::imperfect perfection x3::

I can't even believe it! What a long strange trip it's been.... and it's only just begun! (A bunch of cliches, yes, but all so applicable!) Here is a small sample of our exciting journey thus far......

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas! I hope everyone has had a wonderful year and I hope that 2009 is everyone's best year yet. -LOVE and PEACE- The LaPlacas

.....To postpone Christmas until February . Anyone second the motion???? **It's not like I've had 11 months and 20-some odd days to prepare for it this year** grr.

I must confess, I don't love the tree I decorated . I like parts of it, actually I love parts of it, but as a whole, I think I screwed it up. I was thinking about it as I tried to fall asleep, but then when I actually did fall asleep, it was only to wake up a few hours later and agonize over it in my mind for hours. I can see in my head what I did wrong and if I could, I would completely start over. Too bad the Festival starts in 31 minutes. Oh well. I hope someone buys it and they can re-do it, if they want to. The hard part about doing a 'Festival' tree is every ornament, garland, etc. etc. on the tree has to be permanently wired on. Last year I did the 'hang it on, then go back and tighten each one on with wire' thing. It was hard, time consuming and I'm sure some were completely missed. So this year I tightened each one as I hung them. It was quicker, but the drawback was that once they were hung, they were staying....forever. That was my first mistake. ...

I just got home from spending 5 fun hours decorating a Christmas tree for the 2008 Festival Of Trees so if you live in my town or surrounding area, PLEASE go see the awesome trees. They are even better than last year! I'm WAY impressed. The proceeds go to the Cathedral Square Homeless Program so it's a really worthwhile cause. Go visit! It runs from Thursday until Sunday at the Downtown Mall. Pictures to follow soon!!

OK, I confess..... My title is a little misleading. This post will contain no talk of spooks or turkey. But it DOES entail another 'smilebox' slide show of this year's Halloween and a short recounting of Thanksgiving. Sorry to get anyone's hopes up.... Here's the slide show (Smilebox is my new fave. So cute and easy. And free. FREE!!) Make a Smilebox slideshow Thanksgiving is a great time to reflect upon all the things that we can all be 'thankful' for. I don't even think I can list them all. But the the thing I am most grateful for is my family. Without them, I would have nothing. I have a great and oh-so-helpful husband, adorable children (who are healthy!) and a loving extended family that is always there to lend a helping hand or postive reinforcement when I need it. This Thanksgiving was especially hard to be away from my side of the family for some reason, but I know I will see them soon. {Well, sometime in the next year ;) } But I love them all an...

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Or, more correctly, Because I Love HER !! My husband is so amazing. He took me out for a once in a lifetime, wonderful night--- including a fabulous fancy dinner and, yes, I am almost not believing it , he took me to see CELINE!!! I have waited since...well... forever for that. In fact, I didn't believe I would EVER be able to see her in concert. I wanted to see her in Las Vegas so badly, but the timing was just bad and when her show ended there, I thought for sure that I had missed my chance. Last Christmas my husband put a surprise in my stocking. I could see it poking out for weeks, but he WOULD NOT let me open it. He wouldn't really even give me clues as to what it was! But when I opened it, I didn't believe what I saw! It was the receipt for tickets to see Celine Dion! And she was coming here to town!---albeit it was in October of '08 ! He had purchased them as soon as he heard she was coming and planned my surprise for weeks and weeks. The near-year waiting for t...

I won! (See sticker to the right>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>) And now I get to do my own nominations! So here's the lowdown (I plagiarized Nats words because they are so perfectly written): 1. The winners (whomever I nominate) get to put this same little sticker thingy on their blog. It's like the cool club or something. 2. Link back to me, because it's all about internet traffic and about getting more visits to your own blog and to other's. A giving tree of sorts. 3. Nominate 5 other blogs. (This part is going to be hard for me because there are so many stinking good ones out there that I read.) 4. Link up to said awesome blogs. 5. Leave a message on those blogs so they can get all flustered and butterfly-y and blush-y like I did when Nat left a comment saying she nominated me. And the nominees are: (((drum roll.....))) 1. Katy - Everyone I know 'oohs' and 'ahhs' over her blog and all the "stuff" sh...

