life is good

Morgan's 11th Birthday.....

2012-02-12T15:43:00.000-08:00

What a fun weekend! Morgan turned 11 on Friday and so we had some family and couple of her friends over for a Star Wars party.

She got lots of fun presents and had a fun time visiting with everyone.....

My brother on the other hand just wanted to dance with Macy the entire night....strange really. Ha!

Dan BBQ hot dogs and I made chili........my mom made the dessert pizza per Morgan's request.

This AMAZING women Tina made the cake below. She made it gluten and dairy free and oh man was it good! If you want her name and email/number let me know. She makes regular cakes as well as special diet cakes and she is SUPER reasonable. Very talented.

Morgan made a wish.....

And then visited with her biggest fan who stopped by to wish her a Happy Birthday....

Some of her Lego ships came in very handy as decorations for the counter.....

Thanks everyone for driving out and spending the evening with us!

On Saturday me, my mom, Morgan, Ryanne and Morgan's friend Maddie headed to LA to have a little party at the American Girl Cafe. We had never been so it was super fun! The girls all took their dolls and when they seat you for your party each doll gets a chair, a tiara and a cup and saucer. Then in the end they get goodie bags with outfits in them. So stinkin' cute!

Maybe it's just me but food always seems to taste better when it is cut into hearts, stars and flowers......

Not a party without cake and singing......

The food was so yummy and the dessert was excellent!

Morgan had been saving her money for months and asked for gift cards for her birthday so she was armed and ready to do some serious shopping when we got there. She was so sweet though because she snuck a gift for her friend and her sister in her bag and then gave them to each girl after we were done for the day. :)

All three girls came with their purses ready to shop and shop they did. My mom and I could barely keep up. Ha! Such a fun place.

Lastly what would a trip to American Girl be without a stop at the beauty shop? I mean really. So as a treat my mom paid to let the girls have their dolls done up for the day.

They were so excited. Morgan's doll got a birthday tiara of course! LOL!

Such a fun weekend for such a fun kid. :) Thanks Morgan for the fun time and we love you so much. You are turning into such a sweet young lady. Wait, does that make me sound old?
Your beautiful inside and out kiddo. Can't wait for another amazing year of watching you grow.
Thank you friends and family for making Morgan feel loved!
Thanks for driving to LA in the rain with me mom! Ha!

(Oh and a side note that has nothing to do with Morgan; on the way out of the Grove we were almost plowed over by all the fire engines going to the Beverly Hotel where they found Whitney Houston. Crazy! We didn't know that was where everyone was headed at the time though)

And The Winner Is.......

2012-02-10T07:00:00.000-08:00

Good morning and Happy 11th birthday my sweet Morgan!
Morgan picked #4 this morning and that is Krista! Congrats girl and enjoy your date with your hubby!

krista said......My favorite is probably our first anniversary...we spent a day in Santa Monica- shopping, riding the ferris wheel, taking pictures and just enjoying each other. I loved that day/date!

Thanks everyone for sharing all your romantic dates with me.

I meant to share mine when I originally posted but I forgot so here it is.
I came home from work a couple of days just before our one year anniversary and Dan handed me a California Bed breakfast book and told me to pick any one I wanted to go to for our anniversary. The following weekend we head to Half Moon Bay San Francisco. It was so fun and rainy and romantic. :) We went to a new bed & breakfast every year after that for 5 years.

Promoting Romance.........

2012-02-07T16:42:00.000-08:00

In honor of Dan & my 15 year wedding anniversary tomorrow (the 8th) and of course Valentines day next Tuesday; I am giving away a date night package.

It includes a $25 BJ's gift card and a $25 Krikorian gift card.
All you have to do is leave a comment telling the most romantic date you have ever planned for your spouse or that they have planned for you.

Then because it's this big kids 11th birthday on Friday she is going to pick a number and whoever is in that comment order wins! Easy enough?

So if you read my blog but never comment now is your chance.
I'm trying to promote date night, togetherness and romance and what says romance more than a FREE DATE NIGHT! (Child care not included) LOL!

On Friday I will announce the winner and all you have to do is email me your mailing address; I will pop it in the mail that afternoon and it will get to you in plenty of time for Valentines day.
Good luck!

Weekend Project

2012-02-06T11:59:00.000-08:00

I must confess, I am not typically a yard sale person. Truth be told I just hate clutter so adding someone else "stuff" just adds to the chaos. Occasionally though when I am out and about I will drive by a yard sale that has something that jumps out at me. This past Friday we were headed to the store and as we drove by a house I spotted this out front.
So I did what any "anti-committed yard sale person" would do; I shoved my mom out of the car to see how much they wanted for it. Ha! :)

It came with 4 of these large wicker baskets. So $20 later and some paint.......

And some help from Ryanne........

And some more help from Ryanne.......

We now have a delightful storage area for all of her Barbie stuff.

Ryanne loves pink and purple and the baskets match her pale yellow walls and curtains......

The baskets are long and deep and so they are just the right size for all her Barbies and.....

the crazy amount of clothes and accessory's they come with.

I guess what they say is true; one man's junk is another man's treasure!

p.s. Please check my blog tomorrow late afternoon/evening as I will be giving away a treat in honor of my wedding anniversary which is Wed. the 8th.
Just promoting a little romance in time for Valentines day.......it's what I do. Ha! :)

Prayers For Angel......

2012-02-05T13:28:00.000-08:00

Many of you remember Morgan's friend Angel who we asked for prayer for over the past few years........many of you have prayed, given gifts to us for the family or donated money when we were doing a fundraiser to help the family while relocated at the UCLA Children's hospital.

We are posting this to ask you to please pray diligently for Angel. He is in the ICU on life support fighting for his little life. He is very sick and needs prayer more than ever.

Please pray for his lungs and all his other organs to heal and for his little body to respond to treatments. Angel is a fighter, he has been his entire life. Prayer changes things so please, pass this on to anyone who will pray and add him to other prayer chains.

Tonight (Sunday) at 7pm there will be a prayer vigil outside of Loma Linda Children's hospital to lift Angel and his family up. If you can make it great! If not please set your clocks and pray at 7pm with the rest of us. Prayer changes things.
Pray for his little brother and sister, for his parents, for the doctors......just pray for a miracle. Don't doubt that God is capable of doing great things. Pray expecting great things.
Thank him ahead of time for great things. For what he's going to do through Angel.
Thank you.

Our 15 Year Wedding Anniversary

2012-02-03T12:31:00.000-08:00

Dan and I.............(Without the kiddos)

Took this little baby..................

To this little Island...............

Just 23 miles away from Long Beach..........

To spend a couple of days alone in honor of our 15 year wedding anniversary.......

And to sleep in this third floor suite........

With this charming little living room......

With this amazing view from our deck........

And ate at this fun little local burger joint.........

Cruised by the beautiful Queen Mary on our way home. Did you know her maiden voyage was in 1936 and then she was called to serve in World War II in 1939? She was named the "Ghost Ship" due to her gray camouflaged exterior....this has nothing to do with our anniversary but I never want to hear you say I didn't keep your mind sharp! ;) Ha!

Is Love Enough? Part 2

2012-01-28T14:47:00.001-08:00

I wanted to first off thank everyone for the sweet comments and emails encouraging me last week in regards to my last post. Secondly I wanted to update you on my talk with Morgan.

I posted the "Is Love Enough" post last Sunday night. I started praying that night and early Monday morning for Gods timing and wisdom. I just knew he wanted me to share with Morgan about her brother but I didn't want the conversation to be led by my emotions.

I was in the shower Monday morning when Morgan walks in and says,"Mama, I don't know what it is or why God is telling me this; but I really feel like I am supposed to call Kari and talk to her."

I just about died. I was like,"OK God today is the day, I hear you."

I also got an email from a friend that goes way back to my youth group days. (Thanks Angela)
She was sharing her heart about the heaviness I was feeling and reassuring me in more ways than one that it would go well and she would be praying. She also reminded of Hannah in the bible:

"I was praying for you all as I read your post, and Hannah came to mind. When you think about how she released her son to the Lord, and sent him to the temple, I always think of that as releasing my kids to God's will, but today I thought about Morgan's birth mom and how she released her to be raised in the Lord. Hannah also went on to have more kids, but Samuel was special and set aside for God. Not that the other children were any less in the eyes of the Lord, of course (!) but Samuel had a special calling and purpose and I just wonder if it might help Morgan to hear that story in those terms."

This really gave me a good perspective as I went to talk to Morgan. I also have a friend who placed her baby son up for adoption when she was younger and so she prayed with me right before I talked to Morgan.

When I talked to Morgan she was sad at first and got pretty emotional. She tried to keep it together at first but then she said she just needed some time. After the initial shock wore off she shared with me that she was happy for Kari and her new family but a little sad that she would not really know her brother. The 11 year gap makes that kinda hard even if we did get together with them. She asked me if she could talk to her good friend Maddie about it which of course I told her yes. We prayed for Kari and Dylan and after about a day or so Morgan bounced back to her normal happy self.

It was hard to see her questioning things and sad. But she is wise enough in the Lord to know she is where God wants her and where she wants to be as well. I think it's hard because ever since she was little she has asked us to adopt a little brother for her. But the one thing Morgan and I learned from this time together last week is the answer to my previous question; Is Love Enough? I leaned that no my love is not enough; not my love for my girls, my husband or my family and friends. But if I continually point them back to our God, then his love is enough and he will use me in their lives. I'm good with that. I never want my girls to think I am their everything. I will make mistakes and let them down whether I like it or not. Same with my marriage. But God will never let them down.

Morgan asked me yesterday why I waited a month to tell her and I told her I was praying about it. She said,"You should have told me sooner."
I told her I would never apologize for waiting on Gods timing to talk to her and that he totally spoke through her so I knew when the time was right. She could see that too.
I love you Morgan. xoxoxoxoxo

Valentines Day Goodies!

2012-01-25T16:16:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you but I LOVE Valentine's day! For starters I LOVE red, I love hearts, I love pink and red together. Heck I LOVE red and pink hearts together. It's all very silly and sweet and oh I don't know maybe a bit mushy but deep down I'm a hopeless romantic. Thus, I bring you cute Valentine's undies from Undies.com. Yes I said undies. So since I love this web site I thought I would share it with you too! So go order some cute underwear and strike up a new tradition with your hubby this Valentine's day.
(I apologize if your reading this dad) Ha! :)

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Save-30--on-Valentine-s-Day-Undies.html?soid=1103910139544&aid=cKqFtRbAOG8

Is Love Enough?

