Redeeming myself for the boys' botched birthday last year...

So last year was the big birthday for the boys... double digits...and what did we do to celebrate you ask? Well Jack and I treated ourselves to a trip. An unexpected job change made for another scheduling conflict and before we knew it we were in April and it was time for spring break in Utah and still no party. Luckily they did finally get new bikes but even those arrived a couple weeks late since Sports Authority decided to take a break from having a sale on bikes during the weeks leading up to their birthday!  So this year we had to come up with something good. Luckily the planning was pretty much done for me since we were the winning bid for a bowling party at the Heart Ball. The boys originally had requested to have a paint war party but with the cold temps we've been having here in Ohio bowling seemed much more appealing and they agreed. Normally I like to have at least a week and a half notice to alert friends and prepare but when I learned four days ago that school would be out today (March 4th) for teacher inservice, I knew a party needed to be planned for TODAY!

Of course we still had our family party on their big day and thankfully Amazon once again came through for me with overnight delivery on their present since I had completely spaced what they had told me over a month ago they wanted. Nothing like being at church three days before their birthday and overhearing them tell someone "we're getting Lazer Guns for our birthday!" Thankfully I was able to pull that off. So here they are with their requested Hello Dolly bars, Lazer Tag guns, oh and the original gift I had bought each of them...docking stations.



So today was their friend party and the beauty of twins is that most of the time they share the same friends so they chose to invite their three closest friends Will, Josh, and Mia.  This worked out perfectly since we can only seat seven in the car and with Sage and I it meant for a perfectly filled car!  The kids had a blast and played four games, ate tons of food, drank even more and we now know where to get the best cherry coke!




Thanks to the generosity of their friends the boys are now a few dollars and gift cards richer, and one nice outdoor activity set better off!



I have to say I looked all over for bowling pins to place on their cupcakes but had no success. So the bowling lane didn't turn out as I had hoped but in the end it thankfully didn't effect the taste of the cupcakes...



Happy birthday to our sweet boys.  Our lives wouldn't be complete without them.  We love you Connor and Ty! xo

Heart Ball Feb. 23, 2013

So it had been quite some time since Jack and I had attended a black tie event together.  A few weeks back Jack had a work event that was black tie and all I heard about the night was how short, snug, or big every ones tux pants were when they arrived at the event.  I guess that is bound to happen when you have assistants calling in measurements to some store out of state and the first time you try the tux on is in your hotel room an hour before the event...haha!

Lesson learned was it was time to buy a tux and attending the Heart Ball made for the perfect excuse to do it now!  It was a night of good food, dancing and of course some opening of the wallet.   It's so wonderful to learn about the progress medicine is making and the lives that can be touched because of the generous donations that come from events like these.  As fortunate as I felt to sit their with a healthy husband and three healthy children, one never knows when life can change and someone in my family could be the one needing the assistance of such a foundation.  We were the highest bidder on a couple auction items which was fun including an American Girl trip to Chicago that Jack was determined to win and after some back and forth we ended up with it.  We have yet to tell Sage but I have to say I'm pretty excited about it.  It did take every ounce of will power from both Jack and I to not share the news with Sage or even give her the gift basket that came with the trip.  May will be here though before we know it!

Introducing the not so gummy Sage...

Well, it finally happened...Sage lost her first two teeth! One came out last Wednesday and the other came out today. For the past couple weeks we've been anxiously awaiting the departure of these two bottom wiggly teeth because the permanent ones that would replace them had already completely come in right behind these two. (Not sure what kind of future dental work will be needed because of this!) But Sage insisted that we not do anything that would cause her teeth to come out at home because "only if your tooth comes out at school do they give you a special tooth shaped necklace" to transport your lucky tooth home in! Well, her wish was granted and both came out at school.

Thankfully this year the tooth fairy was prepared and delivered her $1 in a timely fashion (at least for the first tooth) but my efficiency wasn't even noticed and instead Sage was heard giggling in the morning as she explained to Jack and the boys that she "only got $1!"   I guess this sort of stuff gets discussed at school and I guess the tooth fairy that works the Roddy house is a bit cheap...

Well Hello 2013! What did you do with 2012?

