Phil and Callie

Secret's out

2011-12-21T15:13:00.000-08:00

Johnson Baby #3 headed our way July 25th. We are so excited to be a family of five!

Rudolph

2011-12-06T11:17:00.000-08:00

If any one's looking for a super cute and easy Christmas craft, my girls LOVED this one (and so did I)...We found it here.

Hide and Seek

2011-12-05T17:38:00.000-08:00

I love playing hide and seek with my girls. I love that Myla tells me where she's going to hide and won't let me start counting until she gets there. I love that Myla tells Quinn where to hid and helps her get "hidden." I love that they laugh and giggle the whole time they're "hiding." And I love that every time- even though Myla told me where they were going to hide- she still insists that I, "Look ALL the places!"

Making Q's

2011-11-29T06:36:00.000-08:00

The other day Quinn was drawing on some paper and I asked her what she was making. She told me she was making Q's. I could hardly believe it when I realized that was exactly what she was doing...and she's been doing it ever since!

Babies and Daddies

2011-11-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

This morning at the breakfast table Myla told me she was going to have to use her daddy for her baby's daddy some day when she got big. She went on to say she would get her baby before she got her baby daddy, so she would just have to use her daddy. I groggily wondered through my half finished coffee if this were a teachable moment or if we were talking about baby dolls, so decided to hear her out.

Then she said, "I'll have to get my baby at a garage sale because only poops live in my tummy."

Thank goodness. We still have some time. :)

Pickin Apples

2011-10-31T20:30:00.000-07:00

I've gotten myself behind again, and I should probably be blogging about Halloween, but instead I'm going to write about going up the hill to pick apples (which I have decided is a way more awesome thing to do with toddlers than picking berries...no heat, no thorns, and the baskets fill up so. much. faster.)

The hay maze may have been closed, but they still let us pose for pictures!

Last week I thought I'd be clever and go up on a Tuesday since it tends to get pretty crowded on the weekends up in Apple Hill. I figured that way we could go to a pumpkin patch on the way. It seemed like everything would be open since it was less than a week until Halloween and the websites all said they were open, but I was wrong. Apparently only the gift shops were open and all the fun things (trampolines, hay mazes, and pony rides) are only open on the weekends.

Myla is infatuated with pumpkin contests. She really wants us to grow our own pumpkin next year...we'll see!

I wouldn't have thought a hay maze required official supervision; however, someone apparently has to be there to collect tickets. :( The girls were so excited to go pick apples, though, they thought the two pumpkin patches we tried along the way were just a bonus.

Pumpkin full of apples, smile full of stars.

A few weeks ago we found this great little orchard for picking apples. Nothing fancy, just apples, three or four tire swings hanging between some old pine trees, and a couple bales of hay to climb on when you're done. The girls loved it (and so did I). This time, I planned on picking a bunch and I warned Quinn, my little monkey that thinks I should always hold her, that she would have to walk back after we picked apples (we're talking 200 yards tops). She said she could do it and went about her merry way helping mama pick apples.

Last smile before the storm...

We picked about 20 pounds of apples and it was time to go back when Quinn decided she didn't want to walk. Nothing could make her walk. The sun would fall into the ocean before she took a single step. The end. There was no way I could possibly carry her and 20 odd pounds of apples brimming out of a cardboard box. Someone was going to have to compromise and it seemed apparent to me that the box of apples was not going to grow legs and walk. I thought maybe if I started to walk away....she called my bluff. I walked around the row of trees, but she still refused to come. In fact, I knew she wasn't coming because I could hear her screams still erupting from the very spot I'd left her.

Quinn was not going to walk, so I set my box of apples down to convince her I couldn't carry her. She wasn't convinced, so I held her arms while she stiff-leg kick marched and screamed and I thanked her for walking with me until we reached the box of apples, then I laid her back down to kick in the dirt while I carried the apples a little further. It was a slow, tedious relay to the back to the apple stand, but we made it. I pray every day that she carries this same tenacity with her through the precarious years of peer pressure!

Ladybug down.

Trampoline, country style.

Sly Park

2011-09-30T15:26:00.000-07:00

We live in such a fun place! The other day I had to drive up the hill to do paperwork with a couple of families, so instead of wasting my morning and my gas, I invited the girls, Grammie, and even Buddy Yoyo to tag along and stop by Sly Park for a picnic. It was beautiful (as always), the weather was perfect, and the air smelled like pine (a welcome relief after Buddy threw up all over the backseat half way up the hill ☺). I brought toys and games to play, but we ended up having the most fun with good old fashioned dirt. Lots of dirt, with a little mud and some rocks mixed in for good measure.

Pint-sized nature walk

I used to say Myla wasn't very competitive, but Phil has since pointed out that she ALWAYS has to be the first one!

Learning about rocks and ripples

Ok, so Sly Park is where our drinking water comes from and dogs aren't supposed to swim in the lake, and technically Buddy didn't. He may have wiggled a few toes along the edges and dug a hole half way to China, though.

Did I mention they played with dirt?

Lots of dirt?

Changes

2011-09-24T13:14:00.000-07:00

You may or may not have noticed that I haven't blogged in a couple of months. Things have been a little crazy. First I was offered my dream job (and asked to start the next day), and then it was too late to quit my night classes (so that will continue through the semester). I've loved the last two years I've been able to have with my girls, but we knew it couldn't last forever. I feel so blessed to have a new teaching job that will allow me the flexibility to set my own hours and even do some of my work from home. We also feel so fortunate to have Grandma Ann just down the street. She had barely unpacked her boxes when I got my job offer. God is so good. It has been such an adjustment for our whole family as I learn this new job, and I don't know what we would have done without her!

These last couple of months have been a such a learning curve for me and the parents that I've been training, but I'm starting to see things come together. Here are a few of the things I wanted to blog about, but never found the time:

Watching the polywogs play in the neighborhood puddle...

Sadly they disappeared before we were able to see all their legs grow in.

Experiments with finger paints

not really sure who had more fun.

Trip to the Folsom zoo with Grammie

Most days I work, I come home to two little munchkins on the front porch (I LOVE IT). This day they were waiting for Daddy.

It's been a hair raising couple of months (I couldn't resist).

First drawing

2011-07-30T11:27:00.000-07:00

Myla and her sunshine.

Day at the Beach

2011-07-24T20:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we made it to the beach...at least our own little version of a beach just down the road. We love this park. The girls love this park. It's such a perfect small town swimming hole with warm shallow waters, a sandy beach littered with abandoned sand castles and forgotten toys, and high school kids in life guard towers counting down the days 'til school starts again. It's always hard to take pictures when we come, and lately I've found myself torn between enjoying the moment and capturing it. I did take a couple of pictures, but there are so many more in my mind...of Quinn riding on Phil's back, finally trusting him enough to taker her to the deep end, of Myla dipping her face in up to her nose and saying she's "swimming," and of sitting with two small girls in the shallow end once our swimming was over. Just picking up stones, plopping them back in, and watching the water ripple around us, and I just want to tell them, "Don't grow up too fast! We can stay as long as you want!"

Thinking about it, but not so sure...

Really loving the water this year (as long as she can touch)!

Finally braving the waves!

Wheels on the Bus

2011-07-13T14:44:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things this summer is that when the girls wake themselves up, they toddle around the corner to our room and crawl their still-sleepy-little-person-selves onto the bed with us. Then, with the aid of our handy dandy smart phones, they pile into a heap of Daddy-daughter arms and legs to crowd around the tiny screen of Phil's phone and watch every possible version of "Wheels on the Bus" youtube has to offer until we've finally had enough and it's time for breakfast. I love this time.

Hello from Tahoe

2011-07-05T14:36:00.000-07:00

Yay, Quinnie!!

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

Gymnastics

2011-07-01T08:00:00.000-07:00

Last week Phil found an awesome deal on Groupon to sign the girls up for a month of gymnastics. They. were. so. excited. With little more to go on than, "there would be bouncing," they couldn't wait to get out the door that morning. When we finally arrived and muddled through the obligatory paperwork and tour of the facilities, the girls were split into two classes: the toddlers and the three year old class. The toddler class required parent participation, but the three-year-olds were on there own. And yes, we were the crazy parents photographing every somersault and hot dog roll.

I think we both expected Myla to love it because she is our crazy bouncing girl, born with an easy coordination and strength. I can't say what exactly we thought Quinn would do. We certainly didn't expect her to lead her little group of gymnasts through their paces, but that's exactly what she did. After waiting 12 months to crawl and sixteen months to walk, she was jumping and tumbling with the best of them! I was one proud mama. She certainly has her own way of doing things. When class was over and we were driving home, Myla said she would rather have every day be Monday so we could always go to gymnastics!

Anxiously waiting...

Warm up and stretching

First bar routine.

Movin' on up.

