The Ibarra Family

Friday the 13th...my lucky day

2010-10-22T21:49:00.000-07:00

I can NOT believe how fast the past 10 weeks have flown by! TEN weeks? It seems like only a few days ago that my ankles were swollen to an unrecognizable state, my heartburn medication had ran out and Tums were not doing the job, and i couldn't sleep worth beans despite how physically exhausted i was due to an insanely large protrusion in my mid-region. for anyone who spent any time with me in the weeks prior to august 13th, it was painfully obvious how READY i was to have this baby. but, as i would soon learn, our fourth and final broke the mold in almost every way imaginable.

i was due on 8-9-10 and i had never gone over my due date before. according to my own calculations, i was pretty convinced that it was going to be somewhere near the end of july/beginning of august. so when it came and passed, i was in the frame of mind: any day now!

Except when came to August 12th...dallas' 8th birthday. and as much as dallas wanted me to have her on his birthday--i did NOT. i only had his best interests in mind...

on saturday we were at a movie with the kids when i started having contractions. the plan was, at the first contraction we were hightailing it over to tacoma since it is an hour away and my labor with alec was only 3 hours. {we were not keen on having the baby on the tacoma narrows bridge} but that only holds true if the labor actually continues...with all my others, once the contractions started, they never stopped, it was full-on labor! so we went through the motions and dropped the kids off and headed towards the hospital, making a few stops along the way to do some walking since the contractions didn't feel "normal"....i.e. hard and regular. some were 3-5 minutes apart while others were 20-30 min. i finally did check in at the hospital just to get the green light to go home {it would have been very unfortunate to have the baby on the bridge on the way home} i was only 1cm dialated and so we headed home, thinking things would pick up overnight and i would be back in the morning. but i went home and slept soundly, waking up with nothing more. sunday, monday, tuesday, wednesday...same irregular contractions. which brings us to thursday, dallas' birthday. i lost my plug that morning, so i knew it was close, but i was determined to hold out till his birthday was over. we went to a movie {i crossed my fingers there was no dejavu}, angel took the kids mini-golfing, and then we went out to eat. my feet/ankles were at their all-time hugest and i was feeling lots of pressure. i woke up at 3:30am with the contractions i had been waiting for for the past week. i got angel up, called the midwife, and after we got the kids situated, we got the hospital at 7am and i asked angel to check me in while i went to the bathroom. as i stood up, my water broke. {FYI, i was in the 95% for my amount of amniotic fluid. point being, there was A LOT of fluid.} they stuck me in a wheelchair to take me up to L&D and on the way i proceeded to soak myself and everything around me with the outrageous amount of fluid that would gush out every 10 seconds. the nurse checked me and i was at a 4. my midwife arrived, took one look at my fluid and told me that the baby had already had a bowel movement {or two} since it was full of meconium. they hooked me up to the monitors and alerted the neonatal nurses. right around 8:20 i thought maybe i could go for some pain medication of some sort...i deserved it on my last one, right? but she checked me and said i was almost a 10, which made sense, cause that's the only time i feel like i can't take it anymore--when it's almost over. a few pushes later, our baby girl arrived, and they quickly suctioned her out so she wouldn't inhale the meconium.

Evalynn Socorro

{named after mine and angel's moms middle names}

born 8:35am

8lbs 12oz

23in long

LOVING her fingers...

Everyone took their turn holding her, and my sweet Grace was overcome with emotion. at first we thought she was upset because she didn't get be in the room for the delivery {we had told her that she could, but there were so many nurses already and they almost didn't even let my mom and sister in} but she said that she was just "so happy".

as we all were....

it was the best feeling in the world to finally hold her in our arms

she was so peaceful and had the sweetest little cry!

and the nurses were all so good with grace...they let her help give eva a bath and get her dressed

{and let me tell you, that water was a sight to see!}

It was definitely different being in the hospital after having alec at home, but everything worked out great and we brought home a healthy, beautiful little girl, which we all know is the most important thing!

the view from our room

we checked out that night at 7pm and drove home where the rest of the family was eagerly waiting to meet the newest family member!

big brothers dallas and alec

we all know how fast time flies with little babes, but to me it seems like it's gone even faster this time around. i'd like nothing better than to push the "slow motion" button. but alas....if there only was such a thing!

Getting ready for baby...

2010-08-06T12:07:00.000-07:00

I keep wondering if this baby is waiting for me to be "ready" before she makes her entrance into the world. So i am trying to think of anything and everything i need to get done to be "ready" for her.
Help me out if i've missed anything...

She has a seat to ride in...

She has clothes that are clean and ready to wear...

She has a cradle to sleep in...

She has diapers for her sweet little bum...

She has her own bath to bathe in...

She even has plenty of hair bling {or in our family's case: peach fuzz bling} to wear...

and she has a family that is ready and waiting to LOVE her till our hearts explode!
Not to mention a mother who's stomach is ready to explode....

{photo taken 2 weeks ago!}

Is there anything more a little girl could want/need?

So what's the hold up little one?
Come join us!!! We're READY for you!

Fun on the Fourth

2010-07-17T13:49:00.000-07:00

We had a great 4th of July weekend. On the 3rd we all met down at my dad's office on the Poulsbo Marina pier to watch the fireworks show. We set up our chairs, and brought some yummy snacks while we waited for the show. I bought all the little boys glow swords and glow hats and the girls glow wands and necklaces. It definitely kept them occupied while we waited...

and little Emma just couldn't make it till the end....sweet thing!

The next day, after church we came back to my mom's and took a few photos. We had some yummy bbq, celebrated my bro-in-law Scott's birthday, and tried to keep the boys occupied till it was dark enough to let off the fireworks we brought. Some of them just couldn't wait...{think adults} All-in-all it was a super fun weekend with friends and family!

15 inches of L-O-V-E

2010-07-01T13:08:00.000-07:00

Right before school got out, Grace decided she wanted to get her hair cut. It had gotten pretty long since the last time she had it cut and a little hard to manage washing and brushing, etc. I decided it was probably a good idea with summer coming to have an easier and faster head of hair!
But it would practically be a crime to cut this hair and not have it go to someone in need...
So I called up my cousin who is an AWESOME hairdresser and told her Grace was wanting to donate it to Locks of Love. She willingly obliged...and Grace was super excited!

The initial cut...

Trimming it up

The Final Product!

Afterwards she couldn't stop tossing her head back and forth...something about the feel of her hair swinging around.
She loved it :)
And hopefully whoever her hair goes to will be just as happy!

throwing my name in the hat...

2010-06-28T13:48:00.000-07:00

i found this cool giveaway at thefashionablehousewife.com and one of the ways to gain extra entries is to blog about it. for a free, fun, trendy diaper bag? you say jump, i say "how high?"
isn't it cool?

it's from this cool website: http://petunia.com

wish me luck :)

Our Key to the World...

2010-06-27T21:01:00.000-07:00

Nevermind the fact that we went on this Disney Cruise way the heck back in January, it was so much fun, i would post it even a year later! My problem was that i couldn't decide which photos to post because there were so many parts of the trip that i wanted to include, and i didn't want to go overboard where it would take forever to scroll through them {let alone the time it would take to upload!} then a good friend shared a website that does these awesome mosaics which allowed me to include as many photos as i wanted! problem solved!

Our trip started at the airport where it was slightly reminiscent of the crew in "Home Alone"...there were 16 of us all together! Jake strapped Emma to the rolling suitcase and it was so cute to see her rolling through the airport--she loved it :)

We gave Alec his very own "Guitar Hero edition Nintendo DS" that morning and he was SO excited to be one of the "big boys" playing his DS on the plane. {all the boys sat together trading games, etc.}

The magnificent view of Mt. Rainier...

Arriving at port canaveral and checking in--upon check-in they issued us our "key to the world" card which we used to purchase anything onboard and to exit and re-enter the ship at port...

and finally boarding!

{click to enlarge}

Once we got on the boat we all ate at the lunch buffet and then went up on deck for the cast-off party. it was so much fun...they handed out streamers to all the kids and had music and dancing and made it really exciting overall.

{click to enlarge}

That night i snapped a picture of the sunset from the deck

Overnight we sailed to Nassau, Bahamas and the shipped docked in the morning. Grace was excited to get her hair braided there. They have outrageous prices posted, but they will actually do it for a fraction of the cost. According to the sign, her hair should've cost around $200, but we paid $50! It took an hour and a half to finish, but was well worth it because i didn't have to worry about her hair the rest of the trip {swimming/chlorine/tangles, etc.} Taylor got hers done too. After they were done with the braiding, we went to the straw market to buy some souvenirs and then headed back onto the boat.

{click to enlarge}

Disney has 2 AWESOME kids areas called the Oceaneers Club and the Oceaneers Lab. It was basically like "camp disney" with counselors and games and activities {like making Flubber} and they LOVED going there! they could go from 6am throughout the day till 2am {though WE never left them longer than a few hours at a time...}and we were given a pager in case they wanted to be picked up...but that wasn't the case...we basically had to drag them out! On the last day they even had the kids learn a fun song and dance called "Friendship Rocks" that they performed for the parents on the big stage.

{click to enlarge}

This was our stateroom. We actually booked later than the rest of the family and all they had available was a room with a window--which was really cool! we could look out and watch as the sun rose or set, and also as we pulled in and out of port. One of the kids favorite parts was the towel creatures that housekeeping would leave--everyday they would run in to see what it was. this day it was a monkey hanging in the corner.

The boat had AWESOME shows every night! but the only one i got pictures of was Toy Story--The Musical

{click to enlarge}

After the Bahamas, we spent a day at sea. The kids spent a lot of time in the pool, especially the Mickey ears hot tubs {and there was a cool waterslide that i thought i got a picture of, but must have just got it on video.} The kids loved being able to go order their own food and drinks since it was all included.

The next day we docked at Castaway Cay--Disney's private island. Once again they had a kids area called "Scuttles Cove" where you could check them in and then take off to the "adults only" beach called "Serenity Cove". Emma was so adorable in her swim cover-up...One of the highlights was the "Flying Dutchman" from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. When they were done filming they brought it to Castaway Cay where it makes for a pretty COOL photo!

{and check out mom's "all-terrain" wheelchair they issue!}

{click to enlarge}

Dinnertime on the boat was a show in itself! Every night we experienced a different dining room with a different theme, but our 2 waiters stayed with us, so we always knew them. They too, were awesome....after the first night they set the kids and adults at separate side-by-side tables and totally took care of their dinners, drinks, etc.

