Happy Meals, Cheeseburgers, Bananna Nut Cheerios! Wow!

Our boy has suddenly become a bigger eater than before... if you can believe it! He was a big eater, now he is eating even more.

Dusty and I are on the lookout for more energy outputs (yes, yes he's been very energetic) and more growth! Wow! He is so solid!

Brittney is "WAITING...", oh please drop something?

Hey, what's that? Oh wow a huge piece of meat? Our baby loves meat. He's been a meat junkie since he started eating solid foods. He actually hears the baby food jar go "pop", and gets very excited!

Love you all.

Kindergarten Graduate!!!!!

Check it out!

Our girl has officially graduated from Kindergarten! This sweet certificate came rolled up with a ribbon tied around it. I'm putting this in Audrey's "baby" box! She has a keepsake box I've been putting special items in since before she was born (ultrasound pictures, videos and more).

We are so proud of Audrey! Good job sweetie and we're going to go to Chuck E Cheese this weekend to celebrate her graduation and FATHER's DAY! Lots of fun and games to play!

Mommy Asks Why

Wow... having a 6 1/2 year old is a challenge. Actually since the day Audrey was born I have been in trouble.

Audrey believes that she can question everything that mommy says. I say the sky is blue, she will disagree. Why oh why is that? Is it a mother daughter dynamic thing? I just know that I've always been wrong in her opinion. I also know that she values me, trusts me and believes in me. So why Audrey why do you have to argue with every thing mommy says?

She's intelligent. I love that. I just told her tonight: (she's lost two teeth, and others are wiggling) honey you will lose your teeth in the order you grew them in. I remember that you grew the right top tooth in before the left, so you will lose that one first. Do you think SHE believed me? Of course not. She had to argue.

The arguing is not limited to such that facts can prove. They are about anything I say to that girl. I told her it would be hot today so please wear short sleeves. She is wearing a fuzzy sweater. I begged her to at least wear layers in case she got hot!

I love my daughter, but I can't believe how she has to argue with everything I say. I say it's black, she'll say it's white. It seems as if she has a personal vendetta against me, but maybe it's just because she is my daughter and wants to establish herself as a powerful force. Well - I just hope she learns from this powerful force - her mother.

I know my mother was at a great loss when I finally decided to challenge her. I had been kept down and felt so unsuperior. So I should be so happy that I have given my daughter the feeling that she CAN make her opinons known. That was one thing I was robbed of. I was hoping so much to give Audrey the freedom to express herself, that now she is expressing herself into driving me crazy.

Oh, but I love her, she is strong and I am proud of her. If only she would listen to me once in a while :)

Kids having fun on Free Swingset

One Cool Dude!

True Love - Sissy and Bro

Daddy's hard work pays off.  The kids love the swingset!  I love the swingset too!  Dusty created a nice swing that can hold 350 pounds max, so all us adults can get on there too!!!  Awesome!

Free Swingset!

Wow, what an awesome swingset - for free.  We'd been looking for one for the kids.

So, Dusty being the wonderful dad he is; planned about 3 hours to go dissasemble and dig up this free swingset (it had concrete).  

Oh about 4 hours later I got a call from a number I didn't recognize, but I thought it could be Dusty just because... he had forgotten his cell phone.

Calling from a nice neighbor across the street, Dusty said he had the swingset loaded in the truck.  Due to the pouring down rain all day long though, the truck sunk and was stuck in the mud.  I was to pick Audrey up from the bus stop (40 minutes from now) and then please go pull the truck out of the mud.

Up until that time, the vote was still out on

 my pretty Blazer with all the transmission issues.  I didn't know whether to love it or hate it yet.  But when I pulled up and hooked up to the truck and was able to pull it out of the gunk with ease, I think she finally redeemed herself.  

Dusty was covered in mud, wet sore and cold.  I felt so bad for him - he is such a great dad and just works his butt of for this family!  It was so amazing that he loaded this swingset into the truck himself, I had to post a little of the ordeal and the photo of ol' Babe loaded down!

