to whom it may concern,

Yesterday we spent the day at the beach, and it made us realize that we love the beach. We love having the beach always within reach. I can't image living anywhere else, but close to the ocean.

So we are not moving back home... ever.

Sincerely,

The Dake Family

my best friends.

a post with a photos.

Photo: Guess where I found the boys yesterday? In Jason's room, at the train table. The best thing about having 2 more boys, is those hundreds and hundreds of dollars of trains are really going to get our moneys worth of play. They are the good wooden ones and will hold up well through the torture of two more little boys. After I took the first picture, they heard the click and turned around for the second photo.

Yesterday: Starbucks. Airport. Bell. Wendy's. Chinese. Three Boys. 250+ Miles. Sunshine and Rain. Long Baby Naps In The Van. Picked A Dandelion. Made 3 Wishes In A Fountain, One For Each Boy. North Carolina. South Carolina.

Today: Coffee. The Shining. Hubby On Leave. Bell. Kindergarten. Two Babies. The Zoo. Photos to post on flicker. Emails to check. Reminiscing To-Do. Grocery Shopping. Hoping for a Beautiful Day.

just another day in paradise..

An amazing thing happened last night, I was only up once. The second time Zachary woke up I gave his bottle to him in the crib, he drank it and went back to sleep on his own. Awesome.

We went to Target last night, they had a great baby gate that I will get, I forgot my coupons. But still no luck in the high chairs hunt. I think this weekend we will travel over to Harbison BLVD. and hit Babies R Us. I need to stop at Bed Bath and Beyond too.

Today still needs some housework accomplished. I have to take Jason to and from school then speech. Then we are headed to Charlotte, NC to pick up one Bell. I am so excited to have her here.. She is an amazing help and will be a terrific mother one day. Hopefully to at least one girl so I can spoil her with pinks.

Tomorrow we are hitting the Zoo. And we are thinking possibly Folley Beach over the weekend.

And I was thinking Sushi and Brew..

pour myself a cup of ambition..

Well, technically it is Maxwell House Rich blend, but whatever Dolly. Today's to do involves a ton of housework and trying to restrain babies without busting out duct tape. (Tonight we are going to Target for baby gates.) I have to pick up Jason and I may stop at the post office, but that is it. I am a huge fan off staying off the roads. Alright time to tackle those t0-do's..

wrecked.

My day.. Honestly. Is it over yet? Today I was headed to pick up Jason and was about 15 minutes before he got out and someone hit me in the van. I had the babies with me and we were all fine. Some older lady had rear ended me and she did NOT want to call the MP's to file a report.. I thought this was a huge No-No. BUT my vehicle was fine, she had hit my ball hitch and that is like a good 12" out behind the van. So when she went back to her car to write down all the info, I still quickly called Jacques, told him we were fine but to call the MP's...

After swapping numbers and such, we get back in our cars and finally a MP pulls up to my window and asks if things are okay. I reply that we had a fender bender and swapped information and he says:

"Okay you are good to go."

And leaves!!

I am like okay, If he says everything is fine... I guess.

So 5 minutes go by and I am way gone by now and the hubby calls and asked if a MP made it there. I was like yeah, but we left.. And he freaks telling me go back, you can't leave and what not's.. But I am like the MP didn't do anything.

Basically the old lady wanted to not file a claim and take care of her repairs herself. She had very slight damage. She said to call her if I did find any damage and we both have the same insurance company. And it was her fault, so anyway..

I am still way frazzled and worried that the FBI will be knocking down my door in the next 5 minutes, dousing me with tear gas and throwing me in Shawshank for fleeing the scene of a crime.. Maybe my story can be a Lifetime Network flick..

I think Dolly Parton should play my character.

random.

Another rough night. Zachary was up 3 or 4 times before 12:30 and then once again at 3:30. One time I was up with him, he fell asleep I put him back in the crib. We were up again 9 minutes later. Six this morning came very quickly.

Jason could not get to school fast enough today. He had a great first day and knew lots of his class mates from last year. He said his table got in trouble because of their noise level once.

I realized today that my camera is 1 year old and in that year, I took 7,140 photos.

I posted some photos on flickr already. I am also going to start a new set with Jason's school work and drawings.

I got some awesome mail yesterday with $135.00 in gift certificates. Here is another BIG THANK YOU to that special someone. It meant a lot to us and I hope you know that. Hugs!

Becca will be here in 2 days. Yay!

I have a ton of stuff piled on my desk that needs my attention: books, magazine, papers, mail and scrap supplies. But first thing on my desk that I am all over, COFFEE..

