Missing Them

Today Brinn went a friend's birthday party at the same gym she takes gymnastics classes at. She had a great time and, of course, did not want to leave when the party was over. And, like always, I had fun watching her be a normal 4 1/2 year old running and bouncing about, but for some reason I could not stop thinking about the little ones. This should have been a party where I had to leave an hour early just to get everyone in and out of car seats to be there on time. I should have been struggling with the obnoxious larger-than-life stroller to accomodate such a bunch and completely exhausted by the time we got home.

I admit, it was nice to be able to give Brinn my complete attention, but I miss them. They would be somewhere about a year old now, had they been able to hold out. It's gone so slow, and yet so fast at the same time...........

America's Next Top Brinn

The other day Brinn wanted braids in her hair for school. So, I made her two ponytails and then braided them. When I got it all completed, bows and everything, she said, "I don't like it. I look like a farm girl, and I'm NOT a farm girl." I told her that we were short on time and she would have to live with it. Off to school we went.

When I picked her up from school she exclaimed, "Everyone loved my hair!" So, now she did too. When we got home I told her I wanted to take a picture of her hair....I just love these hair bow we got from Gymboree. So, we went outside to snap a few pictures.

Pretty soon she was yelling, "I know mom, over here!" She was totally posing, peeking from behind things, running all over the neighborhood modeling for me.

She loved her "photo shoot" and keeps asking to do it again! We took about 150 pictures. Oh - and she requested the same braids for school today!

Sadie's Odd Eating Habits

Sadie has gotten in the strange habit of barking at her food before she eats it. For about 5 minutes she'll stand there and give it a real good cussing.....then gobble it up.

What is that?!?! Hilarious, I say.

Our little lady is getting old.....and loosing her mind a bit, perhaps.

Long Time, No Blog

Hey! It feels like such a long time since I've written anything......simple truth is, we just haven't been at all interesting as of late! (Not like we were before, right? HA!)

We have just been hanging out, hoping and praying for the house to sell so we can get back on the road to finding some normalcy in our lives. I know....I'm beginning to wonder if it exists too!

We did find out that we are getting TWO new nephews this summer. Two of my sisters, Kristin and Samantha, are expecting boys. YEAH!!

We did get to have some Easter fun this past weekend. The preschool where Brinn goes to school had an Easter egg hunt and Bass Pro had the Easter Bunny and some craft fun for the kiddos to do. We also made it to Chuck E Cheese. They had a new interactive horse racing game. Brinn was in HEAVEN!

Busy Weekend

We had a busy weekend in ARMSTRONG Land. First, we took all three dogs to the vet. It's a little hairy to maneuver that many at once, but definitely worth it to get it all done and over with as opposed to driving back and forth for separate appointments. Besides, we got a discount for bringing them all in at once, and who doesn't love that????

Yes, we always take pictures of our little ones at their first few visits to the vet. It's fun to look back and see how much they have grown!

On another note, our vet warned us about the Eskie breed being a little snippy when they get "spooked" and to watch them around children. My sister told me the same thing, but what I had read is that they are good family dogs.......maybe for families without children? Anyway, one of the vet techs in the office said she believes a lot of their behavior is how you raise them, which I agree is a PART of their demeanor. But, anyhow, these next few weeks we will be watching her very closely! Do you guys know anything about these dogs?

The bulk of our weekend was spent trying to create a little curb appeal to help our house sell (sooner than later). We didn't do too bad of a job for a couple of amateurs and trying to spend the least amount of $$$ we could to try and make it look a little better. Shane and I have come a long way since our first house, as far as landscaping goes. I can even keep all this stuff alive. Amazing!

BEFORE

AFTER

It's still a little early in the season, so I haven't planted any pots yet. I'll post more pictures when everything starts blooming. I think it will change the whole look of the house!

Shaner even whipped up a little of his magic steaks this weekend. Unless you have had one, you just can't understand! He really should open his own restaurant. I was in absolute heaven.

Prayers to my nephew, Josh, who broke both bones in his left arm over the weekend falling off some bleachers. What a way to kick off spring break, eh?!

Have a great week everyone!

Little Mommy

Brinn has been on a huge "Mommy" kick lately.....we have been taking her babies, car seats, diaper bag, and strollers EVERYWHERE! She bathes her babies, tucks them in at night and gives them a kiss, and we even have one that is potty training right now. She loves going to one of the grocery stores in town that has kid-size grocery carts. She was such the little shopper, and so attentive to her baby the entire time. Oh, to live in the world of make believe! It's so cute.

She's also been saying the darnedest things.....she was being SO slow getting her car seat buckled and so after numerous attempts at encouraging her to get it done, I said, "You are being so slow today." She said, "Well Mom, that's just the way God made me!" Hard to argue with that one, eh?

Here's some other comments she made this morning:

"Daddy's boat looks really nice today."

"Your hair is still gray." (I colored my hair last night - guess she is just telling it like it is! Gotta love her.)

(As she's pulling out her play cell phone.) "I think this is Delt. Her likes to call me all the time."

Gymnast Turned Puppy

This morning at gymnastics all the girls in Brinn's class got ribbons for mastering their cartwheels on the mat. This is Brinn's first ribbon for gymnastics. We are so proud, and not at all embarrassed of the shameless promotion of our beautiful girl!

When we returned home, however, I found that our little gymnast had turned into a puppy. Her and Diva were quite content playing in Diva's crate together. I couldn't help but snap a few pictures.

We also got some fun news yesterday. I'm one of five girls in my family and right now two of my sisters are pregnant - Kristin and Samantha. Kristin and her husband, Joe, had their 20 week sonogram yesterday. Everything looks great and they found out they are having a BOY! We are so excited for them and can't wait for little Kyle Josef's arrival!