House Update

before

after


Here is what our house looks like today. What a big difference from when we bought. We have painted it ourselves with a lot of help from family but I think we did a pretty good job. Now we just need some plants. I'm still trying to figure out what those will be though. Any landscapers out there have any ideas? We were thinking tropical but aren't really sure what will work best in the space or against the wood siding. To be continued...

He's 1!

Our little Jude is a year old!! Let me tell you, it went by so fast! He's been walking for a few weeks now and he's 1! What happened to my little baby? How did this go by so fast? Zoe's first year wasn't nearly this fast or painless. He is such a sweet little guy! I just want to eat him up. I want it to slow down. I want to play with him on the floor more and have those moments when I had to feed him in the early morning. Those intimate moments that begin the relationship between mother and child are so precious. I must say, I don't miss the no sleep part. To be frank, it makes me slightly insane. I'm glad to be feeling like myself again. Having done a 1st birthday party before I wasn't up for all of the hoopla and potential drama. We had a little family party at my parents house that he shared with his cousin because their birthdays are 4 days apart (who's 14). It was perfect and their are plenty of pictures for him to look at to show that we did something. Currently he is walking pretty fast to keep up with his sister. He doesn't say much except "mama" when he is really hungry. He saw his first airplane in the sky 2 days ago and went,"whoa!". He will play by himself or with Zoe. He is a picky eater and will quickly spit out food he doesn't like. If he wants something he will bring it to me or me to it, he's pretty cute. I think I''ll keep him.

Friends to creatures great and small

I can't ever remember the day anymore but some day not too long ago we decided it would be fun to feed the squirrels or at least go look at them. There is a long patch of grass by our house that is home to many squirrels and we told Zoe we would take her to see them. My experience with squirrels has been with the timid ones. I have to say I was a little scared and feared that one might quickly scamper up my arm and perch itself on my shoulder. These squirrels were psycho and more aggressive than I've ever seen one be! As we raced away on our bikes I seriously looked behind me to see if we were being chased. Maybe it's evolution? Kind of like teenage girls?

I am now at a respectable age where people don't ask how old a girl is, they just wish her a happy birthday. Disneyland is free on your birthday and if you already have a pass you get a $72 gift card to spend on merchandise. So, really I went to Disneyland and got a free Billabong jacket. Thank you Walt Disney, it was just what I wanted. We spent a long day there it was a sweaty lot of fun. As we were leaving I remembered to take out the camera and that's what we got.

D.I.Y.

It's Monday morning Jamin has taken the next two days off to help celebrate my birthday and I'm thinking,"finally some help with the kids". Jamin is thinking,"why don't I replace that faucet this morning, it'll only take an hour". So, with that, I am already annoyed. Jude has been sick all week so we have been home bound with a crying baby (no offense Jude). It's apart of life, it happens but my light at the end of the tunnel was the next couple of days that I'd have Jamin home. So an hour turned into like six hours and I think five Home Depot trips and the new faucet was not fitting properly. I was stuck at home again with grumpy kids and a grumpy husband from a do-it-yourself project gone wrong. I was not having a good day and could not foresee myself feeling better anytime soon. I WAS WRONG! Jamin eventually got the faucet figured out. When I saw it working I got excited for my gorgeous new functional faucet. I was so proud of Jamin for figuring it out too! He and some guys at Home Depot collaborated on the project and he did it.

Part II "I'm 3 years old!"

Zoe loves birthday parties. She has been talking about her birthday for the last 6 months. For her bedtime stories after a book or two I tell her one non-book made up story. She usually requests her birthday story where she can add her input, like, " and Scooby-Doo was there with ice cream cones and sprinkles". Because we had been talking about it constantly I had a lot to live up to. I must say it turned out to be a great day. Being 3 has never been so good. We started out with a Tinker Bell party where Zoe got to wear her new Tinker Bell outfit from Grandma and all of her friends came over, good right? There was tiara decorating, necklace making, and cup cake decorating where you could put on as many sprinkles you like. There were balloons and presents. This could have been the perfect day with just this that ended some time after 1pm. Well we just kept the party going. We had a lot of family in town but I really wanted her to have a kid party so some of the family went to the beach and we celebrate later with a bbq. We all have to eat anyway and it made room for Zoe's friends in the morning. Zoe did a costume change into yet another Princess type dress she got for her Birthday and was amazed when she got a Scooby-Doo cake. Why aren't store bought cakes good? I didn't want to eat more than a bite. No matter, the point was it had Scooby-Doo on it and I didn't feel up to decorating one myself. I did the Elmo head last year and it took a while but the Scooby mold was way more complex and I didn't have the time. Zoe was just beside herself all day. Third birthdays are meant to be enjoyed where there imaginations are just developing and the world is a magical wonderland. While it's this easy to please a child, Party On! Unfortunately, the over indulgence will end when the cost of amusement goes up. Sorry Zoe, in advance for no Super Sweet Sixteen party. It's for your own good.

Part I "I"m 3!"