Today To Do: Housework. Go pick Jason up at 12:30. Go to speech at 1:30. Ball Game at 6 pm.

kindergarten.

My baby headed off to Kindergarten. Can you believe that? Where did all that time go? He was super excited to go and had no issues. He really couldn't wait to see his friends. And I took a ton of photos and none of them are exceptionally great. Grrr. I may need to take more after school. His schedule this year is 8-12:30 and they do not have lunch.

And as for the rest of of my night, (Get it, rest of the night? Hehehe, that would be funny if I ever got any!), I took Zachary back to bed at 3:55 am and he stayed asleep until 6:30. So I did manage to catch a few winks until I got up at 6:00. I think maybe a good hour and a half.

And as for the weekend, I did watch Troy and LOVED it! I did have steak and tatos, and we did buy a six pack, but didn't drink any. I also saw Dan in Real Life and loved it. The hubby mowed and got a lot done outside.

No plans for today. Just Enjoying Life on Little Sleep.

3:07 am

And Zachary has been up at..

9:30 pm
10:36 pm
12:34 am
1:30 am
2:06 am
2:40 am
3:07 3m

And now it is 3:15 am. Today I stripped his bedding with the intent to wash it. It never made it into the wash, so he has different sheets on than usual, I think that is obviously an issue..

But the good thing about being up at 3 in the morning is Urban Cowboy just started on HBO. And it is starting again at 4:45, so just in case I am up again, I have it autotuned.

you're getting an earful today..

Consider that your warning.. This may get long. Maybe you should grab lunch first then come back. Oh good you're ready! Here we go..

Because I haven't done an eight month update on the babies, I thought I should. They are just growing like weeds. Both are pulling up and standing to things. They are eating great, including lots of people food.. Today they had some waffles. They are gigglers and easily entertained by Jason. Walks keep them busy and they love being outside. At restaurants, they now sit in high chairs and that keeps them content, happy with mouths wide open. Zachary is a big Daddy's Boy and Ryan is a Momma's Boy.

Now that I have chatted about my littlest boys, it's only fair to tell you about my biggest boy. Yesterday Jason had speech. He has it 2 days a week and loves going. He is already correcting his Ff's and now we are working with Vv's too. He got a haircut yesterday so he is ready for school. He starts Kindergarten on Monday. I have a child in elementary school.. Wow. And today he delivered his Christmas list to me which included 12 items. It seems a little early for Christmas, maybe he didn't get the memo.

If you are a steady Dake Things reader, you know that I usually have black strong coffee running through my veins. I have been wanting a coffee pot with an automated timer so in the mornings it is always ready for me. Anyway I saw on the Fine Living Network that they were reviewing coffee makers. There were about 5 of them with all different price ranges.. They did a blind taste test with all the same coffees and all brewed the same according to the directions.. And the winner was the Black and Decker Smart Brew for $28 bucks, I will be adding that to my shopping list. I am also going to get a reusable coffee filter for it. I am excited at the thought of an amazing coffee brewed here at my home... Hopefully Starbucks will continue to thrive without some of my business.

As for the weekend, I want to eat some kick ass steak and loaded baked potato's while indulging in an ice cold adult beverage. I am thinking bottled Bud Light, poured into a frosted glass. Yum! It is not often we have beer and we never keep any in the house. So on the rare occasion that I do want beer, it always tastes exceptionally well.

I would like to do something creative, anything really. It has been a while since I done any scrapping. I'd like to clean out the vehicles and the grass needs mowed. I am sure Jason would love to slip and slide and we can plop the babies in their pool. I have yet to start my new book, maybe that will happen.. I doubt it. We bought the movie Troy because I still haven't seen it and who doesn't love a great Greek tragedy with the Pittster half naked in the whole thing? I think we can make time to see that too this weekend.

Okay I need to email the hubby a grocery list for after work. Have a Good One, See ya back here on Monday! Hugs, Momma Dake

thursday 8:11 am.

Three cups of coffee later.. All bottles are washed, babies are fed and videos uploaded. Click below for each video. I fed Jason too..

Zachary Low Crawling.

Zachary silly with Daddy.

Ryan Silly Laughing.

Ryan saying da da.

four.

The number of times I was up with Zachary last night. I am extremely grouchy this morning and I am going to need a lot of caffeine to survive the day.

My Ss key is sticking on the computer, so I have to back type and that is making me more grouchy. And the computer was off when I sat down. I had to wait on it.. More Grouchy.

