Hardy Party of 4

Our New House

2009-08-11T21:43:00.006-04:00

Life has been busy lately...putting our house on the market...selling it in 7 weeks...closing 2 weeks later...packing and moving 2 weeks after that. Living with friends while working and building a new house. Well we aren't building it but get to pick all the colors and stuff. It is fun but keeps us busy. Here are some recent pictures of the house...hopefully more on the way...

Memorial Day and Away

2009-05-26T22:10:00.008-04:00

A couple of weeks ago we had the great idea of booking my FIL's timeshare in Williamsburg for the long Memorial day weekend. We aren't taking a vacation this summer because Brad will be in school again so this was our only chance to get away for a long while. It was a great idea and we had a wonderful weekend just enjoying each other and the quality time together. It is so nice as the girls get older to be able to do things together like that. We even had visitors for the first night...my BFF Noel and her fiance Joel came up and spent the night and Saturday with us. It was great having them and getting to know Joel better. The kids enjoyed the pool and we did some shopping and just hung out. I would consider doing it again if Brad has some time off between school and starting to teach (which we are hoping he will be doing in September). Here are some pictures from our weekend...

Sing, Sing A Song...Sing It Loud...

2009-05-18T21:30:00.007-04:00

This is Ada in the preschool choir, they sang the Sunday after Easter...they did a great job and loved every minute of the attention.

Soccer Star

2009-05-18T21:24:00.006-04:00

What more can I say...she is a soccer star! Ada played soccer this spring for the first time and she did a great job. It took a little while for her to get into it but once she did it was watch out here she comes.

How Time Flies

2009-05-13T22:36:00.003-04:00

I was looking at the website of a some good friends of ours and found the slideshow of pictures that they did of Ada when she turned 3. I watched it again and couldnt' believe how much her little sister looks like her, chubby cheeks and all. And I can't believe how much she has grown up since those pictures were taken. You can watch the slideshow here. Isn't she just the cutest thing!!!

My Girls

2009-03-29T23:09:00.008-04:00

"Helping" daddy with the fix-it projects.

Together reading books!

Hanging with Ada's friend Abby, Mary-Allyn loves to be with the big girls!

"Helping" mommy with the laundry...such silly girls!

Here are some recent pictures of the girls from the past couple of months. They are playing together a lot more and I enjoy seeing them love on each other. And they are both so silly!!!

Aunts

2009-03-29T22:46:00.002-04:00

My kids have lots of aunts...some are aunts because they are actualy relatives, but some are "aunts" because they are close friends of our family and love our kids. Well I have several aunts, most of whom live up north, yes they are Yanks :) but I still love them :). But I have one aunt in particutar who is very special. She is my mothers younger sister and when I was younger about 10 I would fly on a plain all by myself to her house to visit for a week. We would have so much fun and I got to spend a lot of time playing with my cousins who were little at the time. I loved those couple of summers spending time with her and her family. They are very special memories. I love my aunt and her family and hope that my girls will one day have a special relationship with one of their aunts like I do with my aunt Jackie!

My Hubby

2009-03-29T22:10:00.002-04:00

Have I said lately how proud I am of my husband....well I am. He has really impressed me with how he has managed to endure 20 years in the Navy, graduate college, take his teaching liscensure tests and now begin substitute teaching and doing his classroom observation (even some actual teaching). And he went on his first set of interviews for teaching jobs. And for the last year he has been in school and taken care of a baby. He is superman!!!

Shoes

2009-03-13T14:59:00.003-04:00

Ok so I love shoes...my husband hates that I love shoes and my girls are taking after me...probalby because I love buying them cute shoes too. I am pretty good at finding deals so I don't feel so bad about it...it isn't like I am buying a pair of shoes for $150 each. Well this week I was looking online for some summer shoes. I have very wide feet and am starting to, dare I say it, get bunions. Oh and my left foot is actually wider than my right foot. Weird I know. Anyhow I found a great website that sells name brand shoes in all different sizes at really good prices. It is www.6pm.com I have bought shoes from www.shoemall.com before but this new site has much better prices. It is really hard to find wide width sandles in stores so online is the best place to find them. I found Clarks for less than $40 a pair, which if you know Clarks is a really good price. My order came in today and I am happy to say that all 3 pairs of shoes fit great, I can't wait for the weather to get warm again so I can start wearing them.

Pathetic

2009-03-03T22:49:00.002-05:00

I know how pathetic that I haven't posted since November. And I can't use being busy as an excuse, we have been busy but not that busy. I would call it being lazy :) Or not caring because I was having more fun spending time with my kids. This winter has been a great one. Other than work I have not had alot of extra things that have taken my time away from home and the kids. Brad has been a stay at home dad since he graduated and that has been wonderful. The kids are growing so fast and it has been great being able to spend some needed time with them.

Brad has been taking his state teaching boards so that he can take his last couple of classes before having his teaching license. He has one left to take and then 2 months of classes this summer and hopefully a teaching job in the fall. It is almost over and as much as I have enjoyed having him home with the kids it will be nice to not have to have such a tight budget. And we are still looking at moving out to Chesapeake to get the kids in the better public schools. With the drastic decline in the cost of homes we are hopeful that we can find a nice one for much less than we would have paid a year ago.

Ada is enrolled at Norfolk Christian for next year for Kindergarten. It is full day which is one of the reasons we have her there. All of the public schools are 1/2 day and we need full day for her. So she will be close to me again for a year and then we will see about the following year. She took her placement tests and did really well...I guess that would have something to do with being in "school" since she was an infant.

