Just when I thought it was safe....

To put all the kids summer clothes away, summer showed up in Oakland. Of course! It's ok though, I'm not complaining. September has been absolutely gorgeous! Wonderful weather. If this is what fall is like, I'll take it. Plus around here fall means all kinds of fun stuff! Like pumpkin patches and apple orchards, and fall festivals. Oh and Halloween Camping!!!! Yes, we're doing it again this year and we are SOOO excited!! We haven't been camping this year at all so we're happy to be going, and extra happy that it's Halloween camping cuz...dude, that was so much fun last year. AND......AND !!! We just booked our trip to DISNEYLAND for November!!!! Is it wrong that I'm so painfully excited that we're going to Disneyland? Seriously, I'm 99% sure I'm more excited than my kids are. And the other cool thing? We're staying here. Oh YEAH! Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Spa. Have you seen this place? Click over. I'll wait............................Um yeah. It's kind of fantastic. I've always wanted to stay in a Disney Hotel but never had the chance to do it. Usually, they're pretty outrageously expensive. We usually stay at the Embassy Suites, which we all love. The breakfast, the room, the free drinks and snacks at 7 every evening. Oh and the Koi pond. The kids love the Koi pond. The only bad thing was having to take the shuttle to and fro the parks. That wasn't horrible, but it would be nice to be closer to the park...at least walking distance. So I started looking into our options when we decided we were definitely going to go. Turns out during "off season" they give super awesome deals on Disney trips. This hotel is usually way, way WAY out of our price range. But since it's off season, they took a giant 30% off. It made it only slightly higher than the Embassy Suites. And it's inside California Adventure. Can't get much closer than that! Yes, there is an unhealthy amount of excitement inside me right now! You can laugh, it's ok.
Thank you for all your kind words about Nacho. We are all doing much better now. And we're not considering getting another dog any time soon! One is fine and we're loving her and caring for her more than ever now.
And that's about it. Here's some pics I took of the kids last weekend because every post needs a pic or two. :)

Tragedy strikes.

Our dog died last Saturday. It was awful. AW. FUL. Nacho was always kind of a strange little dog. But we loved him anyway. Friday night Jake went out to feed the dogs and Nacho came out of the bushes looking all weird. Weirder than normal. He had been digging (obvious from the dirt all over him) but his eyes also looked kinda wiggy too. I can't explain it. But he didn't look right. I just kinda shrugged off though and said he was fine and to just go ahead and feed him. Well about an hour later I walk by the back door and notice him still standing over his food bowl, but not eating it. And then snapping at our other dog when she walked by. He never does this. And usually the food is gone in 10 seconds anyway. I just thought maybe he doesn't feel good and again I just passed it off as nothing. A few hours later I walked by the door again and decided to go check on him and he didn't come. He always comes. They both do as soon as the door opens. I called him. Still nothing. Finally after a few more calls he came stumbling out of the bushes with his head down. I just wasn't sure what to do. I knew something was wrong, but...what?? He slowly made his way back to the bushes and hid and I could not get him to come out. Oh and I should mention that Pete was not home all weekend. He had a group of hunters and would not be back until Sunday afternoon. I've had enough animals in my lifetime to know that when they go hiding in bushes and won't come out, there's really something wrong. But what could I do?
I went to bed that night and just hoped that he would be better in the morning.
When I got up Saturday, I went to the back door and saw both dogs cuddling together on the patio. I figured Nacho must be feeling better because that's how I find them most mornings anyway. And, well, he wasn't in the bushes so I thought that was a good sign.
I went about my day normally. We got dressed, went to the store and ran some errands. We got back home around 1 that afternoon. I went to the back door and noticed only Maggie was at the door. No Nacho. My heart stopped for a second. This could not be good. I called for him. Nothing. The kids and I both went out on the patio and called and called. Finally, Jake says "mommy! he's in here!" Oh thank goodness I thought, he's just lying in the dog house. But oh, it was just awful. Nacho was lying in the dog house, just barely hanging on to life. It was the most horrible sight. To see an animal suffering like that, and knowing there just wasn't anything I could do. I quickly rushed the kids back in the house. They are a total MESS at this point crying and sobbing. I'm panicking, not sure what to do. I mean, what am I going to do? THERE IS NO HUSBAND HERE TO DEAL WITH THIS! And I couldn't just leave him there.
I quickly pulled myself together and went back into the house. I gathered up the kids and did the only thing I could think of to comfort them and myself. We said a little prayer, and hoped that God would take Nacho to heaven quickly so that he wouldn't suffer any longer. It was the most pitiful prayer. The kids just wailed and sobbed.
I made them lunch and then waited with a pit in my stomach.
But God seriously answered our prayer, and quickly. I checked outside after a few minutes and it was evident that he had passed.
Thank goodness my neighbor was home. I felt horrible, but I had to ask him to come and assist with the burial. I felt horrible. I mean who asks their neighbor to bury a dog? I do. I just could not have done it myself. Thank goodness for good neighbors. He used to work at a vet so he knew just what to do.
We figured Nacho had eaten something bad...There's all kinds of critters around here. And it was pretty evident by the way he expired, that he had either eaten poison, or eaten something that had been poisoned. It is a terrible way to go.
I can't help but feel guilty some how. Or negligent. I knew he was sick. I just didn't realize HOW sick until it was too late. There was nothing I could have done. But still. I still feel horrible about the whole situation. It's one thing when your dog is old and you kinda know he's getting on in years and the end will come soon. It's another thing when they're young and just acting weird one night and then GONE the next day.
And poor Maggie. She just seems so sad now. We've all been trying to give her extra love. We also went and did a major cleaning up of the back yard. I DO NOT want it to happen again.
Luckily Maggie is getting older and isn't too interested in eating things she's not supposed to anymore.
Anyway. So that's the drama that's been going on around here.
A more lighthearted post to come soon.

Flying by the seat of my pants.

