San Pedro Ward Relief Society in the News... and Min was on TV for a second!

Min went to Enrichment last week and ended up on the news... here's a screenshot of her brief cameo:

Women's Group Shares Clothes, Recipes to Fight Recession

The women of the San Pedro Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stretch their dollar with budget...

The full video can be seen here: CLICK HERE!

The Enrichment Night focused on money saving things to do during the downturn: A clothes swap, inexpensive fashion tips, cost effective meals, etc.

Min really enjoyed it (and she tried hard to stay off camera).

I'm going to redesign the blog next week...

... 'cause I'm taking over!

[ insert maniacal laugh here ]

MORE PICS! ("Door Knob" Edition)

Get the joke?... everyone gets their turn. :D

Anyways... here they are:

Alex took this pic of Austin and me.


Mom and baby sleeping (or posing... you decide).

Aaron gets a turn.

Aimee gets a turn.

Alex gets a turn.

Andee gets a turn.

A-1 through A-5!

FOR PICS OF THE KIDS
WHEN ANDEE WAS BORN
******* CLICK HERE!!!! *******

He's out of the nursery and in our room... that means MORE PICS!!!!

What you've all been waiting for... THE PICS!

So here's the before pic (as usual)...


The first official photo of Austin R. Clayton (7lbs 13oz, 20.25"):


Dr. Johnson (our anesthesiologist) is an amateur photographer, so he offered to take this pic:



Mom and baby are doing fine!


I took him to the nursery for his check up and bath:





Min is resting in recovery and Austin is in the nursery.

Oh, and I'm getting funny looks from the staff for blogging about this so quickly. ;)

Austin is here!!!!!

Born at 7:42 AM... 7lbs 13oz.

Smattering of red hair (but that will change).

Mom and baby are doing great!

It's Showtime!!!!!!!

Min's just walked into the OR and is getting her spinal and all of the other hook-ups.

As soon as I can I will post details!

We're here!

Min's in her gown and ready to roll (no pun intended).

The hospital has free guest wireless and my iPod Touch hooked up just dandy. So I can post whenever.

No if only I had an iPhone. ;)

We're on our way!

It's 4:30 AM and we're off to the hospital.

More later!

1 Day and counting...

... well, actually about 11 hours.

Half the kids are one place, and the other half are another, and Min and I are all alone.

Hopefully she can get some sleep tonight before the big event tomorrow.

Thanks for all the kind words and offers of help. We really appreciate it.

Keep this site open for updates throughout the next few days.

'Til tomorrow...

Min's "Spa"-like Bathroom

Mindy took some pics of the bathroom. Here they are (I'll let her edit this post with some descriptions):

Here's an overall view. What started out as "just a paint job" turned into something bigger. We changed out the fixtures, which led to the sink and counters.





We went with the white towels, shower curtain and rugs for the "spa look" that they always talk about on the decorating shows. We were planning on trying to sell our house this spring and thought it would show well this way. With the baby coming we changed our minds... too much stress does not make for a happy household! So now we get to enjoy it.


Mike also changed out the fixtures in the tub/shower to match the brushed nickel of the sinks. It looks SO much nicer than the old plastic gross things that were in there.


So... do you like it?

2 Days and counting...

Well, after one more trip to Home Depot (and only $35)... THE BATHROOM IS DONE!!!!!

If fixed all the leaks, connected the p-traps, installed the rest of the counter top, put the cabinet doors back on, and switched out the light switches, plugs, and plates.

Min's doing a bit of cleaning and then we will take pictures and post them. ;)

Oh... and the kids were a big help today! They each had a list of chores to do and they did them with a little "prodding" and some "forced direction".

3 Days and counting...

Not much happened today.

Min had a doctors appointment, got her lab work done, and registered at the nurses station for Monday. With the way things are going... this baby is waiting until Monday.

The missionaries came over and helped us build our "Family Mission Plan" this afternoon. Wish us luck.

Min's with the ward ladies watching a movie tonight... I told her to have one more night of fun before the baby comes next week, so she took me up on it.

The kids are in bed.

I think I'm going to watch a "feel-good" movie... maybe Cloverfield or The Perfect Storm.