Whoo hoo!

Three-year-old version of a hand stand.

Fearless!

Time to shine!

Just hum to yourself the theme song from Chariots of Fire while looking at this picture...

Portland Children's Museum

2011-06-30T13:18:00.000-07:00

While I did a terrible job taking pictures while we were up in Portland a couple of weeks ago, I did get some good ones from the Children's Museum.

Cousin Ashley with Quinn and Myla

DIY face paint for toddlers...why didn't I think of that?

Modeling clay...

Taking it all very seriously!

Trained professional at work.

"Elephant" by Ashley

Welcome Buddy Yoyo!

2011-06-29T13:16:00.000-07:00

Just about three weeks ago we decided things weren't crazy enough around here, so we brought home a ten week old labradoodle. We've been wanting a dog since we moved into the new house with its kid/dog paradise in our huge backyard, but after our last heartbreak, we had two very important criteria: love our kids, and no shedding! The girls loved him from the start and even named him after their special made up song, "Happy Birthday, Buddy Yoyo," but I was a little concerned the feelings might not be mutual because whenever the girls came near him, he literally flopped to the floor and played dead. For the first three days he slept for about 23 hours a day and only came alive for the hour after the girls had been put to bed. We were beginning to think he might be a cat.

As he got more used to us all, though, he started to come out of his shell and has become a real family dog with a special place for each of us in his heart. When he wants to be important, he follows Phil around the house looking for chores. When he's feeling more playful, he hops up on the trampoline with Myla. When he's needing a snack, he follows Quinn around patiently waiting for her to drop things, share licks, or hold up sticky fingers. When he needs a good back scratch, he waits for me to sit and comes bouncing over.

Buddy at 10 weeks

Myla and Buddy discovering the joy of a good sprinkler on a hot day together.

Xander and Bella

2011-05-27T08:16:00.000-07:00

We were so excited to have Rochelle, Xander, and Bella last weekend. We try to get our kids together at least once a year, but this was the best trip by far. At three years old, Xander and Myla were finally old enough to really play together.

Fresh out of the car and ready to play...

I don't think Bella realized how many fancy things the world has to offer. She loved this headband (and our Marti Gras beads). It's kind of funny to think my girls would teach Rochelle's girl how to be girlie.

Why is it SO hard to get group kid pictures!

Xander and Myla had so much fun together, but most of the time Quinn was about two minutes behind whatever everyone else was doing.

Last attempt at a group picture. :(

Sharing Licks

2011-05-24T14:40:00.000-07:00

If anyone has been wondering what we've been up to lately...the answer would be A LOT! I'm going to try to get my blog caught up in the next few days, but for now I'm throwing up some pictures from last Thursday. We had the pleasure of having Levi and Nolan for the day along with loads of sunshine! In the afternoon I gave each of the kids popcicles and sent them outside to the picnic table. Levi wasn't sure whose flavor was best and suggested that they all try each others...

Maybe I should have stopped them, but instead I just grabbed the camera.

Isn't being a kid great!

Teeter Totter

2011-05-04T12:54:00.000-07:00

We have been looking for a teeter totter for a month or two, so I was so excited to find this one at a garage sale on Saturday. It's a little big for them yet, but that just means Phil and I get to sneak out and play during nap time! ☺

Tea Party

2011-05-02T13:41:00.000-07:00

For the past two springs, the girls in my family have gotten together for a spring tea party. It's been such a fun time to hang out (and eat). The only thing we forgot this year was the actual tea. My mom thought it would be fun to serve Italian soda instead but Myla didn't agree. She took one sip and said, "That juice bit me!"

Myla loves to read. I think she made Stephanie read ten different books that day...Maybe I shouldn't have, but I kind of got a kick out of my daughter bossing my big sister around all day. Paybacks!

Tea-less tea party

Stephanie and Quinn

Sneaking bites of center piece...

My beautiful niece.

Fire Pit

2011-04-27T13:32:00.000-07:00

Phil got a fire pit this year for his birthday and (when it isn't to rainy to use) we have been loving it!

Quinn is a dog eating machine. The first night she would take a couple bites, rest it on the patio (next to her plate), pick it up and take a few more bites. Since then we decided the girls should make lil' smokies...more fun cooking and less bites to eat off the ground!

Myla, on the other hand, wasn't super excited about the dogs or the smoke in her eyes...

until we busted out the marshmallows, then it was game on!

Easter Egg Hunt

2011-04-26T13:54:00.000-07:00

Little hand, big hand

Ready, set,

Go!

Fast as can be.

Done.

New Slide

2011-04-25T13:31:00.000-07:00

Last weekend our neighbors gave us a huge purple slide that their kids had out grown, and since it was too big for the playhouse, Phil came up with the genius idea of digging it straight into the hill. Now when the girls go tearing up the stairs, they can slide down the hill instead of race down the steps...So. Much. Fun!!

Before picture

Whoo Hoo!

"I did it!"

Say, say oh Sister,
Come out and play with me.
Bring your dollies three
Climb up my Live Oak Tree
Slide down my purple side
Into the grassy floor
And we'll be jolly friends
Forever more more more more!

More Songs

2011-04-16T13:46:00.000-07:00

I know I'm kind of biased, but this is the funniest chorus for "You Are My Sunshine" that I've ever heard...

Super Heroes in Disguise

2011-03-30T13:45:00.000-07:00

Halloween is once a year, but imaginations are forever: more adventures with Tigger and Lulu the Ladybug Girl:

Two little super heroes on the way to the park...

Lady bug, lady bug, fly away home.

Bouncing is what Tiggers do best!

A blur of orange fur...

Even super heroes need a snack and some time to recharge after a crazy morning at the park.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

2011-03-18T15:49:00.000-07:00

Myla has always been a singer, but last week Quinn learned Happy Birthday. It's hilarious!

Three

2011-03-06T14:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we became parents to a three year old for the very first time. I don't know why, but for some reason three seems SO MUCH BIGGER than two in my mind. It's hard to believe that just three years and two days ago I still couldn't believe I was going to be a parent...or even understand what that really meant. Boy is she teaching, me!

In honor of the big 3, she had her first friends birthday party. It was totally low key and better than anything I could have planned. It was supposed to rain, so we set the Wii up just in case, but the sun came out early and stayed until every one left- when it finally started to rain. It really couldn't have been a more perfect day.

We surprised Myla with her first trampoline. She could hardly believe her eyes when she stumbled into the living room early in the morning. Cousin Tori is trying to talk her mom into getting her own in place of a bed...

Checking out the Wii dance while waiting for the friends to get here.

Making princess crowns.

Building castles in the sand.

I realize she does NOT look super excited about her princess cake, but it's the best cake picture I have (and she really did like it...)

Happy birthday to the fancy schmanciest three year old I know! We love you, Sweet Pea.

Someday she'll ask me...

2011-02-17T07:38:00.000-08:00

"Why on earth did you let me wear that?" and I'll tell her, "It was all you!

From the tiny pony tail on the top of your head to the sweater and striped pants combo, to the leg warmers and fancy shoes. I promise you, Quinnie of my future, that I tried to talk you out of it, but you just felt so pretty that it wasn't worth breaking the heart of the Quinnie of my right now. Besides that, I think you're beautiful!"

Hair Raising

2011-02-07T16:49:00.000-08:00

After a couple weeks of bla following her RSV, Myla's found her much-ness again!

New Year

2011-01-30T14:03:00.000-08:00

Yes, I realize we've been saying Merry Christmas for over a month now. I've heard your complaints...er complaint... from my loyal fan base. We are still here, and I've missed you, sweet blog. There's just been so much living going on this month. For starters, we bought a house! It's a beautiful house with lots of rooms, and toys, and dreams, and projects, and a yard full of trees, and toys, and slides, and swings. About a week before we moved in, Quinn got pneumonia and I had a gianormous test (two actually, but who's counting) that will put me on the road to expanding my teaching credential....oh yeah, and did I mention I started a new job teaching ESL to adults two nights a week? So it seemed like we were a little busier than normal that week as Phil headed over to the new house to paint and I stayed home to pack, study, plan lessons, and nurse sick babies (in the plural) because Myla was not to be outdone by her baby sister and decided to get RSV. Yay, us! Good news is every body survived and we're finally here- in our dream house- with our healthy babies and summer just months away. Although the weather is turning cold and soggy again, last week was perfectly dry and sunny. Quinn learned how to "hing" (or at least sit by herself) on the big girl swing, and Myla can now make a shot on her Little Tikes basketball hoop from almost two feet away!

Two girls watching Daddy paint...

I love this backyard! You can kind of see the playhouse in the back right of the picture (at least you can see the yellow slide).

Quinn is so proud of herself on the swing. Each afternoon she stands at the back door and cries for the swing until I finally take her out.