And the meals! i ate things i've never had before and that i'll probably never eat again {unless i go to a 5-star restaurant and order escargo} but it was the coolest experience to try all these new things...everything tasted wonderful, especially the desserts :)

Here's the kids at their table when we ate at the "Animator's Palate"

and it was Brett's birthday a couple days prior to the cruise, so they brought him the coolest piece of cake with a chocolate cruise ship on top!

Some of our yummy dinners and desserts!

{click to enlarge}

The last night was themed "Pirates IN the Caribbean" {get it? we were IN the caribbean :-} so all the characters had on their pirate attire. that was one of the most fun parts about the cruise. the kids got to see characters and take pictures constantly cause they were always out and about, especially around the dinner hour. Of course alec had to have a picture with his namesake...

{click to enlarge}

The boys hanging out....

The pirate party up on deck was so much fun! they played the Pirates of the Caribbean movies on the big screen and had music and dancing with all the characters and a cool show! then a huge midnight buffet with a fireworks at sea. it was loads of fun.

{click to enlarge}

But alas, our trip came to an end and it was time to leave....ahhh! we didn't want to leave! we could have stayed for much longer :) but we all promised we would be back cause it was too much fun not to go again! we packed so much into the days we were there and made so many fun memories. the kids still talk about it and ask when we are going to go again :)

If you ever have the chance to go--I highly recommend it!

This was our farewell photo....

{click to enlarge}

and last of all, this is the photo of the sunset i snapped through the airplane window on the way home

What time is it?...Summertime!

2010-06-21T10:17:00.001-07:00

So school is out for the summer, and lucky for me--most all the other kids in the country got out before we did--so i saw some pretty fun ideas on some other blogs. I saw this idea here. Like i said, lucky me, cause this is not something i probably would have thought of on my own, especially since my thoughts lately have been focused on heartburn and ankle swelling {but that's a different post altogether.}

I was going to do a basket for them each individually, but then decided it would be better to put it all in one and there would be less conflict that way. I found that Michael's has a really great {i.e. "cheap"} kids section with lots of fun, crafty, artsy things. all the stuff my kids love....and after i left Michael's i headed over to Dollar Tree for some treats, where i also picked up the basket and balloon.

Here is what i put in the basket o' fun:

Water guns

Modeling clay

Glow bracelets

Wood jet gliders--boys

Charm bracelet kit--grace

Grab-a-bubbles {bubbles you can hold in your hand}

Dry erase game board--for car trips

Candy necklaces

Watermelon twist gum

Airheads, Puckerooms, & Funtoos

I would have given it to them when they got home on the last day, but when i picked the kids up we went to Chuck E. Cheese with some cousins and then to a family dinner at my mom's, so it worked out better to give it to them the next morning. they were super excited to play with all their new stuff, and my favorite part.....it gave me a chance to sleep in a little!

p.s. {extra points if you can name the song the title of the post comes from!}

Airforce One...do you copy?

2010-05-05T10:10:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago my mom, dad, sister, and i flew down to San Antonio, Texas for my brother's graduation from basic training in the Airforce. i didn't really have any expectations of what it would be like, but if i did, it would have exceeded all of them! it was very emotional {which could possibly have to do pregnancy hormones} to see my brother accomplish something of that caliber--and after hearing about everything that basic training entails, it was even more impressive.

We flew out wednesday afternoon where we were seated right in the middle of the entire Sounders FC soccer team. this guy was sitting on my left...we shared an armrest {sigh} hmm....i never knew soccer players were so cute...but i digress! we picked up our rental car, and drove to the hotel where we promptly went to sleep because with the time change we had to get up at o'dark hundred {3am seattle time!} in order to get to the lackland airforce base for the festivities. after a wrong turn on the freeway {oops!} we made it there in time and lined up for the airman's run.

this was probably the most exciting part, just because it was the first time we had the opportunity to see him, if only for a second. everyone started cheering when we saw the first flight coming into view, and from there it was a frantic scanning of all the trainees that had on the exact same clothes with the exact same haircut {can you say "where's waldo"?} but we were lucky enough to have picked the right side of the street because here he came right there in front of us, close enough to reach out and touch!!

we could see his eyes scanning the crowd too, in hopes of seeing us among all the other family members there to see their son/brother/boyfriend. we yelled his name and though he didn't turn his head, {they weren't allowed to} his eyes were looking to the right and he cracked a smile, so we knew he saw us. {click on the pictures to enlarge it and you can see his half-smile} after they all passed, we ran across the street taking our chances that they would do a u-turn up ahead and he would be on the opposite side of the street when they ran back through. we were right! and he sneaked a peek at us again as he ran past.

from there we had to wait 3 hours on metal bleachers until the coin ceremony began. this was where they were given their airman coin and officially graduated from trainee to airman. when they had all been presented their coin they concluded the ceremony and released the family members to come greet their airmen.

it was a mad dash from the bleachers to the floor to find him...again: where's waldo? they all looked the same! and the poor guys waiting for their family to come....they had been instructed to stay in formation until their family members came, so they couldn't move or look around...

they were at the mercy of us finding them! mom ran up to him and put her hand on his arm and he tentatively turned his head to look at her.....{he said he had to make sure it was actually someone he knew, so it wasn't a case of mistaken identity, lol}

.....then wrapped her in a big bear hug. we all took turns hugging and taking pictures and commenting on how good he looked!!!

the rest of the day he had base privileges so he could go anywhere with us as long as he stayed on base. We were all starving after being up so early so we went in search of food.

{a little side note: b4 we left, we googled Charley's Subs to see if there was one anywhere near the base since that is matt's favorite place to eat, but the closest one we found was a half hour north}

we went to the mini-mall that had the Exchange and commisary and a food court and as we walked in, lo and behold, was a Charley's Subs! matt looked like he had died and gone to heaven! {it obviously didn't show up on google since it was on a government base} the day passed by quickly and before we knew it, it was time to say good-bye. not too difficult for us...we had a cush hotel to go back to...but for him it was back to being under lock and thumb. at least it was only till the next day. we went back to the hotel and crashed! it was a long day....and we had another early morning ahead of us.

this time we found our way to the base easily and settled ourselves in yet another set of bleachers {oh joy} waiting for the graduation parade to start. this part was really cool to watch.

they recited the airforce pledge, motto, song, etc. and really focused on the big accomplishment that it was for these young men.

did you know that only 25% of men aged 18-35 are even eligible for entrance to the airforce? and out of the all the guys in his flight, he was one of the few to earn his first set of stripes...way to go matt!

after the graduation ceremony there was an open house at their dorm where we got to see where their living quarters. matt took us through their daily regimen and what their day entailed. whew! i was tired just hearing about it!

after that they were given town passes from 2-8, so we went into san antonio and walked around the town. it just so happened that he graduated during "Fiesta"....a 10-day celebration of parades, food, and fun {also known as drinking}, so there was no shortage of people in town. we had lunch, visited the alamo, and even took a dip in the hotel pool {on the roof} before returning him to base.

the next day was another all-day town pass so he got to leave at 9am. we took a riverboat tour of the riverwalk {there's a river that runs through the town} which gave a detailed history of the town and many of the buildings.

{if you ever visit there, i highly recommend it!} then we ate lunch at a yummy mexican restaurant.

and once again, the day passed by too fast and it was time to take him back. this time it was for good since we would be flying out the next morning. it was hard to say good-bye, but we were all so proud of him and knew that he was moving on to bigger and better things. monday morning he would leave at 2am for a flight to san francisco where he would be stationed in monterrey for his linguistic training learning his assigned language: ARABIC...Wow!!! we all gave our last hugs, and off he went. it meant a lot being there for such a meaningful moment in his life. and it was really special to see my dad and him together...my dad went to his basic training for the airforce at the same base! like father, like son, eh?

Congratulations Matt!!

WE LOVE YOU!!

back at the hotel we crashed once again ready for another early morning. our flight was at 6am which meant we had to get up at 3am. {and if you count seattle time it was 1am!} we "attempted" to return the rental car, but as we approached the airport, every rental agency had signs to return their cars except ours. lucky us. we stopped probably 4-5 times to ask for directions. we were given detailed maps each time. we drove by the same landmarks multiple times. it felt like we were in a labrinth, always knowing it was somewhere nearby, but never being able to get there. all the while our time is ticking by and we are getting closer to our departure time. finally we have only 20 minutes until our flight is supposed to leave and we still can't find the car rental. we stop at a different rental company to ask them and they tell us "we're sister companies, just return it here!" ahhh!! so we hopped on the shuttle to the airport and walk in to find an insanely long line at security. we pretty much know we've missed our flight by now, but get in line regardless. amazingly, the line moves quickly and we are at the check-point with only a couple minutes till our fight leaves. if our gate had not been literally 30 steps from security we would have been out of luck. but this pregnant lady can run when she needs to. i was the first through security and ran {sort of} to the gate and said "we're here, we're here!" the attendant said "you just made it! we were getting ready to close the doors" talk about cutting it close! we literally sat down and the plane backed out from the runway. i think we all zonked until we got to salt lake city where we had a connecting flight.

it was an awesome weekend, but not a relaxing one--if you get my drift. my ankles/feet were so swollen from the heat and humidity in san antonio and the flight to and from. i needed a vacation from my vacation--but i wouldn't have missed it for anything!!

Home is where you hang your heart...

2010-05-04T12:01:00.000-07:00

Home is where you hang your heart--and we hang ours in Poulsbo now....April 1st we bid farewell to our lovely Port Orchard home that we spent 3 and 1/2 years in. We didn't anticipate moving until summer since we wanted the kids to finish out the school year in P.O., but we found the right house in Poulsbo and decided to go ahead with the move. It was hard to do, considering how much time

and effort we put into remodeling the kitchen, LR, bathrooms, etc. but in the end, more space, and being in Poulsbo won us over. I would post some pics of the house b4 we refinished the cabinets, floors, and got new furniture, etc., but unfortunately they are on the old hard drive that went ka-put, so you'll just have to use your imagination. :)

One of the downfalls to moving was that we went from GARAGE to NO GARAGE. So everything that WAS in the garage had to find a new home. We had a yard sale and really tried to get rid of many things that we had been holding onto for years that just sat in a box/tote. The kids had a great time weeding through their toys when i told them that they could keep the money that they sold for. Alec kept bringing more toys out throughout the day after he played with them "one last time."

Lulu was so funny...she climbed into this basket that seemed much too small to be comfortable, but made herself at home and stayed in there for a good portion of the day.....silly dog :)

And i have to post these pictures in honor of the kids....they thought it was the funniest thing when my dad helped this lady stuff the huge Lovesac in her trunk. If you've ever seen the movie "Robots" you'll know what i mean when the kids couldn't stop referring to the lady's car as "aunt fannie."

