Poulson Family Blog

Christmas 2011 - G

2011-12-08T09:09:00.001-08:00

Christmas 2011 - S

2011-12-08T09:06:00.000-08:00

Gabe riding his bike!

2011-10-03T16:58:00.000-07:00

Gabe and Ben have been working on riding without training wheels and he is finally getting the hang of it!!

Welcome to 2nd Grade!

2011-08-25T14:57:00.001-07:00

I cannot believe I have a 2nd grader! This is just going so fast.

And we attempted a garden this year! I was really good about watering when they were in moss pots inside, but I was terrible about watering once they were planted on the side of the house (I never go over there!) and I pretty much forgot about them. Whoops! We did get a good size zucchini, and we have three pumpkins growing. We had a handful of raspberries, but no strawberries yet. Probably next year. We started some carrots, but the pots never dissolved (not enough watering) so they didn't have enough space to spread out. :) Anyway, here's how they turned out!

HAWAII

2011-05-29T10:14:00.000-07:00

Okay, this is for the non-FBers. I don't want to overload the blog with 200+ pictures, so I am adding public links to the FB albums. Let me know if this works! They are all labeled and organized, I just don't want to do it again here! LOL

1st set: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150265093868974.386387.704488973&l=2ea329cde6

2nd set: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150265161928974.386401.704488973&l=0e4a2d101d

Spring Has (finally) Sprung!

2011-05-29T10:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am grateful for the rain, but ready for some consistent warm weather! I know I will regret saying that when all of a sudden it's in the 90's, but right now I want to go outside without an umbrella. :) To bring on some Spring Fever here are the most current pics of the littles! I will add Hawaii pics soon.

Valentines!

2011-02-25T16:15:00.000-08:00

So we had a super fun Valentine's Day with the boys! We made sugar cookies to decorate and Ben sent me a gorgeous vase of flowers, and Elaine stopped by with an adorable vase of gerbera daisies which I love! The boys obligingly allowed me to take some Valentine's pics, which I think turned out soo cute.

We have an Awesome kid

2011-01-05T20:44:00.001-08:00

Gabe lost another tooth! He was also named Student of the week for his reading minutes, and got invited to "Bug Lunch" with the principal because he had a smile on his face the whole day, from the minute he walked in the classroom. What an awesome kid!

If you look at the picture full size you can even see some little scrapes from where he fell on the ice Monday! He went down face first, and several hours and lots of vomiting later we ended up at the hospital getting a CT scan. He suffered a mild to moderate concussion but no serious after-effects, other than the vomiting. He had a slight headache the next day but seems to be 100% now! Grateful for everyone's thoughts, prayers and neighbors who came over to give him a blessing! (Ben was stuck at work in Salt Lake)

Came home to find...

2010-12-31T21:14:00.001-08:00

this note from Gabe!

Christmas Pictures

2010-12-21T15:23:00.000-08:00

I just love that these guys are such great models! We went with non-traditional colors this year, but I love how they turned out.

Neglecting the blog

2010-11-21T15:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry anyone who actually reads this! We are just rolling along the fall train and the days all run together sometimes. Then all of a sudden it's snowing and you realize it been a few months. Whoops!

So here are a few updates via photography (of course)

Back to school

2010-09-14T09:01:00.000-07:00

How big is this kid! The rest of the pics are on FB, but here are my favorites! He is doing really well in school so far, loves his new teacher and dealing with the longer school day just fine. Whew!

More projects!

2010-09-07T10:17:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like the final kitchen projects are complete! Ben hung the chalkboard broom closet door this weekend, and I finished the curtain for the window. Whew! We are about a year into the kitchen project and these little projects have just lingered! So it's nice to really say it's done now, not even a little project left to finish. Ahhh.

And Ben did an amazing job building this bed for Sam! I found the plans here: http://ana-white.com/ (otherwise known as knock-off wood). Sam loves it and has been doing much better staying in bed at night.

Time Flies

2010-07-31T13:36:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been a while! this summer has literally flown by. A Haze of family trips, lazy days at the pool, and keeping up on life has kept us happy and busy lately. I didn't realize that I never posted pictures from the boys birthday parties, whoops! I think Gabe's pics are on FB, but let me know if you want to see them here too.

Well, here are just a few more fun projects that we've finally finished.

The swingset! Finished just before G's brithday party

Father's Day project with the boys:

Cute hair ribbon pres for niece:

More up to date pics of the kitchen! Only the chalkboard broom closet door left now. :)

cute onesies I made for a friend's newborn!

A couple more projects

2010-06-14T20:47:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a pillowcase (with Elaine's help of course) and I finished it today! It's a little home-grown looking, but hopefully it will hold up for a while. The case itself is sturdy, just the decorative piece on the front that I rigged together might have problems.

And I finally got around to planting something! These are jalepeno peppers. I need to set up another box for tomatoes, onions and cilantro. Fresh Salsa here we come!

Kids Club

2010-06-07T09:21:00.000-07:00

The boys had a great time at the Home Depot Kids Club this week!

Snaps

2010-06-03T14:37:00.000-07:00

I had my studio stuff set up today and a rented wide-angle lens, so of course I had to play with the boys! Here is G, maybe I can talk Sam into a couple after his nap. :)

Kindergarten grad!

2010-05-28T09:35:00.001-07:00

I am so proud of Gabe for all of his hard work this year! He finished with all A's for the whole year, what a smarty! If you scroll wayyyy down you will see a similar shot of Gabe from the first day of school! He looks so big now!

Here he is with his super cute Kindergarten teacher!

and a random shot of our newly painted and numbered front door!

this project took so much longer than I thought it would, especially the window at the top. Whew! Glad that is checked off the list!

To Do

2010-05-18T07:09:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling motivated again (nothing like an upcoming Birthday party to get my act in gear) and I have a HUGE to-do list to be completed by next Saturday.

To Do:

Tuesday
Trim of Ceiling Paint in living room, alcove
Cut in wall paint in Living Room and alcove
Roll on wall paint
DONE

Wednesday
Cut in wall paint in Living Room and alcove
Roll on wall paint
DONE

Thursday
Paint white trim in living room, alcove
blue paint in kitchen
DONE

Friday/Saturday (had 2 sessions instead, this will have to wait!)
sand railings
prime railings
paint railings

Monday
Prep front door-done
prime front doot-done
two coats of paint on door? - done
make G's pinata - done
prep for party games - done
DONE

Tuesday
Catch-up day for the things that have fallen behind :)

Wednesday
rub vinyl house numbers on door (after curing 24 hours)
DONE

Thursday
catch up for party prep

Friday
clean house for party
LAST DAY OF SCHOOL!!

Saturday
G's PARTY!!
pray for good weather, I don't want 12 6 yr olds inside. :)

Summer Haircut

2010-05-17T08:26:00.000-07:00

Well, as much as I love Sam's hair, the summer would just be miserable if I left it long in the coming heat! So on Saturday morning we trooped over to Misty's and this is what it looks like now...

*sigh* he looks so grown up!