I need to wash all but 4 bottles. That is like more that 30 x3 parts each. I am not in the mood. It is not a fun good and it takes at least a good half hour.

Two dirty diapers already from only one baby.

But I do have a funny by Jason from a few days ago. They say you are suppose to keep the birds and bees talk age appropriate, that's what we did..

Jason: "Do babies come from seaweed?"
Me: "Yep."

And he was good to go : )

Things that make me happy today: Becca will be here in a week. Tomorrow is Friday. The hubby will be off in 10 hours. Ipod. Zachary. Ryan. Jason. Bob Barker. Strong Coffee. Bitching on the blog. Lower gas prices.

Today: Speech and a back to school haircut for my big kid. I may also stop and get his school uniforms picked up. And a quick stop at the post office. I will post 3 old videos of the kids on flicker, but I will link them here. Check back later for that.

Hello Sunshine, Let's do business.

things went well.

Today was Ryan's first appointment concerning his noggin, and we got great news. He will require treatment and a helmet for 3.5-4 months. He will wear the helmet 23 hours a day. He also has torticollis, a neck issue, which is normal for babies with plagiocephaly. I will have to work on stretching his neck muscles with some exercises that the doc taught us today, that should be fun. I will be making trips to Charlotte, North Carolina every 2 weeks for a check up and repositioning if needed. The crazy thing is that his check ups will only be 10-15 minutes each, and for that I will drive 2 hours. Today he had a series of photos and a digital surface image, or a DSI taken. Those measurements will be used to make the custom helmet. He will be fitted with it on September 2.

UPDATED TO ADD: The doctor also checked out Zachary's head and neck to be sure. And he is all well. Whew.

all smiles.

And all PERFECT TEETH, Hooray! Here is Jason leaving the dentist, Way to go! Next check up: February.

Today has already been busy and these babies are crazy. Ryan won't nap. I had Zachary on the floor sleeping and Ryan just crawled right up on top of him and woke him. I could just squeal.

And to make my day longer, the hubby won't be home until after 9 pm tonight. Which makes my day a full 15+ hours long without any help.

Done whining for now.. I may be back later for more.

tuesday.

Hot strong coffee.
Ipod.
New Book.
Dentist Appointment.
Speech.
Three boys.
Camera.
Emails.
Blogging.
Breakfast.

hooray for monday.

And good sleep. I was only up once last night with Zach at 1250. Then neither of them woke up until 650 this morning, yay! Coffee was already brewed and callin' my name. No plans today. Tomorrow Jason has a check up at the dentist and Wednesday is Ryan's appointment in Charlotte. One week till Jason starts kindergarten. Babies are 8.5 months old today. Go!

these little piggies..

This is how I found Zachary yesterday during nap time. His foot was hanging out the crib. Just thought it was super cute and wanted to share it. I love baby feet. You can see the whole photo.

eight of eight. let's do this, phelps.

this morning..

I had 2 cups of coffee and 2 slices of toast. I also decided that I am not a fan of Peter Pan peanut butter which the hubby had bought. (Choosy Moms Choose JIF.) Note to self: Never let Hubby buy PB again. We are out of Jelly which I never eat but totally wanted.

I washed 31 bottles, 31 lids and 31 nipples. I also started the dishwasher, washed some by hand then swept the kitchen floor.

I fed 3 kids breakfast which was toast and oatmeal.

So far I have changed 5 diapers, 3 of which were poopy.

I thought about calling and hanging up on Lewis just for kicks.
I decided against it.

I rocked 2 babies to sleep for ridiculously short naps.

I paid bills, walked to the mailbox and started a shopping list.

I hope to edit and post pictures.

I listened to Garth Brooks, Chris Ledoux, Willie and Waylon, Nickleback and Jason Carol.

I blogged.

weekend, are you here yet?

I am anxiously awaiting the upcoming weekend. I am attending a baby shower where the expecting mama is baking a GIRL. You know what that means, I GET TO BUY PINK THINGS!And it is always nice to have the hubby around too. But other than that no big plans. We are back to school clothes shopping for Jason. They wear uniforms, so no biggie there. He needs some new summer and fall items too.

I found out yesterday at Ryan's check up that he has a condition called plagiocephaly. Don't worry, the word is the scariest part of the whole diagnosis, I promise. Basically he just has an abnormal head shape, but Jacques is his father, so I mean what do you expect.. KIDDING! Most likely, his condition was due to restriction in the womb. He is a twin, and there was two munchkins in there occupying my belly. Or plagiocephaly can also often results from external forces applied to the soft infant skull.

