Sultan Trip November 2012

I was a very lucky girl this past weekend because I got to go back home for a few days to visit my family!  Jeff stayed home with Max and Ivy, and Scarlet and I took off for a long weekend in the woods.  I desperately wanted my Grandma to meet Scarlet, and I needed to visit with her again...and lucky me, 2 of my siblings live close to my parents, now...and the other one flew in for the week at the same time.  It was a perfect weekend!

Scarlet got some time with Mar Mar (my cute mom)

 and some cute cousins (Clara, Adee and Scarlet)

 and some more cute cousins (Clara, Sydney,Scarlet, Carson, Carter and Samantha)

and even more cute cousins: (Carter/Batman, Carson, Sydney, Adee, Scarlet, Clara, Baker, Kimball and Samantha)  We were only missing Max and Ivy...sad!  and they were missed by all!

 We spent some time with Boo Boo (my amazing Grandma)

 and took a few important pictures:

 and of course, no trip to my parents house would be complete without doing Chores with Paw Paw.

All the kids LOVE to do Chores!  No one can wait until Paw Paw gets home from work to take all the Grandkids out to feed the animals...3 Llamas, 2 Cows, 1 Dog, 1 Cat, 4 Chickens.  Scarlet got alone time with Paw Paw on Sunday after everyone had left to do chores on her own...no other kids has been this lucky!  I bundled her up, and she got to watch the llamas eat

Pet OllieBurger the cow

and talk to Chones the llama

 lucky girl!

I'm so grateful I got to go and spend time with some of my most favorite people in the world!  I only wished the rest of my kiddos and Jeff could have come, too!

I love my family!  I'm a pretty lucky girl.

Official Milestone alert: Cucumbers

If you know my kids...you know they love cucumbers!

Scarlet was inducted into the Mousser Cucumber Eater Hall of Fame last week...

 and she loved it!  

Just thought we'd share with the world this official milestone!

Park Hoppers 11/12

A couple of weekends ago, we had a long weekend...

For Jillonnie and I, Saturdays are sort of a dreaded day.  Neither of us have a husband on Saturdays, you definitely DON'T go to the beach on Saturdays {everyone else and their dog goes on Satuday} and we pretty much have all the kids home all day = not-our-favorite-day-of-the-week!

So, Saturday, we Park Hopped!

So fun!

We drew a map: {so they knew what our next stop was...and so they could guess on the way there}

 When we arrived, we set the timer for 20 minutes.  We jumped out of the car, and played like crazy at the park for 20 minutes.  When the timer went off, we all jumped in the car as fast as we could...some of us are slower than others...and sped off to the next park on our map.  

GENIUS!

We Played...

 ...and played...

 ...and played...

 ...and played...

 ...and played...

 ...and played...

 ...until well past the normal dinner time!  

I loved this Saturday!

ps...there are a jillion parks to choose from around our house, so, it only took a few minutes in between each park.  Next time, we'll hit different parks!

We saw friends from school along the way, and picked up some more hoppers at a few parks that wanted to play with us longer!

My girls

Ivy adores Scarlet.  She is so quick to help me do anything in regards to our little Scar.  She's is constantly at my side when I'm holding Scarlet, playing with her feet, or her hands, dancing around me, and being crazy in an attempt to make her laugh.  If I'm not holding her, Ivy is on the ground next to her, fiddling with her feet, bringing her toys, seeing if she wants a drink from her new sippy cup, singing to her, etc.  She loves to play with her, and loves the fact that Scarlet shares a room with her, and Scarlet really likes her big sis, too.  It's my fav.  I looked up to my older sisters so much growing up, I just know what these two girls have to look forward, or are in for (not sure) but I'm excited for them to get that special sister bond.  

I snapped some random pictures the other day while us three girls were playing.  I like each random candid picture for different reasons.

1. Ivy's latest thumb scheme (or rather mine) Self-adhesive athletic tape, like I used in Athletic Training is on her thumb as constantly as I can manage.  She despises it (she says it smells like Kitty Poop of all things), won't put it near her mouth, and she has gone 2 weeks without sucking her thumb.  (the goal is to get her to stop by turkey day with no more tape (yeah right).  Anyway, this picture shows her funny kitty poop tape, and makes me laugh.  

 2.  From birth, Ivy has had these wicked dimples in her arms.  one in her shoulder, and one in her elbow on each arm.  But these aren't your usual dimples, these things go all the way through to her bones.  (I say she's quilted).  They are my favorite, but I know that they'll fade away as she gets older, sad!  You can just see her shoulder dimple in this picture.  oh, how I love it!  

 3.  Elbow dimple...yum!

 4.  Oh, Scarlet.  i adore you.

Fun Halloween 2012

Halloween was so fun this year!

We started it all off with the ward's annual Halloween party, which is usually a Trunk or Treat...this year, we kicked it like we did back in Woodinville in the old days, and knocked on doors in the church building.  It was fun, and more contained, and I loved it.  It was fun to see everyone's costumes, and it was the first time that my kids had their costumes on for all to see, and i LOVED it!  

Ivy was a Bee, with a stinger,

Max was Blue Toad from Super Mario Brothers (wii)

and Scarlet dressed up as a little chick (we re-used Ivy's first Halloween costume)

Oh, she's so yummy! {and sitting like a champ these days}

Next big thing was Ivy's Preschool Halloween Parade.  She got to wear her costume to school, and recited a poem for the parents, and then paraded around with her class, and collected candy from some of the parents.  She cracked me up with her little stinger bouncin' around when she walked, and even though we had 'sitting-in-a-chair' lessons to deal with having a large posterior, she just chose to stand and do her work. hi-larious!

Then the big night!