G's Diorama

2010-05-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

I had no idea we would be doing these already! I tried to have him do most of the work, but I did help with gluing the rocks together. I wanted to make sure they stayed together while it was traveling. :) No idea if this is up to current diorama standards, but I'm hoping since it's just kindergarten that it's just credit for trying!

bed bug

2010-05-08T09:55:00.000-07:00

okay, I promise sam doesn't really run around in his underwear all day! I had this set up for a photo session and sam wanted to play on it after he woke up from his nap! I had changed him back into undies (he sleeps in a diaper) and it seemed perfect!

click on the collage to see it larger.

LegoLand!!

2010-04-29T06:59:00.001-07:00

We had such a great time in California this past weekend! Thanks so much to Blake and Jenae for having us stay with you. So there are way too many pictures to share, you absolutely do not have to look through all of these! But there was lots of really cool stuff at LEGOLAND!

Legoland with Boys:

LEGOLAND Buildings:

The Beach!

More projects (surprise surprise)

2010-03-18T09:12:00.000-07:00

I am finally feeling motivated again (although not with painting projects) and I think I am close to being finished with Sam's room. I am definitely done with the sewing projects! Here is an update on most of the room. Still need to address the far wall with the dresser. I'm thinking of adding a lamp and a nice picture hanging above.

Sam's Quilt #2

2010-03-02T10:49:00.000-08:00

Here is where I am on Sam's quilt, it's coming along! The top is nearly complete, just the brown border to go then hopefully the rest will zip together pretty fast. It's not perfect by any means, but hopefully Sam will love it. :)

Finally chose a kitchen light

2010-03-02T07:54:00.001-08:00

Finally bit the bullet and ordered the pendant light for over the sink! It's a little more low-key than the tiffany pendant I was considering before, but I think this will go really well with the rest of the kitchen.

Sam's Milestone

2010-02-27T10:56:00.000-08:00

Sorry for those of you who have seen these in three places now! Just covering my bases for the people who only see FB or only the blog.

Well, Sam is officially potty-trained now (during the day at least) he is so proud of himself. I think his favorite part has been the treats for making it in time. :)

how exciting is this?!

2010-02-26T14:31:00.000-08:00

We have a backsplash!!! We're well on the way I guess to be accurate. The tiles are going in today, then we wait two days for the adhesive to set, then grout, then seal!!!

Pillows!

2010-02-25T07:47:00.000-08:00

So the poor girls had almost completed their "PRAY" pillows (to remind them to say their prayers at night) when the bobbin ran out of thread. Well, for a technically minded person I had a ridiculously hard time getting the darn thing going again and had to send the girls home with bags of stuffing to finish their pillows at home! I finally got it going again and was able to finish Gabe's pillow and zipped one out for Sam this morning. I figured I would just do a graphic for Sam since he can't read yet! Here they are...

unfortunately I didn't notice the problem with Gabe's until it was all put together. One of the girls helped him cut out the letters and the fabric ended up upside down. Whoops! Not sure I would have noticed either to be honest. Oh well, he still loves it and that is what counts. This is the first sewing project I have done in honestly ten years or more! It was probably a little more than I should have attempted on my own. *sigh*

Silly Boys

2010-02-24T11:58:00.000-08:00

My friend Liz had a couple of posts full of funny things that the kids say and I thought I would start one too. Here are two from last night:

Gabe (after singing Happy Birthday to Ben): You know how on the last lap of that song you sing... I love how they just apply words that make sense to them when they don't know the right one (like "verse")!

Sam (after singing HB and the ABC's): "Wow, I have a lot of songs in my mouth!"

quilting help needed!

2010-02-22T15:52:00.000-08:00

okay all you quilters, take a look at this layout and let me know if you think any of the squares should be moved around. It will have white strips in between all the squares and then a brown border that will wrap around from the backside.

Click to see full size

valentine's and more randoms

2010-02-16T14:11:00.000-08:00

the ever popular sugar cookies! The boys love the cut out the shapes, so this is something we do for just about every holiday!

I have FINALLY finished the three art pieces for the master bdrm. Now they just need to go on the wall!

Gabe's new solar system! It even glows in the dark. He loves it

catching up

2010-02-03T13:10:00.001-08:00

Just a few random pics from the last month or so..

watercoloring with the boys. The last one is a "book" that Gabe made for me. It says, "I love you, I will love you always Cat". Isn't that sweet! I think it's funny that he said Cat instead of Mom, but whatever. :)

Gabe's robot TV, peanut butter birdfeeders, Elaine's bday cake (lopsided, sorry!), Sam downing icecream

Some home improvement projects! New corded phone for the kitchen, painting the molding for the main floor, and finally getting somewhere on my art for the bedroom (thanks Cheyenne!!)

Bath Time! Trying to get something a little more artistic, but they weren't seeing my vision. I will have to try again some other time!

New Shoes!

2010-01-30T18:00:00.000-08:00

I made a goal to work up to walking 5 miles 5 days per week. I am tracking my progress on the left side so I can stay on task! Feel free to leave me encouraging emails if you see I'm doing well or yell at me if I'm slacking!!! I just bought these shoes tonight, so I'm hoping that will be more comfortable!

Kitchen Backsplash

2010-01-22T22:32:00.000-08:00

Okay peeps, it's time to make your vote count! We are finally getting ready to tile the backsplash in the kitchen and we have several options. Get your txting fingers ready, set, go!

ETA: thanks everyone for the feedback (yes, Kent, PS IS great!) I have added one more option to the list, #6, which I think is my personal fave. Keep the comments coming!

Option 1 (mosaic tile all the way)

Option 2 (Travertine all the way)

Option 3 (Travertine with inset glass tiles to mimic the mosaic)

Option 4 (Travertine with mosaic behind range)

Option 5 (Travertine base with mosaic top)

Option 6 (Travertine with glass tiles neutral)

Mystery Dinner

2010-01-14T17:35:00.000-08:00

Last night our ward had a "Mystery Dinner" complete with babysitters! Ben and I do not plan dates often enough, so I was looking forward to an enjoyable evening with hubby and neighborhood friends. My first thought when I heard Mystery Dinner was that it would be a who-dun-it sort of evening. I have never participated in one, but they seem like fun, Ben on the other hand was less enthusiastic. I wish I could say that since it wasn't a who-dun-it evening that Ben would have been excited, but just wait!

After strong-arming him into leaving work in the middle of a project to make it to the dinner, we experienced a natural disaster! The lights went off, panic ensued, and the only option left was to salvage our dinner plans from our very own food storage. After being told the rules: nothing from the fridge or freezer, no electricity to make the meal, no lights, and only water from food storage. And only 60 minutes to plan and cook the meal! Meet back here are 8 and we will all eat together. (Just like we thought, only after cooking our own dinners and a whole hour later!)

Well, call us grumpy sports but we were hungry and the guys were less than positive about the possibilities that lay within our pantries. Sure, food storage is great for emergencies, but we thought we were on a date!! Dates and canned spaghetti sauce usually only go over as freshmen in college. :) Fortunately for us we were with a light-hearted group that agreed that in an emergency our first option would be to eat out! So we discussed how to get away with this devious plan and soon we were the only table left! Under the eagle eyes of the planning committee we decided it would be better to finalize out plans out of earshot. (Don't we sound like teenagers here?) On our way out the door a solution came to me! The ladies would indeed do our best and fashion a meal from our collective food storage, while the men went hunting....for takeout!!

