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Friday, August 29, 2008

Sleepy Ryan

What a sweet, sweet little boy he is. Yes, even when he is getting into trouble, but he is so innocent when he is sleeping!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Vegas Videos

Matt playing the big floor piano at FAO Schwartz.

The fountains at The Bellagio.

The fountains viewed from the top of The Eiffel Tower.

The dolphins splashing us!

My turn to train the dolphins!

Dancing with the dolphin!

Dolphin tricks!

They are so smooth and such wonderful creatures!!

A dolphin kiss and walk.

Yeah, this is embarrassing!!! My trainer told me to dance with the dolphin. Notice Matt laughing at me!!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

We woke up early Saturday morning, got dressed, and checked out of our hotel. Matt said we had reservations for breakfast at 9:30. We took a taxi over to The Mirage and checked our luggage with their bell service. We had some extra time so we walked around a little and checked out the hotel and some of the shops. At about 9:30, we headed out toward the pool where they also have a dolphin habitat. Matt finally let me in on the secret that he had signed me up to do the Trainer for a Day program at the dolphin habitat. I was ecstatic as this has been a dream of mine for a long time! We spent the rest of the day with the dolphins and it was amazing. Since the program was so pricey, Matt just came along as an observer and took lots of pictures.

They provided a continental breakfast for us, as well as giving me a polo shirt and hat, and providing a gourmet lunch for us too. It was made up of menu choices from the various restaurants on site at The Mirage. There was tons of delicious food. We started the day learning about the five dolphins that live in the habitat. We got into the pools with them where we were able to touch them, pet them, give them kisses and feed them LOTS of fish. We also were able to give them commands and see them perform many different tasks. They were so amazing and the trainers that worked with us were great. It was such a dream come true for me. It was wonderful!!!

After the dolphin experience, we had a quick snack and then it was time to head to the airport. Rather than having to take a dirty cab, Matt had scheduled a car to pick us up at The Mirage and take us to the airport. By this time, we were tired of listening to the ring of slot machines, which are everywhere, including inside the airport. We were running on low sleep for the past three days, so were both exhausted. Fortunately, our flight left early and arrived in Denver about 25 minutes ahead of schedule. We got home about 11:30 and fell into bed… until the babies woke up.


In front of The Mirage.


One of the ceilings in the Venetian.


A quiet morning at the Venetian.


The hotels were magnificent!


The entrance to the Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat.


Awwwww!!! I was in heaven!!!


Maverick


Kelly and Maverick


Kelly and Duchess


The white tiger cubs.


Kelly and Maverick


Kelly, Duchess & Matt

It was a fabulous trip and I can’t thank my husband enough. What an amazing man that loves me so much!! It was a much needed break for us and we had so much time to focus on our love for each other and it was like we fell in love all over again. The kids did great and a BIG thank you to my mom, Vanessa & Ashley who all worked together in taking care of the kids. It was nice to be able to relax and know that our babies were in good hands!!

Now it is back to the grind!!! It’s amazing how a little break can refresh you and remind you how important your family is to you!! The babies will be 6 months old next week and the boys will start their regular school schedules. I’ll get some more pictures of their first days of school and some of the babies next week!!

Friday, August 22, 2008

After a late night, we slept in until 9:00 on Friday. We had breakfast at a cute little café in our hotel. We spent several hours walking around the strip and checking out all of the different hotels. We took a gondola ride at The Venetian, which was fun and romantic! We had some cute pictures taken and also found some souvenirs for the kids. It was hot, hot, hot at 106 degrees!!


The big $2 slot machine at Mandalay Bay.


Inside the New York, New York.


At the fountains in front of the Venetian.


Posing with Nicholas Cage.


The indoor gondolas.


The outdoor gondolas... we chose to ride these ones in the extreme heat.


My sweetie sitting in front of the fountains.


Nice...


MGM Grand


The Mandalay Bay casino


Another view of the strip from our room.

We had plans for Friday night (I didn’t know what they were yet), so we went back to the hotel and showered and got ready for dinner. We headed to the Bellagio and had dinner at Fix. The food was very delicious and the atmosphere just exciting!! We even saw the start of the Packer/Bronco game (Go Pack!!!) before we left. Finally we headed to the theater to see Cirque De Soleil’s "O". It was AMAZING!!!!! I’m so glad we went to this show and want to thank Jen for my ticket which she got for me as a birthday present!! What an awesome friend!


