"CHA DOIN?"

Lately Keaton has made enormous strides with his speech. He still has a LOoooooooooooNG way to go, but it's so fun to hear his little voice come out. Pretty much EVERY day when I am putting on my makeup, he'll come into the bathroom and say,

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"Cha Doin Mama?"

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I tell him I'm putting on my makeup and he'll say, "Why?" Being his mom, I KNOW this is a trick question because if I say something like, "to look pretty" or "because I want to" he'll WANT to also!! And we ALL know how much he likes to "color" himself!! SO, I've learned to say, "Because mommy's get to put makeup on". I tried saying girls, but I don't think he knows he's NOT a girl! It's just so funny and I love watching his little personality shine!!

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THIS...

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is how we found Lilee a couple weeks back. What the heck? What is my little baby girl trying to do...GROW UP?! I never said it was okay! She's just such a little over achiever. She is so mobile and independent. She doesn't care if you are following her or not, she'll venture off all the way down the hall to our bedroom if she has a reason to! She's already getting into mischief with her brother! She is 8 months old YESTERDAY!! WOW, in 4 months I'll have another TODDLER...that's scary!!

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Well...I wasn't sure if I was going to post this on my blog or not, but since it is DEFINITELY the latest news, I suppose I will!!

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We are THINKING pretty SERIOUSLY about...

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MOVING!!

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AHhhhhhhhh, so scary and so exciting! Seth is interviewing for a management position at the University of Phoenix and the job is in...

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WASHINGTON...

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just outside of Seattle! It's EVERYTHING we wanted...higher pay, GREAT place to live! He is actually flying out tomorrow for a final interview. He'll leave in the morning and be back that night. We're hoping for an offer before he leaves so we can have the weekend to "decide"!

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Of course, have you heard about this HORRIBLE housing market? Yeah, that's where the problem comes in. They want him sometime in June and it's pretty much unheard of to sell a house that quickly, and NOBODY is making a profit anymore. We actually would probably LOSE money on our investment and that's just not an option. SO, what ARE our options?! Well, I think we have decided to try to rent it out. Kinda scary, but if we can rent it for a year or so until the market gets a bit better, then we can turn around and hopefully at least break even.

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SO, shameless ploy now...

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If you know ANYONE who wants to move to Goodyear to buy or rent, send them our way!!

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We're praying really hard and we have faith that if we are meant to be in Washington , Heavenly Father will make it possible! It's really been a whirlwind around here lately but we are SO excited about the prospects!! Pray that things fall into place for us!! THANKS!

Disneyland or Bust...

Sorry for the lack of updates. I have just not been in the BLOGGING "mood" lately. BUT, after a push from Tenille, I am ready to post about our Disneyland Trip!!

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(A family shot before we entered the park on Monday)
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It was a LOT of fun, with a few bumps in the road!!

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We woke up on Sunday and noticed Keat had a slight fever. Hmm? So, we gave him some Tylenol and figured it was teething(poor kid still hasn't gotten his 2 year molars). Go to church, come home, pack up the car, and we're on our way. The drive there was AWESOME!! We didn't stop ONCE and the kids were pretty much little angels. By the time we got to our hotel, we noticed Keat's fever was WAY high, so we dose him with Tylenol, Seth gives the poor kid a blessing and we tuck him in to bed hoping that a good nights rest will "fix" everything. He wakes up with a fever. SO, again thinking it is probably just teething, we dope him up and head to Disneyland.

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(My cute little family waiting at our hotel for the bus to take us to Disneyland)

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IT IS THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH!!!

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(At California Adventures...pretty kewl background, eh? Notice the tired little bubs?)

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Aside from having to give Keat medicine every 4-6 hours, we all had a great time! Lilee was a DREAM...just smiling and laughing and loving on everyone!! I cannot COUNT the number of times someone commented on what a happy pretty little lady she was!! (blush!) Keat was a little sluggish, what with all the Tylenol in his system, but he seemed to have a great time too.

