Big and Beautiful in Gilbert (not really)

Hey All,
Well I have been getting a little grief from the friends about my lack of blogs lately and the truth is that I am just plain out of funny right now. But since I feel a very strong need to please and make my awsome friends and family happy I will appease and squeeze all ounces of funny that are left in this big and beautiful body of mine out so to make you all laugh. I will start by saying that I am big. Big and beautiful this is true but big is outweighing (pardon the pun) the beautiful right now. I am measuring big at the doctors (two weeks too big) and I feel it. But the everything is bigger in Texas rule does not apply to Gilbert. I was at Chick File or however you spell it the other day and you know there are always tons of pregnant women there and I was in awe of their bigness but skininess at the same time approach. They were all thin with great hair and skin and clothes with cute little big bellies. I was sweating as usual like Ruben from American Idol with my cloth to wipe and my red face and crazy eyes. How do you cute bellies throw it all together? By the way, what is it with Chik fil e and all the Mormons? It was like mormons on parade. A little strange. Is it the no open on sundays or what cause the food is good but not that good and it is a wee bit expensive. Anyway I think the problem is that I don't feel very beautiful right now and I can't stop sweating plus I can't sleep because I can't pee in my sleep or Jimmy would get mad. So I will pose a question to you all and you can give me ideas on how to get my funniness back cause all I feel like doing lately is complaining. How do you stay cute and big and beautiful and cheerfull and funny and smart and not absentminded and on top of everything and still live in heat and humidity and a constant state of big belly jiggle? If you know then you should write a book and I will give a testimonial. Love you all and sorry for the delay.
Shannon

First Day of School Beauties

Here are my first day of school beauties. Times are good when the kids go back to school. I sometimes dream about the day when all of the kids are in school all day and I have some free time again then I wake up and realize that we will be having a newborn in November and that dream is then another 5 years away. Oh well the first day of school is still a mixed emotion day for me so I guess I am still not ready for the kids to grow up. Until then I will continue to dream.

Love ya

Shannon

Amelia is ready to go
Gabbi and Amelia already tired of their Mom's pictures

Hayden looks so excited

Livvy is ready a couple of years early

My Graduate

Finally,

The day has come after 14 years of triumphs and trials that my wonderful husband has entered the world of college graduate. With little time off he has moved on to better Masters ambitions but he took a little time off to smell the roses and pose for some graduation pictures. This will likely be the only time you will see me in any pictures until my tummy and boob tuck so savor the moment.

Love ya all

Shannon

What Jane Austen Character Are You?

Here's one for all of you Jane Austen lovers. A quiz that will perportedly tell you which Austen character you most resemble. Mine was wrong as it had me as Jane Bennet inswtead of Elizabeth. Well you shall see. Here is the link. http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=41259 Good luck girls. May the force be with you.

Love

shannon

Gotta Love Summer

For those of you that live in a beautiful Eden where Summer temperatures are such that you can enjoy the long afternoons outside without visiting the hospital for dehydration then 1. don't talk to me anymore and 2. I live vicariously through your blogs. However, I don't live anywhere near that wonderful place and my kids are the color of printer paper so we spend Summer break inside the house. I remember as a child Summer was full of lizard hunts and forts and long bike rides and fourth of July spectaculars but our fourth was full of storms, wind and poppers. All kinds of confetti poppers. Does it sound like I am complaining? Well I am. As school approaches again and the kids are flourishing in the joy of learning I will slowly be recovering from the nervous breakdown and high blood pressure that Summer in the Birman household brings. Let me know how you all cope with having the kids home and indoors all Summer without spending a ton of money going out to eat or driving around just to get out of the house. Until then I will be hanging on for dear life.

Love ya all,

ShannonOlivia wishing that Winter needed snow caps and glasses to dull the snow's bright reflection.

Amelia thrilled with Fourth of July Poppers. Way better than fireworks. Love the confetti cleanup.

Grandmas are very impressed with Fourth of July festivities in Gilbert. Far superior to lake outings with big boomers.
A popper in Hayden's hands can become a deadly weapon.

OCD While Pregnant!!

Ok, this is for the ladies. I am having a little shall we say OCD moment this pregnancy and it is unlike anything I have experienced with the other three. I can not stop thinking about cleaning, rearranging, organizing and rearranging again. It's not just one area, it is the whole house. I am putting up shelves in the closet for food storage, moving three rooms around (I am literally moving furniture and if I am told not to it makes me really mad) and giving away all kinds of stuff. It is starting to scare me because I am just not clean or organized or interested in finishing any of the 50,000 projects I have ever started. Saturday I went out in the garage, got an old night stand I was going to sand down and finish in Hayden's bedroom colors, and fixed it up to put in the now new guest room. It matches but this is weird. It has been sitting in the garage for at least a year. Where are these ideas coming from. Does anyone suffer from OCD on a regular basis or have had it while pregnant? Please help. I am scarrrrrrrrrry. Really scarrrrrry.
Love Shannon
ps
No pictures of my OCD spree. That would be the scarrrrrrrrrrriest of all.

Trip to Grandpa and Grandma Las Vegas

The kids and I went to Las Vegas for 3 weeks at the beginning of June and had such a great time. We went as a big family up to Utah for the weekend to stay in a cabin and the kids just loved seeing actual pine trees and lakes which we have none of in Gilbert. They had a constume contest at Grandpas and a couple of them I am a little worried about. Hayden said he is a Zebra but Jimmy says he looks more like Amelia's pimp. Sorry if too graphic. Anyways the trip was great and even though it was hot there it was nice to get away from the real hot. I got to see my old friend Julie and go swimming with the kids every day. What could be more fun than swimming every day. I could think of a few things.Hayden at the cabin He is so over pictures. Olivia posing as usual. She is quite the star. The hair always looks this way. She is like the Tasmanian Devil.

Amelia with a questionable choice in costume design.

Hayden as a zebra. What do you think?

Olivia doing her Annie impression.