Having dinner at FIX.


Getting ready to head into "O".


Awww... so in love.

After the show was over, we went outside to watch the fountains dance at the Bellagio. What a beautiful sight at night. Then we headed over to the Paris hotel to ride up to the top of the Eiffel Tower. I have to admit that it was scary for me with my fear of heights, but we stayed up there for about 10 minutes. We got some great views of the city, as well as another viewpoint of the fountains from above… breathtaking!

We headed back down the strip to gamble a little more at the MGM before going back to our hotel. Unfortunately, we didn’t do as well this time. We sat down together for my first try at a blackjack table. In a matter of 10 minutes, we lost $60… NOT fun!!! That was the end of that. That’s really all of the gambling we did, and I think we managed to come out ahead $4.20!!!


A view of The Eiffel Tower at night.


The fountains in front of The Bellagio. What a beautiful show.


A beautiful sight to see!




The Bellagio


Looking down on the strip from the top of The Eiffel Tower.


The Bellagio and the fountains all lit up from the top of The Eiffel Tower.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

Matt told me I needed to be showered and ready to go by 9:00 Thursday morning. I got up and started getting ready. While I was finished packing Jen called and said, “Why haven’t you called me yet?” I told her I didn’t know anything else yet. Then Matt took the phone and said to her, “She is just now finding out that you have known what’s going on all along!” I was shocked and I grabbed the phone and said, “Shut up!!!!” All along she has been saying that Matt should have told her what’s up because she is my best friend and he probably didn’t tell her cuz he knew she wouldn’t be able to keep it a secret, etc, etc. Of course, she couldn’t tell me anything else at that point because it was all still a secret.

At 8:30 Vanessa arrived and when she walked in the house, I started to ask her if she knew what was going on, but then my Mom walked in too. Come to find out, Jen, Vanessa & my Mom all new about this secret since the end of June!!! Nobody had given me any clue that they knew anything. And I was asking them all along for ideas and telling them clues, etc!

After getting all packed and saying goodbye to the kids, we left for the airport. I knew this much because Matt slipped up and asked me to hold the camera because he didn’t want to check it. That gave it away that we were flying somewhere. He didn’t tell me until we were on E-470 just about to the airport that we were going to Las Vegas!!! Neither one of us had ever been there and both wanted to go at some point!

When we arrived at the airport, Matt had arranged for a limo to pick us up and give us a tour around the strip while we sipped champagne. We arrived at Mandalay Bay and checked into our 33rd floor room that provided the most beautiful view of the strip. The room was magnificent! After walking around and checking out the hotel, we had a gourmet dinner at a buffet with yummy food!! Next came a walk down the strip to Harrah’s. Here we saw the Rita Rudner comedy show which was fun. Thank you to Tom & Elaine for the tickets!!! She was funny and had a witty take on relationships! We spent the rest of Thursday night walking around and spent some time in the casino at the MGM Grand. Matt sat down at a blackjack table and doubled his money. That was fun! We didn’t get into bed until 3 a.m., which was 4:00 our time. Needless to say, it was an awesome, but exhausting day!!


Getting ready to leave the aiport in our limo!


The infamous sign!!


The first dollar goes in... it was a loser!


In the lobby of our hotel... Mandalay Bay!


The lobby!


Outside near the pool.


Looking up at our hotel.


A view of our room.


The magnificent view of the strip from our room!


Another view of the strip.


The lions at the exhibit in MGM!


Sitting in front of Caesar's Palace.


The horse in front of FAO Schwartz.


Matt tries his luck at blackjack!


A view of Lady Liberty!

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

A little background first. Most people know that Matt and I have the same birthday; however he will always be two years older than me!!! When he turned 30 two years ago, I threw him a huge surprise birthday party at a hotel complete with a DJ, food, dancing, etc. I picked him up in a limo and we went out to dinner and I fooled him into thinking I was taking him away for the weekend to keep him wondering until we got to the actual party. It was a great party!