After what seemed like a million years of packing, the day of the move finally came {too soon!} and we loaded up the u-haul only to find that even with all of our purging, we still couldn't fit everything into one truckload. My dad and Angel ended up going back early the next morning {in the pouring down rain} and loading up the remainder of our stuff....and i was shocked to find out that it took up the WHOLE truck! TWO full truckloads?!?!?! We spent the rest of the day cleaning until my feet and hands couldn't take it anymore and i deemed the house officially clean and called it quits. {did i mention i hate moving?} We drove down the driveway "one last time" and over to our new house, {that didn't feel much like "our" house}, where we had a nice spaghetti dinner with my mom, dad, and sister's family.

and a BIG shout-out to my mom...I honestly don't think i could have done it without her. She helped me pack my entire house, organize for the yard sale, even stayed to clean my other house, and helped me unpack into the new house. WOW...that's motherly love!

our new place:

it's bright and open and we feel like we can breathe!!

p.s. if you want our new address, drop me an email....

Last but not least...

2010-05-03T10:10:00.000-07:00

So this is it!! For anyone that doesn't already know...our 4th and final little one is on the way. The kids all had they're fingers crossed at the ultrasound that "IT" would be a girl...and they got their wish! She will arrive sometime around the first week of August and we are all eagerly anticipating her arrival {some more than others...namely, ME}

Erin go Bragh....or something like that {& a bonus!}

2010-03-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

We had ourselves a fun time for St. Patty's Day yesterday...

We decided to do breakfast for dinner {mainly b/c i couldn't figure out any dinner to make green} and "green eggs and ham" have never been so tasty! add some green pancakes and green banana mini muffins and you've got a super-duper green breakfast for dinner! {and can you believe with all that food coloring nobody ended up with a green mouth afterwards?}

on a side note---i just had to share this.....

yesterday alec was playing a little nintendo and i heard the funniest thing. i'm not sure why he felt the need to chant about his imaginary "brother-in-the-law" but i'm sure there was a good reason....?

{sorry 4 the grainy picture & poor sound, but u get the gist of it!}

The Road to Freedom

2010-02-25T14:00:00.000-08:00

Grace was selected to sing the solo in the 3rd grade President's Day assembly last Friday. She fully prepared by practicing and singing her song every minute of every day for the last couple weeks. I think she was pretty rehearsed by the time Friday rolled around. and i think everyone else in our family could have gotten up there and sang it with her...

She was pretty nervous, but that's normal for her and didn't affect her performance too much. She actually got into the beat, so stick around till the end of the song--her knee really gets going!

Singing is one of her many passions and we're happy that she enjoys sharing her talents with all of us!

...stay tuned for Port Orchard Superstar 2010 coming up in March!

Well, Hello LuLu!

2010-02-24T09:42:00.000-08:00

We acquired a new addition to our family last week. She is 15 weeks old, 27lbs. and her name is Lulu. What is she--you might ask? Some people know immediately upon seeing her in all her glorious wrinkles and droopy eyes, while others still, ask "what is she?" Here is a little English Bulldog/Lulu 101 for you. They are one of the fastest growing breed of puppies, which is why she looks much larger than most puppies at 15 weeks. They are very mellow and like to kick back and relax much of the time. They rarely bark and don't lick you to death either.

They are also extremely interested in chewing..... .....everything. Consequently she has lots of fun chew toys that are "her very own." She is very good at going potty outside and getting a yummy treat after doing so. She likes to antagonize the cat, who pays her no mind unless she gets in his face. She likes to go on car rides to pick up the kids from school. {mostly because she gets a truckload of attention from all the kids and teachers.} She loves to cuddle and is one of the sweetest and most adorable things around! But that, my friends, apparently is debatable.

We have had mixed reactions regarding her little puppy face. On one end of the spectrum, we hear "oh my goodness, look at how adorable she is!" {i tend to agree} But we have also heard from more than one mouth "ugh...those things are so ugly" So my question of the day is: adorable as all get out? or....SO UGLY that they're cute?

{notice how your choices are limited} please--do tell.

the sweetest boy

2010-02-10T10:42:00.000-08:00

I haven't been feeling quite "up to par" lately so sometimes I lay down for a bit while Alec watches Word World and Super Why. Yesterday when I woke up, this is what I found on my bedside table:

My 5-year-old son made me "lunch"

Notice the color coordinating cup of apple juice, you know--in case i was thirsty, too...

Then I decided to take a peek at the inner contents, having NO idea what could be inside. Knowing this boy, it could be army men and playdough...

But here is what it was:

How cute is this?

--He knows that he's not allowed to use knives, so he got out the cheese grater and used the middle portion that slices cheese.

--Then he pulled some chicken {not too much} off the chicken breasts I had just boiled for dinner that were cooling on the counter.

-- And then, he got in the fridge and found some cilantro and put a little sprig on there. {he knows how i love "salad" on my sandwiches, and hey, lettuce...cilantro, same difference, right?}

I was so touched by the sweet thought he had to make me a sandwich, the effort he put into it, and more so, that the thought even crossed his mind! Am I not the one who is supposed to be taking care of him? I just stood there staring at it with a big smile on my face. {and grateful he didn't attempt any mayo...}

I know I may, um, {cough}, comment from time to time about his crazy antics and how he makes my life so much more interesting, but this is the sweet boy I know and love, the boy that has one of the biggest hearts, and gives the best hugs, and makes cheese/chicken/cilantro sandwiches with the heel of the bread. I don't think I could love him much more...I'd explode.

He saw me bring my sandwich out of the bedroom and ran up to me and gave me a huge hug and said "mom, do you like the sandwich i made for you?"

...and i wasn't lying one bit when i said:

"sweetie, i LOVE it"

a package deal: Christmas & New Years

2010-01-26T08:47:00.000-08:00

i have one word for Christmas this year: supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

cause it was so much more than just plain super! it always starts at my aunt's house for christmas eve dinner and the singing of christmas carols. after that we drive down candy cane lane to see the houses with all the lights. {the kids' favorite is the one that you get to tune into the radio station and the music and lights coordinate...it's my favorite, too.} but this year, by the time we got home, Alec was out like a {christmas} light and would not wake up for anything. not even to open his christmas eve jammies. so we staged him for the photo...he couldn't be completely absent, that would just be wrong. angel and i still had a few gifts to wrap so i put the christmas music on and we wrapped like crazy. luckily the kids got up christmas morning at a decent time for me...7:30am {thank-you kids} they opened their stockings, ate a bunch of candy, and then we headed over to my mom's house with the rest of the fam. bubba was ecstatic to receive the huge Bakugan pack, grace fell immediately in love with her "just like me" American Girl doll {which, by the way, she named "Natalie" because it means 'christmas'?} and alec received his long awaited Ben 10 Alien Creator. life was good.

then we told all the kids we had one more christmas present for them and had them sit on the couch together. we put the DVD on and watched their faces as they one-by-one realized that WE were going on the Disney Cruise! they were super excited especially when we told them we were leaving in 12 days! woo-hoo!

and the 12 days seemed to fly by. the next day, my brother and his wife kathrine, and their kids riley and emma flew in and we exchanged gifts with them. the four little boy cousins got a 4-pack of transformer walkie-talkies which were a HUGE hit and they spent the rest of the day in different rooms communicating via bumblebee, megatron, optimus prime, and ratchet. grace got a beautiful china dress that matched cousin emma's.

before we knew it was new years eve and we were back at mom's for our mexican fiesta. we made homemade tamales, played a few rounds of Tripoly, and ate our hearts out till midnight.

{grace is the only one who lasted to ring in the new year...she felt like a big girl}

then we came back the next day cause we didn't stuff ourselves enough the night before. we had the best smorgasboard of all our favorite football-watching foods....sweet & sour chicken wings, blackbean/avacado/corn salsa, 7-layer bean dip, crab dip, meatballs, fruit salad, and so much more. pure bliss.

.....next post: the DISNEY CRUISE!

Mystery Madness

2010-01-25T10:55:00.000-08:00

So i promise to get to christmas and the cruise...but a good mystery trumps a family vacation any day, wouldn't you say?

Cause there has been a mystery in our house for sometime now. Get ready for it. . . . . . . .are you ready?

Here it is: the spoons are missing

This was my silverware drawer last month....missing said spoons. So i look in the dishwasher, AND the sink. How many spoons do i find, you ask? only 3!

3 spoons!!! when there should be at least 12...so what do you do when the spoon supply is dangerously low? you take your confuzled mind to IKEA and buy 8 more spoons to replenish the supply. but somehow there are still not enough spoons to go around. somehow, the spoon shortage continues. the spoons are M.I.A.

this is what the silverware drawer looked like this morning when i went to give alec a bowl of cereal:

So i look in the sink...and the dishwasher. I find 4 spoons----TOTAL! and i think to myself..."self, didn't you just buy 8 spoons at IKEA to add to the 3 we had, for a total of 11 spoons? why are there only 4 to be found?"

i had no answer. i was confounded.

so i washed one of the 4 spoons and gave alec his bowl of cereal. 10 minutes later i hear him put his bowl in the sink and i go over to wash off the spoon he used so there will be at least ONE clean spoon in the drawer.

but there is no spoon in his bowl.

and there is no spoon in the sink.

so i ask the child: "Child, where is the spoon you used?"

he answers: "it's there!"

and being the good detective that i am , i say: "no--it's not, come show me!"

so he comes over and opens the door under the sink.....where we keep the garbage

and he says: "see--right there!"

he is right.

it IS there.

in the garbage.

he has been throwing away our spoons just like he does when we're having ice cream at Cold Stone or Dairy Queen.

but really, if you know this child of mine, does this remotely surprise you?

me neither.

i will not relay the conversation that followed this discovery...it's classified.

i will just say: MYSTERY SOLVED

For the "outdoor-deprived-stuck-inside-all-day-ers... "

2010-01-21T10:50:00.000-08:00

This post is dedicated to all my California friends who are need a little cheese with their whine about "all the rain". All I have to say about that is: try living in the Pacific Northwest!

Moving on to better and brighter things, I'm happy to be blogging again! A very sad thing happened to our hard drive....it died, gave up the ghost, and took with it all my precious photos, music, you name it, it's gone. {so i guess that's not better and brighter} but the good news is that we had it replaced with a bigger and better one and i'm happy to have a working computer again. So now i have to catch up on our fun family happenings, but first, this post. Like i said, dedicated to anyone who needs something new and exciting to do with their kids that doesn't involve a lot of effort {my kind of activity :-}

If you read the blog "This Week For Dinner" you'll recognize it....

Have you ever made playdough and had to keep a hawk's eye on your kids when they try to sneak it in their mouth? {hmm...maybe that's just my kids}

Well, no worries with this playdough! It's easy to make and fun to eat when the creativity is done!

