May 2017

Hazel had some exciting things happen to her this month. I taught her how to make fried eggs, and she's so excited about it! She makes them for us all the time now, and even wore her apron to school to share the news the day she first learned.

We had some orphaned baby skunks on the path next to our house. Hazel was in love! She made the skunk a gift and left it on the trail, and an anonymous neighbor picked up the cause and became pen pals with Hazel, leaving her notes and gifts and claiming they came from the skunk. It made Hazel so happy! (I was happy when a concerned citizen took the skunks to a rescue shelter.) 

We signed Hazel and Jack up for swim team. They have practice every day and meets every weekend in June and July. That's a bit much for us, so we're taking a relaxed approach and have been attending practice two or three times a week, and will probably make it to two or three meets. We just want our kids to have opportunities to exercise, and thought they'd enjoy this since they like to swim. So far, so good.

We went to the Oakland Temple with our primary group. It was a nice, warm, clear day. We are lucky to live close to a temple.

I caught Hazel being sweet with Gemma, helping her do a puzzle and talking so patiently and kindly with her. I love when I see my kids treating each other so nicely.

The kids have all been in tumbling and trampoline classes since January. Gemma was just invited to join the bigger kids' class and she's so excited about it. It's awesome to see them doing tricks on the tramp in the backyard, and Hazel's been doing cartwheels nonstop lately. It's fun exercise and they all usually love it. 

We went back to Sitka, Alaska for a week over Memorial Day. The pilot let the kids check out the cockpit before we took off, and they got to talk into the announcing microphone. "Hi, Dad!" It was one of Jack's highlights.

We invited Todd's sister Laura and her husband Tyler to join us with their family. It was a great opportunity for our kids and theirs to get to know each other better, and for us to share such a beautiful place with a family that loves to be outdoors.

The kids played a lot of Monopoly, Apples to Apples, Old Maid, and other games.

We went on a hike nearly every day - heaven! We lucked out and were there over some really great weather. It only rained on us one day. Mostly, we enjoyed a lot of sunshine.

We had a crab trap off the dock, and we found an octopus eating a fish that had been trapped. It was very exciting to see and touch the octopus before we let him back into the water. I'm bummed I don't have a better picture.

There were bald eagles all over the place. Look close, and you'll see two sitting on the rock to the left of the trees. One night, we grilled steak out on the deck. Eight or ten eagles went nuts, swooping around in the sky above us - they must have smelled something good! But although we tossed fish out towards them, and Hazel got the idea to leave some fish out on the dock a bit aways, they did not touch the food. They are not like birds and squirrels at campsites; these guys are still wild and afraid of us.

We made s'mores. Todd has been branching out and creating some delicious new flavors. My favorite so far is to use a Reese's instead of Hershey's chocolate. It's so good! 

With the big group, we played some epic games of Hide and Seek outside on the island. Usually, I put Gemma to bed while everyone was playing, but our last night with the cousins, I let her stay up and play. We found a genius spot and layer down and snuggled and were never found! (Although I've got a sneaking suspicion we were out of bounds. I wasn't super clear on the boundaries...)

Jack loved that Todd taught him how to drive the boat and let him be in charge when the waters were safe.

The fishing wasn't great this time of year, but lucky for Gemma, she caught one!

Our last day, we took a long boat ride to an isolated spot and hiked to Salmon Lake. It was bar-none, my favorite day, my favorite hike, one of the happiest days of my life. My heart was overflowing, the trail was so absolutely beautiful.

When I got back, my friends all wanted to see my pictures and wanted to know why we love going to Sitka so much. It's hard to put into words. It's just so unplugged. You're absolutely surrounded by beautiful nature: green trees, water, marine life, eagles, bears, you're just completely outside and it's so lovely. There's no TV, no work, no phones, and hardly any people. You just slow down and spend your time with your family and nature, and it truly fills my soul. I just love it. 

Gemma's had a fun little crew to play with at kindergarten pick up and drop off. It'll be bittersweet next year when the kids are big enough not to have to be picked up at the door. It made me happy to see Gemma, Grace, Penelope and Clara all on the swings the other morning.

