Week 47

Game on!  The kids and I are home all week for Thanksgiving break, and I finished shopping for the big day yesterday.  We have a couple appointments to get through today, and then Wednesday we'll start baking pies and make some cornbread for stuffing and prep the turkey for a good soak in the brine.  I still can't believe Thanksgiving is almost here and now it's less than 30 days until Christmas!  I really need to get my shopping kick started!

Here is what last week looked like:

Day 321- Monday, 11/17/14

It's a beautiful fall day with blue skies, but it won't last.  We are expecting rain the rest of the week so we must enjoy the sun while we can.  It's the perfect day to get my boy back.  Tyler flew home today and had an amazing time at the Congress in DC.  It will be something he never forgets. He was able to meet Nobel Prize winners, a former White House doctor, a doctor for the NASA astronauts, and also patients who have received ground-breaking treatments like the first ever face transplant recipient.  The highlights for him were being able watch a live surgery, seeing footage of how a clinic on the Ebola front lines in Sri Lanka operates, and watching a short film on how a low-tech emergency trauma center thrived so much better before regulations and paperwork took over.  He most certainly came home motivated and inspired.

Day 322- Tuesday, 11/18/14

We like to collect leaves, the bigger the better, on our afternoon walks and found this gem today as the clouds started to roll and the skies darkened.  Time for some rain to bring us deeper into fall.

Day 323- Wednesday, 11/19/14

The rain is here, and Justin loves the rain and even begged me to walk the dog in it.  I have a feeling he's going to want to live further north in Oregon or Washington when he gets older.

Day 324- Thursday, 11/20/14

It's another rainy day as I wait to pick up kids from school.  Tyler has had to stay after most the week to make up for the days he missed on his trip, but I think today he'll be officially all caught up.

Day 325- Friday, 11/21/14

Justin helped me make a pudding pie to take to dinner with friends tomorrow.

Day 326- Saturday, 11/22/14

Yum!  Look at this beautiful prime rib--so good.  Sharon cooked a wonderful meal as John played the tunes, and then she tried to convince him that he needed to eat her salad too and not just some meat ;0) The picture is blurry because these two would not sit still.  They were having too much fun.  It was a great way to kick off our Thanksgiving break.

Day 327- Sunday, 11/23/14

Today was a lazy day.  Bella waited patiently for her treat puzzle to be loaded by a boy who woke up later than her stomach liked, but we made it up to her later by taking her on a nice long walk in the sunshine.  It feels good to have the sun back.

That's it for now!  Have a great Thanksgiving and see you next week.

Week 46

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  It's the last week of school before Thanksgiving break which seems unreal, but I'm ready for the break--not so much ready for the holiday but ready for some downtime with the family.  I just need to make it through this week!

Until then here are last week's pictures:

Day 314- Monday, 11/10/14

Justin has been a big help walking the dog lately.  Our afternoons are so busy, and it gets dark so early now that when we're crunched for time I know I can count on him to step up and at least take this one thing off our plate.  Bella is grateful too ;0)

Day 315- Tuesday, 11/11/14

We're home for Veteran's day and it's chilly out so donuts and hot cocoa are in order!  Thanks to all that serve to protect and fight for our country. 

Day 316- Wednesday, 11/12/14

We've had lots of cloudy skies and trees in transitioning color here.  It's great to finally have fall in our neck of the woods.

Day 317- Thursday, 11/13/14

It's 10 pm and were dropping this adventurous boy off for a red-eye flight to Washington DC.  He's all smiles and ready to take on the world.  Have a good trip Tyler.  We'll see you in a few days.

Day 318- Friday, 11/14/14

Brandon's been having Bella sit and pose for him so he could draw her portrait.  Of course she doesn't sit still for long, but he still did a great job capturing her cute little face.

...And on the other side of the country Tyler is enjoying his time taking in the sights of DC before being sequestered in a convention center for the next couple days.  It's nice and clear there with beautiful blue skies but super cold!  He's not in California anymore ;0)

Day 319- Saturday, 11/15/14

It was cold and extremely foggy this morning, so much so that tennis got cancelled because of wet courts, but after the fog lifted the sun came out, and it was an amazingly nice afternoon.  I took advantage of the warm sunshine and got some much need pruning done in the backyard. 

Day 320- Sunday, 11/16/14
John and I went out to breakfast this morning which is something we haven't done in a really long time.  It was a nice way to start the day.

Later in the afternoon we had the water polo banquet and since Tyler couldn't be there his team kindly posed for a picture I could send him.  Everything about this shot is pure awesomeness, and he got a huge kick out of it.  I love these boys and how much they love my son.  For those that don't know Tyler's water polo nickname is Eggnog.  LOL!



That's it for now! Thanks for stopping by and see you next week.

Week 45

Happy Tuesday and Veteran's day!  Thanks to all those who work to protect and serve our country. We really do appreciate it.  It's a slow and easy day at home here with the kids out of school and me home from work.  I'm happy to have a day off with no real plans.  There are a few things I need to catch up on around the house and some last minute details I need to take care of for Tyler's travels but otherwise the day is wide open.  Brandon was sick most the night, but if he's feeling better today maybe we can squeeze a little fun in there too.

