Pokey, Mac and Jack

Misc. May

2010-08-07T22:15:00.001-07:00

We went on an outing with Girl Scouts... Rock climbing! I wasn't too sure how this was going to turn out... you know my girls are not to adventurous. Boy did we have fun. As you can see Jack wanted to sooo bad...

McKenna gave it her best shot... didn't get very high but made a couple of attempts and decided she would try again another trip.

Caley... now Caley has found a new passion. She first off really got into tieing off the knots. She's going to be a safety girl. Her feet got to the top of my head and she decided that was high enough. But once we got home, she climbs the swing set, even makes it an obstacle course going from one side to another, never touching the ground... climbs the furniture... you name it she'll climb it! It was a good outing.

We had babies the month of May. Yes, Princess Shay Shay had babies May 6th. 6 of them. Caley and I got to watch which was very cool, we didn't get Ken home from school early enough to see the event... maybe next time.

This is Shay the night before she delivered.

Happy to say that all babies went to good homes, even right here in the neighborhood.

No words needed!

Jake and Jack swinging in the spring air.

Terrible-iffick Two!

2010-08-07T21:57:00.000-07:00

A Quad

A Trike

and a Truck...

What more could a boy ask for on his 2nd birthday? He thought it was pretty cool getting all this stuff to open. He wasn't even as into the wrapping paper as much this year as last and getting pretty good at what Mom has been training him to do... rip and tear!

Yes, we did get into our birthday cake a bit prematurely but after the fact it does look like its part of the whole cake theme... off road... he tore it up.

Happy birthday Mister. We love you so much.

My Angel

2010-05-03T18:03:00.000-07:00

Besides getting another award at school for the "Virtue of Compassion" my daughter just said to me at the dinner table... " I'm glad god made me with you"... doesn't get any better than that! I just love that girl...

JACK the Conquerer

2010-04-09T22:17:00.000-07:00

After watching and watching his sisters play and swing in the beautiful weather we were having. Walking out the back door, here is Jack climbing up the stairs with a grin from ear to ear. looking at me for approval to continue up.... he was so proud, every step of the way.

and then the pose, contimplating his accomplishments... like I said... proud.

I just love this boy

SEVEN YEARS... and a slumber party.

2010-04-09T20:13:00.000-07:00

My baby girls is s.e.v.e.n... hard to beleive its been seven years since we anxiously awaited her long arrival in that hospital room. She's such a beautiful and kind girl. I am the proudest Mom in the world.

This was a big year for us all... our first slumber party. It ended up being 14 girls between the ages 5 and 11. Yes, there was alot of screaming and running from one end of the house to the other. At one point I looked at Eric and asked him if he thought I should calm them down... trooper Dad says "nah, just let them run".

Starting at top left Johannah, Caley, Jillian, Kaitlyn, Annaleise, Paige, bottom left Bailey, Ken andRiley. That was the majority, some had to leave early. All in all it was a success, they had a blast with some over stimulation mixed in.

And thank goodness for Auntie Katie. I couldn't have done it without her. She always comes thru when I need her.

More pictures to come...

"V" Day

2010-04-09T19:57:00.000-07:00

Does not this picture say it all? I think he enjoyed Mom making Valentines Day cake more than eating the cake for the special occassion. And, he learned that the beaters are the best part. So fun to curl your tongue around to get every little bit!

I, successfully, made a layered cake with filling and all. Not just any layered cake but a heart shaped layered cake with chocolate mouse inside. I must say it turned out really good, and didn't slide a bit.

Our Valentines Day was quiet this year and perfect. Heart shaped pizza, cake and my little sweethearts all around... perfection!

New Blog and a giveaway...

2010-03-20T08:20:00.000-07:00

I found a fun new blog, very cute idea to do up some of the girls t-shirts... check it out.

ourcozynest.blogspot.com/

He loves his big sister...

2010-02-12T11:59:00.000-08:00

He loves his big sister so much. He snuggles with her the most out of the family. Bad thing is, Sister is horribly sick, this is day five for her on the couch! and she's SO bored!

