boy or girl, girl or boy?!?

I have not been reserved about expressing my desire for this baby to be another boy and figured I'd jinxed myself. When I went in for an ultrasound last week I told the tech I really wanted a boy and that I'd slip her a $20 if she would see what she could do about it. Without a doubt, the little guy showed us the money! I was so excited, I might have let out a squeal or two.

With my other 3 I have been able to get a gut feeling and be right every time, but with this one I was way too worked up about wanting another boy that I couldn't get a clear instinct signal. Then I took that stinkin' Intelligender test at 12 weeks and it said girl--until Brad picked it up and then it changed to boy. But you are not supposed to disturb it, so technically my reading was girl. I just kept going back and forth in my head "boy or girl, girl or boy?" for a couple more weeks. Then I finally came to a point where I could honestly say that I would be happy with either. I love my girls and it would be awesome to have another. It was after I made peace with my mental gender debate that I finally felt confident that it was indeed a boy. Going in to the ultrasound I fully expected to have my suspicion confirmed and I was ecstatic when it was!

And so the score will be even. Girl-boy-girl-boy. Finn will have his little brother and some relief from the princesses by which he is surrounded.

one for the galla, two for the finn, three to get paisley and four...

...due five-five-ten! Yup, that's right, cinco de Mayo. I'm nearly 12 weeks along and annoyingly nauseous. But we're excited for number four! I can't believe that we actually waited this long to spill the beans. With the other 3 I couldn't wait and told everyone at, like, 5 1/2 weeks. But I always thought girls were so cool when they could keep it under wraps 'til around week 12, so I wanted to give it a try. It was fun having it be a little secret between Brad and me for a while. I even straight lied to my sis-in-law and told her I had my period--sorry, Steph! So, here's to the new babe and the end of the first trimester!

allow me to "summer"-ize

These are some pictures to summarize our summer. Not much explanation needed. Most of them our just in our backyard but to me they convey the joys of childhood. I wish I could still run around in my underwear eating popsicles!LOVE this picture--so classic!My sweet girls in their matching summer dresses.This bad boy is our garden guard! I was the lucky one to discover him, but Brad is definitely the one holding him up to meet the kids. I have mixed feelings about him. I appreciate the work he puts into keeping our garden critter-free, but I think I'll keep my distance.Hi Paisley!Finn riding his trike.And when Finn gets tired of riding his own, he hitches a ride on Galla's!Splashin' in the little Wal-Mart pool--which is bigger than you think when you are trying to transport it home.Paisley was endlessly entertained by the, like, 2 inch slide.Sayonara summer. We look forward to your sweet heat next year!

Tio Joe

My brother, fondly referred to as "Tio Joe," came for a visit last week! We don't get to see him often since he's busy being famous--performing on Broadway all the way across the country in NYC--so it's a real treat when he comes. This guy is the ultimate entertainer! From Broadway stage to backyard playhouse, permed old ladies to playful little kids, he really knows how to thrill an audience. My kids can't get enough of this character and it's so fun to watch them all play together. But he's definitely a night owl, so it's after the kids go to bed that act 2 starts and he and I get seriously silly! I'd also like to mention that, beyond performing talents, he's just an all-around awesome guy. Thanks for coming, Tio Joe, WE LOVE YOU!!

Goodbye kids, hello coast!

Brad and I got to leave the little ones with my parents and head to the coast for Labor Day weekend. A full Friday to Monday vacation and it was awesome! We'd only had literally one night away from our kids since Galla was born until last weekend. We stayed at Anton Inn in Pacific Grove. It was so fun! Allow me to summarize the exciting times:We woke up Saturday morning (after going to a few art shows Friday night in downtown Pacific Grove) raring to go! We enjoyed our complimentary breakfast and then hit the bikes. We rode over to Carmel following 17 mile drive and the coastline.We took a walk on the beach to give our "bike bums" a rest and then rode back to the hotel for lunch. Round-trip the trek was about 30 miles. My bum was sore and my shoulders were burned (darn that sun and me forgetting to wear sunblock) but it was soooo fun! After lunch and showers we got dressed and went to a Greek festival on Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey.

