Beach Bums

We enjoyed a 10 day trip to Hilton Head recently and spent our days boogie boarding, sandcastle building, eating popsicles and Salty Dog ice cream, and soaking up the summer sun. Our friends the Gatlins joined us for a week which provided lots of fun and entertainment b/c between the two families we have 5 children under the age of 5 and 2 babies on the way! We brough reinforcement in the form of Debra the 'super nanny' and without her I'm not sure we could have ever gone anywhere! The husbands joined us on the weekend and provided lots of help and spent hours with the big boys out in the surf mastering their boogie boarding skills. We only had one rainy day which turned out to be great fun because we discovered the new childrens museum on the island which had lots to keep the kids busy- a pirate ship, airplane cockpit and building zone. Thank goodness for great kids museums! As the Gatlins drove away our next group of friends arrived. Scott's best childhood friend Ben Haigh and his wife, their twin 3 1/2 year olds and their best friends from Atlanta, Scott and Stephannie, along with their 7 week old 'baby Lukas', spent the next weekend with us and celebrate Father's Day! It was so fun to reunite with all of them and Nate has already announced that we need to name our new baby Lukas b/c he was so cute. Spending so much time at the beach and in the pool has made the boys absolutely fearless and they are both swimming like fish and jumping off the diving board(mostly Grant) which terrifies me! We head back in a week to celebrate the 4th and spend a few more weeks in the sand! Guess we'll be beach bums a little longer.... life could be worse!

Nate loved boogie boarding!

Nate and Grant with Jake and Tucker Gatlin at Hudsons for dinner- our little pirates for the week! Argghhhh!! They had so much fun together.Fearless Grant!
Happy Father's Day to Scott! What would we do without our Daddy? He's the best!

The Haigh/Martin/Snow group on Father's Day!

It's a.....

BOY!

Looks like I will remain the 'Queen of Everything' around here a little longer! Boy #3 is on his way and we couldn't be more excited. Nate has declared our house a 'Boys Club'! Bring on the father/son campouts!! Guess I should think about selling my barbies on ebay :) Below is the real ultrasound pic from today!

Deep thoughts... by Nate Snow

Last night as I was tucking Nate into bed, I informed him that his Daddy would be returning home from a business trip in just one more day! Nate's eyes lit up and he said 'I'm so glad Daddy is coming home... because if Daddy wasn't here then we wouldn't be a Family'. Sweet boy.

Nate loves for me to make up 'stories with no pages' when I put him to bed. When we returned from our cruise I told him a story all about Mommy and Daddy's cruise adventures. I told him about swimming with stingrays, and sleeping on a rocking boat every night, and eating lots of food... I then slipped in that we had even gotten ice cream from the Ben and Jerry's ice cream shop onboard- thinking he would find that fascinating to have ice cream on a boat! But instead he replied- 'Mom- if you had ice cream, then that means that kids are supposed to be on your boat too!!' (I had told him this cruise was just for Mommy's and Daddy's!) He is just getting way too smart these days....

Cruising with friends...

15 couples from our days at HBS- it was a great reunion!
An excursion in Jamaica to Dunn's River Falls was quite an adventure!
The 'classmates' from HBS Class of '03
All dressed up for the 'formal' night onboard

We just returned from a fantastic 5 day reunion caribbean cruise with 15 LDS couples from our days at Harvard Business School. These reunions have become an 'every other year' thing but this year we all got smart and declared it a couples getaway (no children allowed) and I've completely lost my voice from all the non-stop adult conversation the entire trip! I was also more tired when I arrived home from the crazy late night Settlers tournaments and disco dancing nights- not my normal routine with kids! A cruise was a new thing for me, but I have to say it was perfect for a group of our size. It was easy to contain everyone yet still allow everyone to do their own thing and meet up for delicious meals and events. We also had some fun excursions in Jamaica and Grand Cayman that proved to be very memorable! But a cruise is a cruise, and there of course were things that caught us a little offguard as 'non-cruisers' like the singing and dancing every night during dinner from our wait staff, the 'macarena' moment at dinner (Scott refused to participate), karaoke galore, and the cruise ship directors non-stop activities on board (belly flop competition anyone??). But we managed to stay clear of most of that and just enjoyed relaxing and visiting with old friends.The children were well taken care of at home by our dear Fely- I don't know how she does it- but she kept my kids entertained, my house clean and organized, and even had my refrigerator full of delicious food when we arrived home! The kids cried when we dropped her off at the airport! I considered that a good sign- they must have had a wonderful time with her. Thank you Fely!

