My Birthday

I had a lovely, relaxing birthday yesterday. Someone as old as I am now needed a relaxing birthday! ;)

I started off the day eating a nice pancake breakfast Mom and Elizabeth made me. I love that my birthday is in May because almost every year it's nice enough for us to eat breakfast outside!

This is my card from Grandma along with flowers Dad picked for me{yay for daisies!}.

A little sisterly love

In the afternoon I bought finally bought the flowers for my garden. I'm almost halfway done with my garden now!

At night we went to our homeschool groups production of Fiddler on the Roof. It was soo good! This picture of the bottle dancers is the best picture I was able to take during the show.

Our wonderful friends, Willie and Hannah.

Willie was the Rabbi which was perfect for him because he's naturally a very s-l-o-w m-e-t-h-o-d-i-c-a-l person just like the Rabbi in the movie. Hannah was a town's person and soloist.

Elizabeth, Hannah & I

I choose not to have a real birthday party this year because I don't really *need* anything, so I want to have a party for homeless children who otherwise wouldn't have anything special for their birthday. I haven't had my special birthday meal yet either because we're waiting for a time when Daniel and Erika can come, but my family made the day special for me in other ways. All in all, it was a wonderful way to start a new year!

Today

Today I blew bubbles for the babies.

{Pictures of their sweet faces will appear after I discuss with their mother how she feels about them making internet appearances here. Until then, view this highly cropped photo with the knowledge that they are SO RIDICULOUSLY CUTE.}

Today Braden practiced his standing skills.

Today I wondered when either of my married brothers will make me an aunt. I am very impatiently waiting for that day. It takes every ounce of politeness in me not to point out to Daniel and Erika the fact that they've been married for 7 months, 2 days and isn't that long enough? Sometimes I don't have to point it out because others like asking them 'that question' too. : )

Today I spent almost 20 minutes in the Target makeup aisles trying to decide which brand of foundation to buy. Being a girl is complicated. Thank goodness for an aunt who happened to call in my time of need with some foundation advice. That aunt also said that since my birthday is Friday "it should be made into a national holiday and celebrated throughout the country."

Today I almost melted from the heat. With summer right around the bend, I'd better build up my hot weather stamina!

Popcorn

I have some comments:

1. As a little background, this game is called Popcorn. The person lying down holds onto their knees while the others try to "unpop" them. It's a game full of laughter, fun, and plenty of bruises.

2. Somewhere around second 5, I the girl in the blue shirt looks like she trying for all she's worth to take flight. As an eyewitness, I can verify that she was unsuccessful.

3. The most entertaining part about this movie is how Daniel is trying the whole time to get out some indistinguishable words and only succeeds when I go barreling over his head. He was trying to say "HEY! THIS IS NOT SAFE! THIS IS NOT SAFE!"

4. Come attempted flights or unsafe games, Aaron jumps on.

5. Watch for Popcorn coming to a trampoline near you.

The Busy Bus

The very-busy-but-very-fun-week bus came rolling through my life this week.

Since I already blogged about our stay at Gram's, I'll jump right to Thursday. My friend Erin graduated with her Associates Degree in early childhood education so I went up for her party. The theme was Hawaiian/preschool. Its an odd mix, but the Hawaiian part was due to the fact that she and her siblings had bought Hawaiian decorations to use for a surprise 30th anniversary party for their parents only to be told in no uncertain terms that they didn't want a party. Rather than waste the decorations, Erin used them. I had a nice time visiting with Joanna, Erin, Katie{we couldn't get over seeing each other three times in ONE week}, and all of Katie's 10 siblings. After I left the party, I went over to spend the night with Daniel and Erika. I got there at about 10:00 so I only saw Mr. Early Bird for a few minutes. Erika and I, however, stayed up talking til after 12:00. Sometimes girl talks out-weigh even my love for sleep. :) The next morning Erika and I went out for coffee and then went for pedicures. I'd never had a "real" one before, so it was a nice thing to share with her. We went to her office for a few hours then went shopping. It's so fun shopping with someone who's not constantly asking how much longer we're going to be{not that Aaron ever does that!}! We both bought purses at the first store so between the two of us we were carrying around four purses on our shoulders. We got a few looks for that. We took a quick walk around the neighborhood after we got home then I got back on the busy bus.