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(This is what Lilee learned on our trip. We kept making stupid cheesy faces to get her to smile for pictures, so she started this smile where she scrunches up her nose and squints her eyes...we call it her Cheezer Smile)

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SO, that night we decided that if Keat's temp was still up in the a.m., we'd have to take him in somewhere. Well, we woke up and it was a no-brainer when he had a fever of 104.4* !!! I about died, made Seth take him to an urgent care, which ended up being an ER, and paid $75 for them to tell us it was a SMALL ear infection, shoot the boy up with antibiotics, and send them home! I am not a medical professional, but I am PRETTY sure a SMALL ear infection would not cause 3 days of HIGH temperatures. IDIOTS!!

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(Keat REALLY wanted to see what was in this door...too bad he doesn't understand PROPS)

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Under the assumption that it was an ear infection, not contagious, we went to California Adventures. FUN FUN FUN!!! Lilee was still a doll, but today Keat was a bit of a bear. We "almost" went home about 3 dozen times. All in all, it was a fun day.

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(OH BOY...he was the TRAIN CONDUCTOR on this ride in Toon Town. Look at the JOY!)

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We were supposed to go home Wednesday morning, to early afternoon, but after having the rough day we had on Tuesday, decided to stay a little bit longer when Keat started to show signs of improvement. HOWEVER, after about 3 hours, he was back to the fever and they came with the chills. So, we packed up and started to leave. We stopped to take his temp. and it was a WHOPPING 103.8* and this was AFTER being outside in the cold for HOURS!! Uhhhhg, needless to say, the ride home was not as nice as the ride there, but we made it home!! Of COURSE, the next morning, Keat was fever free and has been ever since.

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Lilee is another story as her temp soared THIS Monday morning and stayed around till this Wednesday also. At least with just two kids I am pretty sure we are DONE with whatever this thing was. MOST DEFINITELY NOT AN EAR INFECTION THOUGH!! Stupid ghetto California Dr's!!

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(My TIRED little sweets. So tired, but SO cute!!)

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So, while there was some "issues" we really had a great time. Seth and I were able to ride pretty much EVERY single adult ride we wanted to(separately) and Keat went on everything he wanted to...some two or THREE times!! It was SO much fun watching him get excited and happy when he saw a familiar ride or Disney character!!

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(We are a DUCK LOVIN' FAMILY...we jumped at the chance to get a photo with Donald!!)

(We saw Mr. Incredible walking, asked for a photo...which they NEVER give on a whim...he stopped and we couldn't find our camera. SO, he WAITED and played with Lilee and had her cracking up. By the time we found our camera there was a crowd taking pictures of our cutie being swoon by Mr. Incredible himself!! What a moment!! I think this may be her first crush!)

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SO...Moral of the story...

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Even with a fever, DISNEYLAND IS TRULY THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH!!!

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Can't wait to go back. Here are some more photos of our adventure!!

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(I got to meet up with a friend, Stacie, and her kiddos!! Here she is with Britton. CUTE!)

(This was the only place we could get a photo of them without me holding Lilee!!)

(Running around Tom Sawyers island...that has been invaded by pirates!! They've done a LOT with this and it is SO cute!)

(Daddy and Keat with all their "booty")

(Daddy and Lilee on the KRAZY Ferris Wheel...the cars move all over as the wheel turns)

(Keat saw the train and...you guessed it...HAD to get a photo!!)

(And this is how we had our last meal on the way out of town...Keat and Lilee were asleep the WHOLE time...it was kinda nice!)

Did I mention LIFE IS GOOD?!

Okay...miracle of ALL miracles...Lilee crashed ON THE FLOOR at 7pm(2 hours before her usual bedtime) and Keat followed suit at 8pm! SO...Seth is at mutual and I am bound and DETERMINED to catch up on my blog!!

First, LILEE IS CRAWLING...what the heck?! I wasn't going to call it actual crawling until my mother in law saw her on Sunday and said it was definitely crawling. She does this sort of caterpillar crawl, but she gets EVERYWHERE! I'm sure I'm not outta the woods yet, but SO FAR, Keat isn't too bothered by his MONSTER of a sister caterpillar-ing herself on top of him when he's laying down watching a movie or grabbing the toys he is so desperately trying to contain. SO FAR anyways! In fact, most of the time, he just laughs and then turns it into a game. What a sweet boy!! I am loving that she is mobile though...she's happy, I'm happy!


