Stopping by...

So this is going to be quick. I haven't posted in a couple of weeks and if things go the way that they look to go, I won't be posting for a couple of weeks, either. I had family in town all last week, and now I'm doing a freelance job on top of final essays and exams and doing grades over the next two weeks. So most of my spare time will be spent working. I know that like two people are upset with not getting more pictures, so here are my excuses. Just know that when I come back, there will be lots to update. We even got a gecko! It eats worms, which is super gross. :) Alright then, back to work for me.

So here's a bunch of stuff.

I've been MIA. Yep. I'm tired. And I haven't been blogging. So here's the last two weeks in review.

I spent five hours cleaning in one day about a week and a half ago. Frankie found ways to keep himself entertained. And don't worry, I don't clean like this more than a couple of times a year.


Frankie has loved watching our tomato plant this summer. I didn't get my garden in this year (I was too sick around planting time), so we've made do with the one plant. We recently pulled off our first two tomatoes, and they were delicious. I'm the only one that actually ate any, though - my boys are picky eaters. See how happy he looks?


Naked video games and eating cereal out of the bag. Naked Wii bowling preceded this round of Skate 2.


Swimming in the kiddie pool in the front yard; less mosquitoes out there, as well as more neighbors to laugh at us.


Jumping in the bounce house at the zoo. He didn't really get into it until other kids came around and jumped with him. He loved it.


Don't take my picture, yo.


Swimming in the pool at some of our bff's Dan & Annie's apartment complex. Unfortunately, this is the best picture I got. Frankie swam the entire length of the pool with assistance from his water wings. I think the kid is ready for swim lessons!


We went to our friends' house for the 4th; they also happen to live just a few blocks away. We love our 'hood and all of the friends we've made here. Frankie was loving his 4th of July hot dog with buddy Ezra. Delicious! (Ezzy is making his 'I just ate my 3rd hot dog' face.) Thanks for having us, Beth, Joel, and boyz!


Party host and party animal Joel set off some fireworks for the kids. Frankie was impressed with the show, but not so much with the noise.


Finally, I decided to take a nap this afternoon; as I said at the beginning, I've been TIRED lately. It might have been a bad idea - I woke up to find this happening:


Bridget now has a sexy lion cut. Juston figured that if he was cleaning the house, he might as well cut down on dog hair at the same time! Those 50 cent church bazaar clippers have sure come in handy.

Big belly, baby Ferb. 21 weeks, 4 days.


That's all for now. We did get some new sweet and cheap furniture from craigslist and a 'side of the road' operation nearby, so we'll post that soon.

Lazy Sunday

We had a lazy Sunday a couple of days ago. Since it was stake conference, we decided to take the week off (yes, bad, I know) and not deal with a two-year-old in a two-hour long meeting and instead we did...nothing! Frankie had a 'jammies day', and the adults didn't do much better.

We started off with the Father's Day pressies, matching t-shirts. :)


Juston decided to go back to bed at around 10 AM, and for some reason he decided to sleep in Frankie's bed.


(In which he did not fit.)


Laundry folding coupled with kid and pug mayhem! Frankie = having fun. Bridget = barely tolerating this.


And now the real reason you've probably come to our blog today...the payoff.


(P.S. Baby Ferb is a girl. Yep, we're shocked too as we were 99.9% convinced it was a boy. After almost a year of trying to get pregnant and four months of morning sickness (aka "all-damn-day-sickness" that hasn't quite gone away,) we're really excited that everything looks great and that she'll be here in just over four months! So yes, it can happen in Atlanta, and no, we aren't moving out of the ward as soon as she's born.)

Think About Your Dad

Yeah, I know I posted it last year, but it seriously never gets old. Happy Father's Day!

I think this is the one...

What do you think?

I never saw myself with a 'tandem' stroller, but I just don't trust that Frankie, even at the age of 3, will be able to walk everywhere and he's heavy. It's kinda pricey, but I think it's worth it to pay extra for the 'ultralight' version as I don't drive a big car and I'm not all that big & muscly. (And if you consider that some people - who are crazy - spend $800+ on strollers, $200 doesn't seem that bad.) Plus, this is about the only thing I'm buying this time around, so it's not like I have a huge laundry list of other baby crap I need to get.