Mary-Allyn is walking and talking and is quickly turning in to a little girl, if you know what I mean. No more baby for us. She is developing quite the personality and loves her big sister. They have already started playing dressup, they are cute together. I think for me that is the best part, watching them together enjoying each other...makes me smile :)

As for me...well I am looking forward to some warm weather, I want to get the kids out of the house. Ada is playing soccer this spring and I am looking forward to getting her all dressed and taking her to her games on Saturday mornings. I love those first days of spring when it is a little chilly in the mornings so you can still wear a coat but by the afternoon you are stripping it off and enjoying the warm sun. This summer is going to be so fun as the girls are getting older and we are able to do more things. And I am looking forward to buying a new house and having more storage space...I know it's the little things that I love. I hate having clutter around the house.

So there is life in a nutshell...I will post some new pictures of the girls soon.

Merry Christmas

2008-11-16T19:10:00.003-05:00

Little Steelers Fans...

2008-11-09T18:55:00.005-05:00

And one big one. Today the girls wore their Steelers cheerleader outfits to church...they looked so cute together. The first picture Ada took of sissy and daddy...see is a budding photographer. We had Mary-Allyn walking today...she is doing really well but she would rather crawl because she gets places faster. She gets so tickled at herself when she walks that she looses concentration and falls...very cute. Hopefully we will get a video of it and post it for you all to see.

Cold Soars Revisited

2008-11-02T21:41:00.002-05:00

Back in September I posted about Ada having an outbreak of cold soars (Herpes Simplex 1 virus). Well we tried our best to keep her sister away from her but it didn't work. Last Monday she had a fever and the next day she started to breakout with the soars. I believe that she caught the virus from Ada but it surpressed itself and when she got her flu and Hep B vaccinations the week before it was too much for her little body to handle and she had her "primary breakout" which is horrible. I think it is worse than Ada's first breakout. Her mouth looks like something blew up in it. Her lips and gums look mangled. She is so pitiful and can't eat or drink much. It seems that it has peeked and has started getting better. We just feel so bad for her and it is so hard to keep from passing it to each other because she is drooling so much because it hurts her to swallow. I don't get them so I am not too worried about myself but we are doing our best to wash our hands and keep Ada away from her. I think that some people must have something in their makeup that makes them more prone to getting them...Brad got them growing up like the girls do and he still gets on every now and then.

Spelling Her Name...

2008-10-19T21:32:00.003-04:00

This is really funny...at least we thing so. At her 4 year check up this week the Dr. asked her if she could spell her name and she said ADA...then he said as a joke...can you spell your name backwards...and she stood there and thought for a minute and then turned around and spelled her name again. All 3 of us...Brad, myself and the Dr. started busting out laughting...she still does it like that when we ask...

Sisters

2008-10-19T21:16:00.006-04:00

Here are some pictures I took of the girls recently...the bottom is them taking a nap while we were in P.A. last weekend...they look so sweet. The other 2 are from the park today...now that Mary-Allyn is getting bigger and more moble they are playing together more. Mary-Allyn really wanted to get down and go today but she isn't quite walking...but when she is watch out.

We have been busy lately...a 4 day trip to visit the Hardy's in P.A., it was great and we got to enjoy some of the beautiful colors of fall that we don't get here on the coast. We will be going back after Christmas when it is way too cold for me!!!

The girls are getting so big and Mary-Allyn is learning something new everyday. I love this stage...learning animal noises and words. Ada's imagination is going wild...she comes up with the craziest things and loves making up her own songs...she is also enjoying school and learning so much, it is fun to watch her blossom.

Today was the first day it really felt like fall...I can't believe it is the middle of October already.

Little Miss 1 Year Old...

2008-10-06T20:36:00.007-04:00

I cannot believe that a year has gone by already...our Mary-Allyn has grown so much and we are enjoying watching her learn new things and try to walk. She is such a joy and such a happy little girl. She is also a huge daddy's girls, I have never seen a child get so excited when they see someone. I am glad that she loves her daddy because her sister is such a momma's girl. She is a complete blessing and we are so happy that she is on our lives. Just if anyone was wondering where her name came from it is a combination of her daddy and I's middle names. My middle name is Mary and his is Allan. Here are some pictures from her birthday party this past weekend.

This Is For Real...

2008-10-05T19:51:00.000-04:00

I was just burning my camera pictures to a disc and found this picture that I had taken when we were on vacation in Florida...this car really had all this stuff on it...any kind of nic-nac you can think of that had an animal on it...expecially a Disney one...got glued to this car...and the hood was covered too I just couldn't get a picture of it. I have never seen anything like it before.

Birthdays...Dance...Life...

2008-09-29T21:08:00.009-04:00

So a couple of weeks ago we celebrated Ada's 4th birthday at the Zoo. We had originally planned to have a pool party at our house but after we got back from vacation in August we were just too busy and the pool got a little green...and the weather had turned colder so the water temperature had dropped quite a bit...didn't want little blue kids swimming around in the green water! So we were lucky and the Zoo had room for us to have a party. It was a really good deal if anyone wants to have a party for their kid and not have to do a lot of work yourself.

Yesterday was her actual birthday and we had dinner at grandma and grandpa's house to celebrate...I just can't believe she is 4 already...this weekend we are going to celebrate Mary-Allyn's 1st birthday with a small family party at our house. And in 2 weeks we are heading up to PA to visit with the Hardy clan...and have another party for Mary-Allyn...such spoiled children!!!

Brad is about mid way through his last semester and will (better or he's in big trouble) have his B.A. in December and will hopefully get a job and start his masters program in January. For someone who hates school he has done very well, even with working part time and having the baby home with him 2 days a week.

My work load is beginning to lighten a little...now that I am done with all the Fall prep and start up of new classes and weekday events...I am very blessed to have a wonderful group of ladies that work very hard to make the preschool department run smoothly...they are the glue that holds it all together.