Boyfriends and the Future

2010-02-12T11:55:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, Caley came to me and asked " Do you know what my boyfriends name is gonna be when I grow up?".... no, what... "Jordan!" is Jordan a friend at school... yes... he's gonna be my boyfriend. oh my goodness

8 YEARS

2010-02-12T11:34:00.000-08:00

2/2/2002
8 years ago, was a very special day for us.
Time is going SO quickly!

Happy Anniversary My Love!

Unfinished business before we move on...

2010-01-27T11:14:00.001-08:00

Yes we had more awarding going on towards the end of the year... McKenna got an award the end of November for the "Virtue of Generosity". No picture that day, I was out and about and no time to stop by the house... Then in December, McKenna, Nick received awards... McKenna, "Virtue of Courage" and Nick, "Virtue of Courage" Way to stick with it and make it happen!

The Big Day... or three

2010-01-20T14:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas this year was a bit more hectic than most. Erics schedule was work, work, work. for that matter most of the families were too. Christmas day was mainly just the five of us, then we had the Olson/Alpert clan on Saturday and Sunday the Olson/Gilmer clan was here. Below you will see pictures from all of it... no particular order, just family fun. Get comfy, you may be here a few minutes.

As you can see the boy has found that there are alot of goodies this time of year and boy are they good. We started doing our Christmas baking about a week before the 'big day' and he loved it. Yes, right in the middle of everything. He knew when the spoons were ready to be licked, he knew when it was time to take things out of the oven... he even knew where hiding spots were all over the place. Yes thats a bowl of old fashioned hard candy in his lap. He's grown so tall he can reach everything off the counters. He also loved the tree. As you can see here there are a few lights twinkling but no little sparkly dangly things... everything was moved to the top half of the tree. Amazingly it never did tumble over. And never once did he dig into the presents... amazing enough... especially since Caley had to rearrange every-single-one-every-single-day. Presents, oh so much fun. This year we had to put a special email into Santa. Daddys schedule wasn't going to allow us to wake up to presents delivered from Santa so we requested that Santa's elves to send them special delivery to the shed and we'd wait for Daddy to get home to open them... they were so accomodating, the kids thought that was awfully nice of them to make special arrangements.

"And I don't think I've tried one of these."

MMMMM... looks good enough to eat

Candy... I really like these sticky swirly sticks. A nice coat of glistening red slobber everywhere!

This is Christmas eve... I told the kids I wanted to get a Christmas photo of all of them in front of the tree just like every year. As soon as we were done Eric asked them "who wanted to open up presents?" At first the look on their faces was 'oh he's just kidding' and then figuring out that he was serious the beams that came form their faces could have lit up 7 more christmas trees.

Once he saw that there was someting under that pretty paper he got into opening them up.

Mommy gave Daddy a million dollar bill...

SCORE... I got what I wanted! Barbie RV

Love this out fit that came from Hawaii... Jack doesn't even understand how good he will look this summer. and the girls got beautful Hawaiin dresses. Thanks Gramma Ruth and Grampa Gerard

Sittin around fat and sassy!

McKenna and baby Zach.

The tech family, Fran on his iPod, Trish texting, Mara on the Guitar Hero and Nick had

one of the girls Leapsters...

Strong Man, Jacob Tyler...

Those Alpert girls are pros at the unwrapping stuff... no messin around!

and baby Zach, what a little guy but a chunk at the same time... mostly his cheeks... no its all his cheeks but he's growing into the fast. Beautiful baby boy!

Gramma Gilmer and Laurie...

Uncle Joe and Auntie Sharon

Isn't she beautiful?

Thats it for this year!
Merry Christmas to All and to All a Goodnight!

A Visit to Santa Himself...

2010-01-20T13:27:00.000-08:00

Off to the Old Cannery we go... we chose them this year because it was all done on donation and they donated to local food banks, we thought it was a good deal. But...... it was a very long line. 3 hours to be exact.

As you can see we had to nap now and then but over all went very well. Everyone in line around us was in the Christmas Spirit and made the time pass...

Doesn't my little man look so handsome in his Christmas outfit? It definelty made him look so grown up.