Every week I make a plan for the next week regarding our homeschool. I make a pretty detailed lesson plan including what we'll do every day in Language Arts, Math, Science, History/Geography and Extra/Life Skills/PE etc... I go through each of our textbooks reading the lessons, making copies of worksheets, deciding if there might be a field trip we could go on that would go with science or history. I usually try and plan some sort of art or craft project. I try and make sure there are plenty of outings and at least one day a week we get together with our neighbors.


I do all this, yet most days I still feel like I have no idea what I'm doing. I use my lesson plan as a road map, but almost daily I'm finding ways to enrich our learning even more. See all my notes everywhere? :) I fell like we're learning good stuff, but it's just little spurts of information and then that's it, we quickly move on to the next topic. One of the things that always intrigued me most about homeschooling was the ability to really dive into a subject and truly study it. I'm not sure we're quite there yet. The curriculum I chose (for English, and Science especially) is mostly standard based. So, kind of like public school, you move through it rather quickly and I'm not sure how much of it is really retained. I like the idea of the short, concise lessons, but I also like the idea of lots of hands on projects and experiences so that you (your kid) really remembers the subject. I think I've done okay at adding things in, but I'm already thinking that next year I might look into a more comprehensive program, especially for science. (since both kids seem to enjoy it so much)
It's all a learning experience, right?
I did find this fantastic History through literature program. So far I am really loving it. It's from a company called Beautiful Feet Books. We chose the Early American History pack. The program is supposed to go through about 2 years of school. It IS Christian based material so our charter school would not fund this. {Religion is not my focus with our curriculum, I feel like my kids get a lot of it at home anyway, and of course at church and Sunday school, but I thought this particular program was really well put together and that's why I chose it} It's not cheap. What I ended up doing is buying the first 2 or 3 books on my own on Amazon along with the lesson manual. When I finish what we have, I'll go and order more books. Side note: have you tried Amazon Prime? it's 70 bucks a year and on most items you get FREE 2 day shipping. Ok so it's not free, but it pays for itself quickly if you use Amazon a lot. I bought all my Christmas presents last year this way and it was awesome. Totally worth the 70 dollars.
So back to Early American History..... We're currently reading the first book in the series, Leif the Lucky. This book is about Leif Erikson, the person believed to first discover North America about 500 years before Columbus. (I had no idea. See, I'm learning too!) Leif is a Viking, his father originally from Norway. The lesson materials don't really go into detail about Vikings, so I thought it would be good to study these people at little more in depth. I thought...wouldn't be cool to make our own model of a Viking ship? I looked up model ships online. Wow, they're pretty intense, even for an adult, and um...expensive! So I nixed that idea. I thought, ok....maybe we could just color a picture of a Viking ship. So I googled: free viking ship coloring page and found this.



I LOVE the internet!!
And can I just tell you, the Crayola Website is seriously awesome!! Where have I been?? There are free coloring pages GALORE. Free games and activities. VIDEOS. My kids love the videos. There are a lot of really great craft ideas. I've bookmarked it and I have a feeling I'll be using this website a LOT in the coming months. Especially for rainy days.
Anyway, I don't intend on making this a homeschool blog, but since it is part of our daily life, I will, from time to time, post about certain things. Especially cool things!

Vacation best and worst.

Best: Spending time with family, just the four of us. I've been to this little cabin many times before, but always with my dad. This time it was just us. And though I love coming here with my dad, it was really kinda cool to just have the place to ourselves. I felt like a grown-up.


Best: Doing absolutely nothing. Really. There are lots of places to go and things to do around the area. But we chose to just hang out. The farthest we went was the beach.

Worst: Pete somehow got a stiff neck the first night we were there. So he kinda just layed around all day Saturday. It was ok though. I just felt bad for him.

Best: Blueberry Struesell french toast. Oh my word, YUM! I kept seeing this bread at Target (it's their Market Pantry brand, I think) and thought, hey it's vacation, I'm going to get it. I had the idea right away that it should be made into french toast. I was so right. Man, it was good! I only had a few bites though, cuz ya know, I'm still watching the figure ;0) They also have an apple fritter flavor, that I think would be good too. Oh and don't forget to use heavy cream in your custard mix. I'm positive it made all the difference. (it will make all the difference on your hips too)

Best: walks to the park and around the town with my little people.


Worst: Jake dropping the $5 mini pack of Tylenol I bought for Pete at the little mini-mart somewhere between the store and the beach and then having to back-track to find it. We did. Eventually. But I was kinda mad for a minute.

Best: Sunny afternoons. When it's cold and foggy at the beach, it's pretty miserable. But man-o-man when the sun comes out....it's like heaven! Just awesome.



Worst: Almost being submerged in the freezing cold Pacific Ocean.

Best: My husband knowing better than to do that and putting me back down. :)


Best: Knowing that now, him picking me up to throw me in said ocean, will not give him a hernia.

Best: Spending Sunday with our friends Joe and Carolina. They are a little younger than us and so far have no kids. But they are really fun to hang out with. They're both with great with kids, and don't seem to mind being around them all day and doing kid things. They just came down for the day, but we had a great time with them at the beach. Joe dug Jake a giant whole in the sand and put him in, and then filled it up to his neck. Jake loved it. Carolina walked Megan along the shore looking for sand crabs and shells. Carolina saw dolphins in the wild for the first time ever. She was totally amazed. It was pretty cool, they were so close to shore and gave us all a show.


Worst: Waking up Monday morning to warm sunny skies. Technically, this is an awesome thing. But it kinda sucked because we had to come home. That always seems to happen...we get the best weather on the day we have to leave.

Worst: Pukeage one exit away from home. Is this my lot in life with these kids? Vacation=Puke?? Please tell me no! Seriously, less than 5 minutes from home Megan barfed in the back seat.

Best: Being only 5 minutes from home after aforementioned pukeage. I have to say, that that is definitely an advantage.

Best: Leather seats.

Best: easily removable and washable car seat covers!

Worst: the Graco Booster with the back attached...I really hate this thing. She's still little enough that she requires the booster to have a back. But the back comes off very, very easily. But for some reason (mostly because I'm retarded) it is a b*tch to put back together. Do you moms know what I'm talking about? Is there a trick? What am I doing wrong? I about threw the thing off a cliff today. I'm not kidding, ask my kids. They're still hovering in the corner. ;o)

Worst: Having to get back to school work today. We're all just kinda blah today and it was hard getting back into the swing of things. The morning was great, but we petered out pretty quick. 4 days of no school is kind of a lot, I guess.

