East & West Meet

Trish and Andrew, from the East Coast, flew into San Francisco this past week and we met up in Redding for a few days of fun and hugs. Grandma Marie the twins and I drove down to meet them at a hotel and from there we had a couple of busy days.

That first afternoon we walked around Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay. It’s an actual sundial and a bridge. Beautiful. We walked across the bridge and under it, then took a walk on some trials looking at the plants and bugs. We didn’t see any turtles but in the creek we saw lots and lots of frogs that were easy to catch.
I like this photo of Mom and the sundial, I laid down on the ground looking up through the hole of the dial with Mom leaning over me.

The next day we drove up to Shasta Lake and toured the Shasta Caverns, a first time for all of us. We had a boat ride and a bus ride before the hour walk in the caverns, it reminded Mom (Grandma) and myself quite a bit of the Oregon Caves but I don’t think the tour of the Oregon Caves are quite as long. At one point on the tour the floor lights (guide lights) went out and it was clear why they were needed. All forward movement from the tourists (us) stopped and we waited till we had light again. I don’t ever remember being in that dark of darks like this before…neat!

The last day we played at a water park with some water slides before we all had to part ways. The sun was out but the water was dang COLD. Cole and Jo got a little sliding in at the kids play area while Trish, Andrew and I hit all the water slides…at least once.
This is Andrew dropping into the tallest slide. It’s a “V” shape and you leave your stomach at the top when you drop in. I swear that you are not actually touching even the water with the first little drop at the beginning and when you hit the bottom the first time you about loose your breath with the sharp upward turn. Andrew went first and he slide to the other side stopping about 10’ to 15’ from the top…Then I went and I really thought I was going to shoot off the other side of the slide as my feet almost touched the top. (you sure get a better ride the larger you are) Then Trish went but not before wanting to head back down the stairs after seeing how close I came to the edge of the slide. Trish managed to overcome her fear and did it…once was good for her! Or was it bad?

We all had a good time and as for me…I’m still a little tired. But it sure was GREAT to spend time with Trish and Andrew. Andrew has gotten so tall (and buff, he would want me to say that) and though I have thought he was always a good looking boy he is turning into a very handsome young man.

Birthday Splash!

Well where did the rain go? It turned out to be a wonderful weekend of mild weather and the kids Birthday party was outside where everyone could enjoy themselves along with letting the kids run and play!

We had both sides of the family come to the twin’s birthday party along with a couple extra extended family members. This was a first to have so many family members from both sides gather at the same time. Everyone seemed to have a good time and like I said above, the rain didn’t really show up so we all got to enjoy being outside. We ate hotdogs, potato salad, bean salad, beans, chips and more. Then the twins opened gifts at lightning speed stopping only a moment to say Thank You to those who gave them. Then onto the cupcakes and out the door to take all the kids and a couple adults swimming, it was a good day … tiresome but a good day.

The kids have really enjoyed their weekend with family and friends. We did as well…and Thank You for making it special!

MORE Birthday Photos

Eating lunch, opening gifts, swimming and even some makeup shots!
FUN TIME!

We Are 4 Years Old Now

It was a hot and glorious day for the twins to celebrate their day of birth! After pre-school they came home and ran through the sprinkler and kiddy pool while Mom and Oma sat in the shade. WOW, its feels like August, reminds me of Hawaii….
As they played, the UPS truck arrived to deliver Cole’s package, just in time! He is very excited about his Star Wars Star Fighter complete with Luke Skywalker and R2-D2. Jo is happy to be able to skate on the sidewalk instead of needing ice. I’m sure she’ll take off in no time, taking ice skating lessons this past winter really inspired her to try it on her own after a few minutes.

Jo picked McDonalds for her birthday dinner, so we all had burgers and fries! Cut strawberries and shortcake for dessert and the candle blowing. What a great way to spend the evening…

Ponies – Flowers & Barbequing

We took the kids to a Mothers Day celebration put on by the Fertility Clinic that we used four plus years ago. The picnic/celebration is for all families that have passed through their doors. We don’t know many families that go to this but it’s nice to see our Doctor, eat some food and the kids get to ride ponies and get their face painted. It’s also fun to see all the families helped through the clinic one way or the other. Families.

We bought some flowers and a couple new pots for our front porch. The kids picked out the blooms, mostly blue this year then we all took a little time on Sunday to pot the new plants. The kids liked the part about smashing the old cracked pot to use in the bottom of our new ones. The photo may look a little dangerous with the hammers but they each took a turn hitting the pot, no one got hurt. After the new pots/flowers were on the porch the kids wanted to sit there and watch them grow…right then. Guess they will understand how plants grow over time. :O)
It’s 85 degrees on the front porch Sunday so this afternoon we will be firing up our new Mothers Day Barbeque and cooking some hot dogs and just enjoying the yard and sun. Oh…and this weather brings out our neighbors too so we have been doing a lot of jabbering with them today. I love sunny days and our neighbors.

Happy Mothers Day To You And Yours.

To Early to Shave?

Jo was in the bathroom washing her finger painted hands and decided to try and shave for the first time. We felt she really should have asked us how to use the razor first but she gave it her best shot alone.

No screaming or shock from the bathroom, just Jo walking out saying “Mama, look” and she pointed to her bloody chin. “Did you bump your chin Jo?”, ”No”. ”Did you fall off the counter?”, ”No”. ”What did you do Jo?” Oh the crying started then when I pulled off the paper towel and she saw the blood.

Wasn’t hard to figure out what had caused the cuts when I saw the razor sitting on the bathroom counter. Those Daisies are just not soft as the real ones, and can you tell we shave with dual razor blades?

We promised Jo that when she was older she would be taught how to use this tool properly and when that day came we hoped that she wouldn't have to use the razor on her face.

Shout Out!

Just wanted to give my Grandmother a Shout Out and wish her a Happy 99th Birthday!
Though she will probably never see this website I thought that everyone should know that this woman is still
kickin it and living large!
Vera Belmont…You Rock!

Playing in Portland

Oma had a union meeting in Jantzen Beach this weekend so the kids and I went too to relax at a hotel, swim and play around the area.

We had visits from Nanny/Grandpa and the Ruiz family throughout the weekend, all included at least a meal out and the kids swimming at the pool. The kids and I also made it to Great Grandpa Lovely’s for a short visit with a bonus of seeing Annie and Evan along with the famous Snoopy!
We played at the Children’s Museum on Saturday where the kids got to explore in a variety of mediums, water, fairy tale land, face painting, building/plumbing and so much more. Sesame Street was the main attraction at the museum, it was fun for Mom to see the famous green double doors to the apartments of Sesame St., and then watching the kids play dress up to look like Cookie Monster or Big Bird. The kids even sat in front of a green screen and sang or counted with a Muppet on tv. That was neat!
After dinner we stopped by the carousel and let the kids take a ride before hitting the pool for the evening.

Mom sure does enjoy getting time away from housework/yard work and just “normal life” once in a while.