Gemma had her last day of preschool. She's had so much fun at Hoot Hoot (where Jack went). It's been such a good environment, so happy and loving and creative. She made hands-on, open-ended art projects just about every time she went to class. We are super sad that her teacher, Ms. Diana, is moving to Colorado this summer, so Gemma won't be able to come back to Hoot Hoot for pre-K.

Our yard is done! It's been so fun coming home to our lovely flowers and lush green grass. We had a little porch poured in the front and I can't wait to get some chairs out there.

April 2017

Under much encouragement from Todd, and none from me, Hazel and Jack set up a lemonade stand on the path by our house. They had more customers than I expected, but most people out jogging or walking their dogs did not have money with them, and they spent much of their time persuading people they'd be back at it the next Saturday, "so bring your money with you next time!" Then the next couple of Saturdays we weren't home much, and it was rainy, and it stressed Hazel and Jack out to not be consistent.

Then ... we let them run the lemonade stand with a babysitter while Todd and I went on a date, and we came home to incredibly sticky floors throughout the whole house, water bottles full of lemonade and in parts of the house where food is not allowed, and all the money stashed away uncounted, so we didn't know how much tithing to pay or anything. It was disappointing, and the kids are now under a lemonade ban. Entrepreneurship be darned!

General Conference came and went without much fuss.  The kids are getting really good at sitting and working on quiet projects throughout the sessions (like perler beads, coloring and cutting out paper dolls, play dough, and rainbow loom). It's weird to be at a phase in life where I'm in danger of falling asleep during the talks! It's been a long time since I haven't had a little one keeping me on my toes. We keep candy on hand and the kids get to eat a piece (like an m&m) whenever they hear a key word we ask them to listen for, so I think they're paying attention to the messages, too, as best they can.

Along with redoing our yards, we decided to paint the house, too. Before it was white with turquoise trim. Now it's beige with white trim. Keeping it simple, but it's definitely an improvement.

We've had lots of impromptu meetings in the evenings with our landscaper, Jeff. One night went particularly late, and we decided to see how Hazel would do babysitting for us, i.e.; putting Jack and Gemma to bed while we were in the kitchen and out in the yard. She was excited about the responsibility and did a great job. So much so that we let her try it again a few days later while Todd and I went for a walk on the path for a mini date. That time, not so well. Turns out Jack wasn't ready to behave when the novelty wore off. Too bad. Give it another year or two, I guess.  . .

Exciting day when the patio got poured and stamped in the backyard!

Even more exciting when they brought in all these rolls of sod! That was a happy day - grass at last! 

Aah. Our backyard beauty. It has been 95% done for a couple of weeks now. We are loving it! The front yard is still a work in process, and it would be awesome if those last few things could get finished up in the back (stepping stones to the garden area, mulch missing in one spot, empty flower pots) but I'm trying to be patient with the process. I've already had several naps on the lawn, basking in the springtime sunshine. Heaven! 

We kept near home during spring break to supervise the landscaping, but I did take the kids on a couple of day trips. We went on a hike in Sunol and it was absolutely one of those times that fills the bucket in my soul. The scenery was ... there's not a good enough word for it. Serene. Happiness-enducing. Lovely. We hiked several miles and the kids did not complain a wink about being tired or hungry. I was so proud of them. We all had a great time.

Unfortunately, Jack had a run-in with some poison oak. This sad rash didn't show up until a week later, so it took us a trip to the doctor's and a prescription to figure out what it was. It was pretty scary when Todd and I thought it was an infection. I had some serious stress thinking Jack could get his arm amputated or something! Oh, the drama of not knowing how to help your kid!

Easter was low-key. We dyed eggs, had egg hunts at school and with friends, and pot lucked with friends for dinner.

The kids had the day after Easter off of school, so I took them to the Oakland Zoo. Jack still loves tigers best, and for whatever mystery reason, Gemma loves giraffes. Hazel was upset there were no cheetahs there, but was won over by the playful otters. The chimpanzees put on a show for us, and the weather was just right, so it was a good day trip.

The front yard started coming together ... but it's been a slow process. It's like the landscapers are getting burnt out or something. They've moved on to other jobs and just come dabble here a couple times a week. We'd love for it to be finished!

Gemma went to a birthday party at a pool. It was a nice, sunny day in the 70's - I sunbathed and Gem spent most of her time in the hot tub! Not quite swim weather yet... 

