February 2015

February's been low-key for the Bonners.  Lots of hanging around the house, projects in the backyard and the garage (pruning trees! building doll beds!), and sore throats all around.

We've mostly had perfect weather, so we've walked or biked to school and parks quite a bit.

Jack is figuring out how to blend sounds, so he's advancing beyond sight words with his reading skills now.  It's exciting!  Hazel is blowing me away with what she can read as well - she's made the leap and is moving beyond phonetically simple words and using pictures as clues, and is having no trouble with words like "could" and "going." She also suddenly loves to write.  It's awesome!  We get lovelies on post-its all over the house: 

And she's starting to add text to her darling homemade books: 

Super Cheetah to the rescue on Valentine's Day

Super Cheetah is playing.

Super Cheetah hears some bad news.

Super Cheetah grabs the golden necklace and brings it back to the little girl.

 I was lied to by Craft Bloggers once gain.  When will I learn? I needed some non-Christmas decorations for my mantle and wanted to make a wreath.  Came across one made with split peas that looked really cool - the sage green I love, and with an interesting texture.  I checked three or four different tutorials against each other, and everyone swore it was super simple, although a little tedious and definitely messy.  Everyone promised it would be done in two days.  Ha!  Three weeks later, it is done.  I love it from a distance.  If you decide you want to make one (and I strongly advise you that they are not worth the effort) stay far, far away from mod podge.  And spray adhesive.  Use a glue gun.  Expect to go through thirty or forty or maybe even fifty sticks of glue.  Know that there will be visible dried glue strings all over the place.  But if you start with a glue gun and a green wreath base, you truly could be done in a couple of days.

I've been doing a fitness challenge for the past eight weeks.  Two more to go!  Exercise six days a week, no eating past 8pm, sweets only one day a week, five servings of produce a day, in addition to a few more guidelines.  It's been kinda brutal.  Ive lost six pounds.  I can see the difference in my face and in my belly and love handles.  I'm craving sugar far, far less than usual, and desiring more wholesome foods in general.  But I still think about chocolate chip cookies every single day.

We had some good friends up from Sunnyvale Friday night for a sleepover.  Here is the one and only picture I took.  Sorry for the crazy eyes.  Shoulda turned the light on for just a minute!  I was too busy getting in some best friend talk and skipping out on sleep to document it all.  We had a blast!  

January 2015

January has been a big, busy month for us, full of birthdays and doctor appointments.  Nothing scary on that last front - just well-child check-ups and dentist visits.  It made for lots of opportunities for me to spend one-on-one time with each kid, and plenty of chances for the others to play with friends while we were out, and to have them over to our house in exchange.  Gemma, especially, has had enough time with buddies that she now runs away from me when I come to pick her up, and asks to "play Noah" or "Alyce and Grace's house" most every day.

Jack turned four on January 4th.  It was his first day in Primary in church, instead of nursery.  That kid was so ready to move on!  He had breakfast cake in the morning, and muffins for dinner.

Jack had a birthday party with friends for the first time ever, and I was soooo excited that he wanted a pirate themed party.  It was tons of fun to put together!  The kids made parrot crafts, played an X Marks the Spot version of Pin the Tail on the Donkey, had cannonball fights (using socks), played Brigg Tag, and ate cake.  It was tons of fun.

Here are Jack's birthday interview results:

FAVORITES
color- orange
toy - Legos
movie - How to Train Your Dragon
animal - tigers
song - Let It Go
food - muffins
place to go - Alyse's house
season - winter
best friend - Mason and Alyse

What do you like to do outside? jump on the trampoline
What do you like to sleep with? Snuggle Pup
What do you want to be when you grow up? a dad, just a dad
What do you do really well? clean up
Three words that describe you: a boy ...
One food you really dislike: pot pie
If you had one wish, what would it be? that it would snow here (California)
What makes you laugh? tooting - that makes me really laugh
What are you afraid of? those ghosts
What do you like to do with your family? play Legos
What do you love to learn about? animals

Gemma had her second birthday on January 14th.  The little lady spent the morning at Noah's house while I took Jack to the doctor's.  When I picked her up, we went to the park.  We had macaroni and cheese for dinner, which she loved and the other kids hated.  Oh well, birthday kid gets to pick!  She loved her princess cake, and was pretty darn excited when she realized that that electronic thingamajig she'd just unwrapped was a bubble machine for the backyard!

