Bowl Full of Cherry's

It Finally happened.....

2012-01-31T09:50:00.000-08:00

I have to admit I have been waiting for this day.... I am constantly looking at my children and wondering "when will it happen?" I get anxious, I chew on my lip, I sometimes bite my nails, I am nervous everytime we go anywhere or do anything. Let's face it, these 2 kids have half of my genetic make-up. It was bound to happen sooner or later.... I am thankful that it was later....

Payton got her first set of stitches! At the age of 6 and she only had to get 3!

Now that we got the first set over and done with, I think I can breathe easier. She was scared, but she bravely laid there and joked with the doctor. After it was all said and done she declared that she couldn't go to school for the next week due to the stitches and purple eye. It isn't very fashionable... So we have been "dressing up" her stitches with rainbow heart band-aids and creative hairstyles. She is rockin it!

Waiting for some downtime...

2012-01-20T08:35:00.000-08:00

In December I finally broke down and did it.... what is it, you ask. Well I signed up to sell Scentsy! So I have been really busy getting my business up and running.

I have tried several "Independent Sales" businesses before and never really had the success I was looking for. So when I found scentsy a few years back I thought I would "just" be a loyal customer. The product is amazing and over the years I have become addicted! It's safe, fun, and in the long run cheaper than candles. So I finally decided to sell the product, if only to support my habit!

If you already know about scentsy, I'm sure you love it, if not contact me and I will answer all of your questions!To all of my friends and family out there ..... I CAN SHIP DIRECTLY TO YOU! My website is http://www.sarahcherrey.scentsy.us

Now on to everything else that has been keeping us busy..... We recently went to Arizona for several things. While there Dominick decided to earn his "cool" badge. He was learning how to ride a mini motorcycle and challenged the curb to a duel..... I think the curb won!

Actually the story really isn't that cool.... my poor kids have inherited my clutsy gene and Dominick tripped over his own foot and fell into the corner of a door! Poor kid had a bloody nose, split lip, and a huge bruise inside for days!

We also had the chance to attend an iCarly pre-screening episode and meet the cast. It was a school day so I dropped the kids off at school, went grocery shopping, placed some blankets and chairs in line to save our spot, then picked the kids up from school. We were like 10th in line, it was amazing. So after keeping the kids occupied in line for 4 hours we made it inside! We sat 2 rows back and enjoyed our free popcorn!

The Cast was amazing, a few of them have family in the military and know what that life is like, so they wanted to do something special. The other members of the cast were so excited to experience the military life and see different bases. It was cool. So keep an eye out for us on Nicalodean (is that how it's spelled?).

Here's to a New Year

2012-01-03T22:11:00.000-08:00

We are back in the swing of things from Christmas break, finally! I have to say I waited very impatiently for the kids to start school again. I love my children but man can they drive me CRAZY!
Some Highlights of 2011 for the Cherrey Family:

Jay always the goof, he can always put a smile on my face.... 9 years of putting up with me!

Dominick turned 8, got his hair cut, and was baptized!

Payton turned 6! Man is she a handfull.....

Many trips to the "Happiest place on Earth", but the best ones were when our friends were there too!

A trip to Idaho to see one of our favorite families! Gretchen and I in all our "mom glory"!

Trust me, there are so many pictures and fond memories.... but alas I still can not figure out how to get my pictures to download. I did manage to transfer the ones from my phone. Here's to the new year and getting it all figured out!

Jay's Resolution:
Loose his non-smoking weight (that's right he quit smoking!), finish his BSN, and take his wife on an amazing anniversary trip!

Sarah's Resolution:
Continue and maintain a healthy diet and routine, have more patience with my kids, keep up with journaling and blogging!

Domino's Resolution:
Be nicer to his sister, finish the HARRY POTTER book series, learn to play the violin, baseball

P-Goat's Resolution:
To ride her bike (no training wheels) with no fear, get better at tying her shoes, reading every night, and being nicer to her brother

HAPPY NEW YEAR AND MAY 2012 TREAT YOU BETTER THAN 2011!

Charity, Love, and Family

2011-10-14T16:45:00.000-07:00

Grab This!

My friend Gretchen and her husband are trying to adopt this precious little girl. Sometimes I think she is a little nuts, but hey aren't we all? She is already the mom or 3 very active boys ages 6, 4, and almost 2. She is also expecting a baby girl come February. Adoption has always been in their plans but it wasn't pressing, until they found Marissa. She looks like their children, she laughs like their children, she reaches out through the thousands of miles and through the computer screen and takes hold of your heart. She has been neglected, yet beams at you like the sun. I'm not good at posting links but you can find their adoption story on my blog friends, Ready and Waiting the Gillette Adoption story.

I'm asking for all of my friends and family to please put them in your prayers. I believe that God works in miraculous ways, I believe that this family is meant to unite with this precious little girl.
And if you are feeling generous you can donate to their adoption, every little bit helps! Lets bring this girl home!

I'm Back....... Again!

2011-09-30T09:33:00.000-07:00

Well it has been far too long! I can't believe the last time I posted was February! I lost the cord to my camera and figured once I found it I could update and upload.......well it was never found. Then on a trip to Idaho this summer said camera with 6 months worth of pictures was lost. So I'll sum it all up

February: Dominicks birthday, the Death of my Best Friends mother from Cancer
March: Saint Patricks Day Disney trip with the Downs Family
April: School field trips, Spring break
May: Mothers Day, Dominicks Baptism
June: School field trips, Trip to Disneyland with Randi and her boys, Kindergarten Graduation, Fathers Day
July: Long visit to see the Gillette Family in Idaho, then to Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, back home for a week, then back to NM and AZ.
August: Swimming, heat, swimming, beach, more trips I'm sure, my Birthday, a blur of a month....
September: Trip to AZ for a car and B/F's birthday, Paytons birthday, our 9th anniversary, school starting, another trip to Disney, Airshow, etc......

Frankly the entire summer is a complete blur, we were gone for most of it. It seems like we have been on the go constantly. I do have some pictures from a new camera that I will upload soon. Here are a few from a family photo shoot my cousin did Labor Day weekend.
We miss all of our friends in different states and hope we can be better at keeping in touch!

Valentines Day

2011-02-14T11:45:00.000-08:00

We don't usually do much for Valentines day around here. I have never really been that into it and my husband feels its a girls holiday! But I found these cute Valentine card ideas on a friends blog, just couldn't resist.

For some reason P's picture wouldn't upload right, it kept turning it like this.

Anyway HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

The Big 8

2011-02-06T07:21:00.000-08:00

I think I have always taken for granted, having been born and raised in the church. I have gotten sidetracked a few times along the way, but I know that I have a true testimony of my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. With Dominick turning 8, I realized he wasn't ready for baptism. I know if I asked him to do it he would, but I don't think he would fully understand the covenant he was making. So he has started meeting with the missionaries and preparing himself for that next step.

I CAN NOT BELIEVE my son is 8! That is just crazy and insane to me!

We played a little trick on him, his sister got him a nice starter kit for a DS but he doesn't have a DS. Then he got to open the rest of his presents (I held ours back for last). When he opened ours it was an Empty DS box. (I know you are thinking we are the meanest parents EVER!). HE was a little upset but knew he could still play my old DS when allowed. As he took his presents up to his room he found his new DS sitting on his bed charging and ready to be played! He was SO excited!

Books from Nana

Time sure does fly because that little boy is now 8. Soon he will be baptized (I hope), he starts boy scouts, he is playing baseball, loves to dance, and is a master lego builder. He LOVES HOMEWORK! His favorite food is spaghetti and he loves chocolate! He always has his nose in a book, sometimes 2, and currently has started the Harry Potter series. We LOVE YOU DOMINO!

Cheerleading and all things Payton

2011-02-02T15:41:00.000-08:00

January has been a busy month for me. Payton has been the focus of most of my energy. We have really enjoyed our time together though!

Payton and I had a mother/daughter date night. We got mani/pedi's and went out for ice cream!

Payton started cheerleading for the Base YMCA, I am the team mom

You can't really tell but she lost 2 teeth! The adult teeth actually came in before the baby teeth came out. We were worried that she would have to have them pulled. The first one came out 12/23/10.

And with everything that has been going on, this is what most afternoons look like! She comes home from school, does her homework, then crashes on the couch! I have to wake her up after 30 min. or it would be impossible getting her to bed.

I just can't believe that my little girl has gotten so big. She is in school all day, has cheerleading 3 times a week, and is turning into such a mature person! We are trying really hard to enjoy these times with our kids, because they go by so fast!

Dirty 30!

2011-01-25T16:30:00.001-08:00

Thats right he is the BIG 30

This man is my Best Friend!

He is also an AMAZING DAD!

Happy Birthday Jay!

Torrey Pines State Reserve Field Trip

2011-01-14T15:41:00.001-08:00

I have really enjoyed having both of my children in school full time. I get lots of free time, plus I am able to help out with school functions more freely. Today I got to chaperon Dominick's class to the Torrey Pines State Reserve.

It was beautiful. I am excited to have found a new place to take my family to on our days off. It's a great place to hike and just take in the beauty that surrounds us.

The class learning all about the animal and plant life in the reserve. They also learned about the different layers of rock and earth that we would be seeing. Very educational, I learned a lot of new things today!

The Torrey Pine Tree, only found in Southern California and on an island 160 miles NW. It is different because of its "5 fingered" needle bunches.

The kids examining the needle bunches.

The "red butte" or as we learned today, the Linda Vista layer of rocks. They get the reddish color from all of the iron deposits (rust...)

One of the cliffs along the shore line. Such a breathtaking view. You can see the trails and hikers too, one of these days I would like to try all of the trails.

After lunch we got to enjoy the state beach. The kids were thrilled! They acted like they had never been to a beach before ( I have to say it's pretty cool to do that on school time).

The kids searching for "souvenir's", they weren't allowed to take anything from the reserve but the beach was a free for all. And those kids took advantage!

And class B8! A pretty amazing group!