Sunday we decided to soak up some warm sun in Santa Cruz. I'm sad we forgot to take pictures, but we totally lounged on the beach and read our novels--and people watched, of course! It's so different to be able to relax on the beach and read instead of constantly trying to keep the kids from floating out to sea. Then we went up to the boardwalk and walked around and ate some fried food.Our hotel was walking distance to the beach so Sunday and Monday mornings we went down for a run and to explore the tidepools.

Meanwhile, the kids were great for the grandparents. They swam, ate french fries, went for a ride in Pa's Corvette, and rode on the unicycle with Pa. Seriously, my dad has had this unicycle since he was nine (that's not actually him in the link) and he can hold a kid while riding! So funny!

It was good to get back to my babies and their cuddles, but I'm already looking forward to our next getaway!

puh-puh-preschool

I have three crazy kids on my heels all day and finally I get to pawn one off at preschool for a few hours a week! Galla started a MWF morning class on Monday and we got her psyched by keeping a "puh-puh-P" theme all day since "puh-puh-P is for preschool." I'll spare you the written "puh-puh" pronunciation throughout the post, but know that we were emphasizing it all day! We started the morning with pancakes, then dressed her in purple and pink (not that that is anything out of the ordinary) complete with purple and pink painted nails and pig-tails in her hair. I packed her popcorn for her snack and dropped her off for her big day. I wasn't sure how I'd react to leaving my baby at school and I got a tiny bit choked up as I walked out of the building, but once I got back in the car I could feel nothing but excitement for her. I know she will thrive in the environment!

When I picked her up she was perky and told me all about how much fun she had and the new friends she made and how the boys weren't listening to the teacher but she was listening to the teacher. For lunch we had peanut butter sandwiches and during naptime for Paisley and Finn she got to watch a princess movie. After naps we had pretzels for a snack then went to the dollar store to pick a prize*. For dinner it was pizza pockets, then we went swimming at the pool and had peach cobbler for dessert. Come to think of it, it was a pretty typical day, but fun nonetheless to make a P-party of it all. I think she now knows what letter preschool starts with and what sound it makes!

Now we just need to keep her excited about school for the next 18 years or so....
This is at orientation last week.
She loves the doll house.

thanks for the hearty slice of life

The kids are asleep. Brad is out playing tennis with his brother. I don't feel like being irritated by TV, but I also don't feel like being truly productive. Hmmm...what shall I do? I totally just spent the last hour and a half absorbed in blogs and I just have to say thank you.

Thank you for opening your lives and sharing with me. It is amazing to see so many families that I've met from so many places along the way in my (and Brad's) life journey. You guys are all over the place doing all kinds of commendable things--babies being born, kids starting kindergarten, new houses, fun outings...living life and loving it!

I feel so blessed to have such great, admirable friends. Several of your blogs touched me to tears. I've been entertained. I've gained insight. I am impressed and inspired. Life is so precious and I appreciate being able to share it with you peculiar people!

Thank you for the uplifting evening. Let's stay in touch.

hey, finn...

Where'd ya go?
Oh! There's that cute face!

Cutting a squirmy little boy's hair is tricky business.

"sometimes you just gotta yell and scream!"

Hello flashback!! Who else was raised on this stuff? My sister ordered these aweseomely important songs on CD for us and listening to it totally takes me back to sitting in the mini-van of my youth. My kids ate it up and quickly learned to sing along. They love it and include the Safety Kids in our evening prayers. I still sing my telephone number to their catchy tune and my kids are memorizing my cell phone number--that could come in handy!Galla likes to practice this safety tip in public with Brad. That could cause some problems!These kids look pretty street-smart to me!

can you say "entomology?"

What would you think when this package came UPS from Mimi?

*Yay! Package from Mimi!*And this little box is inside.

*Hmmm...she's joking? Maybe it's a cool fake bug?*Nope. It's the real deal. Very icky. And also stinky.

You can't say she didn't warn me.We love our silly Mimi! She sure knows how to take the hum-drum out of the day.