2012-01-22T17:52:00.000-08:00

I have been wanting to write about this for a couple of weeks now but it's tricky.
Even tonight as I sit here at the computer I am not sure how to proceed.
I have lots to consider.
My daughter's feelings.
Birth parents hearts.
How and what God is telling me to share.
I'm not even sure it will make sense to someone reading it.
I blog for a couple of reasons; I love to write. It's just something that has been in me since I was little.
I also want to leave a trail of journals for my girls when they are older.
That's also the reason I take mad notes every Sunday in church.
Someday and I hope it is someday a long time from now I won't be here to encourage my kids in the Lord. If there ever is a time when they feel lost, scared, unsure of Gods plan for them, I want them to be able to look at my notes from church or my blog books and be reminded of his grace.

I first want to tell you that Dan & I have an open adoption plan with our girls birth parents. It basically means we keep in touch, send pictures and try to love on them as often as possible.
It doesn't always happen that we connect but we try. Over the years we have been more connected with Morgan's birth mom than anyone else involved. It's only because out of all the birth parents she has gone above and beyond measure to keep us in the fold of her life.
We have seen her go through and complete college, get a job, get engaged and now she has a son.
This brings me to the point of this post.
I knew Kari would eventually grow up, get married and have another baby.
In fact that was my hope for her. That God would continue to guide her and bless her for her choice to give life to Morgan and place her in our lives.
The thing is when I found out on Christmas Eve she had a son only weeks before and I saw a picture that was the spitting and I mean exact spitting image of my almost 11 year old daughter it floored me. I was crying and a mess and I have no idea why.
I talked to Kari on the phone Christmas night for an hour. We both were choked up as we shared our hearts.
The funny thing is we were both feeling a lot of the same things. I wasn't crying because I wanted another baby. I wasn't jealous at all. In fact I was happy for her. It was this deep deep ache that just went to my core. Seeing that sweet babies face and knowing it was Morgan's blood brother took me right back to the day we met Morgan and her birth family.

I instantly loved Kari when she handed me Morgan. I can't explain it. It's not something you can understand unless you have been there. When a young girl walks into a room and hands you her first born child and gives you her blessing to raise her; you are torn between taking that sweet baby and running and dropping to your knees and staying there with the birth mom forever.
The bravery, the courage, the selflessness that it took for her was something I could not fathom in the moment. I was to close to the situation. I had to keep it all together and walk out with that 6lbs. of sweet goodness and bond with her.

But now, well now she has a brother and I will need to tell her that. I have been praying. I have been seeking Gods wisdom. I have been asking for his words, his timing, his courage. Why?
Because no matter how much Dan & I love Morgan it's going to hurt her. Our love is not enough to shield them from the reality that is adoption.
It's a blessing. It's good. It's Gods will. It's his perfect plan for our family.
But, they have this other dynamic that is their reality. They have blood family other places. Family that looks like them, have the same gifts and talents. It's a reality.

I've always been OK with that. Adoption has always been an open thing in our home.
Never have our kids not known our families testimony. Never.

But when they were babies our love was enough. If they fell we kissed it better. If they were scared we held them. But sadly no matter how much we love them we can't guard their hearts from everything. They at some point will have to ask their birth parents the tough questions. The impossible questions. At some point they will have to walk that path in their history and we won't be able to smooth it all over for them.

Kari and I ended our conversation by discovering something very important. We both had these huge aching hearts for one reason and one reason only; we both want the very best for Morgan and we know that finding out there is another baby might hurt her feelings for a while.

Please don't misunderstand this post. I am not insecure in my relationship with Morgan.
I know I am a good mom. Difficult days, yes. But I adore my girls.
I am in awe that God thought I was worthy to even have them at all. I take my job to raise them up in him very seriously. I do not for one second take for granted the responsibility and gift their birth parents trusted us with in placing them in our home. This is my calling. My ministry.
I walk in the truth and security that God has a plan for our family.
I just wish sometimes that they were babies again and my kiss, band-aid and my love was enough.

Some Favorite Things Of 2012

2012-01-17T18:50:00.000-08:00

I LOVE when people post about web sites or products they use and love. It's fun to see what is out there and to try new things. Here are a few of my favorite things I enjoy:

I love this daily face wash from Trader Joe's because it's easy on the skin and I can use it daily without it tearing up my face. The little bottle of oil next to it is from World Market. They have all different scents and they work in the tub or the shower. If you are taking a bath you just add a couple drops and soak away; if using it in the shower you just squirt two or three drops in your hand and smooth over skin before toweling off. The oil can be a bit pricy at $13 a bottle but a little goes a long way. The soap is an all natural oatmeal soap from the web site www.alice.com
I have started shopping on line at www.alice.com to save money and trips to places like Target where I go in to get shampoo, soap, toothpaste etc. and come out spending way over a $100. *sigh* This web site allows you to shop from home (I even by all natural laundry soap from them) they deliver in about 5 days, and the best part? Shipping is always free. Plus they track your items like toilet paper, napkins, soap etc. and send you reminders to restock.

Am loving this daily face moisturizer with sunscreen from Trader Joe's.........

My mom and I were shopping at Anthropology last summer and found this yummy lotion. It has a shower gel to go with it. We fell in love and my mom was kind enough to restock my supply for Christmas. :)

This to is a great deal at alice.com. If you or your kids have dry winter skin just pour this into a warm bath and soak away. I foo-foo mine up by adding a few drops of lavender oil. It makes your skin so soft. I think I started using this on Morgan when she was like 1.

OK now for the fun girly stuff. I found this web site called www.birchbox.com where you go and sign up to pay $10 a month and each month you get a little present in the mail. It comes looking like this............butttttttt wait for it............

You open it to pretty, girly, fun size samples. I love to try new things but I hate buying something full size to find it's not for me. I also love getting presents in the mail so for $10 I get just that.

This month it was a sample of granola, a new nail polish color, some face cream, some anti aging serum and a Juicy perfume sample. I am looking forward to trying all my new goodies out. It's fun to go to the mail box and anticipate something each month. If you like the items and you order them through their web site you get points and free stuff etc. You can cancel any month and there is no contract. I doubt I will ever order $145 face cream but the nail polish or perfume I just might. :) Check it out when you get a chance.

Have a great night and I look forward to reading your blogs on all your favorite things. :)

Happy Almost Friday

2012-01-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Happy almost Friday! And a three day weekend at that. Whoo-hoo!!!
I was trying to think of what I could leave you with to make you smile and I decided what better way to smile than to see a Dane and her smallest peeps curled up on the couch.
Am I right or am I right? I mean look at those faces.........*sigh* I'm in love and I've got it bad.

Your probably thinking to yourself that Macy sure lay's around A LOT and you would be accurate in your assumption that my dog is lazy. Ha!
Her best day ever dream is to have all of her little peeps stay in toastie jammies and lay on the couch with her watching cartoons all day. I'm serious she told me that.

So if your looking to find Macy full of energy and vigor then you would need to show up at our house oh say from 9:15am-9:30am or from 5:30pm-5:45pm. LOL!
He! He! I hope your weekend is full of fun and good ol' fashioned cuddle time. Like said cuddle time pictured above.

Favorite Shots of 2011

2011-12-31T18:10:00.000-08:00

I don't do New Year's resolutions. Don't know why really. Just never have. So with that said I will instead share maybe a little known fact about myself.

I LOVE taking pictures of stuff outside. Don't get me wrong, my kids are incredibly cute and more than willing to be photographed. I just LOVE nature. I LOVE old buildings and unique things. I LOVE everyday things too. Things people pass by and probably don't even think twice about.

When Dan & I are out and about he often hears,"Oh that would be a cool picture!"
The funny thing is I have an old camera. And when I say old I mean O-L-D! Like 10 years old.
It does nothing fancy and in fact we bought it when Morgan was born so we could have a digital camera. I don't own photo shop. I just point, shoot and down load.
I am happiest when I am outside. I love the trees, the water, boats, bikes.
When I am anywhere near an airport I get the itch to leave on an adventure and often it starts a series of cycles where Dan finds me planning some sort of trip. Ha!

So with that said I want to share some of my favorite things I saw last year while just walking, riding, or boating around.
Don't judge I AM NOT a professional and I make NO MONEY from my photos. Some of them are rough. It's just for the LOVE of things I see that make me SMILE.

fire look out at 8,500 ft.

sunset

Harbor view of Catalina from our ferry

I threw this one in cause I love how the green plays off of Ryanne's hair and pink shirt and cause well......I love Ryanne. :)

Morgan gets props for the best water fountain shot. Oh and I love her too! ;)

Right outside our bedroom in winter

A beautiful day in San Francisco and a beautiful day to be on that ferry under the bridge!

Sometimes I will get sad that we don't get a white Christmas here. But then as I sit on my back patio I am quickly reminded of the beauty we have here in the winter. How God weaves his hand through the sky and changes the painting before my very eyes. Mmmmm.....it's good.

Happy New Year! Blessed 2012! Thank you for letting me share what I saw this past year. I look forward to taking more soon and posting.

WARNING: MANY PHOTOS BELOW!!

2011-12-23T18:54:00.000-08:00

I apologize ahead of time for the photo overload that lies before you. But we have just been having so much fun this Christmas season that I had to share. I will try to keep the story lines short and sweet though. Kinda like me. Ha!

We have been fortunate enough to hang out with friends to exchange gifts, eat good food and of course play games.

We surprised the girls the other night by bundling them up and driving to Big Bear for dinner.
As you can see below they may have talked daddy into some new animal hats along the way.
There is this cute little coffee house that we always stop in after dinner. They have the best hot cider, sipping chocolate and handmade marshmallows.

We were getting ready to leave when what did I spot but some VERY long icicles. I could not help myself.

"But Mom I'm freezing!"
"Oh Ryanne, take one for the team!"

Do you see how stinkin' long these things were? They just screamed sword fight which did ensue right after Dan broke the following off......

Yes do you see what my husband has in the background? Why he thought it was a good idea I am not sure. Lucky for me it was all of 19 degrees out so they fought only briefly and then jumped in the car. I think Dan's "light saber" broke first.

Ryanne took this photo of us.

The cookies that were oh so carefully decorated.....

The oh so fun mess making the cookies above......

The sweet little baker's who made the cookies AND the mess. Ha!

Morgan had her first ballet recital. She was so nervous. I don't think she expected the 100's of people that were there. She had a little miss step and was crying afterwards. She is soooo hard on her self. I was so proud of her and thought she looked beautiful. But as she later informed me, my opinion doesn't count because I have to say that as her mama. Ha!

Some family and friends braved the cold night to support her and then yogurt was papa's treat afterwards.

