they're {crafty}

**i got this idea from a friend's blog (thanks, jules!)**
the boys made magnets this weekend and here are the finished projects. we made them out of wooden letters and decorated with paint, pom poms, googly eyes and a few buttons. they will be hanging out on the fridge for a while!

it's hard to find things that they actually want to make now- they ARE 7 and 8, and {boys}. ;)

they did a good job with these... if you look closely at the 'p', you will see the little button "shoes" and the 'b' has a cute soft, puffy smile! lol

{austin} at 7 months

sweet, sweet baby,

first off, i cannot believe that you are already seven months old. this month flew by! you are such an amazing little boy. you have mastered sitting up and you are actually really close to crawling. i think it's because your brothers move so fast- you feel the need to keep up. please don't. you have plenty of time for that. ;) some things that you've done this month: started eating baby food {fav. is bananas and you HATE peas- i have a funny picture to prove it!}, you roll over ALL THE TIME! {tummy to back & back to tummy}, you "scoot" to move around when you are on the floor, you started moving around in your walker and you love walks around the neighborhood in your stroller {although the weather keeps tricking us- warm one day and snow the next}. you are still such a good sleeper. you love your turtle night light that shines stars on your ceiling. you have the cutest {giggle}! we all love it and try so hard to get you to do it more. just this week, your brothers and i were on the couch with you and we had you laughing so hard. it was the cutest thing. i was making kissing noises at you and you thought it was hilarious! :)

you have no teeth yet, and no signs of any in the near future. that is one of the things i don't want to forget about this age- the {toothless, gummy grins}! AND open-mouth kisses from you. that, and your chubby little baby fingers. now that i'm thinking about it, your feet are quite chubby and cute, too! i can't resist kissing those feet after your bath, either. that also makes you giggle; you are extremely ticklish {you get this from daddy, you'll see}. i love that you let me sing to you and that you will sit still for a minute or two to let me read to you before bedtime. i know that is asking a lot out of an infant, so thank you {i also know it helps to show you the pictures}.

you also have this talent: you are crying one second and the next you are laughing. it is very musing.

happy 7 month birthday, austin! i love you, little bug.

p.s.- B is already trying to protect you from getting hurt. ;) they both love you SO much!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

"Kiss Me for Good Luck" baby- how can you resist! ;)

I wanted to show off Brendan's last minute Leprechaun trap project. We started it at 7pm last night, even though he found out about it on Friday. He's only in first grade- I thought the procrastination on school projects started in later years!
He did a really good job on it. He was up past his bedtime, but he was so excited about taking it to school this morning that it didn't matter.
He asked me this morning "Is there a leprechaun in it yet?" LOL.

I hope everyone has a fun day!

no more {EXCUSES}!

I finally got an elliptical! I've been looking on craigslist for about a month and I finally found one. It was right here in our town- about a mile away. This baby is going to be used and abused (I'm hoping!). It will be moved to my room as soon as Kyle gets home. Bassinet OUT, ELLIPTICAL in!

It was a busy week at the Sharp house. The boys had student-led conferences. They both did great. Peyton has been a strong reader from the beginning. Brendan, however, was a little slower learning- but, WOW! He blew us away with his mad reading skills. And spelling- man, can that boy spell! He is just surprising us a lot lately. Brendan can usually even spell Peyton's word list, including some of the 3rd grade challenge words. B is also REALLY digging football. He tosses the ball around whenever he gets the chance. First grade has been a HUGE year for him so far!

Peyton is doing well in school, too. Third grade has been a bit challenging for him, but he is managing to learn a thing or two. It is amazing how different these two boys are, and yet similar in certain ways.

P FINALLY got a haircut. He has been liking the "skater" look, but the parents decided a cut was due...;) Here is the new Peyton look...

It is a HUGE difference from this (showing off his first report for school- on the planet Jupiter):

Did I say "skater" look?? I meant "TREE HUGGIN' HIPPIE" look! lol

{my creative side surfaced again}

FINALLY! I haven't been able to scrapbook in a long while, so last weekend I had a few friends over and we got our {CrEaTiViTy} on! ;) It was a lot of fun just having a few girls over to hang out with. Even though the boys were home, I managed to get 8 pages done! Wow! I was on a ROLL! They were all A's, of course (I love doing baby pages!). I think I have given up on trying to do a family scrapbook. I just cannot find/make the time anymore...with 3 rugrats ruling the roost. But that's okay- I hear snapfish.com and shutterfly.com make mean photo books. I just might have to try that- considering I haven't done anything with our pictures since 2007! Oh, I started on 2008, but it's NEVER going to get finished. I should accept it and move on....put those pictures in a (don't say it!) photo album. ;) Hey, it's WAY better than a box (MOM).

Here are a few pages from A's book...simple BUT cute!

{photos}

our first family photos with our newest addition --only took 6 months!

