The Futrell Five

Preschool Graduation

2010-05-20T18:22:00.000-07:00

JF graduated from Preschool today! (although her last day of school isn't until next Friday!) She was so stinkin' cute and did a great job!! I can't believe she will be in Kindergarten next year...time flies! With her teacher, Mrs. Arcy! We love her! :)

ZOO

2010-05-17T11:18:00.000-07:00

My cousin and his girlfriend were in town visiting, so we took the kiddos to the zoo on Saturday. I don't think the kids ever get tired of going to the zoo!!

Locks of Love

2010-05-14T21:50:00.000-07:00

JF wanted to get her hair cut so we went in today to have it done! It was long enough to donate to Locks of Love, so her hair was braided and cut off to send away! :) JF has amazingly thick hair (even the stylist was amazed at the effort it took to cut her braid off) and it will be so much easier to manage during the summer months of swimming with it short. She looks much older with short hair but looks cute as can be! :)

Little Ninja

2010-05-07T11:46:00.000-07:00

Well, our one surviving baby hamster is now out exploring her world. I caught her today actually eating real food rather than nursing on her mom! She is pretty darn cute! We have named her "Little Ninja" in honor of daddy, who told us one of the babies needed to be named Ninja! Since she is the only one left, I guess that was an easy naming process! :) Her eyes are just beginning to open and she is changing quickly. It has been fun to watch her grow and develop! We will be able to hold her in a week!

Superman!!

2010-05-04T11:52:00.001-07:00

The girls never really got attached to a piece of clothing that they just had to wear all the time... GA on the other hand seems to be a bit different. I was going through clothes in his closet the other day and his Superman costume from Halloween was rediscovered!! He has been wearing it non-stop since then! Even went to the grocery store in it today!! He is so proud to "be" Superman! :)

Down to one...

2010-05-03T18:38:00.000-07:00

Well, our hamster babies have slowly passed away and we are only left with one. :( The other 5 never really grew at all and this little one seems to have stolen all the nourishment!! I think it (don't know the sex yet) has a great chance of surviving! If it is a girl, we will keep her. If it's a boy...we'll see. He will require his own cage for sure. I don't want to deal with more babies!!! Wish this little one luck!

SURPRISE!!!

2010-04-25T21:13:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess MG's hamster (that we bought for her only a week ago) had a little surprise in store for us!! This morning we woke up to 6 babies in the cage!!!! I thought the night prior that she looked awfully big in her abdomen and after doing some reasearch online, I learned that once a hamster "shows", it is time to give birth! And that she did!!! I was worried that she would not adapt well to the babies and would freak out because we hadn't properly prepared her for the birth, but she seems to be doing well. She is quite protective of them. If she leaves them for a period of time, she will completely cover them in bedding and then go back to them when she is done. They are super tiny...maybe an inch long...and not too cute! But I am sure they will soon be super cute and we will grow fond of them!! The babies and mom cannot be seperated for about 6 weeks so we have a fun journey ahead watching the little ones develop!!Tiger quickly returning to her babies after seeing me!!

To remember us by...

2010-04-25T21:08:00.000-07:00

When "Steve" left, the kids all gave him something to remember them by to take with him on his travels. GA sent him away with Lightning McQueen, JF sent him away with her tan doggy, and MG sent him away with her dalmation. I know he will keep them close by while he is away!

Family Time

2010-04-17T09:56:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to Tucson last night for a fun time with the family! We went to Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse and Trail Dust Town (http://www.traildusttown.com) and then headed over to Golf and Stuff for a round of putt-putt. The kids loved riding the train and carousel and really enjoyed the stunt show at Trail Dust Town. Dinner was yummy and the candy store was stocked with yummies! :) Golf and Stuff was an interesting experience, our kids are not born golfers, LOL...but they had fun!! The kids loved all the water and scenery throughout the course! When we left to head home we asked, "Who had fun??", and I think for the first time ever all 3 kids said "I did!!". There is usually always something to complain about...LOL!! Great night of fun memories to send Daddy away with while he is gone!

Our Actress

2010-04-17T09:44:00.000-07:00

MG's class at school has been working on plays for some time now, and they finally got to present them to the parents! What a fun bunch of kids. MG did great (she was a donkey!)! No question where she gets her expressions and dramatic effect from with Futrell blood running through her veins! :)

Our newest family member...

2010-04-17T09:37:00.000-07:00

Meet, Tiger. MG's new hamster. She has been wanting one for a really long time, so we finally gave in! She is a cute little thing and excessively noisy at night, but fun to watch. She of course has a ball to run around the house in and I am loving finding little hamster poop everywhere! Oh joy!! She runs in her hamster wheel like crazy, too! Quite the active little one. :)

Feeding time...

2010-04-12T11:48:00.001-07:00

GA decided it would be a good idea to feed to fish all by himself! :)

Playing catch up...

2010-04-07T15:50:00.000-07:00

I know, I know!! I am WAY behind on this thing. Here you go! :)

Happy Easter!

2010-04-07T14:59:00.000-07:00

The kids woke up Easter morning to a scavenger hunt with clues to help them find their baskets. They thought it was sooo fun! All ready for church...After church, we spent that afternoon with family and friends eating WAY too much food!! The kids had a great time playing with friends and finding eggs! :)

EGGS!

2010-04-07T14:54:00.000-07:00

A few pictures from our egg coloring...

Evening Walks...

2010-04-07T14:45:00.000-07:00

We often get out of the house in the evening for a short walk (bike, scooter, motorcycle ride) to get some fresh air. Here are some random pics from our excursions...