The next stop was back to Gram's/her daughter's to help watch her grandsons. I don't think two cuter children have ever walked, or crawled as the case may be, the face of the earth. Dad's always telling me I say that about every child, but it is really true this time. I just couldn't get enough of their chubby softness and giggles. Oh, the giggles! I rocked Evan to sleep but couldn't make myself lay him in his car seat. One of my very favorite things in the whole world is holding a sleeping baby and I wasn't about it give him up a minute sooner than I had to. I kept kissing him{kissing babies is another top favorite thing}and thinking that it doesn't really matter if I become a preschool teacher, a Child Life Specialist, a cowboy, or an astronaut as long as I'm a mother with my own little babies to rock to sleep.

The last big event of my weekend was going to my little buddy Noah's Little League game. I meant to go to a game last year but didn't so I wasn't going to let this year get by me too. He looked so grown-up and cute wearing his baseball uniform and blowing bubbles with his gum. It's pretty safe to say that I have myself a new favorite baseball player{but Jason Varitek will always be THE favorite}! Noah was a little hesitant to say much or show much affection towards me around his teammates, but the minute he got home he was giving me hugs and saying "can you play baseball with me before you go? Please?!".

And so ends a very long description of my life that could have been summed up in way less than half the words: I went to Daniel and Erika's, babysat Ryan and Evan, and went to Noah's baseball game. I think all the words just make the story a little more exciting. :)

The Time When We Babysat a Grandmother

Last summer,Katie and I spent a few days "babysitting"{her term,not ours} Gram,a sweet elderly lady from my church who lives with her daughter and son-in-law. They were going to PA for their daughter's college graduation and asked us to stay with Gram again. Even though Katie could only stay the first night, we were more than happy to oblige. We adore spending time with Gram. She loves to see us "go wild" and do things like leave dirty dishes in the sink for more than 15 minutes or make a craft involving cutting and gluing on the living room floor. To most people, this wouldn't be wild, but the fact that it was happening in Gram's daughter's house made it so.

Right after we got to Gram's house, she went down for her afternoon nap which gave Katie and I the perfect opportunity to eat lunch. Our stomachs were so thankful. Then it was time to break out the camera. I'm shocked it took us this long to take pictures{she came Sunday night}. We are HUGE fans of picture taking at every possible moment.

We also attempted 17 self-portraits but the only one that was slightly presentable had three-fourths of her face and only half of mine. It wasn't exactly whole wide internet-worthy.

I had errands to do Monday morning before reporting to the job, so we hopped in the car, turned up the Selah and went on our way. I fully intended to stop at Target for sunglasses, but as we drove s-l-o-w-l-y{so we could see the sales}past Michael's, we were both bitten by the Craft Bug. We actually did drive up to Target but couldn't resist the urge so we turned around and went back to Michael's. After much deliberation and much "I want this one. Wait,I like this one better. Maybe I should just get both. But look at this one!", we choose the flowers we wanted to make ourselves flower barrettes. Putting the unwanted flowers back was like attempting to find where on earth you got the card from that you picked up in the card aisle.

Flower barrette making with S & K

Step 1-pose with your flowers

Step 5- forget to take pictures that document steps 2-4
Step 6-repeat steps 2-5 with all flowers
Step 7- photograph the finished products

I also made a green silk headband with the yellow flowers I bought but don't have a picture of it.{Not a surprise,considering what step 5 is.} We took the cutest pictures of Gram with a white flower in her hair but since she made it very clear that those pictures "had better not end up ON FACEBOOK! If I find out they're ON FACEBOOK, I know where you live...", I'm sure she wouldn't appreciate me putting them on a blog. But they are very cute. One final statement before we move on: I'm very proud{not to mention surprised}that she even knows about Facebook.

We spent the rest of our visit watching the May 17th Conservation Committee meeting{to quote Gram "I just LOVE watching our local town meetings"},searching for the I Love Lucy dvds, eating cheese and cinnamon buns{but not at the same time}, and looking out the window 52 times a day for the baby foxes and their mama. The Great Sarah and Katie P.E.I. Trip of 2011{2012? 2013?}made tremendous planning strides thanks to our brisk walk up and down Laurel Lane. All in all, it was a wonderful time. When I told Katie the Gram and I found the dvds and that the foxes made an appearance exactly three minutes before I left, she said: "the dvds and the foxes will just give us an excuse to go back! :) "

I whole-heartedly agree.

Engagement Bells are in the Air

The other day I got this text message from my friend, Brooke.

