Week 17

Happy May Day!  It's hard to believe we are starting May already, but I'm ready.  It will most certainly be a busy month that will fly by.  There is a lot to do before our big trip to Europe, and its the last month of school for the kids.  Wow!  Summer is right around the corner.  It even felt like it this past weekend.  It was so warm my kids  swam in our pool.  The water is still too cold for me, but it sure was nice to sit out there and relax with a refreshing drink after some yard work.  I could use more of that!  It almost makes up for the lack of pool time we got in Vegas.  I love my little backyard retreat.

OK, here's a peek at what last week looked like-

Day 113- Sunday, 4/122/12
I missed my boys and am happy to be home after our short trip to Vegas.  How will I last 16 days in Europe without them?

Day 114- Monday, 4/23/12

Brandon is now wanting to read quietly on his own.  My baby is growing up, but I love that he still needs his favorite snuggle toy to do so.

Day 115- Tuesday, 4/24/12

I noticed there were a few rose bushes around the neighborhood in bloom so I peeked out back to see if any of ours were, and sure enough, we had some beautiful roses basking in the sun.  It must mean Mother's day is right around the corner and is one of the many signs marking the changes from spring to summer.

Day 116- Wednesday, 4/25/12

On Survivor night I let the kids pop popcorn, and Justin has learned how to take care of this task, but he's still a little messy getting the popcorn in the bowls.  Bella knows this all to well and will sit patiently waiting for a few nibbles to drop.

Day 117- Thursday, 4/26/12

Here's some more changes.  It's time for a room update.  Tyler's old comforter was worn and he really needed something a little more grown up looking so I found this one for him at Target.  Now we need to get rid of all the cutesy sports stuff and give his room more of an edgy look to go with the spread.  I'm thinking he may need a bigger bed too or at least one without a foot board!

Day 118- Friday, 4/27/12

It's so nice out today that we spent the afternoon in the backyard with the dog.  Most of the time Bella is in the house or confined to her dog run so it's a treat for her to be able to run free in the yard and she especially loves my flower beds.  I just happened to catch her peeking up out of this bush waiting for an opportunity to bound after the boys. 

This is my favorite of the month ;0)

Day 119- Saturday, 4/28/12

Hmmm, lot's of dog pictures this week.  That was not really planned, but I love it.  She is a big part of our life after all.  Spring cleaning includes cleaning the dog!  She really needs a bath and today was the perfect day for that.

Wait!  One more:

April's Family Photo

The weather's been so nice that it seemed only fitting to take our monthly family photo outside.


Well, that's enough for this week.  Thanks for stopping by and see you next week hopefully with more outdoor pictures.  We're finally loving the weather here in sunny California.

 

Week 16

Yes!  I got to escape by making it to Vegas (not without a little drama of course, but we made it) and having a wonderful weekend with great friends.  It felt great to get away and recharge.  Now it's back to reality until the next great escape in a little over a month.  This time we are crossing the pond to Europe!! Can wait, but so much to do before then and I'm not sure how it will all get done, but things just have a way of working out so I'll roll with it.

Enjoy last week's pictures-

Day 106- Sunday, 4/15/12

It's a beautiful sunny day so we decided to grill burgers and dogs for dinner. John also broke out his new deep fryer and made a batch of onion rings to go with dinner.  We learned the hard way that it's best to deep fry outside because it really sticks up the house otherwise.  At least today was the perfect day for that.

Day 107- Monday, 4/16/12

What is it with boys and holes in the knee of their pants?  I can put a brand new pair of pants on Brandon and an hour later he'll have a hole in the left knee (it's always the left!)  Thank goodness the older two out grew this stage.  I've given up trying to replace the pants and am just waiting for shorts weather ;0)

Day 108- Tuesday, 4/17/12

Poor Justin has either a cold or allergies--not sure which but his nose is really bugging him.  He's sneezing and going through kleenex like crazy.  It's kind of hard to concentrate on homework when you have to blow your nose every 5 minutes.  Gotta love this time of year.

Day 109- Wednesday, 4/18/12

Awe . . . Sunshine!  The sun felt so good today and the forcast is looking really nice with temps getting up to the 80's and maybe even 90's by the weekend.  I'm so ready for some nicer weather.  Maybe we can even break out the shorts I need for Brandon ;0)

Day 110- Thursday, 4/19/12

This week's photo prompt was "8-5" and I assume that means working hours so here I am at work which usually means I'm on a microscope or two.  My working hours are 6-2 though so I can be home to pick the boys up from school and have the afternoon with them.  I'm really lucky to have a job where I can set my own hours.  

Day 111- Friday, 4/20/12

Vegas baby!  After a crazy morning in Sacramento with a fugative on the loose hi-jacking cars, causing freeway shut downs and traffic nightmares we made it to the airport just in time for our flight and took off with 3 other couples for a fun filled weekend in sin city.  We even hopped a party bus and went clubbing until 4am in the morning!  I still can't believe we did that and I survived.  Those of you who know me, know I'm a morning person and rarely stay up much past 10pm, but hey, it's Vegas--you gotta live a little, right?

