While Kinsey was OUT!

Kinsey turned 14 yesterday. I had been planning a little surprise for her for about a month. Okay...a BIG surprise. I decided to re-decorate her room, "While You Were Out" style. So I found a way to get Kinsey out of the house for about 30 hours (One of my former YW organized a little night out with Kinsey and some of her friends...ending with a sleep over...Thanks Alexa...you are amazing!). I had been planning this room for about a month and getting the stuff together, but I couldn't start much until she was out of the house. I knew that Kinsey loved one of the rooms of this years HGTV dream house, so I kind of went with that for my inspiration. I knew I couldn't do it alone, so I recruited Sara Rose, one of my dearest best friends in the world (and also highly talented in this area), to come and help me. She came over as soon as Kinsey went to school, and so did Stefanie Dowdy (another dear and wonderful friend, and the Young women's president), and we got to work on the room. It was a crazy day of priming, painting, sewing, and hoping our little kids didn't destroy the rest of the house. It was a long day...but so much fun.
This is Kinsey's room "BEFORE" the makeover. Cute and fun...but time for a change.

Stefanie was so sweet to come over. She knew I was doing the makeover, and just showed up on my doorstep right after Kinsey went to school. She helped me get that whole room taped and primed. Invaluable, and so fun to have her there. She stayed until her kids got our of school and she worked so hard. Thanks Stef.
This is Sara and her daughter Emma. Emma was actually quite the little helper. We also had two babies in the house, Gavin and Cooper (both 1 year). They both tooks naps, and then Sara even painted with Gavin on her back. When school got out, we had three more kids in the house. Sara and I said that we should host a new show called, "How to make-over a room with six kids in the house". It was crazy, but it all worked out. Carver and Sara's boy Luke did sneak up to the room while we were down stairs sewing, and they decided they wanted to paint something. Heaven forbid they just paint primer on the already primed walls. No...they had to take the roller to the screen, and to the top of a lovely antique dresser. Luckily we found it quickly and got the paint washed off the dresser. The boys had to clean up the entire upstairs as a punishment...and that was no small chore.
I made a new comforter cover for Kinsey, also about seven pillows, and I recovered a simple chair. Her bedding turned out so cute...and if you can believe it, I got the bedspread and shams at a garage sale. Never been used...and I bought them for $15.oo including amazing curtains. All white with dimensional raised designs. WHAT A DEAL. I figure I saved about $120 dollars right there. I just sewed a sheet to the back of the bedspread and made a comforter cover. I was able to do the comforter cover earlier during the week, but I couldn't do some of the pillows until that day as I was recovering some of pillows that were already on Kinsey's bed. Sara and Kennedy painted a bunch of accessories black for our new decor.
John and Sara's husband took the kids in the evening, and so Sara and I had some time to get some things done. When John came home, we only had the stripes left to paint, and he helped us get the lines on the wall. The striped wall is the focal point, so we wanted it to work out well. John's perfectionism and his love of his level, helped to make this wall great. I think we finally finished painting around 1:00 in the morning. There were so many different things to do during the day, and I was actually impressed that we got it all done. Sara was such a fun friend and a great sport to stay so late. But she is like me...once she gets on a roll, why stop. Plus, the best part is seeing it all put together. She helped me put the bedding on around 1:30 a.m. and we were just giddy at the way it was turning out. We had so much fun together all day long. We even made a "While you were out" video for Kinsey, documenting the whole day. Goofy, but fun. I think Sara finally went home around 2:00 a.m. Now that is true dedication. I LOVE YOU SARA!
YEA! IT'S FINISHED AND IT TURNED OUT SO CUTE. The room really turned out even better than I had planned. It just turned into such a relaxing and beautiful space. Clean and simple and just lovely. Yellow, and white, with lots of black accents. I did some photography of some cool iron finials and put them in frames on the wall. We gave Kinsey a little dressing area with a mirror and accessory holder. The recovered black and white chair in a corner (shown in my web album...link at bottom of post) is a perfect place to read. I THINK I WANT THIS ROOM.

