March 2015

March was pretty much incredible.  I'd do it all over again and again.

My sister Emily and her husband Doug came out to visit for a long weekend.  We loved having them!  They were super involved with the kids, really helpful with meals and cleanup, up for doing anything: from exploring caves at our secret beach to jumping on the tramp with the kids, from checking out a St. Patrick's Day festival in nearby Dublin to staying up late every night talking, from walks through the neighborhood to bike rides and Zumba.  They were so fun to have over.  We wish Chicago were closer to Livermore!

Look how green it is here right now!  It's gorgeous.

We've put Jack in a baseball class and Hazel in a basketball class.  Both kids are loving it, understanding the game and wanting to play.

Jack's getting bigger.  He has started to read!  It's cool.  He also out of nowhere started being adventurous.  He's doing the monkey bars, going off the path on hikes, trying stunts on his bike.  

 Gemma is obsessed with baby dolls right now.  She carts them around everywhere she goes.

Hazel's always creating something.  The latest craze is shops.  She sets up merchandise and sells it to us (so far, she still takes imaginary money).  The store I have pictured here was a tree shop.  She found branches and leaves in the backyard and scotch taped her own species.

The culdesac is fabulous.  The kids spend tons of time out there on their bikes and the kid jeep, zooming around.  I feel so, so lucky to be in a house, with a backyard, and all this safe space in the front as well.  We're feeling very blessed to have this space to raise our kids in.

The last week of March, Todd's parents came out to watch our kids and Todd and I took off for a weeklong Caribbean cruise.  We traveled with five other couples from our early days in California.  It was a ridiculously fun reunion and a nice getaway from the demands of life.

We started the cruise off nice and slow, room service breakfast on our balcony as we watched the sun rise.  

Then the party got started, and we hardly slowed down enough to read a chapter in a book, much less sit in solitude all day long like we'd thought we might do.  Oh no!  Our days on the ship were packed with spin classes, shuffleboard, sports tournaments of all sorts (ping pong, basketball, volleyball, dodgeball, rock climbing), ice skating, dancing, game nights, even a tour of the galley.  The Royal Caribbean tournament medals came rolling in.

We had a few opportunities to dress up, which was fun.  One or the other of us ate steak every night.  (Hazel was jealous.) Todd brought walkie talkies and became best friends with Brian while playing with them.  ("Come in, Wombat, this is Possum.")

We scuba dived in Grand Cayman, played at the awesome Secret Falls in Jamaica, and lounged all day on the beach in the Bahamas.  We laughed so hard, so much.  It was such a blast.  This group of ours is trying to have a reunion like this every five years.  We can't wait for the next one! 

Brian & Courtni Muir, us, Kris & Jamie Johnson, Mitch & Jill Dabo, Trish & Tyler Alderman, Geraldine & Sebastion Medariago

 Now it's back to real life.  Day one was rough.  But each day since has gotten a little bit better.  I'm already looking forward to our next vacation!  Always got to have one to dream about to get me through the days.

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.