In case you were wondering.......

After much frustration, I moved my music player all the way to the bottom of the page. I have yet to find a template on The Cutest Blog on The Block website, that won't cut off my music player. While I am cruisin the net I like to listen to the songs on my playlist and if it's cut off I can't scroll down to another song. Anyways, that's where it is if you were wondering.

Playing Catch Up!

This is late, but my sister left this last weekend! The kids had a great time with Misty and Lorelai! Lorelai discovered that if you want something in this family you better be the first to get it! When she saw that no one was sitting with me she would run like her life depended on it just to get to me before anyone else did. So cute!

This visit wasn't the best because I was not able to do all the things we normally do while she is here. It was still nice to have her here though! Sing star is a must when we all get together.

Misty took the kids bowling. The kids have never been bowling, so they they were pretty excited. They are still talking about it!
Aliya trying to steer the ball with her body!

Grant looking cool. Misty said it took forever for his ball to get to the other side!

Those are some SWEET shoes Lanodaloo!

Apparently since it is 110 degrees outside it is much better to sit in the stroller and fly a kite than to stand. Smart kids!

Aliya's pride and joy! Her room will be torn apart, but you can bet her kite will be put back nicely in the plastic it came in. If that's not a mystery I don't know what is.

The kids really miss Misty and Lo! It was a little rough at times, but I am really grateful Misty came to help us out.

Exciting stuff!

Love this trailer also. Just click on the black square!

Can't get enough!

I am not in love with the picture of Edward on this cover. Ugh... I wish I didn't picture him a certain way in my head. The Bella actor is so easy to accept. Why not the Edward actor?

That's my opinion, now you tell me yours!???

"You're so vain, you probably think this post is about you!" :)

Last week I made my sister shave my legs because we were going swimming. Even though we were going to my sister in laws pool where there was going to be no one there looking at my legs, much less touching them to see if they are smooth. Then I proceed to complain about the recent cellulite that has chosen to take residence on my backside and along the back of my thighs (don't worry, there will be no pictures). After all this she proceeds to tell me that I am vain (which is actually something only a sister can tell you without wanting to cry) . Immediately I wanted to deny it, but then I actually thought about it. I did just fracture my pelvis and although it's been six weeks, I have been able to do very little. Of course I would have some extra cottage cheese appearing. Besides my arms, which have bulked up from using the crutches so much, all of the muscle I once had is now mush. So, why should I worry about all of this so much? Am I really so vain caring about flabby thighs when I am recovering from an injury that makes it impossible to do anything about? After contemplating this thought for a while, I blame it on where I live. I live in a place with an excessive amount of beautiful people. I know this sounds weird, but it's true. I have lived in other places and visited other places and I am telling you, there is something in the water. I can't help but compare myself to some of these gorgeous women walking around. Or maybe I just need to quit complaining and accept my new thighs. hehe :)

Swimming Fun!!

I finally got the "Go ahead" from the doctor to do something other than lay on my couch. One of the suggested activities is the pool. I was so excited to get out and actually spend some time with my kids out of the house. Here's a few pictures from our swimming adventure.

I got a little tired walking around in the water but didn't want to get out, so the hippo and I floated around for a bit.

Cute little girl!

My sweet little boy.

They were playing lifeguard and Misty captured a sweet little kiss. Wow, we don't see that often.

Grant wanted to try on Lo's princess dress, so Lo put on Grant's Lion costume. Misty has taken some cute pictures of the kids. They have all had a great time together. It so fun to watch Lorelai. She is so smart and has such a sweet little voice. The boys are teaching her all sorts of big boy stuff.

I think the kids have about had it with this little "rest vacation" I have been on. They have been pretty ornery and resistant to authority and I think just as anxious as I am about getting back to our normal life. I have gotten rid of my crutches after a few days of slowly walking around. It hurts, but feels so good to ditch them. The kids start school in a little less than a month. I can't believe it. Once I can finally join in on these family activities I am sure I will be better about posting.

Late Fourth of July updates!!

If you are family you probably have already seen all of these pictures, but they were too cute so I decided to post them on my blog. The kids went to my Mom and Dad's last Wednesday and they stayed till Sunday. They had a great time. I am sure my Mom and Dad are glad they have a little peace and quiet now. I was glad for the rest, but I missed them terribly. I am glad they are home. They brought with them a couple of house guests. Misty and Lo flew in on Saturday.

Here's the kids holding their welcome signs for Misty and Lo! They look incredibly anxious.

Hugs!!

I love that Landon and Grant are being so sweet with each other. It doesn't happen often and when you can catch it on camera, it's amazing. :)

They love their little Lorelai!!

