Working girl.

Yep. That's me.
Today was my first day of watching the twins. It was more of a trial run, with my "official" start date on Tuesday.
It went surprisingly well! I was a little nervous. I knew I could handle one baby, but two? I had some great helpers! Jack and Brooklyn were here all day celebrating Abe Lincoln's b'day. They were both amazing with the babies, Brooklyn especially. They couldn't get enough. Brooklyn would go play for a while, but would be sure to tell me to holler at her when I needed her help. Both kids would randomly start talking about how cute "they" were, which did throw me off a couple of times. (Brooklyn and I were changing the felt pads on the bottom of the dining room chairs so they would quit scratching up the floors. I thought she was talking about how cute the felt pads were??? After a confused look, she explained that she was talking about the babies! Ahhhh, silly mommy)
The babies were great, which obviously helped, too. Baby V loves to sleep and she seems to be extremely content all the time. Baby C loves to talk, loves to watch Brooklyn dance, and he loves to be held (which is good, because I kind of like to hold babies, too =o) It's so fun to have babies in the house, and to know that I don't have to get up for any midnight feedings! It's also great to finally be able to get Zac to quit nagging me about what I do all day! All in all, a great first day on the job!

So easy to please.

It happened today.

The kids and I were sound asleep in our bed this morning. That seems to be happening a lot lately. Our small queen-sized bed with 4 not so small people in it makes for really bad sleep for everyone, but I wouldn't change a thing. It normally starts out just the two of us, but kids just seem to migrate in at random times throughout the night...

I digress.

So, the kids and I were sound asleep in our bed this morning. All of a sudden we all wake when we hear Zac gasp and tell us to look out the window. There they were. About 9 deer in the field (soon to be houses) behind us. Ever since we moved here, that is all I wanted. I just knew it looked like the perfect place for some deer, but never saw any. My mom *claims* she saw a deer out there one afternoon, but I never saw it, which means it doesn't count, even if it was there, which I really don't think it was. (No offense, mom!) So, I ran down to get my camera just to have solid proof of these beautiful creatures that were practically in my backyard. Now, keep in mind, I rarely drive at night during any time of the year in fear of hitting a deer. I panic when I see them anywhere near a roadway, even during the day. They are pretty much my nemesis, yet this was just amazing to me.

I really wasn't a sheltered child. I grew up in a small farm town. I can honestly say I had never seen a "wild" deer until I met Zac who lived in the middle of nowhere. I mean, we hit that deer in November, and it was the first time I'd been present for such an incident. Who knows why I'm so fascinated by this, but it is kind of nice to know that it really doesn't take too much to excite me! I'd say I'm pretty easy to please.

It was sad, however, at dinner when we said our "highs, lows, and thankfuls" for the day. My high part was seeing the deer. I made the comment that it was a dream of mine that had come true. Jack turned to me and started telling me it was all just a dream, in one of those, you know, hypnotic voices. Good thing I took that picture, even if it didn't turn out too well (I didn't want to scare them off, so I didn't use my flash or open the door =o)

And yes, I know, I'm pathetic.

I am so sorry!

How rude am I? I'm such a slacker.

Anyway, my parents went to the Gulf Shores for the month of January to take full advantage of their retirements. Every time I talked to my mom, she would go on and on and on about how beautiful it was and how much she wished we could have made it down. I finally got sick of being jealous and booked a flight for the kids and I to go down. Zac had class that weekend, so he was stuck here. We left Thursday morning and stayed through Sunday and helped pack up and drove back with them. The kids had a great time. The highlight was probably the Go-Kart place. It was huge, had an enormous arcade, and we had the whole place to ourselves! The weather was a bit warmer than here, and the beach was beautiful.

It was an interesting trip home. It was about 14 hours of driving time, and we had about 8 stops before we even made it to the interstate. We weren't quite on the same potty schedule, but once we got that under control, it was a pretty smooth ride. The kids aren't normally the best travellers (like we pull out of the driveway, and they wonder how long it will take to get to Walmart...which is about 4 miles away) but they did awesome! It was a great time and we can't wait to go again next year!

Okay - in order to just get this post up, I'm putting the pictures in no particular order. I'm sure there is an easy way to do it, but I've never figured it out. You'll just have to imagine what order they all go in!

Game face...

Grandpa time...

Cartwheels...

Seashells...

Sandcastles...

So close to the beach...about 50 steps off the elevator!

Amazing sunsets...

We did miss daddy...

Big waves...

Grandma time...

Road Trip!

The kids and I decided to take a little vacation over the weekend. So, if you thought we were MIA, you were so right! I'm *hoping* to get pictures up later today, but you know how that goes...but here is a little teaser just to get you through: