Tyler at his first Indian's game.

AHH!! Feels like summer!! The breeze is just right but the sun is out and it's almost 80! Another 10-15 degrees and we'll have perfection! I could do without the humidity though. One of my tulips finally opened up so I know they didn't die in the snow and hail we had 3 days ago. It was so nice to get the kids outside. I'm amazed in the differences of how they play from year to year. Grace can climb up the ladder of her slide, get her feet out infront by pushing up on the handles of the slide and go down all by herself. She started doing it last month, took Gary about 5 tries to teach her. I"m just amazed! Tyler can swing without being pushed and at one point went so high on the seesaw that i feared he'd bring the whole swingset down! They chase each other, he pushes her around on the 4-wheeler, they play soccer and house... today they transported dandelion's all over the yard and gave them rides down the slides... life is just so fun at these ages. I dread the hassle of school!! Gary and Tyler just left for Tyler's first MLB game- The Cleveland Indians of course. We've called it the "Go Tribe" in our house since he could talk and it's just stuck. My dad got tickets from work and since all my regular babysitters were busy and it's going to be a very late night we decided to have Gary and Tyler go instead of Gary and I. I hope Gary does as requested and takes lots of photos, and I hope Tyler enjoys it too. He ought to, the seats are AMAZING! One person who is over the moon excited is my dad. I don't think he'd be this happy if he won the lottery. I wish I could be there to see it. I also hope he sits long enough Gary can enjoy some of the game!! Tomorrow I get to enjoy Part II of the big 3-0 celebration with Lori. I think we're doing a movie, dinner and maybe some shopping! I'm very excited to have a day out and get to spend time with her since it doesn't happen often. I fear with a third child coming these girls days out will be harder and harder to come by. I purpose to enjoy them while I can! I got Grace up and told her that it was just us girls tonight! I said "Daddy and Lovey (what she calls Tyler) went bye-byes so it's just Grace and mommy all night! What do you want to do?" "Play dishes!" So I must leave you now. It's Princess and Me time!

Lori's 30'th Birthday Part 4/22/09 If you look REALLY close, you can see Lori blowing out her candles!!

My mom and Grandma came to visit yesterday morning Grace at my mom's when we went last Saturday (After Elmo) Playing outside with Uncle Josh! Tyler on the battery train that needs charged. I pushed both of them up and down the driveway.

PHOTOS: Sesame Street Live- Elmo Makes Music Grandma and the Kids looking at the Program Pops and Tyler Gary, Grace and Grandma Our Family (I don't know how to crop on the new computer yet...) Grace and Heather Tyler and Pops (at the end on the way out) Grace got a Zoe (which now that she's used to it she won't put it down and sleeps with it too) and Tyler got the CD with the songs from the show.

Tyler and Grace playing with their latest trian track creation.

