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Happy Happy 1/2 Birthday Sweet Girls!

18 months ago today our sweet girls came into the world!

Mary Danz was a natural, amazing delivery that I'd do all over again! MDC weighed in at a healthy 5lbs 12 oz.

Sarah Belle, after witnessing her sister's adventure said NO thanks... She came into the world thirty minutes after her sister and via c-section... Weighing an equally healthy 5 lbs and 7 oz.

We worked so hard to make it "to term." In part because we wanted healthy babies, but even more so because we didn't want to harness our widgets with a Christmas or New Years birthday for the rest of their lives. And we made it to January 2nd!!


It's still pretty close to the holidays so we've decided we will celebrate their 1/2 birthdays! Last year we amended our 4th of July pool party to include the girls' "first annual 1/2 birthday party!" This year we're opting for a quieter celebration... but a celebration nonetheless.

Happy 1/2 birthday little ones!

Save the Date!! Our Annual 4th of July Pool Party, that's never on the 4th

Jerry and I bought our house June 30, 2005 and just a few days later we had our first "Annual 4th of July Pool Party, that's never on the 4th." Several folks commented about the fact that boxes were everywhere and we weren't even close to moved in yet. Sure it was true! But come on... it was the 4th of July and we had our first pool!!! Boxes, shmoxes it was time to swim!!



Every year since we have continued our tradition of our Annual 4th of July Pool Party, that's never on the 4th." We invite all of our friends and family - everyone that makes our life better, makes us smile and remember why we love Tulsa! Some people throw Christmas parties... we like a good 4th of July pool party... that's not on the 4th.



Then 18 months ago we got another reason to celebrate! Sarah Belle and Mary Danz celebrate their 1/2 birthday every year on July 2nd... close enough that we have to merge the celebrations together!



I've been looking forward to this year's party for a number of reasons but mostly because we were looking forward to pulling out all the stops to also celebrate my 40th birthday!!! I LOVE my birthday - selfish, narsistic, I know but nonetheless... I love it!



But alas... we spent this 4th of July weekend in our nation's capital. Who can complain about celebrating our independence just steps from the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial and so many other symbols of sacrifice and freedom? Not I assure you.



Of course I also can't let my 40th birthday OR our pool party tradition fall victim to geographical challenges. So mark your calendars folks, consider this your Save the Date... this year September 4th we'll celebrate our annual 4th of July pool party, that's not on the 4th of July." Of course we should probably throw in the girls 18th month birthday - wait... they'll be 20 months by then!

European Washing Machine... Blessing or Curse?

Moving from a small(ish) town to the big city certainly comes with some adjustments. Traffic... lots more cars, even at 6am the highways are full. More cars leads to parking challenges. Strangers take a little more effort to coax a smile out of. On the flip side there are so many more options... restaurants, concerts, parks, heck even the grocery stores are amazing.

Some things are not as obvious... homes in the big city are much more expensive which means you end up much less space. Old habits of buying in bulk at Sam's... ugh! Schlepping all your purchases up two flights of stairs, then three floors (on the elevator thank goodness!) and down the hall... only to discover you have not the pantry nor fridge space to accommodate all your finds!

It's a different life. Our current adjustment is to our fancy, smancy laundry machine. It's European style which means it does both the washing and the drying all in one drum. No effort required to move your clothes from the washer to the dryer! And it's a great space saver!!

Of course... the capacity is nine pounds of dry clothes and the total time required to do a load... three hours, thirty minutes.

There is a very nice laundry room in our building and we used it willingly/aggressively in the beginning. Until I realized we were spending $30-40 a week just washing clothes. When in Rome right... we are learning to adapt to our (free) all in one, fancy smancy European style washer/dryer.

I'm excited about some of the benefits... learning to keep our clothes clean so they'll last longer between washings. Hanging clothes to dry versus making them crispy critters with a fire hot dryer. Definitely a solid step towards the "less is more" way of life.


This laundry basket is currently holding four loads of laundry... please check on me 10.5 hours from now to make sure I've survived!

What steps do you take to lessen the burden of laundry?