8 month mark

Brooklyn has finally hit the 8 month mark. She has been able to sit up for about 2 weeks without any help, and I think she really likes the freedom now. I don't have to worry too much about Braden stepping on her face! She is now completely taking a bottle (bittersweet for mommy) and LOVES to eat ANYTHING! She is such a cutie, I can't stop taking pictures of her. Here are some of her on the 27th...

What a Sweetie Pie!

Chicago Week

Well, Dave has "left on a jet plane" for a week to Chicago. He is at his final training at Hamburger University! The last time he went was the infamous week that Braden had his medical brush with death....so you can probably tell that I am just a little nervous. To add to that Tina decides to get a fever of 102.6 on Saturday night, poor girl, and I lose my voice. I try to plan fun things to look forward to while he is gone, so it's not soooo long. We have planned a trip to Logan to make necklaces, some fun dinners: Pigs in a blanket and "Mouse on a raft" - (bread with a circle cut out and fried egg inside.) Then we still have our routine of Piano Lessons, Preschool, and the normal running around. So hopefully it will be fun. I do enjoy reading the "lists" so here is our list of things we will miss while Daddy is gone:
Tina
1. His snuggles
2. Having him home "all day"
3. laying by him in bed when I'm scared
Braden
1. Making train tracks
2. playing horses
Brooklyn
1. Singing sunshine
2. squishing my cheeks
Melanie
1. Serving dinner dishes
2. Brushing the kids teeth and reading them stories for bed
3. Watching our Shows together and razzing me for reading or biting my nails:)
4. Helping me stay motivated or running out for something to snack on!

Hopefully this will be an uneventful week for us, and very successful for him. After this he will be able to get his associates degree in Business Management so yeah for him!!

Working Out

In response of the comment of a close up of me, here is my "before" picture (9 months pregnant!) That's motivation for me! This is Dave last January on his trip to Arkansas with a friend. It's amazing how far we have come - and how far we have left to go! It's been hard for us to get back into the swing of things after the holidays, but we do enjoy feeling good. It's amazing how different it feels when we eat bad.

Dave's routine:

MWF: Elliptical for 30 minutes, then 5 sets of crunches/oblique crunches/ leg lifts

THSat: Lifts weights to target different body parts and does 5 sets of increasing weight.

After he is done, he is pretty buff!!

Mel's routine:

MWF: Elliptical for 30 minutes, and the same 5 sets of crunches/obliques/leg lifts

THSat: I do the Winsor Pilates workout video and now can almost do the entire accelerated body sculpting DVD. I really have noticed that my quads have gotten stronger. Yeah!

As far as the eating goes, we try and count weight watcher points and make healthy choices. I have consciously tried to add a vegetable to dinner every night. I love the Normandy mix. Good thing our kids are not picky eaters. We also have switched to low or no fat things like Sour Cream, Cream based soups, and Cream Cheese, and lean meats. It is a little more expensive, but I can't really tell a difference in the foods we eat. It's funny because Tina will ask if what she is eating is healthy. I think we have created a monster!

Melanie

Well, on to me: I am currently teaching 5 piano students. I have started taking a CERT class (Citizens Emergency Response Team) to help me know what to do in a disaster. It is very interesting so far and I have learned that as a family we have a long way to go to get prepared. But I guess now I have some tools to help me along. I'm also looking into taking organ lessons (hopefully) when I can find the time. We will see! I can't wait :) I enjoy a clean house (what's that?), scrapbooking (once a year), and reading good books - any suggestions? We just de-junked our bedroom and that feels good too! My favorite thing to do is play games with the kids. For Christmas we got hungry hungry hippos, and go fish. It just brings back childhood memories. Here's Christmas day with Brooklyn's stash, and a rare picture of me with the kids. It sure has been fun (and addicting) to start this blog. I'm so grateful for the comments. It makes it fun. Thanks everyone. Hopefully this is interesting enough!

Brooklyn

OK, on to the next and newest member of our family: Brooklyn. She is growing like a weed. She is almost 8 months and the cutest little squeaker ever-she squeals at the most unexpected times and startles the primary, my piano students, and her family! She has bright blue eyes like her sister and has started almost belly laughing :) She's ticklish under her chin. We love her to pieces. She cut her first tooth on Christmas day. She loves her brother and sister and is always entertained. But I think she is giving me tendonitis in my wrists because she loves to be held! It's worth it though. This is her first taste of broccoli... I think she likes it!

Braden

Now on to Braden: He is a little ball of fun. He loves to be the center of attention and actually gets funnier when he realizes people are laughing at him. He really is a mini Dave! He absolutely loves anything with wheels...Race Cars, choo choo trains, and trucks.

This picture is of him at the Chambers Christmas party telling everyone, "I'm a Shepherd!" What a cutie.

Handsome man

I forgot to add this to Dave's thirtieth post! Happy Birthday handsome!

Dave's thirtieth!!

Dave will hit the big 3-0 tomorrow!! Hopefully it's fun for him. Here are some words that remind me of the 8 years we have been married...
~Lacrosse~Family~Vacations~TV relaxing~Entertaining~Humor~Hard working~Working out~Snuggles~Loving father~Fishing~Golf~Camping~Handyman~De-junker~Baseball caps~Good Listener~Common Sense~Great Egg Cook~People Person~Promises Kept~Jungle Hunts~Diet Coke runs~Sports Fan~Adventurous~Motivator

We sure love our wonderful Family Man!!

Christina

Our

fun 5 year old is such a good big sister. She loves to dance, color, and dress up. She loves pink, pigs, preschool, and pizza. She doesn't like tangles in her hair or monsters. We love our tina-bell

New Year's Resolution

One of my many new years resolutions is to start a blog. I hope it works well! I guess we will see. I am not the most tech savvy person, but it never hurts to try it out. Other resolutions include:
1. figure out a financial system
2. workout 6 days a week
3. eat with weight watchers
4. Read the scriptures daily
5. Keep the house clean

Hopefully we can work on all these things!