P.S. I know I'm not talking much about it on here, but I'm halfway there today! Woohoo! Now if I could just stop puking...

Look Ma, an Update!

(making something chocolate)

(feeding boids at the zoo)

...except that there's really nothing to update. I can honestly only post so many pictures of us at the zoo, the pool, hanging out at the house where we have air conditioning (it's in the 90s! yikes!,) going to drop-in, etc. etc. etc. We're just sailing through, dealing with the good (Frankie using big words! cute dog action!) and the bad (potty-training misfires and tantrums.) So that's all for now. I'll take some pictures soon anyway so that relatives can see glimpses of the little dude, but don't expect anything earth-shattering. Now we're all on the same page. I hope you're all doing well! (And potty training advice - as well as suggestions for future photos - is kindly accepted in the comments section.)

We're Having Fun Now...

Today we went to the park and went swimming with my friend Kathleen and her daughter, Anna. This is the only picture I got, but can you tell we're having a good time?


Tonight we built a track for Frankie's train, complete with mega blocks tunnels and animal observers. Fun, right?


And he's pretty cute, too. :)

Frankie really *does* love Bridget

He learned this from me. :)


Bridget was sad and sitting in her chair, knowing we were going to put her in the laundry room before going to church on Sunday (don't want a rogue pug setting off the alarm.) Frankie went up to her, told her not to be sad, and loved on her. Awwwwwwww. Love this kid and love this dog.

Oh yes, we DID go there.

Ah, the big boy bed. A rite of passage if there ever was one, well, besides learning to use the potty, which we haven't quite mastered yet. And of course, we had to get the tackiest big boy bed we could find. Rest assured, Frankie LOVES it. Thanks, craigslist! (By the way, this beauty will be for sale again in a couple of years if you think you might be interested.)



Even I can't get over my excitement.




Now, you may ask, did he sleep in it? Yes! Not a peep last night and he's currently napping. And I need the nap more than him as I dismantled the crib and rearranged his room today, along with a number of other much-neglected chores. Go Thomas!

Chop, chop

The haircut. We all mourned a bit, but ultimately it's better for Frankie's sweaty self during the summer.



Here's your bonus picture of the day: my boo.

The big 'D'

I am lucky that I have great in-laws and a great family; I didn't mention that in my last post and we are very blessed. Now on to the good stuff....

Last week, Frankie and I flew to Dallas to spend the week with my family. Juston was supposed to be working in Cancun, so it made sense for us to be gone at that time. Then the swine flu happened, and Juston's trip was canceled, so he got to pug-sit at home instead. :) Frankie and I had a blast. Juston, not so much. We still love ya, hon!

Frankie, his cousin Elena who is his new bff, and Grandma at the park.


Playing with Thomas the train - chalk tracks and a cardboard box tunnel make for ultimate good times!


Blowing bubbles with Great Grandpa.


Taking a breather from all of that hard playin'. Once again, why does my son have a Diet Coke?


At Chuck E. Cheese, riding the little carousel. Frankie wouldn't look at us and instead made faces at himself the whole time.


Frankie and I with the other Frankie. It was so nice to see her again! Little Frankie didn't necessarily agree....


Frankie and Elena in 'child model' mode.


More posing.

Swimming with Uncle Zachary on Memorial Day. It was too cold for my big ol' self.

Now we're back in ATL, getting eaten alive by mosquitoes outside at the moment. I'm also trying to get back into 'work mode' as classes start up in a little over a week. The break was nice and badly needed! I'm sad that we didn't really get pictures of anyone except for Frankie and Elena as there were lots of other cousins and brothers and sisters and relatives around. It was so nice to see everyone again and catch up. We love you! I've also lost the blogging bug, so forgive me if I slack.

The 'Day Out'

Here's the pictures. I'm not going to be witty; I've still got a pile of late work to grade. Can someone remind me next semester that being nice means more work for me? So play nice and just look at the photographs and imagine me making some clever quip about trains or French people or whatever you think might be funny in association with them.

Petting zoo; he got way more into this than we originally thought he would; as an added bonus, one goat decided to try and eat my dress.




He didn't really like Sir Topamhat. Can't blame him, really.

With grandma.


On the train.







Next to a giant train.