This is going to come out entirely wrong, but I promise I will explain what I mean. I finally showered on my own!! That truly is the most accurate and succinct way of putting it. Now before your mind starts processing...WHAT I MEAN IS... Yesterday, for the FIRST time since the girls were born, I didn't have to have another person in my house to be with my children while I showered!! WOO HOO !! (technically, I tried it once before, but the girls were all strapped in their little seats in the bathroom with me and I had to have the sliding shower door open so they could see me. They screamed the entire time. I was lucky to get the shampoo rinsed out of my hair that day. I swore that I would NEVER do that again.) I've always had to make plans in advance for when I wanted to shower. Either I had to work around my husbands unpredictable schedule or arrange for my mother in law to come over or something. And a lot of the time felt I had to 'hurry' so everyone could get back ...

I can't seem to wake up today! I feel like this little girl: I hate when our schedule gets off. I use the word 'schedule' loosely, because it changes every day. But sometimes it happens on purpose and sometimes not. OK, most of the time not. But yesterday I had a 'girly' doc appointment and my doc had never seen the girls. She was the one who first told me there were three in my tummy when I was 8 weeks along. I hadn't seen her since, so I wanted her to meet the crazies. Unfortunately, when I called back in May, they only opening she had was in October at 12:15---smack dab in the middle of naptime. So I decided that we would just have one nap instead of the usual two--which we do sometimes in emergency situations. At the docs office, they were just OK. Not outstanding, but OK. We only had one juice cup spill all over the carpet in the waiting room. And their books only hit one person three times. Jordyn had a separation anxiety temper-tantrum, but other than th...

For Tony's birthday, we watched some football, had crockpot roast, mashed potatoes and cake. Can it seriously get any better?? (especially the cake part--- It was a chocolate swirl two teir cake with chocolate coconut icing and coconut flakes and toffee bits throughout. It was pretty yum-yum.) I have a video of Avery saying 'happy birthday da-da' but it won't let me upload it for some reason. I'm really sad about that. It is so cute. But, oh well. Here are some photos instead: cake Ashy (in a lovely outfit designed by herself) and daddy doing 'touchdown'! We all wish daddy the bestest year yet!

That is the theme for today. I said this over and over again, in a quite defeated tone, and I do not know where to start. Here is just a sampling of what my trials have been lately: 1. The girls keep stripping their clothes off. They do it to either: a) themselves, b) each other or c) all of the above. Which, in and of itself, is not that big of a deal EXCEPT for the fact that as a result of the 'stripping' their diapers come off as well . And they are not potty trained yet. Nor do they see a problem with peeing/pooping/whatever else- ing everywhere...then playing in it. I know. Gross. I began with keeping them out of snapping outfits. Pants and onesies are out of the question. I even tried putting pants on over the outfits or even under them. Yeah right. That was figured out in a day. I switched them to zippers, but they figured that out too. So, I put them in only snap-crotch outfits with snaps on the back neck. Eventually, they figured that out, too. I then decided to se...

I know, I know. You think I'm crazy that we just had our first trip to the park a couple weeks ago. But I tell you, chasing three in a large open area is not my idea of fun. Also, I had to wait until they were out of the 'lets put everything in our mouths' stage...well, at least two of the three are out of that. Ashleigh will put anything in her mouth. I don't know how to stop that. But, I digress. We had a great time. Here are some pictures of the fun:

Yes, we've now been married for five years. And yet, it feels like longer.... :D No, truthfully, it is weird to think we've been married five years . In that short span of time, just like in all marriages, we've had ups and downs, tears and laughter and we've acheived the greatest thing ever imaginable together---raising our three beautiful daughters. I can't imagine Tony not being in my life. He's a great influence on me, like helping me to come out of my shell and to enjoy the little things in life. I am happy and content even to just sit on the couch and watch TV with him. He makes me laugh, he's the greatest and most helpful dad and he is my best friend and the one person to whom I can tell anything. {{Thank you, Tony, for 5 wonderful years together. I look forward to experiencing more of life's great challenges and adventures with you. I LOVE YOU!!!}}

The girls have figured out how to push Stanley the Snail (referenced here ) around and use him to climb up and reach places they aren't supposed to. Here are some photos of the action: Because of this little trick, they got into the bag of teeny-tiny-itsy-bitsy clear and black rubber bands I use for their hair. A bag of about 500. Not kidding. Literally 500. ALLLLL over my living room floor. They are SO easy to find....not! And OF COURSE they did this as I was getting dressed and about to leave the house---yes, getting dressed AND getting them in the car, pretty much simultaneously. I was overjoyed, as you can imagine. Picture: Clear AND tiny. Bad combo. Oh, and did I mention this was the SECOND time this happened?....today???? Ahh, yes, it was. Apparently I didn't move it far enough out of reach the first time. Yay for me. And, boy, am I glad I'm not still finding rubber bands every day........

My parents came in to town last week for a visit. The girls took to them right away and they had a grand 'ol time together. We hung out at the house, we went to the fair and all had a bbq at nanna and papa's house. Thanks for coming to see us! Here are some photos of the visit:

I started this on May 26th but never finished it. Sorry so late. So here goes: I had a fabulous birthday this year. I am 27 years old now! Weird. Getting older doesn't really bother me. It's just weird to realize you are a certain age, whatever it might be. It's kinda fun to me, actually. I've always been one that couldn't wait until I was 'older'. I hung out with older kids when I was younger and always idolized my older sisters. I guess that is all still true. I married someone older and I suppose I can always take solace in the fact that he will always be 3+ years older than me. :D (Love you, dear!) Thank you for the beautiful roses. They were a creamy pink with a hint of a darker pink in the center around the outer edges of each petal. Here is a picture, even though it's hard to tell the colors: .................................................................................................... For mother's day, we made the treck home to see my ...

My girls are sooo bad lately. Who am I kidding. They've always been mischievous ; but overly so recently. Here are a couple pictures of some of the naughty things they've been doing lately. Mind you, this is only a sample. If I tried to capture it all, I'd be taking pictures all day.... Climbing on top of the side table....and usually dancing. Apparently, hilarious. Our biggest problem as of late, is getting completely undressed in our cribs. I should have censored this photo, but you have to see the whole picture to really get it. I surprised her and the face is priceless. (so is Ashleigh's in the background) There will be more blog posts to come on this one..... The girls decided to 'help' mommy organize her magazines...thoughtful, aren't they? (notice that 'innocent' ashleigh is no where to be seen...she is usually the instigator) I love the pure joy of naughtiness on their faces. Jordyn is purposely turned away I'm sure to prove her UN...

:::::Some of our Favorite Things::::: getting 'cozy' under mommy's blanket eating messy messy pasta (jordy with a fork, of course ) riding our rocking animals: zoe the zebra (not pictured), betty the butterfly and stanly the snail wearing hats--any and all kinds.... EXCEPT for the ones mommy wants us to wear. playing on daddy's strong legs; especially when he lifts us in the air----all at the same time!

Let the games begin!! (horns playing): dah-dun-dun-da-dah-duh-dadiddyum-dah-dun-dun-da-dah-dunnnn dah-dun-dun-da-dah-duh-dadiddyum-dah-dun-dun-da-dah-dunnnnnnnnn dun-diddyda-diddlyadun-deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee dun-dah-deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! OK, that was a poor attempt at the Olympic trumpet song. I tried to think of a more succinct way of typing it, but that's all I could come up with....sadly. Speaking of sadly, here is a picture of a cake I made to commemorate the occasion: (Only a few thousand mishaps along the way. I made the biggest mess I've EVER made while doing this cake. And that's truly saying something. I don't know why I bother...But I guess practice makes perfect. At least it will taste good. This I know for sure. Just close your eyes while you eat it.) :) Now, I leave you with a few Olympic facts and meanings behind the popular symbols of the games: The Olympic Motto is " Citius, Altius, Fortius " which means "Swifter, H...

So I would just like to explain... I normally kill everything (including the herb garden I planted at the same time as the tomatoes.) I'm actually amazed that none of my children have died while in my care... So, it is astonishing to me that I actually have a garden with alive and edible things!! I didn't mean it to come accross like I was the best thing since.... fertilizer or something. My thumb is so black. So...that's it. It just bothered me everytime I saw it. Thanks for listening :D (or reading, rather) Update: I must give credit where credit is due, and the probable reason why my plants are still alive is because my husband waters them no less than 80% of the time. (I do remind him from time to time, but for the most part, he is right on top of it.) So, truly, HE is the one with live, edible tomatoes. He doesn't even like them (that's putting it nicely) but he knows I do and that's super nice. Everything in my life is a big collaboration with someone,...