Air Show

2010-04-07T13:20:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to the Air Show in Tucson a few weeks ago! They had a great time and were fascinated by all the airplanes! GA and Daddy checking things out...

Happy Birthday, GA!!

2010-04-07T12:49:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from GA's birthday. He had a combined party with a buddy of his and playgroup friends and then we celebrated his birthday at home with just us and grandma, as well. Can't believe he is 3 already!!

The cake....
GA and his buddy gettng ready to open presents!At home celebrating...

Pima Air & Space Museum

2010-02-22T10:09:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, we took the kids to the Pima Air & Space Museum. They had such a fun time checking everything out. GA is into airplanes and transportation, so he was in heaven. It was fun to watch him so excited. They all 3 loved being able to climb in some of the exhibits! :) There are 5 hangars and one space museum spread out amongst the acreage of the planes outside...and of course it ended up being a nasty windy, rainy day and we had to run in the mud and rain to get back to the exit building...we didn't see much outside because of the weather, but it was fun day! :)

BeanBoozled

2010-02-19T14:07:00.001-08:00

The Futrell family has been Bean Boozled. If you haven't tried em (http://www.jellybelly.com/our_candy/beanboozled.aspx) you gotta give it a go. Rotten Egg and Moldy Cheese take the cake. We had a suspicion that GA and JF were faking it and saying the gross ones were good ones. We rooted them out with the Moldy Cheese and Rotten Egg, respectively.

Here is our pile of jelly beans that just couldn't be swallowed! Soooooooo gross!

Happy Birthday, MG!

2010-02-15T18:25:00.000-08:00

It is hard to believe MG turned 8 today!! She had some of her best girl friends over for a party full of crafts and food! They made fun things and decorated their own cakes! :) After her friends left, she opened presents from us, grandma, and other family members! :) Then off to Golden Corral for dinner...her choice, she loves that place! :)
She didn't want holes in the cake she made, so we put candle sin her ice cream cone! :)
A money lei from her aunt and uncle in Hawaii! Excited about her new DS! :)

2010-02-10T08:10:00.000-08:00

Well, we have surpassed a major milestone in ours lives! No more diapers! :) GA was successfully potty trained a few weeks ago using the Potty Training in 3 Days or Less method found on BabyCenter.com (recommended by my friend, Bobbi). It worked amazingly well and was a piece of cake (except you MUST stay home)! He even had a stomach bug and would run to the toilet a million times a day. I was totally impressed. :) It is a nice feeling to know we will never buy another pack of diapers! :) Woo hoo for GA!!

PUMP IT UP!

2010-01-19T20:27:00.000-08:00

We took the kiddos to Pump It Up for a few hours of fun during our day off on Monday...and it was just that, FUN!!! What a great place! We spent an hour and a half having a blast on the assortment of inflatable structures! All three kids loved it and even mom and dad had a great time!

Family Reunion

2010-01-19T20:24:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I will ever have the patience to go through all the pictures from our family reunion in Tahoe or get them uploaded on here, but I will at least share these! We spent a week in Tahoe with "Steve's" side of the family the week following Christmas. We were brave enough to try and have some professional pictures done with ALL of us, and I think we are all glad we did! They turned out great, especially considering the number of people we needed to cooperate! We had a great time on our trip...enjoyed the snow and fun times with family. We certainly don't see each other often enough.
The whole gang...
Siblings with mom...Siblings...Siblings with spouses...The cousins...

Family Pics...

2010-01-06T15:23:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my favorite shots from a family photo shoot we had done in December. We hadn't had a "real" family picture done since JF was 9 months old!!! It was a cold morning and it sure wasn't an easy task getting everyone to cooperate, but we got some good ones!! Hopefully these will hold you over until I get blogging again...LOL!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-06T15:15:00.000-08:00

Well, my layout is updated and hopefully my posts will be as well. Instead of playing catch up for the past few months, like I originally planned, I think I will just start fresh and current. Check back soon...

Frogs & Snakes

2009-10-03T14:02:00.000-07:00

We took the kids up to the top of Miller Canyon to the frog pond. As a frog lover, it is one of my favorite places to go!! And I would love to pass that on to my kids...they really seemed to enjoy it!! We saw lots of frogs, although they aren't very easy to spot right off the bat. We also spotted a water snake and were able to watch him glide along the water and strike for food. The kids thought it was pretty neat that there were chickens walking around everywhere and of course, they loved that there were dogs!! This time of year there are pumpkins growing all around the pond!

Look for the black & yellow stripes in the pictures below and you will see a snake!

Photo Shoot Edits

2009-09-16T17:17:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the edited pictures from MG's photo shoot...the wall and pot in the background are gone, etc. and all the artsy fartsy color changes and details have been done. I think they are pretty amazing!

Bella Rose

2009-09-14T11:07:00.000-07:00

My good friend, Stacey, has her own business making tutus, tutu dresses, hats, hair clips, headbands, etc. (www.bellarosecreations.com) Well, lucky for me, my girls have become models for her business open houses and such. So that means I get awesome photo shoots of my girls done without having to pay a penny or do any of the work!! :) Can't beat that. Here are some pictures of MG and JF modeling some of the Bella Rose products. (And some of GA in a photo shoot of him that was done at the same time that have never been posted on here!!)

Some bonus shots of all three together done during JF and GA's photo shoot!! :)

Photo shoot of MG done by Stacey. Photo shoot of JF and GA done by my good friend, Judy.

Yee Haw!!!

