A great visit with Grammie and Papa!

My mom and dad came for a visit this past week and we all had a blast. Owen instantly fell in love with his new grandparents. It was so sweet to see them together. Olivia had fun chasing after Grammie and snuggling with Papa. While they were here, we went to the zoo and Point No Point beach. Eric was able to spend two days with mom and dad before he had to deploy. I'm so glad we were all able to spend that time together. We also were lucky enough to celebrate Papa's 62nd birthday!! Happy Birthday Dad!

Help me Pay it Forward

Have you ever seen that movie? The premise is the very simple act of just doing someone a favor without expecting anything in return, and if you would just "pay it forward" by returning the act of kindness and generosity, then it might be possible for a global outpouring of decency toward all mankind.

A blogger (A Mother Singing) decided to start her own "pay it forward" project. One of my blogger friends, Mendy , was a recipient of a gift and now I will be from her, via her blog.


RULES

Now it is my turn to pay it forward.

How does it work?

Here are the rules: I will send a gift (of my choosing) to the first 3 people who leave a comment on my blog requesting to join this "PIF" exchange, and who make the same pledge on their own blog.

The only thing you have to do in return is PAY IT FORWARD - on your own blog.

So, if you want to get a goodies from me, and are willing to do the same via your blog, let me know!

(Note that you'll need to give me your real (snail mail) address... which you can do by private email.)

Just leave a comment and I will get with you.

So, who's up for it? This world does need a little kindness, don't ya think?

**I encourage EVERYONE who reads this to Pay It Forward to someone they encounter today or tomorrow. You might give up your seat on a bus, let a car in line in front of you, or just compliment someone. You never know what your simple act might do!**

Pay it Forward- Thank you!

The other day I received a package from Mendy who was paying it forward. Not only did she ask Diana to create the awesome signature for my blog she sent the kids adorable 4th of July T-shirts and she sent me a cookbook. The kids looked adorable in the T's and I love the cookbook! I especially like the fact that the recipes were submitted by members of Mendy's church. She wrote me and told me that even her DH's 95 year old Granddad submitted a recipe. I love that these are family recipes. I can't wait to start cooking!! Thank you so much Mendy!

This brings me to my other point. I have not had anyone allow me to pay it forward to them. Mendy has done so many nice things for me and I would LOVE TO PAY IT FORWARD. So, I am reposting the Pay it forward post for a few weeks ago. I would love to pay it forward, I just need 3 people to sign up! It's easy and fun!!

Olivia's first Gymnastics lesson

Olivia had her first and last gymnastics lesson for a little while. She had tons of fun but the coach felt that she was is still a little too young for the program. She loves watching Gymnastics on TV and is always pretending she is on the balance beam!!

2 going on....16

The other day Olivia and I were in the car and headed to the grocery store. Olivia never says a word in the car so I was trying to strike up a conversation with her. I asked her about 10 times if she knew how old she was and she wouldn't answer. So, as I was getting her out of the carseat I started to tickle her and ask her again how old she is and this time she looked at me and said "Mom I'm 16!". Wow talk about wanting to grow up fast. Then we were headed out of the store and she looked at me and said "Mom, I want to drive home!" Too funny!!!

A trip to the Zoo!!

Last week, my friend Tonya, her son Josh, Olivia, Owen and I ventured up to Tacoma to the Point Defiance Zoo. It was a great day. The kids had a ton of fun. Olivia loved the Beluga Whales, she even pretended to tickle the whale every time the whale passed by her. Tonya, who is also from Illinois and I felt a little like we were at home because the Walruses were sent to this particular zoo from Brookfield zoo and the Beluga was from the Shed Aquarium! Kind of funny huh?

More Pictures!!

Great pictures

I was going through a few of my pictures and thought I would share them. Most of them have been taken in the past few months. l love looking pack at all of the pictures and seeing how much the kids have grown!

Clean Bill of Health!

Today was Owen's first Cardiology appointment in the US and everything went great! The cardiologist said that Owen is "Perfect", which of course we already knew:) He said that Owen has "no limitations". He can participate in sports and run around just like every other kid! WOO HOO From now on we will only need to do yearly check-ups to make sure everything continues to work the way it's suppose to:)
We are so happy with this wonderful news!