And doesn't ole Saint Nick look so Jolly?
He was jolly,and by the time we had
our turn it was and hour past the end of his day.

After the photo the kids got to pick a piece of candy from under the bridge. Even Daddy got to be in on this venture after work.

Look at my kids aren't they beautiful :)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2009

2009-11-26T16:34:00.000-08:00

We had such a lovely relaxing Thanksgiving. It was just us 5 this year plus a friend from Erics work, Bob. He's the one that gave Foxy a home, our wiener that wasn't such a good match with little ones. They are the best of buds and that makes us sooo happy.

The Turkey turned out excellent! Brining is the way to go. Oh so juicy. Sitting at the dinner table filling like we did it again, can you believe I did it. I forgot to take any pictures except...

Except for forgetting to take any pictures it's been the best TDay I've had in a long time. I think everyone else enjoyed themselves as well. Tomorrow we are off to family Thanksgiving and hopefully a few photos to share... :)

Award of Academic Excellence

2009-11-07T07:50:00.000-08:00

Every month the school hands out awards in different areas for each classroom for deserving students. My Girl! MY 5 YEAR OLD GIRL won the award of academic excellence for the month of October. I'm so proud, Daddy's so proud, we are all so proud of her. On top of that it was a total surprise. She had no idea that her whole family was going to show up to see her receive this award.

Mara is an old hat at this award, last year she received several of these awards. We have some smart cookies in this family! Chalk one up for 2009...

And as promised, Mr. Carey the principal bet the entire school that they couldn't sell 750 book at the book fair. They did, and he kept his promise to wear a dress to school. It was a good day had by all.

The Treating

2009-11-06T21:53:00.001-08:00

The Witch, The Turtle and The Flamingo! Oh My! We were dressed and ready for action an hour before it got dark... good thing we decided to have a small fire in the front yard this year. All in all I think the fire may become an annual event... it was good to get them all ready for the evening. No rushing at the last second, gave them time to run around and play and great photos ops!

It was a nice break for Ken to venture out and do a "scary costume" this year... I was just in the mood for something other than fairy princesses. She had alot of fun doing something different and putting all the makeup all over her face. We tried to rat her hair but it kept falling out... something we'll have to work on in the future.

Again, not sure Jack was sure what it was all about. He did love his costume and paraded around like he was hot stuff.. or something like that.

Daddy even put on some green and blue stripes and was a Seattle Seahawk ... wink wink

And the Flamingo was the big hit of the evening. Everyone just thought it was the best costume. It's not everyday you see a Flamingo running around.

And again... there was alot of Love going around. Jacob is the loveiest little boy I have ever met. and the smile on his face, you could just eat him up! I just love this kid! not to mention he is the cutest pumpkin in the world.

Mara had on the cutest "sailor girl" costume. I thought she looked absolutely adorable. Anything this cutie patutie puts on is cute!

And Fran, not sure what he was but his was filled with spirit!

This was the end of our evening. I would say that Halloween was a success!!! The picture says it all.

Trick Or Treat

The Carving

2009-11-06T21:37:00.001-08:00

My favorite part! After carving this year I realized just how far we've come in growing up. The first few years of this family tradition it was all I could do to get the girls (especially McKenna) to put their hands in the pumpkins, let alone clean them out. Now they have that nice stringy, slimy stuff from head to toe.

Jack wasn't sure what to do with it. It looked like it was fun to play with but he wasn't sure if he should put his hands in it while I was sitting there. At one point he thought maybe he should eat it. That didn't last long, it didn't taste like pie! This year all but Jack made there own jack-o-lantern faces and did an awesome job I think.

We all had a pretty good night. Gramma Susan got to be in on all the festivities. We were both looking so beautiful that night, not sure how she escaped the photos.

The Picking

2009-11-06T20:39:00.000-08:00

This one... This is the one...

No wait! This one... This is it... This IS the one... I don't think he could decide. He wanted them all and I think his hands touched each and every one of them. He was in aww of all the big orange balls.