2009-09-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to their first rodeo!! They thought it was pretty cool. MG participated in the Muttin' Bustin' (Sheep Riding) event! She came away with no tears and injury free which wasn't how majority of the kids walked away. It was pretty rough riding those sheep...once the kids were thrown from the sheep it often stepped right on them. It was like bull riding for little ones! JF was signed up to partipate but once she saw the first kid do it she started crying and didn't want to do it. MG also chased a bunch of calves around trying to pull a ribbon off thir tails. It was pretty funny to watch. JF initially started this event, but once MG took off and left her she started crying again! Poor thing. But all in all, it was a fun day! :)Ready for some Muttin' Bustin'...before JF decided she was not interested! This is MG!!!The "Muttin' Busters"...including those who decided not to participate...not JF is in the pic! Off they go chasing the calves...Those little guys were fast!"The Chasers"

Fun at the Park...

2009-09-11T15:06:00.000-07:00

SOCCER!

2009-09-11T14:49:00.001-07:00

Both girls have begun soccer season. This is JF's first year playing and MG's 2nd. They are really enjoying it, although JF is a bit shy!

"The Rattlers"

"The Mountaineers"

The Futrell Pirates

2009-08-24T21:00:00.000-07:00

When "Steve" bought his new tri bike, he also got a free Garmin GPS... So, we took the kids out Geocaching after "Steve" got home from work today. We biked part of the way and then trekked the rest of the way until we found our "treasure". The kids thought it was pretty fun to be going on a "treasure hunt" and also left "treasure" for the next person who comes along. It was fun and I think the kids will be looking forward to our next geocache.

Mapping out the route...

Off we go..Checking our coordinates...Trekking through the mud along the trail...We found it under the rockpile...

Signing our team name on the log...The Futrell Pirates!
The perfect ending to our "treasure hunt"...a rainbow!

Doesn't get much cuter than this guy!! :)

2009-08-24T12:08:00.001-07:00

Peach Picking!

2009-08-24T11:12:00.001-07:00

After the tri, we went to Apple Annie's to pick peaches with some friends! It was a fun day! The kids loved being able to pick the fruit right from the tree...and eat them! :) And GA thought it was pretty cool that we got to ride on a tractor!

Hummingbird Triathlon

2009-08-24T10:54:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday was the Hummingbird Triathlon here in town. "Steve" competed and I did the bike and run unofficially. I still can't do the swim length so I had originally found a swimmer to complete that leg, but then found out I was going to have to pay the "team" price of $70 just to compete!! I opted not to do that and just do the bike and run leg by myself. I just started when the first heat of swimmers started getting out of the water. It was pretty fun. Kind of boring because there weren't a whole lot of bikers of runner out on the course yet (there were 7 heats total) so I was biking and running by myself a lot...didn't feel like much of a competition. But, I did it and now I just need to work on my swim if I am ever going to truly be a "triathlete"! :) But "Steve" on the other hand did awesome!! He bought a new tri bike the night before the race and was super excited about that! He came in 2nd in his age division and 6th overall!!! Pretty impressive. He beat his time in this triathlon last year by 6 minutes!! Someday he will win it all! :)
I don't have very many pictures since I was out on the course but here are a few!

Before the race...everyone laughed at me because I showed up with coffee...it was early!! :)
Coming up to the finish line!! The new bike!After the race...my friend Judy completed the entire thing by herself!! Woo hoo! :)Receiving his award! Good job!

Roxy...the Rockstar!

2009-08-20T15:09:00.000-07:00

We got a precious new dog this week. Her name is Roxy! She was rescued by friend's of ours but they did not want more than one dog so were trying to find a home for her. We have been wanting a smaller dog and she seems to be the perfect fit! (Although she is seriously terrified of the camera and runs if she sees it, so I may never get a great picture of her!) Laying on the laundry I am trying to fold!

Farewell :(

2009-08-20T15:06:00.001-07:00

My good friend Bobbi (pictured on the left) and her family are moving to Montana tomorrow. They will be greatly missed. GA will certainly miss his buddy Kyler! We wish them the best! :)

The Three Musketeers!

Oceanside!

2009-08-20T14:35:00.000-07:00

"Steve" and I traveled to Oceanside, CA for a few days where he competed in a triathlon at Camp Pendleton against one of his brothers and brother-in-law. "Steve's" sister and their little boy came along, too. (which was so nice since we had never met our nephew) His dad also met us there! We had such a relaxing time. We rented a little bungalow on the beach and it was awesome!! "Steve" did great in the triathlon (besides nearly drowning in the ocean...LOL...it was his first ocean swim). He beat both brothers (way to go!!), although they all did AWESOME!! :) We had a great time hanging out with family, bike riding along the beach, body boarding, and enjoying the scenery!
The view from our porch....
At the Tank Museum..."Steve" and his brother, Rocky and his Dad.
The tri...off they go!

The transition area....LOTS of competitors!First heat into the water...They did it!! :)

First Day of School!

2009-08-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

School started for the girls on August 6...MG started 2nd grade and JF started half day preschool. They were both so excited! JF started off going only 2 days a week but is now going everyday and loving it! :) MG was put in the class with ALL her girlfriends so that was a big deal! Hope her teacher can handle them! :)

Tri pics....FINALLY!!

2009-08-12T20:11:00.001-07:00

I have finally have pictures from the triathlon Jesse and I participated in back in July. Jesse did the entire thing and placed 3rd in his ago division (missing 2nd by 20 seconds and 1st by 2 minutes!) I participated as a team with two good friends. We placed 2nd in the female group category. I did the bike leg. It was surprisingly fun!! :)

Before the race...bright and early with the sunrise! Coming in on the bike. Jesse is behind me because he came out to make sure I didn't die! :) The handoff...Go Team Snicker Salad!! :)

Camping!