I didn't try interviewing her, so the answers to these questions are my best guesses, but that's probably more accurate than what Gemma would have told me as as I asked her anyway!

FAVORITES
color-pink
toy -dolls, baby, Barbie, or big, all dubbed "Elsa"
animal - puppies - she always asks to "touch it" but never dares really do it
song - Crazy Frog and Halloween songs (Wee Sing for Halloween CD)
food - macaroni and cheese - she just calls it pasta
place to go - the park
best friend - Hazel, followed by Jack, then Grace and Noah

What do you like to do outside? ride bikes, swing
What do you like to sleep with? a cozy blanket
What makes you laugh? being chased and tickled
What are you afraid of? the vacuum

Gemma talks up a storm, and has lately been big on tattling: "Mom said, Mom said, I can't hold you!" she shrieks to Hazel while I make dinner.

The kids have been skyping a lot with my parents. Hazel and Jack both tell me they wish we lived in Utah.

We've had some truly fabulous weather lately, so we've been spending a lot of time outside.  Wintertime is when I realize why living in California is so expensive!

 Jack's been having a lot of bad dreams lately.  When he does, I hear him cry out, then a couple footsteps, then silence.  In the morning, I find him sleeping in Hazel's bed.  She is a good, nurturing, loving sister in the middle of the night.

The last two Saturdays we've spent the day at the beach in Half Moon Bay.  The first Saturday we were there during high tide.  There wasn't much space to play on without having to keep an eye on the waves and dash out of their way when they came crashing.  Gemma was scared, so she and I spent most of the time near the entrance steps, digging in the sand and just trying to get her to feel comfortable.

Jack stayed with us for the first part, but eventually warmed up enough to get close to the waves as long as he stayed by Todd's side.  Todd would pick Jack up every time the waves came in.  Hazel - she was right in the thick of things, climbing rocks, searching for shells, making angels in the sand.  

When we went back this last Saturday, it was low tide, and a whole different ballgame.  All three kids were happy to explore the tide pools, touching sea cucumbers and anemones and collecting shells.  Gemma, Jack, and I mostly stuck together, while Todd and Hazel went a lot further down the beach, on a quest to find something great.  And they did!  A big, beautiful abalone shell.  Which honest Hazel took to the patrolling ranger and asked if she could take it home.  Which resulted in some very disappointed kids and a big pile of shells left behind in the sand.  (I think the reason they couldn't take shells from this beach is because it's a protected area for seals.)

Todd was annoyed, and Hazel was heartbroken, and Jack said he just wanted to go home, and Gemma was mad that I made her stop digging in the sand and get in the van.  Somehow I was able to encourage the gang to try to discover a new beach, and we drove and peeked around for forty minutes before we found one that wasn't crowded or closed off.

We had to walk about a quarter mile down a paved road to get to it, but we all agreed it was absolutely worth the trek.  When we got there, we saw a mile long stretch of beach, some great crashing waves and a nice tide pool offering, some caves to check out, and only a handful of other people, who were all so far away we didn't have to think about them at all.  It was paradise! We stayed for a couple more hours, collected as many shells as we could carry, explored to our heart's content, and can't wait to go back.  And no, I am not telling you where it was!  Family secret, right here!  :) I was happy at Moss Beach, I really was, but there was something completely next-level and soul-satifsying about this place.  I was recharged there.  I'm totally in love.

December 2014

 December First was Hazel's sixth birthday.  It was also her first day back at school after Thanksgiving break.  She looked like a ragamuffin because I said she could wear anything she wanted to school and she chose her old, fluorescent preschool t-shirt.  She also did not want me to do anything with her hair other than brush it.  She talked her teacher into giving her a tooth necklace even though she didn't lose her tooth at school (it came out on Thanksgiving) and she seemed to have a very happy day.  We gave her a rainbow loom and beading supplies to make necklaces.

We had a birthday party with friends the following afternoon.  She and all her buddies were very hyper.  I've resolved to limit the guest list to just two or three friends in the future.

