Summer picnic with Grandma and Grandpa Laing

We spent a weekend at Grandma and Grandpa Laings this summer. We took a picnic one day to a place called Big Rocks and as you can see, it is called big rocks for a good reason....

It started raining within minutes of our arrival, and rained for quite a while, so we built a fire and roasted hot dogs in the rain. The kids hid out in the rocks to stay dry.

Here is a rare shot of Craig and I together. Not the best picture of me, with my chubby pregnant face, but nevertheless, a picture of the 2 of us together needs to be posted. I love my hubby!

This is Ally with her cousin Shalyn.

This is Logan hiding out with daddy... Don't you love his cowboy boots and shorts. He won't go anywhere without them, or the binky for that matter.

When the rain stopped, Craig took the girls for a ride on Uncle Scott's 4 wheeler. Do you think Olivia liked it?

Here is Olivia, posing, and hiding from the rain.

Even with the rain, we had a fabulous time at the picnic and at grandma and grandpas house.

Ally update

Over the summer, all the kids learned to do more chores than we have previously done. I have learned that just because they are young, doesn't mean that they can't have chores, and learn how to do a really good job. Ally was my biggest helper, and my best cleaner this summer. She even learned how to clean the bathroom, all by her self, and once again, she does a pretty darn good job. :)

Allison had her 6th birthday in September. It was a fun day and she was thrilled with everything. She is such a sweetheart, and we love her dearly. Here is a picture with her sister Olivia after opening her birthday gift...bubble bath!

Ally blowing out her candles. I am not much of a cake baker, but cream filled cupcakes are a specialty of mine, so cupcakes it was....and they were super delicious. :)

(What a cute girl!)

Ally wanted to help dad mow the lawn, and here she is, in her dress and flip-flops, mowing the lawn, and doing a very good job I might add for a 6 year old. She turned the corners like an old pro.

Another first for Ally, she started 1st grade this year. Seeing as how she missed the deadline last fall to start kindergarten by just a few weeks, we decided to have her tested, and ultimately put right into 1st grade. She is a super smart kid, and is doing very well in school. She consistently gets 100% on her spelling test, she loves to read, and is reading at a very high level, and most of all, she loves being with friends and being social all day. School has been wonderful for her! We are so proud of her.

Silly Jammies

Olivia has a style all of her own. She likes to wear these jammies, that aren't really jammies. It is 2 T-shirts, one that is hers, and a bigger one that belongs to Ally. She wears one on top and pulls the neck of the other one on like a skirt, with the sleeves sticking out.

The other night, she was complaining that her skirt-shirt bottom was falling down. I said, "come here and let me see if I can fix it for you". I thought I would push the sleeves in and tuck them into the top of her panties, and then it wouldn't be able to fall down. When I was done, Olivia looks at me and says..."Mom that looks SILLY."

Like it wasn't before.... :)

No-no Logan

As many of you who have met my little Logan know, he can get into things faster than you can say, "Where is Logan?"...

The other day, I was at my friends house. We were in the other room, when I realized that Logan was no longer right there with us. I called down the hall and said, "Logan, what are you doing?". My friend Kyli says, "I'll go see what he is doing."

On her way into the kitchen, she hears Logan, who is hiding behind the counter, saying, "no-no, no-no", to himself. As she peeks around, there is Logan 2 seconds away from dumping out an entire jar of hot chocolate mix on the floor.

Does anyone else think it's funny that he was telling himself no? I guess it makes sense that he wouldn't listen to himself...he never listens to me when I say no. :)

By the way, this picture is Logan with Baking Soda all over him, the floor, and what you can't see is that it is all over the dishwasher, filling the dishwasher soap cup, and smeared all over the cabinets.

Ideas?

So for all of you ladies out there who have ever been pregnant, any ideas for the constant PMS-like hormone imbalance that seems to be a part of my daily life lately? My poor children are wondering 'were did mommy go, and who is this crazy lady who has taken over the house?' Any herbs, or ANYTHING that you found that helped?

Today's Ultrasound

Well friends- we had our ultrasound this morning....and to those of you who have been talking to me lately, you know that I was just sure that it was going to be a girl, and her name was going to be Lauren Grace Laing....

Well, once again, I was wrong....I have only been right once, and wrong now for the 3rd time! I should just assume it is what ever I don't think it is. Craig however says that he knew it was a boy because I have been so emotional! Funny how he never said anything, (probably by nature of the issue, he thought it might not be taken so well if he did say anything.)

So, now we all know. IT'S ANOTHER BOY!!!! I am open to names, though bear in mind, I lean towards names that either start with or have an "L" in them. I am strongly leaning towards Tyler right now, though Craig is still 'thinking about it'.

We are truly blessed. It is a good day.

Today, my oldest child decided to cut her little sister's hair.....I am still to upset to laugh about it...or to post pictures....perhaps in the next few days, I will be able to see the humor in it and post a picture of Olivia's new hair-cut, and her bangs that go all the way around her ear....