Strong Museum

Well, we ventured off to Rochester to the "Strong museum of play". It was our first time there, and I would defiantly go again! Sage was so excited about the Butterfly Garden, even wore a butterfly shirt so the butterflies would like it. Unfortunately it turned out to be not so fun for her. She hates bugs, and every time a butterfly flew past her, she freaked! Now mind you you are in a not so big room with 800+ butterflies, so they are constantly flying by you. I enjoyed it, there were some really beautiful ones. One landed on Jay's leg, so we let Sage hold it, to calm her fears. She held it for less than a minute, then freaked out to get it off....oh well. Ryder thoroughly enjoyed it. There are these birds running around too, and Ryder really got a kick out of them. He kept watching all the butterflies with this big smile, and laughing with excitement.
There was so much to do and see. There was a Clifford, and Bearnstain Bears exhibit as their features. Sage and I rode the train. Ryder kept running from one thing to the next, he was having a blast! We were there for over 3hrs, and there was some stuff we missed. Aside from the traffic we got stuck in coming home, it was a lot of fun!

(Oh, and I realize there are a lot more pictures of Sage than there are of Ryder, in my defense, I was holding him in the Butterfly Garden so he wouldn't kill any butterflies, and when he was playing...well, there was no standing still.)

Lions, Tigers, and Bears...Oh My!

Today we went on a family trip to the zoo. We hadn't been there since Sage was not even 2yrs old, so it was Ryder's first trip there. He was so cute, he got all excited when the animals would move around. He called most of them "doggies"...well, pretty much every animal with four legs except the elephants. Sage said her favorite animal was the Zebra. Of course, the main purpose of the trip was for the kids to enjoy all the animals, but Sage was ready to go home within minutes of our arrival....so frustrating!...You spend $30, and she could care less. Guess we won't be going again for a while. I am hoping she did have fun, but just wasn't showing it. I took a bunch of pictures of all the animals, so maybe she will get excited looking at all the pictures. Ryder seemed to have fun, and was very well behaved also. He got the biggest kick out of all the "pools" the animals had, thought it was so cool! He didn't say too much beside "doggie" and "pool", but smiled a lot, so I think he had a good time.

Hair Cut Day

Well, after 4yrs, little Sage got her hair cut! She was so brave. She didn't speak or move throughout the whole process.

I think I was more nervous than her....yah, I was. It's hard, her hair was so long, wavy on the ends... :(

I did not "want" to get it cut, but I wanted it to be a bit more healthy, get rid of the split ends.

So, a few inches are gone, it'll grow back, she still looks ADORABLE, I'll be ok. She's growing up...it's hard... Ryder also got his first "real" haircut today too. I finally wanted him to have a cute little style, rather than me just shaving it. She left a little length on the top so I can spike it. He looks SUPER cute, he's all handsome. He was really good for it too, aside from the fact he wouldn't put on the cape, so me and him were COVERED in hair. He kept trying to suck his thumb, then spitting out hairs with a confused look on his face...(silly boy).

Jay and I also got hair cuts, so it was a big "family" event. Jay is on vacation this week, so hopefully this is the first thing of a week of family fun!

Goodbye Ugly 70's Paisley Wallpaper....

...Hello faux brick wallpaper! I can't win here. I swear, ever since we moved in we have been trying to undo the hideousness that was our house. Our living room originally had brown and gold shag carpeting, our family room had cheap paneling with hideous carpet and a drop ceiling. Oh, and not to mention the fact our house is pink (still is). Anyways, the upstairs has it's own level of ugliness. Well, the bedrooms are done!...and the kids, yes both of them, slept up there, all night! Well, we've taken out a lot of bad carpet, and seen a lot of ugly flooring, but here is the finished product.

Sage's room is now complete with pictures on the wall and butterfly lights!

Ryder's room is 90% there, just missing some pictures and personal touches. It now sports Ryder's car table (his b-day present...kinda). All in all though, the upstairs is a world of change!...and we still have the hallway yet to do!

Sage's "NEW" Room

Well, after 4yrs, she finally has her own bedroom! Poor kid has been sleeping in the computer room for 2yrs (yeah, she slept with us for 2yrs). Remodeling the upstairs has been our project this year. We knocked out the wall between the two smaller rooms upstairs, so now their are two bedrooms upstairs instead of three. Jay(and me) have been working on it since winter, it's been a slow moving project due to the side-job business that Jay has been having, but I'm not about to complain about extra money ;) . Sage got to pick out the color, which of course was yellow...at least I got to pick out the shade. We put new carpet in, ceiling fans, and the jewel of her room...her bed. I wish I had her bed growing up...it rocks! I wasn't able to get the slide bed I originally wanted for her, but this bed will grow with her better, and it was cheaper. Her bed has a pull out desk (which Ryder lost a wheel for before it was even fully assembled...grrr), built in shelves and cubbies...very cool. She is so excited about her new room! She took her nap in her new bed today for the first time. I'm so happy she's not scarred at all about sleeping so far from us. Now we just have to do the details, which in my house never fully get done. But after we finish the moldings, hang some pictures, put up some lights, her room will be all done...yeah! Then we just have to do the stairs and hallway....hopefully the whole upstairs will be done by summers end, and the kids will be up there, and out of my living room and computer room...I can't wait!