Here it is:

-1 cup peanut butter

-1/2 cup honey

-2 cups powdered sugar

Mix the ingredients in a bowl and you're done! Store in an airtight container or plastic baggie with air sucked out of the bag. {quick tip: spray your 1/2 cup with oil before measuring your honey and the honey will pour much easier.}

ENJOY!

When it rains, it pours

2009-11-26T00:45:00.000-08:00

You've heard it said before...When it rains, it pours. It seems like the last week has been filled with one thing after another for the people that I care about. About a week ago Grace's best friend's dad was in a severe snowboarding accident completely shattering his ankle and currently has rods and screws holding it together while still needing several more surgeries to repair it. Not a day later, my aunt was diagnosed with thyroid cancer and will also go in for surgery. Then, a couple days ago, another good friend's SIL was in a horrific accident at work and had to be airlifted to Seattle ending up with loss of blood, a broken pelvis and femur and amputation of her leg below the knee. And tonight, my mom slipped and broke her ankle that will require surgery on Friday. With the epitome of all days to be grateful upon us, and with these highly unfortunate events occurring, it is difficult to find the silver lining in such a sorrowful and strenuous time. But I am grateful that they are all here with us still, and I am grateful for the power of prayer. I give thanks that we are able to lift one another up and support each other in love and grace. I am grateful for loving family, and for good friends, and most of all for my Savior, Jesus Christ, who has suffered all pains and afflictions to be able to be our support. So though it is raining, (literally & figuratively,) I pray that blessings be poured out upon all those I love in their time of need. And on this day, I am, indeed...grateful.

Great deals on Christmas cards and labels...

2009-11-22T14:58:00.000-08:00

If you haven't done your Christmas cards yet, HOLD IT RIGHT THERE! Visit this site before you do anything because you can get a great deal, and by {great}--I mean FREE!

You can order 50 free 4x8 photo cards using the coupon code freebies4mom-1109 (type in that code) at SeeHere by Fujifilm. All you pay is shipping! You can get your 50 photo cards for $3.19 shipped. Or you can order 10 additional cards to qualify for free shipping to get 60 photo cards for $4.90 shipped. This coupon code expires on November 30. If you are new to SeeHere you can also get 100 FREE PRINTS fromSeeHere.com by FujiFilm when you sign-up for a new account using the coupon code prints (but you need to order those 100 free prints separately from the 50 free photo cards). You can design ANY single-sided photo card, but what perfect timing if you plan on sending out at least 50 Christmas cards. The photo cards include envelopes and are single-sided 4x8 printed on photo paper in either horizontal or vertical orientations. I absolutely loved the versatility of being able to place my photos, accents and text to fit my preferences instead of the stiff cookie-cutter versions at the usual photo labs.

And if your Christmas list includes more than 50 recipients, enter the promo code NEWBABY and it will get you 50 more photo cards for FREE! {on a separate order, of course}

And if you'd like some super cute return address labels to use on those FREE cards you just made, here's yet ANOTHER site offering FREE address labels and photo postcards:

If you're planning to send out Christmas cards this year, or just enjoy have festive address labels, you can get a great deal on them through VistaPrint right now.

::Just click here and go to the left hand side of page.

::Under "Home & Family" choose "Holiday".

::Design your labels and checkout.

::You should get 140 labels for free and only pay around $3 total for shipping.

If you prefer to send postcards rather than full-size cards you can also get 100 of those for free and pay only approximately $6 shipped. Here's how:

::Just click here and click on the 100 free postcards offer in bottom right-hand corner of the page.

You could also design these postcards as gift tags for homemade gifts, goodies, or gift baskets. Or for all your gifts, for that matter!

Between these 2 sites I just ordered my cards AND address labels for a whopping total of $6.69!!

My Giveaway Entry

2009-11-16T09:22:00.000-08:00

Mama’s Holiday Wish List Meme
TodaysMama and Provo Craft are giving away a sleighful of gifts this holiday season and to enter I’m sharing this meme with you.

1. What 5 items are on your holiday wish list this year?

a dyson

scrapbook kit subscription

some new kitchen gadgets

new bedding

adobe photoshop
2. What is your favorite handmade gift you have received?

a scarf
3. What handmade gift have you always wanted to tackle?
homemade goodies

4. What was the best Christmas gift you received as a child?
my very own pink radio/cassette player

5. What items are on your kid’s wish list this year?
american girl doll

bakugan stuff

ben 10 alien creator

6. What is your favorite holiday food?
almond roca

7. What will you be hand-crafting for the holidays?
cards

8. What is your favorite holiday movie?
the polar express

9. Favorite holiday song?
the christmas song (chestnuts roasting)

10. Favorite holiday pastime?

wrapping presents while listening to christmas music

Your turn! I Tag:

Claire S.

Amy K.

Diana G.

Michelle C.

Heather C.

Anna S.

if you want to enter, go here: TodaysMama

if not, just complete the tag!!

Leaves, Pumpkins, and Candy--Oh my!

2009-11-03T09:28:00.000-08:00

I have to say, fall is probably my favorite season, {i know, i know, it's so cliche...but it's true!} Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you my favorite colors are muted browns, oranges, and greens. Take a look at my house and you'll clearly see said colors. {more about that in a future post...get ready for a makeover!} What can i say--i'm drawn to fall colors! So right now my sweet-cinnamon-pumpkin candle is burning, i have a smile on face and my heart is happy!

The last couple weeks we've had so much fun enjoying all the fun stuff that comes with fall and halloween! The kids had a primary activity at the church which is across the street from their school, so afterwards we went over and the kids had a great time playing in the leaves and enjoying the crisp, fall air....mmm, i can smell it now!

Another reason i LOVE the pacific northwest...we get the bee-you-tee-ful trees in their ever changing leaves and colors. i wouldn't trade it for anything!

A couple days later the kids carved their pumpkins {and when i say "the kids" i mean angel and i...someday, somehow, they'll make carving more "kid" friendly, right?} We had a book with a bunch of templates in it {note to self: accidentally lose said book by next halloween} and each one was rated for it's difficulty level, so of course the kids were drawn to the ones with 5-star

difficulty... {alec really wanted the alien coming out of the spaceship} It took some prodding and persuading for them to believe that we are not michaelangelo and cannot create the masterpieces that the experts made look so easy in the book and could they please pick one with maybe one or two stars?!? We compromised nicely and ended up with a spider, a cat, and grace's own creation {check out grace trying to wink like her pumpkin}

...and we always have great intentions to save the seeds and roast them, but when it comes down to it, we don't have the recipe or instructions so they end up in the garbage. {if you do it and love it, please, do tell!}

And of course....Halloween! We had a great idea for a family theme that would have been super cool and fun, but this slacker of a mom didn't get her act together in time {no "mother of the year" for me this year!} so the kids had to settle. The boys were content to wear their star wars costumes from last year but Grace took the most convincing. In the end i won her over with the mention of hair glitter and make-up, so she was the "belle" of the ball {pun intended} with her dress she got from christmas and her hair all done up. We usually go to the trunk-or-treat at the church, but this year we went trick-or-treating with my sister and the kids' cousin adam in poulsbo.

They really enjoyed ringing the doorbells and seeing everyone's yard decorations. some people really get into it! There was a world series game that night and one family had a display on their porch that had showed the score, very creative! A funny side note...we kept having to call alec to keep up with us because he would stay and chat with the moms/dads handing out candy! i'm not exactly sure what he was saying to them {probably telling his life story} but no matter if he was the 1st one up to the door, he was always the last to leave!

After trick-or-treating we went back to my sister's where we had spaghetti for dinner, alec hid behind the coffee table and ate a full-size hershey bar someone had given him, and the kids decorated halloween cookies. {tsk, tsk, no pictures...bad mom again} And who knew knocking on doors for candy could wear you out? These guys were so tuckered out, they completely zonked on the way home before they could even ask to eat anymore candy....did i mention i love this season?

Happy Halloween from our "spooky" family to yours :)

2009-10-16T12:04:00.000-07:00

Tri and Tri, Tri, Tri again

2009-10-15T09:38:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday was the last area triathlon of the season in Elma and Angel had been wanting to compete for a while now, but with his crazy schedule at work, he wasn't able to train consistently and most of the races were on the weekend when he was working. But this triathlon was a sprint {300meter swim, 13mi bike, 3mi run} so he decided to give it a "try" {no pun intended}.

The weather was not exactly ideal, but when it comes to sports you take it as it comes. He was nervous about the swim {it isn't his strongest suit} but fortunately it wasn't a long one.

Getting all suited up High five from the water :)

Then came the transition to biking, and off he went...

back from biking and trading in the biking shoes for running shoes....

here he comes to the finish line... GO ANGEL!

He did it :) Good job Angel!!

A few minutes after Angel finished, the kids triathlon started. The race coordinator made an executive decision to forego the swim at the beginning since there were a couple of little kids competing and the weather was turning even colder. So they started on their bikes.

On your mark, get set, GO!!!!! And they're off!

Here comes Grace, getting ready to cross the finish line in 1st place!

Keep going Dallas! Woo-hoo! You did it!

Wrong way Alec.... This Way to the finish!!

Taking pictures of the top 4 finishers....pay close attention to Alec's expression as he's standing next to Sawyer {the little girl who took 2nd}

"papa, she's touching me" "No, I won't smile, she's STILL touching me"

"Okay, this is much better, now I'll smile cause she's way over there"

A picture with Nana & Papa who came to cheer them on...

The four new triathletes of the family with their medals.

Angel won Top Finisher in his division

Grace won the trophy for Overall Win in the Kids Tri

...and now they've been bit by the Tri bug! They can't wait to do it again!

Meet Morris

2009-09-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

This is Morris.....

He is soft...

He is cuddly...

He is sweet...

He lives with us now and we love him!

Awesome Michael Jackson Tribute Medley....

2009-09-10T10:48:00.000-07:00

Even if you don't like Michael Jackson, you HAVE to watch this!

Anyone can appreciate the acapella harmonies...It's too cool!

{then scroll down for the new family post}

Buy me some peanuts and crackerjacks {or kettle corn and licorice in our case :}

2009-09-09T06:41:00.001-07:00

We took the kids to their first ever major league baseball game. It was a beautiful day, and ever since they got their jerseys they have been talking about going to a game, so when the Mariners took on the Anaheim Angels we decided it was as good a time as any to go. We opted for the the family pack {tickets, hot dogs and drinks} on the upper level knowing we probably wouldn't make it through the whole game. But we were thoroughly impressed with the kids attention level, given the fact that NEITHER team had scored a single run, even as we sang "take me out to the ball game" during the 7th inning stretch.