Ada has started ballet class at Ballet Virginia International...it is an actual dance company in Norfolk...she is loving it and I am proud of her that she is actually listening and learning something. We let her pick what she wanted to do this fall and being the princess that she is she picked ballet over violin and soccer...Brad is hoping that Mary-Allyn will like to play sports.

Daddy And His Girls

2008-09-19T20:55:00.000-04:00

My poor husband is doomed to be a man in a house full of girls...here he is today with 3 of them. They are watching a Baby Einstein movie...he is such a good daddy.

We decided to stay home this weekend instead of traveling to D.C. to go to the Zoo and spend some time away...we just had too much stuff to do at home. Things in the yard and in the house have been piling up and we just needed to get some things done. Today I ran arends all day and Brad finally mowed the lawn (our mower broke over a month ago so you can imagine what it looked like, we bought a new mower last night). He also fixed the drain in our shower and weeded the yard. I hate it when there is a list of things to do and it is just getting longer. Tomorrow we will try to do something with the kids in between loads of laundry. The weather here is beautiful...we actually turned off our air today and opened the windows...this is the type of weather I love. Hopefully it will last for a while.

2 Cutie Pies

2008-09-11T20:06:00.004-04:00

I know I am a little bias but I think these 2 kids are the cutest kids on the planet...just some random pictures I wanted to share!

Cold Soars

2008-09-08T21:01:00.003-04:00

I have to say that I have never had a cold soar but Brad gets them often and when Ada was a about a year old she got one from her daddy and proceeded to have the most awful week because not only did she have two on the outside of her mouth but the inside of her mouth and throat was covered in them...she hardly ate or drank for a week. And because it is viral there is nothing you can do for them....well she has it again. I feel so bad for her...she had a fever last Thursday and on Saturday she had one on the outside of her mouth...by that night she was complaining that her mouth hurt...and today at the Dr. it was confirmed that she had another bad outbreak...she is pathetic and very contagious...we are trying to keep her away from her little sister...that would not be good for her to get it too. All she wants to eat is soup and tonight I went and bought her some pudding...maybe that will help alittle and put some weight back on her...she has already lost a couple of pounds. Her birthday party is this weekend and I am praying that she will feel better by then. She is already going to miss her 2nd ballet class, AWANA and a week of school. She had been begging for a Ariel balloon(from the Disney movie The Little Mermaid)...one of the BIG milar ones...that is the theme for her party. Anyway, I had to go get some of her party stuff tonight and I just couldn't resist getting her one and woke her up to show it to her...maybe that will make her feel a little better.

I Hate It When They Are Sick

2008-09-01T21:16:00.009-04:00

There are many reasons I hate it when my kids are sick. I hate to clean up the mess for one but they are just so pitiful when they are sick and you just can't do anything to make it better. We have had quite the sick weekend. Brad and Ada have managed to not get sick but Mary-Allyn and I both got a yucky stomach virus and she seems to have gotten it the worst. Tomorrow Brad will be taking her to the Doctor. I don't usually take them but she had a pretty high fever today so I want to make sure it isn't her ears again, she also has a bit of a cold. Hopefully she will be feeling better soon! Here are a couple of pictures that our friends at Scott Hayne Photography took of her for her 9 month shoot. I blogged them taking the pictures but it has been crazy at our house and I haven't had a chance to post them...it was her first time at the beach so she wasn't too excited about the sand and the waves scared the mess out of her so there are none of thosepictures. Enjoy!

We Must Be CRAZY...

2008-08-23T22:10:00.002-04:00

Not that our lives aren't busy enough but I just realized that from August to December of this year we will have taken 1 road trip a month. Hopefully work will slow down for me soon and Brad's classes won't be to difficult this semester...He is taking 4 online classes and will graduate in December...and he has to take the praxis (state boards) to get into the masters program he wants to do...it is a good thing that the girls are doing well and sleeping well. Sometimes I just don't know how we do it...why does life have to be so busy...the girls are both getting ready to have birthdays...number 4 and 1, where did the last year go. Ada is going to take a ballet class on Tue. nights this fall, we let her pick between ballet, a sport or violin and she picked ballet...it was no surprise...she is all girl. Tonight while I was fixing dinner she was coloring at her little table in the kitchen and was singing and humming the whole time...then her sister joined in but it wasn't as quiet as Ada's. So we have something on Tue. and Wed. nights this fall along with work, school and road trips...I am getting tired thinking about it. I am really learning how to not get stressed out these days...just taking a couple of deep breaths and pushing through. So if you were wondering what we have planned for the fall...here is a small glimpes of our trips...Aug. is already done, Disney...Sept. we are taking a short family trip to DC to go to the Zoo and be together for 2 days (we had 2 free nights at a Marriott that we had to use before Sept. 20 so that is why we are taking that trip...Brad just couldn't not use them)...Oct. we are going to PA to visit Brad's family and have a little 1st birthday party for Mary-Allyn...the girls and I havn't been there since last Christmas....Nov. we are going to NY to Brad's brothers for Thanksgiving and to see the Macy's parade...we found out after we booked the NYC hotel that my parents were spending a week in NYC and will be there while we are...they are going to the parade with us...that will be really fun for me and the girls, it is something I have always wanted to do and to have my parents there will be extra special. And in Dec. we are going back to PA after Christmas to celebrate with the Hardy's...and then we can rest and figure out what the new year will bring for Brad with school and a job. Life just amazes me sometimes, no all the time! I am now going to go to bed and try not to think about all this stuff...