One of the Chiefs that works with Dan has a daughter in the ballet. She had a lead role in the Nutcracker. We surprised the girls and as one of their advent doors took them to see her. She was amazing! The girls loved every minute of the show. They even had guest dancers from the San Francisco ballet and we were in awe of the talent.

My friend Tammy and I took the kids to the Long Beach Aquarium for the last day of school.
The sea lion was in love with Morgan. He would swim around and then come back to the glass and smile at her and put his nose to her hand. He did this for like 10 minutes. She wanted to bring him home.

Silly Montana and Ryanne in Long Beach.

If you bought this for us I apologize ahead of time. But we found this in our cupboard still in the box sealed. It was a wedding gift. We have been married for almost 15 years. Again with the apology. Anyways, I decided to try it out and this rice maker is my new best friend. Did you know you can have perfect Spanish rice in like 15 minutes? Amazing!

And lastly, some good food and fellowship with friends at the spaghetti factory. Our cup overflows this Christmas with good friends, family and lots of good memories of Gods goodness.
Happy night before Christmas Eve!

Marriage 101

2011-12-16T15:59:00.000-08:00

I mentioned we had our Christmas dinner for Married life a week ago. Jack Hibbs (our speaker) said something that really stuck with me. He said we should be anticipating our spouses needs. It's the whole idea of being a servant taken to the next level really. I mean can you imagine a world where we anticipate one anothers needs? What would it feel like for you if a friend anticipated your needs and was there selflessly? Or if your kids started anticipating needs around the home and started acting on them? How would your spouse feel if you did that just because?
I mean where does that kind of love and service come from. Not of our strength that's for certain. I mean in my own strength I barely have enough for my kids and husband by the end of the day let alone to anticipate extra needs whether they be emotional or physical.
BUT there is good news; if we do it in the strength of the Lord we will have a heart to do that for our spouse. What would our homes look like if we took that extra minute to love our husbands so much that we knew and acted on what their needs were before they had to ask.

Personally I think it would have a ripple affect. It would go from our husbands down to our kids into our extended families and into the church body. Hmmmmm......
So is it easy? No. And it won't come natural because were by nature selfish. But being in the word and lots of practice I know we can do it. :)
I want to be that kind of wife, mom and friend for sure!
Why because God first loved me.
I think people take marriage struggles to lightly. I mean if your marriage is under fire it is spiritual warfare. And it should be seen as that. Satan wants to destroy marriages because it has the most devastating ripple affect when he wins. I say let's reverse that and serve our spouse whether they return it or not. Being more concerned about their walk and condition of their hearts than what we get out of it.
Can you imagine when we start to love like that what our homes will look like!
I'm so excited! :)

Married Life And Fake Vs. Real

2011-12-12T12:42:00.000-08:00

Can you hear the big long sigh from there? That would be letting out a long relaxing breath.
This past Friday was our Married Life Christmas dinner. Months of planning and praying and did I mention planning goes into this dinner. It was the ministries 1 year anniversary and we were so excited to see the 184 people walk through those doors for dinner, worship and Jack Hibbs speaking.
I found this AMAZING lady who does cakes as a hobby and agreed to my nutso idea of doing 1 cake for each table. I collect cake plates and I had this vision of stacking the cake plates on a really long dessert table and then serving each table of 10 their very own special unique cake.
Oh my gosh was it fun! Thank you Tina!!!! Everyone felt so special and loved as we delivered your handmade creations to their tables.

We held the event at the Mitten Building in Redlands. If you have never been to this historic old brick building you are missing out. It is beautiful!

See the people in the back ground running around? Those sweet couples are the hands and feet of this ministry. They go with my crazy ideas and help till' they drop without complaining or even thinking twice.

John and Tammy, the center pieces you created and donated made the tables. Thank you so much for your desire to be part of this ministry and loving on marriages at Wildwood.

We had magnets made with upcoming Married Life dates on them and home made toffee for each couple to take home. So fun!
Now we can breath, enjoy Christmas with our kids and gear up for Valentines!

So listen, I know there is this on going debate about real vs. fake when it comes to Christmas trees. But I am gonna just share our feelings on this subject. Ours being Dan and me. :)

Dan and I, were simple people. It takes very little to please us. We are happy laying on the couch watching football together, driving around looking at neighborhoods and homes we love. Going for walks or on little adventures. But when it comes to our Christmas tree we take it very seriously. I mean VERY seriously. In fact this is probably (OK not really) how our first date went;
Dan: "You single?"
Me: "Why yes I am. You love the Lord?"
Dan: "Why yes I do? Fake or real Christmas tree?"
Me: "Real of course."
Dan: "Will you marry me?"
Me: "Oh yes!"

So with that said we make an event out of it. We go and hunt it out. Debate about the height, the width and fullness. Our girls have this process down to a science. Some might argue that Dan should be more careful because he's a fire fighter and go with the fake tree. That is where you are wrong because we might be simple but we like to live on the edge. Ha! Ha!

Dan: "Tree straight?"
Macy: "Yup' uh-huh looks good dad!"
Macy after all the fun with the tree.

5K And Truffle Gifts.....

2011-12-08T08:50:00.000-08:00

Dan and the girls run a 5K in Redlands every December. It was the first year Ryanne was old enough to do the longer distance on her own. She was pretty excited. Morgan on the other hand HATES to run so she was probably thinking bad things about me right about here.

It was FREEZING out! Like 35 freezing and a breeze. It was hard work being a spectator. Ha!All in all they had a good father daughter time.

We have our Married Life Christmas dinner this coming Friday night. At each event I always try to come up with something creative to make for the couples who help us with the ministry. It's usually something to just say thanks for all your hard work!
This year I found this cute idea in a magazine. You take an egg crate, cut it in half and then line it with full sized cup cake liners. Then you put some red shredded paper in a 10" bag, slip the egg crate stuffed with truffles or your favorite home made cookie into the bag. Cut off the sealed side of the bag, and tie off with cute festive ribbon and a tag.

I made chocolate peppermint truffles and topped them off with crushed peppermint.
Hopefully the host couples will like them. I started saving egg crates months ago and even though I think Dan thought my "egg crate pile" was a bit strange he can see my vision now.
Anyways, thought I would share this little project with you. maybe it could bless a teacher, a neighbor, friend or your church staff. :)

Playing Catch Up.....

2011-12-02T09:02:00.000-08:00

Man where did the time go that it's already December! I realized I have been reading everyone else blog but not updating my own. Ha!
So this post is a "catch you up" post.
We were lucky enough that Dan's sister and my niece and nephew got to come up and visit a couple weekends ago. My nephew Nate LOVES firemen and fire engines etc. so we took them to the fire station to visit Dan and go for a ride on the engine.
Even Dan's sister loved it! Riding on that huge truck never gets old!

Morgan and her cousin AJ enjoying the ride

Nate and Ryanne. We had to finally turn Ryanne's head set off because she was talking so loud the poor guy driving the back of the truck was going deaf.

Don't worry Uncle Dan I will help you get the ladder out!

I think I mentioned before that I was in the process of redoing our room; well it is still a work in progress but here are a couple of shots so you can get the idea and see the color.
I am doing a mirror col age on our large empty wall. I am still looking for 2 more mirrors to complete it. Bought a new bookcase at Target.

This corner was empty so for Christmas (yes she already gave it to me) my mom bought us a chair and ottoman at Home Goods for cozy hours of reading and long conversations with my hubby.
I found the little side table at Ross for $15 and the floor lamp at homewoot.com for $39. I love finding stuff cheaper that works.
Oh and the cat is Morgan's but he thinks the chair was bought for him.

Christmas threw up at our house the other day......

Our church does a Thanksgiving out reach every year where families can sign up to provide a complete Thanksgiving meal for a family in our community who is in need. Our church provided over a 100 meals!

We packed them up and met at the church the Saturday before Thanksgiving......

The girls have helped in the past but we have never helped deliver the meals. It was a really good experience for us all. A real eye opener for my girls. Some families allowed us to pray for them while others declined. The girls had happy, helping hearts even in the freezing cold rain that eventually took over the morning.

So much fun stuff going on during the holidays. I'm enjoying being healthy and pain free even in the cold. The girls are excited about shopping for gifts for each other and Dan. We have some fun outings coming up; friends in plays, Morgan's ballet recital, tickets to the Nutcracker etc.
Lots of baking for neighbors, Married Life Ministry Christmas dinner and family to visit with.

Dan is busy getting settled into his new position as Battalion Chief at work and the girls are eagerly awaiting Christmas break so they can sleep in and do NOTHING! Ha! The teacher will enjoy that as well.

I hope this reaches everyone enjoying the Christmas season, loving on their wound up kiddos and taking a few minutes to hang out with their spouse.

One Of The Many Reasons I love Dan...

2011-11-13T13:02:00.001-08:00

One of the reasons I LOVE my husband and mind you there are many; is because he is always willing to leave behind the stresses of work, ministry, kids (sorry girls) house chores etc. to just pick up and go. Go to the beach for the night and let everything else fade into the back ground if only for a day or two. He's always got a lot going on with work (especially lately) and we are always in full swing with Married Life ministry. The girls go full speed all week and I home school which is a full time job.
So when I say,"Honey, let's get a room, get dinner and a movie and go back to our room and just be." He is great about saying OK! So last week the girls doubled up on school work to get it all done and my mom came and watched the girls Thursday and Friday so we could get away.
If nothing else to talk without being interrupted, eat an entire meal while it's still hot and sit in the jacuzzi without being splashed in the face. Ha! Ha! It's really the little things that keep a marriage in tune.
I am thankful that I have a husband who is willing to do this multiple times a year "just because" and a family that is willing to help out with our kiddos. The BIG, GRAND moments in marriage are great but really the "just because" stuff is what feeds my soul. :)
Then when he tells me things like,"honey I won't be home for 4 days" I smile and wave. Ha!
Just a reminder to do something without the kids with your hubby this holiday season.
*Call a friend for free babysitting and go Christmas shopping.
*Surprise him at work with a lunch date.
*Put the kids to bed early and have a popcorn and movie night.
*Arrange for a quick coffee date down the street.

The holidays are stressful; friends, family, shopping, decorating, baking etc. It's just nice to remind your spouse that all that is secondary. :)

Just Sayin.......

2011-11-08T09:01:00.000-08:00

Yesterday morning my dad sent me these funny questions. For example: Why are tug boats called "tug" boats when they push? or "Why do we sing take me out to the ball game if we are already there?" Lastly, "Why does fat chance and slim change mean the same thing?"

So because my life is well, my life I have come up with some of my own questions that need answering.
For example: Why does this sweet, kissable, simply irresistible pooch wake me up to go out to pee at 2am only to decide it is to cold, run back inside and pee on the floor?