Doesn't this picture look like those ghostly things from Harry Potter that suck the life out of people?! SO FUNNY!!

At the splash pad on Park Day!

A CUuuuuuuuuTE picture of my newest nephew Aaron!!


Lilee takes a bath like a big girl now...no more baby tub!!

I love this little bunch!!



Next, I had to share some awesome(sarcasm) pictures of how Seth and I celebrated our TAX RETURN!! I've ALWAYS wanted to go to the Melting Pot (in Scottsdale...they are actually opening one at Arrowhead in a month or so). It truly was AMAZING! The pictures REALLY don't do it justice, but it was wonderful! Thanks MOM AND DAD for watching our little Twinkies! We also went and watched the movie, Baby Mama...I about CRIED laughing. I must say though that it does have some bad parts...language and such, but I think Amy Pohler is one of the FUNNIEST women alive and I about died watching her in this movie!! SO...it was a great night with fantastic food and what better way to spend it than with the love of my life!! Thanks Seth-ee for a great night out!!


Cheese Fondue to start...

Followed by a DELICIOUS Caribbean salad...

YUMMY entree to follow...

End it with a Cookies and Cream fondue desert...okay, so we were a bit eager and forgot the BEFORE picture...dang!! I guess we'll just have to go again for that one!


What a DORK...do you SEE what I have to put up with?! :) He ALWAYS keeps me laughing!




I saved the best for last!! OUR MARCH FOR BABIES WALK!!! It was the most BEAUTIFUL morning and we had a GREAT time! I cannot thank you all enough for your support! The grand total for our team and all our individual pledges was somewhere in the $500's!! Can you believe that?! I was so impressed and grateful for everyone's donations! I especially want to thank everyone who not only came out to support us at the walk but who also graciously purchased a TEAM shirt(that Seth designed and Richard O. made) so we all would look great walking together!! We sure stood out in our GREEN and it was just amazing to see all of us there. We had about 25 in our group!! THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!! It is DEFINITELY a cause worth all the time and effort we put into it. We will do it again next year so if you are interested, let us know!!


I LURVE this family shot!!

Before the walk started...we were missing a few people!


During the walk...don't we stand out!?

Here is the WHOLE group...L-R Sara, Becky, Seth w/Lilee and Keat, Donna, Holly w/ Clark, Craig w/ Mallory and Chase, Richard, Abe w/ Aidan and Tanner, Lindsey, ME, Tiff w/ Freeman and Nathan, Lindsey, Mike w/ Amy, Samara, and Eddie! I couldn't forget Lorissa...she was TAKING the picture!

Look at my little chunk...she LOVED the bubbles...well, as much as you can love them when you have NO CLUE what they are...cute tights, eh?!

Life is Good!

I know I am behind. Uhhhhhg...I have SO much to post...I am HOPING to get on tonight while Seth is at mutuals and the kiddos are sleeping! Fingers crossed!! :) Life is krazy...but GOOD!!

TAGGGGG...You're IT!

Okay...I've been tagged a few times...so I'm going to try to do all of them in this post!! :)
I should say that I have been working on these for about a week...some answers may not make sense with the particular day!!:)

First, tagged by Lindsey!!...OKAY...I need to do this one again because it didn't save all my pictures!! MANnnnnn, I'll get to it a bit later, k Linds?!

Okay...next tagged by Caroline AND Stef...thanks girls!

7 weird and interesting things about me...

1. Double jointed in legs...can literally turn them around and walk backwards. My mom used to bring me in as SHOW AND TELL for her 4th grade class every year!

2. I have spent WELL over $500 on scrapbooking accessories and HAVE YET TO MAKE A SINGLE PAGE!!

3. I have a dream of going to Alaska...JUST to see the Northern Lights

4. Since I mentioned Alaska, I guess I should also say that I have a dream of going to Astoria, Oregon to RE-ENACT the scene from Goonies where the kids ride down the road on their bikes in search of One Eyed Willy's buried treasure!! Ahhhhhhhhh, great aspiration, eh?

5. I was told to eat an ice cream shake once a day, every day during my pregnancy with Keaton. That was the best diet I've EVER been on!!