2009-07-13T17:16:00.000-07:00

We took the kids out on a one night camping trip to see how it would go. We had a great time besides being SOOOOO hot and getting rained on by a monsoon storm! The kids loved fishing, swimming in the lake, cooking over the fire, making smores, and sleeping in a tent!! We will definitely go again once the weather cools down.

Cooling down in the lake...

Practicing their casts and so anxious to try it for real!!!Finally, they got to cast into the water...although GA and JF don't actually have hooks! :)GA eating the corn that we were using for bait!Cooking hot dogs! The best smore!...Reeses peanut butter cup instead of a Hershey's bar!! YUMMY! :) Catching fish!

Happy 4th of July!!

2009-07-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

We spent the 4th with good friends and ate good food!! :) We hung out at our house for a BBQ and then headed out to watch the fireworks. MG is usually terrified of the fireworks but did great this year! JF could care less that they are blowing up around her!! :) GA was fine with them last year but was pretty terrified this year...he made me hold my hand over his ears and he went to sleep! But all in all, we had a great day!
I was amazed at how many kids fit in that little pool!! And boy do these kiddos love watermelon!! Playing football!!Dog pile on the dads!Watching the sky!ALL the kids!! :)

Father's Day 2009

2009-07-13T16:35:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from Father's Day. Everyone got a chance to take a picture, except for daddy, who had to be in all the pictures!! :)

Taken by mommy...Taken by MG...
Taken by JF...Taken by GA...

Garden progress...

2009-06-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some new pictures of our garden. We are excited to see everything growing! :) Tomatoes...Peppers...Soon to be cucumbers...Soon to be squash...A strawberry that escaped the attack of whatever ate the others. :(
Our grass is coming in really well and our flowers are beautiful!

The past few days of SUMMER FUN!!!

2009-06-19T16:55:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from our last few days of having FUN! :) Hanging out at our friend's pool one day and making cookies the next!

4 year old Princess!!

2009-06-04T08:18:00.000-07:00

JF turned 4 on Tuesday! Grandma brought the kiddos up to Tucson on her birthday to meet us (since we checked out from our little escape that morning), and we went to the zoo and to see "Up" in 3D. We had a fun time!! In our 3D glasses on our way to the movie! On Wednesday, we had her birthday party at our pool with all of JF's playgroup buddies! She was pretty excited and had such a fun time playing, opening presents, and eating cake. I won't go in to the cake story...but I learned my lesson about ordering a cake instead of making one like I usually do....never again!!

Get Away!

2009-06-04T08:15:00.000-07:00

"Steve" and I escaped for a few days and went up to a resort in Tucson..with no kids...thank you so much, MOM!!! It was sooooo very relaxing. Lots of lounging in the cabana by the pool, massages, pedicure, mountain biking, yummy food...it was wonderful! And we came home still liking each other, which is always a plus!! :) Here are lots of "self-taken" pictures from our get away! :)
On the balcony off our room overlooking the golf course...
Breaking in the bed! :)
Enjoying the tub! :)
Squishing the golfers!...look closely! :) At The Melting Pot...Sitting by the fire pit after a nighttime swim...After an early morning mountain bike ride...should have taken the camera on the ride! I caught a huge horny toad!! Saying farewell to our temporary paradise!

Dance Recital

2009-05-31T07:09:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from the girls dance recital last Friday night...Disney Spectacular!! They did such a good job! :) I have videos too but will have to do some editing before I can get them on here because they are too big! The pictures certainly don't do them justice, so hopefully video will be up soon! :)

MG's jazz class dancing to "Just Can't Wait to be King!" from The Lion King!

JF's ballet class dancing to "Stay Awake" from Mary Poppins!MG's tap class dancing to "Everybody Wants to be a Cat" from Aristocats!

Catch up...

2009-05-30T16:16:00.000-07:00

It has been a month since I last posted...geesh!! Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the past few weeks! :) Get ready for some picture overload!! :)

Medic 5K

2009-05-04T14:02:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning "Steve" and I both ran the Combat Medic Memorial Run 5K. My friend Bobbi also ran this one. It was a tough course...lots of hill climbing...but fun! I didn't feel like I was going to die when I completed this race like I did my first 5K! My time improved from the first time I ran as well! Woo hoo! "Steve" of course finished way before me! :) I couldn't seem to convince him to run along side with me! LOL! Maybe someday I will be running in his "league"!!

New family member..

2009-04-27T19:52:00.000-07:00

Here is our new cat, Beast! We adopted her from the Animal Care Center here in town and brought her home on Friday. (an early birthday present for "Steve") She is one year old and has a super affectionate personality...except when Rella (our dog) is around!

Family dinner time...

2009-04-21T12:29:00.000-07:00

The girls both have dance on Monday night...at different times. So, from 5-7 one of them is at the studio. MG goes last from 6-7 and so by that time everyone else has gone home and eaten dinner. Monday night as we were driving home from dance, MG said she doesn't like dance nights. Now I know she LOVES dance class, so I asked her why she said that. And she said that she doesn't like not eating as a family on Mondays! I was taken back a bit. We do make a point to eat together at the table every day except Mondays, but I guess I never thought it meant anything to the kids! Now I know! :)

Swimming...

