It has been quite a week. Grammy Pearl is still in pretty rough shape after a fall last week and a fractured hip. We did move her last Friday from the hospital to Hospice House and Hospice has been really great. She has a beautiful yard outside her room with a creek and waterfalls. It even has a playground for Libby.....genius. I much prefer the yard at Hospice to the third floor of the hospital. Though Libby loved running around both. We're still "up in the air" so to speak about the best place for Grammy long term, but my mom and Julane are meeting with the people of Hospice this week to have her evaluated so we can make the best decision. These are never easy decisions to make and I know how fortunate I am that my family is rallying together, so none of us feels alone. Tough stuff.

I took this picture a few weeks ago. I took Libby's foot stool out of the kitchen because she uses it to get into EVERYTHING. That didn't phase her. She just uses her high chair now, which is probably an entire foot higher. Now she can get on top of the refrigerator if she wants to.

Go Ducks! My family came for the Boise State game. Bummer of an outcome.

Our littlest Duck fan.

Reading books at bedtime with daddy.

Peyton smiles at Grandpa. Libby calls him Papa!

This is at Aunt JuJu's house. Libby loved hitting Jamison and Jayden with the sword.

Libby swings on the big girls swing at Grammy Jane's and gives the baby swing to her sister.

Peyton didn't seem too sure about swinging.

This was our swing set when we were little girls. Now our kids are playing on it together.

Libby has a banana in Grammy Pearls room at the hospital. She spent a lot of time sitting in this spot watching the construction going on outside. She especially loved watching the crane swing around.

We went for a walk on Friday night and met my friend Mo and her son Will for dinner at Red Robin. It was a gorgeous night, but it's starting to feel like fall.



A Saturday afternoon nap in the swing.

I have so many pictures like this because Libby wants to see the pictures on my camera right after they're taken. I'm lucky if I can take one picture before she runs toward me to see it.

Before we left on Sunday we got to see Jayden play in his football game. He's the one with the long stride.

Libby cheers on her cousin from her perch on Aunt JuJu's lap.

On Sunday night we got home a few hours before Shane. Immediately when I walked into the house I got the feeling that something wasn't quite right. The chairs around the dining room table were moved into a line in front of the patio doors. I called Shane and asked him if he'd moved them this way. He said he didn't, and that they weren't like this on Thursday when he'd been home. He'd sat at the table. CREEPY! He called our friend Nelson to see if he'd moved them. He hadn't. Now, I know I wouldn't have moved them into this formation before we left because I generally like to have the house in order before I leave so that it's clean when I get home. We were SO weirded out! So, we decided that the only thing to do was to change the locks on the house the next day.....

Fast forward to Monday morning. Shane made coffee and we were watching the Today show and just enjoying being home together. I was sitting in the recliner feeding Peyton and Libby is running around in her pajamas. Then, it happens. Libby takes one chair and backs it into the corner. Then, she goes for another. She carefully rotated the third one and backed it against the first two. Then, she carefully places the fourth one. Thank goodness! We have our little culprit! Needless to say, we didn't change the locks. :)

Sleepy swinger.

Tummy time.

It's good to be with daddy.

Grammy Pearl

On Monday morning I loaded up the girls for a trip over the mountains to my mom's house. We were looking forward to seeing Grammy Jane and Grammy Pearl who we hadn't seen in quite a while. At about the same time we pulled out of the driveway at our house Grammy Pearl slid out of bed at her house and missed. She landed on the floor on her left side and fractured her hip. Luckily, it's not a huge break. It's a small fracture in her femur that's still lined up fairly well. Still, at 99, any break is not a good one. We've decided that surgery isn't a great option (for obvious reasons) and tonight she's still in the hospital. We're taking things day by day.

Grammy has her good moments and not-so-good moments. At times she's a very cooperative patient, and other times.....not so much. Still, the girls help to lighten the mood with her, and they can even bring a little clarity to her when she's confused about what's going on. Sigh.

On a lighter note... Peyton is laughing more and more. Libby is swinging on a big girl's swing and holding on to the rope all by herself. She is so proud. Shane is home tonight and misses us, but had a good conversation with Libby over the phone.