Vacation

2008-08-14T20:35:00.008-04:00

Wow, what a vacation. My father said we were brave taking 2 young kids to Disney World...I said we were insane. But the trip actully went very well. The kids were good for a 4 year old and 10 month old. We have had a great week and tonight we are packing to go home. I wish we could stay 3 more weeks, I am just not ready to get back to what awaits me at home and at work. We have been staying this week at the Marriott Grand-Vista, a resort in Orlando that my parents own a timeshare at. It is a beautiful place with 4 pools and 3 resturants. Thanks mom and dad for letting us use it this week!!!! We spent most of our time at Magic Kingdom. We were going to try to do most of the parks but realized that the kids needed to rest every other day in order to be bearable for a day at the park. We enjoyed Sea World the first day and then Ada's special day was Monday. She got the full treatment by her Fairy Godmother at the Bippidy Boppidy Boutique, inside Cinderella's Castle. Then we ran to Epcot, literally because we had a reservation to have dinner with the princesses and her pampering took longer than we thought. You can see from the pictures that she fell asleep when we got to Epcot and we tried to wake her up as the first princess came to our table...she was still partly asleep when Sleeping Beauty came by. We thought that was quite appropriate. In the end it was worth it and she thought it was great. We are already planning our next trip for the 2010...before we have to pay for Mary-Allyn's ticket...we still have 5 days of a 7 day hopper to use (we got the non expiration ones). We enjoyed the pool a couple of days and today we had hoped to go to the pool but the weather was not cooperating so Brad and Ada took a swan out for a swim. Ada had been asking to do it all week and that is what she called it...taking the swan out for a swim. The lake was right out our window...and she loved it. The only bad part of the week is that it was hot...we just took lots of showers...we didn't have to pay for the water. And that we didnt' get to see our friends that we came with very much ....our schedule was just different with the baby. No back to reality!!!!! So long Mickey and friends...

4 Days And Counting

2008-08-04T20:51:00.002-04:00

We are so ready for vacation. Only 4 more days until we leave and I have done no packing at all...well actually I have thrown some of the girls cloths what I want to pack in a laundry basket. And I have made a list...I wish there were some little packing elves that would come in the middle of the night and do it for me. We are flying so atleast we won't have to take a crib and highchair with us...the place we are staying has all that for us. Flying on the plane with 2 kids should be interesting...we decided to take the cheaper flights and instead of booking a nonstop flight we change planes in Atlanta...I am now wishing we spent the extra money to just get there. Ladybug hates to be held at this point and just wants to be down and moving...pray for us!!!! I just have a little more stuff to get done at work to make sure things go well when I am gone and Brad just needs to get this last week of classes done. He gets his finals the Thur. we are gone and they are due by the following Monday. He will have his butt planted in front of the computer the minute we get home. I better go start packing...

On The Go

2008-08-01T22:02:00.000-04:00

I can't believe how fast ladybug has grown...we have been so busy these past 9 and a half months that time has just flown by. In a previous post I said how she was commando crawling...well that didn't last long, in less than 2 weeks she was up on her knees and then up on her feet walking on everything. I don't doubt that she will be running around by her first birthday...I would be surprised if she wasn't. I am a little worried that she is going to be our dare devil. Her sister is so cautious but ladybug doesn't seem to be like that. She is already standing up in her crib, next is the climbing over...ugh!!! She is such a cutie pie and quite the ham...the minute I pull out the camera and call her name she turns and puts on the face...this must be because since she was a wee baby we had our friends taking her picture. She is very determined and really gets frustrated when she can't do something. Today she used the little baby walker and walked herself across the living room. Now that she is mobile her sister thinks she can pick her up and at times drop her...so far that hasn't bothered her...we will see how long that lasts. Oh, and we are now eating more table food as you can see in the first picture...that is her eating her favorite...biter biscuits, they make such a mess...a bath usually follows.

Gutters

2008-07-26T14:33:00.002-04:00

You know those awefull things on the roof that get filled with gunk and when the rain pores they over flow...well ours are really bad and Brad has needed to clean them for the past 7 years. Yes, 7 years...I have never seen him clean them in 7 years...not to say that he hasn't but I highly doubt it. I am sure you are wondering why I don't just get out there and clean them myself...well the minute I see Brad cleaning a toilet I will get out there and clean the gutters...he doesn't clean toilets and I don't clean gutters :) Before we were married he put screens over them to keep the leave and stuff out...just incase you where wondering they don't work. They only make it harder to clean...well as I write this they are getting cleaned...but not by Brad....buy 2 guys who were walking the neighborhood looking for some extra cash...and apparenly $30 was worth it to Brad to not have to clean them himself...he got off pretty cheap if you ask me.

Forgot...

2008-07-24T22:30:00.002-04:00

I totally forgot to give an update on butterfly's first sleepover. So when I left off I had come home from my lil' bro's house and left her there with her 2 older cousins (5 and 6 years old). They ended up watching 2 movies, started the first at 10pm and they didn't fall asleep until 1:30am. That is quit late for our little one who has always needed her sleep and doesn't sleep well if she is tired. She is almost 4 and still takes a nap each day. She was a mess the next day and won't be sleeping over again for a while...we can have sleepovers at our house but I just don't think she is ready for them yet. Of course unless she sleeps at grandma and grandpa's house, they go to be at 9am...my kind of sleepover.

Invasion

2008-07-24T19:25:00.007-04:00

This weekend we were invaded by the Hardy's from New York. Brad's brother and his family came down for a visit. We had a great time hanging out, playing cards and spending a very hot day at Busch Gardens. We have season passes and butterfly loves all the kiddie rides. Ladybug hung out in her usual spot in the back seat of the stroller. The girls Hardy cousins are much older than they are, butterfly especially likes hanging out with her teenage girl cousins. As you can see she had someone to ride with. Of course we got dad on the big swings with her. We hadn't realized that they had double seat swings for younger kids...she loved being high up in the air...it made me sick just watching...too many times in a circle...ugh!
Thanks for visiting!!!

New Pictures & A Sleep Over

2008-07-17T22:36:00.002-04:00

Check out some of the pictures of ladybug from Sunday's shoot at http://www.scotthaynephotography.com There will be more...

