Mama's Day

Happy Mother's Day to our fabulous mothers...and to all of you mom's out there...sending big hugs to all of you!
We had a wonderful weekend...it went by so fast. There was a squadron "First Friday" Friday night which was fun to see everyone out. Then Saturday we had our squadron commander from Kadena over for dinner (he is just in town for two weeks) with our other friends here that know him...it was fun catching up. And what a career he has had. He is now headed back to Japan in a couple of weeks to be the wing commander this time...with a star on his shoulder. Wow.

We celebrated Mother's Day going to church, brunch and to the park. W refused to take a pic with me at the park...so here I am with J (I'll take what I can get):

And my friend Christina and I treated ourselves to pedicures that afternoon. Did I mention she was moving? In just a few months? Great news for them but sad news for us...they have been such great friends to us.
I LOVED my cards from Geoff and the boys. Especially the nice presents the boys made at school.

My necklace from J:

Close-up of the one from W:

Their cards with decorative hearts they made:

Wearing my new necklaces:

And a heart cloud the boys spotted in the sky.

Friday Favorites

Just a couple of things I am loving right now.
Trader Joes Mint and Aloe Shaving Cream: No picture but I bought this the last time I was in Bend and love it. It foams (nothing new) but the canister isn't metal so it doesn't rust in the shower.
This Amy's pizza:

I love a lot of their pizzas...but this might be my favorite...the sauce has a vinegar-base or something and it is just so good and different. Might not be for everyone but I love it and I add my own cheese when I want it...otherwise this works great for us now because the boys still can't have milk products.

The movie "Secretariat"

Have you seen this yet? One of the first movies I have seen in a long time that the whole family can watch, no violence, graphic stuff, etc but so entertaining and powerful.

Flameless Candles:

I splurged and ordered a couple of these candles from Restoration Hardware. When I was in TN I saw their whole store lit up in these candles and I swore they were real. They flicker and actually glow more than some other versions I have seen. Big bonus for me...I can throw them in my bag and use them in my yoga classes...no matches, no wax, no fire hazard...just switch them on and then put them back in my bag. The ones from Restoration Hardware are also able to be used outdoors as well and have a timer so you don't leave them on all night.

Bath Toy Storage (Skip Hop):

I can't say I love this yet because I just bought it today at a local store. I am excited to try it. It is made from the same material as wet suits, holds more toys than it looks, is soft so kiddos won't bonk themselves on it, and best of all, it is machine washable. The one we found is orange.

And a couple of things I am hoping to get in the near future...
These great (but expensive) stainless steel lunchboxes. They are supposedly easy to clean and have no bad chemicals...and I won't have to use and waste a lot of ziploc bags. I also love the tiny little compartment in the center for a tiny treat.

A vitamix:

I resisted buying one in December when they were doing demos at Costco but so wish I had! Everyone I know that has this machine LOVES it, swears by it, uses it all the time. I was initially turned off by the price for a blender but it is so much more. I really want it to make green smoothies to get some extra vegetables for all of us. But it seems you need this to really make a smoothie. We have the $40 blender that works horrible! Everything sticks to the bottom and it doesn't fully blend the ice and frozen fruit in. Apparently you can make homemade soups as well right in the vitamix...it even heats it up in the mixer. So essentially it is blender, food processor, ice-cream maker, juicer, wheat and nut grinder. The reviews for the Vitamix are fantastic...multiple people say it is the best money they ever spent. Can't wait until Costco gets this back in.

Special Moments

Our weather has turned fabulous again. I love it. High 60's, low 70's and cool breezes. The weather allowed Geoff to start working on the fence. Not sure he would consider that a "special moment" but that's OK. He especially hasn't been fond of walking up and down the hill with the auger or with full wheelbarrow of cement. But it is looking great and he has been working hard. I think almost all the posts are in. The boys have been good little helpers.


In fact, W stayed home last Saturday with Geoff to help him with the fence and J came with me on a shopping trip over the hill. W kept calling J on the phone while we were gone - it was SO cute! I wish I had my camera or video with me to get a shot of J chatting away on my cell to W while riding in the cart at Costco. I think they had four or five seperate phone conversations throughout the day. I would answer the phone and hear W say "Mommy!? I need to talk to JACK."
The boys are getting big. Here they are out on the deck:




Katy has been making us laugh lately. Notice we don't have any outdoor furniture? Well, first of all, we have never had such a great deck, second of all, Katy is obsessed with our stuff. Geoff just moved our glider back up from the crawl space and it was so funny to watch her just stand there for a long time and balance herself while it moved. We just ordered an outdoor table set so we are going to have to keep her off the new set--the silly girl:

J playing:

W snuggling Geoff's legs...

Not a lot else going on...just starting to plan our house projects (especially the outdoor ones) now that the weather is nice. Happy Friday!

Almost 15 weeks

Yes, there is a baby on board!

I had an appointment today. The baby's heartbeat was strong and in the 150's. We are scheduled for the anatomy ultrasound for mid-May...I guess then I will believe if I am on the doctor's timeline which would put me closer at 16 1/2 weeks instead. I know I am looking more like 16 1/2 weeks! :)

Easter Fun

We had a nice Easter here. The boys were up by 6 a.m. and we held them off from finding eggs until 6:30.
W's basket of goodies:

J's basket:

J distracted by his basket mid-Egg hunt:



So many treats!


When we start the day so early it makes the 10:30 church service seem late!



Then we had a yummy brunch with a couple of other families followed by another outdoor Easter egg hunt.
Run!




By the time we got home it was already 4. So we watched "Mary Poppins" -was one of their Easter presents. Hope you all had a blessed and joyful Easter Sunday!

The Day to Day Stuff

Six months seem to go by fast in regards to dental time. I feel like the boys just had a check-up. This is the first time they attempted x-rays: got some on J but not on W.
W getting his cleaning:

Inspecting the goods:

Not liking the whole thing...here comes "the scowl"

J chose to accessorize for his cleaning:


But they both did great and got a clean bill of health-dental health that is.
As for our health in general, ours has been horrible the last week or so. J and W fighting colds, then W caught the stomach flu, then I caught it three days later and it completely wiped me out. Just praying that it alludes Geoff and J. This is the third round for the stomach flu around town and I thought we had avoided it.
I had my second parent/teacher conference at the boys' preschool. Their teacher amazes me. She had three hand-written pages on each of them. And they always are doing fun projects. This week they brought home lots of projects they had been working on for Easter: wheat grass they grew, Easter bags they made, plastic eggs they found at an egg hunt at school, hard-boiled eggs they dyed, and a craft project with colored rice glued onto an egg. I got W to hold still for a moment with his bag that he wrote his name on. Love the expression.

And now his "grumpy" face:

Geoff has been busy taking a Quickbooks class in the evenings after work and putting up our fence in any free time he has. Katy inspecting the work:

Is good.

Of course when we took the chicken wire fence down to start putting the chain link up, the dogs got skunked. Again. The fourth time since we moved here. Katy just knows where to find them and just can't leave them alone apparently. Soon Geoff will be able to go into the de-skunking business professionally from all of the practice!

Now we are back to the dreaded task of researching blinds for our great room. The sun is out longer and we can't go another summer here without something for our big windows. We were looking at Hunter Douglas Architella shades...but the more we think about it...
...we are now considering something like this:


where you can have the shades open even when they are up? Of course they cost more so that will probably be the deciding factor. I hate making such a big decision on a little sample...but wondering if any of you have shades similar to either of these or know someone who does. Curious what the pros/cons are.
Hope you all have a nice Easter. I need to go make some rolls now for an Easter brunch tomorrow. Enjoy!