After arriving at our decided house we got right to work making a beef stew with canned beef (not as bad as it sounds) beef bouillon dehydrated carrots, dehydrated onions, dehydrated tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper and chopped potatoes. After realizing that the rubber coated handles of the pot could not go in the BBQ, we headed to another house where they had a gas side burner on their BBQ. Just as we were arriving at the second house, the men returned victorious! Olive Garden Fettuccine Alfredo and breadsticks! We ate while the stew cooked and had a satisfying conversation about disasters, food storage and emergency preparedness. We finished our meal right on time and headed back with our stew to join the rest of the groups. EVERYONE else had made pasta! It was hard to keep a straight face as we sipped at our soup (too full to eat it, although it was actually pretty good) and nibbled our rolls so no one would be suspicious! Our first plan had been to get the take out and bring it back, I guess we would have fit right in! But it was fun to do the project and we did learn some interesting things while we cooked and talked with our group.

So there you have it, even into our 30's we are still making trouble! Of course we were in no way forced to participate, but we didn't really want to seem like bad sports. :) I guess we kind of were, but the pasta was really yummy so I had a hard time feeling too bad about it. And, we really had a great time with our group and are already planning a "reunion" dinner! All in all it was a fun night, but definitely more so because of the company and the enjoyment we had feeling devious! I'm sure everyone else was wondering why we were so cheerful. I guess if they read this they'll know. ;)

Still working on the boys rooms

2010-01-06T13:58:00.000-08:00

Okay, I am going to attempt to make new quilts for the boys, along with some other little projects. Here are some idea shots:

Christmas 09

2010-01-06T13:56:00.001-08:00

It takes forever to load all the pictures I want to share, so I hope everyone is okay with the slide shows. Here are some of our favorite Christmas moments! We made a gingerbread house too, but somehow I don't have any pictures? I'm sure I took some, oh well.

Christmas Scrapbook Pages

2009-12-17T07:42:00.000-08:00

The Poulson family has started a tradition of making scrapbook pages for Marie each year. That way she can still have pics of the kids and grandkids from throughout the year even though they are ALL married now! I really waited until the last minute this year and only had this morning to make them in time to have them printed for Christmas. So, nothing fancy, but I've posted them before and thought I would do so again.

2009-12-15T15:57:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Let it Snow!

2009-12-11T21:21:00.000-08:00

Wow, welcome to winter in Utah. We have just been pounded the last week or so, and we are expecting another big storm this weekend. We still don't have the driveway all the way shoveled from the last storm! We have definitely been spoiled having our snow removal taken care of the last... well, forever! I haven't had to shovel since I moved out at 18. So we have some conditioning to do to get in shape for shoveling! I got halfway through the driveway and gave up. :)

If the snow pictures seem dark, it's because we went out at **7:30** AM when the boys were so excited they couldn't wait another minute. ;)

Well, I finally managed to snap a few pics of the boys so I could get my card ordered. Sheesh! You will have to wait for your copy to see the card, but here are a few of the pictures.

Too Big For Words

2009-12-09T08:02:00.000-08:00

...or just big enough? Gabe has been doing a great job in Kindergarten so far, and his reading is really taking off! He knew all his letters and sounds already, but taking that step to reading words is such a big deal! He started reading some small words like cat, dog, etc in preschool, and now he is just taking off! His school has a reading program where they send home a new little book each day geared toward their individual reading level. Sometimes it's hard to find books with just the "smaller" words, or we just don't bother to check those out since the story isn't usually very interesting! But this is great because they keep it organized for you. They read 20 books from each level and then move to the next. He is on the second level now, and has memorized all of his high frequency words plus more! We are sooo proud of our smart guy!

Here is a video of him reading his book from yesterday. He read it through once and did such a great job I wanted to record him so I could post for family out of town. So this is just the second time reading through this book.

Fall Leaves and Cat's Birthday

2009-11-25T14:40:00.001-08:00

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-01T19:02:00.000-08:00

Here are the boys in their cute costumes! And some of our fun Halloween activities...

having some issues loading the pictures, will try to load more tomorrow!

Cat

The Verdict

2009-10-26T10:05:00.000-07:00

Well, the verdict is in! For those that may not know, Omniture was bought out by Adobe, and the deal was finalized this past Friday. We were told to expect lay-offs in the repeated functions (Adobe has their own HR, legal and acct'ing functions) so we were not too surprised to find out this morning that Ben's position is no longer needed. There is a 90 day transition period (through Jan31st) while they move all the data to Adobe's system and staff, and then he will have a severance package for a few months after that. If all goes well, he will find a job shortly after the work is done and we can just save all the severance money, but we'll see what happens. In this job market it may take that long to find a job, we will just have to wait and see. Anyway, that is the update, please keep positive thoughts and prayers coming our way and we will do the same for all of you!

Happy Monday ;)

More updates!

2009-10-12T08:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, it's almost done! Just little things left now...

Kitchen updates!

2009-09-24T12:40:00.000-07:00

Okay, sorry to take out the slide show, hopefully anyone that cares has seen the pictures now! That music was just causing too many problems. If you want to see the pictures, just hop on over to Facebook, they should all be there.

Well, a lot has happened since the last kitchen post. You will know about that if you have FB, but if not, this post if for you! Here goes...

Domestic Skills

2009-09-17T16:34:00.000-07:00

So, I freely admit that I am not the greatest cook, but I do make pretty good treats. I made these for a friends birthday today. I haven't tried them yet, but they were fun to make!

They are made with a cupcake cut in half, then a brownie, shredded coconut (tinted green) and then yellow and red frosting for the "condiments". Top it off with the rest of the cupcake and you're done! I didn't have any sesame seeds for the top, so I think I will sprinkle some sugar on top (If I can find it in the kitchen)...

Hello Kitty and Fall Festival

2009-09-15T13:15:00.000-07:00

While shopping for school clothes last week Sam found some slippers and he would just cry and cry every time I tried to put them back! So I am a softy and I bought them. I figured with the new hardwood floors their feet might get cold in the winter anyway, so...

Oh yes, they are hello kitty, did I forget to mention that? hee hee, at least they will just be inside, right?

And a perfect 2-yr old face here. He wanted to see pictures, but wanted me to sit next to him on the couch. It's hard to take the picture unless I stand up, kiddo!

And now we're okay again. :)

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We went to the fall festival at Gabe's school last night, but we were rained out with a big storm, they moved everything inside, but it was so crowded we just left. Oh well, they got to see the new fire truck when we first got there, so they were happy!

Kitchen Reno

2009-09-15T08:23:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pics of the kitchen so far! We have the walls pulled off the pantry (except where the electric is running) and 2/3 of the tile is up! The rest of the tile should be up tonight and then we need to get the rest of the cabinets up so Ben can start on the wood floor! The new cabinets will be installed next Tuesday!!! I can't wait. Then they will measure for the granite and that will be installed about 2 weeks later. So we will be eating off paper plates for a while as we will be without a sink for about 3 weeks!

Gabe's 1st Day of Kindergarten!

2009-08-27T12:57:00.000-07:00

I don't know how he has grown up so fast! I think preschool was a good step for both of us last year, I probably would have been really sad today if I hadn't gotten used to preschool. It's still a little strange though, it's very quiet with Gabe at school and Sam asleep. Here are a few pictures we took this morning. I have a video too, I will have Ben upload that from work later.