I'm so proud of old babe (truck) for hauling this load home too!

Starry Starry Night

Song of love and of heart:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dipFMJckZOM

Don McClean.  My heart breaks.  I love these words.

Later Mater

Brogan is ready to go cruising!  His balance is a little shakey, so we have to be ready to catch him, but he REALLY LOVES his new Mater!

Happy Birthday Brogan!

Brogan's Birthday party with cake and fun!  Audrey and Dusty made the cake, Dusty decorated and cleaned off the kitchen table (of all Audrey's coloring stuff!), whew!  

Pictures of the fun!

The Cake!

And Brogan's piece of cake w/Spoon!

Audrey and Brogan - the Party progresses... (aka Sugar high)

Cleaning up the Chocolate Cake!

... and finally, crashing out from the chocolate cake!

The Blazer is back and strong!

After much ado - finally the Blazer came home.  Seems like a combination of everything took it's toll on the poor transmission.  The computer was actually fried on one side, there was a crack somewhere in the housing, the pump and some valves needed replacing and a whole bunch of other stuff.

I have to give credit to Mike's in Issaquah for standing by us and going above and beyond what his obligation was.  He told us he would fix it, and he did.  I would not hesitate to take another vehicle there or to recommend a friend there.  He was just so nice to us.

Glad to have the blazer home!

Springtime Sunshine - finally

Brittney soaking up the sun!

Finally some warm days.  It's been a pretty hard winter.  Since we moved up here from the Auburn area which doesn't really see a lot of snow to Duvall that seems to get every flurry that passes by, we've been asking ourselves if we've moved to Alaska!?

This is a family of sunshine people.  We love the sun and it's warmth.  Even the dog is happy.

Still no Blazer

So - the transmission shop (reputable shop too - our family has had 7 transmissions redone there!) - so this is what we've been through since we got stranded on the side of the road to Oregon:

Transmission pump blew.  They replaced that and the fluid pressure was pretty high.  That would make the pump blow again.

We had a check engine light - error code 43 which is the knock sensor.  Well after researching knock sensor issues - seems like that can retard the timing, make the whole engine sluggish and put extra pressure on the transmission.  We had that fixed.  It turned out to be a piggy tail thing off the back of the sensor that was broken, so that didn't cost too much.

We took it back to the transmission shop after having that work done, because they wanted to see if that was the cause of the high pressure in the transmission.  Turns out that wasn't it.

We took the Blazer back in on Tuesday, April 14th.  It was nice that Don was in Seattle because Dusty was able to call him up and ask for a ride back home.  I didn't have to interrupt my work at home day for this errand.  I am not being callous, I am being responsible.  It's hard for me to justify having a telecommute day when I'm not there to get any work done, right?

So now it has been a week and a half or so... and still no rig.  Apparently, they think there may be a crack somewhere.  Mind you - we've been told we need a new computer, a new chip, a new valve in the trans and everything else in between.  So the shop is going to check for a crack on Monday.

Monday starts a busy week for us.  Brogan has follow up doctor appointments for his lungs, and then on Wednesday for his heart for a cardiogram and an ultrasound.  He was born with a hole in his heart, so we are very concerned and anxious to find out if it is closing itself up like they thought it would of if there is a problem.  He is a strong baby, but I worry when he gets super active.  I don't want anything to happen to my little love.  

I'm remaining optimistic - what else can I do?  All will be fine and work itself out and we will get our Blazer back, and our son will be fine.  Our daughter is feeling so much better too.  I am blessed with the gifts of love and family like I never had when I was a child growing up.

Still no teeth and sick big sister

Brogan is a hearty eater!  He wishes he had teeth so he could eat some real steak.  We get him Earth's Best Organics and also Gerber meat.  He loves his meat.  He eats a good balance of fruits, veggies, entres and meats AND he eats well!

He's such a strong baby, he will demand you give him your hands when he is on the floor - from his tummy he will grab your hands (with you grabbing his and keeping him secure), and he will walk himself up from a laying on his belly position to a full standing up position.  From there, the huge smile appears and he takes good steps, then wants to push back and forth with his arms and have loads of fun!