After Angel pointed out the camera man a few rows in front of us, Alec was intent on "being on the big TV" so he held up his sign that Grace made the WHOLE game hoping the man would film him. But alas, he did not...

We decided to call it a day, and I firmly believe in Murphy's law. As we were leaving and stopped on the 1st level for some pictures {see below}, we heard the whole stadium cheer as one of the Mariners hit a triple. We stopped on the concourse where we were and watched as the next up at bat hit a homerun bringing in 2 runs! So at least the kids got to cheer on the team and celebrate, unfortunately it didn't happen sooner :(

And for some odd reason unbeknownst to me, Michaelangelo the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle was on the 1st level concourse and the boys got to take a picture with him. {one of their favorite parts of the day}

As we were leaving the stadium we took some fun snapshots :)

We can't wait to go back!

2009-08-21T22:03:00.000-07:00

Saw this on a friends' Facebook page and got a good laugh out of it. Thought I'd share. I'm sure we can all relate to a few...

Random Thoughts of the Day:

1. I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.

2. More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.

3. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.

4. Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk

5. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.

6. Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.

7. There is a great need for a sarcasm font.

8. Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.

9. How the heck are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?

10. I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.

11. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.

12. Was learning cursive really necessary?

13. Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".

14. I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.

15. Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.

16. How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?

17. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars teams up to prevent a jerk from cutting in at the front. Stay strong, brothers!

18. While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it....thanks Mario Kart.

19. MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.

20. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.

21. I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.

22. Bad decisions make good stories

23. Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!

24. Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from; this shouldn't be a problem....

25. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection again.

26. There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.

27. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.

28. "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this...ever.

29. While watching the Olympics, I find myself cheering equally for China and USA . No, I am not of Chinese descent, but I am fairly certain that when Chinese athletes don't win, they are executed.

30. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello? Darnit!), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?

31. I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.

32. Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...

33. As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.

34. Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.

35. It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.

36. Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.

37. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...

38. It really ticks me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.

39. I wonder if cops ever get ticked off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.

40. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.

41. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

42. The other night I ordered takeout, and when I looked in the bag, saw they had included four sets of plastic silverware. In other words, someone at the restaurant packed my order, took a second to think about it, and then estimated that there must be at least four people eating to require such a large amount of food. Too bad I was eating by myself. There's nothing like being made to feel like a fat lard before dinner.

8 is Great...Part A: Aloha Oe!

2009-08-03T11:28:00.000-07:00

Since 8 is a special birthday in our family, Grace got to pick a theme for her birthday party and have 5 girls over for a sleepover. {8 must be special cause 6 eight-year-old girls staying up all night is not something I offer everyday} She decided to have a Hawaiian Luau so we started collecting decorations, which wasn't too difficult since every store under the sun brings in tropical decos during the summer. She was super-duper excited and was EXTREMELY involved in the planning process. She made a schedule of events for which activity they would do first, second, etc. and also categorized everything into order of importance. Each guest had a special assignment they were in charge of for each activity. She even made a map of special activity "stations"....She put a lot of thought into this party!!! So the girls arrived at 5pm on Friday and whatta-ya-know they couldn't agree on what to do. Some girls wanted to ride bikes outside while others wanted to build a fort inside, while others still wanted to play barbies. This was so discouraging to Grace who thought everything would run like clockwork, just like she planned. And to top it all off Dallas was spending the night at his cousin's, but Alec was left at home following the girls around like a little puppy. We had a nice little heart-to-heart and she decided to lighten up a bit on the schedule and I promised her Alec would go to bed at 8pm. The girls ate pizza and had a smorgasbord of candy and popcorn during the movie. I told them bedtime was a firm midnight so they decided to make the most of the last hour and construct the fort they wanted to sleep in. I was pretty impressed how they all {mostly} fell asleep right away. When they woke up in the morning it was Costco muffins and milk for breakfast and then down to business...time to decorate for the Luau! They had lots of fun blowing up balloons, filling water balloons and wearing their Grass skirts. They also did a little choreography...

Here's a little clip of the "presentation" they worked on for probably 10 minutes:

{notice Alec on the end, trying desperately to be included...}

Hey, what can I say....they're 8

The weather was a sunny 89 degrees so we were lucky to have borrowed some canopies from some friends to set up in the back. But it was perfect for the kids to play in the pool and toss water balloons.

Grace got some fun stuff from her friends and I caught her expression when she opened her present from us--tickets to Wicked when it comes in September. Poor Angel was still on his 6pm-6am schedule so he had to get a snooze in before left at 5, so he missed the cake and presents, but I took him some video clips for him.

The day was deemed a success by Grace {except for the plethora of bees that loved all the pineapple and strawberries, etc.--but no one got stung--thank goodness!} She's already talking about what she wants to do for her party next year...I had to remind her "8 is great, but 9 is only fine"--NO PARTY till you hit the double digits :-) To which Dallas overheard and replied: "Oh Cool!! I can't wait till MY party next year!".................oh joy, boys

Happy Birthday to my 8-yr old Gracey-Girl!! We love you!!!

Our 4th {...of July, that is--don't be gettin any ideas!}

2009-07-22T22:26:00.000-07:00

My Country tis of thee...

We had a super fun 4th of July weekend this year.

We couldn't have asked for better weather and it just felt so picture {no pun intended} perfect!

July 3rd we all met down at Edgewater park for my BIL's birthday. The kids had fun playing in the water and we all enjoyed the sunset.

We found Alec in his preferred spot {up in a tree} eating cherries...

I swear this view never gets old...i think it's 99% of the reason we live in the

Pacific Northwest

Sweet land of Liberty...

After Scott's birthday we went downtown Poulsbo for the 3rd of July Fireworks on the Bay where the kids got to wear their glow necklaces and eat plenty of munchies. We're lucky my dad's chiropractic office is in the business complex at the marina so we had primo spots to watch the show...

Waiting for the fireworks to start

and enjoying the show

Of thee I sing...

We came home from the fireworks and Papa had set up the tent in the front yard to campout with the kids. It was a tight fit, but they didn't care much, they were just thrilled to be sleeping outside in a tent...{not my idea of "fun", but hey--to each their own, right?}

Land where my Fathers died...

The next morning we got up and went to the 4th of July parade in Kingston. We didn't make it into Poulsbo for Viking Fest this year and we figured the kids should meet their quota of at least one parade a year, right?

check out the kid to alec's left--going in for the kill...

Alec was not having very good luck retrieving the candy that was being haphazardly thrown into the crowd...the other kids were bigger and faster and it always seemed like just as he was bending down to pick one up, some other kid would swoop in and snatch it up from right under his nose. But alas, he finally prevailed when he figured out that it's every man for himself when it comes to parade candy!

Land of the Pilgrim's pride...

After we came home from the parade the kids played in the pool,

From every mountain side...

Dad put together a puzzle which he triumphantly finished,

and we ate a yummy meal!

Let Freedom Ring!!!

The latest installment in the ongoing saga of "The Boy with the Bionic Foot..."

2009-07-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

Our superhero lost his powers when his arch enemy in the red uniform used her supersonic saw to cut and pry his bionic armor away and toss it into the bottomless abyss......

(translation: alec got his cast off)

He was super excited to get his cast off "for good this time" {you might have noticed that the cast he is getting off is RED, not BLUE, like the original...we had some water issues during bathtime so he had to have it re-casted and he elected to get RED "like Spiderman"} And even though the cast tech. took FOREVER taking his cast off {10 times longer than the first time,} Alec was super patient and kept laughing because "it tickled."

I mentioned in the garden post about Alec filling his cast with loads of dirt and i hadn't thought about much more than dirt being in there, but if you look closely you can see round impressions where he had stuffed Othello pieces inside {you know, the black and white round discs}. I think we counted a total of 5 pieces that came out, and that's only from the day before when they were playing Othello. I thank my lucky stars that he didn't discover his secret hiding place any earlier, or who knows what else we would have found.....

After the cast came off they cleaned off his leg and took him to the x-ray room to check the bones and make sure everything was healed right. The kids though it was so cool that the picture instantly popped up on the screen and the x-ray tech even printed them out a copy to take home.

Alec got the "thumbs up" from the doctor and was good to go. Too bad I didn't remember that even though he went in with a cast, he would need 2 shoes when he left. Our next stop was Target.....

Once he got two shoes on, it was so funny to watch him walk. Since his achilles tendon hadn't been stretched in 4 weeks, he couldn't extend his foot the whole way so he would walk on his toes with his heel up, just like when his cast was on. It took a day or two to go back to normal and then he was as good as new. And just as I expected, having a cast didn't even remotely affect his sense of caution, it was just 4 weeks of blue/red armor on his leg. Would somebody please nail this kids feet to the ground!

Together again...

2009-07-14T10:34:00.000-07:00

When I was browsing through my photos on the computer this morning I saw these pictures and realized I never posted them. Probably because it wasn't a specific holiday or occassion--on the calendar--that is, but for OUR family it was actually a very special occassion. It's not too often that we have our entire family together without someone at college, or in China, or San Diego, so when we do, we take the opportunity to get some pictures of everyone together. This was in May, right before Jake and his family took off to China for a year.....this is for you Aunt Barbara :)

All 8 cousins together

From L to R: Brett, Dallas, Alec, Adam, Riley, Grace, Taylor, & Emma

(and yes, that's Alec WITH his cast on, hanging upside down)

{ click on the photo to enlarge}

The 4 Siblings

Jacob, Jenny, Amy, Matthew

{click on the photo to enlarge}

The WHOLE Harlan Family!

Back Row: Matthew, {don't mind him, he was a little tired so he decided to take a snooze} Taylor, Scott, Amy, Dallas, Adam, Riley, Alec Jacob, Emma, Kathrine, Jenny, Angel

Front Row: Brett, Becky, Tom, Grace

{click on the photo to enlarge}

Take in all in, cause the next time we get a picture together all the kids will have grown a couple inches and the adults will probably have a few more grey hairs {or in some cases less hair}, and who knows, maybe our numbers will have grown?!?!

A Family Affair...

2009-07-13T11:55:00.000-07:00

A couple months back my Dad caught the garden bug. One slight problem--he didn't really have a spot at the house for a garden. So he did what any resourceful guy would do....{well, not ANY guy} He asked the perfect strangers across the street if they would mind if he used a portion of their field to plant his garden....And whattayaknow, they said: "YES!"

So he got to work, tilled it up, planted the seeds, and before long everything started popping up! The only problem, which normally wouldn't be a problem--considering this is the pacific northwest, is we've gone more than 30 days without rain! And growing plants need water daily, which means if the water doesn't come from the sky, it has to come from us. So being the ever so resourceful guy again, Dad rigged up a system for taking water to the garden. He fills two huge containers of water and puts a pump in one of them with a hose attached to it powered by a generator, and Voila! Water for the garden!