Worst: Laundry, laundry, laundry. Oh my goodness, the laundry.

Obviously, the good far outweighs the bad.

Birthday Girl

Saturday was Megan's fourth birthday. How in the world did my sweet baby girl turn into....well, a girl??! I know she hasn't been a baby for a while, but dang...four just seems so big all of a sudden. When she got up in the morning I told her happy birthday and said that I thought she definitely looked a little different today and maybe even a tiny bit bigger. She smiled. A few minutes later I found her inspecting herself in the closet mirror in my room. She had to see for herself. :)
We headed back up to Pete's mom and dads for the day.


They needed some help building a shed for their well and so we went to help, and have a little party for Megs too.
Jake and cousin Hannah played all day together. They had so much fun! They spent all morning pounding nails into old wood and then all afternoon catching grasshoppers and butterflies.


Megan spent most of her day with Faith. It was great. Faith is just about old enough to babysit (almost 12) and really seemed to be good with just watching her all day.


In the late afternoon we got down to the birthday party. I made (or tried to anyway) red velvet cupcakes. Only they turned out to be pink velvet because I ran out of red food coloring! Oh well, they were pretty good anyway.
Megan just loved when we all sang Happy Birthday to her.


I didn't bring any candles and Grandma didn't have any bday candles so we used what we could find. One giant candle did the trick. :)


Opening presents:


Then we decided to take an afternoon stroll with the dogs through Grandma's neighborhood. It's just beautiful up there!


And that's about it. It was a really nice weekend. I do wish we could have stayed longer (again) but it was nice to just get away for the day.
My favorite picture from the day...I just love it! We were missing 2 cousins though...I wish it could have been all 6 kids.



So looking forward to the weekend in Santa Cruz!!!

Ten Random.

Well hello blog.
We have been SO busy lately. Going and doing and schooling and going and doing more. I've been wanting to blog it all though. I really want to. Because I haven't scrapbooked in months and the blog is the next best thing, I suppose. But I dunno...both blogging and scrapbooking and even editing pictures just seems like *ugh* such a task lately. Like one more thing to do. I don't want it to feel like that. But for now...I think it is what it is. But I'm going to try and make a better effort to get in here and write things down.
Anyway, here's what's been going on:
(photo's are random from the last month or so)



1. Summer is finally here! at least for a day or two. Yesterday was 98* (shocking!) today is still about 90*. I love the heat and this weather makes me happy. ( I know, feel free to slap me) Buuuutt...yes there is a but...heat without A/C is not quite as enjoyable. Because it rarely gets this warm in the Bay Area, no one puts A/C's in their homes. Being outside in the heat is one thing...but not being able to escape it a little by going inside, is another. Our living room was stifling last night. Just miserably hot. And we have leather furniture, so we were all sticking to it. eeeww. I would go out and buy a fan, but it's going to be back to the 60's by Friday so I'll be pulling on the Uggs and sweatshirts again. :)
2. This is our second official week of homeschooling. So far it's going pretty well. I'm not gonna lie though...we've had our moments. But they have been very few and far between. I am not regretting my decision at all to do this. I know that this is absolutely right and necessary for our family right now. Will we go back to traditional school at some point? Maybe yes, maybe no. I really can't answer that now. I do get a tiny twinge of jealousy/sadness when I hear of all the other kids going back to school. Just a tiny bit. I get sad for Jake because he really does miss his friends and he LOVED school. And I get a little bit jealous because I know what it's like to have that quiet time all to yourself while the kids are gone at school. But honestly....I haven't had that moment all summer where I've said, "good grief! isn't it time for you to go back to school??!". Not once have I even thought it. I've really been enjoying our time together as a family and with homeschooling, the opportunities are so much more plentiful.



3. What I need to keep reminding myself though, is that I want this to be an enjoyable experience. And that we are doing this for Jake and Megan. And while they do need to actually learn (I'm NOT into un-schooling...at all), I don't see any reason why it can't be fun and enjoyable. And it should be, right? That's the cool thing about homeschooling...we get to pick everything we do and if we don't like it.....we just pick something else! :)
4. The kids took swim lessons a few weeks ago. It was their first time. They loved it. Jake actually was moved up a level right away. I was surprised since he'd never had formal lessons before and he used to be sooo scared. But he's totally not anymore. :)
5. Jake turned 7 on the 15th. Megan will be 4 this Saturday. How do I have a 7 and a 4 year old? How is it even possible that Megan will be in Kindergarten next year???? She's just a bayyy-beeee!





6. Pete got his truck broke into the other day. Another reminder that we are not in Kansas (or the valley) anymore. It sucked. Like a punch in the gut, man. They took his phone, sunglasses, some random crap, tools...and his brand new hunting bow. For reals. But I guess that's what you get for not locking up. Live and learn.
7. Pete's parents moved the same time we did...up to the mountains. The kids and I took a short little trip up there last week. It was so nice! I wish we could have stayed longer. They're new house is so homey feeling. I really do miss seeing them often. But now when we do go, it's like a vacation :)
8. Speaking of vacations...we're going to Santa Cruz next weekend for a short get-away. I can't wait! Just the four of us this time, in the same little cabin we stayed in with my dad last October. Since we haven't really done much this summer in the way of vacations or camping or anything like that, I'm really looking forward to it.
9. I thought I had so much to say and now here I am struggling to come up with 10 things.



10. Oh! I thought of something! My mom was here a few weekends ago. She and I spent the entire weekend cleaning out some of my yard. Finally. We worked so hard. My mom is amazing. She just keeps on going! No one had done anything around here in years and it showed. We spent all day Sunday cleaning out just one flower bed. There must have been at least 10 years worth of oak tree and eucalyptus tree leaves in there. It was not fun cleaning it out. But we did it. And it looks so nice! Thank you mommy! When are you coming back...cuz we got a lot more work to do! ;)
Happy Wednesday.