I love this little built-in alcove area in Kinsey's room. It really popped with the yellow behind it.
When Kinsey came home, we caught it all on tape. She had some friends with her, but also some others waiting here to surprise her. She had such a shocked look on her face when she came in. I don't know, maybe she figured some of it out herself, but I think she was pretty surprised and SO HAPPY AND EXCITED. She can't stop talking about all the things she loves about her room. Her friends all loved the room too. What a fun experience. Thanks Alexa, Kerianne, Savannah, Sarah, Rosie, and Veronica, and Kennedy (who helped so much with the room). What great friends to come and help with the surprise. Also Thanks to Andrea Slaughter who gave me great ideas and helped with the surprise.
Thank you again Sara, my partner in crime. It was fun to have you involved. Thank you to Stefanie and Alexa too. Couldn't have done it without you. We all love Kinsey, so it was fun to do such a big project for her. Kinsey is a wonderful daughter, and I am glad that she can have this fun new room. HAPPY BIRTHDAY KINSEY! I love you so much!

If you want to see more pictures of the make-over, go to my web album;

http://picasaweb.google.com/amyinorlando/WhileKinseyWasOut?authkey=eRHgP-lFG2Y

Why I love being a Mom

Mother's day was wonderful this year. My family took care of me so well. John took me to dinner on Saturday night. Kinsey made me breakfast on Sunday morning. All the kids and John gave me thoughtful and fun gifts. They made one of my favorite dinners for me (grilled chicken quesodillas), pampered me all day long, and let me sit around and relax. No diaper duty. No bedtime duty. It was amazing. As I watched my sweet family on mother's day, I was reminded of why I love being a mom.

I love being Kinsey's mom because she is such an amazing and responsible child. I am constantly amazed by her self motivation and work ethic. I am always so proud of her. She also is SO fun to hang around with. I love to shop with her, watch American idol with her, and watch movies with her.

I love being Kennedy's mom because she always has something to tell me. That girl knows how to fill me in on "details". I love seeing how Kennedy has always been such a good helper. She loves to learn new things, she loves to do projects with me, and she is a great side-kick.

I love being Carver's mom because he makes me laugh all the time. He has some crazy dance moves that keep me pretty entertained. Carver is all boy, but still loves his mom so much, and is willing to snuggle with me. I love going to his soccer games, love watching him play in the neighborhood, love seeing his joy when he is boogie boarding. It has been so fun and interesting to see things through the eyes of a five year old boy. I love it when he stops what he is doing to tell me how pretty I am. Can't beat that.

I love being Cooper's mom. I ADORE having a baby. I cry when I think of him growing up. I love everything he does (well almost everything) and he makes me smile all the time. I love his slobbery kisses, his funny little jabber, his cute laugh, his funny little walk, and his chubby cheeks. He is such a sweet baby and he brings joy to all of us.

Okay, so I know that I am not John's "mom", but I can't leave him out here. John is such an amazing husband and he does so much for me. He did so much to make Mother's day wonderful. On Saturday he cleaned the house, did the laundry, (while I was madly making jewelry for my upcoming party), took the kids shopping for me, and then took me out to dinner. On Sunday he let me relax while helping the kids make the day nice for me. But to tell you the truth, he is always like this. He is probably the most helpful husband that I know of and I just feel so incredibly blessed. He is the love of my life, my best friend, and I still get excited when I see him walk in the door at the end of the day. He is always thinking of me or the kids, he is such an involved father, and he has wonderful relationships with each of our children. Very "hands on". John works so hard for us, and he is incredibly talented and creative in the work place. He is friendly, open, and caring, and such a non-judgemental person. I love going on dates with him, talking with him, or watching movies with him. He makes me laugh (after 17 years, we have quite a few ongoing inside jokes), always wants to hear about my day, and just makes me happy. He honors his priesthood, serves in the church, and teaches his family correct principles. I feel so blessed to have him in my life. I love you Babe!