Anyway, back in June he started saying that he wanted to do something special for my 30th birthday (August 28), but it was going to be a big surprise. We talked about our budget and we set aside money for him to purchase “several presents” that he felt would be special for me. For the next two months, he teased me about what my surprise could be. In the two weeks leading up, he gave me clues everyday that were supposed to help hint to what these presents were. Of course, the clues were all over the map and I wasn’t able to guess anything. Every day, I would call my bff Jen and tell her what the day’s clue was and everyday she would come up with a guess for me. We never really seemed to hit it, and Matt said he wouldn’t confirm even if we did. That brings us to last Wednesday.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Wednesday morning Matt said he wanted to make chicken stir fry for dinner when he got home from work so I shouldn’t worry about it. I was downstairs playing with the kids when he came home. I heard him come in, but didn’t come up as I thought he’d come down to say hi to us. After a few minutes, I heard him opening the refrigerator, running the water, etc in the kitchen. It sounded like he was starting dinner and I thought it was strange that he didn’t come down. I went upstairs to find him with a dozen red roses and a birthday card. I was pretty surprised since my birthday wasn’t for another 8 days. I opened the card and inside he had written the following:

Your birthday presents will begin tomorrow. In order to get all of your presents you must follow the rules.

1. No questions!
2. Sit back and relax.
3. Do as I ask, everything else has been taken care of!
4. Have fun!
5. Only call Jen or Jean.


Of course I’m freaking out by this time and try to call Jen at home and on her cell, but she was doing hair so she didn’t answer. I left her a message to call me ASAP! Then I called my mom and told her about the flowers and the card and asked if she knew anything. She said she didn’t have a clue. We hemmed and hawed about what it could be and then I said I’d call her later. Matt had told me that he would give me some more information after dinner, so I was rushing through that to see what was happening! I tried calling Jen again and she was still busy. She finally called about 10 minutes later and I told her about everything. I was like a giddy child on Christmas Eve!! Again, we went through everything and tried to figure out what it could be. She told me to call her as soon as I had any more information.

After dinner, Matt told me I needed to do a couple of things to get ready for the next day. He said we were going to go somewhere, but I wouldn’t know where until after we left. He gave me a list of things I needed to get together which included; three pair of shorts, three shirts, one nice dressier outfit with shoes, socks and shoes, and toiletries. At this point I figured we were probably going somewhere, but I had no idea where. Being OCD as I am, I started asking lots of questions because I had things planned. On Thursday we were supposed to have two of Ethan’s friends over to go swimming, I had a doctor’s appt scheduled on Friday and on Saturday we were all supposed to be going down to Waterworld in Denver. I kept worrying about everything and Matt kept saying, “What’s rule number 3?!?!?!?” My next dilemma was that I didn’t really have any nice dressier clothes to wear. With trying to lose weight, I’m not buying new clothes until I get down to my target weight. Well, I needed something so my Mom offered to take me shopping for an outfit. By this time the babies were starving and they needed their baths so I took the boys and left while Matt took care of the babies and the house. We didn’t get home until after nine and the boys needed baths and we had promised them a popsicle, so we did all that and got them in bed.

I knew I wasn’t going to be able to sleep well because of excitement, but the kids aided me in staying awake the entire night on Wednesday night. The babies have been teething bad and also going through a growth spurt, so I was up with them 4 times that night. Also, when Ethan gets overtired, he doesn’t sleep well. He was up four times as well during the night. Needless to say, I got about 3 hours of sleep that night.

Thursday, August 21, 2008

WE'RE IN LAS VEGAS!!!!!

Next Thursday is my 30th and Matt's 32nd birthday. I've known for awhile that he had some big surprise planned and found out last night that I was to pack some clothes because we were going somewhere! Well, this morning we got up and flew to Las Vegas!!! We are in a beautiful 33rd floor room at Mandalay Bay with an unobstructed view of the strip! What a great time and wonderful husband I have!!! I will post all about it when we get home. Thank you honey!!!! I love you so much!!! First you make me the happiest woman in the world by marrying me, then you give me the four most beautiful children in the world and now this. I just keep falling in love with you over and over again!!!