We got this house as a short sale and it came packed with the previously family's stuff.. the toys (like this golf ball ramp) were pretty cool. The 1,000+ pairs of XS adult diapers- not so much!

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T06:31:00.000-08:00

From our house to yours, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Mr. and Mrs. Claus

2010-12-15T16:10:00.000-08:00

I wasn't how we were going to work visiting Santa in to the schedule this year, but luckily Mr. and Mrs. Claus came to us last Saturday while we waited in line to ride the train at Burke's Junction. If you remember from last year, I wasn't entirely sure how excited the girls were going to be to see Santa so we decided not to go out of our way to seek him out. It's probably a good thing we didn't. Mrs. Claus was walking through the line handing out candy and when she saw Quinn, she fell in love and asked to pick her up.

This did NOT make Quinn happy. After seeing the picture I kind of wonder she decked old Mrs. Claus when I was snapping pictures!

Myla was a little more willing this year since they were doling out chocolate...

but she clearly wasn't happy about it, either.

A rare family photo once we finally made it to the train.

Oblivious

2010-12-02T13:54:00.000-08:00

Sometimes as a stay at home mom I take things for granted. I forget to revel in the goofiness...and sometimes I just stop seeing it. This morning I got the girls bundled up for a trip to the park, packed them in the stroller, and away we went. I'm used to getting looks. Babies and toddlers tend to draw all sorts of smiles and nods, but for some reason this morning was over the top. On the way home from the park we even got a couple of giggles. At first I thought it was because Myla was helping me push the double jogger (always good for a smile from random bystanders)...then I thought maybe it was because Quinn had fallen asleep in her seat (not exactly funny, but that, too, seems to be a crowd favorite)...

I was pretty sure that wasn't it, though, when we passed a little girl outside the elementary school and she looked over and waved. It wasn't until we passed a whole group of kids out at recess and I heard one little boy say, "Teacher, look! It's Tigger!" that I remembered who I was walking with:

Myla was so proud when she realized they thought she was the real Tigger. She stopped and waved and even got a couple of waves back. It was the highlight of her morning (and mine, too). I am so lucky to be this girl's mama.

First haircut

2010-11-09T16:50:00.000-08:00

We knew this day would come eventually and we've kind of been postponing it because it was supposed to be Grandpa Terry's job. As Myla's hair started to dreadlock at the bottom, though, something had to be done. I surfed through yelp and found a little hair salon around the corner from our house. There weren't any kid salons in the area, but this one fit perfectly. It had four stools, girlie mirrors, leopard capes, and a tiny little chihuahua that met us at the door.

Even though I walked Myla through the whole procedure before we left the house, she FREAKED the minute we got out of the car and shot up my leg like a cat up a tree. I had to go back to the car and get the backpack for Quinn so that the three of us could sit on the stool together (thank goodness I've been doing P90X or the stool might not have made it) while Jessica, her stylist, cute Myla's hair. The more Jessica cut, the more Myla relaxed and by the end, Myla had plenty of smiles to go around. She might have even started to like it a little...

Overheard

2010-11-05T12:50:00.000-07:00

On Monday night Levi and Nolan came over to play and I overheard this conversation between Myla and Levi:

Levi: What's your daddy's name?
Myla ignores him
Levi: What's your daddy's name?
Myla: My mommy calls him Babe.
Levi: What?

HURRAY!!

2010-11-04T12:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Quinn took a step. Today, she might be considered a walking girl! Hallelujah!

Pooh Corner

2010-11-01T13:17:00.000-07:00

A local shopping center opened their doors for trick or treaters on Saturday this year. Last year the girls didn't get to go trick or treating, so this was a first for both of them. Sadly, no one was feeling overly photogenic, but we had fun anyway! I really thought Myla would be afraid of some of the costumes (and there were a couple of scary ones), but she was so focused on the candy I'm not sure she even noticed the zombie that handed it to her!

Tigger

Pooh's baby sister and her chariot

Trick or Treating through Town Center

Candy collected and ready to pose...

Little Chef

2010-10-27T07:49:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I signed up for Farms Fresh to You, a fresh produce delivery from local farms. They deliver once a month. You're suposed to be able to get on-line and customize your order, but I forgot, so we ended up with some interesting vegetables I wasn't sure how to get anyone but me to eat! After a little research, I found a recipe for making Kale Chips and it was easy enough for Myla to help. She used to eat everything I gave her, but she's gotten a little picky in her old age, so I hoped if she made it herself she might be more inclined to try it.

Fresh out of the oven

You can't tell from her expression, but she LOVED them! We only used have the bunch the first day and she wanted to make them again the next day!

Quinn, who eats EVERYTHING, was a little less sure about the whole thing, which makes me think Myla's enthusiasm was more chef than taste inspired...but at least they both tried them!

Monday morning we decided to try our recipe on thinly sliced beets. I'm pretty sure Myla got more oil on her hands than the beets, but she insisted on doing it herself.

I didn't get a finished picture, but Myla was super excited to try them again. I have a feeling this winter will include more cooking projects. Maybe it'll bring out Myla's inner foodie...

Foot Binding

2010-10-26T13:50:00.000-07:00

Seriously, who told this kid she was going to have big feet? Every time I turn around I'm taking a hair band off her foot. This is America, no need to practice foot binding, Quinnie Quinn!

Bouncing for Pumpkins

2010-10-25T12:36:00.000-07:00

There is a small pumpkin patch just down the road from our house. It's really just an empty lot with a tent, but this year they included a bounce house. There's no charge or minimum purchase to bounce, but we usually buy a small pumpkin each time just so we don't feel guilty. I can't believe none of the other neighbors have figured it out yet. We're usually the only ones there. Myla has been a bouncing queen for ages now, but Quinnie finally got to test out her bouncing legs....or bum. She is unstoppable just like her sister. Here's to hoping that after Halloween the Christmas tree lot that takes its place brings back the bounce house!

Bishops

2010-10-24T16:44:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday the girls and I went to Bishop's Pumpkin Patch with some friends. We went last year, but this year was SO much more fun! What a difference a year makes! My camera is a little slow lately, so my pictures don't do the day justice, but there was a wooden train playground, an actual train that toured the farm, a petting zoo, a zillion slides, and so much more.

Myla and Levi climbing in the pumpkin.

Myla and her friend Sam on the train.

Initially I tried to hold Quinn on my lap since her balance is still a little awkward, but she insisted on sitting with the big girls (wow...hard to believe Myla is one of the big girls!).

Quinn LOVES creatures of all shapes and sizes. They had a goat pen for kids to feed and brush the goats. Quinn still isn't walking, but she tried her best to ride every goat within grabbing distance. She would get bucked off one, dust herself off and move on to the next one. Between that and Myla trying to get all the goats in a headlock my hands were a little too full for pictures! I literally had to drag Quinn away from the petting zoo kicking and screaming.

Micke Grove again

2010-10-22T16:06:00.000-07:00

On Monday we met my mom at Micke Grove again. The weather is finally starting to cool off, but we had a nice day anyway.

After the initial warm up, Quinn was the first one across the hamock bridge.

Myla was a bit more leary, but eventually jumped in and was all over the place before we could stop her. I love this picture because she's smiling...not at the camera, but for the camera. Lately whenever the camera comes out her serious face comes on. Sometimes I worry that I won't remember her smile when she gets a little bigger...

Quinnie and Mimi

I told Myla I loved her brown eyes and she said, "But they are white, too."

We had our picnic at the top of the slide and Myla shared her applesauce with Quinnie.

More Mylanese

2010-10-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

This morning while we were eating breakfast Myla looked out the window and said, "I think somebody cut the sky!"

Phoenix

2010-10-06T16:19:00.000-07:00

This past weekend my mom and I took the girls to Phoenix for my grandma's birthday. Unfortunately, when I got home my camera was blank- so I'm not really sure what happened there. My mom sent me some from her iphone, but none with my grandparents. Still we had a great trip. The girls were AWESOME despite the long flights, lack of naps, and late nights. It was so nice to see my grandparents and the rest of the family for a few days, but we are so glad to be home!

Turkey Soup: tt was so hot, and for some reason my girls are anti daytime baths, so they were introduced to birdie baths...they loved them!

Cousins Hunter, Bella, and Myla

My aunt and uncle had us over for dinner one night and their house was already decorated for Halloween. Both the bride and groom talked and glowed red when you pushed a button on the top of their skulls. I would thought Myla would be scared out of her pants, but she really wasn't.

She even posed by herself holding the bride's hand. I love the look on her face!

Day at the Zoo

2010-09-10T07:38:00.000-07:00

Between Phil starting school and me starting a new job and a new blog, things have gotten a little crazy around our house. I had big plans for the girls this year, but find the reality of finding activities that match a super coordinated, talkative, social two year old with a not so coordinated, shy-yet-inquisitive 14 month old still on a two nap a day schedule gets a little daunting. Yesterday morning, though, the weather looked perfect and after Quinn declined her morning nap we decided to step up the trip I had planned to the park, and went to the zoo instead.