I can hardly believe 2013 has arrived!!! It seems like just yesterday the world was preparing for Y2K! We had a low key but fun evening at the house with Michael and his mom Gloria who was in town for the holiday joining us! One of the highlights of moving here has been watching so many of Jack's colleagues from other jobs come join his team out here. Some I knew really well and others I'm just getting to know along with their families. So we've had instant friends out here. Jack met Michael when they both worked at Covey right around the time we got married and funny enough Michael and I have known each other longer since we both lived in the same complex in Provo.

Here is Sage with Gloria, Michael's sweet mom! They love to spoil the kids each time they come to the house...



Michael arrived with what we'll call the party in a bag! With the exception of Sage having a melt down after Ty first swatted the pinata because she wasn't the first to grab one of the pieces of candy, it was a huge success!



Of course it wouldn't feel like a new year without a few fireworks to light off. Thankfully my nice movers were kind enough to turn a blind eye as I smuggled our stash from Washington to Ohio in the moving truck. The stuff we have is like the stuff people go to see at stadiums and the best part was watching Michael's face as they set off the goods. It was well worth it although the fireworks did compete with the snow for some visibility at times! Unfortunately I wasn't able to capture any great photos of the show but I caught the end of one...




As we close the 2012 chapter, we recognize how blessed we've been. Who would have thought a year ago that we'd be living in another state surrounded by friends from our past who've decided to join us on this journey! We are so grateful for our family, friends, and our faith. May this new year be full of more memory making and cherished moments! Happy New Year! xo



(By far not one of our better shots...but our only shot of the family...) :)

First Christmas in Ohio!

After returning from our vacation Christmas seemed to appear in a flash. Here's a rundown of the month:

The gingerbread village...can you guess who made which one?



It wouldn't be Christmas without the annual photo with Santa! We caught Santa just as he was arriving back from a break so he had special treats for all the little girls in line! This year we all had to crack up when Sage marched up with the Toysrus Toy catalog. Telling Santa just wasn't going to cut it, she had to show him...



Trimming the tree! Thankfully there is a benefit to having a prelit tree with hundreds and hundreds of lights on it...that being when a bunch go out it's harder to tell!



Sage had made a frame for the family for Christmas and was adamant about taking our photo and having me immediately print it out so she could put it in the frame and wrap it up...



Welcome Philburt to the Roddy family...This little elf caused more morning sweats than any workout I've ever done...



The kids were dying to make their own candy trains after seeing me do it with the young women at church! We invited the Simon's to join in on the fun...



Tis the season to start fires. How excited I was to have a real wood burning fireplace in this house. It had been since NJ that we had one...



Christmas Eve, our sweet Mary and Joseph, new pj's and a wiped out Mrs. Clause...



Finally, the moment everyone had been waiting for...for the KIDS to get up! Who knew I'd be the last one to bed and the FIRST one up...



Nothing beats capturing the excitement on the kids faces as they open up some of their gifts...



Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!



The kids and their stuff! This year all Connor wanted for Christmas was a Lord of the Rings book set. Ty wanted Lord of the Rings legos, and we thought we knew what Sage wanted from her visits with Santa (there were a couple). It's never good though when two days before Christmas as we all sat around the table and Jack asked each of the kids if they could have anything in the world for Christmas what would it be and Sage blurts out something none of us had heard her ask for! Being it was the "one thing in the whole world she wanted" an urgent trip to the store was required.  Who knew a horse (to go along with her 'American Girl' doll) would be the toy of her dreams...



And just like that Christmas was quickly coming to an end. We had shared a nice Christmas dinner over at some friends and returned home to do our traditional "after dinner gifts", a tradition started by my mom growing up. This year, Ty out of the blue had mentioned he wanted a suit. I didn't really think much of it but while doing some Christmas shopping I found these two cute suits on a great sale so had to get them! They made for a perfect after dinner gift! I have to say they look quite snazzy in them!!!



By the next day our White Christmas had finally arrived, Ty had completely put together his three Lego sets, Connor had gotten to the very end of his brand new Lord of the Rings Video game, and Sage had gotten the stomach bug...Thankfully we all seemed to avoid whatever it was she caught!

Here are our handsome boys before getting ready to head out and sled with their friend Mia!



After four days of being sick, Sage decided that since the boys were out enjoying their third day of sledding she was going to come up with enough strength to head out in the backyard to make a snow angel. Here is my angel...



And one of my personal favorite things about the holidays are hearing from all our wonderful friends.



Christmas 2012...check!