DG's ramblings

As promised here is the other stuff.
- My first day of my new job kind of felt like a first day of school. Thankfully this time I didn't lose a contact, miss a train, or get lost on campus (all very true and very traumatic).
- Between Ironman, Indiana Jones and What Happens in Vegas I have to say Ironman was my favorite...go see it! (is anyone looking forward to Batman the way I am?) (anyone?)
- Like Dwight Schrute in the Christmas Party episode of The Office I am now a user of the handy Netti-Pot. My first experience was quite scary (hint...too much salt) and I nearly blew my ears out. But after I got the hang of it I enjoyed the experience thoroughly.
- Nothing better then seeing one kid round the bases in kickball on the same day the other goes 2 for 2 in her first softball game. Oh yeah!
- How did anyone stay motivated to run before the I-Pod? Oh yeah..the Walkman.
- If every week of summer is as crazy as the first I'm not going to make it.
- I should have waited to start watching LOST when it was all over and I could crank out
each season in a couple of weeks. Did that with ALIAS, watched five years worth in a few months..nice.
- Nursery can be frightening for a poor boy who has been couped up all winter.

Birthday Blog

The slideshow to my right is a quick glance through the first two years of our baby's life. What a crazy two years it's been. Over one hundred trips to the doctor, so many prescriptions, sleepless nights, and too many miracles to fathom. After all that, we have a great kid who loves life and has become one of the most courageous little guys I know.
We had a great celebration that began in Disneyland and ended with a great family party at Granddad and Nonna's house a week and a half later. Of course he was spoiled with a wonderful Elmo cake, books and new digs (clothes guys, clothes). We love watching him grow and learn new things. He continues to surprise us each day with his Word of the Day, and makes us laugh as he dances along with Kristy Yamaguchi and Jason Taylor on Dancing with the Stars.
We are so grateful to have this wonderful blessing in our lives. He has helped our entire family draw closer and rely on the Lord in all we do.

Disney Daze

Ok so check this out. It's been almost a week since we returned from Disneyland and I am just now getting to that point where I can sit down and collect my thoughts on the whole experience. Mostly it's because of the Mickey induced braincloud I have had for the past few days. It's the reward for hauling 3 kids down to Cali and spending $3 for an apple just to make it through the morning.

So what did I learn from our trip? I learned the Walmart umbrella strollers are cheap. Ours broke before we even hit the park. I learned that a Veggie burger can sustain you for about nine hours before the IHOP comes to the rescue. I learned that the cars of the future won't go very fast. Oh and I learned that if you really want to bond with your family, cram everyone into one hotel and make that your home for four days.

But the funnest thing I learned is that my kids have a brave streak in them. Yes, they may be afraid of the occasional dog or cat, or even those "Rolly-Polly" bugs, but when it comes to a fast ride in a dark room (a. la. Space Mountain) or a trip down raging rapids, they do not fear the unknown.

So, what was my favorite part? Easy. The best was sitting next to the kids as the ride is about to get good. We had so much fun getting prepared for the exciting unknown ahead of us. Maybe that's an analogy for life.....ok maybe that's just why people like roller coasters. Whatever it is, I like it.

Tips for those thinking of making the trek.

Favorite rides:

Mine- The rapids ride in California Adventure

D's- Space Mountain (a classic for her)

V's- Splash Mountain

S's- Buzz Light-Year Astroblaster ( I rocked this game!!)

The kids were able to earn Disney Dollars for the trip by doing extra jobs and such, which was really good for them. Disney Dollars can be purchased at Disney Stores or online.

A friend gave us a good idea of buying some Disney items before the trip and surprising the kids with them throughout the week. This was nice because they got souvenirs at half the cost.

Brady Bunch Birthday Blog

So we're doing this only a month or so late. Don't forget to stay tuned for the Wrap Up blog, the Summer Movie Preview blog, and the Countdown to Disney blog. But for now we turn our attention to the oldest of the kids. She had a little birthday about a month or so ago that we didn't catalog in our historically accurate family blog.

The above pictures are samples of pictures taken with friends and family. Not everyone dressed up as well as V (the wig did look good in contrast to my dark skin) but they all had a blast playing Brady Bunch themed games like Find Kitty Carry All, and which Brady girl are you. These parties get a little crazy with all the kids but Mom pulled it off like a champ. We love birthdays and we love our kids.

The picture

Here it is sports fans....waiting for your answers.

Country Road......

take me home..to the place...that I wanna beeeee....West Virginia something something..take me home.
I hope you all enjoyed that sweet serenade. I'm here, as sunburned as this Guatemalan skin can be at the Stonewall Resort somewhere South of Clarksburg, WVA. Never in my wildest dreams did I think my business would take me to such an isolated spot. We have some great people here who have treated us well. My boss and I are here doing a series of meetings until tomorrow. We drove down from Pittsburgh where I took a special picture. For a cool prize identify the person in the picture and the "situation" the picture is capturing. Sports fans put on your thinking caps.

Due to technical issues the picture will have to wait until the next post. More prizes and guessing games to come so stay tuned.

A Surprise for Dave!

This is Deb (Dave's esposa) here. I wanted to break into this blog to really quickly thank my incredible husband for being so willing to watch the kids while I spent 50 fun-filled hours with my friends in Las Vegas last weekend. I had such a wonderful time and it was made even more wonderful by knowing that Dave was taking such good care of the kids. He threw a "High School Musical" party, complete with watching the movie, dancing, eating snacks, and making their very own "High School Musical" posters (S.'s had a drawing of Chad with a major 'fro and V.'s said, "We're all watching this together, and we know that we are watching High School Musical"!). Then, on Saturday, he took them to "Horton Hears a Who," which they all loved. And, to top it all off, they had the house very clean when I got home Sunday night. THANK YOU, Dave. You are truly my very best friend. I'm so lucky to have you in my life! I love you. (By the way, this picture is of my hot husband with our sweet little boys last Halloween.)