"Oh Lord, You gave me a truck!"

Who can quote that movie? Last night Andy and I rented it (and paid $4.68!) and LOVED it! I either laughed or cried during the entire movie - while holding little Emily. :)

Stories from this past week:
1. Friday I told Ben that he needed to take a nap if he wanted to go to Dad's soccer game that night. He asked if he and his purple baby could go camping. I said yes, if they fell asleep. I went to check on him about five minutes later. Ben had spread a blanket on the floor and brought his pillow off the bed. Then he and purple baby must have looked at a few books and "both" were sound asleep.
2. Ben was on the phone with Nonie and asked is she could hear "this." He was holding the phone against the duck vibrating chair that Emily sits in because it has a faint humming sound.
3. We took Ben kite flying yesterday for the first time. However, since our camera is broken we don't have any pictures...however, we did buy a new camera Friday night and hopefully it will come early next week!
4. Tuesday I was doing laundry - Ben told me he and Annie were playing dress-ups. As I was hanging clothes in Andy's closet, they ran into my room and yelled, "Trick-or-Treat!" with Ben dressed at a cowboy and Annie as a knight. I told them they would have to do a trick because I didn't have any treats - as much as I wanted some too!
5. Thursday morning the kids and I did some yardwork. We started out mowing the lawn. Emily was in her duck chair and fell asleep on the porch. Ben had on his earplugs and goggles to help me push the lawn mower and Annie was about five feet from us pushing her stroller up and down the lawn. That was fun for about 1/2 the yard, then Ben and Annie played on the porch by Emily. Then we all planted flowers. We also did this last week and realized we needed A LOT more flowers to make the house look even decent. So, this planting saga ended with Ben completely naked because he kept taking off clothes that got wet. It was quite a comical scene. :)
6. The movie is Facing the Giants- we would highly recommend it - although, as we were warned, the acting is not quite what one would expect from a movie. That made it even more endearing.

Bubble Fun

I didn't realize how much fun bubble guns could be - easily an hour of play time on a Sunday afternoon!

A Month Old

Emily is already a month old (and a few days because I am a bit behind...)! She is getting chunky and we LOVE it! Those thighs... She enjoys laying on the floor and looking around and is also happy in both the baby carrier and the bouncer! Life is definitely getting easier!

Not a Bad Deal

Andy sold his 1988 Honda Prelude earlier today to a college kid who fixes up old cars and resells them. It was quite sad to see the little car go since we've had it almost 5 years, but we just don't all fit! The great part is he sold it for $475 less than he paid for it! That's what - $100 a year to own the car - plus the MINOR maintenance we've done. Great job Andy! Now he gets to buy a new camera since ours got dropped last night and no longer takes pictures. :( Not acceptable with a new baby around.

A Reason to Celebrate!

Well, nights with a newborn can be a bit hectic. However, we (okay - pretty much just me but everyone was happy when I told them too) are so excited because Mom slept five hours in a row! Such a reason to celebrate, huh? Emily slept from 10:30 - 4:20 Saturday night to Sunday morning. She ate and went right back to sleep for another 3 hours! If only everyone else had stayed asleep also... :) If she's done it once, that means she can do it again, right?!?

My Little Do-er

Ben is definitely one to just take situations into his own hands! One instance - this morning I told him I would set up Bob the Builder on the computer as soon as I finished washing the produce. About 3 minutes later I turned off the water, dried my hands and turned around to only see Annie in the living room. "Ben?" "I'm in the computer room!" When I got there, he had the game started! He explained how he had stood on the chair, found the disk in the bag on top of the 4-drawer filing cabinet, opened the cd-rom (also on top of the filing cabinet, so there must have been some standing on the desk - forgot to ask about that one!), took out the cd that was in there, put in Bob and clicked on his icon to start the game. We've only played this twice before! If he can do it himself, why should he wait for me to come and help??? Of course, during these events, I also lost the picture that was my wallpaper and all my icons in outlook. Guess it's time to logout each time I leave the computer...

This is also the little boy that when I tell him we can make a cake/brownies after _______, he goes to get the handmixer, a bowl, eggs, cake mix box, oil, a wooden spoon, and the scissors to open the box. Somehow I don't know how he does this all so fast! However, he also occasionally picks up ALL the toys on the floor - even if he didn't play with them and I'm not helping. He's just a little do-er. I need to remember that's a good thing - especailly when our "doings" are not consistent with one another...