Take me out to the ballgame....

Nate and his buddy Tucker

We attended a local minor league Warthogs baseball game as the last and final 'birthday event' for Nate last weekend and invited along our good friends the Gatlins from Charlotte. Nate loved his night at the game with his best buddies, Tucker, Jake and Nicholas and of course his brother Grant. They loved the action of the game, the carousel, mini golf, and treats. Nate had a hysterical breakdown when the mascot, 'Wally the Warthog' came to say hello! He eventually calmed down and made it through the rest of the game, careful to avoid that 'Wally' fellow. Afterwards though, he asked, 'Mom- when is my real party going to be'?? He is so confused with this concept of a 'family party'. He keeps waiting for all of his friends to show up with gifts... poor kid. Next year will be that much more exciting!!! This photo made me laugh- I really wanted a group shot with the lit field behind us but getting 5 kids under the age of 5 to smile as we stood in front of a carousel was an impossible feat!!! I think it perfectly describes our day-to-day life.... chaotic fun!!!

Happy 4th Birthday Nate!

HAPPPY BIRTHDAY TO OUR SWEET NATE! Today is the day... May 15th. Just 4 years ago our little Nathaniel Scott Snow arrived on the scene and our lives were permanently altered! We have loved seeing Nate grow this year- it has been fascinating to see his little mind at work, forming his own ideas and opinions. It has been heartwarming to watch him with his little brother who is now old enough and smart enough to keep up with him- they are becoming great buddies. Nate has made sweet friendships this year with classmates and church friends and has recently added a new line to his prayers at night; 'please bless my friends in the gospel'! Nate is the ultimate negotiator, enjoys 'making a deal' with his Mom and Dad, or 'making trades' with his little brother for desired toys. We feel blessed to have him in our home!

This year is Nate's 'family party' year (I've taken a note from my own mother and I'm alternating family/friend parties to save my sanity!). We enjoyed a family party Sunday night with Daddy before he left town for the week. Nate requested a baseball theme this year so we had a delicious baseball cake and we are all off to a local Warthogs Baseball game this Saturday night for a fun birthday celebration! The party never ends!

Mother's Day

Hope all you mothers had a wonderful day! My boys spoiled me with lots of love and this beautiful necklace with a disc for each of the boys with their names,birthdates and birthstones on it. Nate took the close-up photo of the necklace himself! He kept asking me all day to show him his name again and again! I also got an uninterrupted afternoon nap! That is love! We also enjoyed a great conversation with my brother 'Elder Morgan' who was allowed to call home on Mother's Day! He is such a great example to my boys and we are so proud of him! I'm so grateful to be a mother... it is better than any other experience life has to offer. I've always liked this poem, and was reminded of it on this Mother's Day:

To My Child:

You are the trip I did not take

You are the pearls I cannot buy

You are my blue italian lake

You are my piece of foreign sky

(Anne Campbell)

Go Green Gators!

Nate had his first real soccer game on Saturday! The 'Green Gators' played hard but despite their best efforts lost 1-0. The entire game was quite entertaining though... it will probably take the entire season for the kids to figure out which goal is their own! We were so proud of Nate- it was a hot day but he stuck with it and played the entire game and didn't complain. He had several great kicks and loved 'running with the pack'. He even played goalie for a little while and didn't let any balls sneak in! The fun continues next Saturday!

Happy exhausted Mother's Day to me....