The big day... you know the picking is almost the most important part and boy did we have fun! We all loaded up and started off for Sequim. We picked this Pumpkin Patch because a few years ago we ventured to this patch and discovered they made fresh, hot, steamy donut holes right there in front of you... which they no longer do. There were a few attractions not there this year due to the economy but it was still a fantastic day.

There was alot of love being given and alot of sun for this time of year... we couldn't have been blessed with a better day.

Isn't she beautiful! I think so. I had to add this shot in even though there are no signs of the big orange balls.

And my little prince. He couldn't decide what was more fun, watching the pigs, the big orange balls or me letting him roam wherever he pleased. He visited all corners of this farm... trust me.

The crew... well most of them that would cooperate for a photo. Aren't they a good looking bunch?!?

Update on the Letter Swap...

2009-10-25T21:13:00.000-07:00

I received my letter swap person... she seems like a lovely person from England, I think she has three kids and hand makes good using her own artwork. Take a peek... http://pipany-poltiskofarm.blogspot.com/ What I'm find interesting is seeing bits and pieces of others lives. We are very similar. Liking to make goods, kids, staying at home with them... I need to get busy and get that letter to her... have to admit... a little intimidating... she writes so eloquently.

The first... the Fair and the Bees...

2009-10-25T18:19:00.000-07:00

get comfy... we are doing the marathon blog to catch up... I'm so behind

The First Day of School... it was a first day of school for both but a first-first for Miss Caley... first day of Kindergarten! Of course we had to drive (that would be me needing to drive them) I had to take first day pictures... so we all loaded up in the car and headed off. As you can see from the first picture the first day is a bit busier than most, we had to walk a ways to get there. McKenna was the first drop off, her teacher from kindergarten was looping with them to first grade which made it a breeze going into the first grade. We love Mrs. K.

Miss Caley Olson... she cracks me up! This is the bench that the kids sit on waiting for her class to open. Her teacher was out front greeting all the new students and handing out tags that get attached to their backpacks... bus routes, etc. I sat there next to Caley attaching her info making sure all was correct... asked her how she was... fine.... asked if she was nervous.... no... asked her if she'd like her Mom to get out of her space........................she nudges me and says "just get out of here" yep, I think my girl is going to be fine on her first day... nuff said!

So since I had to be there in the am for the photo op and couldn't let them ride the bus to school, I told them they could ride home from school. Below you will see Daddy proudly waiting for the bus to arrive. There was a little snafu with the bus that afternoon and sadly have to say there are no pics. I had to chase down the bus. All it was, was the confusion of the first day of school.

The Puyallup State Fair... another first for the family. This time it was the little misters first trip to the fair. He was a trooper, most of the day he was stuck in the stroller with eyes glued on everything. Also, his first corn dog! He couldn't decide what was the best way to eat it (or attack it)

The girls are really coming out of their scardy stage. Ken started coming out of that shell last year but this year Miss Caley made me so proud. Kenna was off riding something with her Dad, Caley, Jack and I were off on our own and she piped up and said "I want to ride the carousel" By yourself?!?! yep. I'm thinking to myself this isn't going to work, she'll get on there and freak, I can't go on with her, having Jack... She did it. Climbed on, they strapped her in and there she went, riding the most beautiful horse on the whole merri-go-round! So darn proud of her and the best part... she really enjoyed it. She went on a second time with Ken and myself. Caley road the horse, Ken road the bench seat :)

We learned our lesson this year... like everything else ... the fair is so EXPENSIVE! We learned that on certain days you can buy the wrist band that lets them ride whatever, whenever for as many times as they want... we all had such a good day, we stayed till 9:30 at night!

Daddy getting in on the action!

Like I said... Mister was a trooper!

Had to add in this snapshot of my piano man. He looks like a natural doesn't he?

Watch out Billy Joel

A Mess of Bees..... Yes, this is my man! Looking oh so sexy.... and so brave, not to mention how distinguished he looks suiting up to go out and brave the giant nest of bees we have under our shed. He is our protector! We had such a good laugh getting him ready for battle. I'm sure that when the neighbors saw him jumping around our yard they may have had a second look and probably a chuckle or two. We sure did...

