Just an Update

I was just messing around with some photo program I have and noticed that I could brighten these photos a bit and get rid of the red eye! They look so much better. I was out in the hallway when I took them and was using the zoom so they were grainy. Thanks for looking...I'm off to bed!!!

Me cuddling with the boys! Rowdy just came up to Bodie and I on the couch and said "I want to snuggle with you"...oh it melts my heart! When he said it I could tell he wasn't sure what I was going to say because their have been lots of new rules now that Bodie is here. He looked so happy when I said get up here sweetie! I love me some snuggles!!!!!

A is for Avery!

I hope you are not sick of the first day of school photos yet! But today was Avery's first official day of Preschool. She was a little bit sassy this morning when we were getting dressed. But we made it there and I guess she had a good day. Circle Time is the first little activity they do to start the day. The Circle Time rug has the alphabet all the way around the outside of the rug. Well, Avery got a little bit upset when she saw another little boy (Josh, her cousin) sitting on the "A". On one hand I was proud of her for her letter recognition skills but on the other hand a little concerned because she was already asserting her "sassyness".
Josh did end up moving off the letter "A" but I have no idea if it was because of Avery.

She was showing the little boy next to her the little kitty that she brought for Sharing Time. I have to run for now everyone under 4 foot tall in this house needs me right now....Ahhhhh!!!!

My Girl!

Rowdy was off to his first day of Kindergarten and Avery had an orientation at Pre-school. We just had to stop by and meet the teacher and turn in some paperwork.

Ms. Dianna is asking Avery "How do you spell your name" and Avery quickly responded A-V-E-R-Y...I was outside getting something out of the van...so I missed it! But everyone said she just rambled it off like it was nothing! Wow Avery Girl...you are such a star!

This is the same preschool that Rowdy attended and we just love it.

Look out Kindergarten...

here I come!!!!

When Rowdy went to bed last night I told him I might have to wake him up to get to school on time and he so sweetly and sleepily said "ok, mama". He had a great day at school. When I picked him up he had lots to share with me about teacher time, student time, recess, snack and he even told me about a couple of the rules you have to follow when you are there. Whew! He does listen! When we were driving home he said "That was my first day of school" I am so proud of him he handled it like a champ! He went right in and started playing with some of the other kids. Avery did too! She is ready for Kindergarten!

Around the house today!

Taking a peek into the baby's room as he was sleeping this morning.

Rowdy is becoming quite the photographer. He is always asking to take pictures. I don't discourage him because it is a good chance for me to actually be in the photos and I want him to develop his talent for photography.

Rowdy was reading (saying the words by wrote) this book to Bodie as I was feeding him. The kids are doing so great with the new baby in the house. My mom has been here since we got home and so that has helped tremendously. So we have not flown solo yet. I can't believe school starts next week...yikes! We all slept in until 7:40 this morning how am I going to get everyone up and out the door next week. Rowdy starts school at 8am and Avery has preschool at 9 am tuesday and thursday.

A Star is Born!!!

This little boy is so strong! He is already holding his head up. I took this photo while grandpa jerry was holding him. I mainly took it because his eyes were wide open. I hope you all enjoy the photos. We are just in baby heaven over here and can't get enough of our new little boy!

LOVE

I took this picture of Bodie and I, myself. We were in the room by our selves and it was quiet and I was bored so I started messing around with the camera.

I read once that Daddys are "tactile playgrounds". Can you see why? I love this photo! Bodie's softy little head and Ron's five "day" shadow (one of the perks of being self employed).

Bodie Verle Shinkle

Introducing....

Bodie Verle Shinkle

Well he is here! He was born on Wednesday at 8:15 pm. He weighed 8lbs and 7oz and was 20.5 inches long. I have so many photos I would like to share. Rowdy and Avery are doing great with their new little brother. We were thinking he would look like Rowdy but he is his own little person. He is so wonderful!! I am on cloud nine. We are so blessed and heavenly father was definately watching over us the entire time he was making his way into the world.

Hello Kermit!

Our "Pollywobs" (that's what Avery called them) have turned into frogs. When you walk along the edge of our pond it looks like it is raining frogs as they all jump into the pond. It is hard to get photos of them let alone catch them.

The one in the above photo still has his full tail even though he has his legs too!

Ribbit!

My Shadow...

It is my opinion that animals can tell that someone is about to have a baby. It just seems to me that each time I have had a child our animals start acting funny toward the end. They stay a little closer and attentive. Cooter (our dog) was following my around all night last night and he would look up at me just like he is in this photo. Our cat kept jumping up on my lap each time I sat down. If you know our cat, you have to be on his good list to get this kind of attention. Anyways, maybe they know something I don't and we will be having this baby really soon.

Me and my bro!

Can you just say I am ready to have this kid. It is sad to say I don't know the last time I took a picture of my brother and myself. I am always so focused on taking pictures of the kids I need to stop and take some photos of the adults.

Opening his cards. I didn't get him anything but I did take him down memory lane with a list of 50 memories I have of he and I or reasons that I love him. He really enjoyed it and we all laughed at some of the memories that I brought up.

Joey's girlfriend's, grandson Darren, Rowdy and my nephew Evan. They were watching Darren play a video game.

Happy 50th Birthday Joey!