Happy New Year, We are Back!

2011-01-10T15:54:00.000-08:00

HAppy New Year to all of you! It has been a long time since we have posted, so one of my New Year resolutions is to post once a week. I know I am already a week behind! I have also decided I am not going to "catch up" we are starting fresh.

An overview of what 2010 was like for the Cherrey Family:

January: Moved to San Diego, celebrated Jay's birthday, made new friends and settled into a new ward.

February: Dominick turned 7 and we went to Disneyland

March: Had lots of visitors, got passes to Sea World, Jay officially graduated from Nursing school.

April: Spring Break times three, Legoland, Sea World, Legoland, Sea World, and Jay starts his "terminal leave"

May: More Sea World, More of Jay being home, more visitors

June: Jay still home, Dominick has a Hip-Hop competition and they place 3rd.

July: Payton spends 2 weeks away from home with my parents, we take Domino to Six Flags, spend 4th of July on the beach, and Jay officially retires from the Navy.

August: Jay still home, no job, my birthday, Sea World

September: Payton starts Kindergarten, Dominick starts 2nd grade, Payton turns 5, still no job, Noelle has her baby, Jen has her baby.

October: Sea World, Halloween festivities, still no job

November: Finally a job! A new house to go with new job, Jay's mom visits for Thanksgiving, more Sea World.

December: Settling into new home, Christmas with Family and Friends in AZ, Payton looses first tooth, and an additional job for Jay!

As you can tell we spent a lot of time with Family and friends, and a lot of time at Sea World! The passes were an amazing deal and became a blessing during those months when we had no money and no job. We really couldn't afford to do much but Sea World was free for us! This kids really enjoy the shows, rides, and all the different sea animals.

Now here are a few pictures of the new house, we are really LOVING the space and feel very blessed to have found this home.

Procrastination update

2010-07-02T11:33:00.001-07:00

I know I have been procrastinating on posting, but I have some good reasons. We have had many visitors and lots of fun, Jay has been home and looking for work, and I can't upload my photos!

I can't find my camera cord anywhere! I have TONS of pics and videos, I actually had to buy another memory card because my other 2 are full!

We have had my parents come and visit. We have had my best friend and her family visit again. We had my best friend, her 3 kids, a mutual friend, and her 2 kids come for a visit. My sister came with them and stayed with me for 3 weeks.

It was really nice having her here. She played with the kids, cooked, and went on her first date! It gave her some time away from home and us some time to bond a little.

We finally heard some news on our storage (all of our belongings). It is set to be picked up from New Hampshire on the 6th of July. So hopefully we will be up to our eyeballs in boxes! I think I might be the only person excited to unload and unpack, but it has been over a year since we have seen any of that stuff!

Payton is spending the next 2 weeks with my parents. It the first time we have gone that long without one of our kids, but we are excited! She told us that it was only fair, because she sees us everyday and we need to share her with Nana and papa! Then she told us not to worry, she would call us everyday to make sure we were hanging in there and doing OK. She doesn't want us to miss her too terribly! That girl just cracks me up!

Dominick is enjoying his "only child" time, no sharing, no fighting, no whining, and one on one time with DAD! He is also enrolled in another hip hop class for the summer. He LOVES it and works really hard.

Jay took his RN boards and PASSED! So he is officially an RN. Now he is working on finding a job! It hasn't turned out as easy as he thought it would be. He has some potential jobs in the works though, so we are praying that one of them will come through! I can't wait until he goes back to work, I love my husband but he was not made for staying home! He constantly asks what we are doing for the day and then complains if we have no plans! Don't get me wrong he is a huge help around the house, but he gets board very easily and can't stay idle for very long.

I promise as soon as I find the camera cord I will post some pictures! Until then I hope everyone has a safe and happy summer!

A year goes by.....

2010-05-23T22:33:00.000-07:00

It is coming up on one year since we have moved from Boston. So I began to reflect on what has transpired for the Cherrey Family this year.

~ 2 moves, equaling around 5,000 miles on the road.

~ 2 new schools for Dominick

~ Another separation from my husband, this one lasting 3 months

~ Downsizing in living quarters (AGAIN)

~ New places, new faces, new friendships

~ Survival on the bare necessities (yes our lives are still in storage)!

~ The end of Nursing school

~ The end of a Navy career

~ The beginning of "civilian" life

~ The beginning of "retirement"

I know there is a whole lot more! This is just a little of the basics. But the past year just seems a little hazy to me. It has been a whole whirlwind of activity, our lives seem to have been in a constant commotion but at the same time it seems like we were at a stand still. Holding our breath and waiting to see what would happen.

Now it's happening and it feels like everything has been put on fast-forward! We are being forced to make and do everything that we have talked about doing for years! My kids dream of actually having real beds and "real" toys to play with (you know, the ones that they really like and had to put away). They dream of having a home that is theirs, not someone else's that we will have to leave.

I dream of having my own dishes, having my food processor, baking dishes, cookbooks. I dream of a real couch and enough chairs in the house that we can actually have company over. I dream of pictures on the walls and actually feeling like I am coming "home" when we walk through the door.

We are still in waiting mode, but it's waiting in fast-forward. Life is coming at us full speed ahead and we are scrambling to meet it head on. I'm not sure how that collision will affect our family but we look forward to the challenge.

New school....

2010-04-28T17:20:00.000-07:00

So it has been a little bit of an adjustment for Dominick at his new school. He is an amazing kid and he always try's to make the best of any situation. The kids always AMAZE me at how well they adjust and how quickly they make friends.

Domino's new class

Domino and Madison

P-Goat eating (when is she not?)

SMILE!

We miss our friends and family everywhere, but we are enjoying San Diego and all that this move has brought us.

Extended Spring Break part II

2010-04-15T11:29:00.000-07:00

After my parents visit we had another visit. Our friends the Downs family came to spend the last part of their Spring break. Boy, were my kids spoiled and lucky, they had back to back visitors and then their Spring Break came along too!

So here are the kids anxiously awaiting Legoland to open!

Dominick and Mikey in the back, Sarah, Payton and Elizabeth in the front.

All of the kids IN Legoland, they were SOOOOO excited!

The Downs Family picture, there is a stowaway off to the side, she tried to go home with them too!

The kids took the parents for a drive!

And here is my namesake! Sarah squared!

Aunt Cassy and her Goddaughter Payton. I think I rode with Sarah or Elli more than my own kids, and it was all by choice!

Elli was having a blast, but she got a bit chilled! Yes, we dared to do the water rides!

Mom and Daughter, trust me it was super hard to get this picture!

The "MEN"

A picture of the picture, the favorite rollercoaster.

BFF'S FOREVER!

It was a long day, but well worth it!

We LOVE this family and are so glad we are within a days drive of eachother! Mike was my fill-in husband when Jay was in Iraq. If it weren't for this family I don't know where I would be! It is so wonderful to have them in our lives and that the kids are so close also!

Dominick's new Toy

2010-04-13T11:06:00.000-07:00

Need I say more?

When Nana and Papa come to visit........

2010-03-21T12:56:00.000-07:00

We get to play!

The kids took advantage of having Papa around! With lots of shoulder rides, games, grins and giggles!

Papa always has as much fun as the kids!

There was a lot of this too!

(I thought the bathroom signs where cute! )

Lots of waiting in lines, but it's always fun with Nana and Papa

Meeting Princesses...

And more rides!

We had a blast with Nana and Papa! Of course, it wasn't ALL legos and princesses, we did some other stuff too. We made a trip to the San Diego Temple, did some yard work, visited the beach, and did some small house maintenance. It was a very product and fun trip, we love when we have visitors!

It's Official!

2010-03-17T07:12:00.000-07:00

We have a college Graduate!

This has been a LONG process and we are glad he is finished!

This is his graduation shirt and picture! LOVE IT!

We are so proud of Jay. He has worked for so long on this goal. Now we are a step closer to the end goal.

The Toothless Wonder!

2010-03-17T07:07:00.000-07:00

When one comes out, they all come a following!

He had 3 teeth fall out within a week of each other! The bottom 2 were hours apart!

So now we get to enjoy this big, toothless grin everyday! I can't believe how fast he has grown!

Randomness.....

2010-03-10T10:58:00.000-08:00

We all know P-Goat has some weird sleeping habits.

Here are a few of the most recent!

Yes that is her asleep half under the love sac!

She rolled around but I think this was where she fell asleep first.

Then she scooted or rolled over to the love sac, she snuggled under because she was cold!

Playing at a Vacation

2010-03-04T09:00:00.001-08:00

So most of the time we don't take "real" vacations. We visit family, friends, do home improvement projects, and don't do anything out of the ordinary.

This past weekend we got a mini vacation and we all had a blast! My sis-in-law took one of her sons out of town and left my brother Thomas and his youngest Ben. So they hung out with us the whole weekend, it really was a great family weekend.

My Dad and Thomas decided we should go target shooting. We have this little rifle called the "chipmonk" which is made for little kids.

Here Thomas and Ben are shooting with the Chipmonk. Ben LOVED target shooting!

Thomas was a great Dad and let him have as many turns as he wanted and helped tech him what to do!

Poor Thomas though, Ben would NOT leave his side!

Here is the fan club! The area where all of the kids had to sit when it wasn't their turn.

We all got a lot of encouragement and cheers from this section!

Thomas finally manages to get some shots in! I think we had to trick Ben to get him far enough away!

Jay was great with our kids! He taught them the rules of gun safety and made them memorize them. Then he helped them with their shooting! Dominick had a blast, Payton was good after one turn!

The day after target shooting we went to "The Lost Dutchman Days" in Apache Junction AZ. The kids got to ride carnival rides and we got to eat some yummy "indian" tacos!

We had a blast all weekend. The men and kids went fishing too. We got to stay up late and play games with Grandma , Thomas and Ben even got to have a sleepover with all of us!

It was an amazing weekend and we were so happy to be out of the house!

Now we are back and I still have holes in the walls and work being done! But the end seems to be near!

Home invasion!