Let's try this again...

2009-08-21T07:22:00.000-07:00

Here is why Sam was hiding his face...

If you watch closely (about 10 seconds in) you can see Gabe get splashed in the face,

We're pretty sure Sam will be the one to break bones before Gabe, always attempting fun little stunts like this one,

OK, one more oldie of Gabe cause he's just so cute,

I hope you're enjoying some of these. We are so glad we have them and have really enjoyed going back and looking at them several years later. It help us realize how fast our boys are growing up and how much they are learning along the way!

Bachelor's life.....

2009-08-20T13:35:00.001-07:00

As many of you know I have been a lone man for the past week. I have spent most my time working, studying and sleeping. Maybe I wouldn't be missing them so much if I was out playing but I am getting lonely and am very excited for their return next week. In an attempt to ease my loneliness I turned to our old videos again and thought I'd find a couple more to post.....

First a couple of oldies

Now for the new stuff, why does Sam keep burying his head in my shoulder, you'll have to watch the next clip after this one.....

Sorry, my computer is not liking the attempt to upload while trying to work on other stuff, stay tuned and I'll try to upload the last one later tonight.

What to do at our new house?

2009-07-28T19:34:00.000-07:00

Hey look everybody, Ben is posting something on the blog!! But don't get too excited I still refuse to get set up on facebook or anything like that.

It did not take the boys any time at all to get used to the new space, both inside and out! They are finding new ways to have fun every day!! We have had so much fun watching the videos posted on other blogs and wanted to join in the fun. You certainly don't need to watch all of them, but we are glad we have them.

sorry, I am taking these videos out to make room for more pictures! I might have to do some editing and replace the picture here with smaller versions as I have apparently used up all of our storage!

Not sure how these will look on the blog but I thought it would be fun to jump back in time a little to a couple of my favorites. Cat and I love to go back and look at these to see that our boys really are growing up so fast.

wall art

2009-07-27T09:01:00.000-07:00

okay, i am finalizing my plans for the canvas art in the master bedroom. I think I would like to do add a 3D element instead of just paint on at least one piece. I found these great flowers on etsy and I will probably try something like these.

I think I will use a few different styles (less than 3 I think)and a few coordinating colors. I LOVE number 1 but also number 3. They are very different so I will have to try both and see which one I can reproduce myself!

The middle canvas here is where I will use the flowers...

Odds and Ends

2009-07-25T12:27:00.001-07:00

Family room before...

family room during...

This is for you Monica, can you see the dirt that was under the carpet? THIS is why I am so motivated to redo this whole house as quickly as possible!!

These are just cute, Sam helping Ben change the hardware for the upstairs doors. We now have a huge box of knobs and hinges from the three bedrooms, two bathrooms and the closet!

Master Bedroom (mostly done???)

2009-07-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

Not as done as Gabe's, but well on it's way.

Before...

Minus the carpet...

And in it's current state...

There will be a reading chair and maybe a small table in the corner here...

Still to do...
chair rail around the room
new windowsill
art above the bed (DIY project)
finish pillowcases (Elaine's machine broke down!)
chair and little table in the corner (eventually)

Gabe's Room (mostly done)

2009-07-25T11:31:00.000-07:00

Some pictures to refresh your memory...

without the carpet...

and after...

Still to do:
window seat
letter "E" for over the closet
curtains for the closet
finish painting kid-size rocking chair (1 coat done)

So VERY close to being DONE

Let the Good Times Roll

2009-07-14T16:31:00.000-07:00

Well, we are making some progress on the house, I think!

DONE:
Painting in the upstairs bedrooms
Painting in bedroom closets (yes I know it's OCD)
Painting in upstairs ceilings (90%) just the hall bath left (ran out of paint)
Upstairs carpet
Ceiling fan/light installed in master
Lights in boys rooms
Light in walk-in closet
Black-out shades ordered for the windows installing on 7/21!
Changed out the door hardware to brushed nickel
finished master curtains

Left to do upstairs:
paint ceiling in hall bath
update bathrooms? prob not anytime soon
chair rail and windowsill in master
window seats and window sills in boys rooms
paint or at least touch up the hall paint
patch up the old vent hold from the swamp cooler
install new light fixture in hall
install new dual smoke alarms (ion and photo-electric)
finish Gabe's wall letters (can I buy an "E" please?)
decide on/purchase or make growth charts for the boys
finish master pillow cases
decorate sam's room

whew! It doesn't seem like the done list is any longer than the to-do, but hopefully it will go quickly. We won't start working on the bathrooms for some time, but I think the rest of the list will be okay. The chair rail, windowsills and window seats will have to wait until this fall. Ben has his CPA test the end of August, and after that we need to put the kitchen and main floors together. You would probably be scared if I listed the full to=do list, but if anyone is interested let me know! Maybe I can figure out a way to post it on the side. :)

Oh, so the good times! I am flying to New York with the boys in August! That will give the boys a fun vacation with Gramma, and Ben can study for his exam without distractions. I am excited to get out of town, but sad that I will have to stop working on my projects. Hopefully I will have a renewed resolve to keep working when we get back!! And I'm sure I can find some projects to work on at Grammas!

Birthday To You!

2009-07-08T12:56:00.000-07:00

That was (and has been since) Sam's favorite phrase from his birthday. The whole time opening presents and blowing out candles, he kept saying it over and over. So funny! Here is a little video of him blowing out the candles!

Here are a few snapshots, opening presents and having fun!

Sorry!

2009-07-02T21:46:00.000-07:00

Some of you may be waiting for updates on the house, but we have been so busy working on things we have not had more than a few minutes a day for emails and such. Crazy! I love it though. Well, Gabe's room is painted, even his closet. There is some trim work we need to touch up in the closet and the painting will be done there. Sam's room is painted on the walls, needs one more trim around the top, spot touch-ups in the ceiling paint, and the closet needs to be painted. Then we need to hang up all their wall decor and it will finally look like they are moving in instead of out! Our room will hopefully get a coat of primer and a first coat of paint this weekend, as well as the ceiling and closet painted. We'll see if it happens. I would like to have all the upstairs painting done before the new carpets are installed, which should be sometime next week, yay! Then the boys rooms need new window seats and I think that will take care of the upstairs for a while.

The kitchen! We ordered our new cabinets and countertops today, they should be ready in about 6 weeks. So exciting!!! I think it will look really great. That also means that Ben needs to get to work tearing out the old pantry, scraping up the tile floor, removing the old cabinets and laying the new hardwood. Lot's of stuff going on! Hopefully I can remember to take pictures at a few different points along the way so you can really see the progress. We are excited that some of these bigger plans are finally in motion. Give us a call anytime, we would be happy to see what everyone thinks of the place if you haven't seen it in person yet!

I will try to post some pictures and videos from Sam's birthday soon.

Virtual Kitchen

2009-06-20T21:59:00.001-07:00

IKEA has an online kitchen design tool, so we worked out our kitchen layout tonight. They only carry stock sizes, so the exact measurements may vary if we go with a different cabinet maker. But, this is the layout that we like and it's very exciting to "see" it coming together. Now Ben just needs to finish taking out the pantry and we need to order the cabinets and countertops. There will be a sink in front of the window, a microwave range hood over the stove, and crown molding at the tops of the cabinets. Still trying to decide between white or wood.