Here are Hazel's answers to some questions I asked her about her favorites:

Favorite color: purple
Favorite toy: stuffed cheetah
Favorite movie: Little Rascals
Favorite book: Half Magic, "mostly all the books"
Favorite song: Crazy Frog, Let's Get Down to Business (from Mulan), anything by Alvin and the Chipmunks
Best Friend: Sierra (lives across the culdesac)
Likes to do outside: make potions, jump on the trampoline
What do you like to sleep with: all my stuffed animals
What do you want to be when you grow up? veterinarian
Favorite food: steak
Where is your favorite place to go? Disneyland and Lake Powell
What do you do really well: draw
Three words that describe me: fast, artistic, care about people
Favorite season: winter, when it snows
One food I really dislike is: I hate hate hate hate those disgusting soups!
If I had one wish it would be: to have a doll trailer for Melody (her doll)
What makes you laugh: when Jack does the booty dance
What are you afraid of: bad dreams
What do you like to do with your family? go on (one-on-one) dates
What do you love to learn about: floods, cheetahs, chipmunks

We sure are glad to have this spunky lady in our family!

We cut down our own Christmas tree again this year, but we were all a bit lackluster about it, because we don't have vaulted ceilings and couldn't get a very tall tree.

We spent one night driving around, finding all the local Christmas light displays to check out.

Another day we went to the beach at Half Moon Bay.  This might be the first time we've been to the beach in December.  I couldn't believe how green the area was!  It was gorgeous. We played in the sand, hunted for shells, ate at "The Fish Restaurant," and watched people fish for crabs off a pier.

The kids have loved having Hazel home from school for the break.  The three of them have done a great job of playing all together.  Most of my pictures from this month were of the three of them together.  It makes my heart happy to see them all happy in a group.

A few days before school let out, Hazel's teacher told me, "Your daughter doesn't know it yet, but she can read and write."  I was so excited! Hazel gets mad and doesn't want to work at it, but she's on the verge.  I pulled out some beginning reader books and have started making her read them to me.  She hates it, but it's thrilling for me to hear her read.  She does love to pull out books she has memorized and read to Gemma and Jack.  She just needs a bit more practice and confidence, and she'll take off.  

On Christmas Eve, we made gingerbread cookies.  We decided to do that instead of houses, and I loved it!  It was so much easier and plenty of fun.  That night, we had a devotional, read Luke 2, watched a Nativity video, sang some carols.

Christmas morning, Hazel's six months of pining for a doll trailer met a glorious end.  Look at that face! How could Santa not give her what she'd been begging for since summer?

December 26th was Todd's birthday.  I thought I was making all his wildest dreams come true by sending him off to Home Depot to pick out the tool of his choice, but all I did was stress him out.  He spent over an hour online before ultimately deciding he could get more for less on Amazon, and he had to wait more than a week to actually see his gift.  But he now has a very manly miter saw and router, and plans to build shoe storage and doll beds in the very near future.

During the break, we spent a day at the Oakland Zoo, then took the kids to the temple while we were close by.

Tonight, for New Year's Eve, we plan to pop popcorn, play games, watch movies, and change the clocks to so that it looks like midnight at 9:00.  We'll bang some pots and pans, then send the kiddos off to bed.

November 2014

November in a nutshell:

We had family pictures taken.

Todd and I celebrated our 10th anniversary.  We went indoor go kart racing, something we did once back when we were dating.  We're planning a trip, but can't decide how big or small to make it.

A friend gave us a kid jeep they didn't have room for.  It's been a big hit, and a perfect fit for the culdesac.  Jack, especially, loves it.

We had a visit from our best friends from Sunnyvale (Chrissy, Suzanne, and Olivia, and kids).  The kiddos played great together; lots of Legos and creating things out of wood scraps in the backyard.

I gave Gemma her first haircut.  I didn't touch the front, which is still all short and in her eyes, but I trimmed the mullet into a nice A-line.  I love how it looks.

 We drove to Utah for Thanksgiving and stayed a little over a week, spending some time with each of our parents, as well as crashing with the cousins in Lehi for a couple of days.  We had too good of a visit; it has left Todd and me both quite homesick and wishing we lived closer to family.  That's what we get for coming before the snow hits!

Hazel lost her first tooth on Thanksgiving Day.  She was thrilled about it.

October 2014

 The best part of October for us was the long weekend we spent up at Lassen Volcanic Park on a family vacation.  No work, no cell phone coverage, no schedules, no distractions, just pure, unadulterated Family Time.  We stayed in a cabin in the woods - basically a two-bedroom apartment in the mountains.  It was awesome!