Another wonderful weekend! I"m sitting on the couch typing, listening to the rain and also listening to the kids chatter as they eat scrambled eggs and banana's. (not mixed) Last week was Gary's spring break which was wonderful. Monday was the day he really actually stayed home and I loved it. I was so tired from Easter that he let me sleep in and we really lounged around with the kids. Tuesday he worked a very long day, Wednesday he went in late and worked a full day and Thursday he didn't go in till after lunch. It's always so nice to have him around in the mornings because he can play with the kids and I can get stuff done! :) Usually we end up fighting over who gets to be on the computer but it's so nice to have another adult around not to mention another set of eyes and ears to break up the fights. haha! He ended up being at work that day longer than expected but we still made it to Bible study which was nice. Friday we went out to breakfast with his mom and the kids got to play on the McDonalds playland. Grace really didn't but Tyler did. THe weater was SO nice that I had them outside while gary went off to work again. He was home for dinner each night but had hoped to be home sooner than that. I hope whatever projects he HAD to get done he did because he's got major projects that need to be done before summer to have any hope of getting his summer projects done. He triees not to volunteer too much time but let's face it, if he doesn't things won't get done. We all have jobs like that but it's not easy to be at work and feel guilty you are not at home, and be home feeling guilty you are not at work. :) I"m trying to encourage him but it's hard. He loves his job and I'm so glad. He works with a lot of really great people who really support him and appreciate him, however as in any job, everyone things their problem is critical #1. They know he's married. _I_ am cirtical #1!!! :) The week was a good mix, He wasn't home near enough to make me crazy but he got to sleep in several days and spend some time online relaxing too. Having him home extra like that makes my life so much easier. It was nice to have a week of half-rest to gear up for finishing out the school year here. I can't wait for our Outer Banks vacation!!!! Saturday we went to Canton to see Sesame Street Live: Elmo Makes Music. The Bush's bought the tickets and went with us. The kids LOVED it. My friend Jen goes with her kids every year and I know they love it, but it wasn't something I ever thougt we'd spend money on. I have to say it's a really well done show and kids of many ages can get something out of it. I thought my kids woudln't like it because we dont watch Sesame Street. :) I was afraid they'd not know the characters enough but since Grace loves Elmo and Zoe and Tyler remembers the characters from when he used to watch it and LOVES music they both loved it. Grace clapped a lot and really sat and watched for long portions. She pointed out Elmo and Zoe every time they came out. Also Cookie Monster. She's obsessed with cookies so anything with "cookie" in the name she's going to pick up on. For a lot of it she was jumpy. She's not my TV kid yet. She is not one to sit and really watch a show. She's still at the interaction stage where she wants to talk it through and run around when she wants to. Tyler will sit on the couch for 3 hours watching something if you let him. He loves listening to music and trying to figure out the rythm and the lyrics so he was paying very close attention. Gary and Steph loved it too, I think it was neat for them to see the kids enjoy it so much. I know I loved it. I expected kids around us to be standing on chairs and jumping around but the kids around us really sat nicely or in an adults lap so we really could see. We were up in the stands and I was glad. The floor seats looked like it would be impossible for kids to see. We also ended up with extra seats which was nice, plenty of room for all of us and for the seat switching that happened. Each of us held each of the kids at least once. After Elmo, we drove up to Lorain to see my mom for the weekend. This might have been one of the best parts of spring break for Gary. I'm not sure if' i've shared but we have absolutely no cable. We don't even get basic channels b/c we don't have an antena or anything. Actually, we get the local channel 17 which is all church and religious stuff. I actually like it but it only comes in upstairs when it's not windy or raining so i only watch it at night if i can't sleep. ANYWAY, my mom has cable and a very nice TV so on Saturday we got to watch the Bulls beat the Celtics, the Cav's beat the Pistons, AND the Indians embarass the Yankees. My brother was there so the two of them were just in their glory. :) Mom came home and we took the kids outside for a while because it was such a beautiful day. Then we had dinner and went to the park by her house. The kids loved it. Grace LOVES swings and slides. She's getting so independnat too... she wants to do all the climbing herself. We went home for desert and some visiting then to bed. Sunday mom got up with Tyler and when Grace got up I sent her in the living room with a diaper and Gary and I got to lay in bed another 20 minutes or so. It was so nice NOT to get up at 7:30 (which, yes, I know is pretty late itself compared to many people) We had cake for breakfast and played then had pancakes for lunch. These kids can put away the pancakes let me tell you. We watched a chick-flick while the kids napped (thanks Gary!) and then headed home. Gary decided halfway home that we needed to get pizza and I was not about to argue with him. We got home a little before 6 and Gary ordered Papa Johns online. It was supposed to be ready by 6:30 at the latest.... well he went to get it and at 7:00 I was on the phone with my dad and Gary was still not home yet. I was STARVING. The kids were beyond reason after a nap followed by a 2 hour car ride. Energy filled cihldren who've had nothing to eat are not well behaved!! I finally sat them down with a show and some crackers. Poor things. Thankfully, Gary got home soon after that and it ended up we got our meal for free. That was a wonderful surprise. He came in and I said "Did you tell them you had a starving pregnant wife at home?!?!" He said "No, I didn't have to, the crazy lady in front of me made a big enough stink I didn't have to." I guess the lady working there who gave gary the refund appeared thankful that he didn't yell at her too. :) Pizza is yummy, free pizza is even better! We watched some Thomas and then it was off to bed. Gary got up at the alarms first buzz this morning so i hope he was rested! :) We're looking at some rainy inside days and then some sun later in the week so I think it'll be a good week. The kids always play well on Monday's, especially when we've been away. They like getting back into routine. A coulpe days of tracks and painting and blocks and playdoh, and then back outside I hope! With a BIG 3-0 EVENT COMING WEDNESDAY we've got a lot to look forward to!!! Pregnancy Update: I'll be 13 weeks on Wednesday. I don't have another appt till May 1 so we're just plugging along. I'm slowly getting more energy and my appetite has improved. No real complaints... just trying to prepare as best we can and trying not to gain too much weight. I have to be fit as can be for summer 2010 for both the Wedding of the Year (Josh and Lia) and also my own 10 year anniversary!!! WOW!!!

Here's a link to the article written in the Alliance Review about the Easter Egg hunt we attended last week. The kids names are mentioned! http://www.the-review.com/news/article/4565366

Tyler playing his drum creatively.

