Jeff's Sweet Wheels

Jeff has been living with us for the past several weeks while doing an internship in Nashua. I admit, when he rolled up in his new rental car, I was a little jealous.

Don't get me wrong, I love the Highlander. But man, that extra space in the Town and Country was really nice. You push a button and the doors and trunk open and close on their own.  You don't have to worry about your 3 year old banging the car door into the car parked next to you.   I could fit my giant double Bob stroller in the trunk and had room for more.  Satellite radio is really cool. It seated six comfortably.

 I want one.

I swore I would never drive a mini van.  Ever.  But the days of style and flash are gone. I need comfort. I need space. I need convenience. When the Highlander dies, I'm getting me a shiny new minivan.

Worst. Weekend. Ever.

Last weekend was our 6th anniversary. That has nothing to do with it being a bad weekend. I love you, Ry. Happy anniversary! The bad part happened when my fearless and adventurous daughter went exploring and found a bottle of prescription pills and somehow got the lid off. We found her playing on the kitchen floor with pills scattered all around- and something in her mouth. After a pannicked call to poison control, we raced off to pick up Christian from pre-school and head to the ER. Ashley seemed ok after the first hour and a half. She willingly ate the charcoal mixed with chocolate syrup to help absorb the medication already in her stomach. Then, while the social worker was questioning my parental skills in the exam room, Ashley started doing this weird tick. She rubbed her nose with the stuffed leopard the nurse had given her and pulled at the skin on her chest. The doctor came in and let us know that she would be admitted to the Pediatric ICU immediately. I was terrified, to say the least. We were wheeled upstairs to the ICU where Ashley got her IV and monitor leads attached. It was a very sad and scary sight, and she wasn't the least bit happy. Her heart was racing (over 200 bpm for over 24 hours,) and her blood pressure was sky high.

The meds she took wouldn't let her little body rest and even though she was VERY tired, she just couldn't fall asleep. She stayed awake for the next 36 hours with only 90 min of sleep. Still, we were hopeful we could take her home that evening. It soon became obvious that she would have to be there for awhile. We called some friends in the bishopric and Ryan gave her a beautiful Priesthood blessing. On the evening of day #3, things started to look up. Ashley was sleeping better, she started jabbering again, and even had a few bites to eat. I quickly called in the nurse to see if we could go. After a check with the doctor, we got the all clear. Ashley was still woozy for the next two days from all of the medication she was given. It was a lot- at least a dozen adult doses of morphine, atavan, and vallium to counteract the meds she ingested. She was happy to be home and free from all of the leads attached to her. I admit it was kind of funny to watch her try to walk around the 2 days after she got home (only beacause I knew she was safe by then.) The doctor has assured us there will be no long term effects on her little body. I think she is right because Ashley is just as happy, talkative, and hungry as she normally is. I hope this experience will always remind me what a blessing my children are. Sometimes on long, challenging days, you can forget how much you truly love them. This was a cruel reminder, and one I hope to never experience again. I'm just grateful she is ok.

PRESCHOOL!!

Today was the big day! I was really excited for Christian to start school because he is so ready for more interaction with other kids. I was pleasantly surprised on our recent trip to CA when Christian and Trevor not only played together, but had a great time doing it with very few tantrums. He was a little disappointed when he found out that I would drive him to school instead of taking the school bus (we have several that drive up and down our street during the day.) But after I convinced him that the car was quicker, he hopped right in.

I admit I shed one tear after he walked off holding his teacher's hand, but I was mostly ok. I am so excited for him and I know that this is exactly what he needs! We are still working on potty training. There has been a lot of progress, but #2 is still a challenge. I will probably shed more than a few tears of joy when he figures that one out.

Summer Catch Up

I have been a blogging slacker lately. But not as bad as you, Stacey. You have some serious catching up to do. Get on that! We have all been sick around here for the last week or so. Between colds and teething, I haven't got much done. We have had a little fun though. Christian is borrowing a Power Wheels ATV from his cousin, Johnny, until he is big enough to ride it. He has had so much fun doing loops around the house and going on ATV rides up the street to the park. He is really good at steering and has only crashed one time that I can think of.

Ashley is starting to walk on her own and can make it across the family room now. She is still a speed crawler and super mess maker. Not only does she empty the drawer full of the kid plates and cups, she climbs in to make sure she got it all.

Same goes for the toy basket.

And the playroom.

I really don't have a whole bunch of exciting things to report. It has just been a fun, lazy summer. We took a trip to Connecticut to visit friends, our first hotel stay, swimming in the backyard pool, the ice cream man, fireworks on the 4th of July...typical fun summer stuff. We are getting excited for a trip to CA in another month. Except that plane ride is going to be a bear. Have I mentioned Ashley is walking now? I wish they offered "family flights" so I wouldn't have to worry quite as much about being disruptive to other passengers. Because we will be. Very, very disruptive.

