Resolutions for 2009...

Two new posts in two days? Gasp! After I haven't written in months, literally. I guess this mini two week vacation has motivated me to be more productive, and let's face it, I am more rested on vacation and not falling asleep on the couch at 8 each night! My wonderful children have been sleeping in to 7:30/8:00 each morning, and we have all been enjoying naps or "rest time," Last week, my husband was off all week Monday-Sunday which was a huge help for me! The kids were in heaven! Ryan works alot so this was a real treat for all of us. (Well, not for the bank account as he was on a furlough and not getting paid, but he has a job and we are thankful!).

So, what will you resolve to do in 2010? One of my resolutions is to enjoy as much time as possible with my three (soon to be four) superheros....



Aren't they just adorable? They were so fun this past Halloween and trick or treated for an hour and a half, running from house to house. Dylan was enamored with his "ninja" of a dad. Did I dress up? Of course I did. I went as Ryan! :-) Complete with golf shoes, golf club, hat, shirt, the works. He thought it was terrific.

I guess mine is more of a hope than a resolution for 2010. I hope that we continue to have as many wonderful family memories as 2009 blessed us with. Not a day passes that Ryan and I don't find our selves laughing out loud or under our breath at our silly children. We are bonded in so many ways. We can't wait to add another little girl to our crazy, loving, fun family. 2010 is sure to bring great memories!

I'll be home for Christmas (If only in my dreams....)

Looking back on 2009, we have had so very many wonderful memories and blessings! One of my fondest memories will always be having four generations in my house for Thanksgiving at the same time. Grandpa and Grandma from Florida, Mom and Dad from Washington, my sister and I, and our children. Here is a picture of all of us that I will always have fond memories of!




Dylan and Emma with their cousin Kaili, my sister's little girl.



Grandpa and Grandma with their Great-Grandchildren! :-)



My parents with my family!



So although I could not be home for Christmas this year because of being 33 weeks pregnant, I was there in spirit, and have wonderful memories of my times my family spends together. My dad is always so wonderful at pointing out how important it is that we create our own memories and traditions as the Harlow family in Aliso Viejo, CA. He is right. I try to carry on many of the same traditions that I loved as a child. But most importantly, as seen from the Thanksgiving pictures above, my greatest love in life is my family. Cherish the times together, no matter how crazy they may seem as you are living them, because those moments don't happen near enough or last long enough. Family is forever.

Only my kids...

So yes, in the wave of the "flu epidemic frenzy" I jumped aboard to get my kids vaccinated ASAP. My OB was very concerned with my pregnancy being "high risk" (which it really isn't anymore...) and wanted all of us in my family to be vaccinated for both the flue and H1N1 as soon as possible. I already got my regular flu shot and am awaiting the other to arrive at the OB's office. D and E were supposed to get theirs today. Supposed to. However, just like most of the pediatricians' offices in Orange County, they ran out of the shot. The nice lady at asked me, "Would like them to have the flu mist instead? We still have that." Ummm, yeah, of course. Actually I was so uptight about it, I had to tell her the short abridged version of my current life story, "Yes that would be great. I have a high risk pregnancy. I teach in the public schools. My kids are in full time preschool. I am pregnant with my third child." Poor lady, much more than she asked for. "Yes, that would be great." Her reply,"The insurance doesn't cover it, so it will be $50 a child." Me: "No problem." Was I crazy? $100 for two flu mists? No, I was completely rational at this point. Considering our circumstances, this was the best $100 I could spend on my kids. Who wants their children to get sick? Definitely not me. Not at his point in our crazy, "roll with the punches" lifestyle.

