Super Adorable

BABIES BABIES BABIES! I LOVE BABIES!

These super adorable, brand new, tiny babies are my nephew and niece.
Born yesterday April 24, 2009.











Colton Christopher D. born at 6:14 am. 6 lbs 7 oz 18 1/2 inches












Eden Elizabeth D. (Edie) born at 6:15 am. 5 lbs 12 oz 18 1/2 inches

And This is Why...

I keep having kids.

1) I LOVE BABIES
2) Mmmm... the baby scent
3) They're so dang cute
4) I can squeeze them
5) Their innocence
6) The Love plus hugs and kisses XOXO

7) Baby sugar

8) "The First's" i.e. - smiles, words, steps, etc.

9) They make me happy

10) Giggles :)

Happy Earth Day!

Here are a few tips to help us all help the plant:

1)Change a Light Bulb
Installing a compact fluorescent bulb (CFL) is the quickest, easiest way to save energy -- and money. Unlike incandescents, CFLs convert most of the energy they use into light rather than heat.
Good for You: They consume about 75 percent less electricity and last up to 10 times longer (10,000 hours as opposed to 1,500). Replace one 75-watt incandescent bulb with a 25-watt CFL and save up to $83 over the life of the bulb.

2)Unplug Things That Glow
Anything that has an LED (light emitting diode) that glows even after you turn it off continues to draw power (that you pay for). Your TV, cell phone charger, and printer are likely culprits. Unplug the offenders from wall sockets and plug them into power strips instead. When you leave a room, flip the strip switch to cut the flow of electricity.
Good for You: Unplug appliances and electronics that glow and you could save $200 a year.

3)Recycle Your Electronics
Americans tossed out a whopping 5.5 billion pounds of electronics -- TVs, stereos, cell phones, and computers -- in 2005, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. The result? Millions of pounds of chemicals and heavy metals ended up in the ground even though it's easier than ever to recycle electronics. The Consumer Electronics Association created mygreenelectronics.org to help people find a recycling resource in their area. The site also provides a list of electronics, from laptops to baby monitors, that are easier on the environment and your energy bill.
Good for You: The average American household has three cell phones stashed in a drawer. Sell unused cell phones to greenphone.com. You'll receive about $35, and the phones will be refurbished and resold. If 1 million people recycled one cathode-ray tube TV this year, we'd keep 4 million pounds of lead out of the ground.

4)Audit Your Energy
It's easier to save energy when you know exactly how much and where you're using it. Investing in a home audit takes a couple of hours and pays off with a list of things you can do to curb consumption. Find an auditor through your utility company (at low or no cost), or hire one ($450-$650). A list of auditors certified by the nonprofit Residential Energy Services Network, is at resnet.us (click on Consumer Information).
Good for You: On average, an energy audit shows how to save up to 30 percent on utility bills.

5)Support Local Farmers
If your food could talk, it would tell quite a tale. Typical grocery store produce travels nearly 1,500 miles before it ends up on your plate. All this traveling burns fossil fuels and results in carbon emissions -- a fancy term for pollution. Buying from local farmers means you're not only getting the freshest food possible, you're saving energy.
Good for You: To find farmers nationwide, visit localharvest.org, sustainabletable.org, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture at www.ams.usda.govfarmersmarkets/map.htm.

6)Fix That Drip
When you next fill your water glass, think about this: We each use about 100 gallons a day, enough to fill 1,600 glasses. Household water consumption has increased by 200 percent since 1950, even though the population has grown by only 90 percent. As a result, more than 36 states are expected to face water shortages in the next six years. Stemming the flow is as easy as fixing a leaky faucet or toilet; a dripping faucet can waste up to 74 gallons a day, a leaking toilet up to 200 gallons a day.
Good for You: Repair a leaky toilet and you can save $30 a year, which may not sound like much until you realize it means 73,000 gallons.

7)Let Your Grass Grow
Spending less time tending to your lawn actually makes it greener -- in every sense of the word. Most grass species fare best when they're kept at least 2 1/2 inches tall. The length creates more surface area to absorb sunlight, which creates thicker turf and deeper roots, which means you won't need to water as often.
Good for You: Save money by letting grass clippings remain on your lawn; it adds nitrogen to the soil and discourages weed seeds from germinating. You'll need less fertilizer and herbicide. Plus, leaving clippings on lawns means less in landfills; in 2005 Americans disposed of more than 12 million tons of yard waste.

8)Look for the Label
When it's time to replace a household appliance, choose a product with an Energy Star label. Sponsored by the EPA and the Department of Energy, the Energy Star program rates products from light bulbs to kitchen appliances. Energy Star labels guarantee that products are energy-efficient. For example, a battery charger labeled with the Energy Star logo will use 35 percent less energy than a standard one. You may even be eligible for a tax credit when you purchase an Energy Star product. Information at energystar.gov.
Good for You: A household with Energy Star products uses about 30 percent less energy than the average household -- an annual savings of about $570.