This is him in battle. There were thousands of them and they were not nice bees. If you take note of the shed in the background... it is falling apart in front of our eyes.... wait till you see what a future blog hold....that's all I'm gonna say for now...

Letter Writing Swap

2009-09-10T18:44:00.000-07:00

This is going to be so much fun... I came across a blog of a Lady in Britain... she is starting a 'letter writing swap'. Basically, she is going to match up people from all over to write back and forth... yes, a pen pal. In todays world it is such a forgotten act, letter writing, pen to paper... remember that? And when was the last time you got an actual letter in the mail box. It such a nice feeling to receive something that someone else actually sat down and created especially for you. (Not auto-printer from someone who could care less) I'm really looking forward to this and hope that in my early education of blogging I did it right... if any of you would like to join in I think there should be a link somewhere on my post... if not let me know and I will make it right. :) When I find out who my match is and start this venture I will share... I can't wait, I hope I get someone from a far away place. Talk soon, Christina

PS... nope, I did something wrong so until I figure out how to do it right.. click on this link to get in on the swap... http://abuncandance.blogspot.com/2009/09/giveaway-and-letter-writing-swap.html

Write On!!!

Camping at the Dunes...

2009-09-03T08:55:00.000-07:00

The Oregon coast is one of the most beautiful places in the USA. Our camping trip was with friends and family, there were 19 of us people and 7 dogs. Oh and don't forget the 4 quads. As you can see McKenna and Caley are ready for us to have our own quads... no they weren't driving just a good photo op... they look kinda natural up there. This was the first time we all had gone 4-wheelin' in our family so it was a different experience. The weather was on again off again. When it was on it was beautiful, hot and we felt the need to be beach bound... those sandcastles were calling... the first day the beach called us it was soo hot at camp we packed up, loaded up and started our venture... only to find out it was a good 20 to 30 degrees cooler then camp two miles away. Needless to say Jack and I didn't even get out of the car. The marine layer was so thick and cold and it lasted that way all week until Friday... Friday was the day!

We couldn't have asked for a better day. See for yourself... Jack I think had the most fun. We built a sand (pile) castle with a huge moat waiting for the tide to come in. The moat acted like a slide for Jack... he'd slide down on his bum and climb back up... repeat... repeat... repeat... and yes I let him run in his diaper, full and sand and everything else he could get into. He loved the sand... he would lay in it... run his arms and legs thru it. I think because it was so warm. He wasn't the only one that loved the sand. I found Caley making sand angels and would lay down and rub her body in the sand... It was nice and warm. We all really enjoyed our day.

My gorgeous girl...

My Sand Angel.......

.........Sisters...............

Nick and Mara

....the Three Amigas........

.....Grampa Barry napping under the umbrella.....

...... and a good brother bonding moment.......

.... my main squeeze............

..........Jacob....isn't he the sweetest...................... .... and then this guy showed up. Just about 20 feet off shore... he sat in the sand as the waves came in and out... just watching us and in a way giving us a show... he entertained us for a good 45 minutes.... he was awesome.

Just over this dune is where our camp was, when we rode out of camp and went to the first main hill this is what we would see, (from the opposite direction) you can kinda see the lake at the bottom... it was beautiful!

Horsing around back at camp... Trish and Jake doing a different kind of riding.....

.........and the boys doing their own kind of riding......

The Campfire... with all the kid, dogs and people all going in different directions at the same time, you never know who was going to be at the campfire. Some nights Jack and I went to bed at sundown, but there were a few we got to enjoy the flickering lights. and of course some smores... Jack only has one complaint about that fire... the smoke... it always follows the beauty. Fran entertained us with his guitar, he is so good and it was a really nice touch to the whole mood.

Some of us didn't quite make it thru the campfire... aren't they precious...

And last but not least... Arnel and Sandy... Arnel celebrated a birthday while we were there...What troopers they are to make it thru a week of camping with the makes of us... Thank you for being patient and teaching me how to make the "Coconut Chicken Soup" It's sure to become a family favorite.

Ok, last but not least, least... Meet Kuma. The most patient 149 pound Akita I have ever met. This is him giving Arnel a high 5. My apologies to Scooter, Heidi, Annabelle, Arty, Lila and Foxy...for not making the cut to the blog... Kuma you have a special place in my heart!

