropped Hayden off at Grandma & Pa-Pa's house to nap while we took Em & Jax to a birthday party for Miss Paisley at a gymnastics center.  Then we dropped them back off at Grandma & Pa-Pa's house to join Baby Hane while Jason and I went shopping for him for his birthday.  New golf shoes, golf shorts and shirts, new dress slacks and dress shirts were all purchased, and it was so much fun to shop with him.  

Finally, we headed to dinner at Charleston's.  A nice, quiet dinner, free from interruptions, questions, requests to go potty/wipe noses/get down.  We laughed as we pulled into the in-laws' driveway and realized we were both dreading going back to reality!  Sometimes you just need a break, and most of the time it isn't long enough.  I can't even tell you how excited I am to get away for six days for our 10-year this summer!

Quote of the Week

Seen on a random blog that I somehow came across a few days ago:

"In case you did not know, there is no smoother way to be accepted as part of the landscape of a neighborhood than pushing adorable, friendly toddlers around.  I have not received the glare of death from a single stranger.  Instead, I get big smiles, and from other moms, sympathetic commiseration on the weight of stroller.  Three-year-olds are the universal ambassador.  I suggest the UN find a way to use this." -veronimitch.blogspot.com

The Differences

I get such a kick out of the personalities of my three munchkins, especially how different they are at times.  Just today we were picking up Arby's roast beef sandwiches for lunch, and as we pulled away from the window, I laughed out loud.

Emerson had requested that I roll down her window so she could thank the elderly Arby's man "for the delicious food."

Jax said, "Mommy, I didn't say thank you because I was just re-yax-ing back here."

Hayden was yelling at the top of her lungs, trying to pull her bow out and take her shoes off at the same time.  Immediately thereafter, upon being unsuccessful, she started gritting her teeth and pulling her own hair.