Wednesday, September 30, 2009

So Elise was walking up the stairs a few days ago. I was following behind her. She was, as she often is at the end of the day, naked. I saw her little tush in front of me and I lightly tapped it. She stopped quickly and turned around with a very serious look on her face. "Mommy. You cannot touch my privates. Only me and the doctor can. " Pause. "But you can touch your privates! In the shower...that is where I touch mine!" Then she turns and happily continues her way up the stairs.

Monday, September 28, 2009

Utah


We went to Utah last week. We spent the first few days with my sisters and their families. No Internet, no stores, no driving, no distractions. The kids played outside with their cousins. They had a blast! No whining, no asking for toys, no boredom. Just pure, simple fun.

In my opinion, it was way better than Disneyland. Disneyland costs a lot of money and scares the crap out of our kids. Our kids = Sam and Elise. The other cousins LOVE Disneyland. Our kids, not so much. Everything scares them there. I am still getting over it. But I am totally off point here - why I am bashing Disneyland? The point of this post is to share some of the pictures from the trip to Utah. The point is my dad got married this past week to Rachelle. Rachelle and my dad have been dating for several years now. They got married in Zion National Park last Tuesday.
A small group of family and friends stayed at a couple of vacation homes just outside the park.
This is Rachelle's daughter (Chenelle) and son (Jordan) on the right, along with his girlfriend Erica. Jordan and Erica are smarty pants graduate students. He studies physics and she studies geo-physics (earthquakes!). Chenelle is a smarty pants too. She is studying to be an Actuary. I didn't even know what that was. It involves building mathematical models and statistics and smart stuff like that...in case you were wondering...


The trip was fun. The weather was perfect. I have a million photos to edit and share. But before I wrap this up, I have to include these adorable photos I managed to get of my cowboy nephews right after the ceremony.


We were gone last week

I can't find any time to blog lately! We were gone last week. Here is a hint as to where we were. More later today...I hope!





Monday, September 14, 2009

3 three year old favorites

Elise loves her tricycle and hiding behind her pink umbrella

and her shoes.

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

If you ever find yourself in Sacramento...

stay at the Citizen Hotel.

The rooms are super clean, nicely decorated and there was not a nasty hotel quilt to be found! This is where I stayed with my sisters and my Mom, back in June, when we were belatedly celebrating my Mom's 65th birthday. When trying to find a place to stay, I found a review that said, "If you have to be in Sacramento, this is the place to stay." I couldn't agree more.
This was the view from the Bathroom. Makes Sacramento look halfway decent I think. Downtown Sacramento had a strange vibe. It felt a little like a ghost town. But things were busy over here...in the Capitol building. Politicians were busy not agreeing on a budget. We stopped by Arnold's office to see if we could help but this guy and the bear would not let us in.
But they did let us wander the halls and peek into the budget vote.






We were pleasantly surprised at what a nice time we had. It was interesting to walk around downtown. We had fun at a MAC counter getting our makeup did. And, we had a fantastic dinner at the hotel restaurant.
We don't live near each other so this rare night out will be remembered.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Making Progress

I am so excited about these pictures I took of little Lucas, Jen's newest baby. I drove up to the Bay Area last weekend for a quick visit to meet the new little man. I also just discovered that Photo Shop Elements has action sets. This may not mean anything to you...but it means I can make skin creamy and colors pop more in my photos. This is VERY exciting to me!! That is the best part about this little photography hobby of mine...there is always something more to learn. Here are a few of my favorites of Lucas.










I have a bunch of pictures of this happy little dude smiling. He smiled so much in his sleep and not just your typical little gassy smiles favored by most newborns. He had full on grins! Check this out.


I have never met a happier newborn.