City Life.

If you follow me on Facebook, you've probably seen me complaining. A lot. About the weather. I don't really mean to be so negative. I actually really like it here in our new home. There has definitely been some adjustment, but I am really enjoying our home, our friends and our new area. It's just cold. And I really don't like to be cold. Apparently, even by local standards, this has been the coldest summer they can remember in years. So. I'm not the only one. :) I've never lived in a city before. Like a real city-fied CITY. It's busy, and bustling and there are literally people from all cultures and walks of life here. There are people of all colors and shapes and creeds. So much different than your typical middle class suburban white/African American and Hispanic community that we were used to out in the valley. But I like it. I think it's good to see another side of life every now and then. Plus, living up here on this gorgeous hill, it's like we've go the best of both worlds. We get to roam around in nature and have deer in our yard and chickens in our barn (not yet, but soon) and all the fun of country life, all while the city is just minutes (seconds) away. It's pretty cool. Except when I was at the ATM today, this very tall, mentally ill, black man came up to me and poked me in the side while I was making my transaction. Yes, he came up to me and touched me with his finger, in my side. Bless his heart, he was just looking for some change, but IT FREAKED ME OUT. I mean he was harmless, but jeeze...when someone walks up to you at an ATM and pokes you in the side....well lets just thank the Good Lord it was just his finger! And also luckily I had no cash, it was broad daylight, there were LOTS of people around. Anyway, that was not so cool.
The other neat thing about living here is that there is SO much to do. And we've been doing it! We are two minutes away from the Oakland Zoo. Some friends and I took the kids there today. It was really fun, the sun came out and the kids really had a good time. It's a great zoo.
We're also minutes away from all kinds of beautiful parks (like the one in my last post) and hiking trails, Lake Chabot (we go here at least once a week for a walk/jog), and Chabot Space and Science center (we've been there twice already since we moved in). I really can't wait to get out and do some exploring!
Plus, we're also just a 20 minute BART ride from San Francisco. We've already been over there this month too! The kids and I just keep making a list of all the places we want to go see and do. So, is this a cool place to live?-ABSOLUTELY! Despite my negativity about the weather, we are all pretty happy to be here and are enjoying it.

Other random stuff:
Pretty much since we moved in Pete has been working nights. It's fun to have him here during the day, but him coming home at 4 o'clock in the morning and me cooking the family dinner and eating by 4:30 in the afternoon is taking it's toll on me. I sort of feel like either we have a newborn baby, or we're really old people. Like the senior citizens at Denny's having dinner at 4 in the afternoon! Plus it's just kind of exhausting. I always end up staying up late when he's not home at night, then of course I wake up when he gets home, and then he doesn't come straight to bed so then I either lie in bed awake or drift off only to be awoken again an hour later when he does come to bed. Then I'm awake again just 2 hours later to get up for the day with the kids. So that's where my newborn baby reference comes from. The up/down/up/down thing.
This is supposed to be his last night on nights. *whew*
The second night on this job, Pete cut his hand really bad. He ended up with 12 stitches total in between his thumb and fore-finger on his right hand. The doc said he cut an artery and was very, very close to needing major reconstructive surgery and losing the use of his thumb. So basically he almost cut his thumb off. It was only God's grace that he didn't!
We also have already started some of our homeschooling curriculum. Nicole had asked what we were going to use and 90% of what I chose has come from Evan Moor. I chose this publisher for Reading, Grammar, Science and Geography. I'm also looking into getting their History Pockets too. I just really like the way these workbooks are set up. There's no guess work. Everything is set up in short, concise, daily exercises. It's not overwhelming, but the kids (even Megan) are learning a lot from it. So far so good. These would also be great to supplement regular school learning simply because they're so short. And for home school it's really easy to supplement the lessons with library books and other projects. So I like it. Still looking for a math curriculum though. And I'm dreading it.
Anyway, so that's about it. BUSY BUSY BUSY! But fun!

Wordless Wednesday.

Tilden Park, Berkeley

Wow.

The view tonight is AH-MAZING! I don't have a camera that even comes close to giving it justice. This is the first night we haven't had any fog. I can see all the way to the golden gate and a beautiful crescent moon is delicately hanging over the bay. I could get used to this :) Wish I had someone to share it with. Pete is working nights this week. :(

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Settling In. Random thoughts from this week....

Well we've been here six days now and things are sorta kinda getting back to 'normal'...or maybe a new normal. It's funny how life just keeps changing even if we don't really realize it all the time.
Most of the boxes are unpacked. Well, the most important ones are anyway. I've been to Target for just one more thing about 10 times already. Our first night here I couldn't find the sheets for our bed so I had to run out and buy some. Isn't it funny how when you move all of a sudden you NEED certain things right away that you never needed before? Like a shower caddy. I never needed one before but now all of a sudden we need two. And a microwave. We had one built-in in the old house. And a dinning room table. We ate at the counter at the old house and the "dinning room" table was really the craft table.
The days seem much shorter here. Before, the alarm would go off at 5 am. Pete was out the door by 6 and I was up shortly after. And then he wouldn't be back home until after 5 in the evening. Now, since we're so much closer to his job, the alarm doesn't go off till 6:30 (i actually find myself waiting for it to go off) he's out the door by 7 and back home at 4:00. It certainly is nice having him home so early, but we both kinda don't know what to do with ourselves. He even said he was 'bored' the other day. He never says that!
The weather is reeeeaaaaallly taking some getting used to. I knew it would be different but.....I'm not dealing well so far. It's cold. I do not like to be cold. The fog comes in around 6pm and stays until around 10:30 the next morning. And when the sun finally does decide to come out, it's only been warming up to 67*. I'm sorry, but if it's not at least 80*, I'm FREEZING. And maybe that's another reason why it feels like the days are so short. It's like the sun doesn't come up till half the day is already gone.
I walked down the hill to the mailbox the other day. Yeah, I don't think that's something I'll make a habit out of. It's a really long way down the hill. Which means it's a reeeeaaaalllly long way UP the hill on the way back. I thought I was going to puke at one point. Good exercise though, I guess.
I just had someone ring my doorbell. It kinda freaked me out. Because you have to pass through a locked gate to get up here. So you either have to know the secret code, or have a clicker. I figured the person at the door was going to be my neighbor coming to play with Jake. And we were all surprised to see some dude standing out there we didn't know. Turns out it was just the power company. But still. Freaky.
Anyway, so here we are. I said in another post that I really had no emotional connection to our old house. I guess that was kind of a hasty statement. I was fine until Pete said he got a little sad leaving the little red house the other day. And then it hit me. There was a brief teary moment. And then it passed. I like this new house. And I'm glad to be rid of the old one. But it was a mistake to say there's no emotional connection there. Life was lived there and memories where made. And so connections are there. Good, bad and ugly. I told Pete...it's just time for us to make new memories here, and that's a good thing, and that it's ok. It's all part of life. A new chapter starting here, starting now.

