Mr Happy is 7 today!!

happy

Two weeks ago I got to see my kids for the first time since October.  It had been waaaaay too long!!!  We had scheduled THREE other times before that to get together...and all three times are the days it snowed or iced here in town!!  Aaagh!! So frustrating!! 

  

But finally it worked out and in the months between visits, they got three (yes, three!) new puppies who are now five months old.  They are Great Pyrenees, super soft and fluffy, and all girls.  And I have NO idea how in the world they tell them apart! lol

I would put different colored collars on them..but the kids and their dad say they know them all, so that's good.  That is A LOT of dog to be greeted by in their sunroom, let me tell ya! :)

Then I took them to have their pictures done at our favorite place - Portrait Innovations. (Just the kids. No dogs. Ha.)  Love that place!!  They always do a great job and can do a studio look that I can't do.

And of course you know I'm going to put up some of my favorites... :}

We chose a purple theme for our first outfits because the outfit that LM Sunshine has on is her very favorite and she feels so pretty in it :) so we were pleasantly surprised when we got there and our photographer pulled down a purple backdrop to match! :)

Don't let this picture fool you, lol! They did this willingly for the photographer...but then later as we were looking through them there was plenty of "Eww! I can't believe we did that!" from the girls. Ha.

My sweet girl and my spunky one.  :)

The weekend before I was supposed to keep them all day but my end of town got snow and as I attempted to get out of my neighborhood - just driving down the hill in front of our house - I started slipping and sliding...managed to stop...turned around and said well, I'm not going anywhere!  Later that day my kids called and left me a message that completely cracked me up.  I wish I could put the audio of it on here!

LM Sunshine started it out by saying, in her sweet and quiet voice:

"Hi Kiki! I love you and I miss you and I wish we could have seen you today and uh Happy early Valentines Day and I hope we get to see you really really soon."

Followed by LM Giggles who said at full volume:

"HEY KIKI! SORRY YOUR HOUSE GOT ALL.....SNOWED UP!!"

Ha!! Sums up their personalities pretty darn well.  :D

And my sweetheart.  :)  I always buy my kids an outfit for their birthday as well as something fun and this was Mr. Happy's bday outfit.  I knew he would like it because it came from me...but I underestimated just how much he would love it!  He definitely felt pretty handsome in it and adored that hat!  

We had watched this music video way back in October in the Women Getting Real Bible study that I've been going to (and of course now I don't remember what the connection was to why we watched it...but the song fit that night...lol)  and I knew right then that was the look I wanted to copy...

...pretty good copy, don't ya think??  :)

Aaand...one more just for the heck of it...

I would MUCH rather be the one behind the camera..therefore, there are basically no pictures of me and my kids...so now at least we have one of all of us together.  :) 

Counting the days until I get to see them again...and praying for God's protection over them while I'm not with them.  :)

happy halloween :)

On Tuesday, my kids and I continued a tradition that I claimed when I left - taking them to Boo at the Zoo.  They just love the fun of dressing up and getting candy. :)  Who wouldn't?!

This year we had a dracula (again), a fifties girl, and a native american indian.

It was so so cold though that we had to wear coats over our outfits - or under our cape as the case may be...  :)

Every year there is a booth where children can have their picture taken. Last year however, the background was different than just blue. Oh well.  And as you can tell, the lighting was just fantastic! lol

Love it when he holds my hand. :)

Our friend Leah came with us too! My kids hadn't seen her in quite a while and it's always fun to go with a friend.  They rode the carousel, which is also tradition, but I didn't get any pictures of that this year.  That is a favorite because it goes backwards for Boo at the Zoo!  :)  

Time with my kiddos is never long enough!  :\

Then, the next day...

I got to take my little Superman on our first outing!  We went to see mommy at her office and help show him off in his adorable little costume (picture coming).  We even ate lunch at Cafe 4 on Market Square which I had never been to before...but I will most definitely be going back!  Yum!