So tonight was a big milestone for butterfly...I left her at her cousin's house tonight for a sleepover...three cousins together at my little brothers house. It made me a little sad to know that she is getting older and more independent...I didn't think it would bother me that much but it did. There will be pictures of that soon too...

Photo Shoot

2008-07-13T20:32:00.010-04:00

We realized today that ladybug is not a huge fan of the beach...she obviously takes after her father. She did great even thought it was hot and sandy...we will have some back from the photographer in the next couple of weeks for all to see. Here are some pictures I took of the shoot...thanks Scott and Adina for taking the time out of your busy schedule to take pictures of our little cutie. We love you guys!!!!

Shotgun

2008-07-13T14:40:00.002-04:00

So Brad is going to need to buy a shotgun sooner than he thought. Last week when some friends of ours came over our 3 1/2 year olds where playing in butterfly's room and came out to show us that they kissed each other (they have a 3 1/2 year old boy)...I guess kids that age just get it from seeing their mom's and dad's kiss. They where just pecking each other on the lips when they were hugging, very innocent (I can actually remember doing that when I was her age) but today during Sunday school I came in their class and the 2 where playing under a table...I had already told butterfly no more kissing and I made them come out from under the table...she said that he asked her for a kiss but she said no...that's my girl. So Brad may be buying the boyfriend repelant sooner than he thought.

I so should be napping right now...the girls are asleep and Brad is golfing with the guys from our care group...he has golfed about 6 times in his entire life...that is one sport I am glad he hasn't taken up. I am already a football widow (you will hear all about that starting in Aug.) I am just glad I am not a golf widow too. I do love football, I grew up with 2 brothers, and I will watch the STEELERS play anyday of the week but watching every game on every channel all day long gets a little old...and then there is ESPN. I digress...so I should be napping but I was getting the girls clothes ready for pictures this afternoon...we are taking ladybugs mostly but butterfly always gets in on some of them too. We are taking these at the beach...should be interesting...well I was just thinking to myself how I used to be so organized with my life. If I was getting pictures taken I would have gone shopping weeks ago and had everything set. But that isn't so anymore...I just had to go digging in drawers and find something that would work...99% of ladybugs clothes were butterflys...but normally I still would have bought something new for pictures...oh how life changes with 2.

Ok so this sounds really weird to me but does playing beach volleyball in Chicago sound wierd to anyone else...I am watching the Olympic beach volleyball finals on TV and it is in Chicago...strange. Anyway those women are in the most amazing shape and I just don't know how they play like that in their underwear...not really but it sure looks like it...skimpy little things they wear. May and Walsh won and are going to the Olympics again...oh and it was their 100 career victory...just incase anyone was interested :-) I love the Olympics.

Butterfly is awake...signing off...

Commando

2008-07-11T23:24:00.003-04:00

Not the naked kind the crawling kind...get your minds out of the gutter. Ladybug is now doing the commando crawl and her poor elbows and knees are so red...hopefully she will be up on her hands and knees soon. She is just so darn cute. She is getting her 9 month pictures taken on Sunday by our friends at Scott Hayne Photography...if you need a fantastic photographer check him out!!!! We should have some new pictures of the girls up after Sunday.

I have recently figured out after 7 years of marriage and 8 years together that if I put something in my husbands head and he thinks about it long enough and even remotely likes anything about the idea...he will get all wrapped up in it and be like a kid in a candy shop. This can be very dangerous and hard for me not to manipulate his brain to get what I want...here is a recent example. We are getting to the end of his schooling...one more semester and if all goes well he will have his bachelors finished by this December. He could potentially have a teaching job in January or at least be substitute teaching and have a full time job next September. And with Ada having one more year until she starts kindergarten...I suggested that we may want to think about moving into a city and school district that we would want the kids in for the long haul. I am not big on the school district we are in and I don't want to really move in the middle of everything. We can't afford private school for the girls so we want them in a good public school. I really thought that Brad would dismiss the idea and say we were staying where we are...but the opposite happened and tonight we went looking for houses...I have been looking online and he wanted to see the homes I saw. Not that we are going to put the house up for sale this week but we feel like we want to start researching and looking at neighborhoods. We want to get the right house because we aren't moving again for a long time. We love our home but we can see how we will quickly out grow it as the girls get bigger. And it is on a busy street and we don't have much of a backyard for the kids to play in. It is funny how you want the same for your kids that you had. I loved the house I grew up in...my parents still live in it and I even liked my schools so I really want that for the girls. And to be honest I want a big master bath with a jetted tub :-) And it would be great if Brad got a job at a school near where we moved. So all that said he is really getting into the idea and has even gone so far as to make it completely clear that he wants a house with a 2 car garage and no less than 1/2 an acre. And of course I want to put a pool in if there isn't one already...after having one all this time I can't go without it :-) Spoiled I know...I will of course keep you updated on this...lets just pray that the housing market gets better.

The 4th and 7th...

2008-07-07T18:47:00.006-04:00

So this weekend we had 2 big things to celebrate...of course one was the 4th of July which we celebrated on the 5th. And our 7th Anniversary, today the 7th of July. I can't believe it has been 7 years already. We really didn't celebrate it much...Brad tried to get me to go away overnight or out to dinner and a movie...which I really would have liked to do but I just wanted to take it easy at home with the kids. Things have changes so much in 7 years. I would have jumped at the chance to go away before there were kids. Now it is just such an ordeal finding a place for the kids or getting someone to come and stay at the house. It is just easier to stay home. We will be on vacation in a month and we can do something nice in Florida. We did go out for breakfast to the Bakers Crust, with the girls of course! We had a good weekend, had our good friends the Fitch's over on Sat. and the Van Syckle's over on Sunday. It was good to have people over again...we hadn't done it in a while, really since ladybug was born. And that is something big that has changed in the last 7 years...we used to entertain all the time...and actually renovated our kitchen 2 years ago so that we could do it more...than another kiddo came along and it was just too much for us to deal with. It is good to know that it will all be easier again sometime in the not so distant future. Oh, I just remembered we did payperview a movie last night...so you could say that was for our anniversary...if you haven't seen National Treasure Book of Secrets it is worth seeing.