House preview

First...please excuse my messy hair, and just over-all tired looking face on this video. LOL! oh my...it's been a looooonnnnggg week. I have no other excuse except that.
Might do this again after furniture is moved in. Saturday is moving day. Finally.
Please pray we don't have to do this again for a long time.

Untitled from Corey Wilcox on Vimeo.

Overheard

M: Jake! You threw away my lipstick!
J: don't worry about it Megan.
M: but Jake! Now I won't be pretty!
J: don't worry about it! Megan, if you wear too much make-up no boys are ever gonna like you. And you'll NEVER get married! Boys do not like girls with lots of make-up.

That conversation totally made me laugh. Maybe he IS learning something. :) hopefully he can teach her. But who ever listens to their brother?


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Tuesday. Sort of akward iPhone post

Summer is finally here! It still isn't hot but it has been pleasantly warm. Which I like. We've been lounging in the baby blow up pool most of the day.



This girl would be out here in the pool 'swimming' from sun up to sun down. A girl after my own heart.



This boy would catch bugs all day if I let him. I've never seen anyone so affectionate about bugs. Ever.



We took a break for frozen yogurt.



Oh my goodness was it delicious! It was such a treat. Thank goodness this place is way across town or I would be there every day.
So that's it for now. Just enjoying the summer and the last few days we have in our little red house.


Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Random Thursday

It is Thursday, right?
With summer here it all seems to be the same.
Here are some (surprise!) random things going on around here:

* Moving day has been pushed back a little. I knew I shouldn't have said anything. Or set my mind to one thing. Because every time I do that it just backfires! It's fine. Better, actually. Moving day: July 1st. We went over there last Saturday and there's just still so many little things that need to get done. And it's better they get done before we move in. So it's ok. But I'm really getting tired of living in/out of/and around boxes.
* It seems like there's just so many changes going on all at once. Not only are we moving, but so are my in-laws. Pete's parents are moving at the exact same time we are. They're moving to the mountains. And one of his sisters and our little niece are moving all the way across country to Georgia. Again--same time everyone else is moving. Here we all were in this little town and now it seems we're all leaving. It's weird. And bitter sweet. I will miss my Cate. But I'm happy for her and her momma.
* It's official we will start homeschooling in August. We heard from our teacher yesterday and confirmed our enrollment. Which I mean, I knew was going to happen, but it's nice to have the official word. Now it's on to finding curriculum. Oh. My. Gosh....is it EVER overwhelming! There is just SO much to choose from. And what if I don't like it? What if he doesn't like it? What if he doesn't learn anything? Do I really need curriculum for spelling and handwriting?? What about math? Everyone says "use Saxon math" but it looks horrendous. I do not like it. My head seriously spins over this stuff.
* I am craving sugar right now. and pizza. Grilled pizza.
* In the process of moving, I've been able to get rid of a TON of stuff. I went through my closet a few weeks ago and had about 3 bags full of clothes that no longer fit or were just way out of style. I did keep some of my 'bigger' clothes mostly because they're nice and I just felt like well i just can't get rid of it. And I think I just haven't quite wrapped my head around just how much weight i've lost. I put a pair of khaki's on the other day that I figured would be a little big...but um...I could have filled them with water and swam in them. They were huge. Was I really that big? Apparently. YES. I was.
* And clothes that are too big look worse on than clothes that are too small. Mostly anyway.
* I don't like blogs that come up in my feed reader that make me click over to read the whole post. It bugs me. Please don't make your feed do that.
* I feel like summer is already shrinking away. Even though it's only June.
* Ten things I will not miss about living here: 1. the wind-it's awful. 2. doors that don't close-my front door will not stay closed unless it's locked. 3. windows that don't work 4. neighbors. 5. home owners associations 6. garage doors that break 7. neighbors 8. home owners associations. 9. grass to mow 10. again-- the wind.
* The number 1 thing I will miss: Convenience! Living in a suburb every thing is right here. Costco, Target, Wal-mart, Safeway, McDonalds, Michaels, the gas station and bank are all within 5 minutes from my house. I'll be driving to everything when we move. That's going to take some getting used to.

Anyway....I've rambled on long enough yes?
Happy Thursday
It is Thursday, right?

Ten on Tuesday.

Oh how I've negleted you, blog. Please forgive me. Things will return to somewhat normal soon. I hope.
It has been a little crazy around here. It's not that I've had a lack of things to blog about at all. Just lack of time and energy. Here is the abridged version of some happenings around here:

1. Moving date: aprox. T minus ten days. Approximately because the new house is having some work done before we move into it and we're not exactly sure when it will be done. I need to start thinking about utilities...turning off here and turning on there. Moving is such a hassle.
2. More about moving: We're going to have a fantastic view. I mean it's just breathtaking. I never ever thought I'd be living in Oakland. But you know...if I have to live there, I think we've got pretty much the best part of it, right in our back yard. Plus, did I mention that the house sits on three acres? Yeah. My kids are totally going to LOVE that. We all are! Our nearest neighbors? Some of our best friends. How lucky are we? Pete's commute?? Um...it's going from 2 hours to 30 minutes. FANTASTIC!
3. The house itself is a little funky. It's old and hasn't even been lived in in about 3 years. The owners are family friends and just happened to decide to rent it out right when we really needed to. I feel so blessed to be able to live in such a great place. Since it hadn't been lived in in a while, obviously there were some things that needed to be tended too. They've replaced all the flooring and put fresh paint in for us. The only thing I'm worried about is the kitchen. It's TINY. and old. And TINY. But I'll make due. :)
4. The school situation: Well this is the part where I say "never say never". To put it bluntly, the schools in Oakland are just bad. Horrible. Ghetto even. Not all of them, but the majority are. Though our home will be in a nice area, the school we are zoned for is not. I'm talking bars on the windows, bars on the corner, drug deals going down around the next street. And after the year we had in first grade...I'm just not willing to sacrifice anymore for Jake (or Megan's) education. So. We've decided to homeschool. It's not something I ever really thought I'd be doing. Not because I'm against it, or because I think it's weird or anything. Just because I never thought that I, personally, could handle it. Patience is not a virtue that I have. The program I've signed up for is technically an independent study program through a charter school. This means he will still be held to all the state standards and requirements, we will have a teacher to help us along the way, there are group classes and field trips, and best of all: FUNDING. In California, charter schools are public so each child enrolled receives funding for curriculum like any other public school student. (hooray!!) This is going to be a BIG change for us. And I assume there will be quite a bit of an adjustment period. But I'm willing and ready to take this on. And...I actually think it's going to be great.
5. This house is an absolute mess. There are boxes and paper and STUFF everywhere. I'm not sure how much longer I can take the mess.
6. Pete was in Alaska for a week. Yes, again! I'm so glad he's home so he can start helping me pack this stuff.
7. Pete's dad asked me the other day if I thought I'd miss this house at all. Without hesitation my answer was: NO. I really won't. Well, I will miss my kitchen. But not really anything else about this house. I found some stuff the other day from when we were first buying this place. The plans and specs, the options we picked out from the designer, the artist sketch of the neighborhood. As I thumbed through it, there was a slight pinch of sadness. Well...I'm not even sure I'd call it that. But it brought back the feelings of when we were first moving here. How excited we where. How great we thought it would be living here in this quaint "perfect" little neighborhood. But most of all, I realized how quickly that luster wore off. As I fill boxes one by one, I really feel no emotional connection to this house. And the more I think about it, I'm not sure I ever really had one.
8. This is our 2nd full week of summer vacation. Although, now with our decision to homeschool...does summer vacation even count? ha! Anyway. It just barely feels like summer. The last day of school it was so cold and rainy we needed jackets! This week has been a little warmer. Just warm enough for shorts. I guess I better get used to it. It doesn't really get hot in Oakland!
9. I've made a new goal for the month of July. Well I'm hoping anyway. I want to walk/jog 100 miles. Broken down, it's only about 3.2 miles a day. I think I can do that. I just want to keep doing what I've been doing. I still don't LOVE exercise. But I love the changes I see in my body. When I started all this all I wanted to do was lose weight. I knew I'd have to move more and eat less. I never actually expected I'd be physically fit. I mean, I have muscle! Even when I was super skinny, I never had muscle tone. :)
10. As of today I'm down 39 pounds from where I started at the end of January. One pound away from my goal. I'm the thinnest I've been since before Jake was born. My dress size only has one digit! Now that I'm staring my magic goal weight in the face, I realize it's more than just a number on a scale or some random number I picked out of the air. But more about a real lifestyle. I can't just quit now that I'm here. And I won't. I'm not going to take this for granted again.

The View.

From our new house:



What? Can't tell what that is? Lets zoom in.....


Best I could do with an iPhone pic. It's much better in person. And this is only half of it. If you stand on our back porch you can see the San Mateo Bridge and the entire peninsula. Can you imagine this view at night?!
We're about 3 or 4 weeks till moving day.

10 Things.

1. The kids and I spent Saturday with mom at her house for mothers day. It was fun, but I wished it could have been longer. I ♥ her.
2. Sunday Pete's sisters, his mom, and I went to San Francisco for lunch and to see Wicked.
3. We got lost several times. Apparently, none of us have a very good sense of direction.
4. But we finally made it to Buca di Beppo for lunch. They have a delicious apple gorgonzola salad that I'm trying to recreate for dinner tonight.
5. We had about 20 minutes to make it to the theater before the show started after lunch. The concierge at the hotel across the street gave us directions. Of course we didn't follow them.
6. And we found ourselves smack in the middle of The Tenderloin. The Wiki article makes it sound much better than it actually is. Basically it's Skid Row. Very, very bad area.
7. When you're in San Francisco and it smells like sh*t, chances are it's because there is literally sh*t near by. And not of the dog variety. Watch your step. *shudder*
8. Luckily, we were just 2 blocks down from where we needed to be, so we were out of there pretty quick. Thank goodness!
9. We got to the top of 6th and Market with only about 5 minutes to curtain and 2 blocks to go. So of course we started running. I was in some really cute wedge heals, that were surprisingly comfortable, running and all. And then....about 10 steps from the doors, my right ankle gave out and I was *thiiiisss* close to skidding face first the rest of the way. I saved myself though. Oh I never laughed so hard at myself. You should have seen the people standing around. I gave 'em a great show. It was quite hilarious.
10. We made it to our seats about 30 seconds before they dimmed the lights! Wicked was a great show. If you're not familiar, it's the back story to the witches of OZ. You find out how the Wicked Witch of the West becomes green, how she becomes wicked, how the scarecrow, the tin man and the lion all come to be...It's well written and a really cute/slightly tragic story. It wasn't my favorite Broadway show, but I still want to see it again and I want to take my mom next time. I love going to the theater!

Wednesday. Random.