9)Do Full Loads
Whenever you wash just a few clothes or dishes at a time rather than waiting for a full load to accumulate, you're wasting water, power, and money. The average American family of four washes about 540 loads of laundry a year, which consumes up to 21,000 gallons of water, and more than 150 loads of dishes, which uses about 1,500 gallons. Most of the energy consumed by washers goes toward heating the water -- about 90 percent in the clothes washer and 80 percent in the dishwasher. Combining half-loads, choosing short cycles, and using cold or warm rather than hot water in the clothes washer racks up savings.
Good for You: Wash two fewer loads of clothes and one fewer load of dishes a week and save up to 4,500 gallons of water a year.

10)Work the Critters
Your backyard ecosystem is as intricate as any wild patch of land, and it pays in many ways to enlist its creatures on your side. Birds eat many insects; they just need a water source and trees and shrubs for cover and nesting. Many insects are beautiful -- and beneficial. Ladybugs aren't just cute; they are voracious eaters of aphids.
Good for You: To understand which backyard insects are garden friends, visit garden.org and click on Pest Control Library for photos.

INFORMATION PROVIDED BY: bhg.com

He's One!!!

Happy Birthday to You, Happy Birthday to You,

Happy Birthday dear Zachary!, Happy Birthday to You!!!

This picture was taken at my In-Law's on the 18th.

Zac decided to put the candle out with his fingers!!!

This picture is his reaction... totally stunned, so funny!

And he didn't even get burned, he had too much slobber on his fingers!

HAHAHA!

This picture was taken at my Mom and Dad's
(he didn't dare touch the candle this time, Ben blew it out for him!)

Sugar Rush!!!! Super cute!

And this is one of my favorite pictures of him...

taken a few days before his birthday.
I just love him.

Side Note: After I had Scott I didn't even want to think about having any more kids, in fact, I believe I said that I was never having more. But once that 18 months mark rolled around I started getting the itch. Then after I had Ben I already knew I wanted more and the itch came around the 6 months mark. And BEFORE Zac was born I knew we'd have another (hopefully a girl because 4 is my limit), but I don't have the itch yet. Phew! We have planned it out so that hopefully by this time next year (because I'm an even numbered year type of girl) we will be announcing that we are expecting #4. (My hope is for a November/December baby girl, but only God knows). I already have names picked out for either though.

I know, some of you probably think I'm crazy and maybe you're right. :)

He's Walking!

Such a big boy... he turns 1 on the 18th! WOW!

Side note: True story, me and Zac are at the doctor's office on Tuesday and as soon as we walk into the back part a student nurse (one I had never seen before) starts talking to Zac from behind the desk. Okay so far this is totally normal, but what she said was kind of weird... okay really weird and was completely annoying... she says something to the effect of "Oh look at him so handsome I want to take you on a date" ... okay?!... then we are at the scale and she walks over and says "you just name the place, we can go to McDonald's or Chuck E Cheese's and I'll pay" and then after he was weighed I start walking back with him and she starts to follow and tries to poke his belly and "ooo's and ahh's" over him. So I get him into the room and think to myself "That was weird, annoying, and creepy. I hope they tell her to knock it off." So I'm in the room with him and forget about the creepy student nurse girl, the doctor comes in, we go through all that and then we're done, we walk out of the room and go to the counter to check out and she walks up behind us and starts talking to him again about taking him on a date (her words exactly... "a date"). By this time I'm just completely annoyed and about to tell her to please leave him alone (or hit her one or the other) when all of a sudden Zac looks over at her and does this, but a little bit more pronounced....HAHAHAHAHAHA! I love it, he flipped her off! Maybe not intentionally, but it got her attention, she said "oh you're going to chew on that finger! I see how it is." And that was the end of annoying, creepy student nurse girl! The best ending ever! (PS - that is his finger of choice, he points with it, chews on it, grabs things with it... it's a little strange actually, but CLASSIC none the less!)

A Boy of Few Words

Ben has just recently started saying words that we can understand. He's 2 1/2. I know it's kind of late, but Scott was a pretty late talker too. And I think that is how Zac will be too, but maybe not. Anyway, Ben talks a lot about trucks, bicycles, dirt bikes, and motorcycles. He calls all of them by the same thing... "be die" (the "be" means "big" or "dirt" and the "die" means "truck" or "bike"). He specifies by adding a "my" or "daddy's" or "Cottie's" (which means Scottie, BTW) in front. He also says "moe" for "water" and "go wee moe" for "go play in the water." But don't confuse that with "oh no moe mommy" which means "oh no, I need more mommy." And then there's "I eat uh mommy" which means "I want to eat something mommy." He says "ew" for "poo" so when I ask him if he has a dirty diaper he says "no I no got ews" or he doesn't answer which means he does. One of my favorites is "ruff ruff" that means "puppy or doggy." He also uses "ruff ruff" for just about every other animal he sees, but he does call cats "kee." Oh, and "t" means "thank you." The one word that he says that frustrates me the most is "be noi noi." I sincerely dislike this word. It has too many meanings to really be considered a word, it's more of a general use term that he uses whenever he can't think or say the right word. So that's Ben's very wide (haha) vocabulary. And here's a picture of him riding his "dirt bike" or in his words, "go bye bye on my be die humm" (the "humm" is his motor sound).