maybe someday . . .

i will learn that it's a lot easier to buy valentine's . . .

for 53 children . . .

but probably not any time soon . . . because it really is a lot more fun to make them!

hopefully those 53 children will really appreciate their melted heart crayons . . . i did have my oven on for 9 hours today! yes . . . i really did . . . 9 full hours! i will admit to my mistake of only buying 1 silicon heart mold with only 12 hearts . . . at least i did learn something today!

little rascals . . . and a storybook ending . . .

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sunday was an absolutely perfect day! the weather was great and we spent the entire day just having fun. we took the little ones to the little rascals parade and then headed to storyland for some more fun. of course after we were finished at storyland . . . the girls were quite ready to go home. so we went to audubon park and played and played and played some more . . . and that is why there are not any photos from the park!

piggies are lovely . . .

especially first time ever piggies!

a little teaser . . .

the fun is only just beginning!
it's mardi gras time!

happy weekend!

beautiful . . .

it was a super cold morning . . . that turned into a beautiful day. so we went outside and soaked up the sun this afternoon!

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the only thing missing outside was this sweet little guy . . .

but as you can see he was perfectly happy inside with his snuggle!

clickin' moms . . . and a coupon code . . .

i have always loved taking pictures and i have always wanted to be better at taking pictures. since i haven't finished posting christmas pics . . . you wouldn't know that santa was very good to me again this year! so now more than ever i am trying to learn more and more about photography and i found the greatest place!

if you have a camera . . . i recommend you check out clickin' moms! it is a one stop learning place for anyone and everyone with any kind of camera! it really is a great place . . . i have learned so much.

this month they are offering 10% off of your subscription with the code FRIEND! the code is only good for new members. click on any of the buttons or the link . . . and check it out!

the countdown is on . . .

we better think about baby-proofing again . . .
because we are no where close to having a baby-proof house!

there's no doubt . . .

these little girls love their baby brother!
they just cannot get enough of him.

quote of the day and there are still good people out there . . .

"mommy, we are cleaning our room so you will be happy!"

little shrimp

*******

because of this i needed to cancel my merchant account because i will not be able to do the required testing that this new law requires.

when i opened my merchant account . . . i signed a contract for 3 years. well . . . i was just a little more than a year from reaching that 3 years. and the wonderful people at the company that i used for my credit cards waived my $300 early cancellation fee! it doesn't get any better than that! i hope they know how wonderful they are!

competition . . . birthday . . . infections . . .

i don't know if have ever been more ready for a monday or not . . . it has been a non-stop weekend for us!

competition today in baton rouge . . . the girls did so well! my little miss smiled the whole time and shimp is really getting the whole competition thing down now! (they don't actually compete . . . they are in an exhibition category.)

today is this special guy's birthday . . .

he requested this super yummy fruit desert pizza for his cake . . . if it wasn't for him we would be total junk food junkies! this recipe came from one of our old neighbors in missouri . . . and it is so good!

by the end of the night my little shimp was complaining about a headache and a painful ear . . . and i'm complaining about a breast infection. oh the joys of little ones! and i love every second of this crazy life of ours!

happy birthday sean (aka daddy) . . . you mean the world to us!

good times . . .

first soccer game . . .

giving mr. smartypants . . . who guesses every single gift . . . his birthday present a day early . . .

then is was time to head to a birthday party that was from 1-3. except we didn't come home until 9 . . . that has to be a good time!

in 4 short months . . .

this little guy has become the most important thing in these girls lives!

this little guy has completely stolen the hearts of everyone who knows him!

this little guy made his place in our family and we don't remember what it was like without him!

this little guy has grown way too big . . . way too fast!

it worked . . .

having 4 small children in the house . . . i'm sure you imagine the amount of effort it takes to keep it picked up. and i'll be perfectly honest . . . i do not like to clean. so . . . my house more often than not has toys scattered throughout.

so i came up with a great idea. when you open our front door . . . you see the entry hall and that leads to the kitchen. so my great idea was this . . . keep the kitchen and entry hall spotless so when people come to the front door they see a clean house.

the girls were off school today and shrimp had a birthday party to go to. since i always feel guilty bringing the extra kids to the party . . . i asked my wonderful neighbor (who has a daughter in shrimp's class) if she minded if shrimp tagged along with her to the party. of course . . . she didn't mind!

so . . . now back to the point of this story! she just dropped my little shrimp off and when i opened the door she said . . . wow look at your house it looks great!

little did she know that if she looked into the living room it looked like this . . .

disclaimer: we have been moving things around in the house . . . which is actually why it's a complete mess. i don't like cleaning . . . but i do like to keep a clean house.

'twas the night before . . .

my side of the family has lots of christmas traditions . . . and of course we are continuing these wonderful traditions with our little ones.

santa needs cookies . . . and santa needs awesome-ly (yes . . . that's a word in my dictionary) decorated sugar cookies! under normal christmas circumstances we would do homemade sugar cookies . . . but this year time wasn't exactly on our side. before we headed to missouri . . . shrimp came down with a nasty 24 hour stomach bug. and then it wasn't long before it hit every other person in our house. so . . . when we were feeling better and finally made it to missouri we weren't left with a lot of time before the big guy arrived. so this year it was premade sugar cookie dough and just simple white icing and lots and lots of sprinkles!

after the cookies were decorated and santa had a plate waiting for him . . . and the girls were on a super duper sugar high . . . we had some fun taking pictures in their new jammies. if you can't tell by these pics . . . we have our hands full! and i wouldn't have it any other way!

my favorite christmas memory is the story. we would all gather on the couch with my dad and listen as he read the night before christmas. sean read from the same book we grew up with. and as you can see . . . the girls were all ears. ok . . . maybe not . . . but one day they will cherish these memories the same way i do!

the program . . .

the pro . . .

this was our little angel's 2nd christmas program. i think watching little nursery school children sing christmas songs is just about the cutest thing ever!

the newbie . . .

our little shrimp couldn't have been more excited to be in her first school program!

i don't think there were any other children that picked their noses more than ours! we were so proud! not to mention i was so proud when i looked at shrimp and her dress was pulled up and both hands were in here tights scratching her bottom! talk about a proud mommy moment!

after the program . . . since they were dressed to impress . . . i had to get a few photos of them together. i could look at these pictures all day . . . they aren't perfectly posed . . . or smiling in all of them . . . or even looking at the camera for that matter . . . but to me these pictures are perfect! this is our life . . .

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overwhelmed . . .

fortunately the only reason i'm overwhelmed is that i don't even know where to begin catching up! there have been lots of great things since then and now . . .

maybe i should forewarn you that posts might become long . . . and overloaded with photos!

hi, my name is emily . . .

and i used to blog here. remember me?

wow . . . time sure does fly when you're having fun! i think i have lots of catching up to do . . . and i think i will get started on that later tonight!

oh . . . merry christmas and happy new year! i guess i'm a little late on that . . . huh?!

so stinkin' cute . . .

this wasn't in the plan for today . . .

today is my last day to get christmas things finished before the girls are finished with school. brown eyes last day is today . . . and the big girls have their christmas program tomorrow. so that leaves today to finish any odds and ends that need to be finished before heading to missouri on monday.

and my poor little shrimp is home sick with a yucky tummy!

(on the brighter side . . . i did just get to talk to my good friend jill for the first time since she had her first baby! and we will both be in town for christmas so we will get to see each other!!)

at this moment (a few hours ago) . . .

little brown eyes: me don't need my nuggle, mommy.

me: you don't need your snuggle? (said with complete shock)

little brown eyes: no, mommy.

me: ok. (in complete disbelief)

little brown eyes: me want my nuggle, mommy!

since when does a sassy little 2 year old understand need and want?

*********

could he be any cuter . . . i mean really?

(ok . . . so maybe i'm a little biased!)

*******

snug as a bug in mom and dad's bed

*******

my little side kick

please, can we paint . . .

the girls have been begging to paint the past few days. it's been a while since we have done a fun craft project . . . so i finally gave in today. i found this fun idea here . . . and have had it bookmarked as a craft project to do. and today was the perfect day for it!

unfortunately . . . i don't have many action photos of the girls. i'm sure you can understand . . . a 2 year old, a 3 year old, a 5 year old, paint, and glass ornaments . . . photos of them creating these beauties wasn't top on the priorities! i love how they turned out . . . and even more . . . i love that the girls finally got to paint and had so much fun making these and deciding who each of them were for!

it was 'good' . . .

i asked little shrimp how she liked doing her cheer in front of all of the people yesterday . . . and she said, "good!" so . . . i guess that means she liked it! not that i would have expected anything else . . . she has been waiting and waiting for the day that she gets to go to competition like her big sister. despite the long face on little miss in all of the pics . . . she had a great time too. she gets so serious at competition. little man slept like a baby thru the entire competition in his new favorite place . . . until right before the award ceremony. brown eyes was tired and actually took a nap too . . . i'm not sure how considering how loud the music was!

the girls are so young that they don't actually compete . . . they are just in an exhibition category. so they all get medals . . . and everyone is happy!

shrimp and little miss are pretty much right next to each other thru the whole routine . . . if you can find the little one . . . that would be little shrimp . . . then you should be able to spot little miss too. this was the first competion . . . and you can tell they don't have the routine down completely. but it sure is cute . . .

save the toys . . .

ok . . . this is going to be a link-filled post. i came across some info, while reading my way to long list of fave blogs, that really scares me.

i don't like toys that could harm my children. i'm not interested in my children playing with a piece of junk (sorry . . . you can call me a toy snob if you want) from china that might have lead in it.

i love handmade toys. i love the fact that my children have to use their own sounds . . . actually use their imagination to the fullest. i love the fact that their handmade toys are things that will become heirlooms and will, hopefully, be passed onto their children . . . and passed on again to their children.

there is a new law that will go into effect in february that just might make these handmade toys that i (and my kids too) love illegal! yes . . . illegal!

i am not good with details . . . and there are tons of other posts floating around the blogworld that cover this . . . so i am just going to put a few links up if you are interested in learning more about this and how you can help keep the wahm's and wahd's and mom and pop businesses going.

read more here. here. here. here. here. here. here. here. here.

want to help?
write your state representative
sign the online petition

it's that time of year again . . .

it doesn't seem possible that an entire year has passed since little miss' first cheerleading competition!

but it has . . . and tomorrow our 2 big girls will be competing (they aren't actually judged) together! shrimp is really excited . . . i think she more excited about the makeup that she finally gets to wear than actually performing.

yes . . . i will post pics and video as soon as we get home. i haven't seen the routine (except for bits and pieces at home) . . . so it will be a surprise for all of us!

a southern winter wonderland . . .

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feeling guilty . . .

it's snowing . . . it never snows in new orleans. i'm not even sure if little shrimp remembers snow. brown eyes doesn't . . . but she "don't like dat" (referring to the snow). little miss remembers snow . . . and asks me weekly when will it snow in new orleans? and what did i just do? i took them to school. i'm feeling a little guilty because they really could have stayed home with me and played in the snow . . . and come inside to dry their clothes . . . and then play in the snow some more . . . and come inside to warm up . . . and play in the snow some more . . . and well you get the point. right now it is snowing so hard . . . i could almost forget that i am in new orleans and feel like i was at home in missouri. so . . . i'm going to crank up the christmas music. make some vanilla ice coffee . . . oh wait its snowing . . . i will warm it up today. do some laundry. and pray . . . pray . . . pray that it is still snowing at noon when i pick the girls up! (and if the guilt gets the better of me . . . i might just go pick them up from school!)

write this one down in the history books . . .

it's snowing in new orleans!

it's the next best thing . . .

to being in his mama's belly!

little man loves his new hideout . . . he's snug as a bug with mommy and he's safe from those crazy little girls!

our resident elf . . .

we came home last night and found this cute little elf in our house. i guess santa thought the girls needed a little extra motivation to be really good! if you don't have a resident elf in your house . . . i highly recommend it. although . . . i do warn that the first 24 hours might be slightly traumatic to the little ones in the house. it wasn't too long and the girls warmed up to ziggles (that is the name they gave him) and now are constantly talking to him and giving him messages to tell santa!

it was an all nighter . . .

i'm sure you can imagine . . . non-stop from 9pm until 6am!non-stop sleeping that is!!!

it's a good thing she's cute . . .

because she is very two and that ornery beautiful smile is the only reason i have kept her!

(of course i'm kidding about keeping her . . . but man oh man is she a hand full right now!)

it was just a little white lie . . .

little miss: when you were a little girl did you always listen to your mommy?

me: yes, i always listened to my mommy!

little miss: you always listened?

me: yes . . . always!

(nana . . . please don't tell her otherwise!)

if i had an extra 600 dollars . . .

i would totally buy this rug for my house!
but i don't so i won't be buying it for my house!

the title was going to be . . .

i wish i was doing this . . .

but when i got up next to her to take a picture . . . i noticed not only is she still wearing her dorothy shoes . . . but she is laying with the wizard of oz dvd case. so then this picture became more than me just wishing i was already in bed and now i don't have a title because i think it's just too cute for words how much this little shrimp of mine is in love with dorothy!

it's simple . . .

there is a lot that i could want (ok . . . that i do want) . . . but there is nothing that i need! and that is why i'm thankful.

happy thankgiving!

it's always something . . .

sean is replacing a big roof . . . on a big house right now. well this big roof that is old and being replaced . . . decided to leak while we were at the super dome for the saints game. the roofer that is working on the job is already out of town for thanksgiving . . . so that means sean is the one that is up on the roof right now trying to temporarily fix the leak and try to prevent any other leaks from occuring. our plan was to leave last night for missouri and arrive today . . . probably about now. well because it's supposed to rain for the weekend . . . and this roof is causing some major stress for my husband . . . we decided it would be in our best interest to stay in new orleans for thanksgiving. so now if the roof decides to leak again . . . we won't be 675 miles away from it. unfortunately . . . we will be missing out on a camping trip with my parents and my 2 big brothers and their families. but . . . we will get to spend christmas in missouri and this will allow us to stay for a lot longer than if we were going for thanksgiving. (mike and heather . . . i think you should make another trip across the country for christmas too!) i'm bummed (do people still say that?) that we don't get to see my family today but i'm so thankful that sean has work that is throwing us for a loop . . . and i'm thankful that we have wonderful family in new orleans to spend thanksgiving with. and now . . . let's pray for a white christmas in missouri! it would be the absolute greatest gift for the girls!

another sunday in the city . . .

the weather was beautiful . . . there wasn't a saints game to watch . . . so we did what everyone should do when you live in a city with so much to see. we spent the day downtown . . . uptown . . . and at city park.

we started out in the french quarter with lunch at cafe pontalba.

the food was great and the view was even better!

in new orleans . . . you never know who (or what) you might see. everyone has to eat right?after lunch . . . we finally took the girls on a streetcar.

this was the 2nd time for little miss. she was only 6 months old the first time she went . . . so to here this was the first time! shrimp actually went for her first time a couple of weeks ago with our next door neighbors . . . but she still was very excited to go again! and this was brown eyes . . and of course little mans . . . first time!

like i said . . . you never know what you might see in new orleans!

there is always something beautiful to see on st. charles avenue.

so many great things to look at . . . the girls kept forgetting the rule about keeping your head inside the car!so . . . we got off and went to borders.

and i gave into the peer pressure . . . and got the book that everyone is talking about.then we went to city park so the girls could play. little man and i stayed in the car because he was starvin' marvin. and that is why there are not any pictures from the park!

last but not least on our funfilled sunday . . . big sister got to give baby brother his first bottle!

it was a perfect day!

dreaming . . .

do you think she is dreaming of when she was still the baby?

i spy . . .

a very cute (and sleepy) baby boy

we had a wonderful day yesterday in the french quarter and i have tons of pics to share! but . . . i have been doing loads . . . and loads of laundry today because we are leaving tomorrow night for missouri! and tonight the saints are playing at home for the monday night football game . . . and we are getting ready to head downtown for a fun night . . . without our 4 children! so . . . you will just have to wait to see the fun we had yesterday!