hello!

sneeze!
happy!



having a bath

oh, what to say.  

it has been a little hectic around here the last few days.  we hired a new realtor and have begun de-junking/packing/putting together a garage-moving sale.  the house will go back on the market next week with a lot less "stuff" inside it.  it is good to start packing for the inevitable move.  

i have begun a quilt-along.  i received the fabric today and after cleaning/packing/organizing all day decided to cut the quilt top out and get that "week 2" task done and out of my hair.  it is now 3:55am, oh, looks like ida is waking up to eat... 

o.k. back! {8:00am}, it doesn't take me that long to feed her, i just decided to go to bed myself. anyho, the quilt-along should be fun, it is a 6 week deal and there is a possibility of winning a sewing machine at the end, sooo, LOOKS LIKE I AM IN.  a little competitive sewing never hurt anyone.

more packing today.  i am tired.

may long weekend

ida loves the cabin
kids + grass
idas new ride
eli playing softball
c.j. prepping rockets for the kids
too cool for school

eli + cole {i love both of their expressions}
eli, cole + carson
the kids + popsicles
i asked the kids to do some kung-fu at the count of 3.  i like cole and eli's version...
me + e at school
crystal valley
eli's "church of latter-day saints" - his need
eli's "crystal valley museum" - his want.  i love that it is right next door to "the gap"
eli + crystal valley
elis artwork

whooo.

just a few pics from the last few days.  {i am trying to type fast, ida is fussy and i have taquitos and sewing on the go...}

the day eli got out of school for may long weekend he had a dealio at school to show what his class had been working on for the last few months.  they had constructed a very impressive town which they named "crystal valley". {eli said he voted for the name "kidstown" but some of the kids thought that the name of the town would have to change when all the kids in the town grew up.... logical...}

every child had to make a house and 2 buildings.  a want and a need.  eli made a "church of latter day saints" for a need and a museum for a want.  i loved them.  well done!

the next day we packed up and drove out to the cabin in windermere.  it is so great out there. especially for the kids.  they are all old enough to play and get along.  we don't have to be too terribly worried about them running around outside.  it was wonderful.  the weather was HOT. we sat around eating spits and chatting in lawn chairs out in the sunny outdoors. the kids played in the sprinklers, hit golf balls and baseballs around and hung out in the boat in the garage.  it was a real nice weekend.  

we came home on sunday night so that c.j. could leave this morning for montreal.  

i just got off the phone with him.  he was sitting in a restaurant by himself and couldn't order a thing off the menu because it was all in french.  {he eventually was able to order french onion soup and some crepes - ooo la la, it sounded delicious.  we wish we were there with him.} 

i am working on a quilt for myself while c.j. is away.  it is the feminine version of the quilt i made for c.j. a while back.  keep your eyes peeled, i will post pics soon!

giggle puss

where's the busy bee?

ida got a new high chair.  we actually have never owned a high chair. when we moved here, eli used one out at my mom and dads place. as you can see, she loves it.  she sits and plays, hangs out with us at meal times instead of on the floor in a bouncer and in general is up where the action is.  she is becoming so social and with it.  

it is raining cats and dogs right now.  the sky is grey and there is loud rolling thunder.  some of the rain that has come down is in the form of sleet and it is piled up on my deck.  it is good moisture.  everything needs to turn green and the rain is helping. 

this weekend is a long weekend for the kids.  friday and monday off. we have been throwing around the idea of going to montreal as c.j. is shooting there early next week.  he is working on a vitamin water campaign for the winter olympics and is shooting the canadian gold metal hopefuls in several different sports.  so, last night i looked for tickets to fly. $600+ ONE WAY??!?  what is the deal?  i could fly to australia for less money!?!   why is it so expensive to get to montreal? decision made, going to the cabin with the rest of the family and having fun with cousins.  

ida has a toy bee that eli played with when he was a baby {see the first photo}.  you pull a heavy cord and it shakes.  she chews on it and thinks it's terrific.  the other day we were playing together and i found myself cooing, "where's the busy bee?? where's the busy bee??!"  that sounded familiar and then it came to me, ahhh, yes, "best in show".  it is a must see. 

enjoy.

mothers day '09

jeff + nena family
chuck + sandra family
sandra drop kicking kids in between family photos...
4 stooges
4 generations
grandma, me, ida + merv {sorry mame, i know you love that nickname...}

taken just as she woke up... very surprised to see a camera

well, happy mothers day family and friends!  

it was a terrific day.  i love my kids and hubby.  {i am sure c.j. will love that i called him "hubby".  i mean, really, who calls their husband, hubby? i give that a 10 on the cheese-meter}

almost sitting

look that this little apple.

she is almost sitting!  she will sit for awhile in bed and then slowly slump over. on saturday she will be 16 weeks old.  the time, she is a flyin'.

she still has this cold she brought back from l.a.  c.j. has it now and i feel like i have had a bit of it as well.  thanks for sharing ida.

snooty

sick sissy snoozing
ida did a lot of this at disneyland.  the only ride she went on was the peg perego express powered by me.
eli loved this ride so much he talked aaron into going twice, thanks aaron, sorry you got so wet.

i shot this just as we began a rollercoaster type ride in california adventure, was he excited or terrified?!?
blue eyes


little hair clips are working in her hair now
jungle kids
aud-squad the vine queen
stacey + dahl {he looks so much like you in this picture dee}
brady + lisa
stacey + ty
dahl
audrey
ty
spinning madly


i have been a tad bit behind these last few days.  

poor ida wasn't quite herself on tuesday while we were traveling home and on wednesday morning when she woke up she had watery eyes, a snuffy nose and a sad, sad face.  poor dear.

the timing of getting her first cold was perfect, i had a check up for her scheduled for friday.  the doctor checked her out, all was well even though she was croupy too.  it has been a long few days of snoots, saline solution, kleenex, mucusy barf and sad eyes.  

ida is 13 pounds 8 ounces now and 15 weeks old.  she looks like a big robust rubber doll when she lays in her onesie.  all her limbs are filled out and soft.  we love her so much.  i almost wish we had 2 of her.

i thought i would post some pics of the end of our california trip.  

stacey and aaron and i one day drove up to santa barbara and visited with aunt ruth.  she is so awesome.  while we were there we found out that a local newspaper had just written an article about her. you can read it here.  she is a pretty inspirational lady.

another day stacey, aaron and i took the kids to disneyland/california adventure.  eli was brave and went on some rides that i was nervous about going on {and by the way, that doesn't take much}.  it was a good day, we got sunburned, the lines were short and the park wasn't too busy.

our last sunday there, dave and lisa drove up to arcadia with the kids for some cousin time.  we took the kids to the park and they played and played.  why do kids change and grow so fast? the two most noticeable for me were audrey and brady.  audrey seems taller and more mature, like a young women.  every time i looked at her i just wanted to give her a big hug and tell her i loved her.  babies always change so much, so to see brady with his big eyes and mouth full of teeth was fun.  

we had a very nice time on our trip.  we didn't see c.j. much and at times i felt like i was on the amazing race, driving in l.a., finding addresses, keeping kids happy, nursing on the 405, early mornings and late nights, meeting new people, making day trips worth it, tasting new food, feeling tired, laughing and crying.

it was good.  thanks goes out to family and friends who put us up and drove us around at times. thank you, thank you, thank you.  

miss you, xoxo