30 days to a shredded me

Ha ha. I like the claim that Jillian Michaels will created a shredded me, but I doubt a 20 minute video everyday is going to make that happen. But I need to start making some changes to my daily life and this seems like a good place to start...20 minutes of high intensity exercise plus some changes to my diet and hopefully I will see a difference in a month. I have a gym membership, but that hasn't been dusted off since last summer! It is waaaaaay too hot to drag the girls outside for long walks or jogs, so here I am doing something I always said I couldn't or wouldn't do...gasp...follow a video! Now that the summer is here and I am outta school I can concentrate more on me and less on the world around me. Better food choices and more movement. Bring it on Jillian Michaels!

We will see what happens in 30 days. Perhaps a few pounds gone? Let's hope!

Birthday fun

So today I realized that although I have two little girls, I also have a little boy on my hands! I thought I would never experience the boy things in life with two girls, but alas...I am proven wrong.

The little boy I am referring to is my beloved husband who turned 32 today. We started our morning with Star Wars pancakes thanks to Williams Sonoma for such molds...now if only I could get mine to look like theirs!!! Peyton had a great time eating the "bad guys" and she calls them. She had a Yoda all to herself and shared her daddy's Darth Vader (aka Bad Guy)

Then Timmy went off to help Kendall with his new room addition so Peyton and I made a birthday cake for the birthday boy. More fun times! My little helper poured and mixed and taste tested the cake for me. What fun it will be next year having two helpers! My littlest helper was sleeping through the fun times today, but soon enough she will be wrestling her sister for the spoon!

Future tattoo artist

Peyton, Brinley, the pugs and I are enjoying a quiet morning while daddy sleeps in today. Peyton is coloring pictures at the table for everyone in the family and hanging them on the fridge. While she is coloring, we have the following dialog while I am cleaning up the kitchen.

Peyton: Mommy, I colored a picture for Peyton!
Me: For Peyton?
Peyton: Yes! It is on my arm!

Yikes! Now I have to look up from the dishes and Peyton is proudly showing me her arm. It made me laugh and smile at her silliness. And thankfully I thought to grab my camera instead of my first instinct of washing it off! Perhaps my dreams of her being a doctor or teacher is being replaced with her being a tattoo artist?

Happy Mommy's Day

Three years ago I remember getting the phone call from Dr. D to let me know we were pregnant. What a way to celebrate my "first" Mother's Day. After months and months of infertility treatments, this was indeed the best news I could get that weekend. Now I am sitting here with two little blessings at the kitchen table. Peyton coloring with her crayons and Brinley eating her Cheerios...or I should say holding the O's for Mr. B to get and giggling as he nibbles them from her fingers.

God has been good to me. Not only was I blessed once with our miracle baby, Peyton, he gave us a second surprise, Brinley. I can't imagine my life without them. God is good and I am thankful for what He has given me. I often sit and wonder what our girls are going to be when they grow up. Like all parents, I want the best for them and I want them to aspire to be great things. The other night I was asking Peyton if she was going to be Doctor Peyton or Nurse Peyton or Teacher Peyton or Astronaut Peyton and she kept giggling and telling me no. Finally said, "I'm Peyton!!!" Yes she is...and she always will be Peyton. She is bold, smart, silly and caring. What a fantastic two year old I have. And as we watch Brinley grow into herself we wonder what traits she is going to have. Determined, loud and happy come to mind right now. We will wait and see.

Happy Mommy's Day to you all out there!

Who we are

We started out as two, Cindi and Tim. After a few short months of marriage my heart pug, Mr. B., found us and we became three. After many months of a crazy pug puppy we decided to find a friend for Mr. B and Gidget came prancing into our lives thanks to KC from the pug rescue. Our little family of four was a happy little family for a couple years and then we decided that we needed some two legged babies. Our blond haired, blue-eyed smarty pants Peyton Grace entered stage left at the start of 2008 and Brinley Anne came from stage right in September of 2009. In five short years we became the family that we are and there isn't anything in this world that would make us change what we have. We have been given more blessings in these past few years than most get in a lifetime! This blog is being created to help keep in touch with our family across the states and to hopefully push me to get better at photography. I am dying to learn how to learn to use my camera to its full extent and to dapple in photo programs. We will see what happens.