Welcome Home

2009-06-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

Well, the move is over, but the real work has just begun! Our life is a little chaotic right now, and I think these pictures will show you why. Let me start by saying we got a great deal on this house. It was a rental and basically that means that nothing has been updated or maintained for years. Although we did inherit some *stunning* wall colors!

However, we do have a fantastic yard that Ben has already had the privilege of mowing! We haven't had to figure out the sprinklers yet because it has rained every day this week. But, we have met some great neighbors already and went to our new ward this past Sunday. It's always hard leaving your comfort zone, but everyone seemed really nice and eager to meet us.

The boys are LOVING the house! With the garage included we are close to *tripling* our square footage from the condo. So they have been having a blast with all the extra space. I'm sure we will fill it up soon enough, but it's nice to have everything in one place again.

Anyway, we have lots of painting to do, bathrooms to update and a kitchen to remodel. Whew! So dont' be surprised if you stop in for a visit and find us painting, ripping out carpet, painting, putting in hardwood floors, painting, tearing out cabinets, installing new ones, painting, tiling, and painting some more. In fact, we will probably ask you to help. So come in your painting clothes when you come see our new house and we will put you to work. :) Just kidding, please don't let that scare you away from visiting us, the boys miss old friends and we miss friends and neighbors too.

Progress report: All of our things have been moved in except for our bikes at Elaine's. We are 90% unpacked! We have primed over the red wall and the dark blue/purple wall (3 coats each). The carpet guys measured on Monday for the upstairs carpet replacement. They are about 2-3 weeks out to have the carpet ordered and installed. Our dining room table has been ordered! It should be available in 4-6 weeks.

It might not sounds like much to accomplish in a whole week, but we are feeling pretty good. Hopefully the cabinets will not take too long to order, because those need to be in before we can measure for the floors and the countertops. I hope to have all of the upstairs bedrooms painted before the new carpet goes in, and all of the downstairs painted before the new floors go in there. Then we need new lights, because of a weird situation with the renters they decided to take the lights and most of the bathroom fixtures and replace them with the original ugly brass and cheap-o things that were put in when the house was built. Lovely. So, lots to do and we will have to pace ourselves so we don't go too crazy and still have a fun summer.

Anyway, if you actually read all that you're amazing, and your treat is these lovely "before" pictures...

Birthday Boys

2009-06-04T13:38:00.000-07:00

Since the boys birthdays are so close together, I thought I should try to get some new yearly pictures! Sam wasn't the most cooperative subject, but I think some of these will be great! I will probably just have to do some of Sam later. This is the first together picture I've looked at, but I LOVE it! They were being so silly and cute. I can't decide if I like it better in color or black and white. Hmmm. Tell me which one you prefer!!

ETA: I am posting a few more here, and the rest are on Facebook if you really want to see. :)

Ahoy!

2009-05-31T20:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, here is a slide show to show you how much fun we had on Gabe's birthday. First was a Pirate Party with his friends! We played "Pin the Eye-Patch on the Pirate", then they took turns hitting the treasure chest pinata. Inside the pinata were treats galore and... a TREASURE MAP! They followed the map and found a buried treasure at the playground. Little pouches filled with plastic gems. They loved it! Then we had cupcakes and opened presents. Each of the kids also got a treasure chest with a pirate duck, a telescope, some temporary tattoos, skull lollipops and stickers! It was a lot of work to keep 11 kids happy for two hours. I don't know how teachers manage!

Unfortunately I am bad at taking pictures when it is my own event because I don't want to miss out on the fun! So there are no fancy pictures here, just snapshots. I hopefully will find the time to take pretty pictures of some of the fun things, like the little boxes filled with goodies. Who knows, we'll see! Anyway, here it is! I will really have to take pictures of the boys in their costumes though, they looked fantastic! Big thanks to Aunt Elaine for pulling through for us and making costumes, drawing a huge pirate, and helping with the party. You are the fantastic sister and aunt. A huge thanks for Tia too for the Awesome pirate cake that we had at Poulson's that night, it was amazing!!!

Buon Compleanno!!!

2009-05-31T11:27:00.000-07:00

Can you believe Gabe is 5 already! Sorry I didn't post yesterday, we were so busy with birthday and Saturday plans. I will post some pictures from his awesome Pirate Party a little later, but at least wanted to get a current picture on here. This is his new "cheese" face. I don't like it as much as his normal smile, but at least he's looking at me. :) Just a snapshot, but can't believe how much he has changed!

Will he still be my baby...

2009-05-19T12:33:00.000-07:00

if I cut off his hair??? I just don't think he would even seem like the same kid to me! I am at least getting it trimmed today, he really does look like a girl, but it's just so cute!

Following in Mommy's footsteps???? LOL

House Plans

2009-05-14T17:11:00.000-07:00

Well, the appraisal on the PG House is done! So we finally have a few more pictures for all you avid readers! :)

The current renters are in the process of moving out, sorry about all the stuff in the pictures! I know there will be some work to do to update the house, but we are really excited!

Chalky Goodness

2009-05-13T07:40:00.000-07:00

It might look like a mess to us, but I think this probably qualifies as a great time for the kids! Here are the boys coloring with sidewalk chalk outside our condo. We are really going to miss hanging out with these kids (and moms) every day!

Custom Tassels

2009-05-09T18:49:00.000-07:00

I'm not a great product photographer, but I wanted to share some pictures of my project for today! I saw some beautiful tassels here and I loved this one and this one but she is closed at the moment preparing her summer collection. So I thought I would give it a try on my own! Mine aren't as fancy for sure, but I am happy with how they turned out for my first try! I think this might become a new hobby. :)

Now I need to get a book for some actual instructions!

antique piano

2009-05-07T08:03:00.000-07:00

Okay, you will probably think I'm crazy, but I am going to look at this antique piano this morning. They are only asking $95 and I can't pass it up! It is in need of a complete overhaul, but right now I am only thinking about how great it will look with some TLC on the outside and sitting in my front room!!

Gorgeous Gray

2009-05-06T13:19:00.000-07:00

After a few weeks on the market we decided we needed to paint our hall bathroom (lavender) and master bedroom (peach) to the same gray that we used in the front room, hall, hall bath and master bath. It looks very modern I think, and definitely cleaner since the peach was a faux finish treatment. I don't know if it was timing or not, but the first person to walk through after we painted put in an offer! Just for fun I am posting the pictures I took the other day. I was going to have our Realtor put these up to replace the current pictures on our listing, but since it is under contract I guess we don't need to worry about it!

I think I might paint the dresser black if I can talk Ben into allowing me to paint over his lovely wood work. :) I will probably wait until we move so I can decide the colors of the new room.

I can't wait to post some pictures of the house in PG! The renters should be out at the end of this month, so we might ask to walk through it again after that and take some "before" pictures. I am planning some major updates in the house, so don't be scared of the current paint and kitchen...