So, include Grammy and our family in your prayers tonight and we'll hope tomorrow is a good day. :)

TGIF

We'll, It's been quite a week. Both Libby and Peyton are sick now, but a little Tylenol has worked wonders and I think it could be a lot worse. So, I'm still counting my blessings and there are many.

For example, both girls have taken serious naps today which meant I got one too. This, after a hysterical call to Shane at 11:30 last night because nobody was sleeping and everyone was crying.

Then, I went to Jo Ann Fabrics today and the clerk who cut my fabric said to me....get ready for this....she looked at Libby and Peyton and said, "Are you their mom, or are you their grandma?"

In my head I said, "What? Could I possibly have heard you correctly? Someone get me a Q-tip, because I think you just asked me if I'm their GRANDMA!" But what I actually said was, "I'm their mom."

"Oh." she said, "I hope I didn't offend you. It's just that we get a lot of young looking grandmas who come in here." (sure)

"No, lady. I'm not offended. Now give me my receipt so I can to home and put on a whole bottle of moisturizer."

So TGIF. I've never been so happy that it's Friday. Though I'm not currently working, Friday just feels like an end. An end to runny noses. An end to thoughtless remarks. An end to crying. A good wrapping up of sorts and this is a good week to wrap up. Hopefully tomorrow will be a fresh beginning and I'd like to think we'll kick off the new beginning with a Duck win. Go Ducks!

When Things Go Really Wrong....

If ever I thought I've got this motherhood thing figured out, this morning's events have totally unseated me from atop my perch. They say God doesn't throw more at you than you can handle. That's debatable, but I did stop short of calling the fire department.

It began at 3:20 this morning. I awoke to Libby's screams over the baby monitor. In an instant I knew she would not be "self soothing" so to speak, and calmly drifting off on her own. So I went and got her. We snuggled in daddy's chair for a few minutes before she insisted on reading her daddy book. It's a book of photos of Libby and Shane. She loves it. We read it once. Then, we read it again. Then, we flipped the pages and talked about the pictures. Finally, at 4:00 she was back in bed. I prayed as I climbed back in my bed that Peyton wouldn't get hungry until about noon.

She didn't wake to eat until 7:00 (not bad) and then she actually fell asleep again....Hallelujah! At nine I fed her again, got up and fed Grunny and started to get dinner ready to put in the crock pot. Mind you, I've NEVER in my life started fixing dinner earlier than five minutes before we eat. Just yesterday I decided to give the crock pot a whirl, so I went to the grocery store, stocked up on enchilada fixins and I was ready this morning. By 9:30 I decided to wake Libby (stupid decision......NEVER wake a sleeping baby!) and when I went in to get her I was greeted by a booger trail a half mile long. She's sick.

Usually when I fix breakfast in the morning Libby sits at the table, talks to me, plays with toys, looks at books or whatever. If you've ever had a sick child you know that this was not the case this morning. Today as I tried to fix breakfast and dinner simultaneously (what was I thinking?) Libby whined, cried, wrapped herself around me, threw herself on the floor, sneezed snot all over my computer keyboard, pulled magnets off of the refrigerator, kissed her sister....aauugh, and boogered every Rubbermaid container in the cupboard. Oh, and she poured pear juice all over the counter and finger painted in it. It's still sticky as I sit here. I just let her. What are you supposed to do when you're fixing two meals? Poor Peyton was content to begin with, and when she did decide to make her existence known she was met with total neglect.....from everyone. Even Grunny was hiding in the bedroom to avoid the pandamonium. So she screamed until her head was the color of Tickle-Me-Elmo.

