New do..

I saw this here a long while ago..


I thought to myself, "Self.. your little sweeties will NEVER let you do their hair that way.. dream on."
Then I saw it on little Kysa at a baby shower and KNEW I had to bribe one of them into it.
Yesterday, Ashley, who is always a sweetie, was in an even sweeter mood, and let me have full control in the hair styling arena that day..
So, I went for it.
The only moment of tears was when Lynn got all excited for the nearing of the end, to see the finished project..
"Your're going to have little messy buns!! How cute!"
Then the tears commenced... "NO!!! I don't want them to be messy!"
"They are supposed to be messy.."
"MOM!! Lynn said my hair is messy!!!"
Oh my..
It did turn out cute, if I do say so myself..
Lynn even asked for me to do it to her hair.. her long, long, LONG, hair. This is also the girl who wants to brush her own hair and wear only a headband.. trying to talk her into a side pony is pushing it.
Part of the way through the process, she began to cry.
"WHY DID I AGREE TO THIS?!"
This morning, after seeing Ashley's hair after a night of slumbering on it, Lynn said, "I think we should cut my hair so it can be like Ash's.."
Lynn cut her hair?! GASP!
We'll see how long that thought sticks around...
I had to include this one of Ash and Pey.. too cute!

Oh my feet!!!

I am thankful that today, I am not preggers..
My back and feet already hurt, imagine what it would be like with that other factor in my equation!
Ouch...
Here's why..Bridal Shower, tomorrow..
Cookies for tomorrow..

I wanted to try a new technique, an idea I got from some inspiration.. gotta give credit where credit is due! (Thanks Brooke for the reference!)
But what about the ever so delicious buttercreme frosting?!
To buttercreme or not to buttercreme.. THAT is the question...
The Royal Icing is the way to go, this time.. it looks so pretty and elegant. The biggest pro is how it dries, makes these babies stackable. Perfect for our favors.

Over 150 cookies.
42 bigguns..
Over 100 bitties..

My hand hurts!
All that were baked did not survive the rigorous taste testing session(s).. and there will be yet another one this evening once Merrill gets home. :)
Can you tell that our theme is BUTTERFLIES? ;D

Big plans..

This post is taken from a conversation I had with Ashley the other day while she was seated atop this warm black inner tube..
"Mom.. I like Lake Powell.."
"I like Lake Powell too Ash.."
"Can we PLAN to go there sometime?"
"Sure.."
"Mom.. I like riding on the water wienie at Lake Powell.."
"It's fun isn't it?"
"Yeah.. can we PLAN on riding the water wienie when we go to Lake Powell?"
"We sure can.."
"I don't like falling off though.. we need to CANCEL the falling off part.. okay?"

Confections..

Made a couple of cakes..
Will be creating more sweets the next couple of days! :)
This is one created for a new 2 year old after the likes of this one..




And this one is for mom, who happens to love daisies.. this was as close as I could get!


I am so glad I took pics before, the drive wasn't very friendly to it. :)

Whatcha doin'?

Just a bit of what we've been up to..
Keeping busy around here!

South Ogden Days Parade... Lynn marched the whole way!

Had lunch at McDonald's..

Played and probably caught Swine Flu..

Peyton fed me french fries.. this is what it looks like when she feeds us bites:

Worked on Peyton's room some more.. I love IKEA!

She LOVES her room!

Resurrected the "Rose Petal Cottage"..

Which every little girl residing in this house is more than happy about. :)

Peyton is diggin' it.. the baby also ends-up in the oven. :0

ONE birthday cake..

An afternoon of swimming...

These two are so tight now..

These two are such posers...

ANOTHER birthday cake..

For Mom's birthday this time..


We love her!!
Watched some trains..

Went for a drive..

In celebration of the lady's birthday, we lit some sparklers, popped some pop-its..
This was Peyton's face when the pop-its started going off:

And enjoyed another dip..

With some other friends.

Now why on earth did I need a nap so bad today?
A doctor's appointment is in there somewhere, along with fireworks, a trip to DI (finally!!!), and just the daily funnies..
More stories to come in greater detail..
Until then..

Another look..

Here's another peek..


Still not finished..
This will be another part of the room.


You'll have to be patient with the after.. consider it my contribution to "Thrifty Thursday". :)
Can't wait to get some more digi scrappin' done!!

Summer sayings..