"Awe-some"

2009-05-01T06:41:00.000-07:00

love this! it's short and totally worth watching

The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

2009-04-09T18:37:00.000-07:00

I'm starting this post with the good news, no children were harmed throughout the course of the day (even if their mother possibly considered bodily harm at some point).

The day began the same as any other, with a 7 a.m. wake-up call in the form of our precocious 4 yr-old. Breakfast and playtime, then hugs and kisses for Daddy when he left for work. Here we begin our tale of woe...

We have started (and I love) the tradition of standing at the front window and blowing kisses to Ben as he walks up the sidewalk to the Jeep. We used to have an end table between the couch and table, but it was sacrificed to make the room look more spacious. So now the kids stand on the arm of the couch, and lately Sam has taken to standing on the "counter" (you might know it as a windowsill). It was POURING this morning, so I opened the window so we could hear the rain. Everything was lovely, Sam looking out the window as we were singing "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" when disaster struck. Apparently Sam was pressing on the screen harder than I thought, and out it popped! Down goes the screen, and out the window goes Sam!!

Now, those of you who have been in our condo know that the ground is level with the bottom of the window, so be assured that no harm befell the startled kid. The screen however... it did not fare so well. At this point I'm not sure it can be repaired.

A small disappointment when G's playdate was canceled due to a stomach bug, but we got through it and things were quiet until after lunch.

Now, Sam is on antibiotics for a stubborn cold/ear infection and has had a hard time sleeping for the last month or so (yes I am tired, thanks for asking). So after one hour of his nap, he woke up with the most pitiful sobbing cry, so I went in and rocked him back to sleep. I grabbed the baby monitor and we headed over to play with some friends on the other side of the building. I love that the monitor works over there!

We had been there for about 45 minutes, when I hear our doorbell ring through the monitor, then Sam fussing. Arggggh! I was hoping maybe he would fall back to sleep, when the doorbell rings AGAIN. Now, most of the people around here have kids who nap in the afternoon, and they wouldn't think of ringing a doorbell in the middle of the day. So, then Sam starts to really cry, and I am more or less ticked at whoever is ringing the bell. I ran around to the door and see our neighbor walking away. We chat, he wants me to watch their 5 yr-old so him and his wife could go to some appt. Blech. I won't go into detail here (ask in person if you're curious) but I am leery of offering too much help to this family. It's a long, complicated story. Needless to say I had no desire to babysit and now Sam was awake and not likely to go back to sleep. *sigh*

Nicely enough after a short nap Sam was in a pretty good mood and we went back around to play with the kids again, and we all had a lovely afternoon together!

Then, as I was getting dinner ready, G was playing with his swimming floaty, and he sent it soaring across the room like a frisbee. I asked him not to do it again, and went back to dinner. Then, I hear a crash of glass. Isn't that amazing how you can distinguish the sounds of different materials breaking? So I walked around the corner to see my cute porcelain giraffe (Pier 1 on sale) in about 100 pieces. *sigh* Gabe is crying because he certainly didn't mean for that to happen, but I can't talk to him because I need to clean up all the pieces before Sam slices his foot open. Got that all cleaned up, and went to talk to Gabe about what happened. I told him I was more upset that he didn't listen than what happened to the giraffe, and that he needed to do what I ask, blah, blah, blah. He very sweetly offered his own ceramic giraffe to replace it until I could find a new one of my own. (awww)

So dinner is ready (cheese pizza, I know I'm such a gourmet cook) and things are good, everyone is eating for once, and then the last disaster. Gabe has taken to dipping his pizza in Garlic Butter (thank you Papa John's) and Ben was kind enough to grab a few leftovers from pizza lunch at work the other day. Just as he is stabbing a piece of pizza with his fork ( I know, but he doesn't like to get his hands dirty!) he slips and the plate, pizza and garlic sauce land on the carpet. Lovely, now our house will smell like a pizzeria for a few days. So out came the Bissell Little Green and 5 minutes later I think all the butter is out of the carpet.

Currently we are closing out the day, both boys in PJ's and snuggled in their beds. What a day! I don't think I have ever had a day when so many things went wrong. So I am happy to see this day come to a close and let's hope that the weekend will go a little more smoothly.

Easter is Coming!

2009-03-31T07:28:00.000-07:00

I picked up an egg coloring kit at the store the other day, and Gabe was so excited to use it that we did our eggs a little early! He begged most of the day, so for FHE we talked about Easter and colored eggs.

Now we have to decide which one of about 5 Easter Egg hunts we will be attending, and then we will be at Poulson's to decorate sugar cookies on Easter Sunday! Gabe keeps trying to tell me it's tomorrow. I love how excited he gets for holidays, too cute.

Here are a few pics of our lovely eggs, and the boys playing with them after...

Projects, cont.

2009-03-21T18:15:00.000-07:00

Well, Sam's room is finally painted, it took two coats of primer and two coats of paint to cover that chocolate brown color, whew! But, now it is a blank slate and I felt the need to decorate it. I decided to try this mod podge letter project with Sam's name to hang on the wall. I think it turned out really cute for my first try!

Unfortunately once it was finished I realized I would have to find a way to put it up, and I don't want to put nail holes in the newly pristine walls. Also, I won't be able to stop at just his name, and I just don't want to put too much work into this room just to (hopefully) take it down in a month or two. So now this project might stay in a drawer for a while. Bummer.

But, lest I have too much spare time, I have embarked on another project, this one also related to selling the condo. This one will be more sentimental though.

This is the home where Ben and I were newlyweds, moving in less than a year after we were married, this is where I was pregnant with both of my babies, this is where we brought them home from the hospital, and this is where they took their first steps, ate their first meals, and so many other firsts and seconds and soon we will be talking about "lasts". So I would like to take some special pictures this spring/summer, collecting memories I guess, of our everyday life in this little place we have called home for so long. This is the first of hopefully many, Gabe playing in our bedroom, looking through some CD's. I just loved how the light from the window looked like it was shining in just for him.

P.S. I know Blogger does funny sharpening to the pictures, so if you click on it to see full size it looks a little better. Also, if you click on the "SAM" picture, it will be huge and you can see the detail a little better.

5 Things

2009-03-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

5 Things I was doing 5 years ago:
1. Pregnant with my 1st baby
2. Working in the Business Management office at Modus
3. Reading lots of books about pregnancy and motherhood
4. Celebrating my 3rd wedding anniversary
5.Paying off the VW Golf (I think it was this year?)

5 Things on my to do list for today:
1. Clean the bathrooms
2. Walmart for more children’s Benadryl and tissues
3. Paint and paper letters for Sam’s room
4. Get an update on my crashed hard drive
5. Stop coughing

5 Things I would do with a million dollars:
1. Pay tithing
2. Buy a house
3. Pay off Ben’s student loan
4. Put a fantastic play system in the backyard
5. Save/Invest the rest and live off the interest

5 Places I have lived:
1. Elmira, NY
2. Vestal, NY
3. Provo, UT
4. Orem, UT
5. TBD

5 Jobs I have held:
1. Document Prep at PMI
2.Cashier, CS Supervisor, Admin Asst at OMAX
3. Receptionist at CornerstoneWest
4. Business Management at Modus
5. Mom/Photographer

5 Things I want to be doing in 5 Years:
1. Working towards BA in Photography
2. Working Photography Business ¾ time
3. Living in a house
4. Running 3 miles a day
5. Be a better wife, mom, photographer, cook, knitter, athlete, and friend

5 People I tag:
Tia Underwood
Mindy Smart
Jenni Lawrence
Kale Snyder
Cheyenne Poulson

Listed!