This was so cute:  He got ahold of one of his socks yesterday.  He draped and pulled his sock around his foot.  He KNOWS where his sock is supposed to be.  It was awesome.  

So - SISSY is really sick.  It started Saturday night with a temperature.  Sunday was worse, and Monday was no better.  Her temp was up to 104 by Monday night.  Tuesday I took her to the doctor and with a urine sample, determined that Audrey has a bladder infection.  Her temperature was still on the rise - up to 105.7 this morning.  She had a dose of the perscribed medication Tues night, and Wed morning (this morning).  The doctor did tell us it would take about 24 hours for the medicine to start working.  We have been giving Audrey tylenol of course to keep the fever down.

Poor girl.  Last night, Dusty asked her if she wanted to roast a marshmallow - she LOVES this.  Dusty had the barbeque going, and that's where they roast them - Audrey said no thanks, she just didn't want to get out of bed.  Dusty came out of her room saying "that girl is really sick".  Yes she is.  She didn't eat the ice cream I gave her for "dinner".  She didn't have more than 3 sips of the milkshake that came with her happy meal and she didn't eat any of that - Tuesday after the doctor's visit.  

We've all been worried - Brogan has been extra grumpy - to show his worry about big sis.  He loves her so much, and is upset that she's home and not happy/playing with him.  Mommy and Daddy have some worry bothering them - and Brogan is an extra perceptive child.  

Things seem on the mend.  Now if I can only get my blazer back from the transmission shop!  Then we'd have at least more than one vehicle!  

The Road Trip That Wasn't

Sweet Baby Boy

Packing for our trip - two adults, one 6 year old and a baby.  Oh and a dog.  

So we had 3 sets of pajamas, at least 3 changes of clothes (5 for the 6 year old and extras even for the baby), dog food enough for 4 days and tons of BABY FOOD... cereal, fruit, vegetables, dinners (like risotto with vegetables & cheese) AND meat.  Brogan is definitely a carnivore.  

Diapers, can't forget the collapsible bowls for dog water & food, chips to snack on, a brownie, and of course Audrey's MP3 player, portable DVD player and the handheld Leapster II game system.  

... and - that's not even the half of it.  All boxed and bagged and packed in the Blazer, away we went Thursday morning on the road by 10 o'clock.  That's pretty good considering all of the beings we had to get ready for this adventure to Grandpa and Grandma's house!

The morning journey went well.  Brogan slept (he had a full tummy from breakfast), Audrey watched a movie.  Dusty and I visited, and listened to music.  The Blazer has no radio, but at Audrey's request, we had brought along my iDog - and we had everyone's MP3 players - so I plugged in Dusty's and we got to listen to music.  NICE.

We stopped just a bit past Toledo, WA for lunch.  Brittney had her potty break and water.  Brogan had a big lunch and a cookie.  Audrey ate almost all of her huge cheeseburger and we all got a chance to use the restroom and generally took our time.  Dusty went over and gassed up the Blazer, let Brittney out again for a potty break and then we all loaded up to continue on.  We were all quite happy.

Then, just as Dusty was getting up to speed, merging on the Freeway - NOTHING!  No GEARS.  No transmission!  He steered us over to the side of the freeway safely where he tested the other gears.  No reverse.  Nothing in 4x4 mode.  Just nothing.  The engine was still running, and we both thought this was a nice thing, a bright note.  

The two of us (parents) were ready for tears.  WHAT DO WE DO NOW?  I don't know.  "Call the insurance company?", I said.  I thought we had some kind of roadside assistance or towing on the policy for the Blazer.  

We were both thinking, would a tow truck be able to take us all?  Is Dusty going to have to hitch hike home?  Will there be a seat for Audrey?  Will she have to get home somehow with Dusty?  What about the dog?  Then - what about our VISIT with grandpa and grandma?  They haven't seen Audrey in two years, and have never seen Brogan.  We were so disappointed and very very WORRIED for our little family.

