Testing, testing....Madelyn and Olivia Freeversing on Bees and Wasps

Now showing at a youtube near you....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbbd95t4c7g

Dad's Engineering Crew

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JAKE!!!!!! WE LOVE YOU!

If you remember, wish Jake a happy 32nd Birthday today. I'm happy to actually see him on his birthday this year. It seemed that he was always traveling with work that last two years on his birthday. We don't really have any plans for today, but tomorrow we are having some friends and family over for a birthday dinner. I'm going to make Jake's favorite dinner, lasagna. And he wants birthday brownies instead of a birthday cake. So, I just wanted to also wish my husband a very happy birthday and I love you. Have a great day.

The girls wanted to eat lunch outside at their picnic table. Take note the vines that they used to "decorate" the playhouse. I think the vines add just the right touch, along with the chalk pictures.

Hello all!! Before you wonder where our other daughter is, or if we sold her?!? Madelyn is still here getting bigger than ever. She is already 4 1/2. I can't believe my baby will be almost ready for school. She is such a sweet beautiful little girl. She is definitely and old soul. I really think she has been here before. She continues to teach me things all of the time. Ok, anyways these pics are from last weekend when Olivia got her mommy and daddy to herself for the night. Madelyn was spending the night at the neighbors house. I think she really enjoyed having us to herself all night and we enjoyed it too. We are going to try to start giving them more "alone" time. I think kids need that one on one attention. We cooked her hotdogs on the grill and she made potato salad with daddy. She likes cooking with her daddy. They do make some pretty good potato salad I must say.

Laura-palooza 60

OK. At long last I have wrested control momentarily from Erin and am going to make a post on the blog. The few remaining readers we have of this blog may know by now that we recently celebrated my Mom's 60th birthday. Erin, Sarah, and I began colluding months ago to try to surprise her with a little party. Does anyone realize how hard it is to surprise someone who refuses to take a hint that she needs to make herself available to her children on her own birthday? Short of hog-tying my Mom to make sure she wasn't at choir or at work, we were able to convince her that she should allow us to take her out to dinner for her big day.

That done we set to rallying all available Hamffs to show up. We were able to have both her cousins (Mickey and Tom) show up and one sister (with an opera problem...hello, intervention). Did hilarity ensue? Did my poor mother's children make inappropriate remarks and/or gifts related to her advancing age? Is the pope catholic? The proof is in the photos below.

Cousins review ancient documents that chronicle Laura's youth. Nancy chipped them from the cave wall and brought them for all to see....coming soon to a museum of natural history near you.

Nurses-in-arms. Did you know that when nurses bare their teeth at you they are about to charge? Be especially wary of the silverback nurses.

Mom gets a new whip.

Antics like these are what nearly ruined the quiet family community of Kingsville 50 years ago.

Family photo or conga-line-in-the-making?

Today is March 11, 2009 it has been 12 years since I lost my father. I miss him so much. I don't think a day goes by that I don't think about him. I am sad that he didn't get to meet his grandchildren. I know he would have been such a great grandpa. He is greatly missed. I can't believe how fast the last 12 years have gone by. I can't believe I've missed 12 Birthdays, Christmases, and father's day without him. I hope I can show my girls who he was and help them know him as well as they can. It's times like this that make me realize what is really important in life. You really don't get a lot of time here, so make it mean something. Never put off calling someone or seeing someone in hopes you will at another time, because you truly don't know how much time you have here. I hope everyone is having a nice week. Take care of each other.

I just adore this little girl, she is so cute. We had our first really nice day. So when Maddie came home from school she wanted to go outside and play. Awhile later I went to check on her and she had curled up on the patio chair and took a little cat nap.

Maddie was not happy that I was taking her pic, so I celebrated the fact that she was annoyed. I did get some nice pics of her when she decided to smile and not be so grouchy for me. I think it was funny.