These are my handsome brothers. Joel, Joey and Jeff. We all got together to celebrate my brother Joey's 50th birthday. It seems strange to say 50th birthday but you know what? That is only 15 years away for me.

Grandma made a yummy cake and brought some fresh strawberries.
This is Avery and her cousin Melanie (my brother Jeff's daughter) having a blast playing on the water bed that was in the play room. They don't get to see each other very often so it was nice to see them getting along so well.

There is something in the water...

This picture was taken at a baby shower that my sister in law Jaclyn threw for me and the baby. Once again we are all pregnant at the same time. The other girls have all expressed how jealous they are that I am almost done with my pregnancy...Whew! Stephanie is due in March, Maryanne and Jaclyn are due at the end of October with boys! We don't know what Steph is having yet. I love to flash forward about a year when Grandma Linda's house will be filled with the sound of the pitter patter of eight more feet. Her and Jerry are lovin' every minute of it...in fact we all swear it is Grandpa Jerry's prayers for more grandchildren that keep getting us into these messes....Ha Ha!

Splish Splash!

BEFORE

AFTER

This is what the kids did for two days while the pool guys installed our new liner and pump into the pool. The pool is pretty cold because we haven't installed any system to heat it up...that will have to be a next summer project. It takes me a few minutes to ease my way in. The weather hasn't been very hot which I am thankful for, but we have managed to go swimming for a little bit each day.

Evan the Crocodile Hunter! My brother's son!

This is the life!

I feel like a giant green M&M in my maternity swim suit!

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

The carpal tunnel is a small space or "tunnel" in the wrist formed by the wrist bones (the carpal bones) and a ligament (the transverse carpal ligament). The median nerve and several tendons pass through the carpal tunnel from the forearm to the hand. The tendons are surrounded by tubes of tissue (tendon sheaths). The median nerve controls some movements of the thumb, and this nerve supplies feeling to most of the thumb and to the index finger, middle finger, and part of the ring finger.

Carpal tunnel syndrome is caused by conditions and activities that put pressure on the median nerve and decrease its blood supply, leading to tingling, numbness, pain, and/or weakness.

I have this each time I am pregnant and it sucks! It goes away after I have the baby which is good. But during the pregnancy it really is horrible. I don't know how people live with it all the time. My sister in law Sandra has it in both of her wrists and she is going to have surgery to fix it.

My right hand is numb all the time. Simple things like picking up a gallon of milk is painful. I drop things all the time and picking them back up at this point in my pregnancy is such a joke.

I just needed to vent because this morning was the worst with the tingling and numbness, I could hardly even feel my hand. Thanks for listening (or reading) and the little anatomy lesson.

So Handsome!!!

Rowdy's preschool did a eye screening in the Spring and the Doctor said I should bring him back during the summer for another exam. Long story short, there is a new kid in town. Doesn't he look like he is ready for med-school (he says he's going to be a doctor when he grows up or a train engineer). Anyways, here is my handsome boy sportin' his new specs. He does really well wearing them and wears them more often than not. The doc says she wants him to wear them at least 5 hrs a day. That is perfect because he can be sure to have them on at school and then take a break when he comes home to play.

I just adore the shot above...He just stood there like that looking out into the field... he looks like a little man standing there with his leg up on the railing.

She's crafty!!!

I made these signs for Rowdy and Avery's room. I used my Cricut (cricut.com) die cut machine to make them. They are about 4 inches by 24 inches. The kids helped me make them. We used acrylic paint, cardstock and Mod Podge. They are super easy and fast to make. I think I will make one for each of my nieces and nephews for Christmas. I got the boards at Micheal's for around $3. They are only about 3/8 of inch thick. Rowdy and Avery carried them all over the house the day after we made them. I was thinking I could make one for each holiday and donate it to the fundraiser at Avery's preschool too!

I have been wanting to make them for awhile but finally got the motivation to do so because it is going to be a project that we will offer at our Super Saturday (all day craft day at church) in October. The lady that asked me to help needed the sample to display.

Just a preview of what is to come...

These images are just a taste of some photos that I will post soon of a little boy you all know.

Here is a bit of trivia...Does anyone know the name of the little guy in the bottom photo? I didn't know until I searched it on the web looking for the picture. I do remember the cartoons he was in with Fog Horn Leg Horn and the other Warner Brothers characters! Boy does that bring back memories of Saturday Morning Cartoons in my pajamas. I can almost smell the maple syrup from the french toast my brother and I made together. I am sure we always destroyed the kitchen each time we did this and I never remember cleaning up the mess or my parents getting upset that we did make a mess. They were probably just glad we made our own grub.

New Look...

Sorry about the header being so huge. But isn't it pretty! Anyways, I still need to figure out how to resize my photos. I was able to add some of my friends that I stalk daily on their blogs, oh did I type that, I mean my friends that also have blogs. Slowly I am making my blog cooler like theirs. Sorry no photos today.

Boy oh Boy!

I changed the color of my blog in honor of this new little boy that will be joining our family soon. I had an appointment yesterday and his head is down (good news) and his heart beat is strong. I just have a minute right now I have so many other things to be doing right now. It looks like a bomb went off in my house. Oh by the way we are thinking of the name Bodie if you haven't heard. We haven't come up with a middle name yet.