Big ~n~ Little

My oldest daughter, Hashanna, holding my
youngest daughter, Jaden, at Greenfield Village.
*photo taken with my Blackberry Storm*

How my Garden Grows...

Since we have so many bunnies in our backyard,
I decided on a potted garden this year.
Here are some pics I took this week...

My favorite, the late blooming Pineapple Sage.
It's crimson red blossoms attract hummingbirds and butterflies.

Tasty flowers of the Nasturtium plant are great
in a salad, due to their slight peppery flavor.

Rosemary is yummy in a pot of black beans
or potatoes cooked with peppers and onions.

These are heirloom beefsteak tomatoes.
Anxiously awaiting their maturity...

Purple Sage smells amazing.
The Parsley growing next to it
contains lots of Vitamin A.

And this is the garden guard dog, Oliver.
He unfortunately helps himself to the snap peas.
What a weird dog! He loves watermelon too.

Top 5 baby items I couldn't live without

This week I found that I am in love with my baby carrier, the Mobywrap. So It has inspired me to write this post. There are so many things for babies out there, and here are my top 5 favorite things:

#5 is our Graco pack 'n play. It has a changing table connected to it. Invaluable. Keeps me from having to go all the way upstairs to change Baby J.

#4 JJ Cole diaper bag. Super sturdy, tons of pockets, lots of space to organize all my crap (cell phone, ID, credit card, lip gloss etc...) and even has space for all of the baby stuff too. LOVE IT!

#3 Weleda baby face cream... one word: AMAZING. okay one more word, NATURAL. :)

#2 Mobywrap. Such a cool baby carrier! check it out mobywrap.com

#1 Baby Einstein exersaucer. Jaden absolutely loves this thing. I don't think I could go a day without it. I certainly wouldn't get anything done that's for sure!!

Of course we all need a car seat and a stroller, changing table, etc... but I swear these 5 things make my life sooo much easier!

~check out The Diaper Diaries for more great Things I Love Thursday!

Wordless Wednesday "TURN OFF THAT HANNAH MONTANA!"

http://www.wordlesswednesday.com

The rewards are immense!

Thank you to my friend Trista for this!

I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family.

Talk about price shock!

That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* A mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is: don't have children if you want to be 'rich.'

Actually, it is just the opposite..

What do you get for your $160,140.00?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, 20 ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck.

You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and
* coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
* First step,
* First word,
* First bra,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God.

You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost.

That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

TAG!

I found this on Sarah's blog

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To:

1. playing mini golf today with the kids
2. B coming home tonight
3. losing weight
4. swimming in the lake with Jaden!!
5. eating at Sonic this weekend!
6. reading the book my sister gave me, Dead and Gone
7. Jaden eating food
8. Labor day weekend

8 Things I did Yesterday:

1. read to Jaden
2. watched The Fashion Show finale... YAY! ANNA WON!!
3. played bejeweled blitz, guilty pleasure
4. made diner with Kai
5. listed Jewelry on my etsy site
6. read some info on vitamin d deficiency
7. talked to my mom on the phone
8. pulled some weeds in my garden

8 Things I Wish I Could Do:

1. buy new clothes
2. go back to school
3. open up a cute spa/retail area
4. get a massage
5. get a pedicure
6. lay in bed and read all day
7. write a book
8. paint all day

8 Shows I Enjoy:

1. The Fashion show
2. Project Runway
3. LOST
4. Deliver Me
5. 16 and Pregnant
6. 30 Rock
7. The Office
8. True Life

so there you have it.

I tag anyone that wants to do this :)
I really think it's fun to read other people's answers to quizzes like this. It fulfills my nosy preoccupation with other people's business...

from Janet's Friday fill in #134

1. Running out of chocolate is not the end of the world.

2. Sitting here, listening to the sound of rain falling, I want to cuddle with my kids.

3. French vanilla yogurt with fresh berries and granola tastes so good!

4. Sometimes, putting others first is necessary when you have kids.

5. The sunset is breathtaking, really.

6. Well, maybe there is more love in the world than people realize.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to my hunny coming home, tomorrow my plans include visiting the new Sonic that just opened and Sunday, I want to have fun and enjoy my family, and work in my garden!

I hope it is nice outside this weekend. This summer has been sorta crappy so far! I want to be able to go to the lake and swim, go to the splash pad with the kids, play some golf... have some picnics at Greenfield Village...

Jaden loves books

She is so cute!
I love how she gets so excited to look at books!

She looks at the pictures
and even turns the pages!

Goodnight Moon seems to be her favorite

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have always read to the kids. I've read them most of the Harry Potter books, Little House, even Paramahansa Yoganada's autobiography! We make it a point to go to the library as often as possible. I loved reading as a kid, and always hoped they would enjoy it as well. Hashanna goes through at least 1 book a week. Noe likes looking through fashion magazines and reading books that show you how to do things. Kai loves anything about motorcycles or skateboarding.
Jaden loves board books and picture books with baby faces and animals. I love DIY books and gardening books, as well as cookbooks with pictures. I love the quiet time we share when we are all reading together.

Me and my Daddy

My dad died a year ago this week.
I miss him so much!
This is my favorite pic of us.

Rest in Peace Daddy! I miss you every day.

Jaden in the photo booth 7/21/09

We were playing in the photo booth.
Got some real cute ones.
These were the 5 best.
Which one do you like the most?

I adore this face

This smirk makes me laugh all the time

I call her Drooly Bubbs

Getting ready to laugh

She just loves chewing on her fingers, as many as she can fit into her mouth!

It's hard to believe she will be 4 months old soon. Time flies when you're having fun!!!

Rio's baby shower

We had such a great time at
Rio and Sean's baby shower.
We are so excited to have
a new friend, Sophia Riley.
We can't wait to visit her soon.

Jaden loves the grass on her feet

Kai thought the bbq chicken was
the best he's ever had!!
Also that Mountain Dew... :)

Noelani loves to pose for photos

Hashanna had a good time,
she figured out that she can
hula hoop for 8 minutes straight!

Man these kids are getting big!!

sleeping kids

When Jaden was first born, we looked at Brian's, mine, and the kids baby pics to try to figure out who she looked most like. We came up with the assumption that she looked a little bit like all of us... I took this pic this morning, and WOW! doesn't she look just like Hashanna?
It amazes me everyday they grow in so many ways, their personality getting more and more amazing! I love them so much....

front flower bed

I love Summertime!
Working in my garden makes me so happy.
I took some pics to show you my front flowerbed.

I have worked on this flower bed for 2 years now.
The heirloom Hollyhocks bloomed this year,
the Mints are spreading, and the Hostas I transplanted all look great.
I am so proud of myself!!

Champagne Heirloom Hollyhocks

Ruby Heirloom Hollyhocks