Then we got home and his bib was soaked...so I looked for another orange one and found...

...this!  Which cracked me up!  :)

Then we had to model his costume for you...

He makes one pretty cute dinosaur...or dragon...whichever you think this costume is...some of us couldn't quite decide...  :}  

Happy Halloween!

little miss giggles turns 8!

 A couple weeks ago I got to once again pick up my kids from school and once again Mr. Happy ran and jumped into my arms and wrapped his arms around my neck, hugged me tight, and said "this must be a dream!!"  :) 

Little Miss Giggles had turned 8 just a week or so before so we went to Target and I let her pick out a birthday outfit (it's a tradition that I always get my kids a birthday outfit), then we ran to Starbucks for the treat of a birthday cake pop (the pink one in the pic below) and took it to a nearby park.

Love these two! :}

Silly boy. :)

I let Little Miss Sunshine and Mr. Happy pick out one item each from the dollar section of Target.  Mr. Happy was thrilled to get a little bag of army men and set them all up at our little table.

Then I let LMG open her bday present - a whole bunch of Polly Pocket stuff!  She loooved it, just like I knew she would!  :)  All three played around and explored it for a few minutes before we headed off to do a mini bday photo shoot of LMG and play on the playground.  And yes, even Mr. Happy joined in the fun with the Polly Pockets.  Have you ever noticed how no one cares if little girls play with boy toys...but a lot of people get upset if boys play with little girls toys??  But when you have two big sisters, you want to be part of the fun, especially when there's a new toy around!  Besides, those of you with both boys and girls know that if you sit back and watch your little boy play with a girl toy for a minute, they play with them so very differently!  As my two girls played with the Polly Pockets, they found perfect little outfits for them, found a car or bike or something to ride on, pretended they were shopping at the mall, etc.  Mr. Happy, on the other hand, grabbed a doll and immediately started figuring out a way to place them in those holes you see on the table and then catapult them by smacking them from under the table to see how far he could blast them!  Lol, girl toy or not, he is still ALL BOY!  :)

Such a handsome dude. :)
I love that his belly is peeking out lol.
And that is a pirate tattoo on his arm.  Or what's left of it. :}

He saw another little boy climbing on top and of course had to try it for himself.

And just for a fun little flashback....

LMG on her second birthday...which I could swear was just a couple months ago...!

(click on this picture to go to my photography blog to see her mini bday photo shoot)

Little Miss Giggles you are so fun and spunky.  I'm so glad that you are loving school and having new friends.  I love that you still ask me to play "God songs" when you're with me in the car.  I pray that you will never forget how amazing God is and how much He loves you.  I pray for you every day - that He will whisper His love to your heart and call you to Himself.  I miss seeing your happy smile every day and love the times we get to spend together!

I love you sweet girl!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY (a little late...) LITTLE MISS GIGGLES!

after school pick-up

While the boys were at the beach last week, I got to pick my kiddos up from school one afternoon!  I love love surprising them and couldn't wait to hug them and as usual they were ecstatic to see me.

mr. happy says hi!

lol

silly boy. :) 

We stopped by one of our old favorite places - Pet Smart. I'm so glad my kids are still so easily entertained! :} They were watching two small kittens wrestling with each other and were cracking up over them. :) 

The fish are always fascinating to watch!

It was a quick afternoon, but I would take that any day over not seeing them for three months!!  :}  

We'll do it again soon guys.

Luv u.

most dangerous job

Being a nanny is one of the most dangerous jobs ever. Why? Because you can't help but fall in love with the children in your care...but then there is always an eventual goodbye to a nanny job and you risk having your heart broken when you are no longer with your kids every week anymore (especially when you know the future goodbye could have an ocean separating you, not just a city!).  :-p  But it is by far worth the time spent and memories made...just a little rough at times.  :}

I miss my three kids every single day and pray for them often by name.  After about a month of not seeing them, my heart starts aching.  After 6 weeks, I usually start tearing up when I think about or pray for them.  After three months?!  I get desperate!  :-p

Three months is the longest we have ever been apart and I refuse to let that happen again!  This past week I was dying to see them and happened to be driving by their neighborhood on Wednesday and decided to stop by to see if they were by any chance at home.  They of course weren't, so I wrote a note on their glass door with window crayons letting them know I stopped by and that I loved them.