We did our usual trick or treating at our local grocery store (the strip has all of the stores and restaurants pass out candy, and it's daylight, safe and awesome...we've done it every year since we moved to CA, so we HAD to do it again...it's fun)

Then, we broke out of our shell, and after dinner, we walked to a little 'normal' neighborhood down the street a couple of blocks (and by normal, I mean not down-town apartments, but real, live houses...wow)  Shockingly, we've never really done Trick or Treating in a neighborhood the way normal people do!  Can you believe it?!?  we usually do the grocery store thing, then hit my Great Aunts's house, and a few of her neighbors, and call it good.  My Great Aunt passed away this year, so we had to come up with plan B.  We live around 80 jillion apartments, with a random house every now and then, so trick or treating in apartments isn't as fun...and people don't pass out candy!

 It made me so happy!  The kids were giggling, and running from door to door.  I just had a smile on the whole time...It made my heart happy all night!  (and we busted out Max's first Halloween costume which fits Scarlet, and allows her to sit in a stroller (the chick costume doesn't) and she was so cute in it!)

 Their cute little bums:

  Trick or Treat?

  our little Scarlet cub.

 I hope everyone had a fun Halloween!

Now, we're waiting to see what the Switch Witch has left the kids in exchange for the candy tonight!!!

FNL

I've loved watching Max's football team this year!

What a difference a year makes!  Last year, Max's team was the bad-news-bears...luckliy they didn't keep score, so we didn't know how bad we really were!

But, this year, he's on a 1st/2nd grade team, and the older boys really know how to play!

They can catch, they can throw, and the actually do real plays!

Max looks up to them, and I'm looking forward to when he has another year under his belt!

His coaches are amazing...Rudy, Tony, & Danny.  They are so patient with those crazy boys.  

 Here's Max doing a running play...way in the back, you can see him in action!

 Ivy's fun Buck-an-ears shirt I made with Freezer paper.

 (Jeff is spitting seeds in the background...nice...I didn't have a picture of the shirt with him not spitting...sorry!)

 another action shot of maxer, and his teammate, Bradley

 Each kid has to sit out 1 quarter/game.  And this year, he's not bugged by it!  Like I said, what A difference a year makes!

 And a little zoomed-in 'excessive celebration' footage for pulling a flag like he meant it!  

go Bucc's

a little bit on little red

Max and Scarlet and I had a weekend all to ourselves while Ivy went to Arizona to play with Grandma for a special weekend.  (jeff had to go for business, and dropped Ivy off on the way...holy fun!)

Anyways, while she was gone (she left Wednesday) Scarlet had her 6month Drs appt.  

Height: 26.5 inches (65%)

Weight 16 lbs 7 oz (59%)

Perfect.

She's sitting up like a champ now, though she can't get there by herself, and of course crashes like humpty dumpty after a minute or so.  She's saying Dada, and bubba...and sometimes Moooooomma, but to know one in particular.  She's so stinkin' cute, and still the best baby ever!  really.

 We went on a bike ride for Scarlet's first time, which she loved, and it was a longish ride, all the way down to the beach and over and back! 

 She also started having carrots with her rice.  She loves the rice, and will eat rice mixed with carrots...but plain old carrots gets this:

 but she prefers the thumb above all else.  dang!

Ivy's first day of preschool

Ivy started Preschool on Tuesday!

She could hardly wait to be old enough to go to Preschool where Max did, and where all of her older friends have been going!  She gets to go twice a week, and so far she has loved going.  She comes home singing new songs that she's learned, and funny little things that happened.  I enjoy having a girl in school!  She gives me updates where Max just can't seem to remember what he did, other than who he played with at recess!

 On Max's first day of school, Ivy and I worked hard on her magnificent bucket...

At our preschool, they ask for kids to bring buckets, rather than back packs, that way, they can just drop things into each child's bucket when they are done.  It just makes it easy for everybody.  So, Ivy chose the mermaid theme, of course, and she helped me cut paper with my cricut and she was the glue-lady, and applied all the glue.  

Big 3-year-old on our hands!

(oh, did I mention that Scarlet and I have 3 hours to ourselves, twice a week?  woohoo!)

lately

We've been so busy lately...mostly just going to the beach and making every last minute of summer count...but last week, school started, and life is now shifting into routine.  I've been excited for the routine to be back (getting Scarlet on a good nap schedule, Max starting to go to a new school, and Ivy is starting preschool this week)  But, I'm sure going to miss my beach chair!  Here are some pics of the last couple of days:

Max is starting First grade at a new school, and so far he loves it!  He has a friend from church in his class named Katelyn, and he really likes his teacher, so far!  I'm excited to hopefully volunteer in his classroom again this year, and see him progress in school...this kid is a stinkin' smarty pants.  love him.

 Scarlet turned 5 months old.  Holy cow, I feel like she's been around for forever...it seems like it was so long ago that she was so tiny I didn't want to go anywhere with her, but she's been to the beach almost every day of her 5 month long life and she's still so WHITE!  :)  She is THE most amazing baby...always so happy and calm.  She loves Ivy and Max, and they love her so much.  They are both so quick to help me with her, and just can't get enough of her.  Me neither!  Her darling little smile just melts me, and now she's starting roaring like a lion and talking (dadadadadaadadadadadda) like cuh-razy...love it!

Ivy starts Preschool this week, she's so excited to be a big girl!  In preparation, she got a nice new big girl hair cut...daddy doesn't love it, but oh my gosh, I think it's so cute!

She looked in the mirror and said:

'mom, i think i look like some-body else....I think she's YOU'

ha, poor girl, she is a little mini-me....she's such a fun girl. sassy, but fun!

and that's us, lately!