4 Days and counting... (PM edition)

... just when you think you are done!

The counter is in, the sinks are in, the mirror is up.

The trap drain on both sinks is off by 1/4".

Back to Home Depot I go.

:(

But I swear, this is the last thing that I have to do in that @#$% bathroom!

Ahhhh, the things we do for love.

4 Days and counting... (AM edition)

Already made one trip to Home Depot today.

Long story short:

Stuck nut on sink.
Break sink.
Take hammer to stone vanity.
Go to HD(1).
Buy new vanity top and oval, white sinks.
Trim vanity top.
Sinks are white, but round.
Back to HD(2).
Borrow jigsaw.
Need blades.
Back to HD(3).
Sinks are oval, but bone.
Call local HDs.
Find oval and white sinks.
Will go tomorrow (4).

Anways... that's where we are right now.

I need to get some freelance work done this morning... more later.

(Yesterday was) 5 Days and counting...

... three trips to Home Depot.

... and one more tomorrow.

... We're tired.

6 Days and counting...

... more bathroom stuff again. Replaced the tub drains and overflows (upstairs and down). Got the button on my sink replaced (and it leaks) and I couldn't get the old button out of the bottom of Min's sink.

I took a chunk of skin out of my hand trying to get this stuff done. It hurts.

Almost bought a couple of ceiling fans to install downstairs (replacing the living room one and adding one to the dining room) but I think I'll wait until my dad get's here in April to do those.

Min spent the day doing laundry and playing Animal Crossing: City Folk.

Oh, and we did watch American Idol tonight.

7 Days and counting...

Things done today to prep for the baby:

1. All the boys buzzed their heads to cut down on the time it takes to get ready in the morning (photo coming soon).

2. Ran errands to get a few things for the baby that we either don't have or can't find.

3. Got a few more things from Home Depot to finish the master bath spa (we still to make one trip tomorrow).

4. We went to two Targets to look for another nursing bra for Min. Denied both places.

Then it was back home for some homemade Calzones and a little "Dancing with the Stars" and "24".

Updated to reflect the nursing bra was in fact for Mindy and not Mike. Although he could probably use one.

Musical Sunday #7 - Mary Poppins

It's was a jolly afternoon with Mary Poppins.

... and the kids enjoyed it.

We ALL sing "Happy Birthday" to Andee!

Tonight is Scrap Night, and when were getting ready to have cake and ice cream, three of Min's friends showed up with some of their kids... so they joined in the fun!

Happy Birthday Andee!!! You're Three!!!!!

Our baby* turned 3 today!

All she wanted for her birthday was a pink cake.

Min wanted to make a strawberry cake, but I asked her to get a white cake with pink swirls, use the Blue's Clues® pan and I would decorate it.

So I spent last night making a pink puppy with purple spots and green trim.

She loved it!

Yeah, I've get her wrapped around my finger... or is that the other way around? ;)


Oh, and here's another shot of the cake on Min's new stove (we installed it on Tuesday). No matter what she says, the main reason that we got it was so that she didn't have to clean out the old one.

* She'll be our baby for only 10 more days. :(

Min has been summoned for Jury Duty...

... and is to report on March 18th.

That's two days after the scheduled C-section.

Good thing to know the government doesn't have that close of tabs on us.

;)

Musical Sunday #6 - My Fair Lady

Come on, Dover, move yer bloomin' arse!

Based on George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion, the musical My Fair Lady was Mindy's pick for this week's show.

We all know the plot of the musical: boy hears girl, boy torments girl, girl leaves boy, boy wants girl back.

... and somewhere in there the girl becomes a lady.

My favorite character in the show is Alfie P. Doolittle, Eliza's father. "Get Me To The Church On Time" and "With A Little Bit Of Luck" are my two favorite songs in the bunch.

Anyways, Aimee didn't get it, Aaron liked it okay, Alex and Andee went into the other room to play, Min fell asleep, and I stayed awake the whole time (I took a nap this morning).

At just under 3-hours long, its a chore to sit through if you are little.

Aaron said he liked the songs but they were too far apart. His favorite song/part was the "The Rain In Spain" which is always a fun one.

Next week, we'll try to something a little shorter and more in their range: Mary Poppins.