I, being the naive mother that I am, thought my children would be SO happy to get the mist instead of the shot. I was off. WAY OFF! We were the only patients there screaming from getting the flu mist. "I want a shot!" Yes, those words came from my sweet son's mouth. Seriously? Dylan went first, cried and yelled. For Emma, this did not make the experience any more enticing. I had to HOLD her down. Yes, for a mist in her nose. After leaving the exam room, the receptionists were looking at us with such bewilderment, knowing we had the mist since the shots were all out. At home, both children proclaimed, " I never want a flu mist again." Emma: "Mommy, I don't like the flu! I like the medicine in my arm!" Only my kids........

Where to start?

Wow...so much has happened since my last post....yet I have not accomplished that much. Today was a big turning point. My husband left work early to meet me at my ultrasound/doctor's appointment with the "at risk" doctor. I know, "how sweet," and, "he's so supportive," and, "wow, he still goes to the appointments and this is the third baby!" Yes, your sentiments are all correct. But there was MUCH more at stake for him at this appointment than previous ones. He was hopeful that I would be moved from the "DL" (disabled list) to the "staring lineup." Stay with me here, the sports analogy is only the beginning. Since being diagnosed with complete placenta previa 8 weeks ago, I have been on "pelvic rest." Yes, hold your laughter, but my husband HAD to be at this appointment to hear if I would remain on the DL. Well, all the praying he did must have worked because my placenta moved 2 cm. It is no longer considered a complete previa. My odds of needing the hysterectamy went down significantly today! I couldn't believe it! Who knew that my placenta could bring such joy and happiness to my life? :-) Well, it brought much more to my husband's. He could barely finish asking about my "starting lineup" odds when the doctor finished his sentence, giving me the all clear. Hmmmm...maybe I should have kept this appointment a secret? :-) Just kidding! I am very happy that this final pregnancy of mine will now be a less stressful and easy going affair. It's the small things in life that really make a big difference!

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We have been very busy lately. I entered the world of being a "soccer mom" and being the "team mom." That could be a ten page post of its own. Let's just say that soccer for four year olds has proved to be much more intense here in Orange County than I was mentally prepared for. Snack schedules, emails, team banners, emails, team mom meetings, emails, trophies, emails, end of the year parties, emails. You get the idea. Seriously? The kids are FOUR!!! Yes, four! This is very serious business here in Orange County. I really shouldn't be that surprised. Everything is serious, competitive business in Orange County. It builds character. We aren't sure what type of character we're building, but we know we're developing some. Reassuring, I know.

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We've had visits to the apple orchard to go apple picking of course! We've visited the fire station for their open house, been to the craft store to make pumpkins, gone to the pumpkin patch, had fevers, watched movies, played outside a lot, and just hanging out as much as possible. I will post pictures soon of the above events to share. Life is crazy, busy, fun and all ours!

You've Got to Have Friends....

Wow! I am so blessed by the friends that surround me daily, hourly...all the time. Friends, co-workers, neighbors....I have people that support me, love my children, and go above and beyond to help me out in my daily life. I have this best friend, Julie~who was sent to me with such a purpose. She is an amazing mother, friend, teacher, and person. I have this unbelievable friend Kari who amazes me with her strength, faith, and amazing ability to be so giving to everyone in her life. My friend Courtney calls to check on me, loves me for who I am, and has been there for me since college. I have fabulous coworkers who email me and call me just to make sure I am alright. My kids and I have a Grammy J that offers to come help us should we ever need it, and whom my kids love as another grandma. I have these incredible neighbors that play with my children and offer to help whenever it is needed.

Here are some of the unbelievably kind things the people in my life do: make me dinners ahead of time so I don't have to stand and cook after working all day, lift my kids up and tell me to sit down to take it easy, watch my kids so I can go grocery shopping without having to lift anyone into the cart, come over and play with their kids to keep my kids busy when I am supposed to be resting, call me from their vacation homes to check on me, jump on trampolines with my daughter since I can't, offer to come down from L.A. and help us with whatever we need should that situation become a reality, love my family unconditionally...I could go on and on listing the selfless acts my friends constantly do in our honor. I am blessed. You've got to have friends. Friends are the family you choose for yourself. :-) We don't have "blood" family close by, but we certainly have family. We have a circle of friends that is just as close and bonded as a blood related family. We are lucky. We are blessed. We love you all! Thank you for loving and caring about us.