Speaking of fun, check out last week's pictures:

Day 307- Monday, 11/3/14

Yep! This is really happening.  Tyler got his official  attendance badge for the Medical Congress in the mail today.  I can't believe I'll be sending my son all by himself across the country to Washington DC in just over a week.  I'd be lying if i said I wasn't a little nervous, but he's a smart and responsible kid so I'm sure he'll be fine, and I keep telling myself it's a good life learning experience.

Day 308- Tuesday, 11/4/14

There was a new book release for The Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and Brandon has been reading it all afternoon.  I'm pretty sure he'll finish this thing today.  It looks like he's reading upside down, but he's actually using his book to hide from the camera.  He's at that stage where it's no longer fun for mom to take pictures of him.  Well, get over it kid!  It's still going to happen ;0)

Day 309- Wednesday, 11/5/14

I pulled the covers back on our bed so I could wash the sheets, but before I could commit to it completely Rusty had taken over and decided it was the perfect place to nest.  Ah, the life of a cat.

Day 310- Thursday, 11/6/14

Here we are at water polo sections.  Ours boys had the last game of the day, and it was a do or die situation.  It was a super close game, but sadly we lost by 1 point which means the high school water polo season is officially over for us.  No fear--only 3 weeks until winter polo ;0)  It never completely ends, but he loves it so it's all good.  Look at the writing on the ball!  Connie caught this shot of Tyler with the ball perfectly placed to shows it's a section game.  Very cool!  We'll miss Connie next year since her son is a senior.  She does an amazing job getting great pictures of all the boys in the water.

Day 311- Friday, 11/7/14

For our nightly walk we headed to the levee to watch the sunset.  It was a beautiful fall evening but pretty buggy out.  Brandon enjoyed watching Bella explore some new territory.

Day 312- Saturday, 11/8/14

Here we are at our last get together with Lindsay and her mom, Donna, before sending these two off to DC for the Congress.  They will be traveling out separately, meeting up at the event, and traveling back together.  It's been great getting to know them, and I sure hope the kids have a fun time and come back motivated and inspired to change the world.  If anyone can do it these two can.

Day 313- Sunday, 11/9/14

It may be fall, but it's still warm and very pleasant out.  John fired up the grill to make us a yummy steak fajita dinner, and Justin came out to see what's cooking.  John also grilled a bunch of extra meat that we'll be able to use throughout the week.  This makes those rushed weekday dinners so much more manageable. 

That's it!  Enjoy the rest of your week, and we'll see you in the next one.

Week 44

Welcome back and happy Tuesday!  Here we are into November.  There is so much going on this month.  I'm having a hard time keeping it all straight and pulling it together. Hopefully it will all work itself out.  At least we've had a couple of good rains and there has even been some snow in the mountains.  We're hoping for a good ski year.  The temps have dropped so it is really starting to feel like fall.  The time change helps with that too although I'm not liking how it gets so dark so early.  I can't even get the dog's walk in before it turns pitch black out.

At any rate, here are last week's pictures:

Day 300- Monday, 10/27/14

I'm starting off my work week feeding cultures from the incubator.  It was a long weekend for them since I was out Friday for water polo so they are hungry.  This is how I start most my work days--feeding these little buggers.

Day 301- Tuesday, 10/28/14

Tyler had a minimum day at school so we made the most of it and headed to the DMV after.  He passed his driving test!  My baby has his license.  Be still my heart.  It's so hard to relax knowing he's out there on his own.  I can't be at ease until he's safe at home.

Day 302- Wednesday, 10/29/14

It was a big night here.  Tyler had his last high school water polo game at McClatchy, and the team went undefeated in their league for the season.  Sections here we come!  Also the San Francisco Giants won the World Series!!  We got home just in time to see the last couple plays that ended the game.  John's a happy boy :0)

Day 303- Thursday, 10/30/14

I'm not sure how we found the time today, but somehow we managed to squeeze in carving pumpkins.  Only 3 of the 5 got carved, but it's better than nothing, and the boys had fun.  That's all that really matters.  They did an amazing job too.

Day 304- Friday, 10/31/14

Happy Halloween!  It poured rain on and off all day but cleared just in time for some treating.  My 3 boys all went in 3 different directions wanting to spend the evening with friends so it was impossible for me to get a picture of all of them together.  They had a wonderful time though, and I'm glad they all have such good friends.

Day 305- Saturday, 11/1/14

November--really?!  I'm not ready for November but here it starts.  I'll have to brace myself.  At least I've got my boys back together again.  Love these guys!

Day 306- Sunday, 11/2/14

I didn't get around to checking the mail Friday or yesterday, but when I checked it today look what I found!  They said it would take up to 3 weeks to get his physical license but that was less than a week.  It's even more official now, and I'm glad he has it before he flies off to DC in a couple weeks.  This boy is growing up too fast.  PS- the license stays vertical until he turns 21.  I had no idea they were doing that now but makes perfect sense.

That's all for now.  Be sure to come back and see how crazy busy but amazing this next month will be.