2009-03-09T19:57:00.000-07:00

In case anyone is actually interested in the sale and preparation of our little condo, it's on the market! I know you have all been biding your time waiting for this opportunity, so now is the time to place your bid! I'm feeling a little nervous about having anyone actually come check on the place since Sam's room is far from ready, but in this market it seems like we might have some time.

Don't bother checking on the To Do List, I didn't get to cross anything off today. But I did take some pictures for the online listing and I tried to keep the chaos to a minimum just in case we got a call.

Now I am exhausted and I am determined to get eight hours of sleep tonight.

Here is a link to the listing if you want to see the progress on the condo...

http://www.utahrealestate.com/reports/photo/index.wfr?types=&find_listno=869297&ptype=p_res

The pictures are squished for some reason here, but I think you can see how the rooms look. Once we are done with Sam's room I will post a bunch of pics here.

Almost There

2009-03-07T21:19:00.000-08:00

Well, we didn't quite make it today, we had too much other stuff going on and we didn't have time to finish. Which is fine, it was great to spend time with the family and see Tia go through the temple today! I can't believe she is getting married on Friday, it seems like yesterday she was getting engaged on the beach. So this week will be busy even without some extra things to do around the house, but the condo will be listed on the MLS probably tomorrow or Monday so I want to make sure it's ready if someone calls.

I've updated the list, and really we are almost there! We need to put a second coat of primer in Sam's room (darn chocolate brown) and then we will paint and be done in there. I don't know how much decorating I will do, we'll have to see.

We need to steam clean the carpets, but we are waiting until the very end to do that.

We need to organize our room and closet!!!

Other than that, there are just little things that we can do while it's on the market that I don't think anyone will really notice. Our realtor said if we get lots of calls but no offers we might have to repaint our master bedroom too. We will if we have to, I just don't want to see another paint brush for a good long time after this! I almost don't want it to sell too fast because then we will move and have to start all over again. blech. It will be good though, and I will take pictures this week once all the rooms are done and clean.

To Do List

2009-03-02T20:36:00.000-08:00

Preparing to list the condo is quite the endeavor. As always we are being perfectionists, and we want to get as much $$$ as possible when we sell. So we are spiffing up the place, it will be the cleanest, freshest place on the block. Too bad we won't be living here to enjoy it. ;)

Kitchen: DONE
Scrub grout on Kitchen tile - DONE (my nails are shot)
Reorganize cabinets, box and store non-essentials - DONE (90% anyway)
Wipe down cabinets - DONE
Clean Oven - DONE (ewwww, I waited way to long to do this)
Clean Refrigerator - DONE
Scrub Walls - DONE
Clean Microwave - DONE
Scrub sink - DONE
Repaint baseboards - DONE

Living Room: DONE
Clean Blinds - DONE
Paint walls - DONE
Paint Baseboards DONE
Remove non-essentials - DONE
Replace ceiling light - DONE
Steam Clean carpets - DONE
Reorganize wall art/framed portraits after painting - DONE

Bathrooms: DONE
Replace bathroom floors - DONE (see post below)
Replace lighting fixtures - DONE
Paint Master Bath - DONE
Organize under-sink cabinets - DONE
Organize storage on shelves above washer/dryer - DONE
New towels for Master Bath - DONE
little line of caulk between wall and cabinet - DONE

1st Bedroom - DONE
Prime over chocolate brown color - one coat done
Paint walls and maybe baseboards - DONE
Remove non-essentials (black shelf with a zillion books) - DONE
Organize and remove non-essentials from closet - DONE

2nd Bedroom - DONE
Purchase and assemble twin bed frame - DONE
Wash walls and baseboards - DONE
Remove non-essentials from closet - DONE

Master Bedroom - DONE
Wash walls and baseboards - DONE
Touch up paint -DONE
Remove non-essentials - DONE
Remove Storage boxes - DONE
Organize walk-in closet - DONE

Outside
Clean windows
Paint outside door jamb
Paint stair railing??? Maybe split this with upstairs neighbors who are also selling

Do you think we can make it by Saturday?????

New Bathroom floors!

2009-02-14T08:34:00.000-08:00

We are slowly starting on the projects we need to complete before we list the condo! We are hoping that we can get everything done by early spring. Painting is the only other big thing we need to do, after being here for 7 years (yikes!) we need fresh paint in most of the rooms. Then a bunch of little things, not the least of which will be finding a new house! We'll see how that goes.

Anyway, here are a few before and after pictures. Ben did a great job, I am so glad I married a handy guy!

The Hall Bath:

The Master Bath:

Has this happened to you?

2009-02-02T09:31:00.000-08:00

My vacuum has been on the fritz for the past month or so, becoming less and less effective at grabbing the crumbs, crackers, popcorn and sock lint that frequently resides on my carpet. Then, the last two times I've used the vacuum (usually every other day) it has overheated and shut down after five minutes of hard work not picking up a thing. *sigh* So I told Ben and we looked online at some new vacuums, but they are so expensive for anything decent! There is a repair shop just up the road so I thought I would give it a try and see if fixing it would be cheaper than buying a new one. I dropped it off for a "tune-up" replacing belts, cleaning out all the hoses and pathways, etc. They called later that day and said it was ready so I ran up and they showed me this:

Apparently this was stuck inside the hose assembly somewhere and had slowly created a backup that eventually caused the vacuum to overheat! So it's as good as new and hopefully my personal repairmen (not sure which one to blame) will not try to fix my appliances again!

Genetic Traits?

2009-01-23T12:33:00.000-08:00

Those of you who know Ben are well aware of his organizational prowess, and I like to think that I fare well in this area too. Well, now we can add Sam to the list!

The incident: We have a garbage pail in Sam's room, but I don't throw dirty diapers in there, just wet ones. The dirty diapers go in a sealed trash can in the bathroom across the hall from his room so they don't stink up the place! Well, Sam is old enough now that he likes to help, so he throws his own diapers away. Somehow a dirty diaper ended up in his room trash, so when I went to lay him down for his nap, I took the trash into the hall so the smell wouldn't bother him while he was sleeping.

The time got away from me, and he was awake before I had done anything about the smelly garbage. He saw the trash can in the hall and picked it up, and went to take it back into his room. Well, it's hidden behind his door usually, and I guess he couldn't remember where it should go, so he took it across the hall, into the bathroom, and tucked it beside the toilet next to the bathroom trash. So cute, right? He is barely 19 months now, and he already wants the trash to stay where it belongs!

On the other hand he has no qualms about dumping out whole toy basket on the floor, so I guess his skills are still developing. ;)

Hope everyone is getting ready for a great weekend!

Cat

My Son the Chameleon

2009-01-16T11:18:00.001-08:00

Gabe had developed a recent obsession with chewing gum, and of course playing with it. I know I shouldn't encourage it by taking pictures, but what can I say...

ETA: the chameleon is a reference to Eric Carle's The Mixed Up Chameleon, Gabe loves his "long, sticky tongue". :D

Okay, I'm better now.