Personally, I think they're pretty cute.

Friendly's- Where Birthday Parties are Served

Last week Katie called and asked if I wanted to get together the next Thursday night{which was yesterday}. I told that I would love to but didn't think I could because Dad was having an open house for his new business and I wanted to be there for him. But, I said I'd talk to Dad about anyway just to be sure. Sunday night I told her the verdict: I was going to stay home and help Dad. He said I could go if I wanted, but I decided to stay. Normally I would have JUMPED at any chance to see Katie since we don't spend nearly enough time together, but I knew I'd be seeing her this weekend so I didn't get too stressed out over it.

I thought fully she 'd understood that I couldn't go to Friendly's with her when she called me Wednesday and said "so, do you think you can come tomorrow?". Honestly, I was thinking 'I already told her I couldn't. Why is she asking again??' Seemed a little fishy to me. I was starting to feel bad at this point so I said I'd talk to Dad about it again. This time he was very "it would be good for you to see your friend! You don't get to see her much and I think it would be good for you..." After much more deliberation, I called Katie back saying we could go out after all.

I showed up at Friendly's at preciously 7:36{rich people like to show up fashionably late}and Katie met me at my car. I was in the midst of explaining in too many words why I was late when I turned the corner and saw 9 of my friends sitting at a table with cameras and party crowns and 'happy birthdays!!'

Katie had planned an early surprise birthday party for me.

It took me quite a while to recover from 1) the shock of the whole thing 2) being the center of attention{which I avoid at all costs} and 3) the thought that I probably gave poor Katie 12 gray hairs due to the fact I said I would let her know, then said I couldn't go, then rethought the whole thing before finally giving her the answer she wanted.

They had a party hat, balloons, and lei ready for me at my spot

All my attempts to remain inconspicuous to the rest of the restaurant failed miserably. After all, there's only so much you can do when your seated near the entrance and wearing a tall pointy hat that is constantly knocking the balloons tied to your chair. I saw one dad point me out to his daughter and say "look at her! Doesn't she look funny!" That was right before the Friendly's people came over and sang me their signature birthday song. Do you remember I said something about avoiding the limelight at all costs? Eventually, I realized it was a lost cause and moved on.

The mastermind, one and only bestest friend in the whole wide world, Katie.

I met Erin through Katie{they go to the same church}and I'm so glad to have her as a friend too! We never plan this, but in every single picture of us we're in this pattern. Sarah,Katie,Erin. The world might stop turning if we weren't lined up right.

Marylynn and Joy, my "almost sisters" and Katie's real sisters.

My fabulous sister-in-law was also there.

She's holding a book Joy made that they all wrote really sweet notes in. I felt so loved!

Daniel made an appearance when he came to pick up Erika. He was such a good sport about being with all those ladies. He even{briefly}put on a party crown. Notice we're looking in different directions. The paparazzi was unbelievable.

I can honestly say I feel much better about turning 21 having my birthday than I did before. I've been avoiding talk about said event as much as possible.{Peter Pan hasn't returned any of my calls and emails about a possible trip to Neverland.} Someday when I'm old and gray, I'm sure I'll think 21 is so young just like 15 and 16 has suddenly started to seem young to me. I'm sure Katie and I will be the old ladies who are really kids on the inside!

It's nice to know that when I am old and gray, I'll have such great friends by my side.

Threes

This inspiration behind this post comes to you courtesy of my new blog friend, Ria.

Three names I go by:

Sarah
Sarahbelle
Little Bundle{Pronounced Bundell. I don't really "go" by that name,but some people like to call me it. Plus,its better than the other options I could have shared!}

Three jobs I've had:

teachers aide
sister{its a full-time occupation}
babysitter

Three places I've lived:

United States

New England

my house{I know these aren't the most exciting answers but I've lived in the same house my whole life.}

Three favorite drinks(besides water): 

tea
hot chocolate
lemonade

Three places I've been:

Florida~to visit my grandparents

Washington DC~ visited for the day while we were in Williamsburg

John Adams birthplace and home

Three places I'd like to visit:

Alaska

Austria

Italy

Three favorite foods:

pasta

chicken

oreos

Three makeup products I can't live without:

mascara

foundation

lip gloss

Three things I'm looking forward to:

having a sleepover with the one and only Katie Ann next week

babysitting Addison and Braden on Thursday

planting my flower garden

Three people I'm tagging:

Laura at Laura's Life

Katie at Love and Lattes
Rachel at Finding Joy

Dawn & Gary

There are times in my life when I think to myself "I have the greatest friends."