As some of you already know, we are expecting baby #3 in early November! It's very exciting, and I really have nothing to complain about but I have been very tired, often not able to keep my eyelids open after 2pm in the middle of the day! It's been especially hard b/c Nate has started giving up his afternoon naps for a few months now and so I have been trying to find ways to entertain him/distract him long enough for me to lay on the couch or bed and catch a powernap. A tivo'd show or DVD usually has done the trick and let's us both have a little 'quiet time'. Well this week, he presented me with my Mothers Day card that he made at preschool. It reads 'I LOVE MY MOM BECAUSE..... SHE GIVES ME A SNACK AND DRINK AND LETS ME WATCH A SHOW'. Wow- those preschool teachers must think I'm supermom huh?? But if that isn't telling of our life the past 14 weeks I don't know what is. I almost cried thinking that of all the wonderful things we do together like picnics at the park and mornings at the Childrens Museum and jaunts to strawberry farms that the only thing he loves me for is a fruit snack and tv show!!! But then I realized.... maybe he loves me for it b/c he isn't usually allowed to do it- so I've succesfully convinced myself that I'm still a great Mom - just a really tired one lately that lets her kids do things she normally wouldn't everyday!!!! (But I did just read a study about how many hours a day children are now watching television starting at 6 months old and I'm feeling a teeny bit guilty again... it never ends!! I'm going to take a nap!)

Jamberry, Jamberry....

We visited a strawberry farm on Wednesday with a group of Mom's from playgroup and their kids. Who knew that NC was the 4th largest producer of strawberries in the country?? It was news to me. It was a cloudy and cold day but perfect for doing manual labor! Nate and Grant had a grand time running up and down the rows looking for 'giant strawberries' and Grant couldn't help taking a bite our of each of his and then putting it in his bucket. I loved the feeling of picking my own fruit right off the vine- it felt so trendy and organic of me! We ended up with 2 gallons of strawberries and I'm still trying to figure out what to do with them all! Send me recipes if you have any good ones! (My camera died the second I turned it on at the farm, so my good friend promises she is sending photos soon- for now you can see the 'fruits of our labor' as the boys enjoyed their strawberry shortcake after dinner that night. )

The Croc effect

I never imagined that my 3 year old BOY would get caught up in a trend so early in life. The 'Croc' shoe trend has swept the nation but we did not jump on that bandwagon because frankly I just thought they were downright strange looking. Well after an entire summer of watching his friends wearing them, and now with summer arriving again, Nate has been begging for 'crocodile shoes'! So when Scott and I had a little getaway this past weekend to Atlanta, I told the kids if they were very, very good I would bring them a surprise. I stopped in at Nordstrom and scooped up a little 'bribe gift' for my children.......... yes, I succumbed to the trend and to the pressures of my 3 year old child and bought crocs! But they could not be happier- Nate even asked if he could wear them to bed! They both love their 'crocodile shoes' and I even have to admit they are kind of cute!

As for Atlanta, Scott and I had a great time catching up with some business school friends of Scott's over breakfast (pictured above are Navin and Alisha, two of his section mates who married, and their darling little boy Ashton), attending the Atlanta temple, shopping the endless stores (well I enjoyed that a little more than Scott), dining at the popular 'Bones Restaurant' and seeing the Braves play the Dodgers! The chance to sleep-in was nice as well- thank you Westin for that heavenly bed! Our great friends, the Gatlins, watched our boys, a trade we were cashing in after we watched theirs for a weekend a few months ago. 5 boys under the age of 5! No easy task... but the kids are already asking to go back for a sleepover again! Thanks guys!

Baby Buzz

Last week I had the chance to attend the JPMA trade show in Orlando which is the largest baby trade show on the east coast. I do some marketing consulting for a local baby sling company and I decided that I would attend to help out with on site marketing and sales and make some good press contacts etc... My wonderful husband and a few great friends made it possible for me to go. And even though I was technically 'working' I had so much fun as a Mom going to see all the latest and greatest baby products out there and of course taking a plane ride by myself was a little luxury too. (To all my friends who asked- sadly Bugaboo has not come out with a double stroller yet! But I can only imagine how pricey it will be when they do! Start saving now!) Here is a quick shot of the final booth- small but a great size for our first show. (A friend here in our ward actually built that beautiful counter.) And below are links to my absolute favorite new products that are going to be BIG in the next year. So all you moms, take note!

www.allweatherwoobee.com (I purchased a sample of this darling product- great for a stroller or carseat and a fun little picnic blankie or changer. And they are made in seattle!)

www.babylegs.net (This product made me want a little girl! They do have them for boys but soemthing about leg warmers on my boys just didn't work for me.)