What a sweetheart.

Peek a Boo!!

Run while you still can Lo!! hehe :)The kids loved this movie!

So cute! Aliya got her hair cut just before we left. It's short, but so cute. Thanks Angie!

Nana and Papa bought a slip n slide. It was the highlight of the trip!

There are more pictures to come from the day activities on the Fourth, but here are a few from the night! He is so brave!

Cute boy!

Don't burn your hand!

I love his smile!

Aliya showing off her tricks!

Silly! Grant is kind of like that sour and sweet character in those Sour Patch candy commercials. He could cut off one side of your ponytail and then he would look at you with those big brown eyes and sweet smile and you couldn't help but melt!

It's finally adventure weather again! Papa decided to take them on an adventure to see Lions and Tigers and Bears. Oh My!! He walked them over the hills and through the woods all the way to Cabela's. :)

Thanks so much to Nancy for taking so many pictures and for me and for helping my Mom so much with the kids. The pictures really brightened my Fourth of July! Neal worked at the station for the Fourth so I went over to my Grandparent's house and hung out with my Aunt Jenny and my Grandparent's. We had yummy food and my Aunt waited on me. :) Then I got to come home to an empty house. It's a little weird sleeping in a house with no kids and no husband. Neal left his fire pager though, so I could hear where he was all day and night. I am starting to feel really good and I am not in a lot of pain anymore. I had an MRI yesterday, so I am hoping I will get the "go ahead" and I can start pushing myself a bit. I will post more pictures soon!

Name Stories!!

Just curious about how you picked your kids names and the stories behind those names. I know, random right? I don't have anything better to do and I didn't post much in June.
This is how we came up with our kids names!

Aliya: Aliya was the name of a baby my sister and I took care of in Washington. We were pretty much her nannies. Such a cute thing. The parent's both worked, so my sister and I would take turns taking care of her. I even went on a weekend work trip with them one time. The little girl ended up going into the hospital after having a seizure. One day we got a visit from a detective saying they were investigating the parent's on suspicion of child abuse, and asked us lots of questions. It turned out the little girl had shaken baby syndrome. She ended up being taken away from her parent's. The couple divorced and the Mom was eventually able to get Aliya back. I just loved that name and it stuck with me. We paired it with Janae, which is my middle name.

Landon: One of my favorite movies is A Walk To Remember. I should probably be a little embarrassed to admit that. Anyways, the actor who played the "Landon" character is pretty cute and the name caught my attention. :) We paired it with Ryan, which is Neal's middle name.

Grant: Well, Grant was supposed to be name Zoey! :) We thought he was a girl and he came out a boy. Neal just really liked the name Grant. I liked the name Preston. He thought that sounded too nerdy. Sorry to anyone reading who is named Preston. I love love that name. Grant is a strong name and we paired it with Lee after Neal's Dad's middle name. So he is Grant Lee. Love it!

I guess this is kind of like a tag. So, anyone who reads this... Tag your it!

Twitter Chatter!

I added a new thing to my sidebar. It's called Twitter. It just tells little things I am doing or thoughts I have throughout the day. Not that my life is very exciting right now, but It gives me something to do.


Landon had his last game on Friday. I forgot to send the camera with Neal, but he did get a cute picture with Landon and my Mom. Landon was so excited that he got a medal. He thinks it's cause they won the tournament. Sorry I have been absent from the blogging world. There are two reasons for my absence. The first being, I feel a little sorry for myself and for my family because I have ruined our summer. :) The second being, my icepack leaked on my computer and I need someone to take it into the professionals to see if my computer will ever work again. I am just hoping they can retrieve my info. I have a few events I want to blog about, so hopefully I will get my butt in gear and get it done.

"If you wanted a little time to rest, you could of just asked."

I have had a lot of help since my recent fall. Wow I sound like a seventy year old woman. This week Neal had to get back to his normal working schedule. So Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday the kids and I had an interesting time. Poor Aliya was left to make beds and pick up toys and random spills throughout the day. She was such a big help. Grant discovered that he could put my crutches across the room and then he is able to have an extra Popsicle and there is nothing his crippled mother can do about it. (He actually put the Popsicle back. Big Shocker, I know. There is a conscience in that kid after all.) We survived. The pain is starting to subside a bit, but all my muscles throughout my whole back hurt. I still can't put any weight on my right side. I can't go to girls camp. :( I finally get put in the young woman's and I decide to get clumsy.