That's just what I thought when Autumn and Joanna came over to hang out Friday night even though they knew we were going to spend part of the time cleaning. Our friend Dawn was getting married the next day and wanted her house to be clean since they would be spending Saturday night there. As we walked over to Dawn's after supper, we were discussing how we were glad Mom had given me the key to Dawn's house so we wouldn't have to climb through the window to get in.

We ended up having to climb through the window anyway. The key Mom gave me was to the theirold door.

We walked around back and after examination of the house, discovered that Marisa and Rebecca's bedroom window was open. I started to hoist Joanna through the window but barely got her 3 inches off the ground before she looked at me and said "I'll lift you. I have muscles."Sometimes the truth hurts but it was much more effective than me lifting her. We don't have any pictures of the actual entry because Autumn was too busy laughing to man the camera, but I was basically shot through the window at a rapid speed and only saved myself from an abrupt{and potentially disastrous}landing on the floor by grabbing onto the bunk bed. I don't think Joanna knows her own strength. We had fun cleaning but the enthusiasm level really shot up when I casually mentioned something about the newlyweds spending Saturday night there. I was so sure I had told them but maybe it somehow slipped by. It was a very important detail! We left this sign for them on the kitchen table.

*Dum-dum-dee-dum. Here comes the wedding.*

Mom and Dawn have been best friends from when Andrew was a baby. We were so thrilled to celebrate her wedding. She waited so long for her Prince Gary.

Andrew and Debbie "looking cute" before the wedding.

Dawn looked beautiful. I'm so glad she picked this dress when we went dress shopping together.

Dawn with her girls, Marisa and Rebecca.

I took this picture at the exact same time the wedding photographer took it from the other side. I love how it like they're glowing. Almost angelic. :)

Gary and Dawn wrote the sweetest song that they played for their first dance.

Aaron had to dance with Marisa during the wedding party dance since they had an odd number of groomsmen/bridesmaids. Dawn taught them a dance but it basically went out the window by showtime. I had to give him a little refresher course. I can't believe he's so much taller than me!

Don't let his face fool you. He enjoyed it.

Dawn was so sweet. She made a speech during the reception thanking the twins for singing You Raise Me Up during the ceremony and telling them how special they are to her. She then said it was their 16th birthday and asked everyone to sing Happy Birthday to them. She even gave Elizabeth her bouquet instead of tossing it.

The happy couple are honeymooning in Paris.{Must be tough!}

Congratulations Dawn and Gary! We love you!

♥♥

There's a reason MOM is WOW upside down

"Pooh!" whispered Piglet.

"Yes,Piglet?" said Pooh.

"Oh, nothing," said Piglet.

"I was just making sure of you."

Thanks for always making sure of us,Mom.

We love you around the world 152,569,203,452,200 times. And then some.

"And her children{and husband}will rise up and bless her."

Sixteen

Sixteen years ago we had one infant car seat, one crib, one high chair, and one very pregnant mother.

Sixteen years ago Mom and Dad went to the hospital to have the baby.

Sixteen years ago Aaron Gerard came into the world.

Sixteen years ago the doctors looked at each other in disbelief and said "We seem to have a problem. We think there might be another one in there."

Sixteen years ago, an hour and a half after Aaron was born, Elizabeth Mary came into our lives.

Sixteen years ago we had surprise twins on Mothers Day.

Sixteen years ago we still had one infant car seat, one crib and one highchair...but we now had TWO babies.

Sixteen years ago we were a little shocked.

Sixteen years ago we were so in love with those two little babies.

Sixteen years ago I was the happiest, proudest big sister in the whole world.

Aaron & Elizabeth, May 8th, 1994

***

I have a few comments on this picture:

1. It proves that right from the beginning Elizabeth was a stubborn little person. Aaron was being so cooperative with his eyes open for the picture, and Elizabeth was just sleeping away with no thoughts whatsoever about opening her eyes her their first photo shoot.

2. Can you imagine being the only person in the world who knew there was another person in your mommy's tummy with you? That's a lot of responsibility to put on one tiny person. Poor Aaron.

3. The very sweetest thing about this picture{because it's complete and utter cuteness}is that they're holding hands. Isn't that the sweetest thing ever?