Most mornings, I wait at Jack's classroom until his teacher has brought him inside, but I send Hazel ahead so she won't be late. All year, she has not liked leaving without me, even though I walk over as soon as Jack's inside and kiss her goodbye. Happily, she's worked out a strategy the past few weeks that keeps everyone happy: she front loads her backpack and gives Gemma a piggy back to her classroom. That way, she's got a companion. These two are such cute sisters with each other.

The last week of April, work got started on our built-in barbecue in the backyard. We can't wait for it to be done so we can grill us some steak!

March 2017

Twin day at school - here's Hazel with one of her best friends, Aarna. Also, Hazel is loving her rollerblades. She hardly gets on her bike anymore. 

March 2 is Dr. Suess's birthday. All the kids got to wear their pajamas to school and spend most of the day reading. I came into both Hazel's and Jack's classrooms as a guest reader. 

We were happy to have Emily, Doug, and Isaac visit us from Chicago for a few days. The visit was mid-week, so mostly Doug worked from home and Emily joined me on my mom business, taking the kids to school and classes, walking the trail, playing with the kids in the yard. It was nice to spend time with my sister. 

I don't know how it got started, but my kids and Isaac had this constant gig of sticking their tongues out, pointing at their mouths, and saying "Aaah!" It was silly. All the kids loved having a baby in the house, especially Jack, who is a total Baby Whisperer. 

I took the kids up to the petting farm at Tilden Park in Berkeley. They let you feed the goats and cows if you bring your own celery or lettuce. Gemma and Jack loved it. Hazel was scared of the big cows. 

They found some turkeys on the loose and gave them a big chase.

Then we went for a hike to Jewel Lake, which was pretty underwhelming. The path was extremely muddy, and the lake wasn't very jewel-like, although it did have some turtles to watch.

It was a nice, clear day and the views on the drive were lovely.

I found this note on Jack's desk when I was working in his classroom. He wrote it just-because, and doesn't even know I saw it. He is so darling.

Jack and Hazel set out leprechaun traps the night before St. Patrick's Day, and set out some money as bait (some real, some play). They were amazed that the leprechauns 1- didn't get stuck in the traps, and 2- took the real money and left the fake stuff.

It was such an exciting morning that no one noticed my oldest child stealing away to the bathroom to set up another trick. I think it's just so hilarious and adorable how she can hold on to her belief in the real thing while she pulls stunts like this at the same time.

Later, the kids remembered to look in their secret hideout and found a Lego set treasure the leprechauns left for them.

KB and Hope had their baby on St. Patrick's Day. We weren't going to go down because we were all still fighting off coughs and runny noses from the winter, but KB texted something to the point that he wished his family could be there now, and we couldn't ignore that call for love. We headed down and all wore face masks, and I'm the only one who even held Luna, but we made sure KB felt our love and support, and we are going back soon, now that we're all healthy.

Hope has this cat named Tiffany with the biggest house I've ever seen. The kids loved meeting Tiffany, the most spoiled cat in the universe, and liked that they didn't have to wear their masks to play with the cat.

We interviewed several landscapers and found one we wanted to work with to remodel our backyard. This has been the view from our house:

We kept saying, "We want a soccer field, remember the soccer field, think of a soccer field." Basically, we wanted GRASS back there! Also, it wouldn't hurt to pull out some of the overgrown bushes that were turning the place into a jungle.

It made me to happy to hear the jackhammers, tearing up that massive patio!

They're still not done, but they're getting close. And the plans continue to roll forth. While we're at it, we're going to paint the house and redo the front yard as well. Might as well make it all how we want it. 

Todd flew into the little Livermore airport one night and asked if I wanted to bring the kids and some pizza. Hazel invited her friend Adriana, and they had a fun night. It's pretty awesome to watch your dad fly such a massive machine, and maybe even cooler to get to climb around in it and pretend to be a pilot yourself.

Jack's getting to be good friends with this nice boy Jonah, who lives down the street and is in his kindergarten class. We've started doing weekly playdates with him.

Hazel's class has been studying Shakespeare and did a scene from "A Midsummer's Night Dream." All of the kids had one line; Hazel's was one of Puck's. "Now with thine own fool's eyes peep." She was one of only two kids who memorized their line and didn't read it off the script during their performance. I was super proud of her, especially considering she is not a fan of performing in front of an audience.