Grrr...

2009-08-14T20:34:00.001-07:00

OK, so how many times do you have to ask them to clean up their room? and if they don't what do you do. To give a little background, we have gotten the girls new kittens and yes, we had the discussion that it was going to be their responsibility to feed, clean up after and love these kittens. Caley, pictured below, haha can you find her amongst all the.... fun? and excuse the nudest, I can't seem to keep clothes on the girl! Caley has become quite the cat lady. She just loves them... I hope to have pictures up soon. Princess Shay Shay and Bernese, live in the girls room, eat and take care of business in the loo off the girls room... eat, sleep, hide from the dogs... you betcha... in the girls room. So, back to the picture. Caley has taken to these kittens and I think its great. But, BUT, she has taken to spending alot more time in her room, which wouldn't be so bad except that she shares her room with Ken and it always looks like this. When asked to clean or even just pick it up (I'll clean it) she just can't do it... total mind block I'm not even sure if she hears me. I have a similar problem with the family room and other spots in the house but the bedroom has to be the worst. And, its everyday! She's also taken to changing clothes about 5 times a day, not to mention the in between nudity and forgetfulness to put on any panties... here's funny to end on... last Sunday we (the kids and I went to visit a new church) We all enjoyed it very much. Jack wasn't so sure of the nursery but that was to be expected. We all got home, feeling very good that we may have found a new church, I was asking the girls what they did in there class and Ken was demonstrating the dancing and singing they did... and I glance over at Caley in the chair. Of course in her favorite new dress, knees bent, feet in the chair and NO PANTIES! I about died...

Well, my intentions for doing a blog a day have not been very successful lately and as we are getting ready to depart for our very first week long camping trip to the Oregon coast we won't be blogging for another week, realistically more like two. But, I can say I'm taking my blogging in a snap so I can learn more on how to blog more successfully and I will be full of sand and fun photos to share... ta ta for now, C

Summertime fun...

2009-08-04T21:59:00.001-07:00

Just wanted to share a few snapshots from a BBQ we went to a few nights ago. We went to Jeff and Trish's house for dinner (Erics brother, his wife and family) and as you can see (well kinda) they were busy filling up their pool. That task has been a long process as it had to go through major surgery before any water could be held. At about 1 foot of water the kids couldn't resist anymore and had to hit the ice cold water that comes straight out of the hose. (New faces to the blog, my niece Mara in the gold top with McKenna and Caley and my oh so cute nephew, Nick showing off in the hose)

Jack worked on mastering the stairs on their back porch. And of course, had to do it all by himself.

And last but not least. My husband giving us the best laugh we've had in a long time... sitting out under the apple tree I glanced over noticing that he was wearing two different shoes. Just making up for a stunt I pulled way back when we were on our 3rd date. It happens to the best of us babe! Need I say more?

HEATWAVE!

2009-08-04T21:01:00.000-07:00

My goal with this blog is to be here everyday... if not every other day to log our lives and goings on. The last week and a half I've been solely working on keeping us comfortable in the major heatwave we've had. Actual all time record breaking numbers for this part of the country. This little pool has been our home for the last week or so. All five of us and an occasional wiener dog have lived in this pool, best buy of our summer.

It all started out one weekend it was supposed to start warming up with 'severe weather warnings' being shouted out all over the news so we decided to take up living outdoors. Sleeping under the stars, creating our own little drive in. We blew up the camping beds covered them in sheets and pillows. Hooked up our little TV from the living room and installed the portable DVD players. Eric's brother in law and kids came over and brought the latest Harry Potter DVD. We were set! First night, in the middle of the movie we felt... what? A rain drop? Nooooo! It couldn't be. I think the skies just had to remind us that yes we did live in the NW. We were looking to the skies and yes a thunderstorm was brewing. I didn't think it would amount to much but with 5 kids under the age of 6 we better pack it in so in we went. The next day not a cloud in the sky and it was getting warmer earlier so out comes all the gear! Beds, bedding, TV and swim suits. I haven't paraded in my swim suit since I was a kid... ahem, not a pretty picture to say the least.

