I wonder if anyone will notice this post???

So here I am after almost 3 stinking months. Wow. I guess that means I am busy with kids, huh? We are in the throws of Christmas prep and celebration. Everything is decorated and we are waiting for the last few things to be delivered by our trusty UPS guy. (who, by the way, seems to move slower and slower when he walks up and down our long driveway... or ANYWHERE for that matter, but I digress)

Just went out to a movie last night with my wonderful neighbor. Didn't get home until after midnight. It has been forever since I have done that. Was nice to get out and be alone and do something adult like.

GH is staying busy at work and the kids are staying busy keeping my house a total pit! Finally am almost on top of it. But I am feeling overrun by all the toys.

T-man is about to go to his last day of school for the calendar year tomorrow. It will be a movie party and hang out time. I'm sure the kids are running around like crazy people so it will be a good way to have them relax a bit.

D-man, I have discovered, is TRULY my comeuppance (sp?) from childhood. Holy crimony! That kid is a pain in my neck and just can't listen at all. But he then melts me with his I love you, mommy's and his huggies and kissies.

J-man is crawling like crazy and into EVERYTHING. He is staying out of the tree so far, but we still have a week to go... one day at a time!

I have been on a diet and am now down 39 pounds. Feels so good to be able to be so active. I even started running. So I run 1.75 miles every other day and do weights and ab work on the opposite days. I also got a camera! GH bought me a Nikon D200 as a really early Christmas present. I love it so much! I am slowly learning how it works. I love taking such great photos of my kids. Our Christmas card this year is one that we took using the camera on GH's tripod. It turned out really great.

As time marches on I am continually amazed at God's mercies and the saving grace of Jesus Christ. I am blessed abundantly with friends, family, a home and health. I think I have been spending time enjoying that more than blogging. I think that is way better.

Blessings to all of you (all one of you... Kim :) ) who read this and I will try and write again either right after Christmas or just after the New Year!!! Off to do bedtime stuff with the boys I go.....

Hmmmm... I think I am questioning my ability to do this blog thang...

So here I am trying to be good about writing and life is just flying by before me. T-man started 1st grade on Sept 1st. He is so big. I am just amazed. Keeps asking me to home school him, but I know it is because he is still adjusting to the crazy schedule. He is also in swimming lessons for the 2nd session in a row and will likely take another break after this one. I think again he feels too busy. I'm all for being a kid and playing more!!

D-man and I are having more quiet time together... even if it IS shared with J-man. D-man is quite gutsy in what he does. Has no qualms about getting into trouble. Little stinker! He has also decided that Nemo is his new obsession. SAVE ME! I love the movie, but T-man watched it about a billion times when he was the same age. Now I must endure it again. Oh well, at least it is a clean movie, right?

J-man is a crawling fiend! He sits up on his own and just generally plays amazingly well on his own. I am loving it. He is on a good schedule of naps so we have our routine down pretty well.

GH is going crazy working like a dog. It is the end of the quarter and so work is nuts for him. Poor guy. We miss our daddy, but seem to muddle through without seeing much of him.

I am currently on a good routine for the day when I get T-man on the bus. I now work out and clean things up after J-man is down for a nap. Have lost almost 20 pounds and hope to lose another 25 before Christmas. We shall see....

Well, I'm tired... seems to be a constant right now with my crazy schedule, but I am. Hopefully I can get back in the saddle and start writing more often. Until next time....

Absence makes the heart grow fonder right??

It's been a long time since I posted anything. I AM still breathing. And so are the rest of the people in the house :) WE have been busy busy busy. GH went to South Korea on a job for a week and then the day after he returned we went to Orcas Island with my parents for a MUCH needed vacation, but it wouldn't have happened if my parents hadn't paid. SOOOO appreciative! It was so relaxing listening to the waves lap against the shore in the morning. THAT is where I get to truly hear nothing early in the AM. I love it. The kids had a ton of fun. We even went and swam in Cascade Lake a couple times. Took the kids to Mt. Constitution. It was just a wonderful vacation and we really hope to do it next year even if the parents can't help out. We will see.

