Saturday, July 27, 2013

Just the Highlights Please

It's been a long time and so much has happened since I took the time to sit down and type.  Our family has just been non-stop for the past 8, almost 9, months.  Between the baby, holidays, school, end of school, vacations, family time, and the little moments in between I sometimes get overwhelmed with the amount of pictures and experiences I want to share.   My husband is out running, two of my boys are playing the Wii Lego Batman, and my 8 month old is flopping around on the floor which means I have some quiet time to catch up.  The quiet won't last for long so I need to be quick.  Enjoy some of our highlighted moments with a few words on the side.

Christmas Break 2012

I'm not about to unload the 300 or so pictures I took this past Christmas but here are some I took when my parents came to celebrate the holiday.

Fishing. My boys love to fish with their Boppy.  For the most part he is patient as we work on their fishermen etiquette.















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First Time at the Circus, Tampa, FL

Once again, I'm going to spare you the massive amount of photos I took during the circus.  I will say though that baby wearing has multiple benefits.  Not only do you keep your baby close but it's perfect for smuggling in a camera lens.  It was nothing more than the kit lens but the security guard said it was "too long".  Um, sure.  The circus was A.Mazing.  My boys spent the next week working on their circus/gymnastic moves down our carpet hallway.  I was so grateful that my parents were able to be there for our family's first circus experience.






























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Gasperilla, Tampa, FL

For those that don't know, Gasperilla is a huge pirate festival in Tampa, FL.  They have the adult version which I haven't experienced but I've heard it's very Mardi Gras-ish and they also have a kid friendly version.  There are parades and Tampa even hosts a Gasperialla Distance Classic for all you runners out there.  A bunch of us did the 5K in 2012 and it was awesome running along Bayshore.  If you're in it for the bling, check out the medals.  You won't be disappointed.

My husband and I didn't run in the Distance Classic this year but my kids participated in the Gasperialla Juniors.  It was free and it was fun =)









Completely spaced on the idea that Nicholas should have proper running shoes.







We visited with some popular characters while waiting.














The boys did a little horse playing.














We practiced our start.











Nicholas was the first to race and he actually came in first!  It was so sweet watching the little ones.



















Although Matthew didn't finish first, he still did a super job.
















We also took the boys to the Gasperilla Parade.  I gotta hand it to the participants.  The floats were incredible! It was jam packed but my boys managed to squeeze to the front while I hung back with the baby.  Of course Nicholas decided to have a melt down right when the parade started.  I took him for a walk while Matthew and Jacob enjoyed the show.


















OK, I'm not trying to be annoyingly repetitive with the next pictures.  I just want you to understand what I go through to try and get a decent picture of Matthew and Nicholas together.  It is beyond ridiculous.















Got it!!!









Such a handsome boy =)

















Matthew came back with a ton of booty!!












For some reason I don't have it in me to throw away the beads so stay tuned this Christmas season to see what I plan to do with them.  And no, I'm not going to make it into tree garland.









I give up on decent pics of my boys together.  What a hot mess.





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Jacob Turns 34!!

He's 34 and I'm not. Enough said =)









On the look out for daddy!













Typical Boo Boo.......

















It's not a huge shindig of a celebration but for our family, it's perfect.






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Florida State Fair

We came, we saw, we spent too much money but how could we live in Florida and not go to the state fair when we lived right down the road.





Boo Boo on lock.










I love a man who isn't scared to change a diaper anywhere, anytime, and any place.

















Matthew flew down like a champ but Nicholas wasn't so sure at first.















Not so bad after all!













Nicholas tried each ride but was immediately removed.  Who knew such a bad ass would have such a weakness.

















Staying true to Cavanaugh form, we had a few meltdowns. 











But it wasn't anything that a funnel cake and breast milk couldn't fix.
















The day ended with a beautiful sunset and some fireworks.








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Cultivating Our Green Thumbs

We tried..........


















And we failed on an epic scale.  Not a single seed sprouted.  Better luck next time.

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Darcy's Baby Shower!

Slow your roll over zealous mothers who have no sense of humor.  It's all in good fun.












What the fuck!? No, no, no........Wesley Tyler Felts =)























{sigh} I miss my Florida girls.....



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My Baby Starting Eating Formula and Got Fat

Before



After



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Matthew Turns 6!