2010-02-23T14:39:00.000-08:00

So I don't have any pictures, but I should.

I don't have much good to say, but maybe I will.

We have been home invaded!

For 2 WEEKS! Our electrical system went all haywire and at the same time we discovered we had a soggy front yard with a river, and a swampy back yard that would soon be a lake. On top of that we had no HOT WATER!

So we made some phone calls to the landlord. He made some calls to his handy man. I waited around all day on friday, the handy man NEVER showed! Saturday (the 13th) was Dominicks birthday party, we waited all morning for the handy man and still a no show. So we headed to Dominicks party.

The landlord calls, says he will have someone there on Sunday for sure, we tell him...... um sorry we wont be there! He gets a little upset and says " Well we need to get this taken care of right away!" Which I replied " Well right away would have been thursday night, Friday, or saturday morning, all of which I waited around when I had other things I could be doing!"

Monday rolls around, I wait ALL DAY AGAIN! The handy man doesn't get there until after 9:00 PM! He was there until mid-night and managed to re-route power to our t.v. and microwave. Still no oven, no hot-water heater, no other outlets! Tuesday comes and goes, Wednesday the city comes out to fix our problem. They tell us they have to cut our cable and internet, but hey we have electricity through-out the whole house!

Thursday, the cable company comes to fix what they should have done right in the first place. But wait, they can't do what they need to. They tell me they will have a crew out in a week or two! I tell him heck no! I am not going without cable or internet for a week or two, so now I have some wires running up my driveway, over a fence and up to the side of the house. Temporary cable until they can come fix the "real" issue.

Friday the handy man comes back to find where the water leak is and why we still don't have hot water! He digs, and digs, and searches. Finally after 8 hours of hard work he asks me if there have been any "hot" spots in the house. I tell him yes, since we moved in. He swears (a bunch), excuses himself, and then proceeds to tell me that he has found the problem. A hot water leak in the slab under the house and with all the evident water it's no little leak! He then tells me he has called the landlord but cant get to anything until he approves!

I start re-searching rental laws, I start freakin out, and I have a full blown "b*tch" attack! I have already been without hat water for a few weeks, now I am without any water and the landlord is taking his sweet time doing anything!

Well to make a long story short, or shorter at least. We are now on Tuesday, week three! We have electricity, we have hot water (sort of), we also have a handyman in our house everyday all day, we have lots of holes in the walls, and we have lots of dust and debris around the house!

What the landlord "promised" would be a 2 day job and very unobtrusive. Has now been a 4 day job of hell! To top all of that off I don't see the end of the tunnel and Payton has been having asthma attacks. All of the dust and debris has been wreaking havoc on her breathing, but I can't leave. I have to be here at all time with the handy man!

The only good thing.......... WE DONT HAVE TO PAY THE BILL!

The Cherrey's take on Disney!

2010-02-18T08:48:00.001-08:00

IN ONE DAY!!!!!!

YES, we may be a little crazy! But on Sunday we headed to Disney with Jay's cousin and her family. Lauren's birthday is on valentines and she was kind enough to invite us to share the day with her!

Payton and Lauren with the Mad Hatter, beginning of the day!

This is Paytons first time to Disney, at an age that she will remember! She was so excited by everything! Our fist ride was the new (new to us) Nemo submarine ride.

Dominick, Payton, and Lauren in the Submarine

The kids were really entranced by this ride! What an experience!

Next we were onto Space Mountain! This was Paytons first "big" roller coaster. I was nervous, I really thought she would be scared. Then she demands to ride with Lauren not me, oh no what will happen? They rode, they screamed, they laughed, and she held her hands up the whole time, SHE LOVED IT! Nope, my little girl was not scared she begged to go again and again!

Lauren and Payton getting ready for Space Mountain

So we took out Future-land first thing! The kids were having a blast, so far the lines were short and we made great time!

Now we were on to the Jungle, a river safari, a treehouse climb, and a fast pass for Indiana Jones!

The kids looking on intently for all the sights the guide pointed out!

The Beautiful Birthday Girl!

Next we took on New Orleans, which means a pirate boat adventure, a haunted house, and the new princess Tiana! We didn't get to meet her up-close, but we watched her from afar and Payton was mesmerized!

The arm reach picture on Pirates! If you think we look tired now, just wait!

Dominick refused to ride with anyone but us at the haunted house! He held on tight the whole ride.

Once again Payton and Lauren brave it on their own!

Jennifer and Jon

Now for some kid sized fun! Even the "big" kids enjoyed this part of the day!

Yummy, look at all that honey!

Sleeping Beauty's Castle

Watch out people! We have some "Wild" drivers in this family!

Jon was such a great trooper. With seven people there can be an odd man out, but he enjoyed himself! And when Jen couldn't ride he took over and joined all the kids. He even climbed the tree house and castle with the kiddos, while the other adults rested our feet!

Yup, we made it the whole day! Payton was fascinated by the castle at night. We watched the fireworks and she exclaimed " Look it's Tinker Bell, look Dad she's really real!" That one comment made me forget that it was 10:00 at night and I was bone tired! My heart melted and I was really glad we made the trip!

Yes, it was a long day! Starting at 6 in the morning and heading home at 11:30 at night! The kids were troopers and made it through the day with minimal fighting and complaining!

Will we make it back to Disney, you betcha! Even Jay (who really really hates crowds and Disney) enjoyed himself. I think the difference is that the children really get it at this age. Everything is so fascinating and real to them! But I think next time, we will stay over night!

Seven, SeVeN, SEVEN!

2010-02-17T14:09:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I am the mother of a seven year old! I don't know where the time has gone, I really don't. Dominick's favorite color is green, his favorite sport is baseball, his favorite saying is oh snap or wicked, his favorite food is spaghetti or steak, he has lost 5 teeth (one on his birthday), his favorite hobby is building legos, he loves to read (currently started Captain Underpants) and he loves to "invent" new things.

Dominick and Ethan

Dominick, Lauren, and Payton

Happy Birthday!

He was so excited about every gift! So gracious to everyone and grateful!

Wild Party!

The day was perfect for a party! Warm and sunny and the park was perfect. We are so glad we had a chance to celebrate, even though things kept going wrong! Dominick just kept saying it's ok, I have my friends and thats all I need. We love you Dominick and are proud of the man you are growing into!

The Mormon Battalion

2010-01-30T13:06:00.000-08:00

We were able to attend the Grand Re-Opening of the Mormon Battalion Museum and Visitors center, in Old town San Diego. The building is really cool and they had some really neat stuff.

The kids got to try their hand at lots of different things. They learned all about brick making, how it was done and the different types of bricks.

They got to sit in covered wagons and see people dressed in period clothes. Payton told me she could be a pioneer, they always wear dresses.

After the covered wagons, we walked around old town trying out different pioneer activities. The kids made little bricks, rope, quilt blocks, pioneer dolls, toys, butter, and even got to pan for gold. Below is a picture of Domino making his pioneer doll.

The kids even got to try their hand at laundry! I am very thankful to have modern washers and dryers, but I do wish my children were as enthusiastic about laundry at home as they were here!

Apparently every ones favorite activity is the biscuit on a stick. Cooking your own biscuit over the coals, then eating it with your own homemade butter!

The kids had a great day, they ended up with so much stuff they couldn't carry it all. It was fun for them to learn how to do things in a different way too.

Before we left, the kids got to participate in the "Mormon Battalion March". Domino was excited to carry a rifle and Payton got to wave her flag.

Not a bad way to spend a sunny Saturday. We even purchased some homemade goodies before we left. I sure am glad we had people brave enough to leave their homes and lives for what they believed in. I'm not sure if I would have been able to endure what the pioneers endured, but I do have compassion for them and I am thankful for what blessings their sacrifices have brought into our daily lives.

Happy Birthday!

2010-01-25T12:59:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Jay!

The Greatest Father......

Exceptional BBQer......

I am so lucky to have you in my life! Happy birthday, I love you!

P.S. I'm really glad you will always be "older" than me!

Enjoying Cali.......between rainstorms!

2010-01-23T11:16:00.000-08:00

Well, whoever said the weather here was perfect was slightly mistaken. So far we have had more rainy days than not, but the temperatures have been fair. So between storms we headed to the beach!

It's funny how small the world really is. Over 2 years in Boston and it took a move to San Diego to meet this wonderful family. The Bunker's have been wonderful to us and Payton became fast friends with their daughter Avery.

We got rained on at the park, so we drove up the beach a few miles to what is now called Seal beach. By then the rain stopped and the view was amazing!

The kiddos were wet and enjoying every minute of it! Such troopers! Avery really enjoyed showing us all of the sights.

We stopped to look at some of the wildlife, you could have reached out and touched them! I think they were soakin up as much of the sun as they could!

This guy wondered away from all of his buddies and found his own sunbathing rock! He sat there so still and looked up at the sun, I knew exactly how he must have been feeling at that moment " Ahh peace and sun, what more do I need".

Payton and Avery looking at the foamy water, payton asked me if someone had poured Bubble Bath into the ocean.

There really were some amazing views at this beach. This little waterfall was definately one of my faves!

And "Seal Beach", apparently it was made to be a wading pool for people, but the seals found it to be a better spot for them. They swim in the little cove of water and play, then wiggle onto the beach for their afternoon naps. Has anyone watched a seal move? It is very comical and Payton has tried mimicking the move ever since!

Now to top off the wonderful afternoon, some tree climbing!

It was a really nice afternoon, Thanks to the Bunkers!

How to spend a rainy day.....

2010-01-21T14:51:00.000-08:00

So when it is pouring outside and flooding the streets, what should you do?

LAUNDRY!

So this is everything that I had to haul to the laundry mat (minus all the laundry detergent and stuff)! The backpack is full of stuff to keep ms. P-goat entertained.

