I'm so embarressed!

This is the longest stretch of not blogging that has happened in a long time. I'm sorry! I really do have soooo much to blog about but life is getting in the way!

Here is just a sampling of what's been going on:

• birthdays - Teagan, Mom, Aunt Kari, Duffy, Grandma June...
• a wedding - Congrats to my cousin Mallory and new hubby Jamie! Their wedding was beautiful and a lot of fun! Your wedding gift will be on the way soon. I promise.
• a memorial service - celebrating the wonderful life of my Great Uncle Dan.
• traveling to visit family - trips to Aberdeen and PORTLAND. Wish P-Town could have been a bit longer but still fun!!
• shopping with some of my favorite gals - enough said. 
• sunshine - no enough.
• garden planting - things are starting to grow!
• rain - way too much.
• ear infections - Zoe missed an entire week of school because she had an middle and outer ear infection. She missed the wedding and a week of swimming!
• flooding washing machine - yay. Luckily, it was just the drain hose coming out of the drain. So, didn't have to get a new machine (that will be a sad day, cause I LOVE my machine. As much as one can love a home appliance.)
• flu - uhm, other people throwing up grosses me out. It was not a good 2 days and I realized I don't get paid enough to do that job. Isn't it considered hazardous bodily material in some medical professions???
• allergies
• work - yeah.
• a baby shower - too cute.
• a house-full of fun for the long weekend - we had 6 kids and 6 adults at our house over Memorial Day weekend. It was also Duffy's and June's birthdays, so fun was had by everyone. I was a totally  lame mom and didn't take a single picture - what's wrong with me?!?!
• swimming - starting back up on Monday!
• lots of cooking - lots and lots and lots of cooking. and baking.
• beer brewing - uhm yeah, got Duffy a home brewing kit for his birthday. Our first batch is brewing and will be bottled soon.
• ....and sewing - not enough if I can be totally honest! I have a pile of stuff I need/want to work on.
• Oh yeah, and all the regular stuff like laundry and dishes!

I need up upload a bunch of pictures and get some posted.. Right now, I need some coffee.

Yummmmmmm

I found a recipe for Browned Butter frosting and it is AMAZING! So, for Harper's birthday, I made lemon cupcakes (took the cheater way and used a boxed mix, but will do from scratch next time! I made 4 dozen cupcakes, so I had to save time somewhere!!), topped with the yummy frosting and added toasted coconut to finish. Soooooo good! I think I have to stop watching Cupcake Wars on Food Network!

Happy Birthday Baby H

What a sweet baby you are! I can't believe a year has come and gone so quickly! You are such a snuggler and love to smile and wave. You love when people are laughing and when you see your daddy playing the drums, you let everyone know, that's your "Dada!" Your big sisters love you so much, it's probably annoying! Thank you for making our family complete!!

Family Dynamics

This past weekend (Memorial Day) we went camping. Well, sort of. We camped our trailer in my grandparents yard and enjoyed the comforts of their dry, warm house! We got to spend a lot of time with brother, Bethany and Izabella - It's been awhile since we could just hang out and not have a bunch of stuff going on! I'm so thankful that we all get along, have so much fun together and the girls get to grow up together - it just makes me sad when it comes to an end because I realize how far away Portland really is!

We also got to spend some time with a lot of my extended family. It's been a really long time since we've been able to spend more than an hour or two with my aunts and uncles, cousins and their kids. I love that my girls can't wait to play with their cousins and I love watching them all grow up together.

Sunday was spent celebrating Duffy's 36th birthday! He got to sleep in (a rarity at our house), play Cabella's Big Game Hunter (how he could fight of the mountain lions and not have a heart attack, I don't know!!!) enjoy great BBQ and yummy food prepared by all the great cooks in our family. His cake request (cupcakes in ice cream cones) was a big hit with all the kids and even some of the adults! At one point, we counted 28 people, including Duffy's parents (it was also his mom's birthday!!) and brother's family. We feel sooooooo blessed that our families are close in proximity and relationship to share in birthdays and holidays - it makes things so much easier when time is limited!! And I love to see everyone together - it makes my heart happy.

Now it's back our real life. Teagan finished with school this week and Zoe has 2 weeks to go. We have a busy summer full of Vacation Bible Schools, having friends come and hang out a couple of days a week, weekend trips to Grandma and Grandpa's, vacation with Dad in August (maybe another camping trip....), and oh, yeah, Harper's First Birthday in July!!! Fun times ahead!!

Teagan Turns 4

Happy Birthday dear Teagan! We welcomed you to our little family 4 years ago and it has been so much fun! You are constantly full of energy and love following/pestering your big sister! You love Harper so much, always wanting to play with her and help her out - even if she doesn't need it! You love going to school and playing with your friends. You LOVE music! Your dad and I always notice you singing and lately, playing the air guitar! You are always moving - dancing mostly. The minute music comes on, which is frequently at our house, you are moving and grooving!

You are such a wonderful, good-natured, happy little girl and we love you very, very much!!

Happy Birthday Sweet Princess

Happy 6th Birthday Zoe Lynne!!
You make everyday brighter and so much more fun and interesting!!! You are a great big sister and wonderful daughter! We love you so much!

Happy Birthday Teagan!

Happy Birthday Teagan Macie!!

So, it was actually yesterday but this is the first chance I've had to blog anything! We had a great weekend filled with family, a parade, a new slide and lots of fun!

I am having a hard time realizing that my "baby" is 3! It goes by so fast and she is such a joy to have around. She has a great sense of humor and wants to grow up faster than she is - she asked the other day when she got to go to Zoe's new school (heck, lets just skip pre-school and move on to kindergarten!!) She is working on writing her name and so far, we have the "T" down, though it is sometimes written upside-down! She adores Zoe and follows her lead all the time. Right now, Zoe has figured out that Teagan will do almost anything she asks which makes my job just a bit harder. Teagan thinks that she can talk to the baby through my belly-button and is constantly pulling up my shirt and telling Baby how much she love them!

Happy Birthday Teagan - you make our lives so much fun and it is a joy being your mommy! Continue to be adventurous and not afraid and don't forget you "broccoli" shoes!

Happy Birthday Duffy

Happy 34th Birthday Duffy!