Lilly is 18 months!

Look at that face!!! So super cute!

The 18 month old is getting bigger and older....I can not believe it!

Stats, 21pds & 31 inches long.

She is in perfect health, did not cry during her shots, still can not walk on her own (does take 6 steps by herself), gets left out of things by her brother & sister, has to always get her way, takes two naps a day, goes to sleep at 8pm and sleeps until 9am, still loves her bibi, loves to be read to, LOVES TO DANCE (it is hilarious), and is the best little baby EVER!!!!

Ya know when....

Ya know when your heart does a big, "thud, thud" your tummy feels like it will hit the ground, and you want to cry....well, that has been me lately and I think that it is time for it to stop. Maybe writing will help it stop! Please, please, please!!!!!

We Lost Kyle Parker....

How to write about this....I do not know.

Kyle Parker, one of Derek's best and longest friends past away yesterday. However, he was not found (graphic, I know) until today around 1pm. He was 32 years old. He is survived by his mother, father, and sister. He was loved and WILL be missed.

This is hard to write. I have not seen Derek cry like this since his dad died. He now sits with an 18pack of beer at the couch...I do not blame him.

What a day, what a day. I was done blogging then Derek called to tell me that Kyle passed away. Then the phone call flood came. Derek went to Kyle's mom house after work and was happy that he did. What do you say, what do you do for someone that has just lost a child and a brother? He told me what they talked about and I was just in awe of him. If it was Mar, Max, Sara...I do not know how I would act. I ache for my husband and how he must be hurting. His "chump" as he called him is gone. He called Drew that when we got home from dinner.

Do not let the tats mislead you. Kyle was a very polite and loving man. Hello, most of this tats were of Star Wars, he was a hairdresser and he loved kids!

I love these pictures of Kyle from his birthday dinner and from Emma's first birthday party sitting in that little chair!

You think one thing, get another

We have had house guests at our house almost every weekend since 2011 began. It is so much fun to have a house full of people, but there was one day that got to me. I am not sure if I was just tired or pissy. Here is the story.

Derek's bff, Mikey, does not come down from SLO like he use to, so when we can convince him to come Derek makes a weekend of it. This particular weekend just happened to be Super Bowl. Oh and there was some big UFC fight too. So, I thought that Derek and Mike would just hang out watch the game and golf. Well, I woke up on Superbowl Sunday to basically this, "We are going golfing, oh and, Dave, Kelly, Amanda, Gina, JB, Michelle, Saige, Casey, and Paige are coming to watch the game." I smiled, but then got PISSED! Three kids, us three adults, and the rest of them meant way more people that I had to feed and entertain while Derek had fun. Anyways, while Derek golfed I cleaned the house and decorated (I have football decor from Derek's 30th), showered at 2pm when Derek got home then headed to the store and home to find people already here.

I was getting PISSED! I was trying not too, but I was not ready for this. Of course, Derek says just dump some chips and salsa and we will be fine. HELLO, does he know me!! I can not do that....but really that is what I should have:) While, juggling kids and guests I still made wiener thingys, dished out salsa, hummus, chips, pastrami sandwiches, some chili dip thing I made, pizza, cookies, steak, and Michelle made her spinach dip. Neighbors came over, we watched the game, a few did some 'beer bongs' which was very funny and soooo not adult of them:) I calmed down a bit, but then I had to clean and I was just pissy.

I thought I was going to get to have a laid back weekend, but ended up having a party. Oh, I know I should not really bitch, but I was sooooooo tired of people!! I think we all get like that after a bit.

Kelsey here!

So for months I have known that Kelsey was coming to stay with us for four days. We love having her here and like Derek and I said back in November when she stayed, "oh to have someone to watch the kids while you do the laundry!!, haha"

So I wanted to do something fun with her. However, this is what happened...and always seems to for me. I had to get Kels on Friday...so the mountains with Jen, Erin, Lilly and the kids was out because we were going Thursday to Saturday...booooo. Then it was up to Monterey Friday to Monday to visit Patty and Clint, but Marlene's baby shower (which, I would never have missed) was on Saturday. However, we could leave after the shower and and come back on Monday. Then.....Patty got signed up (via Clint) to help at the ProAm and would be doing that all weekend! Monterey was out! Okay, Kels...we will do something fun with Bobo and the kids. WELLLLL, DEREK ENDED UP WORKING ALL WEEKEND!! It was just horrible and I was a little baby about it, but I want to get away!

I made the best of it and had a blast with Kels. Yes, it sucked that Derek had to work all weekend, but it was nice to hang out with Kels and be driven everywhere! We had fun doing....

We saw a huge protest at the Senior Center


We went to the Zoo and the park



We went to Don Jose, Chili's, had pizza, went to breakfast, Chick-filet..basically ate a ton!


We went to Costco, the store, ballet, Drew's game, and even saw Tangled (too cute).

We had fun, but I need to get out of dodge and soon! A break would be nice!

V-day

***Warning! Do not get all mad at me for the following. I really wish I was not like this, but I am. I am who I am:)***

I am not a sappy girl. When I cry about love and stuff like that it always shocks me. Don't get me wrong, I love my husband and hug/kiss/need him all of the time and always think about him. However, when it comes to lovey words...well, that is not me. I just want to hear all the time that I am beautiful and that he loves me, that is all that I need. Derek gives me what I need when I need it. I do the same for him. I guess you could say, I know I am in love. Yaya, I know you can show your love more on V-day....but I do not like the attention.