Now for those of you who know me, laundry is not my favorite chore. I detest laundry! Now I also hate laundry mats. It is one of those weird phobia type things. I just imagine all the nasty dirty laundry that has gone before me, eewwwwww! My husband tells me that it is silly because, well its a washing machine, I still can't get over it. There are other reasons I don't like laundry mats, but I am keeping them to myself, this way you all wont think I am completely BONKERS!

Thanks to the 4 beauties above, I managed to cram ALL of my laundry into 4 loads. Don't worry they are clean, those are the super sized ones! Plus I found out that they are fairly new, a bonus in my mind!

Then the power went out! YIKES! I have 4 HUGE loads of laundry to dry. I discovered that for some odd reason there was power to one set of dryers. They weren't the new ones, but at this point I just wanted to get out of there!

Now I just have to fold and hang ALL of that laundry! Half of which is not really dry!

The total bill for my little rainy day adventure..........$30.00 bucks! ARE YOU KIDDING ME! $30 precious dollars and 3/4 of the clothes weren't even dry. On top of that it is still raining and very damp, so it will take FOREVER for everything to dry!

I thought San Diego was supposed to be sunny and warm year round!

Back in action...... We hope!

2010-01-16T10:03:00.000-08:00

I know we have been horrible at the blog since our move in July! Well we have moved again and I am hoping that we are ready to get back to it! We have made the transition to San Diego and are liking it.

All of our stuff is in storage in Boston and we aren't sure yet when we will get it back. So it takes me back seven years..... to when we were first married. The TV sitting on a plastic bin, mattresses on the floor and bare cabinets! We have put together the essentials and are pretty happy, makes you wonder why we clutter our lives with so much stuff!

To those of you wondering about your Christmas cards, well I have every intention of sending them out and I will, just haven't done it yet! LOL . So below is a sneak peak! We love you all and hope all is well!

Everything I never knew I wanted!

2009-12-25T09:15:00.000-08:00

We have really sneaky children so we had them sleep in our room Christmas eve! I don't really know how much sleep any of us got with the excitement, P-goats snoring, Dominicks sleep talking, and my husband the bed hog!

Dominick exclaims "I didn't even ask santa for a skateboard! It's everything I never knew I wanted!"

Payton was really the heart of Christmas this year. She was super excited about everything! Every gift open she would exclaim "It's the best present ever, I know I will love it always!" I mean she would ooh and ahh over everything from socks and underwear to dolls and dress ups!

Santa was very good to us this year, so was everyone else! The kids made out like little bandits!

We also had the opportunity to help a family in need through our church. Nana gave each of the children $40 to spend on the child we had picked. P-goat got to buy for a new born baby, Dominick got to buy for a little boy his age, and my brother and sister each had a child their age too. It was a lot of fun and helped the kids realize what the true spirit of Christmas is. It was a wonderful Christmas and it was even better that we got to spend it with family and friends!

Missing in Action.....

2009-12-19T10:57:00.001-08:00

Well I know it has been forever since I last posted. It isn't that we haven't had anything exciting happen, well it's just the opposite! We are in a crazy, busy, caotic, mode of life right now! Jay has been in San Diego since October. He is "temporarily" stationed there and really loving it (except that we aren't with him). He just passed his weekend clinical practical exam (whatever it's supposed to be called), so now he is only 2 short steps away from his RN! WE ARE SO PROUD!

Dominick is loving school, as always. He proves to me everyday what a smart kid he is! I know every parent says that about their child, but man, this kid makes me feel dumb sometimes! He isn't perfect and we struggle with some attitude problems, but hey he is 6!

Payton is well......... Payton. She is spoiled, mean, hard to deal with, a brat, vain, and well sweat and precious and kind all at the same time! Does that make sense? She has her moments that is for sure. Most days I just don't know what to do with her, one minute I want to kill her then the next she melts my heart. She is doing really well in pre-school and I am looking for loop-holes to get her into Kindergarten next year.

I am alive and that is about all I can say for me. I am not ready for another move, I am not ready for Christmas, and I have no ambition for any of it! I am just tired! Living in so much caos has really gotten to me. I don't know where to start or where to end.

So we are alive and well for the most part! We are preparing for, YES, another move. We will be moving to San Diego sometime between Christmas and New Years. We will STILL be living without ALL of OUR OWN BELONGINGS! The Navy wont move our stuff. So once we get settled (if that is possible) in San Diego, I plan on updating all of my posts! With pictures and everything! I feel so out of touch with eveyone! So please call, e-mail, or something!

P.s. I planned to add pictures to this post, but of course I can't find any of them on this computer! UGH!

Practice makes perfect........ well eventually!

2009-09-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

Now that we are in a climate that is more suitable to outside activities, the kids have been learning a lot of new things. First on that list is bike riding! Domino has moved on to a "Big" bike and P-goat get the old one with training wheels. After spending 1 hour with my Dad, Domino was riding by himself. He still needs help starting and he has some work to do on stopping, but he is getting it. These pictures and videos are from his 2nd day out on the bike! I have to say I am impressed!

Domino and Dad

P-goat and her "new" bike (unfortunately she was too fast for me to catch any good pictures!)

All by him-self!

SEVEN YEARS!!!!!

2009-09-13T21:12:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary BABE! (more to come)

Happy Birthday........

2009-08-26T11:24:00.000-07:00

Well I don't really have any pictures to go along with this but I just wanted to post. My birthday was on Monday and I guess I am now 26, doesn't seem real different. The bigger news is what happened yesterday.

Yesterday was my mom's birthday, yes her birthday is the day after mine. She is the most wonderful woman, mother, aunt, and nana. As an adult and a mother of two my appreciation for my mother has grown exponentially! The love a person can have for their child no matter what that child does or how they treat you sometimes, is amazing.

I know that I probably cut at least 10 years off of her life because of the stress and trouble I caused in my youth! I know she has every right to wish that my children give me back what she had at least 10 fold, but she doesn't. She is always there to listen, lend a hand, or give advice.

Happy Birthday MOM, you are the greatest!

This was us in NY, after a very LONG and COLD Yankee game. Not the most flattering picture, but she wasn't feeling well and she still managed to walk around NY all day and help keep the kids entertained, that's part of why she is the world's greatest NANA!

First Day's of school!

2009-08-13T13:03:00.000-07:00

I still have trip photos and posts to be made, but school has started and I need to get on the ball!

Dominick started school on July 22nd. He is now in the First Grade! He attends Jack Barnes Elementary School in Queen Creek AZ. His teachers name is Ms. King. So far he has LOVED school and is enjoying being back to a learning environment, plus his best friend Mikey is in the same school!

Dominick on his first Day

Ready to go!

Dominick and Mikey before school

Payton started school August 10th. She goes to pre-school 3 days a week for 2 1/2 hours. She is also attending with her best friend, Sarah. This is the end of our first week of pre-school and she can't wait each day to go! She has already learned so much in just 3 days! I can't believe both of my kiddos are in school!

Payton is all smiles

We interupt this blog........

2009-08-09T19:54:00.000-07:00

My Beautiful daughter has always been conscious of her looks. As soon as she could voice her opinion she would let us know how she wanted her hair done, her clothes to look, and so forth. She never wanted a hair cut, she LOVED having long beautiful hair (so did her Dad).

One horrible, fateful night, Payton decided she would comb her own hair. She found a round brush and got started. Little did she know that only a professional should use a round brush! So after getting this brush EXTREMELY stuck in her hair, she decided to solve the problem on her own.........

My brother found her in her room, brush still stuck, with hair all over the floor! I cried, she cried, we ALL cried! Poor Payton was so devastated that we would now have to cut her hair short!

After this whole ordeal she is pretty happy with the new do! Yes she misses the long hair, but she knows it will grow back. She also has learned that only Andraya is allowed to touch her hair with scissors! Thanks Andraya for the emergency appointment and for the WONDERFUL job on her hair, we LOVE you.

New Mexico, our last leg....

2009-07-12T08:57:00.000-07:00

After Oklahoma we made the 11 hour trek to New Mexico. First let me say, that was the most boring part of the drive! I never want to drive that stretch again! We got to visit with Jays family and some of mine as well. My Grandmother made the drive with us from Texas to Arizona, I had the chance to learn things I had never bothered with before. It was a wonderful opportunity and a great memory to hold onto. We talked about her experiences as a military wife, how she met my grandfather, how they got married, and genealogy. As I get older I have found that I am more and more interested in these stories and knowing how we all came to be.

Once again, I didn't take many pictures, but I do have some from the park with Jays Dad. So here they are:

Domino showin off his monkey skills!

Papa Mike indulging P-goat on the swing (once she is on, good luck getting her off)

3 generations of Cherrey's

Oklahoma

2009-07-10T23:00:00.000-07:00

On our cross country travels we were lucky enough to stop by and see some really wonderful friends. Jason "Dell" Delonais is one of Jay's buddies from the Navy. At first these two couldn't stand one another, now he is our sons Godfather and a great friend to have. Tara (his wife and best thing to ever happen to him) and Dell now live in Oklahoma. They made sure we had a wonderful visit with them, it was too short but better than nothing!

Look at those fools, whats with all the facial hair!

This was on the family "houseboat", the kids LOVED it!

Dell, Tara, and the kids. They treated us to a fun game filled evening at

a place called LOL (I think). Dell helped the kids win a TON of tickets

and buy ridiculous prizes! What a Godfather..... and he shaved!

At the top of the only mountain for 100's of miles!

Is that Dell before he shaved? NO its a real live buffalo!

We drove through this park and had some close ups with these beasts!

An old church and "village". They do an Easter pageant here. They have the whole town, crosses, and tomb. It was very interesting and humbling, yet strange at the same time.

The trip was amazing and we can't wait to do it again!

Our First Day in Oklahoma 7/6/2009

2009-07-06T17:43:00.000-07:00

One of Jays best friends from the navy has moved to Oklahoma. This man has been with us from the beginning and is Dominick's Godfather. So our cross country trip was the perfect time to pay Dell and Tara a visit. On a stroke of luck our visit coincided with the end of another old navy buddy's visit. It was really nice seeing Tim again after all these years, it really brought back some old memories!

