Mahalo MoMo and BG!!!

Ahhh, Hawaii. That sweet air and warm breeze...I never tire of it! I recognize that I'm spoiled. Having a dad who was born and raised in the islands is a wonderful thing, because it means he likes to return often with his family! The kids and I were the beneficiaries of this generosity the last week in May. We had an absolute wonderful time with my parents. I just hope Mom got her much needed rest! Love you both. Thanks for an unforgettable week.

Doesn't Mom's hair look cute?! I was officially the one who took the longest to get ready! No one else had to dry their hair!

This was the trip when I explained to Kate that it was OK to pee in the ocean. I didn't want to have to run find a bathroom every time she needed to go. "Why?" She always seems to ask. I thought my response was pretty good, "Well, because the ocean is really big, and the pee gets lost in it." That was settled until we were in the pool the next day with everyone sitting within earshot.

I was with Jake in the shallow area when I heard, "Mom, it's ok to pee in this pool... it's really big!" You don't know how fast I moved to get her out of there. I'm sure I got glares but I didn't dare look up! It was lovely :)

This guy was fantastic! He couldn't get enough of the beach. Loved the water, loved the sand and would swim and splash until completely exhaustion would hit. One afternoon I literally took him out of the pool, wrapped him up in his towel and set him down to grab a dry diaper-- maybe 2 seconds--When I turned around he was sacked out. Mouth wide open.

We made it to Punch Bowl on Memorial Day Weekend. What a sacred place--every single gravesite had a lei and a flag. It was beautiful!

Jake waiting in the car while Dad and I took pictures.

Hawaii is the best place to get your kids to sleep well at night. Completely wear them out all day long and they beg for their beds when the sun goes down :)



We had a wonderful time, but we were sure excited to get back to Joe. He greeted us at the airport and had a pink rose for Mom, Kate and me. He's the best. We got home and I found that he had painted the hallway and bathroom, mounted a huge bookshelf on the wall, cut and put in new shelves in our hall closets, cleaned the entire house, did the laundry, mowed the lawn...all while working a normal, crazy week. I think I need to go away for a week every year! Thanks, hon! You amaze me!

A Mini Duke Reunion

Joe and I made some incredible friendships when we were back at Duke. I really think that was one of the reasons we ended up getting in when we did because when we met these couples it was as if we were instant family. After graduation, everyone became established all around the country. Happily, Carrie and Mike Thompson ended up just 15 minutes from where we live, and Rachael Rushton's parents still live a little less than 2 hours from us. So even though she and Tyler are in Georgia, they still come home for a visit every once in a while. Carrie and I got an email from Rachael about a month ago, and a meet was organized in Merced. What a WONDERFUL day we had together! Rach, thanks for the delicious lunch and dessert and most of all, the company!

Kate and Nicholas had a blast together. She loved having a cute little guy shadow her where ever she went!

We love and miss you! May our reunions be often!!!

Getting Caught Up!

I'm still trying to process that it's June. I knew I hadn't posted anything on my blog in a while-- ok, a long while--but when I got a message from Sunny on my phone asking if everything was alright, I knew I had to get back on here. Thanks for the concern, Sun. Love you!

A week after Jake's 1st birthday, we got in a car accident coming home from Costco and the lady who hit us, totalled our good car. Sigh. So I feel like the next 2 months were filled with trying to replace our non-functioning vehicle, dealing with insurance, and visiting the chirpractor. Thankfully the kids were ok although all 3 of us were pretty shaken. My headaches are down to a minimum now, so we are on the mend!

There were definite highlights though the past few months, and I've posted them below. More posts to come. We just got back from being spoiled by my parents! The kids and I went to Hawaii with them for a week so those pictures will be coming soon :) Thanks Mom and Dad for a great time! I feel so blessed that you're my parents.

Trip to the Zoo

Last week my sister-in-law Alisa was taking our nephew Hugh to the Oakland Zoo, and we decided to tag along...what a great day it turned out to be! We got to see all sorts of animals and I was really surprised how into Jake was! He didn't want to miss a thing!

Please excuse the crack.

Thanks for a terrific day!

Green is Good

We finally started a little garden on the side of our house. Kate and I went out one day to water the strawberries, bell peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and squash and we discovered that there were strawberries ripe enough to pick! We were very excited! Pardon Kate's undies, but we had to capture the moment!
Half wine barrels are a great way t go if you don't have a lot of space for gardening.

Backyard Thrills

I LOVE MY KIDS!

I'm happy to see they love each other :)

This was one of those run-grab-the-camera- moments. We were sitting in our backyard having dinner with December and Joe Lotz, when we heard the giggling behind us. Too cute to pass up.

Nothing good could come of this!

December and Blue-eyed Cassidy

Brothers are the best, aren't they?

How's my hair?