Much to our surprise our neighbor comes knocking at our door and hands us a gently used air conditioner and helps us to install it in our kitchen window. Holy Cow, someone is looking out for us! we turned that puppy on and it didn't stop for a whole week. Honestly I'm not sure we would have made it if we hadn't received such a generous gift out of nowhere, I can't tell you how thankful I am. I actually told Eric after the first night of trying to sleep, "we may have to go find a hotel to stay in". He looked at me like I was crazy but I think down deep he may have thought I was on to something. :) You know growing up in the heat of CA all my life and enduring the high temperatures down there, the heat that we have been living through here in WA is so much more intense. I've been in hotter temperatures down there but when it got over 100 degrees here... I don't know, life was much harder to handle. I'm not sure if its the humidity or maybe I just have to accept the fact that I'm getting older and need the pampering a bit more than I used to??? The picture below is of our drive in movie camp out... it was quite cozy and fun!

Then it hit! 100 degrees plus, and it wasn't cooling of at night. I think one TV report said it was 85 at midnight on those really hot nights. We packed everything we needed that was out in and started transforming our house into three small rooms. Our generous gift was precious but she just wasn't cut our for the whole house. So when Eric went to work I started renovating the house. The living room (picture below) was rearranged, stripped and this now was our drive in bedroom for the 5 of us. Our thickest sleeping bags got nailed up to the entrance to the family room to cut off that huge room and another was hung at the hallway down to the bedrooms. All we would have to do was endure the heat when nature called or we forgot to grab something we couldn't live without. It wasn't pretty but all 5 of us stayed pretty comfy for the next few days. Poor Eric having to try and sleep through us watching TV at night and get himself up at 2:30 to get off to work. Neither of us slept very well all week, but I felt especially bad for him.

All in all, it was fun, maybe not in the thick of it all but looking back its a good memory that will stay with us forever.

I think today was the first day back to the 70's and 80's. The beds came down, toys getting picked up, girls bummed they have to go back to their regular beds in their regular bedrooms. Tomorrow morning starts the "getting back to normal" phase before this weekend. Next we start packing up for a big camping trip we have planned for the Oregon coast. The next few weeks will be busy ones but... lots of fun blogging stuff ahead. Goodnight.

Miss McKenna Brynn... Mac

2009-07-20T20:53:00.001-07:00

My first... McKenna is going to be every ones best friend. She is the most giving little girl I've ever met. Now don't get me wrong, she does fight with Caley over the same toy when there are 10 gazillion other toys sooo soo similar in the room, but, when it comes to everyone getting to be a part of something or not being left out she is my girl!!! I am so proud of her, the picture below is her last day of Kindergarten. During this school year her teacher gave her such praise in school, always participating, always attentive, and on candy Friday (the day they could buy a treat at recess) she would always come home telling me, "well so and so didn't have any quarters so I bought them a treat". In the month of December she received the award for the 'Displaying the Virtue of Generosity'. The principal presented her with a certificate at the pep rally in front of all her school. She does very well with her studies too. She has always been the kind of girl that searches out what she wants. She is very eager to learn do and try anything. A couple of years ago when I started seeing her blossom she came to me and asked "what spells puppy"? ( she wanted to know how to spell puppy) she had been looking at books with the alphabet, so I told her, she got her book out figured it out and that's how it all started. She is going to be a talented artist too. I have hundreds of drawings that she has done that I can't bring myself to throw away. And now this summer she is showing signs of athleticism. Her foot work with the soccer ball is really quite good and a couple of weeks ago she was batting with my Mom, hitting 3/4 of the balls that were pitched to her.

Notice the hair form the above picture... yes we have made some changes this summer. Losing her first tooth on Caleys birthday and then her second on 4th of July. Along with her new doo. She's been wavering about her hair. Wanting bangs then not, wanting them, and changing her mind again. We took Jack in to get his first big boy hair cut and he looked so cute I think that was the deciding factor. If Jack looks so good I want to too. It turned out really cute. My girl is growing up so fast, 6 1/2 already... at least that was my first thought when I saw it all done. My what a haircut can do for a person.