The Egg-ngineers Dream Car

We had a ward Easter activity with dinner, an egg hunt for the kids, and then a pine-wood derby type car race to carry an egg for the BIG boys. Andy and Ben spent most of the day Saturday working on their special car.
I must tell you this was definitely a community car. We "borrowed" some 45 records from a friend, got the bumper idea from an other friend, the colorful paper from me, and I know someone else gave another idea, but I can't remember who...
So, the races began and the first car Andy and Ben reaced against was a 7-8 year old. In my mind I thought, "Oh poor kid - I hope it doesn't hurt his feelings if he loses." THEN, I thought, "Andy would be devasted if he loses to this kid! We better not lose because we spent alllll day on this _____ car!!!"
Well, the evening went better than expected. Thankfully, Scott (the boy Mrs. Morrison), suggested we bring extra wheels in case one broke. Thankfully, Karen had two more records that she was willing to donate to the cause. Because, a wheel did break and they had to do emergency surgery on the car.
It came down to the very end, but, yes, Andy and Ben did win First Place - complete with a trophy! Ben came running over to me - I won! I won! It was priceless!!!

Egg Hunt in the Snow?!?

Yes, we were waiting to begin the egg hunt at the church behind our house and there were snow flurries! It was VERY cold and the kids weren't so sure they wanted to do this! It was a fun hunt with lots of eggs and not very many children, so both Ben and Annie had to be persuaded to continue picking up eggs even while baskets were overflowing. Annie had an egg open and she found CHOCOLATE! After that, she had absolutely no interest in finding more eggs - just eating that piece of candy. We went inside after and had to sit by the fire to warm up. Brrr - it's not supposed to be like that in April. Wait - this is Texas! Weatherwise - anything goes!

Love That Girl

Anytime Emily is laying on the floor, either Ben or Annie (or both) need to be talking to her, touching her, or kissing on her. I'm sure she loves it! This picture is Emily at 9 days in the outfit Annie wore home from the hospital. She is so long and loves to stretch out!

I Feel Like Supermom!!!

Yesterday was full of accomplishments! After getting the car registered and some license plates (after two trips because they only take cash or check - not debit!), Annie, Emily and I went to pick up Ben from school. Then we alllll went to Target and Walmart for two very short shopping trips. And - it was not completely horrible! Of course, while in Target I realized Annie had a fever and that was probably why she was so sad and needed to be held, but we still made it through! THEN (oh yes, there is more!) last night I gave all three children a bath and got them into pajamas by myself becasue Wednesday is Andy's night to be at church. It was a very proud moment - of course, a friend did come over and rotated holding Emily and Annie with me because both were sad from 5-6, but we managed! It's so fun! About 95% of the time, there is nothing else I would rather be doing. The kids are fabulous, and Emily is growing so fast, a little too fast I think. I'm not quite ready for the newborn stage to end. Those 3 1/2 hours of sleep last night did feel really good though... However, I am very excited for this weekend for my dear helpmate to assist/takeover. :)

It's Finally Here!

At long last, our beloved car with more space has arrived! We are all so excited! As we went to meet the car carrier tonight, one of those famous Texas thunderstorms began. Perfect timing... It was really neat to watch it be unloaded from the car carrier, especailly since we read books about them this morning. When we got home we all piled in the middle row to watch the promotional dvd they sent. Lots of gadgets for kids to touch and play with, so we'll have to be careful. Wait, that means Andy will want to play also - like he is right now figuring the ins and outs. I am also surprised because I REALLY like the black! At least while it is clean. So, now we can all fit in the car without having to slam doors so car seats will fit. :) Hooray for minivans...

The Little Monkeys

We went to the park today and Ben made it alllll the way across the bars - this is the first time he's ever made it through any! We cheered for him. A few minutes later Annie kept calling to get my attention. She was also swinging on the bars and wanted some cheering! Funny kiddos!!!

Which is which???

Here are pictures of Annie and Emily both around 2-4 weeks in the same outfit. Can you guess which is which??? Andy told me I can't dress them in the same outfits anymore. :)

The First Real Bath

It's always a joyful day when the umbilical cord falls off - then I feel we don't have to be so careful! Although Emily
enjoyed her sponge bath, she REALLY liked being submersed! We've been able to bathe her the same time Ben and Annie are in the big tub. However, getting everyone in jammies at the same time takes a bit of coordination...

3 1/2 days...

Andy has been back at work for 3 1/2 days, and I'm glad to report we are all still alive! We are still stuffing (and I do mean STUFFING!) 3 car seats in the back of the little Honda Accord from the rental car agency. Andy went to pick up the Camry this morning and while driving home the alignment was horrible, so he took it back. Someday we'll get our car back! We are still waiting for the van (that sounds sooo wierd to even say the word! On the way home from the hospital I told Andy I wasn't floored because we were bringing home our third baby - more because we bought a van.) to ship. If it hasn't gone by tomorrow night, Andy has a ticket to fly to Vegas and drive it back this weekend. So, either way, I should have more space by next Monday. Another thing to keep clean. :) A friend wrote in her Christmas card that one of the three things she is grateful for are the hours between 7pm and 7am when her house is clean. I totally agree. However, we would really be in business if the laundry was also completed during those hours...

