Juggling it all...

I had meant to post this a couple of days ago, but, well, you know the deal... twins, chores, cooking, piano and now soccer... blah, blah, blah... So apparently not only do we have a super-star soccer player among us, but we also have a very talented creative writer. The other day one of Sam's homework assignments was to write down a quick story about ants (yes, ants... those pesky little buggers... I guess they are learning about them in class). Completely on her own, with no help from us WHAT-SO-EVER (except how to spell the words), Sam came up with this... "There once was a princess who sat and had a picnic. The ants came and ate all her food. She was very hungry. So she ate the ants." I was (and still am) completely blown away by her creativity in this short little story. It makes me giggle each time I think of it... it's genius... well, at least we think so! You're awesome Sam!!

That's right, our Sammy girl has got some awesome soccer skills! She was so pumped for her first ever soccer practice today that it was all I could use to get her to practice piano, do her chores and finish her laundry... I know, I'm such the drill sergeant! Now, I knew my little super-star had a mild amount of coordination, and I knew she is most always good at anything she loves and/or practices hard at, but seriously... she was sooooo good today at her very first practice that Scott and I just stood there on the side of the field with our jaws wide open. She is probably the youngest and shortest on the team and the only one to have never "played" before... but by the looks of it you would have never known it. We tried desperately to get her on the team with the other members of her 'Fab 4' posse (3 are on one team and Sam is on another), but we just don't think it's going to work out. So, at the end of the day, we just gotta make due with what we...

Look what I made... (aren't you proud, mom??!!) Started with 2 identical tank tops from Target on clearance for $2.50 each - I used one to cut the ruffles out of and the other I sewed the ruffles on... LOVE IT! For this one I bought a maternity shirt from Target, also on clearance for $2.50, and cut, cut, cut... sew, sew, sew...VIOLA a scarf... LOVE IT!

We somehow got roped into a softball team over the summer with almost Scott's entire family as our team (minus a few who were smart to steer clear of the sign up sheet). We actually had a great time playing together and it was fun to do something different; boy were we a bunch of mis-fit toys in wonderland. We had one injury after the other which only reminds us all that we should leave the organized team sports to the next generation - we don't heal as quickly as we used to. Never the less, we did pretty good and were able to stick it out and make it through to the 2nd round of tournament games but then lost miserably and went down in a ball of flames to the tune of 24-4... YIKES! Unfortunately Scott had to work the night we took this photo at our last game... he was there in spirit! Our team captain - or the guy who *made* us do this - is Steve and he is the one kneeling with the goofy "thumbs-up smile" (and yeah, that's me next to the goof ball!) and he is ou...

Yes, I know what you're thinking... how can I, a mother with 3 kids - two of which are crazy little twins, get bored? Well, it happens, and when it does, it's dangerous. See for yourself... Boredom with a little bit of this... ...means this... ...which equals this... And I love it! I still want to add a little 1/2 round moulding to the edges to frame it in, but in the mean time it is perfect for kids to draw on, little notes to the hubby, and as you can see letting the fam know that tonight, we're eating out!!

Let me be the first to say Thank You to Scott's mom for the years of dance classes she taught out of their home while he was growing up. I'm happy to report that something actually rubbed off on him and it is finally paying off! Now, for your viewing pleasures... Oh, wait... go to the bathroom first, trust me, you just might pee your pants laughing... Please Enjoy! This skit was originally performed for a Daddy-Daughter activity we had this weekend at our church in which these 5 awesome, studly daddies agreed to do this for ALL the other daddy/daughters (just a small group of about 300... no big deal ;-) We had to have these guys put on a encore presentation for us so we could actually get it recorded for all to enjoy!! I'm sure all us wives owe them something... maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but trust me they will make us pay for it later!

Samantha started school today!! And as much as I beg her to stay home with me, to please stop growing and to please be my little girl forever she just simply refuses. How dare she, right? She tells me all the time that she has to grow up big like me... I guess that's not the worst thing a mother could hear from her daughter... but then again she is only 6 and the trouble has really yet to begin (hold me!). So what's a first day of school without a photo shoot??!! Can you believe my little baby has gone from this , to this... This was her 'day-before-school-starts-while-the-clothes-are-still-clean' photo shoot... And this is her today on the actual first day, out the door and on her way to school... And no first day of school photo would be complete without her bestie, Emily! And this is what I'm referring to as THE FAB 4... all BFF's... in the same grade... in the same school... with the SAME teacher... sitting at the SAME table! That poor lady! She will des...

Oh, my sweet family and friends, how I adore each of you! I have probably the biggest favor to ask that I have ever had to ask of you... You see, I have entered a contest in which the winner receives a free website and $6,000 worth of some awesome marketing help that I could use right now for my photography biz. However the only way to win is by racking up the most comments for my entry here . So please, oh please visit this website and leave a comment, or two, or three - not sure what's allowed, but if someone named Fido leaves a comment I'll be impressed. You can also go to my photo blog here for more details. I love you guys and thank you from the bottom of my heart for helping me!!

So this blog post belongs in the MISC. file only for the fact that it has nothing to do with nothing. I rented a lens from a camera store in Tempe and while we were on that side of town we discovered our new fav spot... YOGURTLAND! Lots, and lots of flavors for pretty dang cheap - well, maybe it was cheap because I'm a stingy mom who won't let her kids fill their cups to the top... all they need was just enough to cover the bottom of their cup and that was plenty. And so since I had a new lens to play with for the weekend and also realizing I hadn't taken any birthday photos of the twins (yeah, their birthday was like a month ago... I'm that good of a mom ;-) we had an impromptu photo shoot in the backyard... Notice Brody trying so hard to get his 3rd finger up to show me how old he is... too cute! I love my babies!!!

In our very low-budget attempt to beat this awful heat, we took a trip to a local outdoor mall that has - of all things - a fantastic water play area. The kiddos were in heaven! They had a blast and have been asking to go back everyday since then. Sam's magic ice cream trick... Now you see it... and now you don't!! This is the life... (thanks babe for capturing my favorite photo of all time)