Sarah's 30th B-Day Party

Last Saturday we celebrated my sister Sarah's 30th birthday with a big bash at my Mom & Dad's. It was a lot of fun. There was swimming (only the little kids), golf, & rag ball.

watching the golf competition

what 2 crazy 5 yr olds do when they get ahold of Grandma's camera

Rachel enjoying herself

me & my somber faced Olivia

my pacified Rachel & me

love is in the air

I have some wonderful news to report...

I am very pleased & excited to announce there will be a new addition to the Sturgeon family! Well, not really new, she has been around since August of 2007. But now it is official.

My brother Tim & his girlfriend Hilary got engaged yesterday!!!

This is what Hilary came home to find! Along with a lovely poem!

Isn't my brother like the best guy! HA!

I am so unbelievably happy for them. No wedding date set yet, but I am sure details will be forthcoming!

Blog Hop = Favorite Kid Photos

This week's blog hop theme is "Favorite Kid Pictures".

I really wanted to post every single picture I have ever taken of my kiddos, but I don't have the time. HA! So I chose a select few that I love!

Olivia 2 yrs old! Love the silly face!

(please disregard my dirty dishes in the sink behind her)

Olivia & Rachel such a sweet sisterly kiss!

Olivia 3 & Rachel 1 month

Smiling sisters!

Rachel 9 months & Livie 4

(not sure why this picture loaded so small...but its cute anyways)

Rachel 18 months old - nothing beats this smile!

Rachel & Olivia in our hotel room.

Chances Are...

...if Olivia is watching TV, she is watching iCarly.

...if I am watching TV, it is a reality show.

...if Jarrett is watching TV, it is the Fox News Channel.

...if Olivia & Rachel are in their room playing nicely, it won't last long.

...if it is bathtime, both girls are in the tub together.

...if Jarrett goes anywhere, Rachel will follow him.

...if we don't have anything planned in advance for dinner, we all eat cereal.

...if we go anywhere, Jarrett & I will drive separately. Just in case one of the kids needs to leave due to a major meltdown. Not very cost-effective, just easier.

...if I go to bathroom at home, I am never in there alone. NEVER

...if we get together with my family we will end up quoting movies/TV shows at some point in the night.

...if we get together with Jarrett's family we will end up talking politics & farming.

...if it's Sunday afternoon, my wonderful husband has taken one or both of the girls for a ride to give me some time for myself.

...if my phone rings between the 8:00 - 8:30 am it is Jarrett.

Happy Birthday & Happy Anniversary

July 22, 1978 - my Mom & Dad were married.

July 22, 1979 - my sister Sarah was born.

My Dad says it was the work of God because now he only had to remember 1 date.

Happy 31st Anniversary to my Mom & Dad!

Happy 30th Birthday to my sister Sarah!

Wordless Wednesday

Swimming at Grandma's

When Olivia was 6 months old, I started her in the "Mommy & Me" swim class. She loved it. We went every week until she was like 3. Then she did the 3 year old "Pike" class. Then life kind of took over & priorities got all whopper-jawed. And unfortunately, she hasn't been back to the Y since around Christmas of 2007. I know I feel horrible for letting her swim classes take a back-seat to my going to work, having a new baby, life in general...

But have no fear, every summer we swim in Grandma & Grandpa's pool! And up until this year Olivia will not touch the water without her back-pack on. I think I tried it last year & she sunk like a stone. I digress...Last weekend we were there for lunch & a dip so I took Olivia's back-pack off. For the first couple of minutes, she screamed & threw a fit all while swimming perfectly with no back-pack. She was doing it - actually swimming on her own! I am so proud of her.

After she noticed that she was the center of attention & getting applause, she voluntarily took her back-pack off herself to demonstrate her new found abilities! I LOVE THIS GIRL! She did so well & we are all proud of her.