Like the rest of this trip, I left my camera behind! I can't believe how many good moments I have missed out on because of my forgetfulness. Dell took us all to a local water park for the first day. It was small, Really CHEAP, and a LOT of FUN! There was a kids play area in a shallow pool, a lazy river, some kid water slides, a wave pool, Several big water slides, and the toilet bowl. Dominick was able to get everything in, except the toilet bowl (he wasn't big enough).

Our visit with Dell and Tara was a lot of fun and I have a TON of pictures. So there will be a few more posts! I know I am behind, but I will try really hard to get caught up by this weekend, so keep your eyes peeled!

This is a really poor picture of the water park. It was taken from the Highway

Uncle Dell, A shock to see his "Post" Navy persona!

The kids ready for a fun day at the water park

Domino, Dell, Jay, P-Goat, and Tim

Dell, Tim and Jay all served in Iraq together. Not to mention all the fun trips to AZ together while Jay and I were dating. It was great to catch Tim while he was in town!

Our own Fireworks

2009-07-06T15:18:00.000-07:00

Dell, Tara, Domino, and Jay, looking for the perfect fireworks!

The "sprint" don't let the fireworks getcha!

Domino helped light that one and ran!

You never can catch great fireworks on camera!

This is P-Goats "hiding" spot from the noise and flames!

We were actually in Texas over the 4th of July weekend. Because of a fire-ban we were unable to watch a public display or do our own. The kids did get a chance to play with some sparklers and had a lot of fun doing it. When we got to Oklahoma, Dell was upset to hear that the kids didn't get to do fireworks. So what does he come up with........ A huge box of left-overs from their 4th weekend. Domino had a blast picking out the cool ones and watching them go off! P-Goat on the other hand would run and hide! What a little snot, but secretly from her spot in the truck she smiled and watched. Once again THANKS Dell and Tara!

Family Reunion, not for the faint of stomach

2009-07-05T17:43:00.000-07:00

I have been really horrible this trip, I just can't seem to remember my camera! I know there are some really great pictures out there from our family reunion, I'll just have to beg and plead with my grandma and cousins!

We arrived in Texas on a not so great note! Poor P-goat got car-sick in the middle of nowhere! Now for those of you that know me and know me well, vomit is the one thing I CANT HANDLE! So I brace myself, trying extremely hard not to mimic P's actions, and find a place to pull off of the highway. Jay proceeds to clean up EVERYTHING, I love that man! We move on to the next truck stop and buy as many wipes and febreeze air-freshener we can find! We hit the road again and the little devil decides she wants an encore performance! Note to self, chocolate milk, high temperatures, large blankets, and P-goat don't get along when all put together! We made it to the hotel and while Jay was cleaning another mess, I was checking us in and unloading.

Now we were in Texas and would be here for the weekend, a nice time to relax and hit the laundry mat! I hate laundry mats!

Soon we were meeting up with family and getting into the swing of the reunion. It was so wonderful to see everyone, it had been far to long! We ate great food (of course), caught up on the years, reminisced on the old, swam, had water fights, watched old home movies, went to the river and over-baked ourselves, and planned for our next reunion (vowing to never let it go this long again)! There were several things we had planned and didn't get to, but it didn't matter. The fact that we were all together was the important part.

Jay had never met this side of the family and I knew he would fit right in. He enjoyed himself greatly and looks forward to the next reunion. He enjoyed chattin with Pat, bonding over motorcycles, suped up golf carts (made for off-roading), and military life.

I promise when I get my hands on some pictures, I will post them! It was a reunion to remember, especially since we had ALMOST everyone in attendance, we hope we can get the rest there for the next one.

3 Days and 11 States! The first leg of our Trip.

2009-07-04T19:25:00.000-07:00

This has been a long time coming, I know. We started our trip on Sunday June 28th. We left our home in Weymouth MA and headed north-west to Holyoke MA where we spent the night with our friends Rob and Emily in their new home. Leaving MA has been a bitter-sweet experience and all of our goodbyes were hard. On Monday we headed out and drove through 5 of our wonderful states, ending in Harrisburg PA. The next day we hit the road driving through 4 more states, ending in Knoxville TN. We drove around Knoxville looking for some good BBQ and ended up with Taco Bell! Every BBQ place we found was closed or out of business so we settled and hit the beds early. Next morning we hit the road and drove across Tennessee to stay in West Memphis AR.

NEVER STAY IN WEST MEMPHIS ARKANSAS!!!!!!

It was only about 10 miles away from Memphis and all of the main attractions, but once you cross the Mississippi River and hit West Memphis you are in the GHETTO! By this time the kids were begging to get out and do something, they picked bowling. We found one close by and luckily it wasn't too scary! That night we set our alarms and hit the pillows hard.

What our life was like for 2 solid weeks!

Bowling in West Memphis, we were the only people there!

Stylin shoes Babe!

Domino's super cool bowling form!

P-Goat has the Grannie down pat!

This video was cute, Domino spent his spare time between frames narrating the rest of our turns. It was really funny and super cute!

Sorry for the lack of "better" pictures. I saw tones of cool stuff while driving and when we would stop, but I always forgot my camera! Stay tuned for the next leg of our trip, Texas and our Family reunion!

Our last days....

2009-07-02T18:58:00.000-07:00

So some of the girls and I went out to a last minute "Good-Bye" dinner. Thanks Gretchen for setting it all up. I'm really thankful to these ladies (and some who weren't able to make it), they really helped make Boston the best "Home away from Home"!

Saying Good-Bye to Julia at Chuck-E-Cheeses!

Our last Boston Beach trip! We spent a few hours playing at the playground and searching the beach for snails, crabs, and other little sea creatures.

P-Goat isn't too Happy, she is having a hard time realizing she wont see anyone for a long time!

Rob and Emily, we really will miss you guys! See you in NM soon......

Good Bye

2009-06-27T10:29:00.000-07:00

So we are headed out on our 2 week cross-country trip tomorrow. I am really excited to get on the road and away from the empty apartment we have been living in for almost a week. I will try to keep everyone updated as we go but no promises! We are planning on stopping in Holyoak tomorrow and getting one last visit in with Rob and Emily. Monday we travel to Pennsylvania, Tuesday and Wednesday we stop in Tennessee, and Thursday we get into Austin Texas. Friday and Saturday we will spend in the Austin area for our Family reunion. Sunday we head out and make a stop in Oklahoma to visit Dominick's Godfather Dell and his wife Tara. We hope to spend a day or 2 there. Next stop is Farmington, NM to visit Jay's family and then on to our new home Mesa AZ! We have to be in Mesa by the 10th for Jay to report in to work.

For all of those we are leaving behind, Goodbye and Thank you for making the past 2 years AWESOME! We truly will miss everyone and hope to be welcomed back for periodic visits! For those that we are coming home to, well..... READY OR NOT HERE WE COME!!!!!

Paytons Dance Recital

2009-06-21T14:02:00.001-07:00

So this was Payton's first year in Ballet and Tap classes. The year started off wonderfully, then slowly things got a little difficult. She always talked about dance and showed us all of her new moves, but when it came down to going in to class she would be hot and cold. Yes, my daughter is that one kid that you can't help but watch because 1. It's funny 2. It's a little sad and 3. Everyone else is glad it isn't their kid! She came on stage and greeted everyone with no problem, then they came out for the actual dance and started off really well. Then she heard laughter and it all went to pieces! Poor thing, she apologized to us and said she got shy and a little hurt because people were laughing. We told her it was OK and went out to celebrate. All in all it was still cute and totally Hilarious!

Coming on stage to greet the audience and find families.

She found us!

After the recital with her flower and medal

Ms. Dana her wonderful teacher!

So I was able to record her dances, I had to be sneaky about it but I got them. I wasn't about to pay $40 for a video, especially after how she did! I hope you enjoy as much as we did!

The End of Kindergarten.

2009-06-19T15:09:00.000-07:00

June 17th 2009 was the official last day of Kindergarten. Sacred Heart School in Weymouth MA celebrated this day by having the students do the Mass. The kids did a wonderful job! I just can't believe we are headed for FIRST GRADE!!!!

Dominick, Tim, and their class waiting to go in.

Dominick and one of his Best Friends Aaron Cassidy

Dominick comforting Payton, yes we will miss our friends but it will be O.K.

My First Grader!

Dominick at the class/birthday party.

Thank goodness the sun came out for us! The class party combo Colin M's birthday party was a blast! Dominick was able to say good bye to most of his friends and enjoy an afternoon outside of school. Now here is a video clip of Dominick doing the reading in Mass, you can barely see the top of his head over the pulpit, but he did AMAZING! WE LOVE YOU DOMINICK and ARE SO PROUD OF YOU!

Brockton Rox Game

2009-06-14T16:00:00.000-07:00

For Jay's farewell party from his unit here in MA, they took everyone to an Independent League Baseball game. We had amazing seats right behind home plate a few rows back. Jay had the opportunity to throw out the ceremonial first pitch of the game. The kids were so excited and proud to see their dad out on the baseball field. The kids got to meet a few players and get some baseballs signed. The whole evening was a huge success!

Jay getting ready to throw the first pitch (stupid camera wouldn't focus right)

Jessica, Domino, P-Goat, and Jay before the game

Jessica, Domino, and P-Goat

Jessica is Dominick's "girl-friend" from school. They have become really close this last month or so. She is the one he has to call everyday on the phone and he asks if he can see her everyday. He was so excited that she was coming to the game with us and he was such a gentleman the whole time, it was the cutest thing!

P-Goat and her friend Eva

Jessie and P-Goat cheering

HOME RUN!!!!!

Jessie and Domino watching the fireworks after the game. I think it was more exciting than the actual game!

Randomness

2009-06-12T06:36:00.001-07:00

I Just thought we were due for an update! Nothing much has happened, just waiting and waiting! This month has been the SLOWEST! Tonight we are going to a Brockton Rocks game and Domino is bringing his friend-girl, so look for that post in the very near future!