Well, Dad had an unfortunate tumble and had to have a little surgery on his ankle, after which he was told NO WALKING for 10 days. So the rest of the family took up the plight and went to save the garden from heat exhaustion.

The kids, of course, thought it was the funnest thing in the world and it really was quite fun for all of us to be pitching in while Dad called the shots from his cushy spot in the truck :)

Some of the growing plants were hard to see so the boys put a

little rock border around them so they wouldn't get stepped on...

{remember you can click on the pictures to view bigger}

and apparently the little rocks were boring so

leave it to Alec to find something a little more challenging....

All Finished! Good job boys...

It's all about Teamwork....

Here's Dad from his command post trying to tell Angel what and how to till while Alec happily fills his cast with

loads and loads of dirt--oh joy...

{more about that in another post}

Making sure every veggie gets a drink of water...

It's so nice that we all live fairly close together so we can help out in times like this and create memories that will last a lifetime! When I think back to this day I'll always see these pictures in my mind and hear the sound of my Dad while he's sitting in the truck bed singing:

"It's a family affair...."

Graduation #3

2009-06-17T22:55:00.000-07:00

Sunday was a big day for our family, namely Angel. Though he had previously graduated from Ricks College with an Associates degree and Auburn University with a Bachelors degree, he was never able to walk in the Commencement ceremony due to competing in Track & Field nationals. I mentioned a couple posts ago how he finished school for his apprenticeship at the shipyard. But when we got the information in the mail he was strictly opposed to walking in graduation because he didn't view this degree as a "big deal." I told him that it IS indeed a big deal, that he did more studying for his classes {like Applied Physics} and exams this time around than he ever did with the 1st or 2nd degree, that he graduated with one of the highest GPA's in his class earning a spot on the Dean's list, and most importantly that his kids were not around to see him graduate before and that it would be a HUGE impression on them to see their dad accomplish something of this magnitude. In other words, "YOU'RE WALKING IN GRADUATION!"

and needless to say, He conceded....

So Sunday was a big day. The kids were so excited when the graduates started walking in and had so much fun waiting and looking for Angel as he came down the aisle. Though they didn't recognize the pomp and circumstance being played by the band, they definitely recognized the importance of the occasion. The excitement faded, however, as the ceremony progressed. To their credit, it's been a while since I'VE attended a graduation and I don't remember them being that long! {that's code for: boring} The excitement returned though, when Angel went up to get his diploma and then all the graduates marched out.

Receiving his diploma.....

Marching out with the graduates...

It was a little chaotic trying to find him in the mass of red-robed graduates {very where's waldo?-ish} but eventually we found each other and it was so cute to see the kids say "Good job Dad!" And just so you don't think I'm an obnoxious, controlling wife, Angel DID tell me after we left graduation that he was glad I "encouraged" him to walk. He said he didn't realize how actually going through the ceremony would make him feel what an accomplishment it was, not just for this last degree, but for the other two as well. {See! Do I know my husband or do I know my husband?}

Afterwards we went to my mom's for a get-together. We had some good friends, the O'shields, over to help us celebrate (he's actually the reason Angel has his job at the shipyard!) The kids all had a blast playing outside together.

And Angel was excited when he opened the Sounders Jersey he'd been eyeing for a while now. Good friends, Good food {Baby-back ribs, cornonthecob, potatoes, shrimp-ka-bobs, fruit}....what more could you ask for? Oh yeah, chocolate cake :-)

HOORAY FOR ANGEL!!! YOU DID IT!!

A very {memorable} Memorial Day....

2009-06-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Memorial day for us was filled with lots of fun and interesting things....We finished weeding and prepping the front yard to plant new grass, we went to Costco and had LOADS of yummy samples, {can you say "lunch"?}, we took the kids to the playground where Dallas truly learned to ride his bike. {he's been on the verge for so long since we took off the training wheels, riding very short distances, but afraid to go much farther}, had some batting practice with Grace, came home and ate bbq'd hamburgers, corn-on-the-cob and watermelon, and to top it all off, ended the day with 4 long hours in the ER. Do I really even have to say who for?

Earlier in the day I was inside and heard the certain someone crying, not his typical "I bonked my head" or "I smashed my finger" cry, but a full-on-sobbing-this-really-hurts-cry. Normally I saunter out to see what the damage is, but this time I high-tailed it out to the playground and found Alec on the ground holding his foot with, get this, REAL TEARS streaming down his face.

I say that because even when he split his head open and had to get staples, he never even shed a tear....he just ran around the house like a madman, yelling "OW, OW, OW!"

So, as the story goes, apparently he decided it was much more fun to climb across the TOP of the monkey bars rather than swing from them {because, you know, you're only a few feet off the ground swinging from them as opposed to 8 or 9 feet if you're climbing on top of them}. At which point he lost his balance and fell through, landing on his left foot. {FYI, Crocs do NOT provide sufficient support to cushion a fall from 8-9ft.} We, Angel and I, looked at his foot and didn't see any protruding bones and then he proceeded to walk back over and climb up the rock wall. We figured everything was fine and went about our day. But, as the day went on, we noticed that he seemed to be favoring his foot, not putting all of his weight on it when he stepped {or should I say, ran.} I took his shoe off and saw the whole left side and around his toes was purple and swollen. It was at that point we decided that maybe he was not "just fine." So Angel took Grace and Dallas home to put them to bed and Alec and I ventured off to the ER.

4hours and 3 x-rays later he left with a semi-permanent splint, lots of stickers from the nurses, an appt. with the orthopedist, and a very tired mom! {it was midnight} Oh, and did I mention, instructions to not put ANY weight on his foot.....{I didn't feel inclined to mention he'd been running and playing on it ALL day long...} Can I just say, telling a kid {a kid like Alec} that he can't use his foot is pure TORTURE?!?!? He was going stir crazy not being able to ride his bike, or play Ben10 with Bubba. But he did get pretty good at hopping around on his one good foot.

Which is why we were all cheers the next day when the Orthopedist said "walking cast." Yay! Alec was very excited when he found out he got to choose the color of his cast and between questions and stories, I don't think he ever stopped talking, at all, during the whole process. {to which I sent the cast technician many apologetic glances when he would look at me as if to say "seriously?"}

Putting on the 1st layer of plaster, then the 2nd layer of blue...

The finished product!

He's enjoyed having family and friends sign his cast. To name a few: "#1 and counting...." from Mom, "Te Quiero Mucho" from Dad, "The Stitch" from Auntie Amy, "You're crazy but we still love you" from Uncle Matt, and "Get better Stitch" from Uncle Scott. At first I was afraid that all the excitement would give him the impression that having a cast is "fun" and perhaps maybe he would want to repeat the ordeal after it comes off, but when I was tucking him in bed the other night he said, "I just want this cast to come off so I can go to sleep!"

Everyone has been asking if having the cast has slowed him down at all and I regret to say that if anything, it has enhanced his self-confidence. I think he feels as though he now has this invincible, bionic foot. He has been caught balancing on top of bikes, scaling chain link fences and hanging upside down from....you guessed it, the monkey bars. But, to anybody that knows Alec, is it at all surprising? No, not so much.....

{where I found him when he was supposed to be eating his lunch}

Beach + BBQ + No More School = Fun!

2009-05-11T10:16:00.000-07:00

Angel finished his last week of classes for his apprenticeship at the shipyard last Friday and one of his classmates had everyone over for a celebratory B-B-Q. He lives right on the Puget Sound and the kids had a blast playing on the beach. (Funny that we are virtually surrounded by water and we get to the actual beach so little....go figure) They chased each other around with squirt guns, flung sand at each other (Alec's favorite), and collected crabs from underneath the rocks.

Angel and the kids walked a ways down the beach and found this really cool, old boat that was shipwrecked on the beach and the kids all took turns making up stories about how it ended up there.

The kids ran their hearts out all day long and we had a very relaxing, quiet ride home. (sigh)

Picasso (I mean Stitch...I mean Alec) strikes again.....

2009-05-11T09:33:00.000-07:00

Scene: Mom and Son are ready to walk out the door. Mom had just finished putting on her make-up

Act One: Mom notices it is "too quiet". . . . . .she also notices the make-up bag she left on the bed is no longer on the bed. Mom calls Alec's name and hears a muffled noise

Act Two: Mom finds Alec under her bed with the make-up bag in question

Act Three: Mom wrangles Alec out from under the bed to find he has decided to oversee his own hair and make-up for the day's production. Mom thanks her lucky stars he only had it in his possession for 30 seconds and not 5 minutes

Act Four: Post-Production clean-up at age 4 1/2

Bittersweet.....yes, that's the right word

2009-05-07T19:23:00.001-07:00

We said good-bye to our beloved ski pass a few weekends ago. It was, again, loads of fun.

After watching some of the pros come down the mountain, Grace had the hankering {is that even a word?} to try skiing backwards {her skis do have twin tips}.......this was her attempt:

Way to go Grace!!!

And since this was our last trip, my mom and dad came up to watch for a little bit. They watched us come down a couple runs, we took a few pictures, then we went to the lodge and had lunch together.

It was also the one year anniversary of the day our sweet, wonderful, Aunt Sandie lost her battle with cancer. My cousin, (her daughter Michelle), came up with the very cool

idea for everyone to release balloons at the same time on that day to celebrate and remember the wonderful life she lived. The kids each wrote a note to Aunt Sandie that they then tied to the balloon. Dallas's note consisted of a lot of "very much's". I love you very much, I miss you very much, and, in not very much time I'll see you in Heaven. Alec said: I hope you get this balloon in Heaven so you will know that I love you. Sweet words from sweet boys....

Grace wrote her own so I didn't get to see hers, I guess it was "private", but knowing her, I'm sure it was from her heart and just as sweet.

We went outside, and on the count of three, let them go....

We watched them fly away until we couldn't see them anymore and at that point Alec declared they finally made it to Heaven :)

It was very "bittersweet" missing our sweet Aunt, but at the same time remembering the amazing person and friend that she was to all of us.

"WE LOVE YOU AUNT SANDIE!"

Easter: Take 2.......

2009-04-21T16:09:00.000-07:00

The day before Easter my Mom came down with strep throat and we all decided to forego Easter dinner and stay home, rather than take the risk of having it go through everyone's family. One possibility that we came up with was to have Easter over at Amy's and just bring all the food over there while mom stayed at home. But none of us felt like it would be much of an Easter without mom, and besides, she had set the table so pretty :)

We had all been looking forward to the the fun day with good food and an Easter Egg hunt for the kids, so we decided to just postpone it one week till mom felt better. So last Sunday we all went to church together and then went over to mom and dad's for "Easter".....