"Mom, can I have ________________?"
Fill in that blank with any kind of summertime treat your imagination can conjure up.
I should have included a picture of my freezer!
The follow to this frequently asked question is my answer, which most of the time is a generous "yes", and quickly tagged onto the end of that is any of the following:
"Eat it at the table."
"Eat it on the deck."
"Please.. eat it outside.."
And one of those are always followed with, ".. and throw your garbage away in the garbage can."
What, just what, might possibly happen if my requests aren't taken into serious consideration?
- sticky floors, sticky with the tiny, but very sticky, drips of an "Otter Pop". Have I mentioned how sticky those are?
- garbage, all over, despite my directions to throw the garbage away, in a garbage can.
- and last, but certainly not the least of this summertime issue would be the youngest sister...

Her ability to climb onto any sturdy (and the sometimes un-sturdy) object..

To gain access to whatever her little heart desires..

Yup.. eating the left-overs.. this case a melted "Fat Boy" with a fork..

Melted ice cream + fork..
Good combination for the makings of a fun clean-up project..

And a bath.
I am considering putting my directions in vinyl lettering on the wall in every room of my house..
That way I can point.
It might help them learn to read better! :)

Something broke..

As I was driving away from dropping the girls off at the parade start point (more to come on that..), I drove behind, then past the hospital.
Something fell.
Then I could swear I heard a shatter.
It was my heart.
I knew I would have times when this particular phase of family planning, would feel more like a punch to the stomach, I just thought that the worst (for this week anyway) had passed for now.
But, no.
The hospital where I had doctor's appointments, ultrasounds, and eventually gave birth, stared me down, looked me right in the eyes, and brought with it all of those memories.
My mind, and eyes that are directly linked, were a flood of emotion.
So many thoughts and feelings hit all at once...
Every detail of being pregnant..
Labor.
Delivery.
Feeling the baby latch-on.. the toe-curling.
Memories that I want to re-create, over and over and over again.
I would have as many children as I possibly could, physically and mentally ;).
I would be pregnant forever!
Yearning..
As I think about all of this, I realize how blessed I am to have these experiences, to have the memories. Some don't even get that in this life.
Ah.. the millennium..
Anyone want to join my new club?
"Mommies that don't want to quit" or how about the: "I just took down the crib and am brimming with emotion: support group?
Really..
This too shall pass.

Zwei..

I am super-smelly after a jam-packed day that ended with a softball game that we played quite decently..
What does that mean anyway? I, personally don't "pack" jam.. I spoon it into my jars...
Anywhoo.. onto the reason I am posting..
Could it be that Peyton is just SO excited, she just can't find sleep?
She's up, right now, honking my nose.
Poking at a zit that is trying to heal.
Darn hormones..
Can you read my tiredness?
I am rambling..
Zwei is German for two.
I am finished with my second paint color..


On to number three!

Woo!! Woo!!

Peyton has a new little word, of sorts.. no better way to describe it.



This morning, while going about our daily task of emptying the dishwasher, remember that Peyton loves to help me with that chore :), she busted it out.
She was taking out the plates, one by one, examining the surface which food was once on, then handing it to me. I would say "Thank you!" after each one..
She got to our "little kid dishes" which are adorned with princesses and Cookie Monster, and such. Superman was among Ashley's prized collection until Peyton discovered the joy of throwing things from her seated position in the HIGH chair. Needless to say, the Superman plate is no longer with us. IKEA's kid plates are now our new standard issue plate.
As Peyton took out the first of the princess plates, she inspected it, and said, "Woo! Woo! Woo!" and then proceeded to hand it to me..
It was just too cute..

A peek..

Here's your sneak peek at what's been going on around here...
ONE of the paint colors going up..


I am trying Home Deaf-o's new Behr with the primer in it.. I'll let ya know how that goes. So far I am up to four coats, but I think the pink stripes have something to do with that digit.
A bridal shower that we are planning for Merrill's little brother's soon to be bride..


Our aim for this shower is to make people say, "Really? All this for a shower?!"
Because that's what we do best. :)
I knew I had to post a pic of the invite when Merrill said he "happened to see one laying around at the hotel" and he thought "they were amazing!".. that speaks volumes. :)
And a little boy has learned the art of going potty.


So it's "Potty Time!" instead of "Party Time"..
A cake was in order for the grand celebration.


The blue and brown theme just kinda came together.. I dreamed up the toilet paper trail one night during one of my insomnia bouts. I am thinking of adding a mangled and molded tootsie roll to it. I am fearful if that would lead to only me eating the cake..


I am still trying to decide if that is a bad idea. ;)