As a side note for those with extraordinary English skills (Mrs. Gorman) - how do I write that sentence starting with "A friend wrote...?" Because the noun is 'one' which is singular - so the verb should be 'is' not 'are' - right? I put 'are' because it sounds soooo much better! However maybe I made the sentence too complex - with the 'she is grateful for' - I can't even remember what that is called! I need to go back to 7th grade so I can diagram this.... has, have, had, do, did, does, may, might, must....

First Day of School

Ben started preschool today! We had to take his picture for the first day of school! He is going to a speech preschool offered through the school district, and he loves it! We went and met his teacher, Ms. Adams, last week. We love the classroom set up, the flipbook of words to practice, the fun art project he came home with, and especially our information on what sounds they are working on with suggested home activities. This week is blends with sm- and st- both sounds that we currently aren't hearing! What a big boy! Surprisingly, I didn't cry when he left this morning - I asked Andy to take him because I knew that would be too hard to see my little boy all grown up walking into the elementary school holding his teacher's hand.... :)

A lot has happened

So a lot has happened in the last couple of days. Let's see where to begin...
Friday our newest little addition was born, Emily. She is the cutest thing you have ever seen. She has the eating thing down pat - now we just need to work on the sleeping. Another big event happened on Friday - we bought a car (actually it is a van). We bought a 2005 Honda Odyssey in California. It is going to ship to us this week. We are very excited and can't wait to have a vehicle that will carry our family comfortably. Speaking of cars - 2 weeks ago yesterday we were in a little bit of a fender-bender (preggers wife and all). We were sitting at the intersection of Cambell and Plano waiting to turn left. Our arrow turned green, and I went. Meanwhile an elderly woman decided that she would run the red light. Luckily she did not hit us, but we hit her on her side. Everyone is okay and the police officer issued her a ticket for running the red light. So to make a long story short our car is currently in the shop getting fixed. So we are currently driving a rent car. Now back to your regular programming...
Saturday and Sunday I stayed in the hospital with Lindsey while Barbara, Mike and Jamie played tag team with Ben and Annie. Sunday afternoon we were discharged from the hospital and came home.
Monday to Saturday I took of from work and stayed home to help with things around the house. I actually have accomplished quite a bit. All of the neglect that I have been showing our house for the last 1 1/2 years has added up. I finally finished our entry hall with baseboards and trim and paint. I must say that it looks much better finished than it did unfinished.
Friday we took a day to go to the Dallas Arboretum and see Dallas Bloom(s). It was really fun and we had a great time.
Saturday was a very busy day and Ben and Annie did not get naps. So at dinner we had a little sleeping incident:
She's starting the famous head bob...













She's dropping quickly...













Down, down, down...













And finally comes to a rest on her food...













Does this remind you of anyone...

















So there you have it - like father, like daughter. Have a great week.

Celebrating Emily's 1 Week Birthday!

For Andy's last day off work and Annie's first birthday, we took a little trip to the Dallas Arboretum to see Dallas Blooms. Despite the fact that it seriously took us one HOUR to load the car with kids and cargo, it was so beautiful! We took a picnic lunch and walked around for almost 3 hours - looking at flowers. I know - not the typical Maas activity, but we all really enjoyed it. Both kids were sad to leave until I promised we would return again - some day. :)

True Love

Well, Annie has two blankets that she sleeps with during every naptime and each night. These blankets often get carried around the house as well and are used for all sorts of games that she and Ben come up with. Tuesday afternoon while Andy and Ben were putting in baseboards (yes! It's really happening!!!!), Annie was playing with Emily on the living room floor. I looked up and saw this event - Annie sharing her "night-nights" with her sister! It was so sweet. She first had one on each side of Emily's face, which is how Annie likes to go to sleep. Then she covered her up - from toe to nose - with the big one so Emily could sleep. It was precious!

The Little Sister

We are all quickly adjusting to life with a newborn and hope she is adjusting as well. Ben and Annie both LOVE Emily and can't get their hands on her enough. Ben is constantly saying "She's so _____!" (fill in the blank with cute, tiny, pretty, sweet, etc.) in a little high pitched voice, and he likes to call her "Em." Annie loves to pat her face and say "hi baby" and doesn't often want to give her up - no surprise there! I love to hear her say "em-ma-me" but she won't do it very often. Emily has been very tolerant of the loves and gentle squeezes.
She doesn't really cry - just goes to a straight squeal/scream. Andy calls her his little dinosaur because she sounds like a teradactyl. :) It's hard to believe we've only had her just over 3 days; she immediately felt like part of the family. We've had a great day today just looking at her while she lays on the floor and talking with her. Ben has already read her a few books and told her a story about 'Old Bill.' Dad and the kids are on a walk right now getting some fresh air (and exerting energy!) so Mom bettter get off the computer!!!