We got home after church and took our traditional Easter family pictures....

Then we all changed and the kids were on the hunt for all the Easter eggs hidden around the yard {some more hidden than others...}

We sat down to dinner and ate our yummy ham, jell-o eggs, twice baked potatoes, spinach/strawberry salad and all the other yummies. We washed it down with Costco's Gi-Nor-Mous chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream. Mmm...Mmm...Mmm....

And the great thing about the whole day was that it actually felt like Easter! Which just goes to show that holidays aren't about what day you celebrate them, but more about being together as a family and keeping the traditions we all love.

Can You Duet?

2009-04-17T10:40:00.000-07:00

Most of you know about my obsessive/compulsive/disorder with radio contests......I've won tickets to a variety of shows and concerts including Tim McGraw (with meet-n-greet), Martina McBride (twice, once with meet-n-greet), Rascal Flatts (with meet-n-greet), Bucky Covington, James Blunt (met him at the radio studio, and YES, he's "beau-ti-ful"), Sonics tickets, and the David Copperfield magic show to name a few. The tickets always come in pairs and so I've been able to take Angel, and my sister Amy, but this time I took my mom to my most recent escapade to meet Caitlin and Will, the winners of CMT's "Can You Duet."

The station fed us breakfast, catered by Qdoba Mexican Grill (breakfast burritos--very yummy!), and then we had a little intimate performance by the duo, followed by autographs and pictures.

It was loads of fun and I have to say, they are two of the most are genuine, down-to-earth people! Not to mention how THEY CAN SING!!! I actually got goosebumps!

It was good times, and I have to give a shout out to my sister Amy, and niece Taylor, for watching my kids so Mom and I could go!

Helping Hands

2009-04-05T16:43:00.000-07:00

Our weather the last few days has been so pleasant. The rain has taken a break and the sun has decided to grace us with it's presence, so the kids especially have been taking advantage of spending time outside.....riding their bikes, chasing each other around the yard, and getting all their energy out. Saturday Angel went outside to do some yard work and Alec was eager to join in. It made me smile to watch him work right alongside his dad, doing whatever he was asked and trying his very best. He was so determined to do his "job". He is growing up so fast and we love this sweet part of his little personality.

More Skiing at White Pass

2009-03-27T22:00:00.000-07:00

We spent another fun-filled day at White Pass. This time the conditions were much more pleasant. It was only slightly overcast with nice little sunbreaks, and not nearly as windy as last time. Up to this point Angel and I would take turns skiing down with Alec between our legs and just let him go when we got the flat part at the bottom, but we both decided it was time for him to really do it on his own.

We hooked on his "edgie-wedgie" to keep the tips of his skis from going every which way, and while Grace, Dallas, and I went up the lift, Angel stayed on the bunny slope with Alec so he could work with him on turning, stopping, etc......you know, the skills that are pretty handy when it comes to skiing down a mountain. After one run, we met them at the bottom and Alec says, "Look Mom!"

We realized that by having him ski with us, we were hindering him from really learning for himself. Because once he was given the opportunity, he totally got it!!!

The next step was going down the big hill, so we hopped on the lift and off we went. It was so gratifying to watch him ski down the whole mountain by himself. And he had the time of his life! He just kept saying "Whoa! This is so cool!" Here's a little video of his first run down after his "training session". (you might want to turn the volume down, the wind noise is pretty loud)

After a lunch break at the lodge we went back up the lift to take some scenic pictures. Mind you, this is RIGHT after we just left the lodge, which takes a good 15 minutes to go back and forth to. Alec conveniently tells us that he {really} has to go to the bathroom and graphically illustrates his point. In his defense, he DID drink hot chocolate, which....enough said.

One of the kids' favorite things to do was skiing through the trees. It was a little trail that wove it's way in between the trees with ups and downs and turns back and forth and right at the end where you come out there's a little jump that Grace kept trying to jump over and catch a little air, but she never could quite do it. Finally near the end of the day, I took a little video clip and caught her excitement as she was finally able to jump it. She was so excited!

At the end of the day, we waited in the lodge while Angel went to load all the skis, etc. into the car. We were all sitting on the bench and talking and waiting, and when Angel pulled up with the car, I said "come on guys, let's go!" and this is what I saw....

He was all tuckered out and didn't even wake up as we took off his boots and bibs and buckled him in. I guess all the {real} skiing wore him out! He slept for a good bit and missed the cool wildlife we saw on the way home. {the mountain pass is literally right next to Rainier national forest so the wildlife is everywhere!}

These elk were literally right off the freeway in this family's yard. It was crazy to see so many of them just grazing away like no one was watching.

And these were some eagles we saw a little ways down the road, {I was bummed cause I couldn't get a clear shot since the stinkin fence was in the way!} The one on the right was also a bald eagle, but was much younger so his head hadn't turned white yet. So, So, Cool!

We had so much fun this trip but we also know that the season is almost over, so we're keeping our fingers crossed that we get to go back one more time before they close the lifts for the year.

fix....

2009-03-21T22:58:00.000-07:00

i guess i inserted the wrong link to the blog, so now you can click on the picture and it SHOULD take you there....

Scrapbook Blog

2009-03-20T14:45:00.000-07:00

i created a blog to archive the photos that i scrapbook so if you're interested, take a peek. look to the right and you'll see the link. . .

Bring It On!

2009-03-13T13:52:00.001-07:00

Our latest adventure was to a {real} mountain at the White Pass ski resort. It was a great time and the kids really enjoyed building their skills on the long runs.

There was a cool "magic carpet" that they rode up and practiced stopping and turning (they all had longer skis than the first time we went) before we went up the bigger hill.

At the end of the first day

{Alec was not happy that they were shutting down}

We stayed in the Lodge at the ski hill and ended up with a prehistoric room....and after talking to some friends who have also stayed there, apparently they're not all ancient, some are actually quite nice.....which we will definitely be requesting if we stay there again!

The one VERY cool thing about the lodge was the "Hotpool" which was essentially an oversized HotTub!! It was pretty strange to be swimming in 15degree weather and let me tell ya, the walk {or run, i should say} back to the room was a chilly one!! But the kids loved it and even though there sign clearly stated: "NO SNOWBALLS", how can you resist hucking snowballs at each other in a hot pool?

Our Hot & Cold Family photo

{if you look closely you can see the ski runs in the background}

Since the kids did so well on the smaller hill, the next day we took them up the bigger lift further up the mountain. And what a difference a few hundred feet in elevation make! It was soooooooo cold at the top {brrrrr...} and windy too! I think it snowed something like 12 inches while we were there, so there was always fresh powder coming down.....

We had a super fun time and can't wait to go back again!

Lend an Ear....

2009-02-25T10:05:00.000-08:00

I love music. I love how it can cheer me up, I love how it can motivate me, I love how it can vividly bring back old memories, I love how it can make me cry and I especially love how it can teach me and touch my heart in ways nothing else can.

I've heard that men and women hear music differently.....men usually hear the rythym and beat--the sound of the song. And women generally pay attention to the words of a song first. You can a ask a man what a song is about and he might not know, he might just like the song because of the way it sounds. And a woman might say that she loves a song because of the message. I definitely follow this pattern.....when a new song comes on the radio, the first thing I do is listen to the words. Maybe this is why I love music. Right now there is a song on the radio that chokes me up every time I hear it. It gives me a reality check and really motivates me to "live in the now." It's all about how life goes by so fast, so we just need to enjoy every moment and every phase, especially in our kids' lives because it won't be like this for long. This is something that can easily be overlooked in our busy lives....I know it is for me. Anyways, it touched me and I wanted to share.....

To listen, look to the right and scroll to song #17 on the pink playlist.

Tooth Fairy--You're Fired!

2009-02-20T08:56:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, Dallas was eating a bowl of cereal for breakfast and broke down crying....I asked him if he bit his tongue--"NO!", or cheek--"NO!", or lip--"NO!", so I asked what in the world happened? He answered that he bit his "tooth." Since this is something everyone should see for themselves, I proceeded to investigate. Lo and behold, when I peered into his mouth, his bottom tooth was at an awkward angle and sure enough, it wiggled back and forth {sqeak, squeak} I reassured him that he didn't bite his "tooth" after all {whew!} He found this very amusing and went from tears of sadness to tears of laughter! He had been waiting for a loose tooth for quite a while and it was a momentous breakfast for him.

Well, while we were in Leavenworth last weekend, Dallas' tooth had gotten to the point that was just ridiculous and he came into the kitchen to show me. I put down the knife, {don't jump to any conclusions, it was just a salad, sheesh!}, grabbed onto his tooth....and Yanked! I dropped it into his hand and he marveled at the fact that is was really out.

I love these milestones in my kids' lives....to them, it is the most amazing thing, and I love being a part of that amazement.

So in true lost tooth protocol, he placed his tooth under the pillow and went to bed while visions of coins and bills danced in his head.....

We {the parents} woke to the sound of a sobbing 6yr old boy that was devastated that his tooth was STILL under his pillow which meant that the tooth fairy did not come. {oh, shnighkies!}

We explained that the Tooth Fairy must have visited his bed in Port Orchard and discovered that he was on vacation, and that she would surely come the next night after figuring out where he was. But Dallas wasn't going to take any chances.

This is note that he had me write to ensure that the Tooth Fairy understood where to find him, and then the Tooth Fairy's response:

The next morning we woke up to a wonderful sound. His squeals of delight were music to our ears. And can you believe the Tooth Fairy left him five dollars?!? Hmm...could she be over-compensating...

Lucky for us, Dallas forgave the Tooth Fairy for the err of her ways and harbored no hard feelings...but something tells me his confidence in her will only return in time.

Silly Tooth Fairy....

{LOVE} Weekend

2009-02-19T09:27:00.000-08:00

In the last month we've taken a couple trips to Leavenworth, WA where you can always count on good times and lots of snow.

In January we stayed in a little hotel-cabin right on the Wenatchee river and went to the annual Icicle festival where they have an icecube scramble for the kids {equivalent to a easter egg hunt, but with trinkets frozen in ice}, dogpulling competition, ice-sculpture contests, and fireworks. If you ever get the chance, we highly recommend it....it's GREAT fun!

{Hard to read, but it says: Leavenworth Bavarian Ice Fest 2009}

When we weren't drinking our hot chocolate or caramel apple cider, enjoying the festivities, you could find us sledding at our favorite spot.

And in true Alec character, {he never ceases to amaze us} even though it took him forever, Alec had to tromp his way up to the tippy-top of the hill because sledding from half-way up was just way too easy...

