Yes Virginia there is a Santa Claus...wait....

OK, so the end of last week and yesterday found us in Richmond, VA, visiting family and attending a wedding of a lifelong friend of Seth's...needless to say, we were busy and got to see alot of loved ones! My in-law's camera holds the pictures so I'll download some of those later but here are the highlights of the trip:
1. Gwen and Graelyn endeared themselves to the pilot on the way out...NOT the flight attendant on the way back...long story.
2. We all attended a VERY Greek wedding 1 hour 4 minutes long...I looked...Gwen made it through the ENTIRE thing silent and perfect and then reinacted it with her G-ma Nancy and Grandad afterwards...Graelyn made it through exactly 4 min. 37 seconds until we exiled ourselves to the "loud kids" area of the church...she had fun, made friends with Sammy from Philly and Henry and Greta from Plano (who by the way flew out with us...we're bff now for real)
3. We left the girls with said G-ma Nancy and Grandad to play, bathe and sleep while we went to the adults only reception (which was kinda nice for a change...but I wish we could have danced with the girls!)
4. Aunt Shannon (Seth's brother Ethan's wife) is looking super cute with her belly...baby girl Lindbloom should be here sometime in October and we'll get to see her over Thanksgiving!
5. Had a little party for Graelyn on her actual birthday (July 26th)...officially 2 years old!!! EVERY aunt and uncle was there that lives in Richmond: Aunt Carlyle, Aunt Amanda & Uncle Eric (whom I just met and LOVE!), Aunt Shannon & Uncle Ethan...then some new friends who garden and have inspired me to do so as well...Melissa & Shawn...and Shawn is a good friend of Ethan and Seth's from high school!
6. Ate really well...Seth's dad might as well be a chef so we ate lots of new and fun things and the girls LOVED Grandad's waffles!
7. Ran 2 miles with said Grandad...who totally schooled me at the end...whatever, he's a stud
8. FINALLY got to go to Carytown and shop a little, very little...can't wait for the next trip! Carytown is a super cool, eclectic sort of road/area with all kinds of cool/eclectic shops! Bought the girls 2 baby dolls with funky pink hair! Too fun!
9. Went to the James River and waded in the water with the girls, Maymont to see its amazing beauty and 2 bears!, and the Children's Museum (almost lost Graelyn...she's so fast!)
10. And finally, drove around Richmond with the girls by myself and NOT ONCE got lost!
Needless to say, it was a busy trip and the girls are exhausted...oh yeah, flight was delayed last night 3 hours...didn't get to bed until 1:30am...I haven't seen that time since I was nursing Graelyn!!! Anyway, good times had all around and we can't wait to get back up there to see baby Claire in November...oh yeah, and everyone else too:)

The summer

Is quickly fading before my eyes and my heart and I can't seem to find the way to stop it from slipping through our fingers (ok, hearts don't have fingers but you get the picture). I can't seem to stop Gwendolyn from growing up into a big girl, from pretending to spell and be my teacher and play family and be the one in charge. I can't stop Graelyn from going potty by herself and getting her own snack (by climbing on the counter) and helping her sister do 5,000 little cute things during the day. I can't stop time...my heart wants to...my heart tells me to stop time, to play Barbies a little longer, to forget the dishes in the sink, the laundry on the couch (yes Rebekah, more is there) and to play in the sprinkler with them, eat more ice cream, color just one more picture, take a nap with them...so I will...I told some friends that I've been meaning to really "spring clean" every room this summer and obviously haven't...if you've been to my house this summer you would be able to tell! Maybe rather than cleaning out my house, I just need to continue loving my House...my Home...my Family...my God a little more...yeah, that's the kind of "spring cleaning" I think I can get into!

the end of an era...

Well, it's official...we no longer have babies in our house! Graelyn is sleeping wonderfully in her big girl bed for the 1st time tonite! As evidenced by the pictures, she's loving it! She DID go to bed late though (we had to pick up daddy from the train station) but she seems extremely comfy! So, with a sad but proud heart, I offer up our baby furniture for sale! Just kidding, we're keeping it a little longer:) (and NO I'm NOT pregnant!!!)

Dance Recital 2009

I know you've all been waiting for this since last year's "Candy Ballerina"...Gwen's dance recital was a HUGE success! She did a fantastic job and had 2 dance numbers this year: one tap (Broadway Baby) and one ballet (Make a Wish).

Here is a picture "pre-show" getting ready...ahh, gotta love the spongey rollers!Here are others at the arts center, before and after the performance...

And of course, let's not forget Graelyn...here she is posing as we are telling Gwen to...she's already got it down...look for her dancing debut possibly next year:)
Here are the 2 videos of the actual performances, as promised above! Enjoy!

Deals at Kroger

OK, I know I don't normally do this but I was super excited about some of these so I thought I'd share...here you go:
1. country time lemonade in the cannisters are on sale for $1...I don't have any coupons for that.
2. Kraft bbq sauce is on sale for $1...with a 75 cent coupon, bbq sauce for 25 cents
3. Kraft salad dressing is on sale for $1.69...w/a $1.50 coupon, salad dressing for 19 cents
4. CPK frozen pizza on sale for $4.99...w/$1 coupon, $3.99 (I know, not as good but good for the tummy)
5. Suave shampoo (I buy for the girls, their kids shampoos are good) on sale for $1.67 w/ 50 cents off 2 (which ends up being $1 off b/c of double coupons) 1.67x2-$1=$2.34 for 2 bottles
6. Dixie paper plates on sale for 2 for $5...(but you can still buy one and get the price, so $2.50) w/a 35 cent coupon (which is really tripled to $1.05) plates for $1.45
7. ball park franks, buy one get one free...not sure of the price but I have a $1 off coupon when you buy 2:) Works for me!

OK, that's it...just thought I'd share...just really excited about the lemonade, bbq sauce and salad dressing!!! Happy Hump Day (take that however you need to:)

Here's a new one for you...

So, not much is going on in our world so I haven't been able to post much...the girls are growing, 99% of the time are happy, healthy and sweet and we're all just truckin' along...but Seth and I have been debating and working to get new phones...you see, mine is held together by duct tape and his, well, his is fine but we have a family plan so if you upgrade one, you upgrade all...anyway, seems to me that the carrier we're with (let's call it AB&B for Jennifer's sake of paranoia) is WAAYY too expensive and there are cheaper plans and carriers out there...so, here you go, give me your thoughts and let me know what you think about your carrier, cell phone, etc...

Nothin' says easter like a 4-wheeler...

Yep, you read right...my dad came over for Easter and surprised the girls with...a 4 wheeler!!! No freakin' kidding! They actually were super excited about it and we're just waiting for the battery to charge for 18 hours (yeah, 18 hours folks, Gwen was NOT happy about that) and they are off...sooo, I suggest if you are anywhere near hwy 377, you might want to take an alternate route, because the Lindbloom girls look to be heading North towards 1171 and Flower Mound. They're looking for the new hire at the "circus" or carnival...his name...Origami Tate...he can fold himself into anything...literally...just take a look. Oh, and here's a picture of the bad boy...the 4 wheeler that is...come over any time...we now have 2, yes 2 moterized vehicles for the girls so they'll be willing to share...we have a pink Jeep too...is it bad that the girls have a nicer car than I do?