"wait a minute Mom, are you sure I have to do this without my back-pack"

"maybe I can do this, I just have to get to where Mom is & she will give me the back-pack"

"Mom, you have my back-pack in your hands just give it back to me"

"well, if you won't help me, I will swim to the ladder unassisted"

"Hey, are you clapping & jumping up & down cheering because I can swim??? Well then alright, if I must, I will cheese it up for the camera Grandma"

Rachel on the other hand, was not as sure about the whole swimming thing. But we are a far cry from last year. This time last year, she was like throwing a cat into the water. She was in for a little while with us, but grew restless. She was happier on the deck enjoying the scenery.

"For real Mom, I have to take my Nuk out to swim???"

"I think I will just stay on the deck with Daddy then"

Livie & Mama's Day of Fun

I, being the downright awesome Mom that I am, surprised Olivia by taking her to see Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince today. Ok, so I know the movie is not Rated G & Olivia is 5 years old, but I decided to take her anyway. & that is all part of the "Awesome Mom" thing. Come on now people, I want to score some fun points. Afterall, I am the one who tells her "Clean up your toys" or "We keep our hands to ourselves" or "Get your finger out of your nose", all of which are all things I usually say on a daily basis. I need to score some fun points somewhere!

And Saturday was an excellent opportunity to score said "fun points". We had a Mommy/Daughter double date with Tim & Hilary. You can see more about how awesome we think my only favorite brother Tim & his girlfriend Hilary are from our trip to the beach.

I am a complete picture freak mother who likes to document her child's life. Therefore, I did take pictures of our little trip to the movie. However, my computer wouldn't let me load them on blogger. Have no fear, I will try again tomorrow. In the meantime, I will leave you with the movie poster that I managed to upload!

"Happy 4th of July" on the 17th of July

Bet you thought I forgot...well, ok I did forget. But we had an awesome party at my Mom & Dad's on the 4th. It was so much fun, no different to any of my other family get togethers.

Aside from the constant rain from the morning until 5:00 or so, an excellent time was had by all. Rain = Puddles! The little kids had an awesome time running & splashing through the puddles. And the photographic proof...

And the cool temperatures didn't stop the bigger kids from swimming. Olivia, Nathan, & Cassidy swam in the pool for a good hour after the rain finally quit. Then the mosquitos were going wild & feasting on the kiddos. We followed up the swimming with a ragball game, which is a Sturgeon family staple! Competitiveness is genetic, right? :) Who doesn't love a friendly game. Only pictures of the kiddos playing wiffle ball. I was in the action of the ragball game so I didn't get pictures taken.

Then after the festivites of the day we all packed up & headed to my Grandma & Grandpa's for the 2nd official "Tim Sturgeon Fireworks Extravaganza" - Tim feel free to coin that title for future use! ha! It was great & the kids had an excellent time. All of the "ooohs & aaahs" were much deserved.

Blog Hop - 3 things you don't know about me

This is my second week partaking in the joy of the Blog Hop. I love blog hopping; in my opinion, it's just an overall excellent thing to do to wittle away the hours of the day!

This week is 3 Things You Don't Know About Me. Believe it or not, this was sort of hard to come up with. I think I came up with some good ones that not even my BFF Laura will know.

1) I cannot stand warm change in my hand.

Seriously, it may be some sort of phobia, who knows. But it physically turns my stomach to hold coins in my hand. It makes the coins all warm, & ugh it is grossing me out just thinking about it. Weird right, I know & admitting it is half the battle :)

I think it all stems from when I worked in a pharmacy when I was in high school. All of the old men would pull the change out of their pockets & I would have to count out what they needed to give me to pay. DOUBLE YUCK!

2) Smokey & The Bandit is pretty much my all time favorite movie.

Big shock to my IRL friends, considering I am oh-so-sophisticated. HA! But I love it. And any time that movie is on, I will sit and watch it. Even when CMT shows it 3 consecutive nights, I watch it each time.

3) I love to do cross stitch.

It's very relaxing, & I feel a great sense of accomplishment when I frame the finished product. My current project (which I took a hiatus from for over a month now) are Christmas Stockings for my BFF Laura & her family. Hopefully, I will be finished with all 3 by November.

There you have it. 3 things you didn't know about me, but now you do! I promise you, I am a really well rounded individual, even though my list is sort of all over the place. HAHA! Come to think of it, randomness is really what makes me a great person HA!