I picked her (Peyton) up from the excersaucer, laid her on the floor, and said, "I'm sorry honey, mommy will be right back. I just have to go wash the pear juice from your sister. Then, we'll snuggle, okay?" That was met with more screaming. Poor kid. Next, I stripped Libby down to a diaper and left her sticky clothes on the kitchen floor. "Let's go get you clean Libster!", I said. We went to the bathroom, rinsed her hands and face and sat her on a blanket in daddy's chair to watch Caillou. Then, apologetically I picked up my little red faced Peyton, put her on my lap, shushed her, told her I loved her and then asked, "Honey what is all over your feet? Wait, that's enchilada sauce. How did you get Enchilada sauce all over your.....oh jeez, I've got it all over my sweats. Wait a minute. I didn't use red meat, I made chicken enchiladas. So if that's not enchilada sauce....then.....it's.....(sniff)......(gag).....okay, WHO POOPED!!!? And I set Peyton back to to commence screaming once again. Before I ran to my room to change my pants I told everyone, "Don't anybody move. Mommy will be right back."

I put on clean pants and started looking for poo. I didn't have to look far to discover the leak at the leg of Libby's diaper. At this point she's rubbing her boogery face and who knows what else she's touched. After all, she's sitting on a blanket that is covered with poop. At that point we went straight to the bathtub. What was Peyton doing? Screaming, of course. I got Libby soaped up and rinsed and left her, yes left her, in 1.5 inches of water to go and get her sister. I rinsed Peyton's feet, but she was so wound up at that point that I had to feed her. That was the only thing that would stop the crying. After a little snack and some singing, Libby in the tub, and me in Libby's little chair everyone was clean and happy once again. Aaahhhh. I put Libby in clean dry clothes first. Then, took them both into my room to get Peyton dressed. While I was dressing Peyton, Libby turned a cup of water upside down on my bathroom counter.....fabulous. I brought them both out to the living room and quickly gathered up everything (I think) covered in poop to put in the wash. Shortly after, Peyton fell asleep in her swing, but not before I had to change the batteries as they were dead. Then, I shot off a quick email to our Birth To Three group cancelling the play date that we were supposed to host tonight.

That's our morning in a nutshell. Do you want to know the best part? Dinner is done. And if you weren't sure what we're having....chicken enchiladas.

A Walk In the Park

On Sunday we did a three mile loop along the river trail to play in the fountain. Libby loved it! I walked Grunny and the girls and Shane rode his longboard. I even rode the board for part of it and Shane didn't think I did too bad. I think I've got a new hobby....

Running through the fountain. Libby got soaked!


A swimming spot for Grunny

Too much fresh air makes everyone sleepy.

Snuggling before bedtime

Cute Photos!

This summer our friends Mark and Amy got married. We were so flattered when they asked if Libby would be a flower girl in their wedding. The event took place at an incredible property in Junction City under the canopy of hundreds of tall trees. The photographers did an incredible job, and they've posted the pictures on their website. Go check them out. The address is http://www.jfabphotography.com
Click on Amy Nelson and Mark Anderson.
Then, click on children.

Ignore those of me that are not so flattering and remember Peyton was only weeks old at the time. :)

Something New Every Day

It seems that one of the girls is doing something new everyday. Peyton started laughing this week, and I'll make a total fool of myself to get a giggle out of her. Libby has discovered keys and wants to use them. here she is trying to lock, or unlock the front door. I don't want her to be able to open the front door, but I was just happy she wasn't sticking the key in Peyton's ear.

The girls have lunch together.


I have a new obsession...Facebook. If you have an account come find me. If you don't have an account, well then, create one and come find me!

The Deadliest Catch

Another home game brought my family for the weekend and we never lack for fun.

Super Smiley Peytie Pie. I snapped this one just for the hat. It seems she's growing out of (and into) clothes every minute.

On Friday night we went to "Hot Dogs and Hot Rods" at the elementary school by our house. It was a fundraiser for them and dinner for us. You can't beat a hot dog, chips, pop and a cookie for a buck. Yep, a buck. Libby's favorite part was the playground, and she loved to hang without Shane holding on. It's tricky to catch her after she lets go, but before she hits the ground.

Julane and Jamison went to the game so that left me with Jayden, Libby, Peyton, Blake and Olivia during the game. The bounce house was a huge hit, and Anna Lisa and Cameron even joined us in the fourth quarter. We had a happy meal picnic before commencing the bouncing.

Cameron shared his shades with Libby.