Alli's Party

Summer is officially booked! We have stuff going on every Weekend for the next month! This weekend's event was Alli's Birthday Party (she's the one in the middle). Too bad it rained, but oh well, maybe that means it will be sunny for Sage and Ryder's party in a couple weeks. Anyways, the girls played well together, no fights ensued. Alli had a ladybug theme party, with ladybug cupcakes and cake. It's so funny to watch Sage and her cousins (Alli & Jesse) play together, since they are all the exact same age, but their personalities are very different. They had a face painter, so all the kids got their arms and face painted. Ryder got some tattoos(just like Daddy's), which I can't believe he sat still for. He got one arm done (with a spiderweb), then immediately wanted his other one done(with a skull). Sage got a sun and sunflower on her arms, and Hello Kitty on her face. The kids all went for a ride in Alli's Barbie Car. (Yes, a pink barbie car, Nikki's dream present that she never recieved). Ryder was no fool, and quick to get out, they were too busy laughing to drive, it was pretty funny to watch as they repeatedly hit the fence. The evening ended with Ryder getting beat up by a girl and getting a bloody nose (poor kid)....he is always getting hurt :(

The great outdoors

We had a great day today at Caiden's house. Of course Sage had fun, she loves Caiden. It's great that the five of us can get together and the kids play so well.



When we got home we saw Mimi, wished her a Happy Birthday, gave her a present, and Sage sang Happy Birthday. Sage was in shock that Mimi had a Birthday too....lol.

This was Mimi's (Jay's mom) present......isn't she cute!

Fisher Price

Sage got another call back to Fisher Price, I'm so proud of her. We took Ryder along this time and it went well, so that was good. Sage got the model some headphones while she sported a yellow shirt with pink flowers and pigtails. She had a lot of cute shots, so I'm optimistic. Only bad thing was the position her arm was in was showcasing her burn from the popcorn kernel (hopefully they can photo-shop it). The photographer really liked Ryder too because he was so smiley and giggly. I think I will submit Ryder's photo too, can't hurt...the kid does love to smile.

The celebration continues...

We continued Sage's Birthday celebration Tuesday with a nice dinner at Denny's and some fun at Chuck E Cheese. The kids kinda ate. I think they ate more of the other's food than their own...oh well. Sage insisted we take "the pretty car" on our outing, and since it was her special day, we had to oblige.

She is very excited to be four, she tells everyone we see, everywhere, that she is FOUR!

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY SAGE!

A bitter sweet day, she's growing up so fast. It's so hard, because I love to watch the little person she is becoming, but at the same time it's hard to realize she's growing up. I must say though, I am proud of the girl she is becoming, so polite and good natured.....oh, and BEAUTIFUL!

She had a small party with her friends yesterday. She had a great time, decorating cupcakes and making chips. She loved all her presents! It was nice that she had her own personal party, because in August we are having her joint family party with Ryder, so this way she got to feel special.

$105 in gas!!!!!

Yah, that's what it took to fill my truck today, and mind you it wasn't completely on "E". I try to be so money cautious on everything, and spending so much on a unavoidable thing like gas....grrrr.....so frustrating. I must say though, spending so much on gas, just made me spend more on other things. You'd think it'd make me not spend money, but no. I figure, screw it, if
I'm going to spend over $100 on gas, I'm going to spend a little on stuff I can actually enjoy!

Family & Fireworks for the 4th

What a great, beautiful, fun, yet exhausting weekend! Three days in a row of working in the morning and getting together with family in the evening.
On Friday (July 4th), we enjoyed Ted's for dinner(not that the kids ate) and after some dessert and a bonfire at my mom's/sister's we headed over to Brookfield Country Club for some fireworks. It was extra exciting because last year we didn't go because the rain, and the two previous years Sage had fallen asleep while waiting for them to begin. Well, finally we had success! Not that the kids were a fan of the loudness of the fireworks, but they intently watched in amazement.

Saturday, me and the kids went to my Dad's new house for a nice dinner. Sage got to test out the hot tub. Aside from one slip under water she enjoyed it. She even sat on E.J's lap and had a conversation with him...amazing. The kids played with the new pug puppy, Lucy, she's adorable.

Sunday, the kids and Jay went to the tri-five car show in Clarence in the morning while I was at work. Then in the afternoon Sage and I drove to Rochester. After our 1hr 20min car drive we went swimming at Aunt Cherry's and had a nice dinner. It was great to see my "Rochester relatives", I hadn't seen Heather in 10yrs. It was great to catch up, and reminisce about old times. Sage was absolutely terrified of the water at first. She had never been in any pool other than a baby pool. She had a death grip on me at first. Then after dinner when she went in again she was courageous enough to use a floaty boat, and her and Bella got to play. I was amazed that after she was done using the boat, she wanted to go in with just her swimmies. She did, and she moved and swam around the pool so well all by herself, I was so proud of her! She is already asking to go back (which I would love to do). Too bad gas prices are so high, I don't even want to think about what that little trip cost me. Of course, now I am craving a in-ground pool....ahhh, I can dream, right?

Fun with Friends

What a great summer day! We had a great time at Alina and Amy's house. The kiddos played while the mamas got to relax on the patio. Then Ryder slept over 3hrs after we got home...NICE! It was a wonderful day to follow a nice Mom's night dinner....Thanks Amy. :)