At least we found out that in the state of Washington, you CAN ride in your vehicle that is being towed as long as you have your seat belt on.  I wouldn't feel too comfy, but I did know that Brittney was safe and OK.

Before Dusty called the insurance company, he called his Step Dad to find out if he was in Oregon or Seattle (like, can you come get us?).  Interesting enough I heard Don's voice through the phone raise a few octaves; "I thought you just had that fixed!".  Yes, so did we dad.  I just understood everything you've said without having speakerphone on!  Wow.  UG.  Well he was down in Oregon, way way south so no help there.

The insurance company - after fumbling around a bit and dropping the call during the transfer to the towing company -  did come through.  Only they would cover just hookup and towing to the nearest shop which was 22 miles away.  Oh and now there's a whole other bucket of worms - but at any rate, our warranty is only good at the shop it was fixed at in Issaquah.  Normally, our warranty would get us fixed in just about every state.  BUT - since the man that sold us the Blazer went and drove off with the Blazer using his extra set of keys, without paying Mike, and now Mike is trying to honor a warranty , but he never got paid the first time around.

To put everyone's mind at ease - I just signed us up for Triple AAA.  

So 457 dollars and change got us to Issaquah.  I have to say the tow truck driver was a really wonderful guy.  There was also a "back seat", thank goodness so we could all sit in the cab.  Brittney was fine in the Blazer.  The driver had six grown daughters and some grandchildren and really was sweet with our kids.  He didn't use any foul language either.  He was just so nice.  So the ROADTRIP back was pleasant.

HOW do we get home then?  I called my wonderful friend from work - Ritesh.  He has often told me if I need help, please call him.  I felt bad taking him away from his family, but was so kind when he rescued us and got us all home (even the dog).  We were tired, and the kids were hungry and he was so kind to come get us and take us all home.  If he ever needs help with anything, we will certainly be there.  We've always been there.  He has a beautiful 5 month old son and is the happiest dad ever (next to Dusty that is).  So his boy Daksh has inherited a few toys from Brogan.  

Well, the 457 dollars and change took our trip money away.  You know, we just don't have money laying around to waste so we will have to plan to make the trip again in a few months after saving up.  

I do have to say that the transmission shop's owner was very sad for us.  When he found out the whole story - the whole family stranded, he was very apologetic and he fixed the transmission for parts and didn't charge labor.  I picked it up today and am very glad to have my baby home.  He said it is mechanically sound and will be fine now.  I hope so.  

Is it 5 o'clock YET?!

Well, it's got to be 5 o'clock somewhere!  What a Doll!

Brogan and the Noodle

Brogan is going to get THAT noodle!

My babies

So sweet together... I am so proud of my babies.  

Audrey has been more interested in her baby brother as he becomes more interesting.  He moves, he looks and smiles and squeals in delight at the things she does.  Oh, this big sister has declared her love for her baby brother and no one in the world will be able to call him names, hurt his feelings or upset him in general without dealing with HIS BIG SISTER.

And now for something I think you'll really like...

Hmm, or not.

Scrambled Eggs!  Wow Mom!

Isn't that how it always goes.... after the initial shock though, he seemed to really like his scrambled eggs!

Snow Day for Audrey

Brittney and Audrey playing in the snow together.  

After daddy ran over her snow dog with the Monster Blazer on accident, here is Audrey being bossy and saying "Can you make sure this doesn't fall off of here?".  She did remember her manners, but bossy as ever.

Stinker Faye - bossy as ever.

Taking Brittney's ball away... AGAIN.

What a stinker and what a sad dog.  Brittney's just waiting for that ball to drop!

More Snow fun!

Dusty couldn't resist - he remembers driving his ol' Toyota up hills.

Looking good here.

Daddy Help!

Well he's playing... and he knows daddy will help him out!

.

He was mad, then daddy did help him out!  I don't know if that made much of a difference, altho it did get Brogan closer to the balls that he wanted to grab hold of.