On this run they all hooked their sleds together and started from the top....

Before we left, we set the self-timer on the camera to get a family portrait....

Then for the Valentine's Day/Pres. Day 3-day weekend we took the kids back to Leavenworth to learn how to ski. We decided we needed something a little roomier than our hotel-cabin and this time we found a 2-bedroom condo right in town that was so cozy and warm and nicely stocked with games and movies.

So it's been a while {oh, say, 10 years!} since Angel and I last skied. Let's just say our bodies were well aware...our muscles are almost feeling normal again...but despite the aching arms, legs, etc. it was SO worth it because we had the time of our lives! The kids were so excited to ski and we attempted to explain that it might be a little harder than it looks, but that's almost like telling an engaged couple that marriage is harder than it seems, you just have to try it to find out!

And try they did...

They each had their share of spills and falls in the beginning, but it wasn't long before they got the hang of it and started having fun. We were so proud of how they kept on persevering even though it was tougher than they expected and they couldn't do it on their own at first. Grace was especially frustrated with the rope tow {it was a small hill, so no chair lift, just a rope that you grab onto and it tows you to the top} Angel and I would position the kids in front of us and take them up individually, but Grace saw many kids younger than her doing it on their own and she wanted so desperately to be able to do it too.

Time after time she would try.....sometimes she would make it a little ways up and other times she would fall the minute she grabbed on to the rope. Angel was bright enough to use it as a teaching moment to tell that there will be many times in her life when it seems like everything keeps going wrong and she will get tired of trying, but there is always someone there to help her when they feel like she can't do it by herself, whether it be Mom, Dad, or our Heavenly Father.

After a few hours, we decided to take a break, so we went back to the condo and ate some lunch. Everyone had a chance to re-energize, and we hit the slopes again with a vengeance! They all seemed to have a new found confidence on their skiis and the second half of the day was full of cheers and praise all around.

We kept cracking up all day long because everytime Alec would fall down, he didn't get back up, he just stayed there....why, you say? He was perfectly content to lay there and eat snow! We kept telling him, "no more snow" {it was causing more trips to the bathroom and all that gear is a pain get off and on!} but it made him so happy so we usually let him eat a few bites before we said anything. {don't worry, it had snowed a couple of inches, so it was new snow}

At the end of the day, Grace was ecstatic to finally master the tow rope and have the freedom of going both up and down the hill {grace}fully. Dallas watched her success and also tried, but to no avail.

Maybe next time Bubs....

{notice the snow in Alec's hand}

Here's the picture we took with the self-timer on the hood of the car {how else would we ever get family shots?} on the way out of town:

It was definitely one of those weekends where you feel like "this is what life is all about." We were spending time together, enjoying every minute, encouraging one another, laughing together, and loving each other so completely and unconditionally. It really reinforced our family ties and we made memories that we will have forever!

Why, oh Why?

2009-02-05T11:09:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking.... (dangerous, I know, but beside the point)

Sometimes I think life is a little backwards...Why, you ask? Well, let me tell you: Lately Grace has been totally into helping do the dishes after dinner. As soon as we finish dinner, she jumps up and takes everyone's plates over to the sink where she attempts to rinse them off and put them in the dishwasher. Sound pretty good? Yeah, except that then the dishes take twice as long as they normally would since she needs help rinsing everything off and then help on where to put each, individual item. Don't get me wrong, It's not that I mind helping her, or teaching her how, but this is where the backwards part comes in:

Why is it, that now, when she WANTS to do the dishes, it's a painfully long and drawn-out process, but by the time she old enough and able to do them on her own, and I ASK her to do them, she WON'T WANT to and it will still be a drawn-out painful process? If anyone knows, please--do tell.

Okay, so enough complaining from the bitter mother....

Gracey-girl, We love you!

Simple pleasures...

2009-02-02T09:43:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but sometimes I find myself so wrapped up in everything else going on that other things get overlooked or neglected....and in this case, downright ratty! I have had these shoes for WAY too long, and even though they were super comfortable and the soles were still intact, it was definitely time for a new pair! Now, I have to admit, this isn't normally a subject I would consider blogging about.....after all, it's just "shoes"! But in my quest for new shoes I found a pair that made me so happy, I just couldn't keep them to myself. They're super comfortable and not to mention....FUN!
Check out my new and improved shoes:

My new find...Try it!

2009-01-27T12:53:00.000-08:00

So I got home from work the other night in absolute pain--okay, so it was that bad, but it really hurt! If you're anything like me, winter does a number on my skin...namely, drying it out and making it all crackly....especially my fingers. And to add to the cause, breaking down cardboard boxes, bagging up clothes into plastic bags tied up with knots and other such tasks at Gymboree really takes a toll on my fingers! Maybe my fingers are completely dysfunctional, or, maybe I just need to use some lotion a little more often, but whatever the case, I get these really bad splits in my fingers that are 10 times worse than paper cuts. They go really deep, they're super tender and they take FOREVER to heal! For the most part, because I obviously use my fingers on a daily basis for every task under the sun {believe me, I'd love it if someone forbid me to use my hands....I can hear it now: "Sorry honey, I just can't do the dishes, or laundry, or make the kids lunch, or do Grace's hair, I'm not allowed to use my hands!"--yah, in my wildest dreams} But since that is not the case {dang}, the minute the split starts to heal, it is pulled open again by one of the above mentioned tasks. Even when I sleep, my hands brush against the blankets or pillow and re-open it. Bandaids help a little, but it usually takes about a week for it to finally seal up for good, which is usually about the time another one shows up and here we go again!
Here is a picture of the split, {it's pretty hard to see, but if you look closely you'll see a line that almost runs the length of my fingernail....and since this is the after picture it doesn't look that bad, so picture it split open nice and deep, and also red and puffy}
So i get home from work and I'm sitting here thinking how if I could just keep it closed for an extended period of time without anything pulling it open, then it could heal that much faster. Right then and there a lightbulb lit in my head....I've heard about hospitals using superglue to close wounds instead of stitches and from what I remember, it wasn't even some special "medical" superglue, just run-of-the-mill superglue! So I dug through the junk drawer and found my trusty bottle:
I held the slit closed and squeezed a layer right over the top, waited for it to dry and, Voila! Held shut, nice and tight! I went to bed with my new remedy and woke in the morning to find my finger just as I left it, sealed shut--and no pain! I literally jumped for joy...... and then I placed the bottle into the medicine cabinet instead of the junk drawer.

To the Very Core

2009-01-17T14:12:00.000-08:00

You've probably seen it before...the poster with the faces and their corresponding feelings underneath... Well, I don't remember where it came from or how long it's been there, but we have a magnetic version on our fridge and every so often Grace or Dallas will go up to it and say something like "This is how I feel" pointing to one of the faces. I'm sure Alec has observed this from time to time, but he can't read yet, so I didn't think the faces held much meaning for him, and he's never actually taken part in the tradition....

.....until yesterday. After walking in on him in the bathroom, water running, with gum all over his hands {to which his response was: "It won't come off"!}

....He proceeds to go over to the fridge, points to THIS face, and says "Mom, I feel like this today"

He obviously knows himself better than I thought....He is who he is, through and through. And we absolutely adore him {to the very core}!

Christmas Bliss

2009-01-14T17:16:00.000-08:00

It seems like every year the holiday season is filled with the sweet anticipation of Christmas morning, and this year it was no different. Angel and I look forward to it almost as much as the kids. We can't wait to see their faces when they spot the pretty paper that has their name on it and their expressions are priceless when they open the package to see the special something they had been eyeing for so long. But we also anticipate the inevitable disappointment that follows the opening of the last present and the realization that it IS the LAST present. This year we were pleasantly surprised at the kids' reactions. Santa filled the kids' stockings at our house, but brought their presents to Nana & Papa's. So all they had to open at our house was their stockings and their 3 Wise Men gifts.

And we didn't tell them that Santa took their gifts to Nana's, so for all they knew, that was it! Did they complain?. . . . ask where the rest of the presents were?. . . . .rip the paper open and start scanning for the next? NO! They were as giddy as little kids get, rummaging through their stockings, content as can be with the trinkets that they found. We actually had to remind them to look for their shoes to see where the wise men left their gifts.{on the porch outside the front door}

After we got to mom and dad's they found their Santa presents...he brought Grace the Belle dress from Disneyland with matching shoes, tiara, and earrings. Dallas got the Heely's he'd been asking for, and Alec got a BUNCH of Ben 10 guys and a new Omnitrix. {since you can't go "hero" without one}

They were so excited! And we were so pleased that THEY were so pleased with what they got. Jake, Kathrine, Riley, and Emma {so cute in her santa outfit!} were there this year and the day was just magical spending it with our whole family with the snow falling outside. Here are some of the present highlights: Amy got Scott a new wedding ring {much needed, since there was the absence of one}, Angel got me a Cricut Expression---COMLETELY SHOCKED ME!, Matt got speakers for his car and some cool pears {don't ask}, Angel got an RC car, and of course all the kids got a bunch of other stuff that filled the day with the sounds of fun and play. All in all, the much anticipated day was a complete success, especially if you're measuring the joy factor :)

And Baby Emma was just too cute, she needed her own slide show....I'm sure you'll agree!

Happy New Years!

2009-01-06T09:57:00.000-08:00

We all went to My mom and dad's for New Years where we always have our traditional mexican party platter from Azteca. This year we attempted to make Angel's mom's recipe for Posole soup. We were so thrilled it turned out very close and it was so yummy! The guys watched football most of the day, Amy knitted, the boys snacked way too much, everyone took their turn napping, and I snapped pictures. At some point in the day someone noticed a very conspicuous pile of cookies on the snack table. It didn't take too long to figure out who was responsible.....each cookie had only ONE bite taken out of it before it was discarded. Out of curiosity we asked Alec why he didn't finish each cookie and he said {as if it were already obvious} "I didn't like them" What can you do? We laughed......and I took a picture. It was a very enjoyable day and we all came home with very full stomachs, {and me, a new scarf :}

Snow, snow, and MORE snow!!!!

2009-01-05T13:16:00.000-08:00

Last night it snowed.....again! The kids first day back to school was 2-hours delayed {fine by me, i got to sleep in a little longer :}

We're wondering how much snow we'll actually get this winter because it just keeps coming! Last night's 6 inches makes about 2.5 feet so far......but at least we're having fun with it {for the most part when it doesn't get in the way of driving}

When we were over at my mom's my brother attempted to build an igloo, but the end result ended up more like a snow teepee, and cool, regardless!

One thing that's hard to dispute, it's beautiful! I had to snap some pictures of the house and yard covered in the blanket of snow.......Absolutely Gorgeous!