2009-01-14T13:13:00.000-08:00

I got 8 hours last night, so I'm feeling much better about the world today! Amazing how that works. I think Sam is starting to pull out of the reaction now, but we still have 4 (yes FOUR) teeth coming in, so I'm sure we will still have some bumpy nights. But on a positive note, I am hopeful that Ben will be home from work before 9 p.m. tonight! :)

Happy 18 Months! (or You Will Never Sleep Again)

2009-01-13T09:28:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Sammy-kins has never done well with his vaccines. I distinctly remember his 2-month check-up and the sleepless week that followed! On top of the normal newborn sleeplessness I thought I really might die! Or at least pass out at any moment. I really was reconsidering having his 4 month shots, something I didn't think I would ever consider, because I do believe vaccines are important. But boy it was tempting to put them off until he was older. Well, we made it through, and his reactions were never quite as bad as that first time...until now. I feel like a first time parent sometimes since Gabe never had a noticeable reaction to any of his shots. At least, nothing that some ibuprofen and a snuggle couldn't fix.

I have been really worried about his 18 month shots because I know the MMR is a beast of a shot and judging from his reactions to "milder" vaccines I was really paranoid. I even put off his appointment until after Christmas because I just knew it would ruin our holidays. So in we went on Thursday (Jan8) and he survived the shots. He slept 14 hours that night without a peep and I thought *maybe* we were going to escape the horror... But it was not to be! He has since been up several times each night since, crying inconsolably, and has to be rocked back to sleep. And not just sleep-y, but the zombie sleep that comes after rocking for 30 minutes at 1 o'clock in the morning! And we have now gone two days with effectively no naps. He either screams until I come in and hold him while he sleeps, or he has a stinky diaper, loses his "banky" (blanket) or "mimi" (pacifier) and then insists on being rocked *again* and then refuses to go back in the crib. Last night he was so exhausted that he fell asleep at 6:30 p.m. with no screaming! I was foolishly optimistic that he would sleep through the night. No such luck, he was up at 11, and I could not get him back to bed until about 1:30 a.m. I even tried to bring him in bed with us, which we never do, but he thought it was play time like our morning snuggles and wouldn't settle down. I finally thought maybe he was hungry, since he hadn't eaten well all day, so I gave him a big sippy cup of milk and he finally fell back to sleep. *Whew*

Luckily I have a very sweet husband who let me sleep in until 8 a.m. when he had to leave for work. Anyway, there really isn't a point to this post except to elicit some sympathy from anyone who has had their share of sleepless nights, or to scare those of you who haven't! ;)

Since I hate to post without a picture, here is a picture of Sam after his 2 month shots. How fast he has grown up!

Year in Review

2009-01-05T20:50:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about what an awful blogger I am, and how I don't really post any interesting details on my blog in regards to the boys. They really do and say the craziest things, and I feel like I am not expressing enough here. So my New Year's Resolution (along with going to the gym and eating less junk) is to be more personal here. We'll see how it goes, if I offend anyone just tell me and I'll tone down the gore. ;)

Anyway, here are the pages I put together (yes I am an electronic scrapper I can't stand the mess) for THE scrapbook. Those of you not in the know Ben's family puts together a scrapbook each year for Mom Poulson with pages from each of the 6 kids. It's pretty cool and will definitely be a keepsake for years to come.

I know it will be hard to see the pictures on the collage pages, so just click on the picture and it should come up bigger.

Here we go...

Ben gave me a hard time about Sam's page, commenting that I didn't include any info about his year like I did on Gabe's. Well, I think we can all assume that between 6 months and 18 months he sat up, crawled, got a few teeth, started sleeping through the night, took his first steps, said a few cute babbly words, and generally made us melt with his squishable goodness. ;) He is the sweetest baby ever (I can say that with a clear conscience, I've already told Gabe all about how he didn't sleep and screamed ALL the time)

Merry Christmas and Happy Snowmen...

2008-12-30T09:03:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures of Cat and the boys building their third (!) snowman of the season. We are improving, it is by far the biggest yet! I'm including a picture of the first one from back in November, we were so excited just to have snow we had to give it a try! Our second snowman tipped over and melted before we got a chance to take a picture, but this one is the best anyway!!

What's that you say? I have no idea what you're talking about, of course we have CARROTS at my house. What? No carrots you say? Hmmm. I guess the snowman would love cheetos...

Here are the boys on Christmas morning, aren't they adorable! They are wearing their reindeer pajamas that were custom made by our personal seamstress (Aunt Elaine)

100 Things

2008-12-23T14:30:00.000-08:00

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyworld
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept overnight on a train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Lived in more than 3 states
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden a gondola in Switzerland
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Seen Mt. Rushmore
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen Amish country
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi concentration camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. One cavity or less

All Aboard the Candy Train

2008-12-15T14:26:00.000-08:00

We had a great time at Candy Day, here is what Gabe and Ben worked on...

And here is the Gingerbread house we made a few days ago...

Now Disco...

2008-12-12T14:15:00.000-08:00

Gabe cannot get enough of these, sorry everyone!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Elf Yourself #2

2008-12-10T14:03:00.000-08:00

Okay, Gabe loves this Country version. (Is he really my kid???)

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Elf Yourself ;)

2008-12-08T12:58:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

A few More

2008-11-12T12:41:00.000-08:00

Okay, I found some clearer pictures of the boys in their costumes! It still doesn't show Sam all the way, but he makes a darn cute dragon! And then a single of Sam from the other week.

And I just heard that Rachelle had her baby! So I can't wait to do some gorgeous pictures for baby Brooklyn! Congrats you two.

Cat

This one's for Gramma

2008-11-06T08:09:00.001-08:00

Okay, I am trying to upload a video for the first time, let's see how it works!

This is Sam "vacuuming" with me, so cute.

Goodness, another post already?

2008-11-05T13:12:00.001-08:00

Just posting my gorgeous 16x20 canvas! The very talented Kim Prochazka took these pictures for us this summer in New York and I am FINALLY posting some pictures of the canvas I ordered. I have gotten so used to this size that it seems really small to me, I could probably order a 20x30 and be even happier! But, we're probably not that pretty to need a huge canvas of our family! LOL

Anyway, here are some pictures of the canvas on my wall and the "real picture" since my product photography is lacking here...

Halloween costumes

2008-11-04T09:19:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the picture, our little point and shoot camera doesn't do a great job in the dark! Here is Ben in his Gingerbread costume (his dept at work did a Candyland theme) and the cutest kangaroo and dragon in town! Hopefully I will take some better pictures this week, but don't count on it!

Fall Pictures

2008-11-02T07:19:00.000-08:00

Here is the cutest picture of the boys from yesterday! I went with the goal of getting a picture of them together for our Christmas cards and I think I got it! (It's not this one by the way, you'll have to wait for the card to see it!) But this one was a close second and I just love it. Hope everyone had a great Halloween! I will post one of the boys (Ben included!!!) in their costumes as soon as I get them off the camera.

2008-07-28T19:24:00.000-07:00

Sam's Stitches

Poor Sam tripped on the cement outside our door and split open his chin! Here are a few snapshots for posterity...

2008-05-31T07:03:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th Birthday Gabe!!!