2009-04-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

So, last night I went for my first "triathlon-training swim" and quickly realized I am screwed!!!! I have always said running would be my issue because I never used to be able to run. But now I feel good running and am worried about the swimming aspect! It was really hard!! But I just keep telling myself that it used to hard for me to run even for a minute straight and now I kind of even enjoy running...so hopefully swimming will get easier also. If not, I may be doggy paddling 800m in the pool! Ahhh!! What have I gotten myself in to?

The verdict is in...

2009-04-14T18:45:00.000-07:00

GA had a session with a speech therapist today and she has officially diagnosed him with a speech delay. Not a huge surprise on our part, but I guess it was nice to hear a "professional" say we aren't crazy and have her let us know that in all the other cognitive areas they look at he is just fine. We still have two more meeting with the woman from the AZ Early Intervention Program. She will come this Friday and do her own evaluation as she interacts with him in different ways and then the last meeting will be to set up a plan of action. I am hoping that our insurance will cover speech therapy for him because if not the AZEIP only does therapy once a month whereas a private speech therapist will do an hour weekly! I will have to check into whether or not our insurance will cover it. So, for now he will be in speech therapy either at home or in a clinic and when he turns 3 he will be put into the public school system and will go to a "head start" preschool (half day) that is built around each child's delay. I am sure we will still learn more from our next two meetings and as the therapy begins.

Easter gathering....

2009-04-13T16:21:00.000-07:00

We had a group of friends (30 of them!!!) over to our place (actually the clubhouse where we live cause our house isn't big enough!) and had a great afternoon! :) The kids had a fun time during the egg hunt and playing out on the playground and the adults had fun playing all kinds of games and socializing!
The kids ready to go hunt down eggs! :)On the hunt...Checking out their goods....A little one-handed wiffle ball...Me and little Regan...she is precious! :)

Easter Morning....

2009-04-13T15:01:00.000-07:00

Does it get any cuter than this????! :)My kiddos! :) Our worship service...

Eggs

2009-04-10T20:55:00.001-07:00

Normally Friday night is our family movie night, but tonight we colored Easter eggs instead! We had a good time and made quite the mess as usual. GA even helped color a few this year, and surprisingly he never tried to throw one! :)

Rough day..

2009-04-10T20:45:00.000-07:00

MG didn't have school on Friday since it was Good Friday, so she was able to come to playgroup with us. We decided to have playgroup at the park in our neighborhood since all the "big" kids would be joining us. MG was swinging and leaned back too far and did a complete flip and landed on her face! Ouch!!! I thought she broker her wrist because her hand was all cut up and she said she couldn't move it, but it ended up being okay. Her face on the other hand, not so okay! Poor thing. She had two huge lips for most of the day and has lots of cuts and scraps. She kept telling me that she didn't want to have pictures taken on Easter! :( It definitely bummed her out for a good part of the day today. She looked so pitiful. But now the swelling has gone down and we keep joking with her telling her she looks like she has melted chocolate on her face (the bloody areas have started to turn a brown color)! :) I was originally going to take the girls down to the park to play and have my friends watch them because I (GA) was supposed to have a meeting with the lady from the AZ Early Intervention Program again that morning, but she called and had to reschedule because her daughter was sick. Thank goodness, because MG would have freaked out even more if I wouldn't have been there!

"Steve" Update

2009-04-08T12:33:00.000-07:00

"Steve" got in to see the orthopedic doctor yesterday instead of having to wait until Friday. He was given two options from the doctor...surgery to repair the shoulder or no surgery now and wait and see if it "heals" on its own and go back to the doctor in a month. "Steve" chose option #2 because he certainly would like to avoid surgery if possible. From what I have read, it sounds like the shoulder won't ever actually "heal" but will adjust to the injury and maybe scar tissue will take the place of those torn ligaments. (and he will always have a "bulge" over that shoulder where the bone is misplaced) So, I guess now we wait and see what his body will do. He is supposed to refrain from using that shoulder for a month until he goes back to the doctor to see if anything has changed. Right now he can't really extend his arm past the 90 degree point so hopefully some range of motion will begin to return in the next few weeks. And hopefully he will be able to regain full movement without having the surgery. Having the surgery himself and then needing a repair from that initial surgery, the doctor agreed with his decision to wait to see what his body does. Hopefully he will heal and can be back to his active self soon. And if not, he will probably wait until the "off season" (meaning after summer) and possibly have the operation. We have ordered a brace for his shoulder which will hopefully help but he does not have to wear a sling. The waiting game has begun...

Piercing eyes and ice cream cupcakes...

2009-04-07T11:06:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love these pictures of GA eating an ice cream cupcake! My friend Judy has an awesome camera and got some great shots! :)

Sunday afternoon with friends...

2009-04-07T10:57:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures from a fun Sunday afternoon at our friend's house!

Pizza anyone?!?:)

"Steve" playing one handed basketball after his crash!

The illustration....ouch!

2009-04-07T07:57:00.000-07:00

Here is an illustration of what poor "Steve" has done to his shoulder. He originally had told me he didn't know what "type" of AC joint separation he had...there are different degrees/types. But I looked on his referral last night and right there is was...3rd degree AC joint separation, which is not great news!

"In a type III injury, both the AC and CC ligaments are completely torn. The collarbone and the acromion are completely separated."

He has an appointment Friday morning with the orthopedic doctor...so we will see what they say. Poor guy! He is now in a sling to keep his arm somewhat immobile.

Mountain Bike Crash...

