Threes

OK, I was tagged again! This time I'm supposed to list: 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, and 3 random surprising facts about myself.

THREE JOYS
1. My family, especially my kids
2. My friends
3. World Class Chocolate ice cream from Baskin Robbins

THREE FEARS
1. Anything bad happening to my kids
2. Scorpions - luckily, we haven't had any!
3. Wearing a bathing suit in public

THREE GOALS
1. Pay off the car
2. Get a bigger house
3. Get in shape

THREE CURRENT OBSESSIONS/COLLECTIONS
1. Boxes. If I get an odd-sized box, I keep it "just in case" it'll be perfect for mailing or storing something later on. I have lots of these and so far I haven't needed any of them!
2. Cardstock scraps. I have piles of leftover strips from making cards, and I can't just throw them out. But seriously, how many bookmarks does one need?
3. Music. I didn't think I'd use the iPod Rob got me a couple of years ago, but I do and I love it! I love it when I download a new song & I love being able to go listen to any random song that pops into my head.

THREE RANDOM SURPRISING FACTS
1. I love sweetened condensed milk, and sometimes I buy a can of it just so I can eat it straight out of the can with a spoon.
2. I absolutely hate the Little Einsteins show. Hate it with a firey passion!
3. I like to peel sunburns.

I'm supposed to tag five people... But I won't tag anyone. I'd like to see what everyone else says if they do it, though!

Robbie's Birthday, Part 2

Our families came over to have cake & ice cream with Robbie last night! So I thought I'd post one more picture.

It was nice to see everyone, and it's nice that they all went out of their way to come over here for him! Robbie really liked opening his presents, and he loved it when everyone sang to him.

Happy Birthday Robbie!

Robbie turned 2 today!

It's hard to believe it's been two years already. Although, when I look at the baby pictures, it's hard to believe he was ever that small!

^ Robbie at one week old

Robbie was born at about 6:30 on a Monday morning. He was 6 lbs, 3 oz and 20" long. It was only a 3-hour labor, so it was a pretty good deal for mom!

^ At five months old

He was a good baby, and he's a pretty cheerful kid. He likes just about anything Erin does. He likes any kind of sport, just like his dad! Give that kid a ball and he's happy.

^ One year old

We love you, Robbie! We're so glad to have you in our family.

Fire trucks!

Yesterday, we went to the Hall of Flame Fire Museum in Tempe. PBS was hosting a free day with games & stuff for the kids. Free? Exactly.

It's a pretty neat place. LOTS of fire trucks! There are a few the kids can climb around on, and a lot to look at. They have some neat horse-drawn ones, and they have a lot of shields & emblems from firehouses around the world. Of course, I had to take a picture of Erin with the old Miami, AZ truck.

Robbie wasn't feeling very photogenic, so I didn't have a lot of great pictures. He was pretty happy to meet Curious George there, though! After the kids had their picture taken with him, Erin whispered to me, "Mom, I know something about Curious George... he's not real! I saw inside the mask." So I told her that would be our secret and Robbie could keep thinking he's real.

The kids got little plastic firefighter hats, badge stickers, coloring books, little silicone bracelets... they hit the jackpot!

Since we were in Tempe, we headed to my parents' house to swim. We needed it, because it was super hot! We went through downtown Tempe and down University Drive, through ASU, which might've been Robbie's favorite part of the morning. That kid is 100% Sun Devil. If you hear him saying something about "Ah-Ee", it means there's an ASU logo or a picture of Sparky somewhere. So all down University, it was "Ah-Ee, Mama!" Erin likes the triangle windows on Manzanita Hall.

We spent the rest of the day with my parents, my sister, my niece, and one of her friends, just hanging around & visiting. It was nice. We got home late and everyone was wiped out!

Camping

We spent most of last week camping at Knoll Lake. We don't fish or have a boat, but it's such a nice place to camp! It's way up on top of the Mogollon Rim, so it's kind of secluded and not usually very busy. They also recently renovated all the sites, so they all have new tables, grills, and fire rings, and they have nice tent pads. The outhouses are even pretty good! As far as outhouses go, that is.


The kids had their own tent, and they did really well sharing sleeping space. I didn't sleep very well the first couple of nights because I was worried about Robbie getting cold. He did get himself out of his sleeping bag & he got really cold. But Erin is so good with him! In the mornings, she would get him into her sleeping bag with her so he could get warm, and we could hear her singing to him and talking to him. It was fun to listen to.

At the lake, the kids liked throwing rocks and watching the schools of little tiny fish along the shore. We usually catch crawdads & throw them back, but they weren't cooperating this time. (They're like, "Oh great, it's those people who mess with us".) There were a lot of ladybugs there, which the kids liked. You can't tell from this picture, but Robbie was delighted to have one on his finger! He was talking to it & blowing it kisses.

Robbie did really well on the hikes to the lake. That kid did a lot of walking! He and Erin played together a lot, and they were completely filthy within about an hour of us setting up camp. It's amazing how much dirt can stick to two little kids. They ran around all day, every day, and they were both worn out and ready for bed at night.

Of course, we did the usual hot dogs and s'mores. There's just something special about stuff you can cook on a stick! Or if you can wrap it in foil and put it in the fire... we always do foil dinners, too. We rounded it out with steaks and burgers on the other nights, and we always stop at Chili's in Payson on our way home to ease us back into civilization.

While we were in Payson, we went to see the mobile replica of the Vietnam memorial wall. I saw this once in Illinois on my mission & it was neat to see it again. It's about half the size of the real one in Washington D.C., and it's amazing to see all those names. We explained it in simple terms to Erin, and we told her it was kind of a reverent place. The kids were both pretty good there. I was humbled to see veterans leaving flowers or taking rubbings of names. It was a neat experience.

All said, we had a nice little trip! It's always good to be home afterward & get all cleaned up and back to civilized life.

Where Were You...

I saw this post on another blog & thought it was a good idea. I won't "tag" anyone, but it would be fun to see what you guys would post if you did it too!

20 YEARS AGO

Miami, Arizona 1988. I had just turned 12 and I was excited for Junior High in the fall! Rob had moved to Mesa from Aurora, Illinois a few years earlier - I think this picture of him is pretty close to 1988. I think it rocks that his shirt just says "NO"! The shorts are another story.

15 YEARS AGO

Miami, Arizona 1993. I had just finished my Junior year in high school. That was a pretty fun summer for me! Here's a tennis picture of me on a windy day. Rob had just graduated from Westwood High School in Mesa and was working at Smitty's.

10 YEARS AGO

Champaign, Illinois 1998. I was on my mission; I spent 6 months in the Champaign/Urbana area. Rob was back in Mesa, recently home from his mission in Ecuador. He was starting to go to the singles ward where we met the next spring, and I think he was working for Bank of America.

5 YEARS AGO

Phoenix, Arizona 2003. Erin was almost 1, and we were learning the joys of having a professional walker (and runner) in the house! I was a buyer at Phelps Dodge Corp. and Rob was a loan officer at Desert Schools credit union.

1 YEAR AGO

Phoenix, Arizona 2003. Robbie was almost 1 and Erin was almost 5 and getting very excited for kindergarten. I was at home and Rob was working for the State.

YESTERDAY

Phoenix, Arizona! Just a regular day of babysitting, laundry & dishes, except my mom came over to visit, which made it a lot more fun.

TOMORROW

We'll be on our way to Knoll Lake for some camping!