His treatments will consist of constant trips to Charlotte, North Carolina, (2 hours away) to check the growth and correction of his skull. He will have his head molded and then he will be fitted with a custom helmet that he will be required to wear for 24 hours a day, except for baths. He will most likely be in the helmet for 6 or more months. We will find out more next week during his first appointments. This is totally correctable and we are lucky to catch it while he is so young. Obviously he is 100% healthy and a totally happy (momma's) boy, he just has an odd noggin.

I think we will keep him around : )

coffee, painkillers, you are a friend of mine.

Okay, so it's not that extreme. But that title sounded better than aspirin. I was up from 3-330 am with Ryan. Then he finally fell asleep just moments before Zachary was up. Then he was up till 515. And now at 7, Ryan is up and ready for his day to begin. BUT the good part about being up in the middle of the night, I was able to start the coffee. So now that I am up, it is already there, just waiting to be gulped...

(Oops.. I think I just feel asleep there.)

To make my day more complicated than it has to be; there is a monsoon outside and Ryan has a check up at 10 this morning. I am not sure how I will be able to get the stroller out, put the diaper bag on, get one baby out and buckled into the stroller, get back into the van (remember that all the while the stroller and baby are out in the rain) get the other baby out and buckle him, then run like hell (not that it matters cause I will already be drenched) to get into the building. Ohhh and then repeat the pattern when we leave. Maybe I should pack towels and a blow dryer.

Whining Over.. MILESTONE TIME- Zachary stood up yesterday for the first time! I will try to snap a photograph if he does it again today.. Yay!

Time to bathe and submerge the kids, then attack the soggy world. I am pretty lovable on wednesdays, so we will see where that goes. That reminds me, it's weigh in wendesday. Yikes!

More coffee and Here we go.

honesty, refreshing.

Jason: "On Super Mario brothers, Daisy is beautiful."

Me: "Like your Momma?"

Jason: "No, I think she is prettier than you."

And then..

Jason: "No you both are the same, but she is a little higher than you."

swell.

Tuesday is a go! The babies are awake and the coffee is hot and in my hand. I can conquer the world, or well at least the next 12 hours. Last night was good with the hubby getting up twice with Zachary early on. He has a ball game tonight, not sure if I will be there on the bleachers. Yesterday the babies moved up to Stage 3 foods and for super the got frozen strawberries to chew on. Then I submerged them in a tub while Jacques took their seats outside and hosed them down. Maybe it would of been a better idea to take the babies out in their chairs and hose them down too.

So about the photo. This is a reprint of an elise original that I purchased on etsy. It is a signed 5x7 that I purchased from elise. It reminded me of the hubby. Ohh yeah, and my forever love of the STRBucks. I would like to think that is a grande mocha frap and a chai tea latte with soy milk. Here's a YUM for Tuesday! Go.

daddy and ryan.

zachary scott.

As promised, photos of Zachary.. And I didn't even need duct tape. There are more on flickr. These are from Friday August 8.

out to the ballgame.

These two are at a ballgame this evening. The hubby got 2 tickets to see a minor league game. They are just some kinda handsome. Sure hope they don't go out to the club afterwards. More photos on flickr. See ya there. Hugs, M

let's start with today.

This is my 500 post, Yay! Way to go bloggers and stalkers. Just kidding. I am exhausted and frustrated this morning. I was up 3 times with Zachary and then they were both up first thing this morning. I rocked Zachary back to sleep, TWICE and each time I laid him down, he woke back up. I finally gave up and set him down to play.. Then he screamed. I gave Ryan a rock and got him back to sleep and was amazingly able to lay him down and keep him asleep. But it won't last long. He never sleeps more than 30 minutes on his own. I think we have this all wrong anyway. I assume parents (normal parents) just know it is nap time and lay their children down in their cribs. We do not. We rock each baby to sleep for every single nap and every single night. They are not ever required to fall asleep on their own. I foresee this being a problem.

Okay, okay back to today. Enough with the drama. Coffee is hot and black, just the way I love it. Today's agenda hopefully involves finishing the last 147 pages of my book, and shopping for fabric and sewing supplies. I am shooting small videos of the kids and posting them on flickr. They are all short and I will be shooting them frequently, so I hope you don't tire of seeing my kids on video. You can see this one and this one now. Plus I have two more from yesterday that will be up later. And photos to share from yesterday, Ryan's teeth, Ryan and Jason. I have no single shots of Zach from yesterday, but today I will share photos of Zachary.. Even if it involves duct tape.

the boys today.

the boys.
Originally uploaded by mandydake

thursday things.