Everything I Need to Know....

Okay, well maybe not everything I need to know, but I sure did learn alot this summer and over our latest vacation. For example, did you know that 18 holes of golf always includes lunch and a beer afterwards? I did not know this was a "standard." Thank you for my husband, mother-in-law, and good friends, Mary, Kari, and Scott for clueing me in on this one. Isn't it unfortunate that four and a half hours with the kids (while said husband is golfing) doesn't also include lunch and a beer? Hmmmm. I also learned that our latest vacation was "Ryan's vacation"...I was just "on summer break." Honestly? I love my husband more than words, but please tell me he didn't really say this to me during our time in Bellingham. What has my summer break consisted of? Let me tell you. Lots of throwing up, lots of feeling cruddy, cleaning (okay, not as much as I should have), laundry, grocery shopping, cooking, day trips with the kids, and playing with the kids. Oh yeah~that's what I ALWAYS do! Thanks honey! I love my life but let's just dream for a minute that we experienced a "Liz's vacation" moment. Although I wouldn't be golfing, I would definitely take four and a half hours a day, four days in a row to do whatever I please and then have lunch and a beer (okay diet coke since I am pregnant) afterwards. Then, I would return back to my family just as the kids had started napping or were ready for bed. How dreamy! I know I sound bitter, and really I'm not. Ryan loves to golf, and it's also a huge part of his job. And, for the most part, it's free for him. So, what am I complaining about anyway? I think I need to find a hobby other than being pregnant or sorting through maternity clothes right now!

Everything I need to know I have learned in the past nine years of marriage. So, maybe I still have some learning to do, but feel much more equipped to have a successful marriage now after celebrating nine years together. I have learned that most importantly, not everything is worth an argument. Although my way is more than likely always the right way (wink, wink), I shouldn't criticize the effort of those I love. I have also learned that no matter what, Ryan and I have always found a way to work it out, make things work, or go to work and start fresh when we get home that night. Life is hard. No one ever said it was going to easy. Raising kids, working, and having a happy marriage is not always a cake walk. I have learned though, that if you focus on all the negatives~of your spouse, your situation, your job, whatever it may be~it just makes you more annoyed and frustrated. We all have our flaws. Thank goodness my husband looks past mine and loves me for who I am. In nine years I have reminded myself that we fall in love with a person for who they are~not for who they might be someday. I love my husband~flaws and all~tremendously.

I have learned this summer that my kids LOVE every vacation they take to visit one of their six sets of grandparents. They don't need a theme park. They just need a grandpa and grandma that spoil them, love them to pieces, and give them oodles~I mean oodles~of attention. Family is so important. Too often we see people put work, money, and/or possessions before family. Can our family frustrate us? Absolutely. Can they get on our nerves? Of course. Do we do the same to them? Undoubtedly. But in the end we are family~those are the things we do best! :-) Families argue but remember this~you will never get that time back. Every moment spent angry or upset with a family member is a moment lost. My dad taught this to me early on. Every moment is a gift. You will NEVER get that moment back. I have learned that it is so much easier to forgive, forget, love, enjoy, laugh, and count my blessings. Life is too short.

I have learned one more important lesson this summer~I really stink at being pregnant! As if I didn't recognize this from my first two children, it really stares me in the face now. I am eternally grateful and blessed to be able to get pregnant so easily, but watch out. Once my body figures out was is going on~oh boy! This will be our last child, and I have slowly learned to enjoy this pregnancy as much as I can when I am not throwing up~and cherish these moments. I will never get them back!

Deep sigh...