In fact, I get PISSED when I get flowers for Valentines Day. I would rather get a new bedspread:) I do not even really live roses, haha. Of course, Derek showers the girls with affection all of the time and as they get older I may just have to suck it up and let him bring me flowers in order to show the girls how men should treat woman:) haha

.............................................

So as much as I hate the sappy stuff, I LOVE what I (yes, my idea) had Drew do for his little girlfriend, Tatiana. So after Drew's last basketball game through the city,






our cutie pie was driven to Tati's house where he place a yellow rose tied with a pink ribbon and a little heart shaped valentine for his girlfriend.




Later that night Lily called me and all I heard in the background was Tatiana screaming while she jumped up and down with happiness! Drew and Tati spoke on the phone for a little bit, but as you could probably guess, Tati did most of the talking.

We hope everyone had a great V-day! Sappy and non sappy:)

My Auntie

My Auntie passed away on Sunday the 13th at around 2pm.
I loved her very, very much.
She is the only Great Auntie that I have ever known, she was my Grandma's little sister.
She use to wear all white to work with those really thick white hospital shoes, kind of funny:)
She drove a stick shift and drove it very fast!
She made us tomato sandwiches.
She was a mother and a grandmother.
She had a HUGE shade of pink bathtub.
She had a huge two story house, but slept downstairs.
She would knit and knit and knit.
She said my dads name in the funniest way and I always laughed when I heard her yell, "Chuckie!"
She had a back door to her house that was very high, but did not have steps for it:)
We use to pick blackberries in her backyard.
When she battled her first round of cancer she lost her hair and it came back curly.
I swear she had the same rubric cube for 30+ years...and maybe the same tv. I could never figure either one out.
Whenever we go back east one of the first places we go is to Auntie's...which was across the street from the back of grandma's house. haha
Her house had a certain smell, not a bad one at all.

Here is a a very old picture of my Auntie. I really can not remember why she was holding that bear.




My Auntie, well, was my Auntie. We never called her Auntie Betty and I have never called anyone else Auntie. So, when my dad called on Sunday to tell me that she had died I knew who he meant and that she was in a much better place. My Grandma and Aunt Karen were with her and it was very quick. She ate and then she went to heaven. Does that sound strange? She had battle cancers, rheumatoid arthritis, and heart failure....there was nothing else they could do for her. Even though she was in her late 70's she was still too young.....yet had been in pain for as long as I can remember. Thank goodness I had Kels here because while I was remembering things about her all I did for a bit was CRY! Crying for my family, crying for my Grandma who not only lost her sister but is now the last in her family alive, crying while I thought about how as I cleaned my daughter's room my Auntie made her way to her Mansion in the sky...crying, crying, crying!


Thank you Kelsey, thank you Derek, thank you Patty & Emilee, thank you Daddy, thank you Auntie for leaving us so swiftly at the end (I think about Derek's dad when I write this), thank you Auntie for all of the memories you left my sisters and I with!

Our Dancer!

Isn't our little ballerina 'fox' just the cutest!

Tackle It Tusday...Paperwork!

When the piles of papers are up to four....it is time to sit on your bed and break down those piles, throw the trash on the floor, shred papers, tell the kids to stop messing with the piles, take a break to make lunch and change diapers, and at the end hope to have the piles shrink...if they do not, well, maybe do it tomorrow.

**The good thing about this tackle is that I am watching, "The Jane Austen Book Club," while shorting through the piles.**

Teaching Men??

Boys & Men do some really stupid stuff. Why? Why?? Why??? Why do they think that holding onto an electric dog collar then turning it on would be a good idea? Oh, wait...they do not think.

However, I had to take some pictures because lets face it....their stupidity needs to be documented.

Mike holding the collar


Throwing the thing once Derek turned it on. Why did he trust Derek??


Derek was a little smarter, he did it to himself.

Kelsey Is Growing Up!!

Such a beautiful woman Kelsey is becoming! I remember when she was 6...tear:(

She is coming up on graduation, has developed into a fantastic runner and loves doing it too, knows she is going to cosmetology school in the fall and is ACTUALLY becoming responsible. Unfortunately, while asking her if she is going to register to vote on Thursday (her 18th birthday!) she said the words a conservative Auntie does not want to hear, "I am registering Democrat!" I went, "aweeee, Kels, no!" Then I realized what I was doing...being a snot.... and corrected my words. Hell, I am so happy she is registering! I was a Democrat voter at one time too, shhhh do not tell anyone!

Monday Meeting -- my blog picture.

Meet my first attempt to be a little more creative in the blogging world.

It took me forever to get the picture just right for the top. The baby dolls mean nothing. It was a recent picture I took of Emma's linear obsession. She is really very funny like that.

It literally took me forever! I am so not a tech girl! I am still surprised I have a blog or even on FB (well, fb I am hardly ever on).

Happy Monday!!

I Hesitate

I have been hesitating about writing this post for almost two months now. But here I go....

Little baby, Annabell, pasted away in December from what appears to be SIDS. She was 15 months and just the cutest thing. Emmy, Annabell's mommy, had joined our MOMS Club in October. She was an only child to a loving mommy and daddy.



God willing I will never put any of my children down for a nap and return to what Emmy did on that day in December. I have never met a child who has passed away so young, nor parents that have lost a child.

My mom's group has taken some steps to make us more aware of dangers for our children (I think that sometimes we forget some as years go on), have provided CPR classes and had a speaker at our monthly meetings. It seems to be hard to talk about. Most of us have young children, so to think of our little one's faces at that moment is well, horrible.

I try not to think of how she almost stepped on a turtle at the pumpkin patch and how much she looked like her mom. That is hard though. I could write so much more and better, but I am happy to just get these words down.