My Mom came Wednesday night. Thank Goodness. It is incredibly hard for me to sit on my couch and watch my Mom run around cleaning and taking care of the kids. I am so thankful for the help, but it's hard to not be able to do it myself. I think my Mom is already worn out and it's only the first day. I don't think she has sat down once and Grant is giving her a run for her money. When someone told her it was four oclock she was in shock at how fast the time had gone. I called my sweet cousin Alex to come and get Aliya for a girls night. She deserves it. I am sure she was excited to get away from her rowdy brothers and her crazy Mom. Thanks everyone for all the comments and the help. I don't what I would do without such great family and friends. And thanks to my amazing husband for putting up with me!!

OUCH!!

Well, this last week I fractured my pelvis. I would love to tell you I injured myself in a very exciting and dangerous way. Like falling off a cliff while I was repelling or falling from a ladder while saving a kitten. These would be an amazing alternative to the real story. I had just gotten my hair done at my Sis in law, Angie's, house and it was raining out. I had my very expensive two dollar flip flops on and I slipped and landed on the sidewalk putting most of the impact on the right side of my back. OUCH!!!! I know I know, how is that possible? Heck if I know, but I have fallen many, many times before and I have always been able to get myself up. I could not move. There I lay on the cement in the pouring rain. Aliya yelled for Angie. Angie came right out and picked me up. Yes, picked me up and carried me like a baby all the way to her front door. She called Neal and we spent the night in the emergency room. Fun times. I don't think I have ever been in so much pain in my entire life. So now I get to spend my time on the couch. The fracture is small and there is not a whole lot they can do for it. I can't put any weight on my right side so I have to get around on crutches. Angie came and cleaned my entire house. I sure appreciate it even though I complained about her cleaning the entire time she was cleaning. Sorry Angie. My Sweet Mother in law brought dinner and my Father in Law helped Neal give me a blessing. My sis in law Nikki brought us dinner tonight. I don't know what we would do without all this help. Neal has been Daddy, Mommy and money maker. He is going to need a nice long golf vacation when this is all over with.
This is what my kids have been up to. Aliya has been such a big help.


Neal and I decided to still go on our weekend trip. After a lot of pain medicine we made it to Vegas for the Phantom of the Opera. I really did not want to loose all that money for room and tickets, so we packed the front seat full of pillows and it was worth all the pain (hopefully I didn't do more damage to my back.). The show was amazing. Instead of eating at a nice restaurant Neal just went and picked up some pasta from one of the restaurants in the hotel. I just didn't think I would be able to sit through dinner and the show.
Walking very slow through the hotel. Neal was trying to get the timer to work on the camera. I sure look pissed off, but I was just bitting the back of my teeth to stop the pain.

And it worked. Thanks babe for the amazing birthday present. My awesome brother watched the kids for us. Thanks James!!

Here we are at the show! The opera house was amazing. So pretty. I have never seen Phantom before and it was so good.

The Venetian is such a beautiful hotel. I am not the biggest fan of Las Vegas, but there are certain Hotels I just love. The guy that took this picture was completely drunk and I was dressed in more clothing than any other girl in that entire hotel. Do you really need everything hanging out. You might as well just be naked.

My handsome husband!This picture is for you Misty! :)

Nancy and Jason came over tonight after we got home. Here's Nancy and I with our best friends. This picture is not the best. I was tired and in so much pain. It may not of been the best idea to go, but I sure had a great time.

I think my mom will come this week. Neal has got to go to work and I just barely started being able to go to the bathroom by myself.

I can't wait!!

http://www.phantomvegasoffers.com/landing_redesign/

This is what I have to look forward to next Saturday thanks to my thoughtful husband! It was supposed to be a surprise for my birthday, but Neal sucks at keeping surprises from me. I am so excited. Now all I have to do is find a dress. Finding a dress is much more stressful for me than finding a swimming suit. I don't know why it is just not very much fun. Wish me luck!

You wanted Wii pictures, you got it James!

Yes, we got bit by the Wii bug. We have had so much fun playing this weekend. I think this will be a purchase in our future. Aliya was very enthusiastic about it, if you couldn't tell. :)

She told me her muscles got bigger just in the couple of days she was playing. I had to feel for myself. I don't think my muscles got bigger just really sore. Run a 5k on no training, no big deal. Play the Wii for an hour and I am dying.

This was Landon's first strike. He was very happy.

Neal will be so proud.

Wow, look at that form.

Papa knocked over Nana's plate on her mantel, I hit my dad in the arm and Aliya in the head with the strap on the handle and Landon threw the controller across the room. This game is dangerous. Note to self: Put the wrist strap on all of the time.

This is the only way Landon will wear his collared shirts these days.

We are heading home tomorrow. We have lots of lazy days at the pool ahead of us. Poor Nancy broke her foot so I am anxious to get back and help her out. I hope you are doing better Nancy!!