As my good friend Kari told me last week, "You'd better blog again soon. People are going to wonder what's been happening with you." She is right. I haven't blogged because I haven't had any motivation. As many of you know by now, I am pregnant and we are expecting our third child on February 17th. Actually, it will be more around the 10th of February, as it will be a scheduled c-section again. I loved both my other c-sections...but that's for a later post! I have been really tired and not feeling that great. The kids have been going to preschool a few days a week and then I lay on the couch and try to be semi-productive here at home, or running errands, etc. The other days, we have been swimming and hanging at the beach. The kids are such a fun age and love just having fun! Here are some pics from the 4th of July, and some of our summer outings. We really have loved only living 15 minutes away from the beach. We hop in the car and then we are there. So blessed and loving it so much! Enjoy the pics, and I will write more soon (sooner than last time!).



Emma and cousin Kaili playing on Long Beach, Wa.



Dylan and Grandpa flying kites on the beach.



Running through the sprinkler at Grandpa and Grandma's!



Grandpa giving all the grandkids tractor rides.



Swimming and playing in the water with Daddy!



"Look at the size of those waves!" (We didn't know there was a high surf warning that day. The waves were HUGE!)



Lastly, the sunflowers that Dylan and Emma planted in front of our house. We all love seeing them...so cheerful!

Busy at the Beach

Whew! The kids have been so busy since our arrival in Washington. We went to my parents' beach house in Long Beach, Washington. While there, I don't think Dylan stopped moving for more than one nap all weekend (an hour on Saturday) and at night to sleep, at which time he snored loudly to help me not miss Ryan so much! Just kidding. Here are the activities that Dylan did at the beach: fishing in the canal with Granpa and Uncle Kai, taking the paddle boat out, flying kites on the beach, swimming in the ocean, flying model airplanes, playing croquet, playing baseball, building a campfire in the backyard, making smores, letting off our own fireworks, and playing with anyone around! Emma took part some of those too, but was also busy playing dollies with her younger cousin Kaili. They are pooped! They had so much fun! Dylan will remember these times forever. The time he spends with Grandpa and his Uncle Kai are so precious to him. He LOVES these times!

The Washington coastline is such a beautiful place. The mix of Evergreen trees with the ocean really is unparallel to any other kind of beauty. The weather is much cooler at the beachhouse, ranging from 60 to 70 degrees when we were there. So comfortable and refreshing! A simple life, no internet, limited cell phone service, and no crazy hustle-bustle. Fireworks going off on the beach for as far as the eye can see. It is so good to be reminded of how easy and simple life can and should be. It was a wonderful Fourth of July and a wonderful weekend with our family.

A different kind of peace

So, the peaceful feeling that I was experiencing last night, changed a little around 3:30 am. Emma called out for me. She was sharing a bed with Dylan. So of course, she woke up Dylan. I had them both come lay in my bed with me, because I was in a queen sized bed and they were in a double. I had them both, each one snuggled up on one side of me. Ahh~a different kind of peace. The kind of peace knowing that only a mom can make it all better in the middle of the night. The kind of peace that both kids could not have possibly snuggled any closer to me. So wonderful! Well, for a while. At 5:12 am when they were both still awake snuggling and whispering next to me, that peaceful, easy feeling was, well...gone. I had to do a little threatening. They did fall back asleep and when we woke up at 7:12 my original sense of peace had been restored.
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On a side note, a funny from our plane ride up here yesterday. The plane was a smaller one, with two seats on either side of the aisle. Emma and I on one side, Dylan in the aisle seat across from me. In the seat next to him, he had a 79 year old lady who had never flown before. She was scared to fly. She was very sweet to Dylan though, and he is an expert flier these days. Anyway, I took out our bag of snacks. I always take cold pizza cut up into small cubes for lunch/dinner on the plane. My kids LOVE it! And it isn't messy when it is cold. I also had packed some grapes. This nice lady saw my bag with the green grapes and said, " I'll take some grapes too please." So of course, I obliged. A little blown away, but I didn't know what else to say but, "okay." Kind of funny!