J-man now rolls over both ways and is even more talkative if that is even possible. D-man has learned lots of new words and is now spouting sentences. Some of them I am sad to say... NO CLUE what he is saying, but we muddle through it. T-man is doing swimming lessons again thanks for Birthday money that we saved up from his last b-day. He is doing amazing. Swims better than I do. D-man told me tonight he thinks he wants to learn, too. We have $$ for that, waiting in the wings, but it is always nice to have someone to hold J-man while someone is in the pool with D-man. I'm sure we'll work it out.

I have now joined Weight Watchers. I'm hoping to lose probably 60 pounds, but we will see where I get. One step at a time. starting with the food intake changes first and then ramping up on the exercise stuff. GH is on another training/job thing this week, but is at least in State this time. He left EARLY Monday AM and returns later on Friday. Already excited for Friday. Don't remember if I said it in my last post, but I am now a proud owner of a Blackberry. I LOVE IT! Very addicting.

Lastly, my brother is a semi finalist or whatever bracket they are at for America's Got Talent. I am so proud of him. Can't believe it when I see him on TV. WOW!

Well, off to do bedtime stuff. Fun fun fun... it never ends here :)

It's that crazy summertime fun we are having!

Seems I can't get on top of these posts... ah well. I will just keep trying. Life keeps moving along. So thankful for the nice weather right now, but really wish it wasn't so hot yet. Wish it would wait until we go to Orcas Island next week. Can't wait for that. So looking forward to a nice long vacation. As of now GH is on another business trip to South Korea. Lucky me... home again with my sweet boys. So I am left to prep and pack and wash and blah blah blah for the trip. I hope to have LOTS done by the time he is home, but we will see what I feel up to tomorrow with the heat.

T-man is doing something fun this week that is new to him. He is going to a YMCA camp near us. It is from 9:30am to 3:30pm each day this week. Got in at the last minute. Am so glad I did. He is in the same group as our neighbor's little girl and they are having a great time. And it is only day 1! So tomorrow will prove interesting! They are headed to the lake (not sure which one) for the day. Hopefully he will be told to drink LOTS of water. D-man and J-man and I will hunker down inside tomorrow and get stuff done. Later in the day we might venture into the small pool we have, but we will see. If it is crazy hot I don't know if I will have the energy to clean them up afterwards.

I think that is about it for now. Hopefully more to come, but if not this week then I will write more up on Orcas as I bask in the glow of the water and the view in SILENCE. yes, I am going with my children, but I will bask at night :)

A little bit of me and a whole lot of boys!

I notice it has been over a week since an update. As you can tell, life is rolling along. I have lots to say, but will do it in small posts for a couple days.

Went to Eugene, OR to visit family for the 4th of July. Had a great time. REALLY hot and I don't do well in hot normally, but it went great. The kids did really well. J-man had issues sleeping, but I think it was teething more than anything.

Then T-man went home with my parents on Monday from there and stayed one night with them and then went on up to my in-laws the next day for 3 nights and then came back today to stay with my parents for 3 nights. It is his summer vacation. He misses home a lot, but seems to be doing ok so far this evening.

So my GH and I have had a week to be alone and have younger ones around who can't spell or understand what you are saying :) LOVELY!

GH and I celebrated our 9th anniversary on Wednesday. Can't believe we've been together for 12 years. 3 years we dated and then married :) Seems like just yesterday. He looks different and boy do I look different lemme tell ya!

Went raspberry picking with my neighbor yesterday and she helped (along with her kiddos and niece) to pick 20 pounds of raspberries that will become jam tomorrow :) yippeee! first time doing jam on my own so it should prove entertaining for those who are around.