2009-04-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning "Steve" went out with some guys to go mountain biking. He goes multiple times a week so I certainly didn't expect our day to turn out how it did! I got a phone call asking me what my mom was doing that day because we needed her to watch the kids so we could go to the ER! That's the phone call every wife doesn't look forward to! I wasn't sure what to expect and only knew he had crashed and hurt his shoulder. He didn't look to bad when he got home...shoulder looked a bit odd...but no major cuts and blood! So we took the kids to Grandma's and went and sat and waited to see a doctor. The doctor came in a checked him out and, just our luck, there was no x-ray tech there on Saturday so we left not knowing much! The doc gave him some muscle relaxers and some pain pills and said he would have to wait until Monday to be x-rayed. Now, "Steve" was pretty confident that it was just a strained or pulled muscle and he would be okay. He wasn't too concerned at that point because the pain had started to subside unless he moved! Well, he had x-rays today and low and behold....he really is hurt! His AC joint is separated in his shoulder and now he has to go see an orthopedic doctor to see what is next. That is all we know at this point but will keep you posted!

Luckily, his friends were taking pictures and got a picture of him right when he landed on his head!! Here is the crash...

What is in your lemonade?

2009-03-27T16:26:00.000-07:00

This week at school in science MG has been learning about "matter". For one assignment she had to draw different forms of matter. She drew a picture of lemonade for the liquid form. When I looked at her picture I noticed little green things floating inside! I asked her what was in her lemonade and she said "mint leaves". Wow!! That is sophisticated taste for a seven year old!! :) I thought is was pretty impressive since I certainly don't put mint leaves in my lemonade! LOL :)

5k complete!!

2009-03-25T12:35:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, I completed my first 5k race! It was a tough run (because I am certainly not a "runner") but in the end it was actually pretty fun! My goal was to finish without walking and that I did...and I also beat my goal time by 6 minutes! This race was the first big step towards the triathlon I am training for this summer.

We did it!! My good friend and triathlon training buddy, Judy! :) Ladies from my MOPS group who also raced. Becca, in green next to me, won for her age group in the 10k!! And Danielle, next to Judy, won for her (our) age division in the 5k!

Chuck E. Cheese

2009-03-25T12:17:00.000-07:00

On the last day of Spring Break, Grandma and I took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese. JF and GA had never been there, so they were really excited.

Basketball Camp

2009-03-25T12:03:00.001-07:00

During Spring Break last week, MG went to basketball camp everyday for a few hours in the morning. She really enjoyed it!

Kids Say the Darnest Things....

2009-03-17T16:49:00.001-07:00

Answers by MG, 7 and JF, 3 going on 4...
The first answer was MGs response and the second was JF's...
This is stolen from a friend's Facebook post...thanks, Lisa! :)

1. What is something mom always says to you? I love you / I love you
2. What makes mom happy? if I clean my room / when I play in my room
3. What makes mom sad? when I don’t do what you say / when I bite you
4. How does your mom make you laugh? when she tickles me/ when you tickle me
5. What was your mom like as a child? you played baseball / played with barbies
6. How old is your mom? 28 / 5
7. How tall is your mom? like a grown up /10
8. What is her favorite thing to do? spend time with the family /play with barbies with us
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? go running / go running
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? singing / singing
11. What is your mom really good at? taking care of us / cleaning up
12. What is your mom not very good at? running / when you spank me
13. What does your mom do for a job? take care of the kids / sing
14.What is your mom's favorite food? healthy stuff / pepperonis
15.What makes you proud of your mom? when you change GA’s diaper / when you clean your room
16. If your mom were a Cartoon character, who would she be? a froggie /Sleeping Beauty
17. What do you and your mom do together? go out for dinner/ play with barbies
18. How do you know your mom loves you? you take care of me / cause Grandma loves me
19. What does your mom like most about your dad? you like him because he’s a nice guy / when he kisses you
20. Where is your mom's favorite place to go? to get new running shoes / Taco Bell

Yes! Please! :)

2009-03-12T18:18:00.001-07:00

Even now that he is 2, our little guy is still not really talking (he has a few words mastered, but I mean FEW!). So, moments like this make us laugh and give us hope that maybe someday he will figure it out! :)

Pictures from Playgroup...

2009-03-11T13:10:00.000-07:00

This morning was our weekly playgroup day...here are some pictures from the morning! :) We mom's have fun at playgroup too! :) Random, I know...but I thought it was a cool picture! It's a caterpillar. This is JF's injury from the morning...after falling off the swing onto a rock!

I dedicate this one to Holly....

2009-03-11T13:07:00.001-07:00

My friend Holly is 29 yrs old and sadly doesn't know how to ride a bike. :( My other friend Judy has made it her mission to teach her. So at playgroup this morning Holly had a little lesson. And she did awesome!!!! :) Before you know it she will be doing that triathlon with us afterall!! :)
These pictures are for you, John! :)

The Girls!

2009-03-11T13:06:00.001-07:00

Yesterday MG had a playdate with some of her friends from school. The mom who was hosting got some awesome pictures of them! :)

My birthday bash! :)

2009-03-09T14:28:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, my wonderful husband had a party for me in celebration of my birthday! We had a great time with friends...eating, playing croquet, volleyball, more eating, and more eating!! :) This is one of those times when I have sooooo many pictures to share, but I know I can't. So here are a few...

PIZZA!!

2009-03-09T14:15:00.001-07:00

We had fun making pizzas on Friday night!JF is always running around in a bathing suit! :) Silly girl! And GA had fun with his new football "goal" from Grandma! :)

Birthdays!