We brought the kids' bikes, and with no toys and no TV or books or any reason, really, to stay inside, they played out in the woods constantly.  There was a very shallow stream that ran through the back, and Hazel especially loved collecting moss and water skeeters and playing near the water.  Everyone got very, very dirty each day, then took a warm bath and slept in a real bed.  Paradise!

Todd and I took the kids on a walk through a lava tube...

and on a hike that showcased geothermal elements.  A mini Yellowstone.

My very favorite part of the trip was watching my three kids hike together, hand in hand, for over ten minutes without anyone letting go.  We had some serious family bonding, people!  

One night we made s'mores over a campfire.  The next we popped popcorn and told ghost stories and ran around with glow bracelets on.

 Todd and I blew through three novels (one each, plus one to read together).  It was bliss.  The kids kept staying they wished we lived there all the time.  Our last night, as we got ready for bed, Hazel said she wished she could turn back time and we could experience our family trip all over again.  It was that good.

We didn't go to a pumpkin patch as a family because Hazel and Jack were both going with their schools on field trips.  I feel a little ripped off.  I feel bad that I don't have a single picture of Hazel at a pumpkin patch!  It's been a serious tradition every year!  I did go with Jack's group, though, and I'm glad I did, because he totally loved it.

We carved pumpkins too early, and they went rotten after about a week.  Then we carved pumpkins again and they turned moldy after only two days.  What gives?!  Do I seriously have to dip those things in bleach to preserve them?  

Gemma is getting more and more vivacious each day.  Common words we use to describe her include  sassy, feisty, and wild thing.  She's talking more and more. Two of her most popular catch phrases right now are "stink bomb" (what we call poopy diapers) and "crazy frog' (requesting a song the kids think the Minions sing and love to listen to over and over again).  She loves to read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See" over and over again.  She wants to clip all her own buckles and pull up her own pants and brush her own teeth and is very, very insistent that "Gemma do it," or "My turn!" 

Jack is getting more social and less cuddly (sob!) and spends hours, literally hours, playing with Barbie dolls, changing their clothes and requesting new hairstyles for them.  He is extremely literate-aware right now, spotting letters sight words everywhere.  Speaking of which, he's memorizing the sight words Hazel's learning in school.  They're going to learn how to read together, it looks like.  

He's starting to write his name, too!  And finally, he's interested in coloring.  

Hazel is doing great work in school.  She gets some peer pressure from a kid at her table to race through their work and be the first one done, but she usually exhibits self-control and tries to make all her work look her best.  Her teacher encourages them to add details to old work if they have extra time, and some of her papers come home with pretty elaborate coloring jobs.  She was awarded Student of the Month for Respect.  I'm thrilled that Hazel's showing her best self at school, because her best self is a pretty incredible kid, and her worst self is kind of a pain in the neck.  I'm glad she saves that stuff for home.

Hazel's best friends with a girl in he class named Ashley.  She's always drawing pictures for her and making her little gifts.  Last week, she got hold of a bag of buttons I had in my sewing supplies and started stringing necklaces.  She wore one to school, Ashley complimented her on it, Hazel promised to make her one.  That afternoon at home, she not only took ten minutes to string up a button necklace, but she then proceeded to look for a box to put it in, wrapped in in gift wrap, and made Ashley a card with her very own, original version of the "Roses are red" poem about Ashley being her best friend.  It was all a bit over the top.  That's Hazel for you.  She's got a big heart and she loves to create.

She's also quite an artist.  She made this game board for me to use at our church Halloween party.  Cute, huh?

Partners in crime

 I spent every spare moment I had in October - and I literally mean every nap time and evening I could - sewing bat costumes for the entire family.  Hazel had the idea to be a vampire bat, Jack wanted to copy her, she was mad he was copying her, she felt better when we negotiated that all five of us would be bats, and what could have been a manageable project turned into a bit of a nightmare. Fifty bucks and twenty hours later, they were finally done.  Totally not worth it.  They'd better wear those dang costumes again sometime!  (I doubt Todd and I will be wearing ours; that's a little weird.)

It was cute and fun for the ward party and for truck or treating, though.  Here's my only real "action shot."

I made the kids put their costumes back on this morning so I could get some more pictures.  It's not quite the same in PJs, but it'll do.

The day after Halloween, we negotiated with the kids. They picked out five or six of their best pieces of candy, and turned over the rest in exchange for new Legos.  Win-win.