We just firmed up plans to have our little church over for a big celebratory thingy in early August. I am looking forward to it and so is GH. Our yard is so nice and big and our neighborhood is so nice and quiet it will be great to have a Christian get together. Maybe the pastor across the way will join us? he is from another church in town, but hey.. we are all aiming for the same guy right?

Well, must clean up a bit down here in the Living Room so will quit for now. Might update tomorrow. Not sure yet. We will see :)

Summertime Fun

So I should probably be getting ready for bed, but am here typing a REALLY short update. Boys are doing well. Well, D-man is pushing me to the edge of reason. Bedtime has become a huge issue. He is great with bath time and book time and THEN it is time to actually turn out the lights and go to sleep. He screams and cry's and carry's on and on about wanting someone to come back after we leave and when someone comes he wants the other person. LOTS of screaming. Drives me crazy. He will be quiet for 5-10 minutes and then freak out and cry again. I think I might lose my mind.

We had a fun play date today with a friend from church. She is so much fun and her boys are a riot! So nice for Tate to have friends come and see him instead of just seeing them at church :)

J-man is doing really well at sleeping and eating. Growing like a weed. He might even weigh 20 pounds now. Will check him next Friday to see.

Well, off I go to help D-man go to sleep. Hopefully will have better news tomorrow.

So many updates... so little time

The delay in my updates is purely due to being crazy busy around here :) But there is quite a bit to share.

On Father's Day we found J-man's first tooth! Holy molies! He is barely 5 months old! His sleep pattern has been weird this week as well. I am up in the middle of the night with him again. I assume it is because he is cutting more teeth again AND growing. He is about 18 pounds. HUGE!

D-man is truckin' along same ol' same ol'. T-man is now officially a first grader. Wowie! I'm still not sure I'm ready to think that way yet. Went to his graduation on Monday afternoon. My mom and GH's mom and my mom's best buddy who is also considered a gramma here came to watch him at his graduation. So cute. I just love it!

We are getting ready to leave on a short family vacation over the 4th of July. We go down to Eugene, OR every other year to my aunt and uncle's house to celebrate. This year we will be there for 3 nights. Then T-man will go home with my parents (who we call Pa and Ma) and then go to the in-laws the next morning for his summer vacation time with both sets. He will be at the in-laws for 3 nights and then go to my parents for 3 nights and then my mom will bring him home the following Monday. And oddly enough, GH is on vacation that whole week as well.

The most exciting part of our week this week was graduation, but a close 2nd was paying off our car! We did it! We are so happy to be out from under that. We are also prepping to sell it and buy my parents mini-van so we can fit our kids for years to come. It will also be nice to have them all have their own "space" in the car. The Jeep works, but poor T-man is smunched in the middle and I feel bad for him.

I think that is all I have to say for now. Must go take care of laundry and dishes while the baby sleeps. Happy Friday to you all! (Are there 5 of you now?) :) hehe.

Father's Day weekend fun

Have had an eventful day today. GH went to work at o-darkhundred and the rest of us got up after 7am. GH got home just after 10:45am and we all left within 30 minutes and went to run errands. Boy did we have a lot! GH got basically a whole new wardrobe. 2 pair slacks, 3 long sleeve button down shirts and 2 more casual but nice button down short sleeve shirts. I got a shirt and some Clinique stuff. Then we of course had McD's for lunch. Easy cop out for when kids are around.

Then off to Target for T-man to buy something with his money he has saved. I got a Pilates workout DVD. I have one on VHS, but DVD is so much faster and I am more likely to do that one if it is a point and click and it starts kinda thing.

Then... to the Oreck store for 2 bunches of bags for the vacuum. Had a coupon.. BOGO so had to stop. Saved $35!!!

Then to Fred Meyer for minor groceries and a quick stop at Starbuck's for "special's" as we call them at our house for the boys as they were AWESOME today! We all got home just before 5pm and I threw in some Chicken Alfredo to the oven and we sat down at 6pm. Tonight has been FAST!