Sometimes it's hard to think about the fact that I have 3 children.  Ok, wrong wording.  Sometimes it's hard to "believe" that I have 3 children.  I love being a mom.  Don't get me wrong, there are days where I just want to curl in a ball and cry out of frustration but I still wouldn't change a thing.  My kids are such a large part of my life and every year seems to slip by faster and faster.

Matthew,

Mommy and daddy love you so much.  More than you'll ever know.  You're our little homebody who is more comfortable hanging with us than roaming the neighborhood.  I love this fact about you and honestly, I hope it always stays.  5 was a tough year as you adjusted to kindergarten, learned to venture out and make friends on your own, and were tested with making the correct decisions between right and wrong.  I'll never forget when we moved on base and you saw a group of kids playing a few houses down.  Up until that moment all your friends came from playgroups where I was always present and the kids were thrown together in a supervised environment.  You looked at me and said, "I want to go play with them".  I was hesitant to let you go.  My mind was reeling with all the possible scenarios of how it would play out.

Would they say hi?
Would they let you play?
Would they ignore you?
Would they run off and leave you hanging there alone?
Would they say mean things?
Would they accept you?

I hesitated and then said, "Go ahead.  Have fun."  Although you weren't aware, I hid behind the bush in our front yard, watched you walk down the sidewalk, say hi, and you never looked back.  It was then I realized that Old Father Time is leading you further and further away and I'm powerless to stop it.  I can only hope that dad and I are doing an OK job preparing you for what is out there.

Happy 6th Birthday Matthew.  Here's to a wonderful year.

I put together goody bags and cupcakes for the boys and girls in his class.  Thank goodness I was allowed to come in and hang with Matthew while him and his classmates enjoyed their treats.  So many schools don't allow this anymore.








Then I prepped for his birthday at the house.  We kept it simple opting for a BBQ with our friends and the neighborhood kids topped off with a pinata.



















And then we trashed the place.































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Legoland, Florida

  Get season passes if you can swing it.  The water park alone is worth the investment.





















Matthew was determined to go down the large water slide but he missed the height requirement by just a few centimeters.

Thank goodness.  My heart's not ready yet.













My husband stepped behind the lens for a few which is a rarity in this house =)














We spent almost 5 hours in the water park and then finished out the day with a little traffic school and boat riding.

















Legoland is a must for anyone with kids.







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Nicholas Turns 3!!

Dear boo boo,

You started your life as the fattest, most passive baby I've ever known.  You rolled with the punches which, by the way, your brother delivered very frequently.

And then you turned 2.......

I see a lot of myself in you.  Very determined, very independent, very self sufficient and how should I say this.....very passionate.  When you're happy, you're balls to the wall living it up but when you're hot, you're hot!  You have low tolerance for what irritates you and a temper that goes from 0 to 100 in 10 seconds.

Just.Like.Me.

I hope as you grow that you learn to channel that passion in constructive ways because I have no doubt you will do great things.  You have a passion in your soul that tends to draw people in.  Even though you test me in ways I never imagined possible, I hope you remain passionate.  You play hard, love hard, and fight hard.  Keep marching to the beat of your own drum 'cause we are all interested to see where it leads you.  Fingers crossed it's not general population.  

P.s.  Daddy and I apologize for waiting until you were 3 to throw you a proper birthday party =)















































































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Matthew's Kindergarten Field Day

The yellow team kicked butt.  They don't give out ribbons anymore but if they did, yellow team would have totally won the big blue.  Great job guys!































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Matthew's End of School Kindergarten Program

I always prided myself on not believing in the cap and gowns that kindergartners wear at the end of the year.  Deep down I still don't.  I really believe that it's something that should be reserved for those who have put in years of hard work and dedication towards their education.  However, I did feel a little shafted when moms were posting their little graduate pictures on facebook.  Matthew's school did not have graduation uniforms nor did the students receive little certificates but the kids and teachers still did a fantastic job putting together a cute program.  

Congratulations Matthew! The year started out tough but in the end you showed all of us what you're really made of =)

















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So there you have it.  January through some of June in a nutshell and things have not slowed down just because summer came around.  Oh no sir, not one bit. 

I'm not typing this post from my comfortable office space on MacDill Air Force Base, in our family room overlooking the Tampa Bay area and base golf course.

That's right.  PCS season is here =)



~Cheryl

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