{so many fish}

the boys had today off from school so i planned a fun day for the 4 of us (poor daddy misses all the FUN). we started out at krispy kreme- yum!. then we were off to our destination...the downtown aquarium.

the boys love going there and it's been a while since we had been (school field trips last year). there is a 3-d spongebob ride at the aquarium right now- they boys were pumped about that! we all did that- austin hated it! they disabled our chair, but i underestimated the volume of the show. wow! it was pretty loud! so i had one of my "mother of the year" moments- taking my infant in a too loud theater. well, at least it wasn't a long ride!

can i just tell you that austin LOVED the aquarium! he was so aware of everything. he couldn't get enough of the fish. he was mesmerized! aside from the fish- the boys climbed the coconut trees and pet the stingrays at stingray cove. peyton even fed them. brendan- well, he preferred to observe that part. ;)

i let the boys do the 3-d ride again- i waited outside this time with sensitive ears (see, i learn)- then we went to lunch. i think there is only one Fuddruckers here in CO. I love it. The burgers are so good {this really was NOT a good weight watchers points day, oops}. peyton & i had cheeseburgers and bren had a hotdog (really, kid? what's up with all the dogs? he loves those).

i had a great day with my boys today. they had a lot of fun- AND BONUS for them! it is "kids night out" tonight! yay! as peyton said earlier..."this is the best day EVER!"

if babies could talk....

"Why must you keep taking pictures, Mom?"

no shoes, no shirt, no service....

My boys crack me up! Yesterday we went to the grocery store. I was getting Austin ready- changing his diaper, putting on pants and a shirt instead of the pj's he was wearing all day, and socks. I took him downstairs and put his cute lil shoes on his cute lil feet. Peyton walks by me and asks, "why does Austin have to wear shoes?" My reply, "we are going to the store". He thought for a few seconds and looked at me all serious and says, "oh yeah- no shoes, no shirt, no service".

sitting man and an anniversary

February 19, 2010: Austin is 6 months old. He is just starting to sit up unassisted. He wobbles a bit- but he is doing great! His favorite past time is still chewing his fists. He doesn't have any teeth yet, so I don't think he poses a threat to himself. ;)

He got a little taste of bananas- here was his reaction...

This picture is priceless. He really did like the bananas, I promise. He is doing pretty good with the spoon feeding. I'm going to do a little at a time with him.

Today was also our 1 year anniversary in our house. We have done a lot in the year that we have lived here...we've painted every room in the house except for the master bedroom and bathroom (can't decide on a color!), we ripped out the carpet in the living room and put in pergo flooring (love it!) and we've done A LOT of yard work (and we still aren't done). We've also made some pretty great memories here so far-

It was kind of funny this afternoon... It snowed all night last night and most of the day today. My husband DID NOT shovel the driveway before he went to work this afternoon. Our driveway is pretty steep and I can't make it up to the garage without sliding back down, so I had to shovel the driveway to get the van in. I was so mad and was thinking to myself, "why did we not consider the driveway when we bought this house?" I highly doubt we would have passed on this house because of the darn driveway, but on a really snowy day when the cars are sliding down the driveway- it makes me wonder....:)

valentine's day

I meant to post this yesterday- but I couldn't find the card...guess I need to get organized. That was one of my new year's resolutions. Geez- it's only Feb. 15th and I'm already falling behind.
Anyway- I make Valentine cards every year for family. This is my card for this year. The only thing that I didn't think about ahead of time was that I needed square envelopes because the card is a circle- so it required EXTRA postage. Oh well- this just meant a trip to the post office... That's what my lunch break is for at work, right?
The boys had a fun day yesterday. They got treats from mommy & daddy and grandpa & grandma sharp. After they scarfed down a bunch of chocolate- they went to play with the neighbor kids (probably eating more candy that I didn't know about).
I didn't really feel like cooking, so I took the boys to get dinner and then we went to the store to get ice cream- waffle bowls and all!
The boys fell asleep (actually, they probably passed out from a sugar rush) on the couch watching iCarly, lol. When Kyle got home- he woke them up and took them up to their room. Brendan was happy to see Daddy and tell him goodnight.

boys and their POCKETS!

I just got a load of laundry out of the dryer and found some interesting things... 2 rocks, a green army guy, 55 cents, quite a few legos and a bouncy ball. I KNOW this is all from the same child- Brendan (aka #2). He cracks me up. He has stuff in his pockets all the time- he gets this from his daddy. Actually, I think all males do this. I find golf tees in the washer/dryer from Kyle's pockets. I always forget to check! Well, at least it keeps the laundry interesting. LOL

snow, snow go away...

It snowed ALL day today! I know it's only Februaury (and I live in CO) but STILL! I'm over the snow already. It started at the beginning of October. That is over four months now, Mother Nature.... throw us some nice Spring days soon! I am getting cabin fever on the weekends.;) There are only so many indoor places that I can take the boys. We have been playing the Wii a lot and watching movies at night. That is a lot of fun, too. I just like having choices- and in the winter, I don't! The boys aren't really into board games, Brendan always leaves if he loses. LOL We do our fair share of crafts. The boys love to paint and make Martian Matter (which we are totally out of and I cannot find it at any of the local stores- agghhhh).
Since the boys have DS's now, they play those a ton (if the neighbor kids can't come play). That just leaves me and Austin during the day while Daddy is at work. Austin doesn't like this because Mommy has too much time on her hands...to take pictures! Oh, please. Don't feel sorry for him. He loves it. He smiles his big baby smile every time. He is a great baby model! ;) I have a ton of pictures to prove it. I think the older two are so happy that Austin is their "fall guy". Keeps my camera out of their faces!
So- for Austin's sake, Mother Nature, please let Spring come on already!