Although she was stuck in the stroller the whole time, Quinn was a trooper. I wasn't sure if she could even see anything until we got to the mountain lion exhibit and she started to wave and make little grunting noises.

Myla has gotten so big. We made it through the whole zoo in half the time it took at the begining of the summer. Every where we go she wants to walk. She knows she has to hold hands on busy roads, but the zoo was full of "quiet roads," her favorite!

I try to go to parks with artifical turf so Quinn doesn't have to crawl through (and eat) the barkdust, but it doesn't always work out that way. When one is crawling through the dust...

and the other is deftly balancing above it, it makes for a busy day at the park.

It's starting to feel like things are flying by with new tricks every day. Quinn pulled herself up for the first time the day she turned 14 months, and she kinda likes the view.

Meanwhile, Myla has grown into this loving, chatty, athletic, nearly potty trained (more on that later) little two and a half year old.

It was such a fun morning to hang out with my girls. While part of me is still anxious for Quinn to start walking, I know she won't crawl her way to kindergarten and these days will be gone before I know it...

Just because you can't dance...

2010-09-01T13:06:00.000-07:00

doesn't mean you shouldn't try!

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Potty Time

2010-08-27T16:35:00.000-07:00

I knew this day was coming but I chose to ignore it. Like an ostrich with its head in the sand, I hoped that one day Myla would magically tell me she was a "big girl," sit on the toilet, go potty, and never look back. I realize how rarely this actually happens, but I figured lightening has to strike somewhere. Well, it didn't strike here. We're getting there though, one victory at a time. At first I thought she would think it was fun and I wouldn't need bribes...she is all about being "big," after all. Apparently diapers are just too easy, though, so I went to Plan B: stickers (and markers for the keester cakes). It seems to be working. Even though she wears diapers at nap time, she had started to hold on for the stickers...My next challenge will be navigating public bathrooms with a two year old and a crawler. Any suggestions on that one?

Seeing baby learn how to go like a big girl was pretty helpful, but the best reward by FAR, was calling everyone on Mommy's speed dial to tell them what she'd done. To those of you who are still taking my calls, thank you, but we're not out of the woods yet!

San Francisco

2010-08-07T09:25:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was our five year anniversary, and what an amazing five years it's been! To say I feel lucky would be so cliche and inadequate, but I guess it's a start. To celebrate, we wanted to go back to the beginning, so planned a night in San Francisco at the hotel we stayed at the first night of our honeymoon. It was my first time to leave the girls over night (technically I left Myla when I was in the hospital having Quinn, but that doesn't really count as a morning off from mommy duty in my book), and we were so excited to act like newlyweds again. My mom came to stay with the girls, which was AWESOME because it meant I only had to pack for myself! I think she was a little nervous...mainly because I was going to use the time away to wean Quinn, as well...but gauging by the pictures the three of them had so much fun.

Even though I've lived in northern California for over half my life, I'd never been over the Golden Gate bridge, so we decided to drive through Sonoma for a picnic and take the Golden Gate into the city. We didn't get any pictures over the bridge, but here's one of Sonoma.

Our hotel was just blocks away from Union Square and even though we were dressed for summer and it was only 58 degrees outside, we went for a walk before dinner. We even got a fellow tourist to take our picture.

I've wanted to eat at Ruth's Chris pretty much ever since I found out it existed, but I'd never been, so Phil took me there for dinner. Beyond a doubt, it lived up to all the hype my mind had created.

We planned on taking a ferry to Angel Island and doing a Segway tour the next day. It would have been perfect because by ten o'clock there wasn't a cloud in the sky, but I failed to read the Ferry schedule and we missed our boat. Instead, we went to the Musee de Mecanique, which is a fun old warehouse filled with antique, working arcade games, and walked down the water front to the Tuesday market before going back. It was the perfect trip.

The Development Specialist

2010-07-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

Today was Quinn's big day at the developmental specialist's. Even though she has gained so many skills in the last three weeks (sitting on her own, scooting, and crawling), we already had our appointment and I really wanted to get some professional input. The appointment was supposed to be about an hour and a half of assessments, but we made it through in an hour. Quinn was uncharacteristically smiley and outgoing. She shot through the fine motor tests and actually tested months above her age in some of the cognitive tests, but it looks like she may have inherited a condition called low muscle tone, which from what I read is really just a blanket term for floppiness rather than an actual disorder. On the one hand, I'm relieved to have an actual term to Google, but on the other I was hoping for more of an explanation as to what makes Quinn tick (what parent doesn't want that about any kid, I know). It's a start, though. We have an appointment with a physical therapist in a couple of weeks, but in the mean time after months of gross motor hibernation, she's coming out of her shell and starting to explore the world around her...and I think she likes what she sees!

Photo Shoot

2010-07-19T06:31:00.000-07:00

The day after my day on the farm with Myla, I got to take Quinn for a little one on one time. It's a little harder to think of things to do with a non-mobile little person- so we had a photo shoot. It was way more fun than I imagined from the outset with props and wardrobe changes, and Quinn took it all in stride. I couldn't decide which ones to share, so I made a couple of collages.

I thought the lei pictures would be my favorite...

but when I saw her with that basketball, it really warmed my heart!

A Day at the Farm

2010-07-18T08:12:00.000-07:00

One day while Phil was working Ann offered to watch Quinn so that I could take Myla out for a little one on one time. I read in the paper about a little farm just out of town that had a hay maze, petting area, berry picking, and a big slide.

It ended up being a little more low key than advertised (we were literally the only guests there), but it ended up being pretty perfect.

There were no worker to show us around or other guests to follow, so Lucy the Mastiff took it upon herself to show us around.

The slides and hay maze were closed and the berry picking was off site, but the goats were available for petting...

and a little snacking of their own. Myla loved it!

There was even a baby cow (just weeks old according to the paper) that poked his head up to the gate for a little scratch. As girly as she is, we might make a tomboy out of this girl yet!

Catching Up

2010-07-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

After two weeks up in the Northwest and one week back home, I'm finally ready to catch up on some blogging. I love visiting family and friends...I just wish we didn't all live so far away (or that we had the power to teleport)! Our first week, Phil taught a shooting camp at his old high school and we stayed in Happy Valley with Ann. She took us to the park Phil grew up playing in...

Apparently the fountain didn't exist when Phil was growing up, but it was the first warm day all summer and the girls loved it!

One

2010-07-03T08:26:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Quinnie! We are so excited to see the little person you're becoming.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-30T08:27:00.000-07:00

Peanutbutter and Jelly Sushi Rolls

2010-06-26T21:58:00.000-07:00

Myla loved these and they were so easy to make. Just the usual pb and j stuff with some coconut flakes for flare!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-06-23T08:25:00.000-07:00

County Fair

2010-06-20T21:58:00.000-07:00

Today was the last day of the county fair, and with Phil out of town at the U.S. Open in Pebble Beach, I decided to take the girls without him. We took Myla last year, but this year she wasn't nearly as skiddish. She wanted to be a part of EVERYTHING! Every barn we visited she asked, "Can I touch it?"

The pigs in particular made me a little nervous with their wiggly snouts nosing about her tiny fingers but she had no fear. She loved every pig with their coarse hair and rubbery noses. I finally had to tell her, "No faces! Only shoulders!"

By the time we got to the chickens, she was a pro had offering a flat palm.

Quinn was such a trooper. She didn't even make a fuss until she'd been stuck in the stroller for nearly an hour as we went through barn after barn. After we'd seen all the animals, we got some funnel cake and sat in the grass by an outdoor concert so she could stretch out a bit.

I kind of thought Myla would be a little more into the funnel cake than Quinn, but I couldn't have been more wrong.

Once the music started, Myla put her dancing shoes on.

Quinn was a little upset at first that big sister had the big plate, but as soon as Myla wasn't looking...

victory was Quinn's!

I can't remember the last time I had such a sweet afternoon with my two favorite girls.