Jay and the kids watching fly me to the moon 3D at the Museum of Science

Rob and Emily, Rob and Jay go way back and it has been really great having them near by.

Julia (Rob's little girl), Domino, and P-Goat. We went to Holyoak for Memorial Day and there is a really awesome park there, it has water, paddle boats, mini golf, a zoo, play areas, and tons more!

Jay and the kids at the zoo

We are really going to miss Rob, Emily, and Julia. They really helped make this place feel more like home. I feel like we were just getting to know Emily and it is so sad that we have to leave.

P-Goat at it again!

2009-06-04T13:19:00.001-07:00

Some of you may be wondering why we call Payton, P-Goat. Well she is 3 almost 4 years old and she still puts EVERYTHING in her mouth and she EATS EVERYTHING! Here is a small example of her mischievous goat ways! I was busy doing some clean up in the living room and I heard her opening and closing the cupboards, this is what I found when I went to investigate!

Yep that is my little P-Goat EATING FLOUR and PANCAKE MIX! Now I'm not sure what is flour and what is pancake mix, so I had to throw it out! I'm not kidding people, 5 min. in the other room and she makes this mess. Not to mention that she had already eaten, 2 bowls of cereal, 2 pieces of toast, a whole can of peaches, animal crackers, and some juice and water! This was around 9:30 A.M.......... Do you get it now!

This picture is just for kicks, P wont leave the house without one of her "Hair Dones" Thanks again Kristin for making some great stuff!

Domino and his balancing act, I love this little man! I am so proud of him and the person he is already growing up to be!

A Milestone.....

2009-06-04T04:57:00.000-07:00

My little boy is growing up so fast! There is a girl in his class that asked him to join her for a play-date. He was really excited about it and patiently waited until the day came. That morning he took great care getting dressed for school (he wears a uniform so it was kind of funny) and he was ready about an hour ahead of schedule!

I went to pick him up after his play-date at McDonalds. He had been all day at school, then several hours after school. He looked at me with tears in his eyes and told me he was going to really miss Jessie. I assured him would would have several more play-dates before we move and then they exchanged phone numbers!

We stayed at McDonalds for a couple more hours so Payton could play and run out all of her energy. Some other friends joined us and asked Dominick what he liked about Jessie. He replied that she is very kind, always nice, likes to play with him at recess, and oh yeah she is pretty. By the time we got home I was afraid it was too late to call her, he was very upset and tried to convince me that she would wait up for his phone call. I told him he would have to call her tomorrow.

So last night as we are getting ready for bed Domino reminds me that he needs to call Jessie. I get P-Goat all situated and in bed then I talk to Domino about his call. I told him he only had 5 min. because it was bedtime, then I instructed him on how to appropriately call another person. This is his first phone call to someone that isn't family! I dialed the number and handed him the phone, when Jessie's mom answered he said "I wanna talk to Jessie" (I was mortified and tried to get him to at least say please!)

They talked, he paced and blushed, and then he ended the conversation with " Well I just wanted to tell you good night and I hope you sleep well", It was the cutest thing I have ever seen! I really tried to find my camera and get it all on video, but I couldn't find it anywhere! I am just so sad that they are finding each other a month before we move! They have promised each other that they will write and e-mail and Domino has said he will never forget Jessie!

The things kids say.......

2009-06-01T07:08:00.000-07:00

Mom " Why is the sunscreen spray in your room?"

Domino " I think it was Payton mom"

P-Goat " Nope not me, I think it was a ghost"

Mom " Oh really, we have a ghost"

P-Goat " Yup, it was the Holy Ghost"

I took the sunscreen, told them to lay down and go to sleep. Once I left their room I burst into laughter that brought on tears! Jay wanted to know what was so funny, so I told him and we laughed together for a while.

This morning Jay let me sleep in and he got up with the kids. At 8:30 he left to take Domino to school. P-Goat came into our room, snuggled under the covers and whispered (not so quietly) that she wanted to watch Playhouse disney. So I turned it on and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse was on.

P-Goat" Oh toodles!" (very loudly)

"NO not that one!" (looking for the right mouse-ka-tool)

"Yeah the bounce-ka-ter, yup thats it!"

Mom " What is a bounce-ka-ter?"

P-Goat "Well if you wanted to know then you HAVE TO WATCH!"

Mom " OK, I see Minnie playing tennis with a racket and ball"

P-Goat " NO MOM, that is a bouncekater!"

She was so proud that she knew exactly what it was. She then decided to dance around the bed and room singing (very loudly) about the bouncekater and how mom was so silly! I love hearing the random things kids come up with!

Canobie Lake Park

2009-05-24T07:54:00.000-07:00

Memorial Weekend was Military appreciation at Canobie Lake Park in New Hampshire. We were able to get in for $10 a piece and P-Goat was free! You can't beat an amusement park for $30 bucks and a full day of non-stop fun! We weren't sure how the weather was gonna be but it held out for us, partly cloudy and a little cool but not too bad. The pictures are just a random few, but there was so much stuff and the kids had so much fun I went camera crazy!

Jay's favorite ride was the rooster ride, Dominick was torn between bumper cars and the old fashioned cars, P-Goat LOVED the bumper cars and the kiddie canoes, and I just enjoyed the family outing! Jay and I did manage a few adult rides in between the fun kid ones, but the kid rides were just as fun! The lines were short, the rides fun, yummy ice cream, and a short drive, made for a memorable time! Now for some really cute videos that we just couldn't pass up!

Our first trip to the beach, this season!

2009-05-23T07:25:00.000-07:00

We love the beach! I'm not sure why it has taken us so long to make our first trip to the beach, but we finally made it!

Dominick got out of school early on Friday, so we headed to the Nantasket beach. It's only about 20 min. from where we live, there are closer beaches but they are more rocky.

We met the Gillette clan and Roger clan there for some fun in the sun. The other guys had been there all day and left about an hour after we got there, but we stayed for the evening.

Dominick spent most of his time playing in the sand and little tide pools.

P-Goat decided to hit the water and she was more adventurous and brave than last year. I followed her to the water, discovered it was FREEZING, and spent the next 2 hours trying to convince her it was too cold. She never gave up on the water and had a BLAST!

Don't worry I was within arms reach of her in this video, I just wanted her to prove she can handle the waves and ocean on her own, she had a blast!

The Long Awaited Birthday party!

2009-05-20T08:54:00.001-07:00

In January we went to the Lego store to inquire about Birthday parties. They were booked until the end of March. So we went home and discussed with Dominick what he really wanted. He had his heart set on a Lego party and was willing to wait (his birthday is february 6th). So we went back a few days later to book his party, they were now booked until MAY! I talked to him there and we decided to go ahead with the plans. So the day finally arrived! The party was a HUGE success and everyone had fun. So here are a few pictures.

Dominick looking at the pre-built lego models

P-Goat, the only girl there, building on her own

The kids building their Police helicopter

The finished product

Chowing down on the double chocolate cupcakes

FEATURING...... Domino the Whiz Kid......

2009-05-15T05:53:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of Whiz kid at his swim lessons. He has really enjoyed swimming and is looking forward to living in Mesa where he can use his newly learned skills!

Learning the Back float, he can do it on his own for about 30 sec.

Swimming across the length of the pool to the deep end

Getting ready to jump in at the end of class

Now we have a few picture of Whiz kid and his teacher. Our church hosts a special Teacher Appreciation night every year. Each kid in primary gets to invite a teacher to the program. There is a special speaker, some great music, and then the children get to introduce their teacher and honor them. Domino was so excited and he did very well in front of the people on the microphone! After the program there were many lovely deserts set up for everyone to enjoy. It was a wonderful evening and the teachers LOVED it.

After the program.......

Dominick and his Kindergarten teacher Mrs. Corey

P-Goat the model

2009-05-15T05:40:00.001-07:00

First, I would like to thank everyone for their support and concern yesterday. I really needed to vent and I had great friends who listened. The window is fixed and we even made a little money doing it, nothing illegal I assure you, lol!

Now onto P-goat! We were at Whiz kids swim lessons and p-goat got bored. I had been taking picture of whiz kid in the water so she told me it was her turn for pictures. Along the side of the pool are some air vents that are constantly blowing cool air, it gets really hot in the pool area. So she decides to stand on the vent and pose for me, then she realized that the air would blow her hair around. So for the next 20 min. she mimicked a model and these are a few pictures I got.

She was going for a thinking face.....

Trying to get her hair to blow......

Again, a thinking face gone wrong, no she isn't picking her nose (this time)

Just to vent.......

2009-05-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

I am fed up with living in an apartment! Today I went to leave and I found my back window smashed in! I didn't know what to do, so I went back inside and panicked a little. A few minutes later the maintenance man knocked on the door, he explained that they believed the yard people were responsible. He then told me that they had left, yep left the property with not a single word! He had already called the company and was making sure they took care of the problem, as it starts to rain! So he opens up an empty garage for me to pull the truck into until they fix the window. As I look at the window, where my car is parked, and where a lawn mower should be, I can't fit the pieces together. The "story" is that the guy threw a rock while mowing the lawn, but there is no rock in the rubble in the back of my truck. Also, I wasn't parked near a lawn where a rock would have hit my back window. I'm just so upset that this has happened! Now they want me to take the car to the glass company and scheduled an appointment for the same time I have to pick up Domino! They told me if I don't make this appointment, it could be DAYS before they can get it fixed! On top of that I now have to buy a cake or something for Dominos party (thats why I was leaving, to get ingredients for his cake). There is glass in both of the kids car seats and we have a birthday party tonight! Luckily we have another car, but it's at work with Jay. Why me? Why today? Why do people suck! I just wanted to vent, thanks for reading or not!

It's Official!

2009-05-07T06:38:00.000-07:00

I will be leaving Boston WITH my husband in tow!

The Navy has finally approved his TAD (I think thats what is called) orders. This means that he will come to Mesa with us, he will work in Phoenix until the end of September, then he will be on what they call Terminal leave until the end of December!