Peace

I just need a little peace sometimes. I am sure you can all relate. I have not blogged in three weeks. I have not cleaned my house during those same three weeks--gasp! I. AM. TIRED. Tired all the time. Seriously tired. However, today I was able to just enjoy an overwhelming sense of peace. I didn't have to look at the dirty mirror or window I've been meaning to clean. I didn't have to think about what I would be making (or ordering) for dinner. Imagine that. So dreamy. Yes, my friends, I am on vacation. I. LOVE. VACATION. Tropical? No. Cruise? No. Island getaway? No. Theme park related? No. My favorite vacation spot in the world~my parents' house. The kids LOVE it! I relax. Grandpa and Grandma play with them the whole time. This is better than Disneyland for them! Love it. My mom plans out every meal. Love it. As long as I have this I will never need a tropical vacation of any type. The only thing missing? My husband. Work calls. He loves his job. We are thankful he has a job. But alas, we miss him so.

Praying tonight for my friend whose brother has had cancer return to his body. Praying that God can help to provide peace, strength, courage, and hope for him and his family. Praying for my friend. She has been through so much in her life. Praying for her strength and hope too.

Lastly, thankful for my family. My husband and kids, my ADORABLE little niece Kaili :-), my sister, parents, extended family, in-laws, and friends who are family. We are SO blessed by those that are in our lives. We are so fortunate to have support all around us. We have FABULOUS friends and EXTRAORDINARY family. We love you all!

Hamster in a Wheel

No. We don't have a hamster. We don't even have a hamster wheel. We have a me. Yep. A me. That's right. A mom. A wife. A Mrs. Harlow. A Liz. I am the closest human version to a hamster in a wheel that you may ever lay your eyes upon in your lifetime. No joke. Imagine it. Me. In a wheel. Going in circles for hours making no progress. Yep. And of course, I'm having a heck of a lot of fun with a smile on my face the whole time.

This morning did not start off well. I woke up with a RAGING headache. Dark circles. (The night before my eyes were so puffy I had to sleep with a cool washcloth on them.)I started to worry how I would get it all done. Laundry. Report cards. Report card comments. Placement cards. Dishes. Shopping for the birthday party. Uploading pictures for school. Grocery shopping. Paying bills. Visiting friends who just had babies. Cleaning. Finishing the fence project. And oh yeah--let's not forget that I wanted to actually have FUN with the kids this weekend too. Ryan had to leave for work. The kids were both up before seven. Did I mention that I had a headache? Sweet husband went to get milk and caffeine (Starbucks) for me then off to work he went. I dreaded the day ahead. I was so sure that the kids and I were going to be at odds all day. Oh and I forgot to mention that it is Dylan's weekend with the classroom stuffed animal Fluffy. Fluffy needs to go around town with us and we document where he goes. Yep. Take pictures of Fluffy. Upload pics of Fluffy. Pick up pics of Fluffy. Have Dylan write about pics of Fluffy. And yes, all due back in class by Monday morning. Hamster. In. A. Wheel.

Around 10:30 I decided that we needed out of the house and for a morning I dreaded, the day could not have turned out better!

We ran off to Home Depot for the kid's clinic. They each made a tool box with me. Yes. Me. I can pound a nail and line up wood like no other. Okay, well maybe I had to try a few times, but hey the kids loved their toolboxes! And yes, Fluffy had his picture take during the process and after.





As we were leaving Home Depot Dylan said, "Mom, that was so much fun!" Melt my heart. We all held hands and off to the car and our next stop we went. If you have never been to a Lakeshore Learning store you must go. They are known for their teacher supplies and educational games, etc. My kids love everything there! Today they had free puppet making and a man playing guitar and singing. Last week was story time. So fun. And free!!!



Of course, Fluffy had his picture taken there too!



So as the day is now half done I have successfully worked on the most important item on my lengthy "to-do list"....have fun with kids!

California Sun!

In the midst of birthday parties, family fun nights, planning a birthday party, preschool orientations, work schedules, and upcoming golf tournements (yeah, not me on this one) we have still found time to enjoy the California sun! We are currently experiencing some "May Gray" soon to be "June Gloom." Seriously, who comes up with this stuff. Is it suposed to make us all feel better that we won't see the sun again until July just because nothing rhymes with it? However, we were blessed with some great weather the past two weekends.

We went and swam at some good friends' house on Memorial Day. Below are some pics of the kids having fun in the pool (of course there are more pictures of my children, who else would I blog about?). We have a couple of little "frogs" on our hands. Nope, not fishies. They like the water but are alright being in it or out of it. Kind of like a turtle too I guess. Either way we loved every minute of being able to swim. Well, I wasn particulary fond of the "I need to get in a swimsuit to swim" part of the whole deal. C'mon...whatever happened to the days when women had suits that covered their whole bodies. The "average woman" was much better off...and much more protected by the sun. Anyway, I got in one and we had fun!





Lastly, here is a picture of "Ooh" and "Aah" as my husband refers to them in our backyard.



As I close this entry I just want to say how fortunate we are to have "fun kids." They think EVERYTHING is fun! Somehow going to the dentist is fun (they did not inherit that from me), going to the store, shopping, setting the table...you name it. They make everything into a game! So fun!

Emma's Birthday Part 2 and 3

Part two of Emma's birthday happened at preschool this week. On Wednesday at Chapel time, Emma was sung to and received her "Jesus Loves Me" necklace that every child gets on his or her birthday. She loves it! Then on Friday, she took in popsicles and shared with the class. By the sheer grace of God, I arrived just in time for her to pass them out. The teachers at our preschool are so wonderful, and they went to get Dylan from his classroom to share in the celebration with his sister!








The last part of Emma's birthday was today, her actual birthday. Ryan had to work all day today and tonight, so I really tried hard to make today as special as possible for Em. She did open up all of her gifts this morning before Daddy had to leave for work.



Then D and I took her to Toys R Us, Target, and Lakeshore Learning to buy gifts with giftcards she received for her special day. We had a lot of fun this morning! After nap, we picked up Auntie Julie (my best friend) while D played with Zachy and Matty (his best friends) and Uncle Mike (my best friend's husband....are you following all of this? :-). Auntie Julie, Em and I went for pedicures! Yes...I know what you are thinking. SOOOOO Orange County! Please, give me a break here! We wanted to indulge the princess on her special day!



After her toes and fingers were painted pink, we picked up all the boys and went to Ruby's for dinner.



My goodness am I tired! God bless you all out there with more than two children, I don't know how you do it! All of this running around and celebrating is exhausting! However, I would never trade a moment of it for anything! Especially moments such as when I am bringing Dylan into my bed this morning, where Em has already situated herself and the first thing my sweet boy says is, "Happy Birthday Emma!" Wow...those are the moments that make everything else feel a thousand miles away. Not to mention that the last thing D said this evening when we were going to bed was, "Mom, let's sing Happy Birthday to Emma one more time!"

Emma's Birthday Part 1

Today my little princess had her 3rd birthday party. Her actual party is not until May 30th. She is such a little princess and a tomboy all rolled into one! :-)



She loved her new party dress! She loves dressing up and is very opinionated about everything: which shoes she will wear, how she wants her hair done! It's crazy!





We had her party at one of the local parks! I loved it! You can reserve the parks for free through our HOA. What a great idea/deal! The kids had such a blast! It was the perfect day too. About 75 degrees, sunny and a great breeze. The park has four covered picnic tables, tons of play equipment including Dylan's favorite sand diggers, and a HUGE field. We took bats, balls, and sand toys for all to play. We had 30 people there and we had FUN! We have a FABULOUS group of close friends (who are family) and fantastic neighbors. We are so blessed that they love our children so much!

Here is a picture of me with my favorite little girl!


