Some Preschool Projects

Aside from drawings and paintings, here are some of the recent projects the boys' did in preschool this year. Their class made a robot out of recycleable materials and won a little prize at the local college:

Some tie-dyed butterflies:

Pots they painted for....

...their bean plants (I forgot the official name). W's blossomed early (I asked him if he got a hold of some Miracle Grow but J's is catching up now:

Stain-glass fish made with tissue paper and wax paper (I love these):

Easter eggs made with rice:

Their basket weave-bags for Easter egg hunting:

They each grew wheat grass in an egg (do you see half the egg shell?) Funny, I didn't see that until the wind blew one over and it fell out and broke-hence only one wheat grass left for the picture:

Their milk carton houses...they had to learn their address to bring their carton home. The drawing below is W's family portrait...the big scribble toward the bottom is me with the baby in my belly:

J's quaint house:


J's tie-dyed shirt (I didn't even get a pic of W's yet)...before I washed them incorrectly and now they are PINK! Too bad their teacher's dryer was out because she normally finishes them for the class. But I must not have rinsed them long enough before I washed them:

Boy O' Boy it's a Girl!

We had our big anatomy ultrasound today and I was so anxious about it. I was so worried about the baby because I haven't felt any movement for four weeks or so and I haven't been sick for a few weeks either so I needed that reassurance that baby was OK.

We had to wake the boys up to get to the appointment (check-in at 6:45 a.m.) and I was so relieved to see the little heart beating! And to see the baby move! And while I was absorbed in that, Geoff was standing with his face right up to the screen (literally because he forgot his glasses) and said "it's a girl!" He did the same thing with the boys...he announced the baby's gender before the ultrasound tech could even look. So that was a fun surprise...I think I was expecting a boy again because that is what I am used to now.

Everything seemed fine for the measurements...what's funny is this is one of the first pictures the technician captured...

...with her hand blocking her face. But when the tech needed to see the hand to see the bones in the fingers...she refused to open her hands. Either of them. Then after she found what she needed...baby was all about showing her fingers (but still blocking her face):

It looks like she is propping her chin on her hand here:

So definitely feeling relieved to see she is busy kicking in there. They told me she was "a wild one" based on how much she was moving around and that I should feel her moving any minute now.

I know due dates are all approximations...but based on my dates the due date is Oct 18th, based on the first ultrasound measurements the due date is 7 Oct, and based on this ultrasound the due date is 12 Oct. I guess we will see as we get closer.
Geoff told the boys they couldn't name the baby "Gordon the Train" like they wanted since it was a girl...so J piped up that he wanted to name her "Skarloey" (another Thomas the train). I thought Skarloey was a boy train too but they probably know better than me.

I had my camera with me and J got a hold of it and was taking non-stop pictures...of the floor, of the bed, of my stretch marks, of the ceiling (he can't quite operate the camera yet) so the flash was going off non-stop while they were taking measurements. We were laughing because he was partly blinding us and partly making us feel like the paparazzi was in the house.

We are so excited to add this little one to our family.

Mighty Kites and Yoga Treats

The boys had a kite-making day at school yesterday...then caravaned over to the park to fly their kites and have a picnic lunch. The weather was amazing and I was impressed with their little kites. They flew great! I love that they used recycled stuff to make them too...

My camera wasn't functioning well...hardly any of my pictures were clear and my camera is dirty too. I could see speckles in my pictures on the blue sky...I thought they would be great when I took them, but when I zoom in most of the pics are a bit blurry. But still fun nonetheless.



I was late arriving due to my yoga class and wasn't sure what part of the park their class would be in. I was smiling when I saw a bunch of little people all standing their watching their kites fly.

And my "yoga friends" are so thoughtful. I thought it was my birthday or something the last two days...one friend brought me these little "After Shower Lotion Stars" that you rub on your belly after taking a shower to moisturize your skin and help with any pregnancy "itchiness" (they got a little messy lugged around in my yoga bag):


Then the next morning my friend brought in the cutest little note pad from a store I have been wanting to go to:



and another friend brought me a couple of all natural Arbonne candles. So nice!



Speaking of gifts, does anyone have any suggestions for gifts for teachers? I would like to get something for the boys' preschool teachers for the end of the year. I am new at this...what do teachers appreciate? Gift cards?

Just Shy of 5

The boys are growing everyday. I can't believe they are turning five in just three months!

I keep going into their closet and removing shirts that are too short and all the pants (I think we are at ten pairs) that have been completely torn out at the knees. I won't be buying the boys any shorts this summer. They will be wearing frayed jean shorts all summer!

We took these pictures outside to try to get some of the landscaping in the pictures. It is fun seeing the trees and flowers return for the spring.

Just a couple of weeks ago I was walking around thinking that everything was dead. Then our landscapers showed up and said everything was looking great...whaaat? And I swear the next day leaves were showing and little flowers were budding...and the yard started turning green. Which just confirms I don't have a green thumb at all. I can confidently say that I need to stick with planting pansies. That is about all I have managed to successfully grow! We have lots of weeding to do in some areas and we have a lot of cleaning up to do on the garage-side of the house.

The mulch/rocks etc. didn't last long with the dogs. Here is what it used to look like:

Katy's favorite spot is high up on the yard next to that black post to greet us and everytime she does it is like a mulch slide where everything rolls down onto the ground and mixes in with the rocks. It is a disaster. Geoff has been busy with the fence, and fertilizing all of our trees and bushes and trying to put larger rocks in place of the mulch to alleviate the problem.

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!