1. I seriously doubt I'll come up with ten things, but we'll see. Does this count as one?
2. Avocados are on sale this week 4 for a dollar. That's great except THEY ARE ALL ROCK HARD. Like you could play an entire game of Major League Baseball with these suckers. Tell me, what is the point of an unripened avocado?
3. I really dislike road construction. Especially when I'm the lead car after being stopped by the flagger. The guy gave me no real direction and there were no orange cones to follow and guys in orange t-shirts all over the newly paved road. I didn't know where I was supposed to go. Drive on the fresh pavement? don't? Follow that tractor that pulled out in front of me? Don't? *ugh* it's just annoying. I'm a follower not a leader. And that goes for more than traffic.
4. I would have thought by now that exercise would be easier. Well, the act of exercise is MUCH easier, but I still have to talk myself into actually doing it most days. Sometimes, I just don't wanna. The thought of lifting up the weights or the thought of another squatting side-kick makes me cringe. But some how I always convince myself to do it anyway. And I always end up feeling better after I do. Last week I had a real busy day and I just didn't get a work out in. I felt like crap. Because I knew I cheated myself. I totally could have worked out and chose not to.
5. Finally, now that the school year is just about done, I finally feel like I have some sort of support, some sort of idea of what Jake has been doing in class and how to help him succeed into the next year. And it didn't even come from his own teacher. I spoke about my frustrations with his teacher and things many times before. To give you a better idea...I have only ever seen maybe 5 spelling tests and 3 or 4 other small projects that Jake has done at school for THE ENTIRE YEAR. I never see any worksheets (except for the few math worksheets he has for homework), never any writing assignments, no journals, NO ART PROJECTS, nothing. Anyway, last week while the 2nd graders in his class worked on the state's standardized tests, the 1st graders where sent to other classes. Jake went to the same class as his after school teacher. We had a long talk Thursday afternoon when I picked him up. She told me she wished Jake would have been in her class all year, and how well he did that week with her. She gave me tips on what we can do this summer to keep up his reading and writing (fun things). Tips on how to build up is confidence and independence . And most importantly: a STACK of work he had done in class that week. I mean, a folder spilling with things like a butterfly life cycle, stories he'd written, science worksheets, spelling games, vocabulary, things he'd cut and pasted. It was almost a relief to see all that work. I'm not sure why exactly, but it was SO nice to just KNOW what he was doing...What he was learning. Finally!
6. I need to write her a really nice note because tomorrow is his last after school session with her for the year.
7. We found a house! And it has more than one bathroom! I'll give more details as it draws nearer to our move. Which I still don't have a specific date for but it will be sometime in June. We are truly lucky and are blessed with awesome friends who helped us find this place. I think it's going to be awesome.
I think that's all I got for now. See, I knew I couldn't come up with 10. Oh well. You still love me, right? ;)

10 on Tuesday.

And it really is Tuesday this time! woo hoo!

1. Had a great weekend in Monterey and Santa Cruz this weekend to celebrate Pete's Birthday. We took the kids to the Monterey Bay Aquarium on Saturday which is ALWAYS cool.
2. Sea horses are awesome. I know...how random and weird is that statement? But it's true. The aquarium had a new exhibit on sea horses. It was just so neat. They come in all different sizes and shapes and colors. And the males birth the babies. It's the only species known to do that. (I'm sorry, I'm a bit of a ocean/sea life nerd.)
3. I wanted to be a marine biologist when I grew up.
4. This whole "diet" thing can be hard when we go out of town. Especially at breakfast. Man, all I really want was a piece of french toast. Or a waffle. Or hash browns. mmmm. hash browns. But yeah, that doesn't quite fit into the "plan".
5. I just don't like eggs. (see #4) I've tried. I really have. But I just don't. Unless they're wrapped in a tortilla, smothered in salsa, cheese, potatoes, and sausage. Or bacon. Bacon! Not in the "plan".
6. It's official. We're moving. I know I said that before, but I wasn't 100% sure. There was still that 2% slight chance of having to wait again. But we got official word yesterday so now I'm on the hunt for a new place and quick!
7. Schools and bathrooms (of all things) have been way more of a concern about house hunting than I imagined it would be. We can find places in the area we like with great schools...but the houses seem to only have 1 bathroom. Like for real. 95% of them only have ONE. I mean, it's do-able, but....not desirable for a family of 4. We can find great houses with 2 bathrooms in neighboring areas, but the schools are bad. Like really bad.
8. Trying to get the kids to help out a little more with chores. Jake has been responsible for the dogs for quite a while now. Probably since he was about 4 1/2. I recently started having him empty the dishwasher too. At first he was all for it, but now he sort of despises it. I don't blame him. Why do you think I'm asking him to help out? ;) isn't that what kids are for? kidding. sort of. I need to find something for Megan to do though. I think maybe I'll start her off with the cat, like we did Jake and the dogs.
9. We found out today that Jake's teacher is going to be absent all week. She had a horrific family emergency. Her nephew was killed in a rafting accident. I feel just awful for her and her family right now. Praying for their comfort.
10. I need someone to deliver a giant dumpster to the front of my house. I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by the "stuff" that needs to get packed up around here. I think tossing it and starting "fresh" would be SO much easier!

10 things...