A is for automatic locks

2010-06-12T09:52:00.000-07:00

The first time it happened, I knew it wouldn't end good, but I took every precaution to avoid the inevitable and hoped for the best. A couple of months ago, Myla figured out the automatic locks in the minivan and she loves playing with them. Since then, I not only taught her how to unlock the van, but I also take every precaution to grab my keys before closing the door...until yesterday afternoon. After the girls woke up from their nap, I got their suits on and the sunscreen all lathered up for a trip to the lake. Myla wanted to bring some sand toys, so as I loaded Quinn in the car, I opened the passenger door for Myla to put her toys on the passenger seat. I buckled Quinn in and as I slide the door shut, I heard a tiny click. I looked down to see my purse, cell phone, and AAA card on the floor of the car directly under Quinnie's car seat...and all the door were locked. NOOOOO!
It was 80 degrees outside and SO much warmer in the van. The spare key was on my key chain (in the van), and we don't have a house phone. I noticed my neighbor across the street was working in his front yard, so I grabbed Myla and ran across the busy road to borrow his phone. Phil was only working five minutes away, so I just prayed he would answer and come home with the extra key. He didn't. Unfortunately again, my neighbor didn't have AAA, so he didn't know the roadside assistance number. He also didn't have the Internet to look it up, and oddly the only numbers in the phone book were for AAA insurance claims.
At this point, Quinn has been in the car for over five minutes, I still don't have a solution for getting her out, and true hysteria (on my part) is setting in. Then I noticed my next door neighbor's car was in his driveway, so I ran back across the street and knocked on his door. He had AAA (hurray), but when he called they wanted my information (which was locked in the car) not his, and they refused to send somebody out until they had. Meanwhile, Quinn is happily munching away on a granola bar, but I know it's getting hot in that van and my insides are screaming to the AAA operator, "Are you flippin' kidding me? My baby is locked in the car on a hot summer day and you want my membership number? Get somebody over here right now and if my membership has lapsed, send me a bill!" But since my neighbor was the one talking to her and not me, this tirade was never actually relayed.
About ten minutes into our ordeal the neighbor across the street wandered back over and I called Phil one more time. This time I left a message. Eventually my neighbor convinced AAA to come on his membership number, and that we could transfer the call to my account once they unlocked my car. They agreed, and then insisted that they needed to call the Highway Patrol as well since there was a baby involved. "YES!" I wanted to scream, "Send the calvary, just get my baby out!" By now Quinn had starting to panic. She was sweaty and crying, and I felt so helpless. Then the phone rang and it was Phil. If I said he was five minutes away, he got there in three and had the door unlocked before he had even pulled in the driveway. Poor Quinn just melted in my arms. The whole ordeal took about 20 minutes, but may have taken five years off my life. Because the locksmith AAA planned to send was over 10 miles away, we called and canceled. The Highway Patrol didn't show up for another hour because AAA send them to the wrong town.
Of course I completely blame myself because I know that Myla knows how to fiddle with those locks and it was so silly to shut the door with my purse still in the van, but it's a little discomforting to find out how procedural AAA would be with a baby locked in a car. I've learned some good lessons though. Number one: don't keep the spare key on your key chain. Number two: if you're not home, look for a big rock!

I dare you not to laugh!

2010-06-05T21:33:00.000-07:00

My mom just e-mailed me this picture today and it was too funny not to share. It must have been taken a couple of months ago. Have a great rest of your weekend!

When things don't go smoothly...

2010-05-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

Why is it that as a mother of babies and toddlers poop has to be such a focus...you're either up to your elbows in it or you're not, but when you're not, it's usually not a good thing if your kids are still in diapers (if they're potty trained, hurray for you!). Poor Quinn has been so constipated lately, despite the fact that she eats enough prunes and canned beans to launch a rocket to the moon. She might be playing on the floor or eating a snack when suddenly her face turns bright red, she hunkers her shoulders, and says, "brrrrrrrrrrrrrr." Even Myla has gotten in on the act. She comes running over, pats Quinn on the back and say, "You can do it, Kenny. Get those poops out!" Yesterday I actually caught Myla coaching her baby through a difficult poop just to practice so she would be ready when Quinnie needed her. If I'm trying to feed Quinn and she's not interested, Myla chirps up, "That will help your poops come out, Quinnie!" It's hysterical! I really think if she would just start crawling that everything would loosen up. Until then, our big challenge is keeping her hydrated. Thank goodness for watermelon because she still hates bottles and hasn't quite figured out a sippy cup!

Go, watermelon!

Oh Mr. Sun

2010-05-27T13:52:00.000-07:00

I remember thinking summer was here a few weeks ago. We got the pool out, and by early afternoon the water was even warm enough for our little summer baby to splash her toes. Those days seem like a distant dream, though. I'm pretty sure for every four sunny days we've had three rainy ones this month. In my secret heart, though, I'm loving it. Summer will get here soon enough...I do wish, however, that some one could explain how this all fits into global warming!

Two little water bugs the first week of May

Muddy fingers framed by a checkered raincoat this morning

Wet shoes and muddy flippers

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-05T07:13:00.000-07:00

10 months

2010-05-03T14:13:00.000-07:00

Quinn is ten months old today! She is such a funny little thing and still my little cuddle bug. Although she's learning to do more on her own, she doesn't think a whole lot of independence...which makes it a little ironic that she was almost born on the 4th of July! She finally started napping without being swaddled this month and this morning I even found her on her tummy when I went in to get her. She has yet to start crawling, but is getting more and more interested. There are times when I am so ready for her to just get moving, but I realize that this baby time is fleeting and soon enough she'll want nothing to do with me, so I'm learning more and more to appreciate each tiny snuggle.

She still loves hanging around...

and almost has enough hair for a tiny barrette these days.

Her smile not only melts my heart, but also includes five teeth. Maybe that's why frozen blueberries are her favorite snack?

I also got to thinking this morning as I tried to pick grass off her blanket for the fifth time that maybe she would have started crawling months ago if she didn't have these crazy, go go Gadget arms. She is pretty tall (already in 18 month clothes) and her arms seem to go for miles. She can practically reach across the room for whatever toy, ball, or crumb seems the most interesting. She's pretty amazing!

Daily Doubles

2010-04-26T14:05:00.000-07:00

As the ten month mark looms ahead of us and Quinn has yet to make her move, Myla and I have gotten serious about crawling ourselves. This morning we crawled back and forth in front of Quinn for about 15 minutes, and I think it's working. Quinn stayed on her tummy the entire time and even started to wave her arms and legs a little. At one point she giggled, and I think I saw a little gleam in her eye...that just maybe she might be starting to feel the need, the need for speed!

Myla was so cute. Every time we came back to Quinn, she would say, "Come on Ken, you can do it!"

Don't tell Quinn, but crawling is WAY harder than it looks. Myla and I were exhausted by the end of it all.

Come on Quinnie, you can do it!

Rainy Day Picnic

2010-04-12T13:21:00.000-07:00

This latest spring storm has us house bound again, but that couldn't stop the girls from sharing a banana picnic in their jammies!

Just to say we did it...

2010-04-10T15:07:00.000-07:00

On the drive to my mom's house there is a real estate office with a big blue shoe, a buffalo statue, and an enormous Native American made of stone. There's really nothing to it-no restaurants or rides- just a goofy, eclectic collection that I've always wanted to stop at...just to say we did it. When the girls and I took Tori home on Friday we finally stopped and it got me thinking about how fun it is to do things just for the story. Through the years I've ridden roller coasters, followed a family of skunks (I was young- and lucky), taken a bus to see where it would go, steered a nuclear powered submarine, helicoptered to an aircraft carrier, taken road trips, driven through a redwood tree, ran a marathon, eaten fish heads, chicken feet, and bat wings, played with lemurs, swam in the Mozambique Channel as well as the Indian, Atlantic, and Pacific Oceans, played with sting rays, read books or had a picnic in the park just to say I did. It also got me wondering what kinds of things you guys have done just for the adventure of doing. I'd love to hear about it!

The girls were not happy about our little detour, but I hope as they get older the spark will catch!

Tori, on the other hand, is up for anything and so much fun to have along! I couldn't have stopped with a more adventure-seeing soul...

Hero Worship

2010-04-05T19:22:00.000-07:00

Cousin Tori is visiting this week on her spring break and we couldn't be happier about it!

First Easter Egg Hunt

2010-04-03T15:34:00.001-07:00

New Jammies

2010-03-31T10:23:00.000-07:00

Any one who knows Phil or me would think it impossible for our combined genetic code to create anything as girly as Myla. Yet somehow, against all odds, here she is: the girl who learned how to walk by carrying a purse and loves shoes, makeup, hats, bracelets, babies, butterflies, and flowers. Towards the end of the winter I realized she needed another pair of pajamas, but when I looked for some in her size, the only pair of fuzzy footies left in all of east Sacramento was one lone pair of blue little boy jammies. Surely, I thought, they would never do, but we were out of options. Much to my surprise, they are hands down Myla's favorite pajamas. She calls them her "new jammies" and she asks for them every night. On nights when they're dirty, her only consolation is the promise that mommy will do laundry tomorrow and she can wear them the next night. It really is quite ridiculous!

Lovin' the (not so) "New Jammies!"

When the blogging gets tough...