Happy Easter! We had a wonderful weekend. Gary had off work on Friday and we had a wonderful day. My dad tries every year to get us tickets to opening Day. I think I've only missed a couple since the ballpark opened. This year we had seats out in right field and then, the Lord moved mountains and my dad actually got his work's season ticket seats in the FRONT ROW! It was amazing! We drove up to Cleveland and went to the Pierre's for a couple hours visiting and playing and we left the kids with Hannah. Thank you so much for watching them! The kids had a wonderful time playing with all new toys and Grace napped well which I hope helped Hannah out. Watching 4 kids under 5 must have been overwhelming at times! We got to the game in time to see some batting practice. I had several layers of clothes on and took in my double coat as well as some blankets and umbrellas. Gary had on his huge Tribe coat with all kinds of stuff in the pockets. Snacks for me, my chap stick, garbage bags, phones... i don't even recall what else. I was so relieved when they let us in with the umbrella's. The website said you could take them but i thought sure they'd still confiscate them. So we got in and just stood at our own seats for BP! Joshua's friend Kathy and my dad each got a foul ball! It was just amazing. I tried to make friends with the ball boy and i was truly concerned through the night as the temps dropped that he'd get ill. It didn't' help though since he only got one ball and it did not go to me. oh well. I enjoyed the opening ceremony watching for the people in charge which reminded me very much of Lori several years ago. We also got to see OSU's spring band. I was impressed and can't imagine what it would be like to see their football band.... The game we got to see was a good one. You fans reading will know that halfway through the 5th, Tribe down by only one, the tarps came out and hours later (over 3 i think) the game resumed and we lost miserably. Gary and I sat through one full hour of rain delay and then left. We had to get the kids and drive all the way home, it was FREEZING and we were more soaked than we realized. That hour was actually wonderful. We were cuddled together in the rain under an umbrella, front row to see nothing but just peaceful. No one wanted a drink or a pacy. No body needed their pants changed or wanted to run and crash into the walls. We didn't trip over cars and tracks and dishes and Little People. It was loud b/c they play the music so stinking loud, but it was nice. Just a break. Had i thought of it sooner we'd have gone over to tower city and had a quick dinner instead of sitting in the rain like idiots! :) We left and went back and visited with the Pierre's a bit, then went home. I was glad we didn't stay longer. Good call Gary. Saturday morning was the egg hunt at a park in Alliance. Steph had told me about it and really wanted the kids to go. There must have been 500 kids there. it was organized by age groups so we got there, realized i did not grab the bags so we had to call Gary and Steph to stop back home and get a couple. they almost missed the whole thing by then b/c they had to park so far away. i stayed with Grace by the 2 and under part and Gary went off with Tyler. Gary and steph made it and Steph stayed with me, Gary went with the boys. Grace was SO cute. For her age they just had the eggs spread out on the grass on a hill and we could take them out there with us but only the child could touch the eggs. There were lots of kids screaming in terror and their parents screaming over them "get the eggs! get the candy! pick it up!" it was madness. Steph and I kind of blocked off a little section and sheltered Grace so she could get a few. there were so many kids there i only let her get like12. some kids were getting entire baskets full. yet another area where my kindness will make my kids suffer. She wanted to open them as she found them but we finally got her to put them in her bag. she went SO slowly and then all of a sudden it was like the light bulb went off and she bent down and got three at one time and looked at this other kid like "back off!" it was kind of cute since she didn't yell or anything. anyways we felt that was a enough so we went back down to the parking lot and i saw Gary coming towards us carrying Tyler who was tightly wrapped around his neck and I knew immediately it did not go as well for him. I guess for his age group (3&4) the eggs were in a baseball field spread out and the parents were NOT allowed to go out with them. i guess Tyler bent down to pick one up and couldn't get it in the bag and he just got scared and ran back to Gary. He didn't want to go back and we didn't force him. So i just put grace's eggs into two piles and let them open them. Tyler's friend Marta from Indiana was in town and her mom and grandma had brought her. she got like 40 so they gave Tyler some of her candy. I kept saying it was enough b/c i don't even let them eat candy! it was very sweet of them to share though. :) The eggs were taped shut which was very annoying. we opened them there in case we got a prize (we didn't) and recycled the eggs (i have plenty!!). then the kids got interviewed by a reporter and we went to McDonald's for hot chocolate. Tyler seemed fine and even with several chances did not wish to go back and try so we let it go. Trust me, he still LOVED egg hunting at home so he's not scarred for life. :) So after hot chocolate i was to meet my mom at the mall, she was waiting for me and i was supposed to meet her there but then at the last minute Gary decided we could all go, eat lunch, and then he'd take the kids home and i could shop. so that's what we did. it was so much fun to get to see the kids a little more but then have time just me and my mom. she bought me a maternity swimsuit for vacation. it was so much fun to just walk around with no strollers and no 40 pound diaper bag on my arm. :) inf act i had no purse! I had my phone in my pocket and my wallet in my coat pocket because gary had to take the diaper bag home with him! haha! After a short rest we did the cake and decorated it, i vacuumed the whole house, put away some last minute things, washed way too many dishes, cleared the kitchen table, we decorated eggs bathed the kids and watched a tv show with them and put them to bed. WHEW! Gary took care of half of bathtime, and of getting the table moved and brought up the extra chairs. We went to bed around 10 and I was exhausted. Good thing Easter didn't come around week 8 of this pregnancy b/ç at that time i could barely function! The morning went very smoothly and we were all dressed and ready and in the car ON TIME!!! The kids looked SO cute. I hope to get photo's downloaded soon to post. My mom got some good shots too but it'll be months before i get those. ;) My dad and Aunt Toots met us at church. As did the Bush's, Josh and Pap. It was a wonderful service but when we went to pick up Grace she was crying. She cried the whole way home!! Apparently I forgot to pack her paci which was the absolute end of the world. She's teething and I think just needed a nap. We got home and Gary rested with her and held her for a little bit while we got the lasagna going. My mom had gotten them gifts and given them the day before, but on Sunday they got baskets from my dad, Gary's parents, pap AND us! It was madness! I got some video but kept losing the camera so i don't have many photos. We also did an egg hunt outside which I got video of. The kids were so cute. They had about 10 helpers telling them where to look. :) We got some pictures outside (yes, in the cold) and then went in and it was about time to eat. Everything came together really well and we all sat down at the table to eat. It was nice. I wish everyone would have been able to come but we had a wonderful time with those who were here. Shortly after dinner the crabby princess got her nap. :) Pap left around 2, and my dad & aunt toots shortly after. Lia got here around 2:30. my mom left at 3 and they left about 3:30. so then it was time to get grace up and we were SO ready for a nap!! we just laid around and let the kids play all evening. Now that i see it's been raining for 3 days I wish I'd have changed them and made them go outside. Gary's on spring break so he stayed home all day Monday and we rested. We also watched a lot of Jerhico. The show is addicting! It's a good mix of story line for me and suspense and mystery for Gary. The side affect of such a show is that Gary went to Aldi last night (after a full day of work- isn't he the best!?!?) to pick up a few things and bought out half of the store! We do try to have a stockpile of food but seeing him come back and forth from the car about 5 times was just too funny. Once we got it all put away it really wasn't that bad... also considering how little shopping i've done in the past 2 months. Today is Wednesday and I"m 12 weeks! I'm starting to feel human again thank the Lord! God Bless!