www.kaboost.com (This product won't launch until July but it is genius! The strangest thing is that a single guy with no kids invented it! Why couldn't I have thought of that?! It' s perfect for my 2 year old who refuses a booster and wants a big boy chair but makes a mess!)

www.joovy.com (The joovy caboose is a hot new must-have. So much better than a sit n stand b/c you can actually strap both children in and the area that carries the car seat upfront is also a seat when the child grows bigger. Very clever and cute colors.)

www.mayawrap.com (had to plug this product- baby slings and carriers are becoming so trendy! I saw tons of great ones. Still think this style is the safest and most comfortable, but there are so many fun ones to choose from these days!)

Bend it like Nate

Nate's latest obsession... soccer. We signed him up at our local YMCA with a few of his little friends and he was counting the days until the season started. He wore the cleats all around the house the first day I bought them, and he cried and cried when I banished them to the garage so they wouldn't scratch floors or injure his brother. But when he got to finally wear them on the field, he was in heaven! Notice his shirt- it was his Daddy's soccer shirt when he was little! Thank you to Grandma Snow for saving those kinds of things... it was a full circle moment! He gets his team colors next week and he can't wait to have his very own soccer shirt. Maybe I'll save it for his first little son :)

Easter by the sea

The easter bunny was good to these boys! Here they are with Grandma and Grandy's Easter baskets and goodies. Nate's favorite was the $1 bills in his easter eggs!
Grant and BG- he is really branching out these days and is including others

in his circle and not just his mommy and daddy... thank goodness!

(Don't you love Grant's new favorite mode of transportation?)My boys- getting ready for a kayak. They loved being out on the water. Are we ready for the ski boat now??

I cannot believe how busy things got as soon as we arrived home from the beach. Life kicked into high gear and I have not had one free hour to even update our little blog! Here are a few pics from our lovely Easter in Hilton Head with Mom, Fely and Grandma and Grandy Morgan. The weather was unusually cold by the end of our stay so sadly our easter egg hunt was a little short and my children were freezing in their little easter outfits! But we had a great time doing other beach activities like biking, kayaking and visiting the lighthouse.

Vroom Vroom

Life has been speeding by.... literally. Last week Mom and Fely arrived for a visit and spent a few days with us enjoying the spring weather, preschool easter egg hunts, countless hours in the backyard on the playset, furniture shopping etc... On Saturday, we all made the trek down to Lowe's Motor Speedway in Concord, NC for Mom, Scott and our good friend Justin Gatlin to cash in a little 'stocking stuffer' they all received for Christmas (thanks to my sister Whitney's hook ups with Nascar and Team Tylenol!)- a Richard Petty Driving School Experience which included Nascar driver training, 10 laps around the track behind the wheel of an official car, and a thrill like no other. They all had a blast, and the kids loved seeing the track and hearing the deafening roar of the race cars. (Nate wanted to drive one so badly, he was so sad to learn that they didn't come in his size.) Then it was right onto our next activity, so we hopped in the car and continued south for our spring break week in Hilton Head. Can I just say how nice it was to take a road trip with 3 adults on hand to help?? I'm not sure I can do it alone ever again! Like I said- life is speeding by, I'm hoping a little time at the beach will start to slow things down. I already feel more relaxed just being here.....

Mental Health Weekend

My children were sick all last week- they had it all- croup cough, fever, tummy aches, runny noses etc... Then I caught the bug too! I had planned a 'mental health weekend' with my friend from Charlotte, Michelle, for the upcoming weekend, and there were so many reasons to stay in town (i.e. nurse my children back to health), but at Scott's urging, off I went, sniffles and all! We retreated to Hilton Head where we basked in 75 degree weather, enjoyed a half day spa package, shopped 'til we dropped, ate at restaurants we would never bring our kids to, and slept, slept, slept!! It was a rest that I desperately needed and something I highly recommend. We both couldn't believe what a fun and perfect weekend it had been! Then, on the way home, as we cruised along in Michelle's husband's Saab convertible, we blew a tire!!! I have never had a flat tire in my life- the sound completely took me off guard and scared us to death! Well, 2 calls to AAA later, a call to AMEX roadside assistance, and still no help- we started hoping that someone might stop and help two very desperate looking women! And then it happened... our knight in shining... leather??? A motorcyclist pulled over donning a leather jacket that read 'Christian Motorcyclist Association'! Only in the south! Ralph was his name and he was the nicest old man on his way to 'bike week' in Daytona, FL! He got the tire changed and sent us on our way! He was our hero! (And of course I didn't have my camera with me! What a shame! I wish you could have seen him!)