That evening I got a phone call from their dad saying Mr. Happy wanted to talk to me and was that ok? (um, ya think?!)  My MH got on the phone hiccup-crying and said "kiki...i thought i might never see you again!!" He then chatted with me for half an hour about all kinds of little boy stuff.  :)  It was then that I decided I had had enough.  I knew from talking to him and his sisters that night that they were going to day camp that week at their school. I knew about what time their mom usually picks them up and decided I was going to get there 20 or so minutes before that and just sit there with them until she came!  

Thursday morning I put a fbook status telling about the above phone call and how much I wanted to see my kids and I had five or six people say they were praying I would get to see them. 

That afternoon I was sitting in my friend's living room catching up after being gone for a few weeks when I got a text from my kids mom saying "hey, I know this is really last minute but would you want to pick the kids up from day camp and take them out to eat?"  I answered back "HECK YES!!!"  She called me real quick and mentioned "I don't know why I didn't think of it before, but it just popped into my head just now to see if you wanted to do that." 

Hahaha!  Wendy, it's not a coincidence that thought popped into your head - God gave you that thought - as a result of my prayers and the prayers of my sweet friends who knew how badly I wanted to see my kids!  :)  

I love picking him up! This isn't his first reaction - he had seen me but had to go get his backpack.  The first moment he did see me and it registered who I was, his mouth dropped open before a huge grin spread across his sweet face.  :) More about that later.

 FINALLY!!!  

Talking to him on the phone was great and I loved hearing his voice, but there is nothing like feeling his cheek against mine and having his arms wrapped around my neck!  :)

(Big Brother wraps his arms around my neck sometimes too...I love little boys!)

My sweet and silly girlies!! They were too far away when I picked them up to get a picture of when they first saw me.  They were looking for mommy's red car and then thought maybe my car was their daddy's because we have similar looking cars.  It wasn't until I got out and called their names that I heard Little Miss Sunshine squeal "KIKI!!!" and both girls ran as fast as they could across the field where they were playing.  :)

We went to Red Robins for dinner - one of our favorite special treat places.  :)  Then we headed downtown to the fountains at the World's Fair Park.  Another one of our favorite spots.

Another one of my happy spots...just chillin' with my kids.  :)

I love this pic because his little chubby cheek gives him just a little hint of baby look still, even though he's a big 5 year old.  :)

Bridal shoot at the fountains!  She was wearing cowboy boots under her dress and it looked so cute!  :)

Two kids in my lap! :)  Little Miss Giggles was busy drawing funny pictures for us. 

Goofy boy. :) 

She's my sweetheart. :)  And is getting to be so grown up.

(stop that LMS!!) :) 

She cracks me up!  And that makes her happy - to make other people laugh.  :)

Ok so this isn't the actual moment I picked him up from day camp but I've said before that I would love to try to get a picture of his reaction and this is the same reaction i get when he sees that it's me - huge grin, yells "KIKI!!!!!!", runs full force and jumps into my arms (which is getting trickier since he's not as little as he used to be! lol).  This is him practicing his "kiki run" as he called it. :} ♥

I just realized yesterday that he left his lunch box and LMS left her notebook in my car...that means I will have to get them back to them soon....oh darn!  :D

derby weekend

I got to stay with my kiddos last weekend while their parents went up to the KY Derby!  I picked them up from school on Thursday and stayed an hour and a half after their parents got home Sunday evening.  :)  I wish wish wish I could get a picture of Mr. Happy when I pick him up from school.  His aftercare teachers always comment on how they love it when I pick him up because of his reaction.  No matter where he is or whether he knows I'm coming or not, he yells my name when he sees me and comes running full speed towards me, huge grin on his face and eyes lit up and jumps into my arms and squeezes me tight.  :)  Then after we walk to his classroom to get all his stuff, and head to walk to the car, he usually grabs hold of my hand and makes a comment something to the effect of "I can't even believe it! I can't believe you're here!!"  :}  