2010-03-29T21:10:00.000-07:00

This is a blog that I've been thinking about writing for about four months now. My blog used to be a fun place for me to write and share my family with whoever cared about us enough to read it, but in the last eight months, I've come to dread it a bit. I've been torn between keeping things light and positive and being honest about the real struggle it's been as a stay at home mom of one young toddler and one high maintenance baby. I've shied away from writing about what a change little Quinn has brought to our lives because I don't want to sound ungrateful, but now I wonder instead if I've been authentic.

To be honest, Quinn has been a tough baby. I'm pretty sure she cried non stop for the first six months. Once we started her on reflux medication she finally stopped crying and started to sleep through the night, but she was so attached to me that I couldn't put her down unless I wanted to listen to her scream again. Slowly, we're making progress, though. For the first time on Sunday, she didn't start crying when I walked into the room. For the first time today she didn't cry when I walked into the room and back out without picking her up. Still, it bums me out that when we drop her off at the nursery on Sunday that all the nursery workers duck under the counter or run to the opposite side of the room and yell, " Cindy, your baby's here!" Thank God for Cindy or I think we'd have to bring Quinn into the service with us.
It made me sad when a friend said she couldn't spend more than three minutes with Quinn without getting a headache from all the screaming. It makes me sad she doesn't let her grandmas hold her and that so many friends and strangers can't see how amazing she is, but we are getting there. Every day she smiles a little bit more and ventures out more independently. Maybe if I blog about this now, it will be easier to be honest in the future...and include a few more of the funny stories. My hope isn't that you'll feel sorry for us, but that you will be excited with us when I no longer have to bribe the nursery workers with muffins and cookies, or when she feels safe enough to enjoy her relatives...or maybe even take a nap without being swaddled...because you'll know where we've been. Time for the tough to get blogging!

Quinn's Dedication

2010-03-18T19:57:00.000-07:00

Ephesians 2:8-10 "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."

Uncle Tim was finally able to make it out to California to meet Quinn and do her dedication. When Myla was born, I asked him to have a dedication for her with our family because I knew my dad would have been the one to dedicate our girls if he were around to do it.

I didn't get as many pictures as I would have liked, but here's a rare shot of Quinn being content with someone other than her mama holding her. Go, Tori!!

Party Number Two

2010-03-08T07:32:00.000-08:00

Friday, on Myla's actual birthday, we stuffed the kids in the car and drove down to south to visit Grandma Ann and see Uncle Steve's game. My poor girls caught whatever terrible cold is going around and it is a hanger-oner. I thought for sure they would be better, but no such luck, so you can imagine the joy of an eight hour car trip with a toddler that does. not. sleep. in the car. Fortunately for Myla, she's always up for a party, so by the end of journey, she tried to put her best face forward and soldiered on (for a little while, anyway). Grammie planned a fun party with presents and cake, which did more than a little to keep Myla going.

It was quite the whirlwind trip. We drove down Friday, celebrated Myla's birthday, then got ready for Steve's game early Saturday afternoon in Anaheim. With so many hours logged in the car, we found a little park to take the girls to in Orange, and on the way there we bumped into another park...which just happened to be called Eisenhower park (same name as Steve's school), and we figured it might be good luck for him if we stopped to play there. Although they didn't have any eagles at the park (Eisenhower's school mascot), they did have ducks and after digging through our road trip snacks, we found some suitable muffins to feed the ducks.

It was cold and windy, but feeding the ducks took on a sort of civic duty. We had to do our part to support our team.

Myla wasn't completely sure what she was doing, and for some reason the ducks didn't really seem to know either...

then, after we had finished feeding the ducks I noticed rule number 7...oops!

We weren't really sure if illegally feeding the ducks would bring good or bad luck to the Eisenhower Eagles, but at that point it was too late. As it turned out, they ended up beating Pasadena High for the section championship in a very exciting game that made the whole trip worthwhile. Congratulations, Steve! See you in Bakersfield!

Party Number One

2010-03-01T14:00:00.000-08:00

It's hard to believe Myla is going to be two on Friday. Because she's a March baby, and her Uncle Steve coaches a very talented high school basketball team, Myla gets two parties: one with the Nor Cal family, and one with the So Cal family...which just so happens to coincide with Uncle Steve's section championship (Go Ike!) Her first party almost didn't happen when she woke up yesterday morning oozing green goo from her nose and eyes (I'll spare you any pictures of THAT), but after a long bath, Little Miss Social rallied for her party!

We've started a tradition (do two years count as a tradition?) of birthday cupcakes. This year I found a really cool pattern for the Hungry Caterpillar, then made my own very amateur version.

After seeing all her gifts, I'm not sure if she had a birthday party or a baby shower. With a new baby doll, a baby doll pack 'n play, a baby doll high chair, and her very own diaper bag complete with cell phone and magic bottle, she was in baby heaven!

Quinnie even scored a baby- although that may have something to do with the fact that Myla commandeered Quinnie's Christmas baby...Thanks, Mimi!

With storms on either side of her party, even the weather cooperated so Myla could check out her new sandbox. It was fun to see the big cousins take their shoes off and dig in.

By the time we got around to eating those cupcakes, Myla could barely keep her eyes open (which is saying a lot...this girl loves her sugar!).

Today I have two sad, goopy eyed little girls, but we still have one more day of sunshine before the next storm moves in, a house full of new toys, and fun memories to keep us going!

Jazz Baby

2010-02-19T13:43:00.000-08:00

Our local library does a story time Friday mornings, but for the month of February the regular story time has been hijacked by the "Jazz Babies." Myla loved the regular story time, but it turns out she is passionate about jazz! After three week I finally remembered to bring the camera, because sometimes, words just aren't enough. Pay special attention to how low key all the other kids are...

Future Reading Teacher

2010-02-12T13:46:00.000-08:00

Myla and Quinn have warmed up to each other slowly, in large part due to Quinn's "spicy" side, so when they do play together in little spurts, it warms my heart to the very core. I've started putting Quinn in the high chair while Myla and I eat breakfast, and this morning I gave her a little book to look at. Myla couldn't resist all those generations of teacher genes, and she had to show Quinn the "right" way to read.

I love that the book does actually start off facing Quinn...

and before a girl can blink, everything goes upside down!

"I know we're sharing here...

but am I supposed to be learning something?"

Flowers in February

2010-02-04T12:16:00.000-08:00

My amazing sister Stephanie made these adorable flower headbands for Quinn last Saturday. Myla was so in love that we realized the girls would have to share. I decided this morning that our gray, not-quite-raining, dreary little morning needed a little color- so we had a photo shoot. I couldn't decide how to narrow them down...so here you go!

Sitting up

2010-01-24T21:20:00.000-08:00

We knew it would happen eventually...we just weren't sure when. Quinn sat up today all by herself for the very first time!

She was so busy playing with her little toy that she didn't even seem to notice...

What's all the fuss about, Mom?

Congratulations, Quinnie! You're one step closer to being a mobile member of society- and you look so cute doing it!

Folsom Zoo

2010-01-18T15:21:00.000-08:00

Mimi came to visit this past weekend, and while Phil was golfing, we decided we better find a way to enjoy the last dry day in our 10 day forecast! Since we had to coordinate around nap times for optimal happiness, we settled on the Folsom Zoo. It does have a couple of tigers and bears (oh my), but it's mostly made up of peacocks and roosters. I wish I could have gotten a picture of Myla chasing after those roosters, but I was too worried about her getting her eyes pecked out to try and snap a picture! What a brave little monkey!

The last time we were here, Myla refused to stick her head through the cardboard and take a picture. With Mimi around, though, she was happy to oblige.

She still loved the deer the best!

We even rode the little train around the zoo. Myla was pretty skeptical at first, but by the end of the ten minute ride, she wanted to go again...and I may have let her if we weren't freezing!

Training Wheel

2010-01-13T13:04:00.000-08:00

We wanted Quinn to use a binkie so she wouldn't become a thumb sucker. Soothies were the only binks we could get her to use, but I'm starting to think they're actually thumb-sucking training wheels in disguise...

Suzy Homemaker

2010-01-12T13:17:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I stumbled across this really cool website called Rookie Moms that breaks down activities by your child's age group: the different stages of infancy, toddler, and preschool. They have some really cool ideas and since today was supposed to be pretty soggy start to finish, I looked up their pattern for making baby doll dresses out of felt. It looked easy enough for even a non-domestic like myself...and it was! It took about an hour (with breaks for reading and snack time), and if you're less than two years old, you don't even notice what a terrible stitcher I am! Myla couldn't believe her eyes. She hugged her baby with wide eyes and said, "Pink bow!" Please tell me it will always be this easy to make her happy!

Morning at the park

2010-01-11T12:20:00.000-08:00

I think the Zantac is really working. We still need to work on sleeping through the night, but Quinn has been so much more content. It's like a breath of fresh air for all of us. This morning I was able to meet a friend to walk and Quinn actually rode in the stroller! After the walk I took the girls to the park and the two sister got to swing together for the first time.