We planned more of our Disney vacation while the Van Syckles where here last night. One month from tomorrow we are leaving on a jet plane for the land of castles and princesses...atleast that is what butterfly thinks. I have booked two very special things for her while we are there...I can't wait to see her enjoyment of it all. On the Monday of our vacation I made an appointment for butterfly at the Bippidy Boppidy Boutique inside Cinderella's castle in Magic Kingdom. She is getting her hair, nails and makeup done and then we are off to Epcot to have dinner with all the Disney Princesses. She is gonna just love it. And of course she is going to wear a princess dress...she says she wants to be Belle from Beauty And The Beast...I have to find that dress before we leave so I don't have to pay a small fortune for it at Disney. So with all that said we are all looking forward to the trip.

Just some pictures from this weekend of the girls...ladybug is not crawling yet...she will be 9 months in a week. She is rolling everywhere and turns in circles on her belly to get the things she needs but can't quite figure out the crawling thing...however...she really seems to just want to stand up and hold on to things...I think she may just walk and never crawl. She is already starting to pull up on things. You can see from some of the pictures I took. She gets so mad when she can't do things...she is such a cutie!!!

Until next time...

Family Day

2008-07-03T22:45:00.004-04:00

So on Sunday after a long morning at church/work I decided to take Monday off and spend the day with Brad and the kids. We don't get much time off to do that...the weekend always seem so booked with other stuff, like getting the laundry done and the toilets cleaned. So back to Monday...we took the kids to Busch Gardens. We got seasons passes this year and are enjoying taking butterfly there. She is just the perfect age for enjoying all the kiddie rides and there is a water feature that she loves playing in. It is nice to be able to go up for a couple of hours and not feel like we need to get everything done in one day. We had a nice time and the kids took a good nap that afternoon. So now my short work week is done and I have a 4 day weekend in which I have sworn to myself that I will not do any office/church work. But that is too late because I have already returned some emails...and of course Sunday is a work day:-)

Incase you all are wondering...we haven't caught anymore fox...time to return the trap to animal control. I am convinced we caught a family and that they are going to be so happy in their new home in the woods...where they belong! We are really glad that we never caught our dog :-)

VBS

2008-06-28T20:35:00.005-04:00

This past week was VBS at church. We are pretty much consumed with it for 2 weeks. The first week making the decorations and the second week is the actual VBS. It is a long week of very late nights but it was very successful. I was in charge of the preschoolers ages 3, 4 & 5 and we averaged about 60 kids each night. I had great volunteers and they made the week a total success. Butterfly was finally about the go to VBS this year and she had a blast. She was up late each night but did really well and learned alot. I quizzed her each night on the way home to see what she remembered. I love VBS because we get lots of volunteers that we have never met and it is so fun getting to know new people and working with them. And the kids, well they are just a hoot. I love watching them dance and sing during the opening session each night...they just have so much fun. Here are some pictures from the week.

Fox Catching 101

2008-06-28T20:13:00.003-04:00

I know that many of you are curious about how our fox catching is going...well we have caught a total of 4. Yes we have become the neighborhood fox catchers...all it takes is a live animal trap and some cooked chicken, any marinade will work :-) The last 2 nights we didn't catch any and I have suggested to my obsessesed with catching fox husband that if we don't catch another in 2 more nights that we are taking the cage back to the animal control. I think it is safe to say that we won't see anymore...they apparently are telling their foxy friends to stay away from our house. We actually had one that would get the chicken without tripping the cage door, it was pretty smart...Brad actually saw it with his own eyes. I feel like I am getting my backyard back. We had to take the dog in to the vet to get a rabies booster because I noticed a couple of days after she had the close call with one of our intruders that she had a sore that she licked all the fur off of on her tail, the vet said it looked like a bite mark. We don't have any reason to believe that the foxes were rabid but you just can't take any chances. I felt bad at first about catching them but in the end they will go to a better more safe place for them to live.

Caught One

2008-06-21T20:56:00.002-04:00

Well after the incident with Heinz almost getting attacked by a fox in the back yard...and later that same day the fox showing back up in the yard we decided to get a live trap and try to catch the fox. An hour after Brad set the trap in the back yard we caught a fox...not the one we wanted to catch...we caught a baby fox. Apparently the fox that attached the dog was the momma and that night it took it's little one hunting for some food and the baby went into the trap for the chicken leg we left it. It was kinda sad seeing it in there and the momma stayed in the back yard most of the night until it finally abandoned the baby and probably returned to the rest of its little ones. We hated doing it but we can't go in the back yard or let the kids or dog out there. If we had a bigger yard I wouldn't worry so much about it but it is small and just not safe. The animal control lady (same one from the past 2 times) came and got the baby and said they would make sure it was able to live on it's own and then it would get sent to a nicer place to live....I was glad they didn't just kill it. We set the trap again in hopes to catch the bigger ones...we are hoping more though that last night gave them the hint to stay out of the yard. So the fox saga continues...I have VBS this coming week and will be gone every night, so I hope that Brad doesn't have to worry about it, he will have enought to do with ladybug and school. Butterfly gets to go to VBS with me this year...we are both very excited about that.