The biggest part of our day is that we paid off our Jeep today. Woohoooooo! We are soooo excited to have that debt paid off. We are basically debt free, but of course have the house that will be hanging on us for another 20 years at least.

Tomorrow is of course Father's Day and I need to ask GH what he wants for breakfast. Dutch baby perhaps?

Goodnight all!

4 days and counting....

So.. we are down to the 4 day mark until T-man is done with Kindergarten and an official 1st grader. Can't believe we are at this point already. Life goes way too fast. He may have his moments, but now I only have 12 years left to enjoy him. I know I have 2 others to enjoy, but time really is flying right by.

The poor GH is so tired. He went scuba diving and of course wiped himself out. And then has had to work some overtime at work as it is the end of the quarter. THEN... he is prepping the mowers to go to the "fix-it" center because both of them are bluck! We have a rider and a pusher and both are in non-working order. SOOOOO... he was out there forever tonight after dinner getting it all cleaned up and put together so they are ready to go. We also have dinner with our neighbors tomorrow night. Love our neighbors by the way. Such great people. Such a blessing to have them here. I hope neither of us ever have to move away.

As for me, I actually did some ironing today. I hate to iron (if you know me) and put it off until the end of time if possible. So today I decided to get it done. Besides, my mom, mom-in-law and other mom are coming on Monday and it was a good incentive. Then made some spaghetti, bread and cantaloupe for dinner. Everyone ate well tonight. We had minimal issues today which is always a welcome thing around here.

I will leave this off with my favorite bible verse as I have not mentioned yet in a post.

Jeremiah 29:13 - "You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart" I know the verses before this tell us God has plans of good for me, etc, but I think it is hard to accept those other verses if you first don't do this one :) It continues to amaze me that the God of the universe who has always been there and who's life has no beginning or end (hard to comprehend that He is omnipresent, too) would want to be sought out by me, but He does. I am so humbled!

There's no place like home!

.... and the Satterlee's are home now :) Nice to have most of the stuff put away. My GH is getting the fish put somewhere until we can vacuum pack it tomorrow while I type this and play scrabble on Facebook. I had a wonderful massage today. She is awesome! I was supposed to take an Epsom Salt bath. And you ask.. did that happen? NOPE! Guess I need to ice instead. And I also got the quilt basically done. Just have to go get the backing and put it together. The front is totally done. I love it. Watch.. as I type this his teacher (who is my buddy on Facebook) is reading this. Ok, so, Mrs. Johnson, ACT surprised on Monday, ok? :) hehe.

D-man learned another new word this weekend. "Momo" It means: movie. We were watching Cars this weekend or some cartoons at lunch and he pointed to the TV and said "momo!" So cute.

Well, I am wiped out and need some sleep. This was short, but had a cute D-man word in it so had to share.

Good night all!

E-O-9 and no naps

So we are up here on Camano Island and the GH is scuba diving. We are hanging in there. I got mastitis the first night here. Holy cow.. I hate that. I have had it so many times with J-man I am so tired of it. Mostly because I always get a fever and the most terrible chills, too. Anyways... napping is at a premium up here. D-man refused a nap yesterday and J-man is so far refusing one both yesterday AND today. So being away from home has not gone well. And the other fun was that Camano had a scheduled power outage early this AM (12-8am) so then all fans and humidifier's went off and subsequently woke up children. Yippee. I am basking in the thought of my massage at 10am tomorrow morning. Can't hardly wait. I am so tired and need some tension worked out.

The other part of the title is E-O-9. That is because that is what D-man says ALLLL the time. It is the phrase for literally everything. Quite funny. He of course is slower at words and sentences being the second born so we are coining EO9 as a phrase of our own. It is just too funny when he says it with all seriousness.