6. In college, my roommate and I began writing a screenplay. We spent hours in cute little coffee shops and clubs discussing all the details...of course we didn't get much further than deciding on the characters and then got carried away trying to decide WHAT ACTORS AND ACTRESSES would play such characters. We even went as far as to decide that Rob Thomas/Matchbox20 would do the soundtrack for our movie...in our world it was already a movie!! OIIIIY!!

7. I cry at EVERYTHING!! Not such a shocker to anyone who really knows me...but it's gotten pretty bad after having kids. It's like the hormones that control the water works are broken...you show me a Huggies Commercial and I'm gone!!

And this one is from Kristi...

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Niki Newman from the soap opera Young and the Restless
2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? When a friend donated to the March of Dimes to get me to my goal yesterday!
3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? When it looks nice
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Turkey
5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? 3!!!
6.IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? I should hope so!
7. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Constantly - It's probably something I should work on!
8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yep!
9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? I am terrrrrrrrrified of heights...so no!
10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Raisin Nut Bran
11. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Nope!
12. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE MENTALLY STRONG? I think so most of the time
13. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM? Mint Chocolate Chip...but only from Baskin Robbins!!
14. WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE? Their eyes
15. RED OR PINK? Pink
16. WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?My inability to get motivated!
17. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? I miss my bub Logan quite a bit!
18. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? yep
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Jeans and Black Bling-y flip flops!
20. WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE? English Muffin
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Lilee SQUAWK for attention, Seth tell Keat to put SOMETHING on the chair...("noo, no, no, noooo...not in the garbage"), and Keat sounds confused!!
22. IF YOU WHERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Cornflower Blue
23. FAVORITE SMELLS? RAIN...and freshly bathed babies!!
24.Who is the last person you talked to on the phone? My momma
25. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Love her
26. FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH? Basketball
27. HAIR COLOR? Dark brown
28. EYE COLOR? Used to be blue...but I need to detox because apparently they have changed to green-ish. (Some say if you DETOX your eyes will/can change color)
29. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Nope...hopefully my kids will get MY eyes!
30. FAVORITE FOOD? I EAT EVERYTHING...ALL THE TIME!! I love Mexican...chips and salsa...ice cream, SUSHI...mmmmmm....OH, just about anything!
31. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Both
32. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED? Thomas the Tank Engine sing-a-long! Uhhhhhhhhggg, if that DVD gets lost or heaven forbid SMASHED...I may throw a party!!
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Black
34. SUMMER OR WINTER? SPRING AND FALLLLL!!!
35. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs
36. FAVORITE DESSERT? Ice Cream or rice krispy treats
37. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? ????????
38. LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? ????????
39. WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW? Reading?? Is that something people are doing these days? Hmmmm, maybe I should join the bandwagon!
40. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Gateway logo
41. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T. V. LAST NIGHT? American Idol!! YEAH!
42. FAVORITE SOUND? My kiddos laughing together
43. ROLLING STONES OR BEATLES? Beatles
44. WHAT IS THE FARTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME? Hawaii...yeah!!

And finally...this one is from Ashley....how's that baby Ella baking?! Not long now, huh?!

A-Z Tag

A- ATTACHED OR SINGLE: attached

B- BEST FRIEND: My Seth-E-Poo

C-CAKE OR PIE: CAKE...esp. Texas Sheet Cake or Better than S-E-X-Cake!!

D- DAY OF CHOICE: Friday...fun for the weekend!!

E- ESSENTIAL ITEM: Computer

F- FAVORITE COLOR: LOVE Turquoise and Teal!!

G- GREATEST ACCOMPLISHMENT: FINISHING my student teaching to complete my degree after losing our precious Logan. It was hard to go back, but I'm SO grateful I did!

H- HOMETOWN: Goodyear, AZ

I- INDULGENCES: I indulge myself MUCH too often. However, I guess Baskin Robbins Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Shakes are a bit of an indulgence!!

J- JANUARY OR JULY: OKAY...well, I love January because it's my birthday, but I love July for the 4th!! Also, it's our anniversary...SOooo, it's a tie!! I think I'd like July even more if it wasn't 150* outside!!:)

K- KIDS: 3 precious little tukeys!! 2 at home, one for eternity!!