Foxy Is Back

2008-06-20T09:26:00.002-04:00

Well our fox friend is back and this morning it chased the dog and tried to bite her...I was not pleased. I was going out to turn the pool pump on and let the dog out the back door, a second later I heard a commotion and turned around to see the fox chasing the dog who was running toward the house. I was surprised that the dog didn't get bit. I didn't see the fox when I went out or I wouldn't have let the dog out. The animal control lady came back out but the fox had jumped the back fence already. Last Saturday when foxy came the first time I felt bad for the her, humans are the ones destroying the homes of these animals by constantly building stripmalls and developments. But today I don't feel so bad!!! We are supposed to get a live trap from the city to set in the backyard. Only thing we will probably catch is our dog :-)

And to top it all off ladybug has a double ear infection...poor little one. She is on meds and starting to feel better.

Dedication

2008-06-15T14:12:00.000-04:00

We decided on Thursday to have ladybug dedicated at church today. Our church does dedications on Mother's and Father's Day. When we dedicated butterfly we had a house full of Hardy's and my family came to the church that day and over for lunch afterwards...the only person missing was Brad, he woke up that Sunday morning with Verdigo. He couldn't standup without throwing up. So we decided that this time we would just do it low key and on Father's Day. And because my Sunday's are now insanely busy and it was just crazy trying to get 10 minutes without someone needing something to go into the service. I also thought it would be special to have daddy's little
mini-me get dedicated on his day. We have been very blessed to 2 sweet little angels and we hope they know how much they are loved!

Foxy Neighbor

2008-06-15T14:04:00.000-04:00

We woke up Saturday morning to Heinz (our dog) going nuts, running in and out of the house barking. I just figured it was the normal squirrel or bird but as I was walking by the windows in the back of the house I saw this...our neighborhood fox. I didn't know that there was a wild animal was living in our neighborhood until Brad informed me that several of our neighbors had seen it. I just figured that it was some of the wildlife that was fleeing the North Carolina wildfires. We have gotten alot of the smoke from the fires and I just figured we were now getting the fleeing animals as well. No wonder Heinz was going nuts. Our visitor eventually snuck over the back fence to find another place to rest. Apparently there is a bobcat in the neighborhood too...maybe we should rename out neighborhood "Wild Kingdom Villiage" we have lots of dogs and cats too. Glad he didn't go for a dip in the pool!

Little Miss 8 Month Old

2008-06-15T13:54:00.001-04:00

Can't believe this cute thing is 8 months old already...where did it go? I just love this picture of her...we have been blessed with 2 very good sleepers.

Lovely Day

2008-06-13T20:01:00.002-04:00

Today was just one of those really nice days. I got some housework done this morning while Brad helped some friends move a swingset from our neighbors house to their house. Ladybug took 2 long naps concidering her top two front teeth are coming in at the same time and really bothering her. And after lunch we all hung out in the pool and did some yard work while we were outside. It was nice to take a break a little and relax together. And the pool is finally up and running and nice an clean. And even though it was in the high 80's today it was not too humid, very pleasant. Ladybug loves the water, she gets so excited about a bath and she about flipped out when she got in the pool for the first time today. Butterfly is supposed to take swimming lessons this summer, she likes the pool but she is very causious and just likes to swim around with her arm floaties on. No going under or jumping off the side. We hope that she overcomes this by the end of the summer. We got the grocery shopping done and Brad is off playing softball for our church coed team. The games start at 8:20 and are a double header so we don't go with him. I am all alone, kids are sound asleep and I am about to watch a chick flick...I just love Fri. softball night :-)

Things Kids Say

2008-06-12T21:28:00.002-04:00

I love the things butterfly says. She is almost 4 and every morning on the way to work/school we have these great conversations. Can't wait to have another one join in the chat! She is just growing up so fast and I am amazed at her imagination. Here are some of my favorite things she has said on our car rides. A couple of weeks ago as we were passing over some train tracks she said "mommy there are the frain fracks" she still has some trouble with certain sounds. I couldn't understand what she was trying to tell me. So for the next minute I kept saying "what did you say" and she kept saying frain fracks until I finally figured it out...she even said it louder and louder like that would help me understand her. After I figured it out I asked her to make the sound "tra" she tried it a couple of times but couldn't say it...after the 3rd time she said "mommy I can't say "tra" " and she said it correctly. I just about drove up the curb laughing. There were two great things just this week...Have you ever heard of the saying "every party has a pooper and that is why we invited you" Well it is a big saying in the Hardy family, Brad grew up saying it and the other morning we were all in the car and Brad and I were saying it about someone (because this person didn't want to go the the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with us this year...I won't mention any names but you know who you are:-) )...anyway, Ada heard us and says "mommy there is a pooper at the party", she was very distressed about this. We busted out laughing...and this final one is just something cute...she told us today that she was playing with her friend Garth at school today and she was the princess and he was prince charming. I just loved that...this summer we are going with Garth and his family to Disney World...I am sure there will be much more of those type of conversations.

Time Flys

2008-06-06T21:07:00.005-04:00

I am always amazed at how time flys, especially when you have kids. We had been anxiously awaiting the visit of Brad's sister Bonnie and her youngest son Josh (he's 23) for about 2 months and tomorrow they are leaving to go home...they were here for a week and it is over...the waiting and the week. They stayed in Williamsburg at one of Brad's parent's timeshares, which they are selling so if any of you or someone you know are in the market for a timeshare in Wburg for really cheap let me know. So we have all been back and forth from Va Beach to Wburg all week. It was fun and our butterfly had a great time with them. Ladybug did great with them too. A couple of fun things we did...the girls (minus ladybug) had our nails done, we ate good seafood, went to Busch Gardens (and braved the crazy heat), and shopped a little. It was a fun and busy week, Brad and I still had to work. Thanks Bonnie and Josh for coming down to see us, we had a great time!!! Of course there is nothing like a good week ending with bad traffic...today we were driving home from Wburg having spent Thur. and Fri. there going to Busch Gardens and shopping and a trip that usually takes 45 minutes, 1 hour at the latest took 2 hours on Friday at 3:30. Silly us for forgetting about Fri. rush hour. And I had to go to work tonight for about an hour and we were so late we all had to go. The kids were sooo tired from the 2 days of fun in the heat that they slept the entire time. We got home and Brad started working on the pool. During the week Brad had been trying to get the pool open, now that the tree limbs have been cut down. The heat has been excrusiating this week and we are looking forward to jumping in. With our luck by the time it goes from algea pool to clear blue pool the weather will be back in the 70's and the pool will be too cold to get in. I don't usually mind the heat, you get used to it when you grow up here, but I would take 70's over 100's anyday. Until the next time...it's bed time...a long week for me too!