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Happenings!

Once again, I haven't posted in a while and now have a marathon post with many new updates and pictures. As you know, our lives are busy and I try to post as often as possible! I can't believe it is already August and school starts soon, bringing with it the end of summer.


This first picture is from a couple of weeks ago. I watched Broggan while Jen ran some errands in the morning. Ethan was at Camp Noah and Vanessa was here helping me out that day. I left the babies with her and took Ryan & Broggan with me to the gym. Afterward, we came back to the house and the boys played. Apparently we tired Broggan out because he fell asleep before Jen got here to pick him up!


The babies starting eating food a week and a half ago. Unfortunately, having two of them to feed leaves me with no hands for pictures. I did get this picture of Aaron holding his spoon though. So far, they have had cereal, sweet potatoes & carrots. Tomorrow they get to try another new vegetable. So far they seem to be doing well with everything.

CORN


Ethan wanted to help shuck the corn for dinner one night. Then he had to go potty!



INTEL PICNIC

Last Thursday was the picnic at Intel. It's a pretty nice setup. They have food for everyone, lots of kids activities, a band, etc. We all had a nice time!


Ethan gets his face painted.


Ryan fishing in the pond to win a prize!

Babies Play


I picked up this exersaucer at a garage sale for $5... it was a steal! The babies seem to be enjoying it!


We also dug out the jumperoo from when Ryan was a baby. At this point, Aaron gets more into it than McKenna!


The front room upstairs has become baby playland! We even had to move all the boys toys downstairs, which makes it look much better! That Baby Einstein playmat McKenna is playing on... I got it at the same garage sale for $3... those things are $60 new!!!

SLUMBERLAND

The babies have had a rough week this past week with sleep. For some reason, they stopped sleeping at night and one or the other was up crying all night long. We seem to have turned it around and are working on a strict nap schedule that I think is helping with the night sleep. I think part of the problem is just the fact that they have a "roommate" to help stir them at night.


Sweet McKenna sound asleep in her crib!


Mr. Aaron catches some zzz's! How sweet does he look. They both always seem to nestle up to the bars in their crib.


Ethan and Ryan are now sleeping together on the top bunk in their bedroom. We tried to keep them in their own beds, but Ryan kept climbing up and Ethan was his accomplice in helping him get all of his lovies and stuff up there. Finally we just started putting them to bed this way!

MISC


Daddy hanging out with the babies!

Ethan & Ryan have been learning about the county fair at Miss Sarah's the last couple of weeks. On Wednesday, they came home with their faces painted. It was so cute. We sure do love Miss Sarah... she's a great teacher!!


Ryan the lion!


Ethan the sunny faced, rainbow boy!!


Last weekend we worked VERY hard shoveling rock from the corner of our front yard and relaying a heavy duty weed block. It took us about four days of hard labor with both of us working, but we got it done and it looks much better. Ethan and Ryan came out and helped too!!


The boys playing frisbee in the yard!

CAMP NOAH

Ethan attended a camp two weeks ago put on by Lutheran Family Services called Camp Noah. It's purpose was to teach children about the weather and different types of disasters, as well as helping them cope with their feelings of fear from the tornado we had in May. It really was a neat concept and I think Ethan got a lot out of it.


Ethan is in the front row, 5th from the right, behind the girl with the pink skirt on.


There is our sweet boy, in the middle holding the piece of paper!


At the end, they presented each of the kids with a Noah's Ark shaped wooden piggy bank.


After the presentation for the parents, they had cake for everyone. As you can see, Ryan enjoyed his!


Ethan playing with his friend.


Ethan and Uncle Derek (Jen's husband, Broggan's Dad). Derek is a therapist and he & his co-workers volunteered at the camp. He is the reason we found out about it. It was technically for kids in kindergarden or older, so Ethan was the youngest one there. It was nice for him to have Derek there as a familiar face. They are buds!




At the beginning of their presentation, each of the grades talked about what they learned that week. Ethan class says what they are going to put in their emergency bag in case of a disaster. It's hard to understand him, but Ethan says he is going to put in a flashlight and his shoes. He shows a picture he drew of a flashlight and his Thomas sandals that he wore to camp that day.