Finishing off May

We finished May with piano recitals and a trip to the Silver Dollar Fair. The highlights were the Farris wheel, seeing Wilbur, and enjoying a funnel cake. I'm not big on going to the fair, but the kids convinced their dad that it would be a fun family activity.

Hazel Faye

My sister Leanne FINALLY had her baby. Hazel Faye entered the world in the early morning hours of May 19th (2 wks late). She weighed in at 6 lbs 12 oz/19 inches long. Mom, Dad & baby are doing just fine. We are so excited to have another new niece and cousin in our family!

Marks

My husband gives me an A
for last night's supper,
an incomplete for my ironing,
a B plus in bed.

My son says I am average,
an average mother, but if
I put my mind to it
I could improve.

My daughter believes
in Pass/Fail and tells me
I pass. Wait 'til they learn
I'm dropping out.

Linda Pastan

I absolutely love this poem. It seems to portray exactly how I feel sometimes trying to be a wife, mother, and student at the same time.

Finals are finally over! I only took 2 classes this past semester, but it is always a relief to be finished--even if it's only for a couple of weeks (I'm taking an online class during the summer)

I'm officially a senior now at Chico State. I have a goal to be finished before Andrea enters college--that means I only have 3 years left to complete my goal. Whoo Hoo!

Cabbage Anyone?

Bonnie Plants’ Third Grade Cabbage Program

"Through the program, Bonnie Plants provides free cabbage starter plants to third grade students across the country whose teachers have signed up to participate. Each student plants his or her own cabbage, waters it and cares for it. The plants are for oversized cabbages, so they’re especially fun to watch as they get bigger and bigger and bigger."


Kiana was given a small cabbage plant in March to plant and take care of for 2 months. She was a great gardener! She was very diligent about making sure it was watered everyday.




Finally the big day arrived and we brought her fully grown cabbage to school. I wondered if we should even bother with digging it up and transporting it to school for a simple show and tell--I'm so glad we did!


Her cabbage plant was the biggest by far! She won 1st place. She was so proud. We were asked how we helped the cabbage grow so big. Sun and water were our secret ingredients. Kiana received her own garden hoe and a package of corn seeds along with some yummy, gummy worms to eat.


Now the question is--What can we make with cabbage?

Happy Mother's Day

"A mother is one to whom you hurry when you are troubled."
~Emily Dickinson


"A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie."
~Tenneva Jordan


"Mother - that was the bank where we deposited all our hurts and worries."
~T. DeWitt Talmage

Andrea's Fifteen!

WOW! I can't believe Andrea is fifteen! It feels like yesterday when I was just fifteen. (That was the age I was when I met my husband--eek!) Andrea is growing up to be a beautiful young lady. We love having her a part of our family.


This year for her birthday she received a shopping trip with grandma (cute new clothes), a lunch date with the girls, a new smoothie maker, and a cell phone. Aaron and I weren't sure when we should let our kids have this new "technology" in their lives. We hope it help us to stay connected with them--hmmmm, . . . we'll let you know how it goes. So far we've learned that kids this age need unlimited text messages!

Andrea kept her birthday simple this year only asking for balloons, Subway sandwiches for dinner, and strawberry shortcake for dessert. It was a fun treat to take our sandwiches to the park and celebrate 15 years of Andrea!

Table Top!

Every year we try to visit our favorite picnic site--Table Top Mtn. This year we didn't make it up there until the end of April due to all of the rain. However, it was definitely worth it--the wildflowers were amazing.

Our family loves throwing down a blanket, bringing a picnic lunch, and flying kites--it's so much easier attached to a fishing pole.

It's also a great place for pictures!

Marine World

Our Family took our annual after tax season trip this year to Six Flags/Marine World/Discovery Kingdom! We were only gone 2 days and 2 nights, but we packed in as much fun as we could.







There were sooo many things to do. We were there when the gates opened in the morning and left when the gates closed at night. Rides, animals, shopping, activities, & food filled our day!



The kids not only love going to fun places, but they also love staying in hotels and enjoying a heated swimming pool. After playing and exploring Marine world during the day they continued the fun in the heated pool and sauna at night.



Seth was fearless! He wanted to ride every crazy and daring ride that was available. I admit I also love the thrill and joined him on most of the rides while Aaron and the girls opted to stay on the sidelines. It didn't bother him to have me screaming beside him on the roller coasters or to ride by himself when I couldn't find the courage to join him.



The only negative thing during the trip was the endless walking! (I actually didn't mind it because it helped to counter all of the junk food that I ate during the trip!)

Baby Shower

My baby sister is having a BABY!

I was able to give my sister Leanne a baby shower. It was a lot fun planning the food, decorations, games, etc. Of course my other sisters and sister-in-laws helped too.

Lots of family & friends came to enjoy her special day. My sister Kate and her daughter Karley were able to come out for the occasion.

Leanne is due with a healthy baby ________? She and her husband want to wait until its born to find out. She is Due on May 6th. We'll let you know the exciting news as soon as it happens!

Easter 2010

It's Easter time again!

It doesn't matter how old the kids get, they still love decorating cookies, dyeing eggs and of course going on an Easter egg hunt.

The Saturday before Easter we had a BIG egg hunt at Grandma Leila's house. We enjoyed the day by visiting with family, eating great food, and some of us continued into the evening trying to find the last couple of eggs that were still hidden. (Our Easter Bunny has some great hiding spots!)

Lilacs

I know I probably say this every year, but I absolutely love my lilac bushes. For about 2 weeks toward the end of March they bloom. I am so lucky to have these amazing flowers that decorate my yard and give off a heavenly scent.

I wish I could take credit for these wonderful flowers, but I can't. They were here when we bought our home and I often times forget to water or trim them. However, every year they continue to come back and amaze me with their beauty.

Girl's Getaway!

This year I was able to get away with "my girls" and visit Monterey!

The weather was perfect so we spent most of our time outdoors! We took a drive along the coast, enjoyed some yummy food, watched the sunset, and even rode a 4 person bike. We had Sooo much fun and made some great memories.

I am so lucky to have these 3 amazing ladies in my life!

Spring Break!

Since Chico had their spring break the middle of March we were able to be enjoy St. Patty's day in style. Besides the leprechauns messing up the house and leaving gold coins, green milk, and Lucky Charms cereal, and of course having a green dinner (green beans, green jello, green grapes, green kool-aid, etc.) the kids thought it would be fun to paint up "leprechaun style"


It's amazing what you can do with a little face paint.


Aren't my leprechauns cute?


Since the day was beautiful we biked down to the channel for some water exploring. Now this is my kind of spring break. No school, sunny weather & happy kiddos.


(A big thanks to our talented face painter--Miss Andrea Brooke)

New Baby Cousin

The long wait is finally over. Our new baby cousin has arrived! It's a girl! Two weeks prior Kiana started counting down the days. It was if it was Christmas in March! We were so lucky to be able to visit the new family in the hospital and to be able to hold a NEWborn baby. The miracle of life is so amazing. Welcome to earth little one!

Haircuts & Missing Teeth!

Kiana has been asking for quite a while to have her hair cut. I've been putting it off because I knew she wanted it cut shorter than I wanted. Well, I finally gave in. She has VERY think hair and so I think she was ready to just have an easy style. It actually turned out very cute. The same day she lost a tooth at school; it had been wiggly for a while--hence the picture of the open mouth shot.