goodbye, callie

i had to say goodbye to my cat on the 16th. i rescued callie at the dallas spca in october, 1996. she was 13 yrs. old.

she was a pretty good cat...;) she had her little quarks like any animal does. i will miss her a lot- she was my first "child"- my first pet on my own. she was with me through most of my BIG life moments- college, marriage, moving from apt. to apt. then to our house, kids, moving to CO.... i put that cat through a lot. i have a ton of really good memories with her!

i love you, callie. you will be missed...

a visit from TERAH, the new year and skiing

Terah arrived around 8pm-ish on 12/31. We sat around talking and playing games (and had a few drinks) to ring in the new year. The boys had fun with hats and party blowers and confetti poppers (what a mess, by the way). A pretty relaxing New Year's all in all.

While Terah was here, we went skiing- Terah, Kyle and I. We had so much fun!! We went to Loveland Pass for the day. It was my first time skiing- Kyle's first time, too. Terah had been a few times, so she gave us some pointers once we were on the slopes- and off we went. It was a blast! I cannot wait to go again soon. It was great spending time with Terah (my burro)- even though we had touble with the puzzle! lol

merry christmas!

i hope everyone is having a merry christmas. we are enjoying the holidays here in CO. it is a white christmas this year; it's so pretty. the boys are playing with their new toys/games and i am enjoying some quiet time with austin by the fire. unfortunately kyle had to work today at noon but we had a great morning together. we also had a great christmas eve together. we took the boys ice skating in louisville. they have a small outdoor rink- it is pretty cool. it was cold and crowded but we still had fun.

happy haunting!

the boys are so excited about trick-or-treating! i have Captain Rex running around AND a vampire. this is peyton's first year to be scary!

i also have the cutest baby pumpkin laying around all warm and snuggly.

they are so ready to get the party started!

i hope everyone has a safe and fun halloween!

pumpkin patch

i had to post pictures from the pumpkin patch this afternoon! austin was so cute in the pumpkin pile! ;)

it was VERY windy- but it was a pretty nice day other than that. peyton & brendan rode a few rides and ran through the corn maze. we picked out 2 good pumpkins and took a few pics. we are all ready for fall!

austin's nursery is done!

pop monkey's all over the place. this room is so adorable! i love the way it turned out. i love the monkeys and the colors. it is my favorite room in the house to be in- and it's a good thing because i am going to be spending a lot of time in this room! ;) the lightswitch even has the monkey on it.

i hope austin knows that this paint stays on the walls!! that brown stripe was NOT easy! it's pretty neutral- i bet we can find something that goes with it when he gets older... for now- it is perfect.

Austin is here!

Austin arrived on Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at 3:04pm.

My doctor sent me to the hospital after my appointment on the 17th because he found protein in my urine. At the hospital, I started a 24 hr. urine collection. My doctor started the steroid shots to help Austin's lungs along- just in case. On Tuesday it was confirmed...I had severe toxemia. To be severe, 5 grams of protein is found in the urine. I had 7.5 grams!

I got the second steroid shot on Tuesday and the delivery was set for Wednesday at 2pm. I was so scared- my due date wasn't for another 5 weeks! He wasn't due until Sept. 25th! But I started to feel much better when all the nurses told me that my doctor was the BEST! I fully trusted him before, but it's nice to know everyone thinks that way.

After a LONG night, it was delivery day. I don't think I could have been more nervous. I was so scared of the c-section. Just the anticipation was killing me. My nurse that morning was wonderful and I knew she would be in the room with me during the surgery. That helped a lot.

Once she started prepping me for surgery, I started shaking. The spinal wasn't that bad, but it took forever for the guy to get it right. Once that was done, I was feeling a little better. My doctor calmed me down a little when he came in- a familiar face. Then Kyle came in- that was calming, too. He was by my side throughout the surgery. I don't remember anything, really, until my doctor said "He's almost here". A minute later I heard Austin cry. That has to be the most amazing sound- the first cry after they enter the world. I started crying! The nurses did what they needed to do and a few minutes later they brought my new son over to me. He is amazing; perfect! I only got to see him for a minute before they took him to the NICU. He weighed 4lbs., 13ozs. and was 17 inches long. He had to stay in the NICU during our whole hospital stay, but he was never on oxygen or a feeding tube at all. He stayed one extra night in the hospital after I was released. We brought him home on Monday, August 24th.

Peyton & Brendan are both proud big brothers. They love Austin so much! He is an amazing addition to our family!

Welcome Home, baby Austin! We love you!

first day of school

the boys start at their new school today. they were pretty excited this morning! we went to open house last night. we all met both of their teachers- ms. evans (b) and ms. kircher (p). they seem really nice. the boys filled their desks with their new school supplies.

i am excited for this year. i know they are going to adjust quickly and make new friends. they got off to a great start this morning at the bus stop...:)