I have a wisdom tooth that is killing me. Last night it was starting to irritate me, so I took a couple rather large pills and went to bed. Today is not much better, and I can't self medicate while the hubby is away. I have had like 3 surgeries scheduled to get them out, but I cancel just days before each time. I enjoy the dentist and don't mind going, but in high school Becca had a horrific experience with the whole wisdom teeth pullin' and I have been scared shitless since. She was laid up for a week! And my hubby is tough, but he was also down a few days after his were yanked out back in 2004. Maybe tonight I can self medicate with Rum.

My printer is working again. The hubby was able to get it back up and running last night, after a week of me not being able to get the damn thing to turn on. He told me that it would work properly if it was plugged in. Humhh, why didn't I think of that? The mans a genius, I tell ya.

Today: Sonic was breakfast, Hello Mocha Java Chiller! We went to the bank and by the hubby's truck to drop off some stuff. He has a softball game tonight, not sure if we will be in attendance. I need to get my stuff prepared for Saturday's second sewing class. I think I will try to scrap again today. I am on page 393 of Breaking Dawn and am lovin' every page more and more. I think it has been the best yet. Let's hope the ending goes the way I want. Peace.

Hey Julie- You pick up your copy yet? I know where you live..

look what i have started..

If this was a cult, I would be the leader.. I talked to Becca on Sunday and she told me that she had finished book 2 and ordered book 3 online, after unsuccesfully trying the bookstore. I should also mentioned that she was stalked at the bookstore by a teeny-bop 14 year old who chatted it up with her about the books. And she said she visited a Twilight website.. Obsessed Much?

Today I got call from Shawna.. She confessed that she finally bought book 1, after I hounded and hounded her. She read it in two days and is already deep into reading book 2. She also said that she finds herself thinking of the book and characters when she is not reading. I told her that today as I washed dishes, I found myself thinking of Bella and Edward like they were my next door neighbors.. Obsessed Much?

Shortly after that I got a call from Shelby, my sister, telling me that she had just finished book 3 and was off to pick up book 4. She read books 1-3 in 15 days. That's a total of 1,792 pages. I don't think she had ever picked up a novel in her life and look at her now, Obsessed Much??

Maybe I should start a cult. I would drink the kool-aid first..

I promise.

hey mom, thanks..

For doing all our laundry, folding and putting it all away, including my bedding- For washing all the bottles- For the $4 you lent me for sunglasses- And the $8 you lent the hubby- For all the vintage papers you brought for me from home- For rearranging both bedrooms at 9:00 at night- For repeatedly rocking the babies to sleep- For taking Jason to the movies- For surprising Jason with his book bag- For leaving me with a clean, spotless house and your Oprah magazine- For watching the babies while I ran errands- For encouraging me to go to the bookstore all the way across SC for a book I truly wanted, then riding with me- For fixing my camera when my heart was broke about it- For cooking meals- For watching all the kids when I was ill- For walking the babies while I took a break- For taking Jason on bike rides and watching him slipy slide- For buying me Soy-Joys and the coffee tin hang up- For returning the old formula to Walmart- For catering to me and my three kids- For paying for the umbrella and the parking at the beach and for driving home- For all the sweet treats at Starbucks and the Chinese take out- For unpacking and then repacking a ton of boxes that I had yet to unpack- For reorganizing the shed, closets, sink and trailer- For cutting a pine apple for Jason and spoiling him with treats- For teaching me to thread a bobbin and the sewing machine- For getting me the organizer from the neighbors "house"- For buying the babies a swing set- For magic erasin' the walls, dusting my light fixtures and ceiling fan- For sweeping the drive way and decks, repeatedly-

And for changing all those diapers..

And for letting a stranger drape a very large, scary python around your neck, all in the name of facing your fears... and of course, the great photo op.

Basically just thanks for dropping everything, flying 1200 miles, and staying with me for 12 days. You Rock!

Ohhhh yeah, And thank you too, Bert.

two teeth, one word and a daddy.

We have teeth! Two of 'em. This here is Ryan's mug. Do you see them? Yesterday my mom noticed them. They are just about to break the rest of the way through! Sorry the picture is not better. I found it hard to ram my Canon down his throat for that "perfect shot." Maybe I can try again later. Yeah... Ohhh and it's really no biggie, but...

HE SAID MA MA!

Ohhhh and the hubby is home.