HAPPY BIRTHDAY, B!

Happy 4th birthday, cousin!

We wanted to share with you our top 4 favorite things about YOU!

You are really great when it comes to dancing in the dark with light sticks. Truthfully, you are really great at dancing anytime (with or without light sticks). You have moves that would make Michael Jackson burst with jealousy.

Bath time just isn't exciting without you. We won't go into further detail, but you know what we're referring to, right?

You are SO MUCH FUN to play with. Whenever our Mom says we can invite a friend over for a play date, our first choice is you. Can you come over this Saturday and drive jeeps with us?

Last but not least (but maybe most importantly), your sense of style exceeds your Dad's. You always look like you just finished modeling in a Gap commercial. Your Dad, however, well....he looks like he just walked off the set of a really bad Chevy Chase movie (think Christmas Vacation). There will come a day when he'll try to hand it down to you. Stand up for yourself, Braden. Don't ever let him force you into wearing his Christmas sweater.

YOU

YOUR DAD

Happy birthday, buddy. We love you.
Your Pals,

Evan, Luke, Jack, Logan & Wes

Message In A Bottle...

Let's pretend I'm stranded on an island. Try your best to envision someplace warm, with clean drinking water, sand that could easily be mistaken for sugar, fresh fruit, and no spiders or bugs.

Is that too much to ask?

Now pretend you just opened my message in a bottle from the other side of the ocean. Here's what you'd find:

Hello. My name is Amy. I'm in desperate need of sleep and sanity, so I'm taking a short hiatus from home. Yesterday my son had surgery. At 3AM this morning, his anesthesia wore off. He wanted 'chocca milk', he wanted to wrestle, he jumped on our bed and demanded cereal. In doing so, he woke a brother, who also demanded cereal. Then they merged into one strong team and together, they demanded a movie. There they sat, perfectly content (in MY room) and enjoyed their moonlight movie and bowl of Kix. The brother went back to sleep, Logan did not.

I'm running on empty. I gave up all pop (or soda as you Californians call it) for Lent. If only I could have just one Pepsi right now. That would be all I need to gather enough energy to wipe up the squashed banana off my floor, clear my staircase so that one no longer has the task of dodging miscellaneous items in order to utilize it, or complete a multitude of other tedious chores. Surely God would see it my way. I need a Pepsi.

My son, Logan, hung from our kitchen blinds this morning and ripped them in half. I'd attach a picture to this letter, but my camera is not in working order, so you'll just have to do your best to imagine it. Seeing as we can't afford new blinds, I had to resort to hanging a sheet in the window. Much like the house I made fun of as I drove past last week. Dear God, I promise never to make fun of others again.

There you have it. That's just a small synopsis of my daily cup of normalcy. That's what brought me to this island.

So here I sit in the warm sun, and there you sit reading my SOS. Promise me one thing:

Don't start the search too quickly.

Love,
Amy

Surgery...

Logan had surgery this morning to remove a cyst from the side of his head. (Evan had the same surgery when he was two years old) We arrived at the hospital at 6:00 AM. We got checked in and waited a long two hours before they were ready to begin. Logan wasn't happy about being there. He's at the age where he can smell a hospital/Dr's office from a mile away, and he prefers to stay clear! They changed him into the cutest hospital gown I'd ever seen. (I tried to accidentally pack it into our take-home bag, but I was unsuccessful.) They allowed one parent to accompany him into the operating room. Was it even up for discussion? I think not! This was a job for Mommy. I had to dress just like a DR with full scrubs, booties covering my shoes, and a cute little hair net.

I looked super official.

We walked into the OR, and the anesthesiologist did his best to get Logan to breath the 'night night air' from the mask. Yeah, right. "Does he like chocolate, Mom?" The anesthesiologist asked. "Doesn't everyone?" I replied. Soon the DR was 'scenting' Logan's mask with the lovely smell of cocoa. Now he was interested. After a few squirms and only five deep breaths, he was off to la la land. I gave him a kiss and was quickly ushered into the waiting room.

Less than 30 minutes later, the DR came out and told us things couldn't have been more perfect. Another 10 minutes passed, and we were reunited with our groggy little man. It took him a while to wake up from his meds, but once he did, he was his usual demanding self. "Popsicle!" He shrieked. I've never seen a nurse run so fast. This kid knows how to get what he wants. He devoured his popsicle, they removed his IV, and we were on our way back home, where his four (very worried) brothers awaited his arrival.

A very happy ending, indeed.

Here are a few pics. They are horrible quality (taken from my phone since my camera is still down and out).

Waiting for things to begin. Watching Shrek to pass the time.

Eating the popsicle he demanded....and not wasting a drop. They had his left arm splinted in a cast to keep him from pulling his IV out. It was a smiley face cast....this was one stylin' hospital!

Going home. Not a moment too soon.

Snug as a bug in a rug (at home in his very own bed) with the new Buzz Lightyear from Dee and Papa. Surgery isn't so bad after all.

Friday Dialogue...

A few hours ago, I shouted this out my kitchen window:

"If you dump one more bucket of sand on your brother's head, you are coming inside!"

To which my son replied:

"Don't worry, Mom. He likes it!"

And now I am finding trails and piles of sand throughout my house. Sandboxes are so overrated.

Happy Friday Night Party Night!

Action Shot...

My camera is temporarily under the weather. Until it is fixed, you may be forced to view several random photos of my children that have little or no meaning.

My apologies in advance.

I wish I had something profound to write about....that required no pictures.

Until then, how about this action shot:

Check out that drool!

Play Date Of All Play Dates!

Today we hosted a play date. The boys were so excited, and waited all morning for their friends to arrive. (They're really cousins, but the whole first cousin, once removed/second cousin, twice removed thing confuses me.) More importantly, they're family!

Here's the guest list:

Amber
Brandon
Justin
Tristan
Baby Bate
Melody
Michael
Matthew
And one puppy

Between the three of us, we have 10 boys. Wow. The testosterone was rampant.

The boys played, ate popsicles, and played some more.

It was a play date with only one minor glitch.....

It's ultra windy today and our 10' basketball hoop fell on Amber's car.

To Amber-I feel terrible about what happened. Please come back and play.

Preferably on a day less windy.

Spring Fever....

Spring has sprung (or at least it's beginning to).


We went to Target today to buy......ummmm.....I can't quite remember what we actually went there for specifically, but I do know that we bought the biggest container of bubbles known to man. A few other items accidentally slipped into our cart as well. A pair of 'Mario Kart' pajamas, two sun hats, a pair of 'Hulk' pajamas, and two bucket and shovel sets for digging in the sand.


Note to Derek: No, they didn't need the new jammies, but they "weawy" wanted them! I'm using my blog to warn you in advance, so that you can push through your anger while you're still at work and come home to us all bright and shiny!


We came home from our shopping adventure and packed lunches in our favorite old school (metal) lunchboxes that Uncle Dec and Aunt Lorie bought for us. We loaded the stroller and headed to the park. It was bliss.


The thermometer outside says it's 74 degrees. There is no greater happiness to a boy than warm weather and the promise of summer. Soon we'll be catching bugs and amphibians galore.


I can't wait.