Day 112- Saturday, 4/21/12

Well I wanted heat, and I sure got it in Vegas.  This is our hotel, Aria, which is HUGE and shinning in the almost 100 degree sun.  Today we slept in to make up for last night, hung by the pool, gambled a little, had a great dinner and then took in a show that I fell asleep at ;0)  Two late nights in a row wasn't working for me.  Tomorrow it's back to my boys who are staying with our friends Raul and Wendy.

What a fun way to end the week!  Thanks for stopping by and see you next Tuesday.

 

Week 15

Welcome back!  Finally we are looking at an entire week with no rain ahead and temps in the high 70's or maybe even 80's.  It's about time!  I'd still like to see it even a little warmer so I guess I'll just have to head to Vegas Friday to make that happen--an escape is in order!  It's been too long since my last one in January.

Now for last week's pictures:

Day 99- Sunday, 4/8/12
Happy Easter!  We had a busy, egg hunting, food grubbing day.  First we had our traditional, early- morning hunt in the house with just our family, then we headed next door for brunch and an egg hunt with the neighbors, and later we went to Raul and Wendy's for another egg hunt and a nice dinner.  It was actually a beautiful day out and everyone had a blast.  I love how these kids are so perfectly stair-stepped in height.

Day 100- Monday, 4/9/12
Here we go--back at swimming!  That is Justin in the green goggles waiting for his turn to head back out.  Thankfully the pool has been warmer this year than last because it's still cold out and it's one less battle I have to fight with the kids.  They don't mind swimming as long as they are warmer in the pool than out, but if the pool is too cold--forget it!  Can't say I blame them either.
 

Day 101- Tuesday, 4/10/12
Brandon is finishing up his dinosaur diorama.  His favorite part was hunting around the yard and in the neighborhood for interesting rocks, sticks, and plants to use.  I also had thrown out all our cheap, old, smaller dinosaurs so we had to go on a store hunt for some more of those which was harder to find than I imagined.  We went to Target, Walgreens, Walmart and then finally found what we were looking for at Rite-Aide--go figure!

Day 102- Wednesday, 4/11/12
This is what most of our week has looked like with big thunderclouds and lots of rain.  Today we're at the MIND institute as we are every Wednesday afternoon for social skills class.  I love the architecture of this building.  The sibling class meets in a room with the curved walls and windows.  They call it the fish bowl ;0)

Day 103- Thursday, 4/12/12
It's been a busy week back to work and school after spring break and the poor dog is feeling a little neglected so I spent some time this afternoon playing one of her favorite games with her, tug-of-war. And, yes, even the dog has an Angry Birds toy.

Day 104- Friday, 4/13/12
Yet another rainy day!  Someone get me off this roller coaster.  I guess it's perfect for Friday the 13th though.  I'm here in the drive-through line at Starbucks waiting for some goodness to warm and wake me up at 6:00 in the morning.  Usually there is no line this early, but I think this nasty weather brought the masses in.  It's a perfect day for a mocha!

Day 105- Saturday, 4/14/12
Mission accomplished!  I needed to shop today and find a dress and shoes for my Vegas trip next week.  It was crazy out there with all the high school girls looking for prom dresses, but I managed to find what I needed plus a new handbag that will come in handy on my trip.

One extra picture this week for a photo prompt. 

This was taken a couple weeks ago on Justin's birthday, but I had to included it this week because it's perfect for the "Exhilaration or Joy" prompt at Project 366 Rewind.  No one shows more exhileration or joy in his expression as Justin when opening gifts and recieving something he really wants.  You gotta love the look on his face and I'm not even sure what it is he got.  LOL!



OK, all done.  Thank's for stopping by.

 

Week 14

Hello!  I hope everyone had a good Easter.  It's back to the grind for me.  Spring break is over and it was way too short.  Oh well, only a couple months left in the school year.  I think we'll somehow make it through.  I still didn't get an escape over spring break, but I do have one coming up in the next couple weeks which gives me a warm place to go and something to look forward to.  We were truly blessed with amazing spring weather for Easter, but alas, today it will rain yet again.  One of these days we'll have an entire week with no rain or poor weather and hopefully it will be soon.  Come on spring--show me what you got!!

Now for last week's pictures:

Day 92- Sunday, 4/1/12
Here are my April fools ;0)  I traded in my older son for 2 younger models--just kidding.  Justin had a couple friends from his birthday party spend the night and Tyler went to Cameron's house to escape the rowdiness.  Gotta love lazy Sunday mornings when everyone is still in their jammies especially after a fun sleepover.

Day 93- Monday, 4/2/12
See, we do have a few days of spring here and there.  Today the sky was really blue and the sun was out so I went in the backyard to take a picture of some flowers and just happened to catch a bee!  I guess it's really no surprise since there are so many out right now, but it wasn't something I was expecting to get a picture of.  Yay for spring!  Bees I'm ok with--it's the wasps I don't like, and they will be here soon enough.