Or why would this sweet, angelic, kissable child get into the play make up, put on bright red lipstick and then proceed to kiss my light colored silky curtains in my bedroom? Really? Why?

Yet another mystery. Why do my hormones shift once a month only to make me crave things like these babies? I mean on the outside they are good, sweet and oh so yummy but then after eating 6 I don't feel so great. Oh and yes they are gluten and dairy free. I made them. Which means I had plenty of time to think through my actions. LOL!

And lastly; the cold weather......does it beacon any one else to NEED comfort food? I mean at least we make the good majority of our comfort food so I know its relatively healthy but still. I don't think any amount of healthy makes up for the 3 bowls of homemade mac n cheese I ate the other night!

Another Fun Halloween.....

2011-11-01T10:22:00.000-07:00

Well another successful Halloween down! I'm sad to say that this is probably the worst I have ever been about taking pictures on Halloween so please excuse the fact that they are blurry and not very detailed. :( I just got so caught up in the fun and all the kids that I lost track of taking pictures.
Morgan was the Mad Hatter and Ryanne was the Cheshire cat. Their friend Maddie was Alice.

We had 10 kids and lots of different costumes. Princess Leah, a ballerina, a viking and more.

The kids had fun and were wound up TIGHT! LOL!

There were ghoulish gluten free treats........

A fun kids table complete with fruit kabobs, glow sticks and crazy straws.......

Oh did I mention Aerial showed up too!

Dry ice added to the fun of the night........

Dan in his costume.........Kidding!

And then there was me....yes I did the bride of Frankenstein. It was fun and different and HOT in that dress and wig! My favorite was the purple lipstick and diamond frog ring. My mom sewed plastic spiders to the front of the dress as well. Too fun. I'm sad cause I should have taken a better picture but it just got crazy.

The kids table before the kids got to it. LOL!

The adults table......I went with a Disney Haunted Mansion feel this year.

I hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween. Thanks everyone for coming to our house and for the fun fellowship. Thanks mom for all the help! Looking forward to seeing everyone's pictures.
Happy November!

If I Tweeted.......

2011-10-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

If I tweeted which I do not these are some of the things you would have had the pleasure of being part of over the last couple weeks:

I would have tweeted that we had a baby rattlesnake in our bedroom (yes our bedroom) and that my mom almost stepped on it. But I saved her life. :)

I would have tweeted that despite my better judgment I let my girls & Macy sign up for dog training on Wednesdays. It went better than I thought, Macy didn't eat any of the little dogs and the girls had a blast!

I would have tweeted how I am holding on to the hope that my 7 year old will one day be a world famous artist and that all the "art work" I keep finding on the walls around the house will have been worth it. *sigh*

Then I would have tweeted how I made my 7 year old scrub the walls and write sentences about writing on walls just in case it turns out she's not all that talented. LOL!

I would have tweeted how when I called a location to ask about rooms for our spring marriage conference and the lady asked me if the couples were OK with sharing a room with two beds I thought I was on some hidden camera show. Really? Married couples sharing a room? Here's your sign..........

I would have tweeted how when I woke up the other morning to a sick great Dane with loose stool.........we'll leave it at that. Blah!

I would have tweeted about how I went to the Dr. and for the first time in almost 11 years I got good news about my rheumatoid arthritis. Other than a couple holes in my foot and wrist bone there was no more permanent damage to joint tissue. I was so encouraged when I left.

I would have tweeted that after 7 weeks of water aerobics I have killer six pack abs and you could bounce a quarter off my butt........OK not really but I am toning up and feel so much stronger from the classes. Not to mention you can't help feel young and positive when hanging out with those feisty ladies in class.

I would have tweeted how my 10 year old informed me the other day that she needs to get married and have kids young so that her daddy won't be an "old Grandpa." (Watch out Andrea, she's coming for Carson!)

Probably more I could "tweet" about but I think suspense is good for all of us. :)

Came Up With An Idea......

2011-10-27T10:19:00.000-07:00

I just wanted you all to know that I came up with an idea for my costume for Halloween and will NOT be this...............I'm sorry to disappoint you but I just can't bring myself to dress my kids up as some smokes and me as an idiot. I mean bottle of alcohol.

I know that leaves you even more on the edge of your seat in anticipation of what I have come up with. LOL! Be patient my son, be patient.

Christmas Card Photo

2011-10-20T16:41:00.000-07:00

My friend Jess started her own photography business for the mere fact that she loves looking through a camera and capturing people in their element.
We asked her to take our girls school pictures for the year and decided to turn it into our family Christmas photo op day as well. :)

This is only one of many she took that turned our super cute and really captured our family in all their silly glory. If you need photos for ANYTHING click over on Jess's blog to the right and you can find her photo web site from there. Thanks again Jess for making yet another fun family memory for us that we get to hang on our wall and smile at every time we pass.
Oh and I forgot to mention we were Jess's youth group leaders and have known her family forever so if you need any juicy stories about her rebellious teen years I might only tell you that she made sure to torture me whenever she had the chance. We'll leave it at that. LOL!

Morgan's First Sprint.....

2011-10-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

This photo was taken from my phone at 5:30am so bare with me here.
This past weekend was super fun for us. We went to San Diego so Morgan could compete in her first full size sprint triathlon. Morgan was super nervous about the distance so Dan's sister did the buddy wave with her and encouraged Morgan the entire way.
They swam a 1/2 mile ocean swim, a 12 mile bike and a 3.1 mile run!!

Morgan said about half way out on the swim she had an anxiety attack about how far she was from shore and what could be in the water. Suzanne helped her snap out of it and a life guard on a board also encouraged her so she said even though she still struggled she knew she could finish.

This was the SheRox all women tri to raise money for ovarian cancer research. So it was really fun to see all the women out there getting fit together. They even had a survivors wave of the race which was cool. Morgan was the youngest athlete doing the long distance wave and so she won everyone over. The announcer was talking about how young she was and cheering her on and all the women on the race were giving her words of encouragement for fighting to the end. The grin on her face when she completed was so sweet. She was so proud of herself. I was a nervous wreck the entire time. LOL! Needless to say she was starving and super sore. We prayed over her and I encouraged her to have a joyful heart and attitude even when it got hard. She totally did! :) When we got home Dan went on line and donated money in honor of Morgan finishing her race to the little girl Winter's foundation that Morgan supports. She wears her race gear and we told her every time she finishes a race we would give money to this little girl who's dad died of prostate cancer a few years ago. Winter races to earn money for awareness and research. So good clean family fun all around. Thanks for racing with her Suzanne, it meant a lot to Morgan to have the support. That officially closes tri season for our family. Wheeeeew....no more 4am wake up calls to stand on the beach.....until next year that is. :)

I Need Ideas People!

2011-10-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

OK quick I need some great Halloween costume ideas. I am so stumped this year. I was going to be the bride of Frankenstein but I don't know..........anyways, in case you are new to my blog I apologize ahead of time for the photo below. But every year I come up with some costume and then I sneak out my back bedroom door and run around the house to ring the door bell (stay with me here) my kids then know that when they open the front door their insane mother will be standing there in some silly costume. Then we proceed to have a fun dinner complete with silly house decorations and neighbors, friends and family all hanging out. So you see I'm under A LOT of pressure to perform here. So please throw some ideas my way.
And because I am a giver I will gladly lend out this costume (seen below) to anyone who would like to borrow it this year. You know you want it! :)

Another "field trip"

2011-10-12T11:47:00.001-07:00

We took the girls to Disneyland on a "field trip" this past Monday. The weather was AMAZING and even though it was a little crowded we had fun all the same. My mom came out and went with us. She had not been since I was little so she loved seeing everything.

My brother lives in OC so he popped over and hung out with us for the day as well. By the way, he's single and we need him to find a wife and settle down. He's 33, has a good job and owns his own home. Oh and he loves Disneyland. Let the match making begin. LOL!

I have never been around Halloween so it was fun seeing all the decorations the put up. The haunted mansion ride totally inspired me for Halloween and all the little decorations I do for the kids dinner that night.

What is it with girls this age being so fickle about taking a picture? That girl! Or maybe Dan is tickling her? :)

Did I mention my brother is single? Physically fit, likes to travel and pretty much has the same sick sense of humor I have. Any one? Hello is this thing on?

LOVE! LOVE! All the pumpkins and the orange flowers everywhere.

The girls basically fought over riding with my mom and brother all day which was nice for Dan and I cause we took it as a chance to talk and just be together on the rides.

After hitting both Disneyland and California Disney and then staying late for the World Of Color show we were exhausted. 12 hours of walking about did me in. I felt like someone beat me the next day. LOL! Although I did push past the desire to sleep in this morning and I went to the gym before we did school.

Oh and if your wondering yes Disneyland does count as a field trip when you home school. :)

I'm A Posting Maniac...

2011-09-30T10:52:00.000-07:00

OK I am totally a posting maniac this week. I just can't help it really. Too much fun stuff to tell you about and show you.
Now normally I don't get to involved in posting about controversial things on the news. I try my hardest not to offend people on my blog.

But when I saw this on my news web page this morning I couldn't resist sharing it with you. I in NO way support PETA. In fact I think anytime you take a stand for something and then go completely postal to get your point across your basically nuts. And yes that goes for religious beliefs as well. You do a sit in at an abortion clinic, fine. You shoot the abortion Dr. not so much. Know what I'm saying people?

So this brings me back to the billboard PETA is trying to have put up in Florida. I think on it's own it is kinda "tongue in cheek" funny. I mean from a warped, I have a sick sense of humor kind of angle. But just last week a guy in his early 20's was attacked by a shark in Florida so PETA in all it's wisdom thought this would be a good time to put this up near where the man was attacked. And they said,"Maybe this will be a good reminder to Mr. so and so to not eat meat. And to remind him how the fish feel when they are killed."

See, billboard on it's own kinda funny. At the cost of making someone else feel badly or like it was their fault that half their leg was torn off by a shark while innocently splashing around on the shores of Florida kinda sick and twisted. You see the difference right?

I was putting myself in PETA'S shoes (not made from real leather mind you) and I guess they are getting the reaction they hoped for. I mean I don't think a billboard of a cow attacking some farmer would be nearly as affective. Am I right?

Have a good weekend and I say eat whatever you want as long as it's not your family pet.

Catalina We Love you!!

2011-09-29T12:21:00.000-07:00

On Monday we loaded up the girls and headed down to the OC. We spent the afternoon at down town Disney taking in all the sights and sounds down there. Then we headed over to the ESPN restaurant for dinner and to watch my Cowboys beat the Redskins. Whoo-hooo!!