Grace dressed in Tyler's fireman costume.

Happy April! It's snowing! :) The kids sat in their little chairs by the back porch door and watched it for a good 20 minutes this morning. This was the only 20 minutes they were well behaved and quiet though. :) That quote kept coming to mind today... something like "If you allow a boy to get bored you deserve what happens." They got spoiled on that nice day we had last week. Tyler got very upset when it stopped snowing and I told him not to worry because it'll snow pretty much all week. :) I"m holding out for 60's and sunny on Friday for the baseball game!! WE"RE GOING!! My dad got work tickets in the front row! FRONT ROW!! The only bad thing is that the front row is the furthest you can get from the bathroom. Haha! For those who like to hear pregnant women complain, I'm still sick. Nothing sounds good, everything makes me have heartburn and a stomach ache and i'm hungry all the time. I'm thankful not to be sick and very very very thankful that the kids play so well together and Gary's the most helpful man in the universe. It'll all be worth it and I'm feeling much better today! I actually ate two real meals over the weekend! I've also discovered candy canes. Yesterday was Palm Sunday and we had a wonderful church service. After two weeks in the nursery I appreciated it all the more. One of the things that comes up a lot this time of year is the church leaders of Jesus day. It always strikes me that these men where the men who studied scripture. They were in the Word the most and yet they not only missed who Jesus was, but go the crowds of people to ask that he be cruficied. I know this happened to fulfill the prophecies but it should be a lesson to us today. How can we expect to know God's will if we are not in the word? Here are men who's JOB it was to be in the word and they completely missed it! Yet we sometimes think we can read a chapter a day, or just read a few times a week, or not even read at all and expect the Lord to bless us. We ask him for all these things we want, and on our time table, and then when he does not deliver we get mad and go off and do what we want. We take control, take over for God and then wonder why some of those things he allows to blow up in our faces. I think growing up in a wealthy nation makes it even worse for us. We feel and are told all the time that we "deserve" things or "need" things. Do we really? What do we really deserve? Who do we give creidt to when things go well? Ourselves. Who do we blame when life is full of hard knocks? God? Really? I"m guilty of it too and it breaks my heart. Gary's putting together our NEW MAC MINI!!! more later... he keeps unplugging me and i'm going to lose my blog!!