Day 94- Tuesday, 4/3/12
Justin is happy to have the entire break to play with all his new birthday toys.  He really enjoys jumping on a pogo stick and asked for this new Razor one that is supposed to jump even higher.  He gave it a good go and gives it his seal of approval.  I also caught his new, green, pig ball bouncing in the background--Brandon was playing with that and threw it in my shot!

Day 95- Wednesday, 4/4/12
Today I'm getting this lovely crack in my windshield taken care of.  Good riddance!  I'm not sure exactly how I got it.  My car was fine when I parked it at work last week, and then when I came out to head home I found this right in my line of sight.  Thankfully there is a guy coming to the house to get it done.

Day 96- Thursday, 4/5/12
Here are my pranksters.  All week they were hiding and jumping out at people.  They are silly boys and enjoy a good prank.  They got me a couple times especially in the mornings before I was really awake.  I swear one of them will give me a heart attack someday.

Day 97- Friday, 4/6/12
Only a couple more days until Easter and tomorrow is busy so we colored eggs today.  I found this molten crayon kit that was pretty cool.  You basically take crayon shavings and drop them on freshly boiled, still hot eggs.  I love how they turned out.  The boys colored some the traditional way too.  We have 3 egg hunts in our future--fun times!

Day 98- Saturday, 4/7/12

Happy birthday to my wonderful husband!  He's a huge steak and lobster fan so we went to Red Lobster for dinner to celebrate.  Every year this time they have their lobster fest, and I always say we should go for his birthday, but we never do.  This year I made it happen and was amazed that even the boys liked the place and branched out to try new and unusual things--their taste buds are finally growing up.  Me, I'm not a seafood fan so I had the chicken--LOL!  Oh, and I must also mention it is our dog Bella's birthday.  She is now three and the boys would not want me to leave her out.

That's all for this week.  Thanks for stopping by and see you next Tuesday.

 

Week 13

Happy Tuesday!  We are on spring break here but have no real plans which is ok because I think we all need some down time especially after the big birthday bash this past weekend.  It was really fun but also exhausting.  Looks like the weather might actually be nice for us.  The sunshine is a welcome sight!  No more basketball, no karate all month, and no social skills class or school this week.  Yay!  We do start swim practice Wednesday though and with 3 in 3 different age groups we'll be at the pool at least 3x a week for 3hrs each time.  I think I'm going to make the most of it, get a membership, and use the rec. center to workout while I'm there.  Might as well!  I want to tone up for summer anyway, but I also want to read a few books.  Hmmm, decisions, decisions--I'll probably have enough time for both!

Now for last week's pictures:

Day 85- Sunday, 3/25/12

Sundays are usually mending day.  Tyler has received 3 stars in karate towards a second degree black belt and I've been lagging on getting them attached to his Gi so today is the day.

Day 86- Monday, 3/26/12
This is where you can find my oldest most evenings--totally plugged in to his phone and on the computer.  If he's not here at the desk in the playroom he's on his bed plugged into the phone listening to music and/or texting.

Day 87- Tuesday, 3/27/12

We are gathering things for Justin's Angry Birds' party Saturday, and I found him upstairs playing with some of the stuff while using blocks his grandfather made.  Great idea!  We may even use this as a game for the party if we need more fun things to do.

Day 88- Wednesday, 3/28/12
At work one of my daily tasks is to count the suspension cells so I can keep them in log-phase growth, and here I'm prepping the samples to count.  It has to be done in a hood so they don't get infected with fungus or yeast which runs rampant in the air this time of year. 


 

Day 89- Thursday, 3/29/12
I'm running out of time and still have lots to do for Justin's party.  After work I was able to get the favor bags done and organized.  Good thing I have tomorrow off so I can finish up everything else.


 

Day 90- Friday, 3/30/12
Today is a university holiday (Caesar Chavez) so I'm home and have some time to really get stuff done.  John regularly has early morning conference calls that he takes in our home office.  He locks himself in so the kids and dog are not distracting.  Bella does not like this one little bit and will diligently lay outside whining until he's done.  I'm not usually here in the mornings so even though I've heard of this I've never really seen it until now.  Love this dog and her loyalty.

Day 91- Saturday, 3/31/12

Happy Birthday Justin!  This is his year for a big party where he can invite friends and have a fun filled bash.  All the planning and preparations have paid off.  Justin's Angry Birds' party was a huge hit.  It was a terribly rainy day out, but we had loads of fun going to laser tag and then coming back to the house for an epic celebration.

Wait! One more--March's Family Photo

 I wanted to do something different and fun so here it is--the Packham family feet ;0)  I think Tyler's are the biggest, and I'm not sure what Brandon is looking at, but I love that he's piled on top of John.


OK, that's it!  Thanks for stopping by and see you next week.