We then spent the night at Dan's Uncle and Aunt's house so we could all 6 get up in the morning and head to Catalina. Our girls have never been so I was super excited. When we left New Port we had the most amazing weather. No fog, just clear beautiful sailing.

It was a good thing that right when we got to the island Ryanne found someplace to hang her sweatshirt. :)

We rented a 6 person golf cart and off we went............

To the top of the hill for some amazing photo ops and we even saw a whale swimming near shore from up there.

Smile girls! This is the best field trip EVER!

So fun!

"Hi Mama!" "Hey baby!"

This is a view from the top of the botanical memorial gardens we hiked up. It was built back in the 1930's.

I just love all the tree and store lined shore front spots.

And all the old buildings right on the water.

Of course our girls found a dog to play catch with. They played for a really long time and this dog just loved all the attention.

The hour long ride gave Dan and I tons of time to catch up on his work, ministry stuff and planning our trip back to Catalina for our 15 year wedding anniversary in Feb.

The day was a warm 76 and so clear. The visibility in the water was 30-40 ft.

Ahhh....I love being on a boat. I love the ocean.

"Not to sound ungrateful honey but can you drop me off on that boat?"

We started this tradition with the girls a while back. Every time we go on vacation to any beach anywhere we collect sea glass. We have a jar in our kitchen with glass from all over the West coast and Hawaii. Here is a small handful of what we picked up in Catalina. It's super fun as a family to go hunting through the water for it and see what treasures you find. My goal is to next get some from the East coast.

Some day we will hopefully have a full jar from all of our adventures.

On the boat ride back home we were watching the sun set over Catalina and all of a sudden like 10-15 dolphins started jumping and flipping really high out of the water. Everyone was on their feet clapping and cheering. It was unreal. Way better than Sea World. They flipped and played until we were to far to see them anymore. AMAZING!
Thanks for the memories Catalina!

Action Shot......

2011-09-26T12:01:00.000-07:00

A good snapshot stops a moment from running away. Eudora Welty

If you have never had the privilege of meeting our youngest daughter Ryanne (pronounced Ryan) This photo completely sums her up. There are not to many words needed really to help you understand her any further. She is tiny, blond and basically has this energy all day every day. This photo sums up my kids. They were told to get their teeth brushed and ready for bed. I heard lots of "action" going on in my room of all places so I decided to grab my camera and investigate. When I came around the corner Morgan's eyes over the edge of the bed were like, "Ruh roh raggy! (you have to say that part with a Scooby -Doo voice) We've been caught!"
Ryanne on the other hand is oblivious.

When I got up this morning the quote above was in my daily generous wife tips and I thought it was perfect to go with this picture. I will have this memory forever because I caught them being kids and even though I was tired and DONE for the day I am sure this photo will make me laugh when I am needing a good one. Hope you catch your kids being kids today. :)

Some Random Things and Senseless Babble....

2011-09-23T19:11:00.001-07:00

I wanted to update my blog sooner but after a few water aerobics classes I couldn't lift my arms above my waist to type. I now have healed some and have them propped up! He, he, I crack me up! Seriously though the class is hard and good and hard and fun and did I say hard? This isn't your grandma's water class folks. Well, actually she may be in there but it's hard none the less.

This is pretty much something you can count on every Sunday afternoon around our house.
Nap time!! I'm not sure whats funnier, that Macy doesn't fit on the couch or that Dan doesn't either. :)

Then there is always the token kid who comes in for the daddy cuddle AKA "daddy sandwich" time. I'm thinking the look on Macy's face says it all.
"Seriously kid? we were just fine without you."

At this point Dan is awake, Morgan wants to play and Macy is getting annoyed and territorial over the little space she has left next to Dan.

So when all else fails you pin the kid to the chair.
"Say it Morgan! Say your not ever gonna take my spot on the couch again, say it!"

This isn't the greatest picture but I wanted you to see how tall Macy is compared to Ryanne. I'm not sure what Ryanne did to make Macy corner her but by the look in her eye they are having a heart to heart and Macy is winning. LOL!

When she's not cuddling on the couch or torturing the kids she often holds the wall up. See how helpful she is. Notice the missing dry wall? Yes that would be from her chasing her ball and sliding on the tile into the wall.

We have this hutch that Dan bought me when we first got married (almost 15 yrs. ago)
I have wanted to take the top off and paint it black and turn it into a buffet but Dan freaked at the very thought. So to give it a face lift I decided to just change the outdated knobs. I had been eyeballing these hand painted ceramic ones at World Market for some time but they are like $5 each and I needed 9.

I'm not trying to sound cheap but $45 for knobs? I'm trying to redo our bedroom too. So I waited until I got a coupon in the mail and got all 9 knobs for $30! It's a subtle change but will at least keep the black paint at bay until I can convince Dan.

I have a random confession.......I have been telling my friends, family and husband for years that I love change. I cannot for the life of me understand why people fear it I would say. Well, I went to Costco the other day and they quit carrying my organic peanut butter, my kids dried fruit snacks and something else I clearly have blocked out. Then I went to Trader Joe's and Target and they must have had a meeting because they flipped the layout of the stores at the same time. Really? I have no idea where anything is. To top it off I went to dinner with a friend the other night. We went to PF Chang's. Good, faithful never changing, reliable PF Chang's. When I ordered my iced tea I was informed it had changed. I just sat there looking at the waiter confused. "Changed? Why? I mean I loved that tea. Why would you change a perfectly good tea?" He kindly informed me that I would love the new tea and after under my breath noting that I probably would not love it I tried it. I went to order my favorite gluten free dish and uh huh you guessed it-changed! As if I was begging for punishment I decided to order my favorite more than faithful never changing or going "skinny jean" on me jeans on line. Needless to say they too had changed. Or my body did. But lets assume they did. I have a confession; I only like change when I am in control. For example I would love to change my scenery right this minute and be in Hawaii laying on the beach in my bikini with only fond memories of my trader pants skinny jeans! I'm OK really.

Lastly and I hope I don't offend but is it just me or is that extreme couponing a little strange? I mean when you buy 700 bottles of shampoo and 4,000 bottles of Tylenol and store it on shelves in your garage isn't it just another nice way of saying you are a hoarder? A neat, organized, money saving, ready for a major war to break out where you can never leave your house and it's on your shoulders and yours alone to feed the entire city for years kind of hoarder?
I'm just saying.

I REALLY Wasn't Gonna Tell You This............

2011-09-16T11:02:00.001-07:00

I really wasn't gonna post again this week. Wasn't gonna even mention it.
Nope not a word. My lips were sealed. Nothing. Nope. Not gonna do it. But then ever so quietly I heard this small still voice. "God is that you?" No it wasn't God telling me to share. It was the little voice in my head that begs me to keep quiet so I don't embarrass myself. It tells me all the time,"Christy, you don't have to share everything. Some things are OK to keep to ourselves."

Don't get me wrong, the voice and I are friends. I mean were like this (imagine fingers crossed). But sometimes I have to tell the voice to go away and leave me alone.
Mind you I try not to talk to the voice out loud in public. It draws stares from weirdos.

But this particular day I decided you good people of blogging land needed a laugh. And who I am to withhold a good giggle even if it is at my expense?
Am I right or am I right?

Soooooo......I go to my much over do Rheumatoid doctors appointment yesterday. Truthfully I had been avoiding it for like 2 years because I get sick of hearing I am going to be in a wheelchair if I don't let them poison me with chemo drugs. They have been telling me that since I was in my 20's; then bring the freagin' wheelchair already!

Sorry, I'm getting side tracked. So I am getting my physical from this new RA doctor who I love the first 5 minutes of my visit. Super nice older gentleman who thinks my girls are darling. (chalk up 10 points for schmoozing me)
Then as he has me doing some flexing and bending tests. I in all my wisdom decide to ask him about all the muscle pain and weakness associated with this crazy disease.

He looks me straight in the eye (you can't make this stuff up for ratings people) and says,"Yes I noticed your arms were getting a bit flabby."
Flabby? My arms? I weigh 123 soaking wet! Flabby? Define flabby. Like fat? Just hanging there doing nothing. Flabby? Useless skin flabby? I'm confused.
So I informed the good educated doctor that I walked twice a day. Up hill both ways mind you. He didn't even blink. He said,"Dye your hair gray and go join a water aerobics class." (minus 50 points for bedside manner)

Water aerobics? Like where the old people go? Like go buy an ugly one piece and bathing cap aerobics? Define water aerobics pleeeaasseee.....cause I'm about to freak out here Doc.

He went on the with physical and for only a brief second I had this horrible, inexcusable, DO NOT try this at home kids thought.
I apologize because this next line will give you access into my very warped, wound to tightly, sick mind. I'm warning you.......DO NOT continue reading if you think to highly of me.

So what you don't think to highly of me?
Anyways, I though about dropping my pants and asking him what he thought about my saggy butt. I know right. It's horrible. The minute I thought it I heard the voice again. Only this time it WAS God saying,"NOOOOOOOOOO!"
But like in that deep slow motion kind of voice.

Over all I really liked the Doc. I think it's safe to say we hit it off. He asked me to go get a bunch of x-rays on my hip and things like that. Cause I'm old you know. And flabby. And old. And flabby. I agreed to go but I warn you if the x-ray tech says one word about my body the next post might not be nearly this pleasant. Oh and just FYI, I am heading over to LA Fitness to sign up for a gym membership this afternoon. *sigh* Water aerobics here I come!!

Feel free at this time to go to comment section and re build my self esteem. For those of you who read but only "blog stalk" just send happy "anti old and flabby" love my way via monetary gifts. Cash only please.

Disclaimer: Please do not send money. I am kidding. I don't know if that was illegal to post or not. Just want to confirm I was kidding. Although if money does appear in my mail box know that it will go towards my water aerobics classes. The End

I Was Gonna Tell You.......

2011-09-13T14:30:00.001-07:00

I was gonna post the last few weeks about random little things that have been going on. But then I never got to it.

I was gonna post about how Ryanne is three for three in destroying things. She snapped the lace on her KEEN'S she wears for P.E. She broke her bedroom door off it's hinges and snapped her towel holder off the bathroom wall. I was gonna post about it but I was too busy fixing everything. *sigh*

I was gonna blog about the second marriage retreat we just had in Mission Viejo. And how Jon Courson flew in for the week and shared his heart on marriage. How he kept emphasizing the verse in Matthew that says;"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." And how ever since that retreat I hear that verse in my head and it puts everything in perspective. I was gonna blog about how that blessed me but I never got to it.

I was gonna blog about how the other day Dan & I were being super annoying in the car just to well, you know annoy our kids when Morgan says,"I knew it! I knew it! I'm a princess from a far away land who was dropped here in this family by accident!" I was gonna blog about how Dan has given her the nickname DQ short for drama queen but I was to busy trying not to laugh at her.