Carver, the Ladies Man (video)

Okay, you just have to watch this cute video of Carver. Recently I attended Carver's field day at school. I couldn't help but notice that the girls couldn't stay away from him. No matter where he was, all the girls would follow him, tease him, or just want to hang out with him...and he didn't seem to mind. Though I know he loves hanging with "the boys", Carver has also told me in a matter of fact way that all the girl like him and they spend their recess trying to catch him. I asked him why and he said, "Well, I guess it is because I am so cute". I agree with these girls. I am also pretty in love with my little blond cutie.

WICKED! FINALLY!

WE FINALLY GOT TO GO SEE WICKED! For three girls who have been slightly obsessed (can you say "slightly" when referring to obsessions?) with the musical WICKED, a dream came true for us yesterday. The girls and I have been listening to the music of Wicked for over a year now and we have been dying to see the Broadway production. It finally came to Orlando, and I got tickets way before Christmas, but then surprised the girls with them on Valentines day. They have been so excited. Kinsey has even been counting down the days. Wicked (if you don't already know), is the back story, or the prequel to Wizard of Oz. The music is amazing, the sets wonderful, and the whole production was was just perfect. Such a funny and clever story. John went with us, and he loved it as well, and his obsession level was nowhere near ours. Anyway, we got the girls out of school early and made a day of it. What a fun outing for us. Even though I had to leave a sick, possibly throwing up child (Cooper) with a friend (amazing friend...thanks Beckie), it was still worth it.

Spontaneous Cruising

Have you ever heard of "Spontaneous cruising"? Me either. Actually it is a term that I made up after an experience I had last week. Just over a week ago, my good friend Sabrina called me, told me that she was leaving for a cruise in a day or two, alone, (she is going through a divorce and needed to get away and clear her head) and would I like to go with her to fill the other spot she already paid for. Of course I laughed, said, "Oh, I wish", and just didn't really think about it again. Yet she kept bringing it up, telling me that I might as well come since it was already paid for, and did I have a passport. Yes...I have a passport, but I also have FOUR KIDS TO TAKE CARE OF EACH DAY, and she was leaving on this cruise in just 36 hours or so. It was just too sudden to even take serious. Well, I told John about it when he got home and he told me I was crazy to pass up this opportunity and that he would help me work things out for the kids for 5 days (oh how I love that boy of mine). I had some serious mommy guilt at first, but finally decided to go, with only one day to do some shopping, pack my stuff, and organize the house, the food, and babysitters. Amazingly...it all worked out. John (husband of the year) took some days off, and my amazing friend Sara totally helped with Cooper, and Kinsey helped a lot too. Before I knew it...I was on a cruise ship headed for the Western Caribbean. AMAZING TURN OF EVENTS! SPONTANEOUS CRUISING AT IT'S BEST! Me and Sabrina leaving Florida...I am still in disbelief at this point.
I love the night life on the cruise. Being able to get dressed up, eat a nice dinner (that I don't have to clean up), and see all the amazing shows. We made the most of every minute.

This is Sabrina and I...way up in the sky...looking over the clear blue waters of Grand Cayman. Parasailing was AMAZING! Something I will never forget.
Ready to hit the beach and the shops
We went snorkling in Cozumel Mexico at Chaukanaub park. Loved it!
We spent a lot of time lounging around the pool, enjoying the FOOD, the entertainment, and generally just relaxing. Gotta love a place where everything is at your fingertips. For two girls that have 9 kids between us, it was a lovely break. It was HEAVEN. We spent hours and hours and hours talking, laughing, and sharing. Some major therapy for sure. I am lucky to have a friend like Sabrina. We just had such a wonderful time together. I came home to the happiest, sweetest family ever. They were excited for the experience I had and everything had gone smoothly at home. I was so happy to see them...and now I want to plan a cruise with my sweetheart.

Kinsey's beautiful smile

Kinsey's braces have come off...and she has a beautiful smile. She got them off about a month ago (obviously I am a little behind in my posts), and she is loving it. She only got the braces on last summer, so she didn't have to wear them for long at all. She did have an expanding appliance in her mouth on the top and bottom for a year and a half before that, so it has been a long journey...with beautiful results.

