Our little olympians

Apparently, our Olympic fever was catching. While we stayed up way too late watching amazing athletes, our kiddos dreamt of winning the gold! We found them both in this position during our nightly check on them on one of these late evenings.

A visit from Andy-Sue

My dear friend Andrea and three of her four beautiful children spent the afternoon with us two weeks ago. They were in town to visit Andrea's in-laws in Mesa but managed to squeeze us in. Matthew is so grown up since we saw him last summer - a real cutie! The girls (Hannah and Leah) had a great time in Audrey's makeup while Andrea and I made dinner. Then we were off to swim at the YMCA and frozen yogurt at my most favorite new discovery: iSwirl. We made quite a scene getting self-served fro-yo for us and five little kids and we all had a great time. It was so fun to see them! Unfortunately, Andrea and I forgot to take any pics with us in them. You can check out Andrea's blog at http://fowlesflock.blogspot.com/

They grow up so fast!

Audrey's completed three weeks of Kindergarten already, but here are some pics from her first day. We took one with her "best friend" Emma, our cute little neighbor across the street. They ended up in the same class (one of five Kindergarten classes) and at the same table group. Audrey couldn't be happier. I went and had lunch with her this past Friday and got to see her in her social element. "Everyone is my friend" she casually told me when I asked who her friends were. She says her favorite part is leading the class when they walk to lunch. So far, so good, although she did just ask if we could make a count down calendar till she starts 1st grade.

ladders, beer bottles & the ER

Tuesday didn't go down at all like a regular Tuesday. Rob called just after noon to calmly tell me he'd fallen off a ladder while pulling a wire for a security system install. He had lacerated his arm on a now broken beer bottle in an unfortunately placed box of empty bottles on the counter. He was patiently awaiting an ambulance to take him to an unknown hospital... oh, and he was not okay. Panicking, I made arrangements for Bennett and Audrey, who would be done with school in a couple hours. After many hours in triage at the first hospital and then a transfer (ambulance ride #2) to a hospital downtown, he could finally be seen by a hand surgeon. Dr. Champagne performed emergency surgery to repair one severed artery, one tendon and a partially severed nerve. All in all, about 50 internal, permanent stitches and 20 staples that will come out next week. Here he is a couple hours after the surgery, still trying to shake off that general anesthesia. We were home by midnight; the kids enjoyed their first sleepover at our friends'... thank goodness for good friends! The doctor says to expect about six weeks in the splint and 12-18 months for the "fuzziness" to subside in his pinky and ring fingers. We're pretty grateful everything turned out as well as it did - we know that the Lord is blessing us. Thank you to all who have called to check up on us and for all your prayers!

It's a BOY!

Pretty self-explanatory, I know. These were taken on the 13th (of May) but it's taken me a bit to get them posted. Both Audrey and Bennett came with us as I thought it would be very exciting for them (and I didn't want to find a sitter for our 7am appointment). They were bored out of their minds and didn't see what the big deal was. Audrey told me a couple days after that she didn't believe that there's a baby in my tummy, but that I was just eatting too much food... kids!!

Two cats in the yard

A few of you have asked for pics of our new home... well, it's new to us. So here it is complete with kitties and a little girl. We're loving it!

And so it grows

Here's an update on my growing belly at 17 weeks (and counting - I'll admit it). I've donned the preggo shirts to help strangers determine it's a baby causing the bulge. Maternity clothes are really so much more comfortable besides. We got to hear the heartbeat again at he doctor's this morning. Bennett was so excited to be there for that! My "anatomy scan" ultrasound is scheduled for May 13th. I'm betting on a girl, but we're taking suggestions for boy names too!

"All Skate"

It's been so fun to watch them develop this new hobby - fun, aside from the skinned knees, banged walls and flattened toes that is. Audrey's gotten quite good with the new skates Grandpa Bailey got for her just a week ago. Whenever I take the time to get Bennett decked out in his safety gear he'll change his mind about wanting to skate by the time he's ready. Thus, he usually goes without.

