A bit obsessive...

Yes, I am obsessive. I've always known this, I think, but I forget when I don't have something to obsess about. So I ask frogiveness from friends, family, and my children who might have felt snubbed in the past 3 days. I started reading the Twilight series (by Stephanie Meyer) while on the plane to Jocelyn's bachelorette party (when will my next plane ride alone be?), and I could not put it down. It was an escape for me- into someone's life for a while- another world, that though impossible to be real, still allows me to see others and myself in new lights. I love reexperiencing life events that will never be mine again through the authors well chosen words (new love, for example) or things that I could never experience (the past, or perhaps the future). I love seeing other people's points of view and understanding the world a little better. And yes, I'm a sucker for happy endings- forget ironic movies like 'Message in a Bottle' and 'Premonition.'

It's been a while since I've been sucked in like that- Harry Potter, Chronicles of Narnia, etc... which I guess is for the better, since sleep, food, and the house fall drastically in priorities. In my defense, my family was fed, the girls entertained, and my house not a septic tank. But it's a healthy release for me, a natural introvert, to get away from most of the world and escape into another world every once in a while. It helps me reevaluate my own life- find stengths in the characters that I would like for myself and work on making them my own.

So if you're looking for a good book (or 4) look up the Twilight series- just make sure that if you're a hopeless romantic like me, that you can set aside some time to neglect everything around you. And for those of you who were neglected... I should be completely back soon. Let me just readjust to real like again...

He Passed!!!!!

Kaylon passed his CFA level III exam!!!!!!!! He got the results today!!! We are all so proud of him! He passed all three tests on the 1st try, which is quite the accomplishment. Not that we're surprised. He just needs another year and a half of work experience and then he gets to put C.F.A behind his name :D Yay!

Anniversary Dinner Cruise

Kaylon and I celebrated 7 years of marriage a week ago! I figure that at least half the people at our wedding didn't think we'd make it this far, but we have been happy to prove them wrong. I got to plan the date this year, which I kept as a surprise right up until the moment we arrived at the docks. I booked a formal dinner cruise with Odyssey, which serves a 4 course dinner, has live entertainment, dancing, and travels along the Potomac so you can see the DC monuments lit up. We had a wonderful time- being on a ship really allowed me to let go of the daily worries (something I have trouble doing!). Overall it was a memorable night and reminded me how much I love my husband.

What is a "poopy girl?"

Recently the girls have been playing instead of going to sleep at night, so we have had to periodically go into their room and scold them. One night Kaylon had the honor of doing this- it was a normal scolding, and he came back down to watch a movie with me. Then we heard Grace start to cry over the baby monitor, which is also fairly normal. And then we heard, "Daddy treated me like a poopy girl!" We about lost it. Kaylon had to go up and talk to her- explain that she wasn't a poopy girl, but that she did need to go to sleep. But it has stuck, and now when she gets in trouble, we are always "treating her like a poopy girl."

Help us!

16 week belly shot

I think I will be carrying high again- which i prefer- I'd rather have my hips than my breath.

First Belly Shot

This was me a few weeks ago- around 12/13 weeks. I'll have to take another one soon... and maybe get Kaylon to take it this time.

Six Flags

Here are some pictures from our trip to Six Flags on Saturday. We had a great time, but I can't wait till next year when I can ride some roller coasters!

She is fearless!
Proof that Kaylon went on more than a kiddie ride!

Putting out pretend fires

We went to a baptism tonight at the church. There were refreshments afterward and the kids were all playing in one of the nursery rooms. I was walking through when Grace stopped me and said, "Momma, there's water all over." I looked over to see a play stove with water all over it. Grace then told me, "There was a fire on the stove so I put it out with water." Ok, so I'm laughing on the inside, but I make her clean up the mess. As we're driving home, this incident comes up again, and we told her that next time she should put out the pretent fire with pretend water. She then protested, "But the pretend water wasn't working, so I had to use the real water."

Family Pictures

On Saturday we got our family pictures taken by our friend Emily. We got them done by the lake that we go to for our walks, which made it extra special. She did an awesome job and she posted a few on her blog- check them out!

http://www.hayesphotography.blogspot.com/

Consequences

So I took the big girl bed away.

Last night as I was drifting off to sleep around 12:30, Liliana came bounding in the room as if it were morning. I let her snuggle in my bed for a minute, and then took her back to her room. She wanted to wake up Gracie, but I told her no. An hour or 2 later (I can't see the clock without my contacts) in she comes again, happily handing me a stuffed elephant and wanting to play. I again take her back to her room. This continued until probably 4:30 or so, when I just kept her in my bed. Eventually she fell asleep too, but sadly I don't sleep well with kids in my bed (always afraid I'm going to roll onto them-or that Kaylon will). She slept until 8:30 or so. And now, the crib side is back on for her nap... I just wish I would have put it on last night so she could better connect the consequence to the action...