I think Quinn kind of looks like a lobster with her big huge mittens. They kept her entertained, though!

It's been hard to get a good picture of Myla lately. She has a cold and no matter how often I wipe her nose, it's still a little booger factory. Somehow, this one turned out!

Myla really enjoyed getting to swing with Quinnie. She's really getting into the whole big sister gig. It makes my heart sing!

Six month old

2010-01-08T13:06:00.000-08:00

Quinn turned six months old on Sunday! We had our six month check up yesterday and learned that she is 27.5 inches long and weighs 15.8 pounds. Since I spent the second half of the appointment by myself with a sick toddler who's afraid of the doctor's office and a sad baby that had just received multiple immunizations, I'm disappointed to say I left the paper with the actual percentiles at the doctor's office. Although he didn't tell me specifics, I'll ball-park it based on the line graph from the computer screen. Her height is off the chart (literally, my poor little Amazon) and her weight is somewhere in the middle.

Now for the hopeful part...Poor Quinn has had sleep issues like most newborns since the day she was born, but it seems they have gotten incrementally worse in the last two months. Unfortunately, I spent so much time trying not to compare the two girls, that it took me awhile to realize that not only does Quinn not sleep through the night AT ALL, but she seems to feel pretty miserable about it, as well. Since returning from vacation the crabbiness spilled its way into our days, too. If she's not sleeping , she wants to be held (and by want I mean cries uncontrollably until I pick her up). Holding babies is a fun job, but not always practical if you need to chase after a toddler, or you just want to brush your teeth or update your blog. Tummy time is still an issue, albeit less so now that she can roll over...and we've started to wonder if maybe she has reflux.

I worried that since she has never been a spitter upper that our doctor would think I was ridiculous, but given some of her other symptoms, he thinks it's worth looking into and wrote her a prescription for acid reflux. We should know within the week if this is offering her some relief, or if...this is just her little personality. Things look up, though. We've had the best morning that I can remember. She actually played on the floor by herself for about ten minutes without crying. When she did start to cry, she stopped as soon as she heard my voice! She felt so good this morning, that we had time for a little photo shoot.

Please do you best to focus on the cute little smile and ignore the random shoe and other toys in the background!

These eyes are not brown!

This is the picture of a sweet girl playing contently- by herself!

Playing Catch up

2010-01-01T13:51:00.000-08:00

For those of you with Google Reader, after a holiday hiatus, I've finally caught up on my blogs all about Christmas day, and more about Christmas day, Quinn's first trip to the beach, and visiting friends and family. Happy New Year!

More Family

2010-01-01T13:19:00.000-08:00

We have been so blessed to see so much family since Quinn has been born. We've seen the Portland relatives at least three times in the last six months, which has to be some kind of record. Scott, Pam, Ashley, and Ben made the trip down to southern California to watch Steve's basketball tournament and it was so much fun. For some reason Myla has decided that cousin Ben hung the moon for her personal pleasure. Seriously, when he's around she is either hugging his leg, holding his hand, or gazing at him in unabashed pleasure. Poor Ben is about as embarrassed as you would expect a seventh grade boy to be, but inwardly, I like to believe he's a little pleased with himself. They make quite the odd couple!

Here they are sitting on a park bench at sunset.

She is pretty impressed with cousin Ashley, too. They spend a fun evening playing at the park while the boys of the family played baseball.

While Myla played, Quinnie got acquainted with Auntie Pam.

It was such a whirl wind trip, but seeing our babies enjoy family made it all worth it. See you next year, Uncle Steve. Thanks for the fun trip!

Visiting Friends

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

While down in San Diego we were able to catch up with some friends that we don't get to see as often as we'd like. On Monday night, we were able to visit Dave, Erin, and baby Ewan. They used to live in our neck of the woods, but decided seasons weren't for them and headed back to San Diego. That last statement might not be entirely accurate, but we miss them up here, so I can paint it how I like. If you want their version of the story, check out their blog here! Just before they moved, baby Ewan was born and it was fun to get all the babies together again.

He is such a happy baby, it was fun to let them roll around a little.

He has about three months and 15 pounds on Quinn!

Tuesday morning I was supposed to take both girls to go visit with my friend Christina was is expecting her first in March, but after a night of no sleep (thanks to the darling angel to the left in the picture directly above) and a raging headache early in the morning, only Quinn and I made it.

It was so fun to see her and her husband and talk baby talk, but I did a horrible job of taking pictures. Sorry Dave and Baby Boy Keene, you missed the photo ops.

First Trip to the Beach

2010-01-01T12:33:00.000-08:00

The day after Christmas we went down to Carlsbad for Steve's basketball tournament. Our hotel was a five minute walk to the beach, so even though it was a little chilly for our little summer baby, we walked down so Quinnie could have her first day at the beach.

Once we got there, Grandma Ann kept her nice and cozy in a huge blanket, and Myla let Sissy borrow her hat. She kind of looks like a little homeless baby, but she was happy and there's beauty in that!

She's got her Grammie, her duck, and a cozy place to relax. What more could a girl ask for?

Good company and the warm sun at your back.

Myla was a little irritated with the feeling of sand between her toes, but within minutes she was doing what she does best: organizing and rearranging!

Then, when we weren't watching quite as closely,

she decided to try the sand out for taste.

Not impressed!

Christmas Day Part 2

2010-01-01T12:17:00.000-08:00

As the excitement of the trip was beginning to wear off and it was almost time for a nap, we took Myla to the park. Quinn fell asleep in the Bjorn and didn't make any of the pictures. Great timing, huh?

Uncle Steve met us at the park half way through his run.

When Myla's tired, inevitably she wants to stick to the swings, but with a little encouragement from Grammie, she finally made it down the slide.

Christmas Day Part 1

2010-01-01T12:11:00.000-08:00

We drove down to Yucaipa this year to spend Quinnie's first Christmas and Myla's second with Grandma Ann and Uncle Steve. Steve coaches the Eisenhower Eagles and takes the boys to the Torrey Pines Tournament every year, so we packed our little family up for a week of southern California traffic...I mean fun! For those of you who have never had the pleasure, packing for two small children in diapers for a week long stint over the holidays is no small feat, yet thanks to a very patient husband (and a pretty roomy minivan) we did it with room to spare for golf clubs! On the trip down, Myla was pumped. She sang and talked for the entire eight hours minus a thirty minute cat nap. We had some finger food on Christmas Eve, then went to bed so Santa could come. Amazingly, both girls slept pretty good. When they woke up Christmas morning, we opened stockings.

Quinn made out pretty good considering she's had less than six months to make Santa's nice list!

I forgot to get a picture with Myla with all her loot from Santa, but she did love the little googly eyed book Santa found at Target's dollar bin.

This picture was just an experiment with the pastel color option on my new Christmas camera.

The Joy of Sleep Deprivation

2009-12-16T07:52:00.000-08:00

Does this look like the face of a cold-blooded sleep killer?

Poor little Quinnie is still learning how to sleep through the night. Some nights she gets up twice, others ten times, then she throws in a one time just to get her parents hope up the next night! Actually we're finding the days following the once-a-nighters are the worst of all...like after months of deprivation the human body no longer recognizes sleep as a necessary function and attacks it like a foreign agent. (We are actually thinking about buying ear plugs and taking turns sleeping while the other parent listens for late night emergencies just so our bodies can stop attacking sleep!). I know some of you must think, "Surely they knew what they were in for. It's not like she's their first!" but let me assure you this is not the case! Myla was, and is today, a beautiful sleeper. By three months of age she slept 12-14 hours a night and never looked back. Be forewarned you innocent parents of one: we thought we had it figured out...then came number two! I am SO glad we didn't know what we were in for, though, because I am learning to enjoy the little things all over again...like the way Quinn snuggles against my shoulder at the end of a long day, or how she sings to her reflection as we're driving down the road, or my ultimate favorite- watching the two girls I love best holding hands and giggling on the floor together. We are so lucky to be in this place together!

Another snow picture

2009-12-07T15:27:00.000-08:00

First snow...

Annual Snowman

2009-12-07T10:04:00.000-08:00

The weather report yesterday called for snow today, but since it NEVER snows here, I thought surely the meterologists just hadn't seen their copy of An Inconvenient Truth yet. Turns out Al Gore was wrong- not the local weather forecasters, and we have more snow earlier than ever in recorded history! School was cancelled, which is AWESOME because basketball season started, we have not seen as much of Phil as we would like. Even though our kids are too little for school, it's fun for Daddy to have a snow day with us!

What do you call fear of Santa Claus?

2009-12-06T16:28:00.000-08:00

Claustrophobia!