Easter makes em hoppy

This Sunday, not unlike other Sundays, we found Audrey dressed for 1:00 church by the time we rolled out around 8. She's always so anxious for primary and had forgotten about the visit from the Easter Bunny. Rob's parents were visiting from Yuma/ Vancouver for the weekend - it was so great to have them here for the holiday!

The search for their baskets didn't take long... and then the sugar-fest began. Why do we do this to ourselves?

And here he is inspecting the basket, getting up close and personal with all its tasty treasures.

Here's the egg hunt with some friends from our last ward. Can you just sense the urgency?

It's for real!!

Rob said he didn't believe it till today when we saw the pictures. I, on the other hand, have been pretty sure that all this nausea - oh, and the constant dozing off day after day was proof for a couple months now.

Bailey baby #3 has two legs, two arms and two hands... that's a pretty good start!
"She's" 12 weeks now and just over 2 inches long. We won't know for another couple months if my feelings about her being a girl are right.

California Get-Away

I got to accompany Rob for a trade show in Anaheim at the beginning of March. First of all, California is so beautiful right now - it felt like paradise coming from the desert of Phoenix. We left Audrey and Bennett with Rob's folks in Yuma and took off Thursday afternoon. We were pretty busy with show Friday and Saturday, but managed to squeeze in an evening at Downtown Disney and one to see Fool's Gold after treating ourselves to some sweet back massages at one of those places where everyone's walking by and wishing they could have one too. Sunday we went to see Rob's cousin and family in Murrieta, just an hour from where we were staying.
Friday night I helped Rob fulfil a childhood dream by dining at the Medieval Times restaurant.

We lacked the appropriate clothing for the time period, but got the royalty seating and had a hearty, finger-lickin' good meal of spare ribs, soup, a baked potato, about half a chicken and, of course, Pepsi.

All this was served to us while watching a fantastic story unfold in the arena. They had very well trained horses and riders (knights) - we cheered for the black and white knight who did not prove to be the most talented. There were excellent sword fights and even jousting. All in all, a super fun evening.

This is us and our knight friend - he's a part of the really cool museum at Medieval Times.

California Adventure

Monday we decided on a trip to the beach to catch some California sun and we're still a little sad we never made it there. We changed our minds after getting in the car (it's okay to be spontaneous when you don't have the kids to worry about) and chose California Adventure instead.



We couldn't stand the thought of going to Disney Land without the kiddos, so we went to the theme park next door and had a great time. We didn't realize there would be so many things for them at this park too. Here's part of the parade featuring Rattitoue's chefs.


Here's us looking rested and youthful like we did on our wedding day.

My favorite was the California Screamin' roller coaster - definitely the best I've ever ridden. Rob loved the Soaring Over California ride that makes you feel like you're in an open cockpit flying over all of California's great sites. We ate ice cream, watched the parade and felt like kids again... what a wonderful day!

A Little Family Overview

Rob and I were married the 26th of December, 2001. That's right, the day after Christmas for all of you who don't remember or are still holding a grudge for the inconvenience. I guess that means we've been blissfully married for nearly five years now! My how time flies when your life is changing in drastic ways.

The big mile stones have been: my graduation from BYU in April of 2002, Our move to Washington shortly after that, Audrey's birth on June 6, 2003, Rob's graduation from Concordia University in May of 2004 and Bennett's arrival May 22, 2005. We are currently prepping for our move to Salem, OR where Rob will be attending Willamette University, studying law for the next... let's not talk about for how long.

I'll get some more recent photos in here a little later.

Coming On Board

My inclination has been to avoid this whole blog hype. Fortunately, encouragement from several friends and the realization that it might be kind of fun to create a blog have helped me to take the plunge. Not really that big of a deal afterall. Keeping in touch has always been important to me - hopefully this will help me to do a better job. Thank you to all who have influenced and motivated me.