This morning we piled into the suburban, or Air Force One as Anna Lisa calls it, and headed for our own little crabbing expedition. It was foggy when we got there, but it quickly burned off as you'll see in the pictures. It was a beautiful day and we ended up with a crab count of 16.

What a handsome boy!

The fishing crew...

Shane beached the boat against a sand dune so I could (without her life jacket) feed a screaming Peyton. The gang piled out of the boat and headed up the dune which was a lot harder than it looked. Each step launched an avalanche, and Shane, Peyton and I were in the boat laughing at all of them. They eventually made it to the top. When Peyton was fed I handed her off and got out of the boat to show them how it was done. It was steeper than it looked, and I'm not in the best shape of my life. It was their turn to laugh at me.

Grammy Jane and Libby tackle the hill.

Meal-Ticket Mama

Phat and Happy

Julane and Shane pulled the pots. We had seven in the first one. I opened my fat trap and said, "At this rate we'll have our limit in no time." I totally jinxed us. We never saw another full pot. It was fun none the less.

Grunny drank quite a bit of salt water and hunkered down to feel queasy.

We're working on "thumbs up". This is Libby's version. We've got some work to do.

Libby takes in all the action of the day.

A seal friend followed us around all morning.

Libby keeps an eye on the seal while Grunny growls at it.

Libby couldn't keep her hands off of the fish finder. The buttons were irresistable!

Shane measures crab.

Julane tries not to get pinched.

The Greenhorns head in with our catch.

Grammy Jane takes Libby up to see the crab cleaning action.

Shane's boat....or Libby's?

An Entire Week Gone By...

Life has been busy! We had a busy weekend with houseguests from Wednesday-Monday so there's been no blogging. There has however, been lots of picture taking so here is our week in pictures.

Grandpa Dad and Grandma Margie had an impromptu visit with us on Wednesday night as their other plans fell through. Then, on Thursday they headed for the coast. Libby walked them out to the camper.

Peyton hangs out in a pair of pajamas that I swear fit Libby two weeks ago.

The Bend Groshongs came on Thursday night and Ryan hooked up our hot tub for us! Thanks Cuz! Olivia was dying to give Peyton a bath and Jen and Blake were willing to help. Thanks Jen. Sorry I didn't warn you that Peyton's not a big fan of being submerged in water. She smells good though:)

Olivia and Peyton snuggle on the couch.

I got the Bumbo seat out of the attic and since it was Peyton's first time in it, I put her in a pair of Pajamas that Libby also wore. Check out these next two pictures.. The first one is Peyton and the second is Libby.

Peyton Shane

Libby Jane

Beware of growth hormones. We gave Peyton just a little and she woke up looking like this....

Peyton after a trip to Build-a-Bear workshop. I went with Jen, Olivia and Blake and this was the purchase I made. Libby was so weirded out by seeing her sister with hair that I don't think she was even sure it was Peyton. She kept coming up close to her saying, "hi,hi,hi" as if to verify that this was still Peyton.

Worn out from playing dress up.

Libby in her first Duck gear of the season. Go Ducks!

A first for a kid who finally has enough teeth to take on the cob!

Jamison hangs out on Saturday. Isn't he handsome? He started fifth grade this week!

Daddy snuggles the girls. I didn't notice at the time that Libby is trying to eat Peyton's foot.

Libby takes a stab at being the baby again. She's a total ham!

Peyton's first time in the excersaucer. It was fun....for a short period of time.

We're bouncing! We'd been kicking around the idea of getting some kind of play structure, but opted for the bouncy house instead, since it can be put away. It's a huge hit, and Libby is fearless! She likes to climb up the slide and launch off the back. Today she got the idea of bouncing and I think she even caught a little air...an inch or two at least.





Peyton dreams of the day when she can bounce too.

When we bought our house I loved the idea of kids sitting at the island during that crazy evening hour while I made dinner. Today that dream became a reality. I made dinner and Libby sat up on a barstool like a big girl. I quizzed her on some new words and she repeated them. Her latest is, "yes". It was a great moment. It ended with a dinner of taco salad. My girls are growing and changing so fast!