Holy moly! I grew heirloom tomatoes! I mentioned a long time ago that I actually planted some and now I am seeing the fruits of my labor---pun intended! And they are soooo delicous! My pots are growing above my head and are pretty much out of control. I don't know what I'm doing, but there are tomatoes growing on them so I must be doing something right. I've had two big ones and two cherry tomatoes, plus these three: I made really good bruschetta one day and yesterday I made the best guacamole (even if I do say so myself) using a green zebra tomato! And, lucky me, my husband hates avacados. :D I ate it all yesterday with the best chip-match. I just grabbed them in the store because I thought they'd go well with guac. And boy, do they! Here's a pic: So, if you need chips to go with your guac, these are awesome!! (if you are reading this, Kettle Brand Chips, please send me some more!!) :D

...to all the readers that have come out of the woodwork! YAY!! I am so glad you posted something! I LOVE LOVE LOVE to hear from you guys! I should do a "WHO'S READING MY BLOG" post more often!! he he he :) I know there are more people lurking that will never tell me and that's fine. :P I know who you are... JK . Feel free to lurk. I do it too. Please, if you have a blog that is not on my bloglist to the right>>>>>>>>> Give it to me! You can put it in the comments portion (because I have it set to approve every comment before it's posted. Just tell me if you want it deleted) and I can do that! There are lots out there I'm sure, so please tell me! I would love to be up on what's going on in your lives as well! Oh and thanks for meeting us the other day Uncle Lee and Aunt Louise. I feel awful that I forgot to take some pictures. But as you saw, there were a few other 'things' going on. :) (by 'things' I obviously m...

And I've had nearly 100 visits to the blog since my last post. That's a lot. HOWEVER>>>> only ONE person has done my memory thing. SO, I ask.... WHO IS READING OUR BLOG???? I've been hearing a lot of stories about people impersonating people (especially targeting people with multiples) on other websites/blogs/chat rooms/message boards going as far to steal their photos and stories and basically pretending to be them. It sort of freaks me out. On one hand, I think, what harm could it really do? But on the other hand, I think, what kind of sicko-s would do that?? It's just plain weird and creepy. So now I ask...should the blog go private? Or not? There are so many reasons for it to stay open---we want to welcome any visitors to our blog and would love to share what's going on in our world. But I also don't want to be taken advantage of in any way. My family is the most precious thing to me and to think of them being exploited for someone's sick enj...

I've seen this on a few blogs and I always say, 'ok, I'll do it later' and don't get around to it. So I'm doing it here for you to procrastinate upon as well. If I didn't post on yours, please tell me and I'll go do it immediately (or sometime in the next month or so) :D Here are the directions: 1. As you comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember! 2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. So please comment---it will just take a second (as I said, I PROMISE to be better at commenting!) I can't wait to hear what you remember about me!

I will be doing a few back-posts over the next little while. See, I start a post and just save it because I have to wait for my lazy bum to download a picture or something, and months pass before I get it done and post it. Soooo, if you are bored and have nothing else to do, occasionally check earlier months for posts that may be new. If I remember, I will change the date to a current one so no one misses anything interesting (interesting might be a stretch...we aren't that exciting over here). Just so you know, there is a new post in the 'june' section. You're welcome ;)

The newest member of our family: Miss Sophie Olivia Romero! Weight: 6lbs 13oz Height: 18 inches She was born to my sister Maegan and her husband Ryan on Friday. She joins big sisters Sydney, Sabrina and big brother Skyler. Isn't she just so beautiful?? Congratulations Romero Family!! We love her already!

Wishing you all a happy 4th of July weekend and a renewed sense of pride in our country and appreciation for our freedom in the coming year! Here are a couple pictures of our day:

I just wanted to post a message to the greatest daddy in the world! We are so lucky to have such an awesome guy in our lives. Here are some of our favorite things daddy does: 1. He does our laundry (and that's A LOT of laundry) 2. He cooks us dinner most nights 3. He cleans up after himself 4. He sings and dances for us to make us giggle 5. He gives us the best kisses 6. He rubs my head to calm me down (from Avery) 7. He works hard so we can live so comfortably 8. And best of all, he loves us more than ANYTHING in the WORLD! (I could go on and on about how wonderful Tony is, but I'll stop here) WE LOVE YOU DADDY!!! We are glad you are ours!

FRIENDS!! The girls had their first 'official' play date with one of my best friends' little girl, Atlee , when we were in Idaho. They live in Montana now, but Ashley and I were roommates for a couple years in college. We got pregnant at the same time and were only a week apart in due dates! Obviously, I had mine before she did. :) But I consider them the exact same age and couldn't wait for them to all get together. Of course, there wasn't a whole lot of interaction between them aside from the girls stealing her toys and occasionally knocking her over, but I think they liked having another person to play with...or boss around depending on which one of my kids you ask. :D Atlee is so cute and I am so happy we were all able to get together, Ash! I can't wait to see what your little boy is going to look like! I'm so excited for you! Nothing brings folks together like FOOD! :) AWWWW ! HUGS! (yes, they are the same age, my child's gargantuan cranium is ju...