I was gonna blog about how when Dan & I called home to check on the girls one evening (my mom was watching them) and Morgan answered the phone I asked her what she was doing. And I quote,"I'm watching Grandma clean up the blood pouring from Ryanne." I was gonna blog about that but we were to busy being glad we were on our way out to dinner with friends.

I was gonna blog about how after Dan helped me organize our closet I got tunnel vision and wanted to re do our room. I was gonna tell you how I got the inspiration from fellow blogger Krista and how I loved the tranquil blue she painted her room. I was gonna tell you how I missed the fact that she only used the blue as an accent wall and so I painted my entire bedroom that color. And how the first night in bed when I asked Dan if he liked the color he said and I quote,"I feel like I am under water and should hold my breath." I was gonna blog about that but I was to busy trying to make my very blue room look nice.

I was gonna blog about how I lost yet another cell phone. Yes that is 3 in one year. And how lucky I am that we had an old one in a kitchen drawer because my contract is nowhere near up. I was gonna admit that I may have left it on the bumper of my car AGAIN and driven away never to see it again. Ya' I was gonna blog about that but I was to busy driving around looking for my phone and trying to decide how to tell Dan I lost yet another phone.

I was gonna blog about the fact that I outsmarted Macy (our dog) and for $4 put a lock on our trash can so she couldn't get into it anymore. And how proud of myself I was. I was gonna tell you how it made my dog so mad that she went and chewed on one of the girls shoes, snagged a piece of bread off a plate at the dinner table, tried to eat the cat and then found a wooden sign I had with the word HOPE on it and chewed it up. I was gonna blog all about that but now I have no hope so it was to difficult.

I was gonna blog about how I accidentally sent my dad a text message asking for a massage. It was meant for my husband. You see Dan & Dad are really close in my phone directory. I was gonna blog about it but I was to busy trying to get the red out of my face.

I was gonna blog about how Ryanne cut her hair right up the middle, got caught in the restroom at Morgan's piano class with her pants down spraying an entire can of air freshener and told me I was lame when I sent her to her room. I was gonna tell you guys all about it but I'm to busy trying to figure out how to raise her without killing her or medicating myself.

I was gonna tell you our friend Jess is doing a family photo shoot of us tonight and that I am so afraid for her. I mean I don't care what a good photographer you are; making us all 4 look good at the SAME time might take more than a good camera and some talent. I'm afraid. Very, very afraid. I was gonna tell you all about the photo shoot but I am to busy trying to decide what we should all wear so we don't look lame.

I was gonna tell you how last night I was SUPER hormonal and so when the kids went to bed (Dan was at work) I got a glass of milk, (rice milk of course) and about 8.....Okay 10 cookies and sat and ate every last one. And you know what? I didn't feel bad at all. I was gonna tell you all about it but then I felt sick afterwards.

Sorry. I was gonna tell you guys all this stuff I just don't have time. LOL!

Closet Chaos, Morgan's Recipe And Lake days.....

2011-08-29T13:01:00.000-07:00

We were so excited when we bought this house because the master bedroom has this HUGE walk in closet. I mean it really is a small room. You could tell a women designed the house. :) We thought it was going to be so organized and neat and tidy because we had all this room.....ummmm.....confession time. All it did was give us more room to spread our junk around. We decided this past week to take everything out and make donate, trash and keep piles and get it all nice and neat.

This is the before............

Dan said,"Um honey why are we showing people our messy closet again?"
Because honey, this is real life! People live to see others dirty laundry aired! Get it? Your really seeing my dirty laundry, like literally. I know, I won't quit my day job.
Anyways, this is the after. For privacy sake and so my husband doesn't die of embarrassment I only showed my side of the closet. See, I'm obedient. :)

I used a bunch of cute baskets and containers to hold all my ribbon, candles etc. so I could see them and get to them easier. I even used an old fish bowl to store some material ribbon I use on gifts.

If you have an ice cream maker bust it out sister! It's like 100 degrees outside. UGH! If you have one it came with a basic vanilla recipe. We swap out the milk with vanilla almond milk and use a dairy free creamer in place of the regular creamer. Then in the last 10 minutes of the ice cream makers cycle we added gluten free graham crackers, marshmallows and dairy free chocolate chips. Ta Da! Morgan's S mores Ice Cream recipe. It is YUMMY!

Our church had lake day yesterday and it was so great! The water was nice and cool and the air HOT! The kids played and played until they dropped.

The dad's took the kids on the Kayak's. (Dan & Ryanne, Jade & Jase)

Our friends little girl Kali pretty in pink. She was loving us up the entire day. I think about three slobbery toddler kisses in and Dan was giving her the keys to the car. He's smitten!

Two friends got baptized which was so fun to be present for. Really neat! What a fun weekend. Back to the grind which we call school!

Back To The Grind....................

2011-08-26T09:31:00.001-07:00

Schools out, schools out, teachers let the monkey's out......no wait that's what I was singing in May.

Schools in, schools let the insanity begin!!! Ya' that's more like.

Ryanne started 2nd grade and Morgan 5th. This is our 4th year home schooling and I love it more each year. Maybe it's because the kids are getting older and more independent or maybe because I am more confident in my ability to teach and not kill the kids in the process. I also like the fact that as they get older the subjects get more interesting for me. I mean let's be honest; none of us remember all the state facts or the history of all the wars. So it's like learning all over again.
When I meet people that tell me they could never home school I just smile and say,"Ya' I suppose it's not for everyone." But in reality in the back of my head I am thinking,"Good luck with that sister. The last time I told God I could not or would not EVER do something he called on me to do it!" Heck, that's how we ended up teaching the girls at home in the first place.
But never fear the girls only suffer slightly through the year. That is after they get done with their super fun PE class on Wednesdays, piano, ballet, art, and the science field trip to Catalina and Disneyland. It's a rough life but heck, someone's gotta live it! :)

"Mom, take my picture!"

Ya' forget that she TOTALLY lives up to her blonde locks and focus on the fact that she is posing in front of a map of CA at least! Ha!

Ya' were getting so much geography done now!

Our class mascot is laying down on the job..............worthless really.

"Hi mom! So ready to rock the 5th grade!"

"OK mom, go away now your bugging me. No really I'm so over it."

"OK maybe just one more."

Something funny Morgan said
Usually it's Ryanne that says funny stuff but Morgan is soooo drama right now so she may not think so but I think it's hilarious!
Me: BURP!! "Yuck that tasted like beans and bananas!"
Morgan: "Oh my gosh, you disgust me! Can I please roll down the car window so I can just jump out?"
He! He! I love messing with her. I'm the mom, that's my job!

Bye-Bye Summer Vacation...................

2011-08-23T11:11:00.000-07:00

Good bye summer break. We'll miss you. You were a good summer break. Sniff, sniff...........
So many memories, it seems like only yesterday we were saying good bye to school for the year. *Sigh*
To cap off our summer we rented a cabin up at Hume Lake for a week. We just got back and started school on Monday. A week at Hume means so much to do.......

There were tire swings to swing from.......

Yahhoooooo!!!!!

Higher Daddy!

My mom went with us and so of course we tortured her every chance we got. :)
"Look Grandma, one hand!"

I made Dan take a turn. There is just something about flying through the air on a swing that reminds you how good it is to be a kid.

There were baby ducks to follow around and feed..............(6 to be exact)

We climbed to the top of Buck Rock fire look out. It is 172 steps straight up the face of those rocks.........the look out sways on the rock if the wind is blowing.......

We had a picnic at the bottom first................

The view is SOOOO worth the climb (and fear of falling) :)

Yup' it was high, the signs don't lie.

Did I mention my mom went with us and we tortured her? She is not a fan of heights so maybe this was a little scary of a climb for her. She did it though and was still smiling after.

These dandelions were GINORMOUS!!

That has to count for a LOT of wishes right?

There was camp to go to every morning and night............

Major photo ops............

Great reminders...................

Self portraits to take...........

Sister dips in the lake.........

Stand up paddle board to master........

If you have never done this activity might I suggest a "non-blustery" day?

Father daughter canoe dates out to the dam.

Ummmm....more self portraits?

Rocks to jump from.........

Mama deers who brought their baby around for dinner on our back deck each night......

Time with Grandma at King's river..............

Time to ponder life.............

Caves to explore............

Give me your, "I'm so excited vacation is almost over and we get to start school face!"

This is the cabin we rented. See the stairs to the right? I tripped and fell down those face first. Carrying a chair. Yup' I'm good.

Dives to master.............

Running front flips to master..........(just not this picture, OUCH!)

Cowgirl theme nights at camp to dress up for............

Time to hang out at the Hume Burger joint............

Ahhhhh....more photo ops..............

Silly pictures to take...........

Good bye Hume Lake........

Good bye summer vacation...............

Until we meet again.........*sniff*

Latest Project.....

2011-08-11T11:14:00.000-07:00

I have seen this idea in multiple places and have always wanted to try it. The reason I am just now getting to it is because 1. I was nervous about how it would turn out and 2. I wasn't sure where it would get the most use.
Every school year I change up the classroom in some little way to make it fun and new for the girls. Last year I painted it a sky blue, this year a magnetic chalkboard.

First I had Dan draw a perfect rectangle on the wall for me since I am soooo not capable of getting a straight line on a wall. Then I added 3 layers of magnetic paint that I purchased at Lowe's. After 24 hours of drying time I added 2 layers of chalkboard paint also purchased from Lowe's. When it was all dry Dan cut the wood and framed it in for me. The girls LOVE it!!!
I figured they could take their spelling tests on it sometimes when we needed a change of pace.
Total cost of project: $50.00. Well minus the $20 spent on the original magnetic and chalkboard paint in spray paint form. Ya' that was a disaster. If I can give you any advice with this project; don't try to save money and buy the spray on kind. Roll it on. Trust me!! :)

Next year's project? Don't tell Dan but I want to pull the carpet up and put wood floor down with a bright cheerful rug and huge pillows for the girls to lay and read on. Shhhh.......he's still recovering from the announcement that I want to paint the side of the refrigerator with the chalkboard paint so the girls have a huge art display. Whaaaattttt???? ;)

Really God?

2011-08-06T08:03:00.000-07:00

My week, OK two weeks.....well if I'm being totally honest the last THREE weeks have found me asking, "Really God?" about every three minutes. You know how sometimes in life it just seems like a bunch of little things add up.
Those things seem to be what has been causing the extra acid "stress" in the pit of my stomach lately.
Just the little things that seem like they should work out or be obvious that are making me say,"Really?"
Situations with the upcoming married life retreat, friendships hitting a fork in the road, new friendships growing and being stretched, trying to get ready for school to start and having our ES at the charter leave.
All these little things are all fine and good on their own but all at once?
Grrrrrr......
I've been reading through Job and I can totally picture him standing there with his head cocked, hand on his hips looking up to the sky saying,"Really God?" LOL! OK maybe that's me acting like a 2 year old when God is growing me.