Here is a picture with my favorite man!
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What a perfect day for a princess birthday party! Life is good!

Bilingual...did you know?

Dylan informed us at dinner the other night that he can speak and understand Korean. Wow, we knew he was smart, but we had no idea. No, seriously we were trying not to laugh when he told us. We asked him what he could say in Korean and of course his response was, " I can't remember right now." Mom: "Dylan, does anyone in your class speak any other languages? " Dylan: "Yes mommy, V does." Mom: "Oh really, what language does V speak? " Dylan "She speaks 'inquiet' language." Ryan and I could not keep the smiles and small snickers to ourselves. V is a delightful girl in Dylan's class that is quiet spoken and well mannered. Upon further investigation into this language matter, Dylan also informed us that others in the class spoke "just regular" language like him. Very insightful conversation.

Driving home yesterday Dylan and Emma wanted to know if tomorrow (Saturday) was a mommy day. This is what we call days when mommy doesn't have to work and we can have a day off. I told them that the next two days were mommy days. Dylan wanted to know if it was a day off so we could pray for all the soldiers in heaven. While driving and trying to unsuccessfully multitask, I did not fully grasp what Dylan was asking about. I asked him to repeat what he said again. He wanted to know if we had a day off to pray for all of God's soldiers that were now in heaven. Then it hit me. In preschool they had been talking about Memorial Day. Wow. I was blown away. I had never, in my 32 years of life thought of Memorial Day in such a powerful light. Yes. Dylan was right. We would be praying for ALL of God's soldiers that day that have gone on to heaven. All of the men and women that have died giving their lives in order for all of us to have ours. Wow. So powerful. Seeing life through the eyes of children is beyond words. At that moment when I understood what he was talking and asking about, I was completely covered in goosebumps realizing that Dylan understood the meaning of Memorial Day so much better than I could have ever explained it. So amazing. My sweet boy, so, so, so amazing.

Job Hunting

We recently had the opportunity to visit a children's museum. Dylan and Emma had the opportunity to test out some future possible job opportunties! Enjoy!

Heard in our house today

This morning Emma came bouncing into our bedroom.As I helped her onto our bed (our fabulous, cal-King, super comfy bed, that I could sleep in forever) she excitedly said, "Happy Mother's Day Mommy!" To which I replied, "Thank you Emma!" To which Emma then said, "Now you tell me Happy Emma's Day Emma!" Oh my...that girl is funny!



While playing the V-Tech this morning, Dylan grabbed the string on his remote and put it around his wrist. Emma asked what he was doing. After he explained, she examined hers and said, " Oh, I don't have a wrist." Again...that girl is funny.



What a splendid day to be a mom! We had a fabulous brunch at our house with friends, I picked up my new bicycle, received beautiful picture frames from my children and a Vanilla Bean frappucinno this morning, did a little shopping during naptime, and now I can't wait for them to wake up so we can take a bike ride together. We have sun, smiles, and lots of snuggles to still be had on this day. Being a mom is a wonderful thing!

Friendship is like a circle, it has no end, that's how long I'm going to be your friend!

These are my two dearest friends from highschool, Meredith and Jennifer. We have known eachother for 21 and 22 years. Wow! I feel so priveleged and blessed to have had two wonderful friends for that long. These women are truly amazing wives, mothers, friends, and Christians. We were able to spend a day together earlier this month while the kids and I visited Washington. We were only able to visit for a few short hours, as I could have talked to them for days! Between the three of us we have ten children. Only eight of the children were at our get together, as the other two were at school. The kids had fun and so did the girls.

I wonder how I got so lucky to have two friends through out the years that have stayed so true to themselves. They are grounded and confident in the women they have become. They are inspiring as mothers. Both have more patience than I have seen in a long time! I call them both friends with great ease, and pride. Mere and Jen make me feel normal in a world that can otherwise seem overwhelming and stressful. They are the ones that brought me to blogland!