So since Thursday was a school night, we had a low key evening at home.  The kids swam in the pool for a good while before dinner and I stuck my toe in to feel the usual early May freezingness that is usually the pool.  However to my surprise, with the warm weather we've been having lately, the water actually felt really good!  Standing with my feet on the first steps in the pool with the rest of me roasting in the sun, I started to regret not bringing a swim suit....and I ended up totally shocking my kids and jumping in clothes and all! lol  

After that was dinner and then just a little bit of chill time with one show on TV with my baby snuggled next to me on one side and my girlies on the other. 

That night I woke up in the middle of the night to Mr. Happy crawling in bed to snuggle next to me again.  :}

Friday after school, since I hadn't gotten to see Little Miss Sunshine on her birthday back at the very end of March, I told her she could pick pretty much any store and we would go so she could pick out her own present.  She thought this was pretty cool and chose Hobby Lobby and chose a large sketch pad, a book about how to draw many different things, and a set of colored pencils.  Perfect.  :)

After dinner Friday night I told the kids to get shoes on and climb in the car because I had a surprise for them.

We drove to the familiar playground across the street and got to meet up with our little friend Lulu!  It had been so long since we had seen her!  She is getting big and is talking so very well!  (and yesterday, Saturday, was her and her mommy's birthdays!  Happy birthday y'all!!)

Saturday we slept in and ate lunch at one of our favorite places - the Tomato Head downtown.   

Then we came home and tried out these t-shirt ideas from Martha Stewart that a friend and I had seen on her show recently.  They were super easy to make and even Mr. Happy could do his all by himself and they can be so colorful and happy!  :)  

Then it was time to send mommy and daddy a quick pic just to say hi.  They're so silly.  :)

That evening we got to go over to Cake Leah's house and have a cookout with all our old friends!  That was so much fun!

Madison thought Mr. Happy was pretty awesome!  She was stuck on a blanket on the grass outside and would fuss just a little bit if she felt ignored for too long, but Mr. Happy made sure to stay close by for a good long time and talk to her and keep her company.  :) 

This is our friend Aiden...and his s'more!  lol  Those marshmallows can get a bit sticky!! 

Finally it was time to say goodbye.  This is LM Giggles with little Leah. 

Hugs all around.  :) 

So sweet.  :)

Sunday we went to church of course.  I love getting to take my kids to church...and they would love to go every week!  I had ALWAYS told them that any Sunday they want to go and mommy and daddy say ok, I will come get them myself and take them!  Maybe someday....

After church we went with a few of my friends to eat lunch.  I knew the kids would finish eating before I would, so since I just happen to have two itouches plus an iphone...I had one per child...perfect!  LM Giggles had my phone at one point...thus this pick of LMS! lol

Back at home we all got in the pool for a good long time.

Sometimes Mr. Happy has to take a break and warm up for a bit and discuss life with me.  :)  I love hearing his thoughts on whatever topic he decides to bring up.  This weekend it was restaurants and what would be the best and worst jobs about working at one.  

Then it was back inside to dry off.

 We played around in the living room for a while and LMS worked hard on a drawing from her new book.  She is a great little artist and works very intently putting everything into her drawings!  She doesn't know this but she gave me the drawing she's working on in this picture and I have another one at home that I am going to eventually actually frame and hang on the walls of whatever place I live at next.  :)

I grew sadder and sadder as the afternoon went on because who knows when I will see my kiddos again.  :-p  If I could choose, I would see them one day a week at least for this summer anyways!  

I love you guys and I will see you as soon as possible!!!  :)