I decided to take control of the only thing I could this week; well my attitude and response to people is the other I suppose. But the second thing is my hair. I asked my mom why I always want to make major changes to my hair when life is stressful........yup' you can guess the answer to that; C-O-N-T-R-O-L! So here is the new and improved "control freak."

Took about 7 inches off and can I just tell you how liberating loosing that hot pony tail was! So much cooler on my neck too! Oh I'm still standing here with my head cocked, hands on my hips saying,"Really God?" But at least my hair looks cute now! Ha! :)

Photo Update. Beware. Major Catch Up

2011-08-03T11:28:00.000-07:00

Took the girls and Macy 4 x 4 up to Devils Hole. Oh man Macy LOVED running through the forest and water with the girls.

We stopped at a look out spot to enjoy the view.....

Morgan took this picture, Macy jumped in. :)

Dan talked Morgan into jumping off the rocks with him.....

Dan's a big kid!

This is a goofy shot of her but at least you can see how big she is getting

Macy insisted on riding right up front on the way up and I can only imagine what people thought when they looked through our windshield. "Hey Thelma look! Those people have a horse in their truck!"

Took some pictures of Ryanne for her bday thank you cards that I have yet to send out

We had a little party for her and her close friends and family

Ryanne's friends

We rented a 17' foot water slide for her party and the kids LOVED it!!

This thing was huge. You could see forever when you stood at the top. We had the thing till' 9pm so when all the kids went home Dan & the girls and I went crazy playing on the slide. I woke up with bruises and road rash all over my elbows and legs. Dan was flipping off of it and getting the girls to do all kinds of things they probably shouldn't have. My mom finally went inside because she said she couldn't watch us anymore. LOL! So much for acting our age!!

Dan celebrated his 41st bday last week.

We surprised him and got a room down at the beach for 3 days. Right near the water so we took our bikes and rode everywhere. Even found this little park. I love how both my girls have their tongues hanging out.

We rode our bikes past this ship in the harbor that Dan said he stayed on for camp as a kid. So funny.

Rode up to this look out spot at the ocean center

It was amazing. We spent over an hour just chillin' here

Dan didn't want his picture taken so I told him, look cool and I post it or look like a dork and I post it either way. :) He chose cool!

Went to dinner right on the water on his bday night.

See this guy on the paddle board? His poor little dog was totally just hanging out. I was watching thinking,"shark bait!"

So you come to this beach often? It had to be love because he tried to share his cookies with her.

The girls played and played and played some more and we sat and visited and enjoyed Dan's special day!

Thanking Our Service Men............

2011-07-23T10:27:00.000-07:00

Books for Soldiers

Posted: 21 Jul 2011 02:30 AM PDT

The Gottman Relationship Institute is having a fund drive to get their marriage book into the hands of solders. The statistics for divorce in the military are high. Let's help protect the marriages of those who protect our country.

Seven Principles - Books for Soldiers - click here to donate a book in English or Spanish

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work - buy a copy for yourself (aff link)

Your generosity could save a marriage. For the price of a book ($7.50) you could make a difference in the lives of a husband and wife (and their children, friends, co-workers - major ripple effect of the good kind). The Seven Principles book is one of the best marriage tools around. I can't think of a better book to send to our guys and gals in uniform.

God works in the coolest ways don't ya' think? The other night I was watching this documentary on Navy Seals. It was talking about how they are gone more than 200 days a year from their families and what that entails for their wives. At the end of the show it said that the divorce rate for special service men is 90%. 90%!! It broke my heart because I have a life long friend who has served since he got out of high school and it has taken it's tole on his marriage as well. I pray for he and his family all the time but God really gave me a sensitive spirit for them after watching this show. I was like,"God what else can we do to encourage them? I mean I can pray but what else?" Then I woke up the next morning to this email about donating books to the soldiers while they are deployed. It's so cheap and such an easy way to help them out and encourage them in their marriages. If you can, please take a minute to pray over and then donate a book. You never know who it could go to and how God will use it. It could be the thing a soldier needs that very day to keep his marriage strong and intact. It could change the hearts of wives who faithfully wait and struggle while missing their loved ones. Thanks for helping out! Please pass this on to others who might send a book as well. :)

I love how when we ask God,"What can we do?" He shows us. So fun!

Happy 7th Birthday Ryanne!

2011-07-20T10:43:00.000-07:00

Happy 7th birthday crazy girl! You have been a surprise from the get go.
You were born a month early

You were so small and quiet we thought for sure that was who you were.

Then you turned 3 and you became this little curly blond ball of fiery energy.

You like to do things to get a reaction and a reaction you often get. LOL!

You are super petite but we like to call you "fun size."

You LOVE people and anyone with any sense loves you right back. :)

You NEVER show up empty handed when we are going to visit friends or family or someone is coming over. You always color them pictures or give something from your own room to your friends. You are very thoughtful.

We say you are our one liner and big word child. You come up with the craziest stuff.

Sometimes all your energy makes you misunderstood but because of that daddy and I have a soft spot and are very protective of you. We know some day you are going to rule the world! Or at the very least take it by storm. :)

You love your sister and so the fact that she spent her own money to buy you your first American Girl baby doll for your birthday has blessed you beyond belief. You LOVE this doll.

Ryanne, I can honestly say never in my life have I laughed or cried so hard all in the same day. I have never clung so desperately to Gods promise to not give us more than we can handle and at the same time I have looked in the mirror and seen so many of the same characteristics in myself.
You love life. You tend to be a bit impulsive. You are joyful. You love a good adventure. You find happiness in the smallest things; like bugs and homemade ice cream. You question everything which I am certain will make you wise and stronger in the Lord one day. Nobody has ever told you that you can't do something....you will find a way. If it can be climbed, jumped off of or driven you will do it. You LOVE shoes....primarily flip flops. :) You eat EVERYTHING and I mean everything! Fruits, veggies, fish, hummus, salads are your
favorite and so are avocados.
Your laugh is contagious and rolls out of you so easily. You try to be tough and you hate to cry in front of people.
You love to hug and kiss people and the dogs, the cats, the bugs & frogs you catch...........
Ryanne, we never planned on another baby but God knew better. He gave us you as his promise to us. A promise that life will NEVER again be boring, without weekly injury's, without belly laughs, 100's of flip flops, chicklet colored girly toes, questions so random even I can't wrap my brain around them and just enough mellow in you that we get to cuddle on occasion.
We love you our little blonde ball of energy!
Love Daddy, Mommy and Morgan

The Joy's Of Parenting Ryanne And A Macy Update

2011-07-13T07:17:00.000-07:00

Since Ryanne's Birthday is one week from today I thought I would update you on some of the funny things she has been saying lately.

Location-Driving to Church
Ryanne: WOW! I think a rock star just drove past us!!

Dan: A rock star???

Me: A rock star? How do you know?

Ryanne: You should have seen the flashy sunglasses they were wearing.

Location-Dentist chair
Dental tech: Ryanne, we need to take x-rays so you have to open really big so I can put the plastic film in your mouth.

Ryanne: Uh huh...

Dental tech: No, don't bite till I tell you. You have to open bigger it's not in there correctly.

Ryanne: (pulling the film out) I'm trying but your plastic thingy is poking me in the back of my throat so that part is your problem!

Location-driving to lunch
Me: So Ryanne are you excited to start school next year?

Ryanne: ya.....I just can't believe I'm going to be in third grade already.

Me: Your not honey, your going into second.

Ryanne: Oh I already did third?

Me: *Sigh*

Location-Our house
Ryanne: Mom just so you know it's kind of offensive when you take off your bra before you go to bed.

Me: Huh?

Ryanne: Ya' your boobs are like all the way down here when you do that. (Pointing down to her waist just in case I didn't fully understand)

Driving home from church
Me: Do you want to see the dog papa adopted?

Ryanne: Papa got a dog?

Me: Yes he said it followed him home the other night.

Ryanne: (first slapping her forehead) Oh that papa, I know he's always doing something.

Here is a current picture of Macy. She is 9 months on Friday. 100 lbs. Her back comes up to Ryanne's shoulder. I tried to get a picture of them together but that is like trying to shoot 2 butterflies flying opposite directions. Or better yet they are usually on the floor wrestling and Ryanne has her in a head lock or her lips pulled out like wings. Nothing you could handle. This is my world, I don't want to suck you in so deep you can't get out. LOL!

BEWARE! Major Photo Overload Ahead!

2011-07-06T08:58:00.000-07:00

You know whats good? Friend are good. Friends who love the Lord and cheer you on in life are good.

You know what else is good? Youth leaders who really love what they do and love the kids and cheer them on....that's good.

Our church bible blast was last week and I think it's safe to say it was the best one ever!
New friends were made........

Neighbors got to know each other better................

Sister's were stranded on a deserted island together all week and didn't kill each other.........
(OK I made that one up)

Old friends got to go to dinner and with us and join in the fun of getting to know more about God................

Dad's got cooler...........Nah he was already cool. :)
I think the thing I love most about this photo is her little hand fanned across his chest. It's so little and cute.

The week started off rough as we attended a firefighter's funeral........but the service gave hope and I left feeling much lighter.
A bunch of the families from Dan's work went to the beach the next day.......and we snagged this little cutie and loved her up as much as possible.

I was sitting on the beach wondering what the couple on this boat was like. (yes in my world it was a couple, I'm a hopeless romantic) Anyways, this boat was there late into the night watching the sun set and I was thinking that must have been very peaceful for them. Do you ever do that? Imagine peoples lives? I will see an old couple and wonder what they have gone through in their marriage and how they got through it. Where they have been together and things like that.

I think we must have had 12-14 kids at the beach and they all got along great! No fighting or whining or anything. Just fun in the sun and surf. We stayed late into the night and had to tired girls to haul to bed when we got home.

Love warm sunny days at the beach when Dan is off.

Love how the minute we get near the water Morgans curls start to escape.

Love Ryanne's toothless grin.

They really needed their daddy this day. He really needed them too after such a hard week.

Morgan got her braces off! Her teeth look beautiful!

My nephew and brother came over and we spent the day playing in Oak Glen.

I love that this is basically in our back yard.

My mom came up too!

There are these really old sequoia tress I wanted to take a picture of but my brother said we should stick our heads in as well. :)

We dressed up in old western clothes and took pictures. The kids loved it but my mom said they made her look like a lets see how should a I say this? A lady of the night maybe? LOL!