Mere and Jen~love you both! Thank you for years of friendship, encouragement, and acceptance. You are both amazing!

~Liz

The girls!

Here are my sister and I with our "girls!" We are having fun on the swingset in my parents backyard! How fun to see both of us with our girls!



More fun memories to come...today is our first day of vacation at Grandpa and Grandma's house! We had a great trip up here on Jet Blue. We met a great group of high school/college guys who adored Dylan. They gave him high-fives in the Long Beach airport and had some fun with him on the plane (they sat right behind us.) After getting off the plane in Portland, as we were walking towards my parents, they all yelled out "Bye, Dylan!" He got a big smile on his face, turned around and waved. How nice and refreshing to see young men that are friendly, nice, and sweet to an otherwise unknown little four year old. They made his day.

After the above sweet moment, Dylan could not run fast enough to get to Grandpa's arms. As we came around the corner to where people wait to pick up passengers, Dylan started running, with the biggest smile on his face, shouting, "Grandpa! Grandpa! Grandpa!" It was movie-esque!!!!

We are looking forward to a week full of fun and sweet memories!

~Liz

Sweet Memories

My mom sent me all the pictures she took when her and my dad were here for Christmas this past year. They are so precious. What struck me the most was how precious all of these pictures are and how special what we are doing in each picture is to me. We aren't at Disneyland or flying off to some far away place. We are home. We are building with Grandpa, making cookies with mom, riding bikes, drinking hot chocolate, and decorating our gingerbread house.

Sigh. These pictures make my heart happy. The simple things in life bring my children~and me~the most joy.

And yes~these pictures were taken in December the week surrounding Christmas. It was very warm and we were celebrating California style!


My dare devil riding his razor as fast as possible down the sloping driveway!


I love this picture of my hands over Emma's making cookies.







Dylan gets his great imagination from Grandpa!



Grandma made them the hot chocolate they'd been longing for~and of course they didn't like it!

This last picture still puts a smile on my face. Of all the wonderful things my husband spoils me with~he still spoils me the most with his sense of humor and ability to make me smile. He was just complaining about how many "kitchen gadgets" I have. He took the kids out to Target around 4:30 on Christmas Eve, completely freaking me out. Mainly because Christmas Eve dinner was almost ready and Santa would be arriving soon. Anyway, my funny guy came home with one of the few kitchen gadgets I don't have~a toaster oven. It was a very funny moment to me. Even though we might complain about things our spouses do or want~in the end we really do all understand eachother. It's the ability and effort we put into understanding eachother that can make marriage so powerful. I may not always think my husband understands me or completely "hears me" but he truly does. Here is my expression after being married to him for almost nine years.


As I share these memories of the things in life that truly make me the happies: family, marriage, laughter, and sweet memories, may we all remember baby Stellan. Please continue to pray for this sweet baby from a fellow bloggers website. He is battling SVT. She is the remarkable mom of three other children. I have added the button to my blog if you too are willing to join us all to pray for this sweet boy. May they continue to be blessed with sweet memories.

~Liz

Superheros, super day!

Today was a great day! Dylan and Emma spent the day with a great friend and neighbor who has two boys of her own. She is an amazing mom and friend! Her oldest was at school this morning when Dylan and Emma were home playing with her younger son Tanner. Here is how their morning started...




Tanner is in the middle and Dylan is on the right (Emma on the left :-)...


(It made me laugh that Emma was the Hulk! I used to growl like the Hulk when I was her age...too funny! She loves "hanging with the boys!)

The day ended with my visit to the Breast Care Center in Newport Beach. After a mammogram and ultrasound all the images showed that there was nothing to be worried about. I just have dense tissue. Horray for dense tissue! I feel like a huge load has been lifted off my shoulders!

We watched Finding Nemo tonight on the couch. It was so nice to be so snuggly with the kids after such a long week. I love being with them and just "being." Nothing else like it in the world!

I love my little "superheros!"

~Liz