We took the girls to see Santa on Saturday, and it didn't go nearly as smoothly as last year! We had our suspicions, so we have been talking him up for the last week. Every time a Santa related commercial or Christmas song comes on, we've gotten really excited (Myla's favorites are that Verizon-Santa with his reindeer and every version of "Santa Baby." Quinnie could really care less!). I even hung Myla's Christmas tree ornament showing her sitting on Santa's lap on a really low branch of our tree so that she could go and look at it whenever she wanted- and she did, a lot! Ever the fashionista, she was particularly enthralled with his gloves!

Santa was downtown Placerville yesterday in the window of the Thomas Kinkade gallery- which is a whole other story. (I was just glad we had two little girls and not a crazy little climbing hurricane in human form as we stood in line for 15 minutes surrounded by glass shelves and three hundred dollar hand-painted porcelain Christmas ornaments! Yikes!) Anyway, I thought Myla would freak the second she saw Santa, but she got really excited. Phil took her up to the front of the line to watch the other kids sit on Santa's lap while I waited in line with a very patient Quinn. Myla was so pumped that she tried to trot in with the group in front of us! Finally, it was our turn. I put Quinn on Santa's lap where she took one look, then went straight back to sucking her thumb. Meanwhile, Myla eagerly headed for Santa at a dead run, then inches before actually reaching him, came to a screeching halt and tried to high tail it in the opposite direction! Phil had to physically place her on Santa's lap where she proceeded to scream bloody murder while writhing and arching her back in an attempt to physically vault herself from his lap! In the end, we got exactly the picture we expected in the most unexpected way.

I am a little annoyed with how this post displayed. Why isn't it automatically line breaking like it used to? Any one know how to fix this?

Big Baby

2009-12-03T19:55:00.001-08:00

Myla is terrified of the vacuum for which I blame myself. Throughout the first year of her life, she had no idea what a vacuum was because we had hardwood floors and I always used a broom. After her fear became apparent, I saved vacuuming for nap time. Now we have carpet in every room and Myla carries her little snacks around EVERYWHERE, which means if I don't want ants, she's going to have to get used to the vacuum. Unfortunately, whenever she sees it, she scrambles up my legs like a cat up a tree. I've tried vacuuming while balancing her on one hip, but she's not the feather weight she used to be, and it's tricky negotiating turns (does that say more about her or my vacuuming style?). Next I tried using the Hotsling to distribute the weight a little more evenly, but that just cut off the circulation in my opposite shoulder. Finally this morning I had an epiphany! I remembered the backpack we were given last summer but still haven't had a chance to use. It was awesome! Not only could I comfortably clean the entire living room, but I even got in a few squats!

Thanks for the backpack, Su!

Five Months Old

2009-12-03T06:41:00.001-08:00

I'm always surprised to find out some one is actually reading my blog (outside of the handful of family members that I force to look at it through direct e-mails of my posts), but apparently Quinn has been blog surfing...at least she read the post on tummy time, and decided she better get her act together and start rolling over, which she has done exactly four times since then! It's always tummy to back, never vice versa, but even tummy time is improving. Yesterday she made it a full seven minutes before she started to fuss. So by the five month mark, she can roll over, grab rings, laugh her little belly off, and -in an attempt to get her to sleep through the night- we've started rice cereal. She's not too sure about it yet, but she doesn't seem to hate it. She just opens her little mouth, shoots her eyebrows up in surprise, and manages to swallow a minuet amount while using her tongue to push the rest back out on her bib.

P.S. Quinnie, if you're reading this, great job on the tummy time, wanna try sleeping through the night now?

Christmas Tree

2009-11-26T19:21:00.000-08:00

I love the holiday season. I know some people complain that retail stores and radio stations start pushing Christmas as soon as Halloween is over, but I say, "Bring it!" As I posted earlier, we didn't get a Christmas tree last year, which was a big bummer but our house was so small, our dog was so big, and our baby was so young, it just didn't seem like it was worth it. This year, though, we have more room and and an older baby, so we decided we better get our act together. Both girls got their first Christmas tree! We went and picked out a tree this morning, then after Myla's nap today we hung the lights and put up the ornaments.

This was as close as Myla got to actually helping...

and this was about as close as Quinn got!

Honestly, Phil did all the work and I just sat back, took some pictures, and nursed the baby.

It's the perfect tree to get a little girl excited about all things Christmas...

I wish I could say we listened to Christmas music, ate cookies, and drank eggnog, but instead we watched the game, then I made Myla a P.B. & J. Eggnog's kinda gross anyway!

The unThanksgiving

2009-11-26T19:19:00.000-08:00

This year we decided to celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow with my mom so that my sister and her family could make it. Rather than blow off Thanksgiving all together, though, Phil and I really wanted to find something fun to do with the girls. Since we're going to be gone for Christmas, we decided to get our Christmas tree. We didn't have one last year and Myla has been really excited about pumpkins since Halloween, so I was kind of ready to shift her interest. We hoped to find a place to cut down our own tree, but we ended up grabbing up a Noble Fir that was trucked down from the higher elevation (not Oregon, thank goodness. Nothing against Oregon, but Oregon trees seem to die fast in California). They promised us it would live until March, which we might find out considering the type of housework that gets down around here!

walking around the tree farm...

Myla was so excited to sit next to Quinnie. At one point I tried to put Quinn in my lap and Myla had a fit. She did NOT want to sit by Mommy. She wanted to sit by "Kennie!"

Happiness is...

2009-11-25T11:20:00.000-08:00

Oregonian for "Oxymoron"

2009-11-23T20:15:00.000-08:00

Beavers vs. Ducks in a Civil War for the Rose Bowl . Let the count down begin!

Tummy Time

2009-11-20T16:16:00.000-08:00

Tummy time may very well be the bane of my existence. Both my girls hate(d) it, and therefore so do I. I realize their lack of tummy time is largely my fault, since in both cases I was the responsible adult with coordinating arms, legs, hands, and feet, and the ability to lay them on their tummies whether they liked it or not, but with both girls I didn't take full advantage of the early formative weeks. When Myla was a newbie, I was worried Dozer would step on her and with Quinn, I thought Myla would sit on her (because she actually did a couple of times...) By the time they seemed sturdy enough to survive the elements, they were also old enough to (LOUDLY) voice their own opinions. They hated tummy time, so I put it on the back burner. I constantly worried with Myla that she would have a flat head for the rest of her days, but as luck would have it, the minute she learned to roll over she decided to be a tummy sleeper. Within a month or two that flat little head popped right back out! So with Quinn, I relaxed a little and told myself that everything would correct itself once she started rolling over. Here's the rub, though: she's four and a half months old and not even the tiniest bit interested in rolling over. She hasn't even done it by accident! At her last doctor's appointment, the pediatrician said to be glad she was a girl, at least her hair would (eventually) cover it up. Not exactly what I was hoping to hear...especially since she's COMPLETELY bald right now! I realized yesterday that it's time to take back the reigns of tummy time. Because I'm too pathetic to force her suck it up on my own merit, I set the kitchen timer once in the morning and once at night. Whether she cries, screams, vomits, or turns red she must practice laying on that little belly until either the timer rings or she learns to roll herself over. And with the next child...we'll do tummy time in the pack 'n play rather than wait until he/she is tough enough to get sat on!

Things that go Thump!

2009-11-19T20:43:00.000-08:00

Some of you know I am a horrible sleeper. I remember as early as second or third grade laying awake, staring at the bunk above, listening to Stephanie's easy breathing, and stressing out about the speed math quiz in school tomorrow, hoping I would get 100% again and not tarnish my perfect record. Yeah, I’m a dork, I know. Although I’ve gotten better through the years (Africa helped), I still haven’t been able to shake the occasional stress-induced bout of insomnia, especially now that I’m a mom of more than one.

Both my girls have their first colds of the season and a few nights ago, I fell into bed after a long day thankful for a comfy bed and a dark room. Within the first hour I was awakened three different times to comfort crying babies and by the third time, I was done. Brain wired open. Oh joy. I lay in bed for an hour and a half hoping it wasn’t so before I got up to surf the Net and pray for sleep. That’s when I heard the thumping.

This isn’t the first time I’ve heard thumps in the night. It actually started three or four months ago. I have laid in bed many a night thinking I heard heavy foot falls down the hallway, but I've always dismissed the idea as postpartum paranoia (not sure if that really exists, but it was easier for me to think this at two in the morning than to really believe someone was breaking into my house and pacing the hallways every night).

Anyway, from my insomnia induced perch at the computer, I could clearly see down the hall and no one else was there, yet the noise continued from a real place outside of my head. Finally, it all clicked for me...it wasn’t an intruder at all, but Quinn raising her tiny legs and thumping them down again against her mattress... over and over again to the rhythm of heavy foot steps. My own little Thumper. Who knew babies can also have restless leg syndrome? Or that I would ever be glad for a little insomnia? Mystery solved!