1. wish i had a picture for this post, but don't.
2. how is it i'm just now really getting into shopping at Carters and OshKosh? went to the outlet here in town because Jake has outgrown his pants again and it's very hard to find pants that fit him. he is super skinny so we need a slim fit with adjustable waist bands. anyway, i got each kid 2 or 3 outfits, everything was on sale, and i had a coupon so i only spent 50 bucks. my kind of shopping!
3. this weather blows! it's cold and rainy again. the weekend is supposed to be really nice though. so i guess i can deal.
4. i am 25 lbs lighter than i was on January 24th. 15lbs to go.
5. i finally, finally used my iTunes gift card! And...this is exactly what I thought would happen. i can. not. stop. Totally addicted. Note to parents, relatives, friends, random gift givers: I will gladly accept an iTunes gift card for any (but not limited to) of the following holidays + my birthday: mothers day, memorial day, flag day, national ice cream day, 4th of july etc...
6. caller ID. quite possibly one of the last century's greatest inventions. there is this stupid debt collector that keeps calling here. over and over and over all. day. long. they are not calling for us. They are calling for someone else with the same last name. I've talked to them, Pete has talked to them...yet they still keep calling. We tell them we do not know, nor are we related to the person they are looking for. Yet they still keep calling. It is SO FREAKING ANNOYING. We only answered in the first place because I thought it would make them stop. But! they! don't! thank goodness for caller id and the fact that i don't have to answer the phone. But still the ringing every hour is driving me nuts.
7. Jake got an award at school the other day. It's kind of like Student of the Month, only they seem to do it a little different at his school. I think it used to be random selection when I was a kid...you know pull a name out of a hat type of thing. Here they pick a kid from every class that displays either trustworthiness, respect...ummmm and some other ones that I forgot! woops. anyway, Jake got the award for respect in his class this month. we were invited to the assembly where he was presented his award by the principal. and it was good that Pete got to go too since he had the day off. I'm proud of him. He really is a good kid and has been really shinning lately with his attitude around home and his schoolwork. Now, if he and Megan could just stop bickering about everything.....
8. Glee! I recently discovered that some people either a) don't watch this show at all or b) don't like it. For serious?! I don't get it. I just think it's fantastically written and the music is great. Some people say they just don't get it. Maybe go back and watch the pilot episode. But i dunno. I was a drama/art geek in high school and i think that's why i like it so much. plus Sue Sylvester.
9. there! goes! the phone! again! ARG!
10. It's finally time to say good bye to our house. It's been almost 2 years and I know I've sort of thought it would happen before, this time I'm 98% sure we will be moving by June. I'm ok with it. happy actually. i will miss my kitchen and possibly the pool and walking trail. but that's all. i'm ready to move on. we haven't found a place yet, but we're looking. and i haven't packed one thing yet. yes, i'm sort of starting to panic.

Being tourists...

Some of the best things come out of not well thought out plans. Last Friday I was going to take the kids up with my step sister, Kelly to Daffodil Hill. I got up Friday morning and got on the computer to make sure I had the directions to get there. Thank goodness I did, because we would have made a long drive for no reason. Apparently, all of said daffodils were dead. There was a late season snow storm a few days before and sent all the pretty flowers back underground. :( We decided to drive to Kelly's anyway. I knew we'd figure out something to do. We hemmed and hawed a little and finally decided to go hang out in Coloma for the day. Coloma is my old hometown. Coloma is the place where James Marshall discovered a big ol chunk of gold while working at the saw mill in 1848 which triggered the California Gold Rush of 1849. Living about 3 miles from this place, I learned A LOT about the gold rush growing up.
Anyway, though I'd been to the park many, many times before, I don't think I enjoyed it as much as I did with my kids last Friday. When we were teenagers we used to go down to the park to watch the rafters come down the American River and see if they'd make it out of Satan's Cesspool. Or watch our idiot friends jump off the bridge. There was no way I'd ever do that! But it had been a long time since I'd actually played tourist in my own hometown.
It was a much better idea to go to Coloma than it ever would have been to see some silly flowers. Why didn't I think about it before? Jake absolutely loved it. We were lucky enough to be there on a day when they had people working the park in period (1850's) attire and were able to answer questions about being pioneers and miners. The first place we stopped was Brekart's store where I paid 7 dollars for Jake to pan for gold. Seriously, we could have spent the entire day doing just this. He, lover of all treasures, was fascinated and completely entertained.


After about 45 minutes of this we finally convinced him to go look at something else! We walked through all the buildings, went to the small museum, walked along the gold discovery trail, and took lots and lots of pictures. Funny, I guess since I'd been there so many times, I didn't take any pictures of the actual things that were there, like the mill or the Chinese house or the miners cabin. Just pictures of us! LOL! And the kids were seriously posing that day. Megan is all about being a Fashonista and Jake is all about being a rock star or Elvis, or something. They are quite funny these days.
Any how...we had a great day and spent the rest of the weekend with my dad. It was so nice to actually do something on spring break besides just sit at home and wait for the week to be over.
Only 6 more weeks of school though! I can't believe it. Yet I'm glad for it. This year has been rough and i can't wait for a new start for Jake. Hoping we get a great teacher for 2nd grade.

Wednesday. 10

1. I took this picture today. I kind of love it. It's a little on the green side, but i don't care. He's cute. I'm still mad at my camera. It just doesn't focus like it used to :(
2. So far spring break has been pretty awesome. Monday morning I wasn't thinking that way. By 10am the kids weren't talking to each other and Jake wasn't talking to me. But it was all quickly resolved. (a few bribes and a threat took care of it. I'm not ashamed)
3. I am more than half way there on my weight loss goal. I can't believe the difference I can see and feel. And really in such a short period of time. I've lost weight before, but I've never really put my whole self into it like I am now. It's why I haven't been blogging, it's why I really, really need a maid, but it's also why I can fit into my old jeans.
4. Easter was really boring. It was cold and rainy. We didn't even hide eggs. And it was just the 4 of us for the day. But boring or not, it was still awesome to just be together. Thankful for that.
5. Sometimes I'm completely amazed by my kids. In a good way. We were talking about the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. Jake wanted to know why the people wanted to kill Jesus and why did he have to die? If He is God, couldn't He have stopped it? Then without Pete or I saying another word he says "He died so we could live". Exactly.
6. Today is my mom's birthday. Happy birthday mom! I have a TON of people on my birthday list this month. I must really like Aries and Torus'.
7. Been watching Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution. Love that show. Love what he's trying to do. It's funny...When I worked in child care, we were on the government food program. We actually made and served (and ate) some of the exact foods he was preparing in the school in the first episode. We LOVED potato pearls! LOL! But yeah, gross. I still can't get over how a veggie full chow mein and and chicken is not 'ok' according to the government standards but a lousy fried chicken sandwich and french fries is. Does that seem ass backwards to anyone else?? They have to know that they look like idiots for arguing with him on that point, right?
8. My house is messy right now. Not dirty, just messy. It's buggin me. Major overhaul tomorrow. Much cleaning to be done.
9. Looking forward to Friday. Going to see my dad and take the kids to Daffodil Hill. It's just a popular local place to go in spring where they *obviously* have tons of daffodils :) Hopefully we'll get some good pics.
10. TEN! I don't even know what to say for this one. hm......