Had originally come up here to quilt a quilt for T-man's teacher... now I'm not sure if it will get done. It is all cut out, but whenever I have time, the baby is asleep or needing attention because my mom is tending to D-man. Hopefully GH will make it easy for me to get it done this week.

Well, that's all for today. Will write more tomorrow. For the grand total of ONE of you who reads this. But hey, at least I will have lots of stuff for the kids to read again someday!

Birthday Joy

So, I'm 34 now. As Garfield used to say.. "clap paws.. squeal with glee". I'm not sure I feel any different other than maybe a few more unwanted pounds on my poepoe, but that shall be remedied this year! My birthday started ok. D-man woke up at midnight (bluck), but went right back to sleep. Then the baby didn't wake up until 5:45am. It was the second day of that. QUITE happy about it. Now I hope that going to Camano Island won't mess it up, but we will see.

Nothing overly exciting going on today to write down. But the sun is shining and it is a beautiful day so I'm going to relax and enjoy it!

Happy trails........

Children just keep on giving

Today has been pretty uneventful. The best part was that not one child woke up until 6am. And that was the baby! so happy! then D-man woke up just before 7am and T-man was closer to 7:30 or so. Quiet morning at home not doing much and then the afternoon came.. ick. D-man chose NOT to fall asleep until probably 2:30 or so. So when i got him up at 3:30 he was in rare form! And now the baby won't stop crying. Won't eat off of me and has a dry poepoe (our word for bottom) so I am out of ideas.

GH will be home in a minute with a milkshake for my birthday :) It isn't until tomorrow, but he wanted to get me something early. My poepoe sure doesn't need a milkshake, but it sure sounds yummo!

Headed to Camano Island tomorrow to see my parents for the weekend while the GH scuba dives.

well, might write more later. Baby is still crying. Will try walking around with him again.

Men and their machines

So.. my GH bought a high powered remote control race car the other day from a friend at work. wow! WAAAAY Cool! I love it. But it is so hillarious to listen to T-man and D-man play with it. They love to ram it into stuff and then we hear them from afar say "awww! Cool!!". I roll my eyes and laugh. So much testosterone I can't stand it!

And I'm really excited.. I got my b-day gift from GH. New towels and shower curtain for our bathroom :) I loooove new towels! They are so fluffy and wonderful. Now I ordered some material to make a new quilt to go on our bed. Also some material to make a quilt to go on the wall in the bathroom. Now to find time to actually QUILT them :)

Random thoughts to begin with...

So.. I have done blogging before, but never pushed myself to get it done. I am trying to think of it as a living diary. Who knows how long it might last. We will see :)

We are nearing the end of Kindergarten for T-man. Can't believe the baby is that old. Seems like yesterday we were waiting for him to figure out how to say mama and dada. He comes home every day with new things to share and of course new attitudes as well. The attitude part is totally my favorite :)

D-man is in the cute and hilarious phase right now. 2 year olds get away with waaaay too much! My favorite saying of his right now is also the most annoying at times. He says "0-9" (that's literally "oh-nine") to EVERYTHING! no idea what it means whenever he uses it, but I'm sure it has some real significance for him as it is in almost every sentence. Well, he doesn't use sentences I guess, but.. they are to us :)

J-man is our beefcake baby! I love it! He is 17 pounds and just about to turn 5 months old. I love his dimples and his laugh and am enjoying every part possible since this is the last baby. I am totally ok with that, but in the same breath sad, too. wish I didn't have to be done, but am looking forward to having the kids old enough not to have to be attached to them all the time :)

My gorgeous hubby (GH) works a lot and travels a lot, but it is so nice to have him home right now. I loooooove not being a single parent. I am one blessed woman!

In future posts I will chat about the day, but for now.. that is the family. As for me? Well, you'll figure it out as we go along. but I love to laugh and throw in a bit of sarcasm here and there.

'til the next post... I am off to love on the crying babe and oversee the 'fixing' of my furniture by the older two. I love fix-it men!