We have been married almost 7 years now and I have to say that we have probably spent 3 1/2 of those years APART! With Deployments, Detachments, No vacation time, and things like that we were always apart! I am looking forward to actually having a full time husband!

With that said they have also approved the Household Goods Move! We were getting a little worried that we would be leaving here with all of our stuff packed up (by me!) and in storage. Since his actual Detachment isn't until Dec. they tried telling us we couldn't get a move approved until November! What that would have meant; I would have to pack all of our stuff, put it in storage (so we are paying for storage instead of a 2000 dollar apartment), and then someone would have to come here in Nov. and supervise the movers unpacking and repacking our stuff! Kind of annoying, huh! So they approved it, the downside is that they will only move our stuff to his "Home of Record" which is Farmington. We did find out that we can pay extra for them to move it the rest of the way to Mesa.

I am starting to get very sad, I have made some very very good friends here. Out of all of our Duty Stations, this one has felt more like home than any other. It was easier to fit in, make connections, and be myself. I am stronger in the church, the kids have regular routines and friends, and Jay has even been more social. I am excited to move closer to my family and some "old" but good friends, but at the same time my heart is breaking to leave these wonderful people and even the great history that surrounds us. SO I plan to make an extra effort to stay in touch and I promise, WE WILL BE BACK! Even if only for a visit now and then......

Family Day

2009-05-05T13:05:00.001-07:00

Every year Jay's work puts on a "Family Day" for reservists and the active members of the staff. This year proved to be one of the best. There were so many things for the kids to do and lots of yummy food. The sky was overcast, but the rain held out and the temp was perfect!

The kids on a Police Motorcycle (yes all 3 of my kids)

P-Goat driving the Police Bus

The Navy boat

The "kids" on the Boat

The police bus and our friendly local law enforcement

Anxious for their turn in the Fire Truck

Domino behind the wheel, scary future....

Just after he pulled the horn and made me deaf!

The "cool" seat outside the truck

A sad and failed attempt at a group picture, but he does look sexy in uniform!

And of course everyones favorite, the bounce houses! Domino, P-Goat, and their friend Eva. It was a really great day and we are glad we made it this year!

Swim Lessons

2009-05-04T07:48:00.000-07:00

First I have to say that P-Goat has undergone an AMAZING transformation. She went from water hater to water lover in no time. When we first moved here, we couldn't get her near the water! Now we can't keep her out of it! Last summer was when the transformation took place, so we are preparing for this summer with lessons!

Bubble blowing

Stomach float with more bubble blowing

Kicking and paddling across the pool, no help

Look at her go! She LOVES swim lessons and hates having anyone hold onto her now!

Volcano

2009-05-04T07:42:00.001-07:00

All of the pictures of the building process are on my mom's camera, but here are the pictures of the first eruption!

The crowd, pleasantly waiting and excited

Here we go........

wow, look how much there is

It was a good evening watching our volcano erupt! Great job Dominick and Daddy!

More Baseball........

2009-04-25T04:51:00.001-07:00

In our house Baseball is ALWAYS on, even in the off season my husband likes to watch old "classics". Needless to say, my kids have picked up the baseball fever. They will sit in their dads lap and watch an ENTIRE baseball game! They were super excited to see the Yankees play, and Domino has won some tickets to go see the Brockton Rocks (minor league team), and Jay is taking him to see the Red Sox next month! Yes, they are actually going to a Red Sox game, baseball is baseball! So when we had the chance to send Domino to a baseball day camp, we jumped at it! The Weymouth High School baseball team needed to raise money, so they put together a camp for the kids. They learned a lot and had a blast, what a great way to spend a Spring Break day.

Dominick and his friend Aaron

The Breakdown, Go Wildcats!

Practicing some catching

Some pitching....

Yankee Game

2009-04-23T07:07:00.000-07:00

We Started our little adventure here:

Grand Central Station was AMAZING! The architecture, tile work,

and overall essence was beautiful. It was a little crazy

trying to figure out what trains or subways we needed,

but everyone was so helpful!

We made it to the New Yankee Stadium!

We got there about an hour before the game, so we got some shopping

and tourism in before hand!

Here we are in our Yankee hats at our seats.

Yes, we were way up in the grandstand, but the seats were great!

You can't beat $8 a ticket for a Yankee game! I don't think there is

such a thing as a "bad" seat at this stadium, we could see everything.

It started to steadily drizzle rain at the start of the game,

we were lucky enough to be under cover. They played and we sat,

watched, cheered, and slowly froze! Here are the kids about half way

through the game...........

Yep, that's Payton trying her hardest to stay awake!

Now here is the result of all that hard work.........

Here are a few action shots! Overall it was an amazing experience and one we hope

to repeat before we move! The kids were cold and my mom was sick,

so we left at the 9th inning, yep I said 9th. The game went into extra innings,

14 total and in the 14th inning the Yankees managed to close the deal and win the game!

GO YANKEE'S!!!

Now here is a short video of Dominick during the game. I think his favorite part

was all of the music and his ultimate goal was to get noticed and featured on

the Jumbo-Tron.

Spring Break!

2009-04-17T10:40:00.000-07:00

So our Spring Break has finally arrived! The weather is AMAZING and we have a whole week of good weather coming (I hope it stays that way). I just found out my Mom is coming into town on Tuesday and will be here for a week, I am so excited. We have tickets to see a NY Yankees game and we might go to Six Flags New England one day too! Nothing too major but we are super excited! Who said Spring Break was just for school? Not me........

2009-04-16T14:19:00.000-07:00

73 DAYS!

The Countdown is on! The Cherrey family will be moving back home in 73 days. Dominick will finish up school the middle of June and Payton will have her dance recital, then we leave for a cross-country road trip! We aren't sure yet if Jay will be able to travel with us, but plans are being made. We will make a few stops on the way, Hershey PA, Knoxville TN, Hill Country TX, Oklahoma, New Mexico, then our final destination MESA AZ.

With this said, I'm not looking forward to another move. The details, the money, the stress, I could really do without, but the benefits out-weigh the negatives! As our plans progress and we know more details I will update the blog, until then.........

The Countdown has begun!

Project of the Day......

2009-04-14T16:09:00.001-07:00

Some of you may remember my recent solution to

all of Paytons Hair Bows....

This has worked, but because of Payton's (and secretly mine)

~OBSESSION~

We have acquired many, many, more beautiful

"Hair Dones"

So I came up with a new idea that should work for us for a while.

It was fun and fairly easy to do and lets say that Hodge Podge may be my new favorite crafty thing! So here is my finished work.....

Easter Afternoon........

2009-04-12T14:28:00.001-07:00

After a morning full of fun and surprises the Cherrey family headed off to church, yes the WHOLE family. We took this picture after sacrament meeting (not a good angle for me, but I am working on it at the Y).

When we returned home we found that the Easter Bunny had hidden our colored eggs all over the house. I think it was kind of the bunny to think of us since we live in an apartment and have no yard of our own, plus the weather is still a bit on the chilly side.

P-Goat and Domino hunted those eggs like pros! They were able to find all 3 dozen in no time at all, they even helped count them to make sure none were missing! As you can see, we cut Domino's hair. He finally decided that growing it out was more of a pain than he wanted to deal with. So this morning, after all of the action, he told Yankee Dad he was ready to cut his hair! After it was all done he said "Look Dad I am almost as bald as you!"

Here is our yummy Easter dinner. Lamb with Sweet Potato Chutney. I think I still need some work on the presentation but it tasted wonderful. We thought of you, Gretchen, while we ate. Wish you could have been here with us!

A great salad and creamy cheesy potatoes finished off the meal, next up........

KEY LIME PIE!

Easter Morning.........

2009-04-12T12:02:00.001-07:00

So I was really excited for the Easter Bunny to come to our home! It is really hard for me to keep secrets and I was about to burst (don't even ask how I do at Christmas)! The kids got spoiled by the big bunny this year, complete rain gear, movies, candy, balls, harmonicas, animals, and much more (thanks Nana). The kids were so excited this morning they couldn't contain themselves! I have a ton of pictures so I will be making another post.

P-Goats Easter Basket and Rain Gear

Domino's Easter Basket and Rain Gear

P-Goats bunny purse, she is thrilled with this thing!

Domino and his harmonica, now he is like the kid from witch mountain (the original)

Marching around the house in their new rain boots! Payton has issues with pants if you couldn't already tell from this and previous posts!

Now here is the video from this morning, they were almost as excited as they were Christmas morning. I'm not sure if they were feeding off of my anxious vibes, I think this is my second favorite Holiday. I guess any chance to spoil my kids without feeling guilty is good for me!

Good Friday with Good Friends

2009-04-11T15:18:00.001-07:00

With no school on Friday i thought it would be fun to hit 2 birds with 1 stone, Easter egg decorating and quality time with some friends. The day started off wonderfully and the kids played very well together, the boys played "army guys" and "cops", the girls played with barbies and ponies. Then while I prepared the "activity" the kids colored and shared jokes and stories. Being the great Mom that I am, I prepared egg coloring for the kiddos! I have learned that easter egg dying is not a one adult activity, with that in mind we managed to color dozen eggs and had minimal mess (I think the only fatality is my kitchen table, which gives me an excuse to get the new one that I want)!

Dominick, Sam, Abi, and Payton Coloring

Abi and her colored eggs

Domino and his "camo" eggs

Sam and his orange eggs

After cleaning up from the "activity" we ventured outside to have a picnic. The weather was wonderful, 65 degrees and very sunny. A picnic with corn dogs, chicken nuggets, chips and doughnuts for desert was ideal for these kiddos. They chowed down until there was nothing left and then proceeded to play with bubbles, baseball, and rolling down the big hill.

The picnic set up

The end results

P-goat enjoying desert!

It was a wonderful day and the kids had a blast. I learned that next year I will wait for a day that Jay has off to color easter eggs and to cover the table with thick plastic! I also was reminded how much fun rolling down hills can be, luckily there was no one there to get pictures of that!