2009-03-06T13:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was GA's real birthday and mine as well. (Yes, he was born on my birthday!) We had a good day despite the fact that GA had a fever and I had a sore, swollen foot. Happy Birthday to us! We both got great presents from Daddy and Grandma! :)

GA's Birthday Party!

2009-03-05T12:46:00.001-08:00

On Wednesday I was the host for our playgroup, so I figured I would throw GA's birthday while his friends where already going to be at our house! :) We had a fun time. Lots of playing, presents, lunch, and yummy cake! :)

2009-02-27T11:39:00.001-08:00

Look at those baby blues! I am envious! LOL

Wacky TACKY!!!! day

2009-02-26T13:46:00.000-08:00

MG certainly looked tacky on Wacky Tacky day at school!! :) We had to go to Target after I picked her up, so that was kind of embarassing! LOL

Triathlon...

2009-02-24T12:28:00.000-08:00

I have commited myself to doing a triathlon this summer and I started my "beginner triathlon" training today! It was not fun!! And I have a lot of work to do in the next few months in order to get to a point where I can participate successfully! I am in no way out to win, I am out to finish!! I am not a runner so that will be the biggest obstacle for me. The swim and bike I know I can handle although I will certinaly have to train in those two areas as well!

Before the torture began...I'm so happy! :)After the torture...things aren't so funny anymore! Look at those nostrils flaring as I struggle to breath! HA!

CrAzy HAir DAy!

2009-02-24T12:24:00.000-08:00

This week is spirit week at MG's school and today was crazy hair day!! :)

The front...

The back...

Field trip...

2009-02-23T12:35:00.000-08:00

I went with MG on a field trip this morning to the high school to see Pippi Longstockings put on by the Arizona Theater Company. It was a fun trip. All the kids loved it...and I think all the chaperones enjoyed the time to sneak in a nap but hated how loud it was!! LOL The funniest part of the trip was when a friend and I were standing in the halls of the high school waiting for the kids to arrive...it was between classes for the students and after the final bell rang the assistant principal yells at my friend and I telling us we need to go get a late pass and get to class!! :) It was so funny! I had just said that I feel like high schoolers are looking so young to me these days and then I was mistaken as one!!! I will take it as a compliment. HA!

Our morning...

2009-02-20T12:55:00.000-08:00

We spent the morning at our friend's house for their son's 2nd birthday party! We had a great time. The kids love to play together!

GA giving the birthday boy a hug!! :)

The girls being girls!! :)

Big Boy Bed

2009-02-17T14:50:00.001-08:00

GA is about the shake the screws out of his crib and I am afraid he is going to end up getting hurt in there, so I brought out the big boy bed today. (Thanks to my friend for the bed frame!!)He actually took a nap in it today with no protest. I think he was pretty excited! He tried to get toys and push the bed away from the wall and stuff, but it went so much better than I expected. He was asleep in no time and with no crying!! :) My baby is getting so big!

Bowling Party!

2009-02-16T19:40:00.000-08:00

MG had her birthday party today at the bowling alley. Since "Steve" isn't here to help and my mom was taking care of Gabe for me, I only let MG invite 4 girls from her class at school (plus JF and two of her friends siblings). I didn't want to be overtaken by a bunch of 7 year old girls!! Lucky two of the moms also stayed the entire time, so things went super smooth! :) We had a great time bowling, eating lunch, opening presents, having cake, dancing like crazy girls, and playing in the arcade! I have sooooo many good pictures of the day (thanks to my friend who has an awesome camera!!) and I am sad I can't post them all on here.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

2009-02-15T17:47:00.001-08:00

It is hard to believe MG turned 7 today! Kind of makes me feel old! LOL Her party isn't until tomorrow, so Grandma and I took her to Peter Piper Pizza for lunch after church. Then we went home and opened presents and had a cupcake. :) She had a great day! She hit the jackpot here and got 236 tickets in one shot!

JF got lucky too, and got 70 tickets at once! :)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T07:01:00.001-08:00

Eat lots of chocolates! :)

Doctor visit in Tucson....

2009-02-11T19:00:00.000-08:00

So, I went to Tucson today to see the specialist about the cancer on my arm. I went not really knowing what to expect since I had to be seen as a new patient, but luckily I walked out of there without my nasty growth...and with a nasty wound instead!! :)
After the doc talked to me about the type of cancer and checked out my arm and did a quick scan of the rest of my upper body, the head doc came in and checked it out and told me of two options to remove it and let me know what he thought would be best. And the next thing I knew my arm was numb and they went to work! I was definitely thrilled to be cut on today instead of having to go back another day! They used a method called "Curettage and Electrodesiccation" to remove the cancer (the growth is cut away with a curette and the heat produced by an electrocautery needle destroys the residual tumor and controls bleeding). It stunk really bad but that is my only complaint about the procedure! :) It was super quick and painless, thanks to drugs! Now we see what happens. Hopefully nothing will grow back again and we will be good to go. I will be going back in 3 months and then the pattern of appointments for the first few years will be 3, 3, 6, 9, 12 months..and then a yearly visit as long as nothing suspicious occurs in the months in between. They say the rate of "cure" in the area they cut for the type of removal they did is 85-90% so hopefully I will fall into that statistic.
I have to prevent the wound from developing a scab so I have to keep it moist with ointment and cover it with a bandaid for at least 2 weeks..eew! I also have to start wearing an 70 SPF sunscreen....geesh! And really should avoid being in the sun. I know I will have a hard time with that with 3 kids and living in AZ so the doc gave me lots of websites for clothing and products to buy to help reduce the exposure. What a pain! Maybe having a pool at our house won't be so fun afterall anymore. That part is definitely a bummer and will be the hardest part to "obey"!
"Steve" joked today about the kids being tortured by having an "Edward Scissorhands" who can't leave the house as their mom. Very funny! :)
But anyways, hopefully we will be done with this issue for a while. The reoccurance is pretty high with this type of cancer so this may be something I am constantly dealing with, but it could be so much worse!