So here is my breakdown of the mental health weekend:

-Cold Medicine and Tissues $20

-Gasoline $60

-2 boxes Girl Scout Cookies $7

-1 box Krispy Kremes $3

-6 Diet Cokes $5

-12 bottles of water $6

-2 Chick-Fil-A Milkshakes $4

-Spa Treatments $250

-Shopping $200 (my husband might read this, so i'm rounding down)

-Dinner at Charley's Crab $100

-AAA membership - worthless

-Ralph of the Christian Motorcyclist Association..... PRICELESS!!!

Grant Celebrates #2 with a Choo-Choo!

Grant turns two on Monday so we kicked off the birthday weekend with a little choo-choo themed birthday party this morning with a few of his good friends and of course, Thomas the train! It was a big hit! Ms. Lorraine, who teaches kindermusik and teaches music at his school, came by and did a great 'train themed' music class, then the kids played trains on the train table, ate a tasty lunch catered by chick-fil-a (Grant's favorite), then devoured the Thomas cake! The finale was a fun Thomas pinata (a non-violent one that uses ribbons instead of bats)! The only tantrum Grant threw all day was when I tried to get him into his train conductor overalls and hat that he had loved at Halloween. He yelled 'NO!!! Take it off' mommy and screamed and cried until I finally removed the overalls and let him choose his own outfit! I think I officially have a 2 year old!!!

At the Carwash Yeah...

It has been a hectic and crazy week and a half. Scott has been MIA- first on a ski trip, then right to a company retreat at a fanastic resort and spa(let's just say I was slightly bothered the wives weren't invited along) and then off on a business trip! We all missed him so much! I was holding strong and actually being very productive with spring cleaning projects while he was away until the last day when Grant came down with the stomach flu and I found myself cleaning carpets all day and following him around the house with a bowl! I was ready for some backup to arrive! When Scott was finally home for his first full day with us on Saturday Nate asked him 'Daddy, you don't have to go skiing today or to any meetings or on any planes??!!'. Needless to say, Nate didn't leave his side all day. The highlight of the day was a father-son carwash. It wasn't even that warm- maybe mid-50's- but Nate declared that it was sunny and so it was fine to have a car wash! I wasn't surprised when he showed up at the back door shivering and saying he was cold and wanted to come inside now!

Lots of Love!

We have been very busy getting ready for Valentine's Day! We hosted a fun playgroup at our house where we had lollipop and candy making, cupcake decorating, and card making! It was a hit! The kids had a great time, and surprisingly the house wasn't too much of a disaster! We also visited a pottery painting studio last week where the kids each painted a plate for their Daddy for Valentines's Day with their own handprint on it! They turned out very cute- Scott was really impressed! I'll post a photo of the finished product soon- my camera is on a ski vacation with Scott! There are advantages to being the only girl in the family sometimes... Valentine's Day is one of those times. The boys spoiled me with beautiful roses, a little extra sleep, and a nice dinner out on the town! Hope you all had a great Valentine's Day!
Filling the lollipop molds

Painting their plate for Daddy

A snow day, sort of...

Winter has found us again. When the weatherman predicted snow yesterday, everyone started cancelling things around town. Preschool was cancelled before we even went to bed last night(and before any snow had fallen!), and when the snow did fall this morning at 6am we only got about an inch and it's already melting! But we enjoyed the little snow that was left on the ground and the boys really loved it this time. I let Nate choose a 'snow saucer' at the grocery store last night just in case, and it is his new favorite thing! Grant even had a smile which is a big improvement over our last snowy day experience! Nate asked 'Did the snow follow us all the way from Connecticut mommy?'. What a difference from last time!
Nate loved his 'snow saucer'- he just needs a little more snow to pick up speed!