The Tides Have Turned

2008-05-31T13:39:00.003-04:00

In just the few short hours since my last post it looks like the tides are turning. We got another quote for the trees this morning at $1150.00...too much. But my little bro had a guy come out and do some work for him at his new house and we called him this morning, they came out at about 10:30, started the job at 11:00 and they are almost done and it's almost 2:00. And all for a great price...less than 1/2 the other guy that came by this morning...big thanks to Ray and the boys. Oh part of the deal was that we made them lunch...so during all the caios Brad was at the grill fixin burgers and dogs...and I mean caios because the carpet guy came at the same time to fix our carpet from "the flood". So that is done for another deal of a price. Whew what a day!!!! The girls are napping or trying to with the wood chipper outside their window and I am about to hit the showers. It has been a productive day at the Hardy house...we even cleaned the van...really cleaned the van because we are selling it to some friends and buying Brad's parents van, it is coming down from P.A. tomorrow with Bonnie....the van story will have to wait for another post...

Trees

2008-05-30T20:40:00.002-04:00

We just seem to have the worst luck with tree removal/trimming companies...It could be that we are cheap and don't want to pay $1500 to get 9 limbs cut down or that we just pick the wrong companies...there are so many in the yellow pages. Even when we ask friends who they used we have bad experiences. Most of the time they never come to do the job when they say they are or they never get the job done quickly. We had some trees removed about 5 years ago in our backyard and we had a horrible experience...we learned alot of lessons from that...we are now trying to get 9 limbs cut out from 2 trees and it is another mess. We got 3 quotes ranging from $1500 to $600, of course we took the low price but the guy is giving us the run around and hasn't come out yet...it's been about 3 weeks...so today I told him to forget it after he lied to me and gave me a load of you know what. So we are back to getting quotes...all of this delays us opening up the pool and getting the backyard cleaned up for the summer. It 's a good thing that our summers here last until late September. Brad's sister Bonnie and her son Josh are coming for a visit Sunday for the week (they are staying in Williamsburg) and will be down at our house some and I wanted it all done but no luck there.

So a little update on our flood...everything is dried out, I have been praying that no mold has started to grow, I haven't seen any signs of it so hopefully we got it in time. And my dad has saved us again...he has a carpet guy that he has worked with on his flip houses and he is coming tomorrow to stretch the carpet back and put the new padding down...he will be nice and cheap (there's that word again :-) ). Thanks Dad!!!!

Always Something

2008-05-27T20:16:00.012-04:00

Lately there is just always something going on at our house...usually something that causes major caios and more stress. So for starters Brad is a very handy guy, he can fix or make just about anything around the house and he loves to do it...well he has now been banned from anything involving plumbing...yesterday was just like an episode of Home Impovement and Brad was Tim Taylor. Something very small and easy turned into something very big and very messy. It all started out with dripping outside faucets and turned into butterfly having to sleep in our room on the floor...ladybug will be there tomorrow night, actually maybe both of them. As you can see the pipe coming in to the house between the girls room broke off and we capped it so we could turn the water back on...well it wasn't capped tight enough and this morning the new carpet in the girls rooms was very wet. So now the carpet is pulled up and the padding that was wet is torn out...and we are trying to dry it all out before the mold starts to grow. Ladybug is in her room tonight but we have a dehumidifier running in butterflys room so she is in our room, as you can see from the picture. We only have one dehumidifier so we have to go back and forth...luckily it doesn't look like the walls got wet...just a little bit of the 2x4 under the pipe...thank the Lord. And my dad just so happened to have some leftover padding from when he got his carpet installed. So there is never a dull moment in our house...

Butterfly & Ladybug

2008-05-25T20:32:00.003-04:00

So God has truely blessed us with 2 of the sweetest little girls...I am not sure how it happened but at some point when the oldest was younger I decided she reminded me of a butterfly. She is beautiful, busy, she loves to dance and be pretty. She came 2 weeks early and hasn't stopped yet. And after the baby was born I just one day decided she was my ladybug...sweet, cute and laid back. So that is what I call them, to myself...I never call them that by name but it is their personality to me. And the reasons I am telling you this, well as I was contemplating doing a blog I didn't like the idea of putting the kids names out in the internet world...I am sure at some point I will feel more comfortable doing it...I have an issue with putting their pictures out there but that is one of the main reason that I am doing to blog so family and friends can see them and what they are doing...and our photographer friend(check out my favorite blogs) has them on his site so that has made me feel more comfortable with that...so all that said from here on out I will be refering to the girls as the butterfly and the ladybug...the butterfly being the oldest and the ladybug being the baby. I know I am wierd, I can hear Brad saying...that's just silly...but I don't care. I just love my butterfly and ladybug!!

Moving Up...

2008-05-23T22:44:00.000-04:00

I am now moving up from blog stalker (as a friend recently called me) to blogger. I have been contemplating entering the strange but facinating world for some time now but as a working mother of 2 the thought of having something else to do made me sick to my stomach. But as I thought more and more about it I figured it might be quit theraputic and somewhere I could unload all the stuff in my head...lucky you...you get to read it! So here I go...we will see where it takes us...