A little of this, a little of that.......

2009-04-09T06:11:00.000-07:00

So I know this isn't ROCKET SCIENCE, but I have been meaning to do it for a while. My friend makes wonderful hair-bows for little girls and Payton is in LOVE with them! We were running out of space to put them, plus she likes to run and pick out the ones she wants to wear. So I came up with this little contraption. I bought the metal ring that opens and then sewed loops on some ribbon and viola, hanging hair ribbons!

Next is Paytons 9 a.m. morning nap! This girl drives me NUTS! She slept like this for an hour....... What is must be like to be a kid!

The next 2 Domino took and P-Gaot took advantage!

If it isn't snowing.........

2009-04-06T14:26:00.001-07:00

ITS RAINING!!!!!!!!

On the rare occasion the sun does decide to visit us, we like to venture to one of our many favorite parks. Now keep in mind, it doesn't happen often and when it does it never lasts more than a day! At least for this time of year.....

Anyway, Sunday we were graced with 67 degrees of warmth and sun, so we headed to the park! The kids are sick and tired of being confined to 1300 square feet of messy apartment! (can't wait to move for that reason alone) Once we arrived at the park the kids ran WILD! After a while Jay was able to join us and the kids were in HEAVEN!

Now it was nice getting out of the house, but going to the park by yourself really is no fun! The kids were running all over the place and didn't need or want my help with anything. So not having another person to talk to kind of sucked, but it was too crowded to sit and read a book. So to all of my local buddies, you will be hearing from me and I will probably beg for your company! With that said here is a funny, short video of Yankee Dad and Princess P-goat on the slide!

Easter Dress

2009-04-06T09:52:00.001-07:00

So I finished Paytons Easter dress just in time. It was a super easy project, but I have been putting it off.

With all of the baby blankets I have been making P-goat felt left out. She BEGGED for a new blankie and I had to tell her no (the kid has more blankets than we know what to do with). So she wandered around the fabric store with this sad look in her eyes.........

until she found the fabric for her dress. She ran up to me and exclaimed that she found the PERFECT fabric just for her. When she showed it to me I really couldn't resist and in all cheesy-ness I bought enough to make myself a matching skirt! Yes I have become one of those Moms, but it is for Easter so it's O.K.

Fourth Photo tag......

2009-03-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

This is kinda fun:

Rules are to post the fourth photo in the fourth folder on your computer! Then tag four friends......

My brother Verd, my Dad Owen, and P-Goat last summer on the train!

I tag Gretchen, Cherisa, Megan S., and Stacey R.

Have fun ladies, can't wait to see what pops up!

Spring is trying to make an appearance........

2009-03-31T04:12:00.000-07:00

Yankee Dad concentrating on the road.

We are headed out for a warm day at the park, a great birthday party, an afternoon at the movies, then some shopping at the Mall.

We all love days when Yankee Dad is home and we can have him all to ourselves!

Princess P-Goat with the wind in her hair!

With the warm weather, we get to turn off the heaters and roll down the windows! The kids LOVED every minute of the sunshine.

Domino the Whiz kid is always crackin' us up!

Monsters VS. Aliens was a big hit, especially in "true 3 D". Although some of the movie reminded me of a day at home (wink, wink).

So this is how the Cherrey's spend a wonderful Spring day, unfortunately we have had some not so great days since.......... Maybe today will change that!

2009-03-30T12:48:00.000-07:00

Recently we had a fun day at the Children's Museum with some friends!

Mr. Roe giving love to the statue seeing eye dog.

P-goat as one of the 3 little pigs ( yes that is my largeness as the straw house)

G-retch showing some super mom skills

Rock rock your boat in the 3 and under play area (this was

our first time in there because Domino was at school)

Sneak Peak at my creations.......

2009-03-21T04:53:00.000-07:00

As some of you may know, I have spent the past few weeks making baby blankets. When I say blankets I mean I have made 8 to count so far (in the past few weeks)! It really seems like EVERYONE I know is pregnant. So here are 2 of the blankets I made for a friend that is having twins.

This is the first time I have worked with the bottom fabric,

it was a challenge but I think I am getting the hang of it!

I have really enjoyed making all of these and am looking forward to my next project!

Keep your eyes peeled Brandi, your up next!

P-GOATS trip to the Hospital....

2009-03-17T06:35:00.000-07:00

Because of this stupid toy.....

and the fact that our daughter is like a GOAT........

We spent all day Monday at the Emergency room!

Yes my 31/2 year old daughter swallowed one of the silver balls.

We weren't sure what or how many so we rushed to the hospital.

Here is P-goat trying not to smile on the way to the hospital

P-goat playing in the waiting room......

P-goat waiting for x-rays........

P-goat taking a nap at the hospital............

P-goat hiding from the doctor...........

P-goat with a popsicle at the end of the visit to the hospital!

What did we learn from this..........

Payton LOVES the hospital!

She thought it was a super fun day and asked if we could do it again,

here we thought it would scare her and maybe she would stop putting things in her mouth!

Luckily everything turned out fine, she only swallowed one of the silver balls and nothing else.

Now we wait...........

NAPS, is the end near?

2009-03-17T06:24:00.000-07:00

I REALLY enjoy nap time.

Unfortunately in the past few weeks naps have become few and far between.

After fighting and playing and laughing and more struggling, P-goat (see next post) convinced me she needed to stay up. I'm not kidding when I say 15 min. later this is what we had!

Now on random days I get this sleepy girl in odd places around the house.

One day it was the hallway floor (I had no batteries for my camera!), the couch, under the kitchen table and so on. I guess it is for the better since she will be starting school next year, but I miss my own naps!

Where is Spring?

2009-03-10T07:07:00.000-07:00

I really HATE the snow! I am so ready for the spring to be here. Once again I had to dig my car out of ice and snow, which of course made us late dropping Dominick off at school. Then while carrying Payton back inside I slipped and fell on my butt! Poor Payton is sprawled over the messy muddy ground crying and the people walking by........ just kept walkin! To top it off I have the worst headache with the signs of a migraine and I have so much to do! Mesa could not come any sooner!

Sorry but I just needed to get that out, when I told my husband he just laughed.

Proposal gone wrong!

2009-03-05T12:51:00.000-08:00

Check out the story of my friends little sister. She swallowed her engagement ring. Little did we know that it would become National news! Its a cute fun story and has been picked up all over the country. Enjoy!

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

You can check out her blog, krazykaitlin.blogspot.com and see what they have been up to, I think they were on Ellen today and who knows what is coming up for them........

Creative Crafters and friends......

2009-03-05T11:14:00.000-08:00

So I am doing this selfishly but hey its a great thing to do. My friend has started a new Etsy shop. She makes dresses for little girls. They are super cute and I am totally buying some for miss Payton. Everyone should check her page out, the prices are comparable to a store and you are getting a handmade quality product. She can and will ship her product to you for a small shipping fee. Check out http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6922866 There is a link on my page also.

In another side note you should check out mayday studios too, there is a link to that site on my blog also! Super cute accessories for our beautiful baby girls! Payton LOVES having these for her hair!

A visit from my BFF

2009-03-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

So I had a wonderful visit from my Best Friend and her two girls. Cassy flew up here from Arizona and was here for a week. Her daughter Sarah was named after me and Jay and I are her Godparents. We had a wonderful time and despite the weather managed to fit all the fun stuff in! We have been friends since we met while we were both pregnant with our first kids. Dominick and Mikey are 19 days apart, Payton and Sarah are 1 1/2 months apart, and then there is poor lonely Elizabeth. We really appreciate having eachother (and our husbands are pretty glad too!)

Here's Cassy always makin faces

Uncle Jay getting bombarded by all the kids (he loved every min.)

Dominick, Sarah, Elizabeth, and Payton

The adorable Elizabeth and her new pet penguin!

Hangin out at the Aquarium

The visit was way too short, but she will be back in July to help us move. After the move we will be minutes away not thousands of miles!

Now here is a cute little video of the kids waiting for the train......

Dominick over the years........

2009-03-05T09:32:00.000-08:00

I know this is way over due, since Dominicks birthday was a month ago, but here it is! I can't believe how much he has changed, yet how little.......

Dominick at 2 weeks

Dominick's 1 year

A 2 year old with a sense of humor!

Dominicks 3 year picture

(Ignore the date stamp, its wrong) Dominick at 4

And here he is today our six year old stud!

Craftiness.......

2009-02-28T05:39:00.000-08:00

Okay so I got this fron Jeni's blog. The first 3 people to respond to this get a homemade craft from me! Sounds really cool and fun huh, there are a few rules.

1. You have to pay it forward, meaning you need to re-post on your blog and then you are elegible

2. I decide what I am going to make

3. I have the rest of the year to get it done (for me it will be done no later than July)

4. You don't have to like what I make but it will be made with you in mind

5. When you get your handmade "prize" you need to post a picture for everyone to see!

I'm not sure if there were any other rules. I tried to copy and paste and my computer isn't letting me! I know it is sad, but you should get the jist of it. I am ready to get my creative juices flowing so I hope I get some people interested!

The BIG 6

2009-02-06T04:08:00.000-08:00

My little man isn't so little any more. Dominick Paul Cherrey is 6 years old. I don't know where the time has gone. I will post some pictures through out the years a little bit later, but I am in the middle of making cupcakes for this wonderful kids class. Here is a little video to enjoy in the mean-time.

2009-01-26T17:55:00.000-08:00

Because of this........

We have been doing a lot of this..........

Going a little stir crazy..... Can you tell?

And a lot of pajama days and bed head......

So with the cold weather outside we have been enjoying redbox movies, popcorn, "smuggling" with daddy, pajama parties with all of our stuffed friends, and this all equals quality family time.

Bowling Night

2009-01-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

Once Again with the cold weather we are consistently trying to find fun activities to keep the family occupied! Monday on MLK day we went Candlepin bowling with the Gillettes. I think candlepin is more difficult than regular but the kids had an easier time with the smaller balls and it was still a lot of fun!