Beach bum baby

Cooper loves the beach. He loves everything about it. I can barely keep up with this little beach bum. The minute we set him down, he heads straight for the water. I love watching him play in the sand and water...even though we end up bringing half the sand in Florida home with us.

Easter Sunday

Lopez children, Easter morning, ready to go to church. We had a really nice and quiet Easter. We had a fun Easter egg hunt and Easter bunny "stuff", on the Saturday before Easter, so that helped us to truly focus on the real meaning of Easter on Sunday. John and I were the speakers in church for the Easter program. We spoke on the atonement and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I truly felt the spirit strongly this Easter. I am so thankful for the atoning sacrifice of my Savior.
Daddy and all of his cute Easter Children.

Cute Brothers

Carver is such a good big brother to Cooper. He can make Cooper laugh harder than anyone, and he is constantly helping to take care of him, or make sure he is happy. I couldn't resist these cute shots of my boys on Easter Sunday.

38 is GREAT!

Well, I just turned 38 on the 19th of March. I always thought that I would feel and look much older on my 38th birthday. When I was younger, the thought of my "late 30's", conjured thoughts of "oldness" for sure, but my perspective has changed. Now my motto is "38 IS GREAT!" I'm happy, I am blessed, I feel good, I feel young, I am fit and healthy, I am accomplishing new goals, I have a great husband and family and wonderful friends...so this birthday was wonderful. I guess it all depends on our attitude and our lifestyle. My family made my birthday extra special (they always do) by making me breakfast in bed, and putting helium filled balloons all over the ceiling of the family room and kitchen...along with flowers and signs. What a fun start to my day.

Four of my best friends took me to lunch at Macaroni grill. Two of my favorite things. Friends and eating out. Sara Rose, Beckie Lowe, Amy Hillis, and Andrea Rediski (not pictured as she had to leave early with "nap ready" children). What a fun afternoon. I love these girls and all of my good friends. They are family to me.

Another thing that made my birthday fun, was having some family visiting. John's brother Mike was visiting with his kids Madi and Luke (all the way from Texas) for the week. We all had so much fun. We took all the kids to the pool the afternoon of my birthday, then my family made me a yummy dinner and my favorite cake (cinnamon bundt), and didn't let me lift a hand for dinner, clean-up, and bedtime activities. It was a wonderful birthday. On the week-end after Mike had gone home, John took me out to dinner and shopping for a little "post-birthday" celebration. I love spending time with my hubby, shopping, and eating, so it was perfect.

"Wildman Triathlon" March 2008

I just competed in my second sprint Triathlon (Wildmand Triathlon Festival). I competed with six of the girls from last time, and one new girl. The Triathlon was challenging, exciting, rewarding, and a lot of hours of training...but ultimately, I LOVED IT! I guess I am addicted.

My favorite part of the Triathlon was competing with JOHN! Most of the husbands committed to doing this triathlon back around Christmas, yet they dropped out one by one as the training went along (sounds like they were not up to the challenge of possibly being beaten by their wives:). John was the last man standing (and a little bothered with his friends for quiting) and he went ahead and competed with us. I am so proud of him. He did a great job, even with much less time to train that me. I beat my times from my first Tri, and came in 4th in my age division, and John met his goal of "finishing". He actually did a great job. I finished about three minutes ahead of him (passed him on the run with a nice little wave), but he was a great sport about it.

The men started the swim in a wave that was three minutes ahead of the women, so here we are watching them...getting ready to head out ourselves.


Me coming out of the water. Happy to be finished with my first event and trying to get to my bike as fast as I can.

Our photographer friends must have missed both me and John on the bike...but we did do it.

Almost to the finish line, though I can't seem to lose "speedo man".

John heading out for his run.

Little Blue Overalls

I have always thought that there could be nothing cuter than little blue denim overalls on a baby boy. I thought this picture of my sweet baby boy completely captured what I am talking about. Cooper has just started taking his first steps in the past few weeks and it is so fun to watch his progress. I know that years from now, I will see a pair of blue denim overalls on a baby, and it will take me right back to this time in my life watching my last baby boy learn to walk.