And I dont care what anyone tries to tell you, a six dollar kiddie pool and buckets DO entertain kids for hours!

Our cousin Mallory is leaving to play soccer for the University of Hawaii. I told her I would sacrifice and come watch a game next year. Sheessshhh! The things I will do for family. :)

We were privileged enough to be part of a wedding renewal ceremony for Dans Aunt and Uncle. They celebrated 50 years! All the cousins were there.

I love Dan's Aunt and Uncle. They bless me and give me hope when I look at their marriage. They are best friends. They laugh at everything. I love their stories of how their life started and the things they have gone through. So sweet and kind to each other. I loved being part of their day.

We sang this at church last Sunday. Its only part of the song but I just love the words

You are good
You are good,
When there is no good in me.

You are joy,
you are joy,
when there is no joy in me.

You are more,
you are more
than my words will ever say.

In your presence I am made whole.
Nothing compares to your embrace.
Light of this world forever you will reign.

Our Summer So Far.......

2011-06-23T13:45:00.000-07:00

There is this great Mediterranean restaurant in Temecula that has the BEST grape leaves and hummice YUMMY! My brother and I took our dad there for father's day. Dan had to work. Below is my brother getting Ryanne wound up so she can get in trouble. Sigh.....

We got to have BBQ and catch up with some long time friends who by the way now know how to find my blog so I will be the bigger person and NOT bag on you here in public Ralph just on the off chance you are reading this today. Ha! Mindy trains dogs for the blind. We call her the dog whisperer. Don't you feel more complete knowing that? :)

Our friends invited us to the beach and even though the sun never did appear we had a really fun time.

Why is it kids can have a house full of toys but give then a pile of endless sand to dig in and a mere hole can keep them entertained for hours. And I do mean hours! See Morgan to the lower right corner? See Morgan's lower back? Yes that is the one spot I missed with the sun screen and she knelt like this for hours. Ummmmm....just a little sun burned. Ouch!

Ryanne caught this little guy below. Lunch anyone?

Morgan's long time friend Jesse. I think between the 3 moms we had 10 or 11 kids. Yup everyone survived and made it back in one piece.

I was going to come on here and tell you all about my crappy blood work and how my Lupus test came back positive again; my hormones, thyroid and cholesterol were all dangerously low (who has dangerously low cholesterol anyways?) and how now I am rubbing all natural hormone cream on the "girls" and they are growing like I am eating Miracle Grow.
But then that all seemed silly and irrelevant after this last week.
Our friend Tony who works with Dan was rushed to the hospital and we found out later he has 40 swollen spots on his brain. They are not sure what exactly caused it and he is very sick.
Then a couple days later another friend from the department passed away. Our department is hurting right now.
Please pray for Tony and his wife as they navigate this illness.
Also pray for Dave's wife and family as they grieve. And for the department family as the funeral is Tuesday.

Ya' my blood worked sucked but the blessing in it and I know this will sound crazy to some, but God woke me up in the middle of the night and told me to get my blood drawn so I did. If I had not The Dr. said there could have been a hospital stay in my near future. I was really whacked out. Now everything seems to be getting back to normal. Well, normal for my body anyway.
Blogger freaked out so the photos below go with this post as well. :)

2011-06-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

Ryanne loves to help cook. We made a yummy fish dish the other night.

Went to Target and cleaned out their squirt gun section. Then had some friends over to beat the heat.

Did a little hiking in Oak Glen and then had a picnic at the park up there.

I love living where we do because there is endless things to do.

Just Stuff...............

2011-06-08T12:20:00.000-07:00

Our life since school has gotten out has been pretty random and so none of these pictures are in order or anything. Just little snippets of our lives.
Lillie & Ryanne found the face paints the other day. Cute although together these two are T-R-O-U-B-L-E! But then I don't think it's possible to be this cute and not get into mischief.

Wait is that a Halo over Ryanne's head? Ha! Guess that was wishful thinking.
She tapped on the sliding door the other night while Dan & I were making dinner and when I looked over she just started cracking up. As I looked closer I discovered she had a lizard climbing up her chest out of her sun dress. Ewwwwww!!!!!!

On the days when I get tired of buying dog food bags that are so big I have to have the store load them into my SUV with a Bobcat tractor, or walking across the tile barefoot only to discover one of the cats has lovingly played in the cat litter only to leave a trail for my tender feet to step on. Or the birds (that our oldest would die without if we left them at the pet store) freak out and spray feathers all over AFTER I vacuum. Or the cat has gotten into the fish tank AGAIN. I stop short of screaming,"ENOUGH! IF YOU HAVE 4 LEGS, A TAIL, FEATHERS HAVE TO BE UNDER WATER TO LIVE, GET OUT!!!" Because look how sweet they all are.....

In case you were wondering yes it's Macy's world here.
She is closing the gap to 8 months and weighs about 90 lbs. give or take. Just a babe really.

Then there's Tiger. His favorite hobby is hiding amongst the stuffed animals on Morgan's bed. That is when he's not licking himself, teasing the dog or stealing my hair ties and dropping them in his water bowel.

Milo is well, just Milo. No photos of the birds or the fish because as Ryanne likes to say,"Their habitats are dirty at the moment!"

We took the girls down to the beach last week to run some errands for an upcoming married life event. We took them to this restaurant we love in Laguna Beach. It's actually called Tommy Bahama's. If you ever get a chance to eat there try the veggie burgers. Best I have EVER had!!! The girls loved it. Amazing weather. amazing food and good company. Love days like those.

Oh my future post should keep you coming back:
I will give you a hint: It has to do with me having to eat egg yolks, peanut butter, rubbing cream under the ahem "girls" every morning and blood work. No I'm not pregnant! I will fill you in though as I am sure I have peaked your curiosity. Ha!

Texas Judge Bans Prayer.....

2011-06-02T18:07:00.000-07:00

If you go to www.foxnews.com you can read this very sad article. A Texas judge has threatened jail time to any student who prays at graduation or even uses the word prayer, benediction etc.
Another student and his parents filed a suit against the school. So the judge decided it would cause and I quote,"irreparable harm" if someone prayed at the graduation ceremony.

Irreparable harm? Are you serious? I can think of a LOT of things that will cause someone irreparable harm but having someone pray over a ceremony is NOT one of them.
Well..............as a person who values her freedom and has many family members who have served in the armed forces to ensure her safety and freedom I have an idea about this law suit and about the kind of judge who would attempt to stifle Gods people and some of the values our country was founded on. If you don't like where you live, move. If you are unhappy with your freedom of speech you can go. I mean that's what this family is saying right? You don't value your freedom; because if you did value this aspect of our country you would see the importance of letting others have the same luxury correct? Irreparable damage? Grow up. I mean have we become that big of a wussy that the minute someone steps on our toes we go crying to a judge to sort it all out. People pleeeaassse have a spine and stop hiding behind a lame judges attempt at protecting you. It wont happen. Someone who truly values their relationship with God will stand up and speak from the heart at that graduation regardless of the threat of jail time. And good luck with that Texas judge. You really think we are going to let that happen. I pray our country is willing to fight for that, its a battle worth fighting for. Stop telling us to accept everyone and allow everything, every life style, every opinion and then try to silence those who have a relationship with God.
Irreparable damage? I think I have freakin' heard everything now. I only pray my girls are strong enough to "cause" enough irreparable damage to impact the world.
I'm done now.
God Bless America. (We're gonna need it!)

Iron Kids San Diego 2011

2011-05-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

I want to start off by saying that if you really don't enjoy sports/racing etc. then my blog is probably the one to avoid reading every year from the months of April-October. That is triathlon season and so that is what my posts are about. Exciting for us but maybe not so much for others. LOL!

Our girls did their first ever Iron Kids event this past weekend. We loaded up and headed to San Diego for the weekend. These pictures are not in good order so I thought I would show you what putting your kids in races does.........these photos below are our drive home late Sunday after the race.

Those of you with super high energy kids are seeing our master plan in all this aren't you? Ha!!

The girls had lots of family support as some drove in and stayed the night while my dad lives right by where the race was.

The girls were filling up on water and snacks after the race.

Ryanne sprinting towards the finish line.

Ryanne was SO fast in the bike transition. We barely had enough time to run up from the water and catch her taking off. She did great!

Here is Ryanne coming out of the swim. I have to hand it to all the kids that did the race because it was COLD out that day and to get in that ocean water.....BRRRRRR!!!

Can't have a race without a little blood now can we? Morgan caught her leg on her gear and was bleeding down into her shoes. The volunteers were great and such a huge help. Especially since the parents were not allowed to help in any way.

Morgan running toward the finish line. Ha, ha I caught my brothers thumbs up to her in the shot.

We prayed for the girls on the card ride over that they would have fun, be safe and have good attitudes. They were all smiles.

Morgan coming off the swim.

Caught them right before Morgan headed off to the start of the race. It was crazy having both girls in a race for the first time. We were running everywhere trying to keep up with where they were and where they were supposed to be. We met this girls Winter at the race. Her dad died of prostate cancer and so she started a race foundation to help fight cancer since her dad used to race. She races now too. Morgan had been looking for a race outfit she liked and decided she wanted to represent and help Team Winter. On the back of her jersey it says,"Who do you race for? MY DAD!" Morgan was very proud to wear that logo and Winter was a really neat 13 year old kid! Sweetheart!

Almost show time.

Getting inked up!

Waiting to get into transition to rack bikes.

See all the people!!! These kids were amazing!!

I don't know, think she might want to follow in dad's footsteps? :)
We were laying in bed last night and Dan said,"I got all choked up watching the girls race today. I got all teary when Ryanne accomplished the swim. I was so proud of them."

Early morning exit from the hotel heading over to the bay. The girls didn't want to get up at first but they were all smiles once we got going.

It's funny how quiet how hotels are at 6am in the morning. You can tell all the crazy people cause they are the ones pushing bikes out of the lobby.

Of course we couldn't be in San Diego and not hit up our favorite coffee house. If your ever down there look up Ryan Brothers Coffee. Best tea and coffee ever!!!

We are so proud of you girls! Thanks for a really fun weekend! And thanks for everyone who came out for the early morning cheering.
Ryanne we know how hard that ocean swim was for you because you just learned to swim and are fearful of not being able to see the bottom. You were scared to death but didn't quit. You pushed through and did it with a great attitude.

Morgan, so proud of your smiles and kindness on the race. You are a great example of a good sport.

150 yard swim, 4 mile bike and 1 mile run............
Morgan & Ryanne YOU ARE AN IRON KID!!!!!