L- LIFE IS INCOMPLETE WITHOUT: My family...I can't imagine my krazy wonderful life without them!

M- MARRIAGE DATE: July 17th, 2003

N- NUMBER OF SIBLINGS: 1 brother

O- ORANGES OR APPLES: Greeeeen Apples with a to die for dip!!

P- PHOBIAS OR FEARS: My greatest fear is losing my husband or another child. Also, I fear not being able to get pregnant again.

Q- QUOTES: "There is no role in life more essential and more eternal than that of motherhood"

R- REASON TO SMILE: Keaton is "dancing" with Lilee right now and they are LAUGHING hysterically...if that doesn't make you smile, I don't know what will!!

S- SEASON: FALL...I LOVE the idea that the heat is GOING AWAY and there is a crispness in the air!!

T- TAG EIGHT FRIENDS: Caroline, Jennifer, Cammie, Sarah, Robyn, Tiffany, Karen, and Amie!!!

U- UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME: I will REDO a diaper 50 times until I have each side done just so...it's about the only thing I'm particular about!!

V- VERY FAVORITE STORE: I'm with you Ash...I just ADORE Target. I can't wait until our SUPER target opens and I can have a one stop shop!!

W- WORST HABIT: As stated before, I can be VERY Lazy...working on it though!!

X- X-RAY OR ULTRASOUND: Ultrasound...there's nothing like seeing your baby safe and sound!!

Y- YOUR FAVORITE FOOD: Mexican and ICE CREAM!!

Z-YOUR ZODIAC SIGN: Capricorn with Aquarius tendencies. I was born on the cusp. The last day or the Cap and the first day of the Aqua sign!!:)

SOoooooooooo, ladies I tagged...pick one or pick them all!!

WOW...that was WAY more than anyone wanted to know about me!! Thanks for all the tags, they were fun!!!

MARCH FOR BABIES...Leaping for Logan!

This is my FINAL plug for the March of Dimes(I promise it's my last)! The walk is this Saturday. If anyone out there would like to donate, simply click on the link to the right of my blog and you can do it all securely online! This truly is a great cause and one I hold very close to my heart! We're giving itty-bitty babies a chance to live...it's amazing!

You Drive Me Crazy!

An overplayed Britney Spears song may come to mind when you read the title of my post...however, I am referring to a different kind of crazy!

You know, the one that hits when you find your two year old

1.) AWAKE after putting him to bed 30 minutes earlier and

2.) you smell the very pungent odor of nail polish.

OR, the one that makes you sick to your stomach when you find 1/4 of your makeup is not only ruined but ornately decorating your son. It doesn't help when your husband is more concerned with whether he put the makeup on his body or on his FACE...gasp(how could MY son put makeup on HIS face?!)!

OR maybe still, it's the heat that you feel rise to your ears as your two year old empties an ENTIRE box of Frosted Flakes onto the carpet...not to mention the clothes, toys, and baby sister, that happened to be on the carpet at the time!

"but mom, THEY'RE GRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrEAT!"

If that is the kind of KRAZY you can relate to...share your stories...it would be LOVELY to know my UNBELIEVABLY terrible two~isn't so unbelievable!

Just because I find it difficult to post without pictures, here are some recent ones!!

Here is the latest adventure in POTTY TRAINING!!

I don't know if I'm more excited about him being on the potty or READING!!:)

He got these EASTER BUNNY teeth from none other than the EASTER BUNNY!!:) What a dork!!

We spent a Family Home Evening planting flowers around our tree...look at my sweetness! (I'm talking about Lilee)

Despite the aforementioned naughtiness that occurs pretty regularly, Keat really is a big help!

What cute kiddos they are!

First day in the POOL!! Have you seen a more excited face in your life?!

Keat sure loves Lilee!!

Goin' down the slide for the first time...look at Lilee trying to figure out how she is going to get over there to get in on the action...she wants to be JUST like her big brother!:)

Kolby got this kewl sprinkler thing for his B-day and we all had fun with it!

These three boys are SO cute together. I love how close they are getting and watching them interact!! They will be the best of friends!!