Happy B'day, J!

Poor pics, I know. Sorry! That's the best I could do with my phone. and poor lighting!

Today we celebrated J's birthday! After swimming for the big girls this morning and work in the yard, we ate dinner at Babe's. Yum! We had never been to Babe's and we all really enjoyed it! The girls were a little freaked out by the "chickens" in the entry way, but they were able to laugh about them on the way out the door. Then, a yummy ice cream treat at Dairy Queen. Whew! We are stuffed! In fact, we had to save the presents for in the morning because we were all tired and too full to celebrate any more. Happy Birthday, J!

My Fish

HV and HM swim... a lot. Even as cold as our pool is now, they still get in (not daily, but still!). This school year they joined a swim team through their school and have loved it! Technically, HM is too young for this school group, but the coach said "let's try her and see how she does." She's been in the water with them every week since then! They had their first meet this past weekend and did GREAT! Both girls competed in all 4 strokes and placed in the top 3 on all events for their age bracket. HM came home with a medal and 4 ribbons. HV came home with a trophy and 4 ribbons. They issue points based on their ranking and HV had the highest number of points in her age bracket. Needless to say, we are proud of our "fish!" Good job, lovies!

Two on Thursdays

So she was my date tonight. Pizza and then to the park to feed the ducks was on the agenda for us. We had a good time together.
Since bringing HG home, it has been hard for all of us. We are SO grateful, of course, that she is here. It's just an adjustment for us all. The "big girls" are feeling a little left out and so we decided to have a babysitter each Thursday afternoon/evening for HG (and ironically, her name begins with H as well!). J and I each take a kid and go do something, just the two of us. There will be times when HV and HM have a sitter too and J and I will be having a date. We've got that lined up for next Thursday! So, if you want to "borrow" our big girls for a Thursday afternoon/evening, let me know! It's good for all of us!

and then she was 8

HM today, her 8th birthday

One of the first photos of HM, 3 days old

Oh my! Our "middle" baby is 8 years old today. Boy, she has grown and changed! Entering the world at just 5 pounds and a few ounces, we never imagined that she would grow up to be such a "big" girl! She can still scream and screech with the best of them, but she can control herself so much more in the last year or so. She's such a good big sister to HG and a little sister to HV. I can't imagine our family without her! We love you, Stinky Girl!

No, she doesn't stink. :) I'm not sure why we call her that, but we do.

Serving Spoon

I had a date tonight, just with my oldest "baby." Check out that spoon that came with her pork lo mein! She thought it was hilarious!

And yes, I did eat at a chinese food restaurant. They WILL prepare chicken lo mein without veggies, just in case you wanted/needed to know. :)