Picnik.com

2009-02-09T20:09:00.000-08:00

I discovered a new website today that I absolutely love!! It is called picnik.com and it is an awesome, FREE photo editing site. Check it out! :)

Snow fun!

2009-02-08T18:36:00.001-08:00

The mountains got lots of snow last night (lots of snow for us at least!!), so Grandma and I took the kids up to play this afternoon! They loved it!! Although GA had a hard time walking in his snow suit and wasn't too sure what to think of that white stuff. :) MG made a snowman all by herself and she and JF really enjoyed throwing snowballs at Grandma!!

New paint...

2009-02-08T18:28:00.000-08:00

I seem to always paint when "Steve" is out of town, so why should this time be any different?!?! :) I have been saying I was going to paint the wall in our bedroom for months now, and last night I did. I am not sure the picture does the color justice, but hopefully "Steve" will like it!(I couldn't get a picture without that weird glare on the wall.)

Tunnel vision...

2009-02-07T17:51:00.000-08:00

Look at that static!!

Pictures from our week...

2009-02-06T20:00:00.000-08:00

They offer great resistance during my morning walk...resistance in more ways than one, I guess! :) This is what I find in my bed in the morning when "Steve" is away...Dinner with friends... Play time at the mall...Talking with "Steve" on the webcam while he is away...My new skin cancer issue...who would have thought that something so little could cause such a fuss!

Update...

2009-02-05T11:52:00.000-08:00

I went to the doctor yesterday expecting to have my "growth" removed, but that is not what happened. I guess when they did the biopsy about 2 weeks ago, the entire thing was removed. And now it is already back and is bigger than it was originally. So, it is obviously more aggressive than they thought. The guy I was going to in town is not a dermatologist (and is actually only a P.A and not a Dr.) and was not very comfortable removing it once he saw how aggressive it was. So I am going to a doctor in Tucson next Wednesday to be looked at. This doctor is familiar with the type of cancer and hopefully will be able to give me some answers...and is a woman so hopefully she will do a good job removing it so I don't have a horrible scar! :) If it seems to be growing obviously in the next week before I go up there, I think it will be removed down here just to avoid any other complications. The cancer can spread to the lining of internal organs if it becomes too aggressive, so I think they just don't want to let it get that far since it should be able to be avoided. So, at this point I don't have too many answers. I am not one that gets really freaked out about things and I stay pretty calm, so I am doing okay. They just seem to think it is urgent to get this thing cut out and I don't feel like they are really telling me much. So hopefully I will know more next week...I will keep you posted! Prayers are appreciated! :)

"Steve's" 5 minutes of fame!! HA!

2009-02-04T18:50:00.000-08:00

"Steve" did this commercial for a local eye place in town and I think it is so funny! The other two people in the video are also friends of ours.

Enjoy! LOL :)

Funny conversation of the day!

2009-02-04T11:40:00.000-08:00

Today we were driving home from playgroup and I saw an accident. I told JF that there were lots of firetrucks and ambulances in front of us. She asked what happened and I said I didn't know because we weren't close enough yet. Her response to that was, "Maybe someone said a bad word really loud and got in trouble!" I thought that was too cute! :)
Unfortunately, as we drove by I saw a motorcycle pretty beat up and a man on the ground being treated. Those accidents always affect me a bit differently since my hubby rides a motorcycle. Hopefully the guy was okay.
But kids say the cutest things! :)

Biopsy results...

2009-02-03T11:53:00.001-08:00

Use your sunscreen!

I got my biopsy results today and I have a skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. I will be going in tomorrow afternoon to have the rest of my growth cut out...and we will go from there, I guess. I will keep you all posted as I learn more.

Ouch!

2009-01-27T18:20:00.000-08:00

"Steve" cut his finger open pretty badly this morning, but won't go in to get stitches. Instead he has it super glued to keep it sealed up. Pretty gross! This is what it looks like this evening...

WARNING: Not for the faint of heart! :)

our day...ugh!

2009-01-27T15:50:00.000-08:00

Here is the start of our day after a nice walk at the mall...notice we are in the toy aisle? BIG mistake. JF decided because we looked at toys that she needed to have one. I was able to pry her away at the first store, but then we proceeded to store #2 and once again ended up near toys. But this time JF was not happy about not getting a toy...not happy one bit. So much so that she ended up crying and throwing herself on the ground! I am not a fan of tantrums, and especially not tantrums in public, so needless to say I was not happy!! I managed to get her into the car with her fighting me every second and she proceeded to cry (or scream!!) the whole way home...and still cried once we got home. She spent a while in her room until she was calm enough to talk to me about what had happened. But pretty soon, she was at it again throwing a fit about something and woke GA up. So JF went to go take a nap as well. This is a big deal since she stopped taking naps when she was 2. But in a matter of minutes she was quiet and fast asleep and slept until I woke her up a few hours later! I guess she just needed a nap. She has been fine ever since. She told Daddy when he got home that she did not have a good day...neither did mommy!! ugh.

Big Boy Toys

2009-01-26T11:13:00.001-08:00

Here is GA playing like a big boy (or at least trying) with his friend Kyler at Peter Piper Pizza! :)