Both of the girls are at their grandparents this week. Well, it was a week ago last Monday that they left. I miss them sooo so much. I have to admit its been nice having the house a little quieter but at the same time I'll be glad to have them back. I called to talk with them a
couple of nights ago... talking with McKenna she had a big surprise to tell me... she found her missing tooth. Scared me for a sec because I know that tooth fairy came and took i1t. She was trying to tell me that her new tooth was coming in and she found it. She is so sweet. I just can hardly wait to have them back.

Miss Caley Olson (Pokey)

2009-07-14T15:23:00.001-07:00

What can I say about Miss Caley Olson? This one makes me laugh! You never know what is coming out of her mouth, which often makes me wonder what she is thinking alot of the time. She can sit by herself and you can tell she is thinking, concentrating on a thought in her head. Something fell the other day. Making a mess. On my way to clean it up she says "You didn't see that one coming didya" Or we were watching something on TV, (funniest home videos, I think) and a man was doing something silly and I asked her "what was he thinking?" and she pipes up and say "well... he's doing the Tango Mom". Like I was not with it for not knowing.

Her 5th birthday was the middle of June. She had asked me one day "Can I have one of those parties where (she starts flailing her arms above her head) everyone does this and says SURPRISE?" I asked her, "You mean a Surprise Party?" she nodded her head. So from then on when I would ask her about details she wanted for her party, ie. what kind of cake she wanted as I always do for their birthdays, she said Dog cake, nooo 2 dogs. Viola! this is what I came up with. Not my best but.... Her birthday was a couple of days after school and we had planned the party the day before Fathers Day. The last week of school I tried to send out invitations to her class without her seeing them...I forgot one detail. When she came home from school that day everyone had one but her and she was sooo upset. Her chin got that dimpled look and I asked if she was ok. She shook her head. Then the flood gates opened. I felt so bad. She says "everyone got one of those circle thing (invitations had circles on them) and I didn't. I tried to play it off saying maybe they just forgot it, I tried for a few minutes to sooth her feeling even tried to redirect the thought process to something else but she wasn't having it. Finally at the ends of our 15 minute car ride I had to tell her! I asked her "I thought you wanted a surprise party?" Shaking her head yes. "Well you have to let me surprise you with somethings... if I tell you everything that I'm doing... you'll know about your surprise party and it won't be much of a surprise!" and here we go again with the deep thoughts staring out the window. All of a sudden she looks at me in the rear view mirror with a big grin on her face.... she got it! The picture below is her walking into said 'Surprise Party' with all of us flailing our arms behind the camera. I had tears.

My girls has such beautiful skin.

and loves chocolate.

and we just graduated Preschool. She went for two year, what a joy it was to watch her come out of her shell. Kudos to Mrs. Spencer at Our World to Discover. She learned how to play kindly with others and I think it was an experience that will be her foundation for becoming a charming young lady.

Alot of Caley is expressed through her eyes. She has beautiful long eyelashes that compliment her beautiful, beautiful eyes. I LOVE YOU CALEY.

thought for the day....

2009-07-08T08:58:00.001-07:00

I got this quote last night from a cousin I haven't seen or heard from in years ( like 20 or so) and I thought it was very.... on.

Life is too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right. Forget about those who don't. Believe everything happens for a reason. If you get a chance, take it. If it changes your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would most likely be worth it. -Michael Gartner

and yesterday I watched Micheal Jacksons memorial on TV and one of his quotes touched me...

Nothing will be done if we all don't rise up as one. ~Micheal Jackson

oh what good a pudding pop is...

2009-07-07T21:21:00.000-07:00

Oh what fun we've been having this summer. The smallest things turn an average summer day into the most fun. Jack is the happiest little guy and now has learned what frozen treats are, we can't sneak them to the girls without his eyes lighting up and those little fingers reaching as far as they can reach. By the end of this sweet treat everything was coated in a nice glossy brown which he had fun helping me clean up. This is the first post to my new blog and I guess I'm starting with the youngest first... this is Jack, 13 months old and is the light in all our eyes.