Ahhh...the Lake!

I love going to Lake Winnipesaukee. I know, stupid name. But let me tell you, it is a little slice of heaven there. We jet skiied, paddle boarded, boated, shopped in town, had german chocolate ice cream...the list of awesome stuff goes on and on. Of course I forgot my camera. Luckily Ryan snapped a few pictures with his iphone. Memorial Day weekend was pure bliss for Christian. He swam in the still frigid water until I made him get out to warm up, drove the toy Jeep like a pro off roader (Ryan was so proud,) and enjoyed every minute of being outside and on the lake.

Ryan also took this little gem of Ashley. I think this is to date one of the cutest pictures of her ever taken. I love this happy little girl!

March Showers, Spring Flowers

Last fall I planted a bunch of bulbs. A BUNCH. This month I saw the fruits of my labors. The daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips have been so much fun to look at and the cut flowers have brightened my kitchen. I'm going to plant bulbs every fall from now on!




I wish you could smell these through the computer.




Last week I also mowed, aerated, de-thatched, and fertilized our lawn. Now all I have to do is sit back and watch the thick, green grass grow. Who ever thought I would find such pleasure in gardening? Next up, planting the vegetable/flower boxes. Just call me Farmer Cindy.

Birthday Week

Christian and Ashley's birthdays are exactly one week apart. I have been trying to decide whether to have one big birthday bash or celebrate them separately every year. This time I took the easy route. On April 1st, we had a mini celebration at home with some Sara Lee coconut cake (which is really good, by the way.) Christian just kind of poked at it, but was a lot more interested in his presents. Ashley, however, tore into her cake.
We headed down to Jen and Tagg's for Easter and Ashley's actual birthday. We opened more presents, had more cake, and made more messes. Once again, Christian wasn't that interested, but Ashley grabbed a strawberry off the cake and stuffed the whole thing in her mouth as soon as I set her down on the table for a photo op. Yes, that is the green stem poking out of her mouth in this picture.


Happy birthday to my two little pickles!

Guess who is 1?

And standing? And has enough hair for pigtails?
This girl!
Ashley continues to be an awesome kid. She loves to laugh, cuddle with Daddy, bug her brother, and most of all, EAT!

CA Trip

After a very fun week with the Evers crew in Phoenix, Ryan had to fly home. I took the kids up to visit the rest of the fam in CA. Of course we had tons of fun there too. Scott's kickball birthday party, pillow mountain, and visiting Papa and Pauline were among of few of the highlights.

AZ Trip

I am woefully behind in my blogging. So many things have happened this winter/spring that I just got overwhelmed with recording it all. Stay tuned for a flurry of posts as I attempt to catch up.
Up first is our February trip out to Arizona. We left the bitter cold winter of New England behind and headed off to the land of eternal warmth and sunshine to visit Jeff, Kelly, and cousins. We had such a fun time being outside, going to parks, jumping on the trampoline, the Phoenix zoo, and many other things. Christian had so much fun playing with Elle, Laney, and Ray. Here is the proof:

El Nino?

I remember when I was a kid and there was any sort of weird weather pattern, it seemed like it was always blamed on El Nino. I don't know what is going on here in New Hampshire, but this is what it looked like this past weekend.



That's right, Christian is shielding his eyes from the bright sun. Please notice the exposed grass and the driveway without one flake of snow or ice. It is FEBRUARY and this is totally unheard of! The only time we have had to use the snow blower this winter was on Halloween! It was so pleasant outside that both Ryan and I took our cars out to give them a thorough cleaning. I took this picture to document not only the rare event of me cleaning my car, but the crazy easy winter we are having!
We leave for a visit to sunny Arizona next week to visit Jeff and Kelly. We planned this trip last year when we were in the throws of a brutal winter. We figured we would need an escape by about now. While we are SO looking forward to 70 degree weather and playing outside, it has not been that bad at all. I am taking an extended vacation by flying with the tots up to Sactown after Ryan flies home from Phoenix. We are so pumped to see cousins, Grandma, Grandpa, aunts, uncles, the whole Evers crew! See you all in a few weeks!

An Update for the Fam

I am behind in my blogging. WAY behind. (You are too, Stacey. Even more than me.) I was pretty proud of myself for finishing my Christmas cards BEFORE Thanksgiving this year, but then I realized that I haven't updated my blog for over two months. There is kind of a good reason. My camera stinks, so it generally makes me really frustrated when I try and take pictures and they never turn out. Ryan bought me a new fancy camera for Christmas. Unfortunately it has been backordered forever. Meanwhile, we have been using our iphones and ipods to take pictures.

Here are just a few that document Christmas





And a few that are just cute, like Ashley with her first tiny pig tail and her first bite of guacamole (which she loved!)







And the boy playing with sparklers and holding his little sister




The new camera should be here next week. I'm taking a night class at the local community college to learn how to use it. Stay tuned for some awesome pictures!