4. I wish they were babies again.

5. I ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ them.

Tis the season for Cute Toes

Just consider it your fashion tip of the day.

You're very welcome.

Just Me and My Grandma's

Part of Celebrating Mothers week at Quaint and Quirky.

Like most people, I have two grandmothers. Unlike most people, I have the world's greatest grandmothers.

{There's nothing like starting off with a controversial statement.}

I am so pleased to introduce you to my dear, wonderful Grandma number 1.

{For the sake of clarification, "number 1" means she's being featured first, not that I love her more. It also has to do with the fact we call both grandmothers "grandma" which can lead to some confusion. }

For the almost 21 years of my life, I have lived next to this peach of a person:

Of the almost 7,665 days of my life, I've seen Grandma almost every single one. You can grow very close and attached to someone you see so often! She loves to help others. When the twins were born, Grandma took a long break from her weekly card games with the ladies so she could do the grocery shopping for Mom. I usually went with her and we'd stop at McDonalds on the way home to have lunch together. She's so helpful that when there was police activity going on a few streets over, she walked right up to a policeman and asked him if he needed any help. It's been said that she's so friendly that people she meets in the grocery store probably send her Christmas cards.

Grandma taught me how to play Rummy and we now spend our Thursday nights doing just that.

She usually wins but I have noticed a definite improvement in my playing lately{hallelujah!}. Take a look at the picture and notice specifically the cards we're each holding. She has two and I have eight. Chances are that right after this picture Grandma went out leaving me with all those cards in my hand. I would have then had to subtract them from the cards on the table which made me lose 45 points. I'm quite familiar with the whole process, in case you couldn't tell. Card playing is not in vain even when I lose; all the fun,laughter and Peanut Butter cups are so worth it.

She's not only one of MY favorite grandma's, just ask my friends: they all call her Grandma too. See, that's the mark of true grandma...everybody else wants her too.

♥

Grandma number 2, aka Grandma Connie, aka far-away Grandma

Grandma Connie is one of the funniest, sweetest, happiest people I know. She has the greatest personality and will draw anyone in. One time when we were visiting her and Grandpa in Florida, we stopped at BJ's to order pizza. The lady behind the counter had a sour look on her face and just wasn't very nice. As we walked away, Grandma said: "you know, maybe she's had a rough day." Sure enough, when we went to pick up the pizza she talked to Irene and yes, in fact, she was having a bad day. Grandma was so sweet and patient with her and by the time we left, she was smiling.{Doesn't that sound like a Chicken Soup for the Soul story?}. Speaking of stories, Grandma can tell a story like nobodies business. She's so animated and literal about everything we laugh the whole time we're together.

This Grandma is my fashionable grandma. She loves big jewelry, purses and her outfits always go together perfectly. Whenever I wear bigger than normal for me jewelry, I always call it "my Grandma Connie jewelry".

The only problem with far-away Grandma is that she's far-away. We don't get to see and hug her nearly enough. Even so, she's still one of my very favorite people.

♥

Weekend Happenings

Friday-

Friday night I watched these crazy kids.

They often tell me I'm their most favorite babysitter. I've learned to be very careful about excepting such compliments because it's usually followed by "can I look at your phone?" or "can we stay up just a little longer?"

If I didn't know better, I'd think they're trying to bribe me.

Saturday-

Elizabeth and I cooked supper together.

This was a really big thing for her because as a general rule she's not a fan of cooking with others. I asked if she'd like to be featured on my blog and suddenly cooking together was SUCH A GOOD IDEA!

I was in the onion peeling group and she headed up the onion cutters.

I guess I missed an onion.

{Poor girl, she was featured on a day the flash--basically the whole camera-- seemed to be having some issues. She'll be featured again in-depth when I have my Andrew's camera.}
Sunday-
After church I went to see this little cutie, Miss Molly McButter, perform in her very first dance recital.

Isn't she the most adorable thing you've ever seen?!

I'm pretty sure she was more excited about wearing red lipstick and glittler hair gel then about the actual dancing! Her mom asked me to put her hair in a bun so she could finish getting ready. After about 16 bobby pins and copious amounts of hair gel{"don't forget my sparkly gel!"} she had an up-do that I was praying would make it through the show without falling out on-stage.

This is the best picture I could get of her hair. Like most people in show biz, she was running a little late and didn't have time to stop for the paparazzi.

She's so sweet I could eat her up! ♥