9 years and counting

On Saturday Jason and I celebrated our ninth year of marriage.. already! It doesn't seem like it should be 9 already.. more like 20!! Just kidding! however we will be together 13 in March!
To celebrate we went out to eat at Buca's.. we had plenty of leftovers::: I had my sister to convert our wedding video over to a DVD & then I made a cover for it with one of our wedding pictures..
Jason surprised me on Friday by bringing me a dozen "Latin beauty" roses..

Philly Zoo

Yep.. we heart the zoo !!

This time we visit Philly's Zoo..

Jason & I didn't like it as well as Baltimore.
It was hot & super crowded~~ this lead to some meltdowns..and not just from the kids.uh oh!! The zoo had all kinds of things that cost extra. And anyone with young kids know what can happen if you don't give in. We didn't give in. They had hot air balloon rides.. super cool, right? nope! it was 10 bucks a person and if you add that up it would have been 50 bucks for our lil family.. not thanks. they had swan paddle boat rides that carter wanted to do.. we didn't even get near them. then there was panning for gems.. 6 stinking dollars for a small bag of sand.

There were a few things that we really liked.. the giraffes(my fave), the giant river otters(they were super playful), the hyena's(it was supper time)

I put pix up on my facebook account later...

a fresh look

I got the kids new bedding to freshen up their rooms...

Ahhh.. my beautiful floor!!

We came across some beautiful flooring... Bamboo! Did you know that people are using this "environmentally friendly" wood for floors? It is amazing! So I talked Jason into buying it and laying it in our dining room. We have been wanting to do something with the floors because everywhere you come into the house there is carpet. Needless to say my carpets don't take long to get nasty. Who would've thought with 3 kids, a hubby in construction and a dog who loves to run in the mud as much as the boys do??!!
Jason had off yesterday from work and he got right to.. YAY!!! He is so amazingly handy! He has a skill, that is for sure. I couldn't even begin to imagine how much we save due to his talent.
::::::::now time for some pics::::::::::::

our "pet" for the day

When we came home this afternoon, Carter found a bat hanging above the back porch light.. just chillin! How neat.. so I run to get my camera(of course) to take a picture. The more I focus on this bat I realize that it is a mommy & her pup(that's what baby bats are called) is tucked under her wing.. WOW!! I have never seen a bat pup before. They hung out there all day long.

Then tonight when we came home from going out to Boeringher's, they flew away right after we got out of the van. Momma got pretty close to my hair.. Jason thought she was gonna fly into it! Baby wasn't far behind mommy.. too cute! yes I think bats are cute.. as long as they aren't dive bombing me!
I tried to figure out what type of bat this was.. and I'm not sure if it's a big brown bat or a little brown bat. What I did find out about these neat lil creatures is that they normally have their pups in nursery colonies.. their eyes open after 24 hrs. during the 1st 2 weeks of life the pup stays nestled under the mom's wing while she is at rest.. then on the 3rd week they are able to fly. The pups stop nursing from their mom completely at 9 months..

Callie's 1st real Hair cut

I thought that Callie needed to get a real haircut to even up a lot of her layers that grew in naturally. So I made an appointment with my new hairdresser, Kathy, for today.. July 4th.

I can't say that I am overjoyed by this cut :(

Kathy done a wonderful job working with her.. but the cut has totally changed my baby girl!

Carter & Owen went along with me and Carter said after Kathy was done.. "I hate it! I hate Callie's hair!" Jason on the other hand thinks it looks cute. When I came home I cried because of it.. Ya' know when she turned 1, I as ok.. when she turned 2 ,I was ok.. but for some reason this haircut made realize that she isn't a baby anymore!!!

the Maryland zoo in Baltimore

On the 14th we took a trip to the zoo.. if you would here Jason say it: we were going to see some of my family:: i got so tired of hearing that! I was never funny at any point but he beat it like a drum.. I wouldn't be lying if I said I wouldn't care to hear that saying ever again!
Anywho.. we took Peggy and her family along. we had a great time. the sun was hot but thankfully the zoo is like 90% shaded! Somehow I still managed to get some sun. Just me.. I had put sunblock and the kids. We got there around noon and stayed til closing.. 5:00 pm! This is our 2nd trip there and we haven't seen the lions yet. We are planning another trip next month on our Anniversary.. Carter says that we must go to the Lions first!!

::The Prairie Dogs::

this is new exhibit that opened just this month! There were several babies.. they would lay flat out on their tummies and soak up the sun! too cute

::the Polar bear::

This polar bear wanted to take a plunge in the refreshing water but was hesitant.. it took her 3 times before she finally decided to do it.. There was a big crowd gathered around to watch. Last year we didn't get to see them because it was too hot for them to be out! The boys were super excited to see 'em this go around!!

::The marsh lands::

This was really neat.. the kids took off their shoes & socks and walked across these giant lilly pads.. they were on springs and their body weight sank them down just a wee bit.. enought to get their feet wet.. Carter done it over and over and over again.

Owen(in da purple) Lacey & Carter is leading

::photo op::

I forget what type of bird makes a nest similar to this type of nest..

we stuck all of the kids in it for a picture.. Not all of them were as willing to do this.. *wink*wink*

Cailan, Lacey & Scotty,Owen & Carter and of course Callie

There were many neat pictures taken but these are the only ones I am gonna share.. mainly because I am tired of the slow uploader.. hehehehee!

Callie's ladybug party!

On the 13th(my birthday) we celebrated Callie's birthday with family & friends. We kept it small.. it was nice that way.. i was able to mingle a bit with everyone. :::Party people::: pappa, callie, sue-sue & lacey

Me (coming out with food),Peggy holding Landon W., Amber W., sadie(our JRT) Jason & the side of Cailan's head..lol

More party people...

Nanna & Peggy

Jimmy and his boys... Landon & Lincoln

::The Cake::



















Presents:::


Callie helping daddy w/ her "bike"
a check from great grandpa





















Her pony and dolly her new earrings

I think I am gonna cry...

My baby girl turns 2 today!! I can't believe that Callie is 2 already! As I look back in my memories that are stored away for safe keeping(until Alzheimer's hits..lol) I am amazed at how precious of a child she is.. the only girl of 3 kids, the only one with gorgeous red hair & a gift from God indeed!!
The Past 2 years have flown by so fast.. I don't want to blink my eyes for I am afraid that I will miss the next 2 years. She has her daddy wrapped very tight around that little finger of hers. It's almost cute.. well it is really!! She has my attitude which isn't really a good thing sometimes. She can really lay on the tantrums. And the scream that comes out of her mouth.. It really does hurt the ears... Please let that stop soon!!
In the past 2 years I have watched my baby grow more and more everyday.. from needing me to do everything for her to becoming an independent toddler that gets very mad if she can't do something all on her own. jeez I wonder where she gets that from??! Not from me.. heheheheee
She can skip,hop & run... she is speaking 3-4 word sentences... she is amazing!!
Happy birthday Princess

New Me!!

It was time to update my look.. that included a cut with some color added(going back for more next week) and new specs! My vision needed some adjustement. It was amazing how crisp & clear everything was when I put my new ones on!

The Old look:

The New look: