What we've been up to...

Since arriving in Ohio our day-to-day lives have pretty much remained the same. Of course we have added a few things to make it through each day:

*A new bike for Rhaegan

*Season passes to King's Island (which we've been to 6 times now)

*A nice, big pool right across the street from the house

*A wonderful visit from Uncle Josh, Aunt Krista and their dogs

*Uncle Nick living only 15 minutes away

*Never ending time with Grandma and Papa

*A fridge in the basement with all the pop you could drink

...so really nothing big:)

Uncle Josh, Snarky, Rowdy and Rhaegan enjoying their little pool. It was so hot that day I was about to jump in.
Marlee and Rhaegan and "Peanut 500" at King's Island.

Aunt Krista and Rhaegan getting ready to ride the Pumpkin Patch roller coaster.

This ride is definitely a favorite o Rhaegan's. Marlee wasn't the biggest fan however.

Rhaegan's new bike and helmet are one of the biggest hits. She always wants to go out and ride. We have mapped out a little route for her which makes it a lot easier for me to watch her.

If it hasn't already been blatantly obvious we are having a great time here. The only thing I would change would be making the weather a little cooler. 95 degrees with 99% humidity really doesn't put one in the best of moods.

Update

So as most of you probably already know we decided to move back to Ohio with my parents in order to save some money while Shae's work is taking off. Our drive (yes, we drove) was actually not too bad. Marlee is normally a TERRIBLE traveler, even if we are only going to be in the car for 10 minutes. I was very worried about the 24 hour trip with her. We decided to leave on Wednesday and drive to Laramie, WY to stay with my grandparent's. It was an easy 6 hour drive and it was great to see Oma and Opa Cupps. We hate not seeing them more often. Then on Thursday morning we headed out for an extremely long day on the road. We made it to Des Moine, IA which took about 11 hours. Marlee and Rhaegan both did great (and marlee only slept for a total of 25 minutes). We stayed in a hotel that night and then continued on to Cincinnati on Friday. We arrived at 7pm, stopped for a quick bite at LaRosa's and then headed to the house. We are glad to be here and Rhaegan and Marlee couldn't be happier. This is going to be an eventful summer. Hopefully my mom and dad have enough energy to make it through the whole thing. Now that you have my update I will post some picture in my next blog

T-Ball

Rhaegan had her first T-ball game last night and I have to say it was one of the cutest things I've witnessed in a while. She was a little nervous at first. She kept saying, "what is I don't hit the ball?" I quickly reassured her that you swing until you hit the ball and you never get out. It's the perfect game! When we arrived at the field she received her shirt (which she was super excited about) and then immediately got in line to bat.A quick picture had to be taken of her adorable uniform.She timidly stepped up to plate and waited for her coach to explain what she was suppose to being doing.
She took her first swing and as you can see the ball went backwards instead of forwards. She was quickly reassured that everything was ok and she got another try. Her second swing resulted in a beautiful hit right to the middle of the field. She ran to first and patiently waited for further instructions.

Marlee was a little bored and tired but did pretty well especially since she had her friend there to keep her company.

Seriously?

This is what we saw on Monday morning when we opened our curtains...I mean seriously, it's the end of May...
Luckily it didn't last very long and today was nice and warm.

Shae's Birthday

This post is a little late, I know. Shae's birthday was at the beginning of this month so I thought I would at least try and attempt a blog before his "month" was over. We had a really good day that day. It started out with a yummy breakfast for the birthday boy. He opened his present then because Rhaegan couldn't wait any longer. Marlee was just excited to be eating.

I made Shae his favorite "cake" this year; Mint chocolate chip ice cream pie with an Oreo crust. It is very similar to the Asphalt Pie at Wingers just a lot cheaper.

And Rhaegan of course had to get him is favorite candy; Swedish Fish.

I hope he had a good day. We sure enjoyed celebrating it with him.

Happy Mother's Day

When I think of someone in my life who has help me during the difficult times and who has been there to celebrate during the happy times it is my mom. She is an amazing person inside and out and on this Mother's Day I want everyone (well the people who read my blog) to know what a wonderful person she is. Here are the top 32 (one for each year she's been a mom) things that make my mom so special.

1. She never complains about anything (unless you choose the slow line at the grocery store)2.When you need something she never hesitates to lend a hand.

3. If you ask her to play outside in the snow she won't. She likes to look at it from inside.

4. Her favorite show is Law & Order

5. She adores her grandkids

6. Her N.C. t-shirts are all she wears when we're in North Carolina.

7. She has the nicest butt out of all the girls in our family

8. She loves wearing jeans and t-shirts

9. Diet Coke is her drink of choice

10. She decided to go back to school when we were young and ended up getting her Masters Degree. Go Mom!

11. I have never spent a day with my mom when she wasn't suffering from a major headache (you would never know though because she never complains)

12. She was my swim coach for my whole swimming career.

13. She was voted nicest legs in college (or high school I don't remember)

14. She has always had a strong testimony and has never been afraid to share it with others

15. Her bedtime snack is a bowl of cheerios with chocolate

16. She exercises all the time. She use to get up at like 430am to spin before she had to leave for work

17. She never judged any of the people we brought home. I'm sure she was wanting to say something about a few of them but she held her tongue

18. Her favorite season is winter. She loves the snowy, cold weather

19. She was always at our sporting events (mainly because she was the coach). She loves to watch her grandkids play their sports as well.

20. Whenever she visits Utah or Arizona she love getting the Pork Salad from Cafe Rio.

21. She hates waiting in line for things. It automatically makes her headaches worse.

22. She is an amazing cook. She makes the best gingerbread, cinnamon rolls, cheese potatoes, roast and mashed potatoes, meatloaf, etc, etc.

23. She has a wild side to her. She knows how to bust a move on the dance floor if the right song comes on.
24. She is amazing a playing the piano. I love listening to her when she sits down to play a Yanni piece.

25. Her favorite color is purple

26. She hates clutter especially things on her kitchen counters or her stairs

27. If you were to walk into her room you would never find an article of clothing on the floor (unless my dad was just in there) or the bed unmade

28. She was against getting any animals when we were young but eventually caved and each animal we've had has been her best friend at one point in time

29. I once went with her to the store to buy a couple of things but when we got there I realized the couple of things she was talking about were condoms and bananas for her health class at school.

30. She loves my dad more than anything and we have never doubted that

31. If I asked my mom to be in the delivery room with me when I was having a baby she would say "NO!"

32. And the final thing that makes my mom the greatest mom ever:

She raised some pretty good-looking kids!!!

We're Back!

I wish I had a good excuse for my little hiatus from blogging but I don't. My life just seemed to have gotten ahead of me and now I'm finally catching up. The past three weeks have been pretty busy. We got to enjoy some gorgeous weather and a lot of playground time. The farmers tans are now in full bloom and the need to bare a little too much skin has arisen. I do love this time of year, though. Rhaegan loves riding her bike and Marlee has become obsessed with the swings. Here are a few pictures of what we've been up to lately. Rhaegan was invited to a princess birthday party. Everyone had to come dressed up as their favorite prince/princess. Rhaegan was beyond excited for this particular day.
Marlee is our little nudist. She screams when she has to get dressed and is as happy as ever when she can roam the house completely naked.

These little moments make me smile.

We've been able to have lots of friends over. This picture makes us all crack up!

And of course we have been enjoying some yummy treats. Oreos have become a must-have in our house. Marlee has even perfected the art of dunking. We hope your spring is making you smile as well.