Man of the house

Yeah, I know, Father's Day is around the corner. I just have to give a huge shout-out to my hubby for a bunch o' things.

While the kids and I were away on our getaway, he decided it would be a good idea to resurface our kitchen table. It was pretty nasty from spills, scratches from Shadow jumping up for scraps, a candle spilled on it a few years ago, geeze, you get the idea. It looked pretty bad. So, he sanded it down, put layers of gunk on it (yup, I get technical), sanded again, let stand, more gunk, and it looks fantastic. It needs to fully cure for 30 days, so it's been a pain, but it looks really nice.

Then, while the table was drying from the multiple layers of gunk, he decided he should shampoo the carpets. Whoaaaa, actually I'm pretty sure he bought new carpets and is lying to me, but who knows. Looks so good and is refreshing!

And that wasn't enough, he also decided that since we had a broken oven, he'd take it apart to find out what was causing it. So he found the cause, and ordered the antiquated parts online. They arrived the morning we were due to arrive home, and POOF, he fixed it! We can finally bake in our oven! Well, we always could, but it would take an hour or 2 for it to heat. Now, it is like a normal oven.

Somehow, as monday rolled around, he managed to go to work, and continue his doggy daddy duties the whole time too. I laughed when he told me, "I don't mean to be rude, but I wish you guys would have stayed longer. I'd really like a night to sit and watch tv for a few hours."

I know you didn't want to spend a few minutes of your time reading all about my fantastic husband, but I couldn't resist. I am so incredibly lucky!

SoCal trip

Vacay is done, well let me clarify, this vacay is done. We still have a big one coming up! Here is our trip in photos...

A trip to the Hollywood sign! Haaaaaa, this is as close as you can get. It is closer than it looks, but it's not exactly close. We got lost in Forest L@wn Cemetery (where Michael Jackson and a ton of others are buried) trying to get there, oh, and we also went by OJ's house too. So, here are my kiddos at the observatory checking out the Hollywood sign.

LEGOLAND! San Francisco made entirely of Legos.

Juliana on a "Grand" boat ride. We went on so many rides! It was so much fun!

The kiddos hanging on on the lazy river thingy at the Legoland water park.

Me and "Mr. Chit-Chatter-Never-Stops-Moving" near the Santa Barbara Pier.

I'm exhausted and I'm sunburned. Maybe more another day. Oh, it's summer vacation too, so kiddos are home and apparently wanting breakfast too. Better get goin'!

9 n' a 1/2

You KNOW how important half birthdays are, right? Well, join me in celebrating HER half birthday today. Let's all sing together...

Happy 1/2 birthday to you, happy 1/2 birthday to you. Happy 1/2 birthday dear cutie pie, happy 1/2 birthday to you. And no you are not getting any presents!

Stayin' Local

We have this thing with stayin' local lately. As the end of school comes closer and closer, we've been doing picnics, end-of-the-year wrap ups, and S-T-U-F-F like dat!

Apparently Juliana is reliving her Kindergarten bar skills! I think she wishes she was 6 again.

This is the expression that Kev gives after being punched in the stomach by a fellow soccer player. I totally didn't mean to snap the pic of the event. It happened so fast. As you can tell, the kid that did it took off, since he isn't even in the pic. Poor Kev!

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK... meeting Candace Nels0n and Krist! Yam@guchi. They were visiting in a nearby place, so I took the kiddos out of school early, and hung out with these two sweet ladies. Had a great time and totally worth the stress of traffic on the way there. :) Little Miss Cupcake Baker is super duper happy!!!

Bubbles n' Scooters

Kindergarten had a BUBBLEFEST today! It was super duper fun! Kevin didn't really participate in the bubble blowing, unless he was blowing bubbles into the principal's face or chasing another adult with the bubble wands. Speaking of chasing, the picture below defines his entire kindergarten experience... he's always being chased or chasing girls. He loves every second of it!

The older kiddos had Skate n' Scooter Day today. Juliana brought Kev's scooter, since I poo-pooed the idea of her getting on roller skates again. She had a blast scootering to Katy Perry, Michael Jackson, Taio Cruz, and tons of other singable fun songs. Probably not appropriate for elementary school, but who cares, they were having a blast!
Summer vacation is around the corner. I brace myself for it each year. Yikes, we'll see how it goes. We have plenty of getaways and camps to look forward to.

This is.....

... how we roll!

Memorial Day weekend was full of ball bouncing, park playin', grill munchin', good time!

Inspiration

This picture is of a soldier on the day he left in February for another deployment in Iraq. Since this picture with his little girl "C", another precious daughter has been born in his absence. She's now about 12 days old. Thinking of "R", his wife "S", and 5 children. Trust me, "S" does not have a 3 day weekend, she has another day of being strong, being a mom, pushing emotions aside, and hoping to hear the voice of her husband who is fighting for us at this moment. She's not mourning the loss of her fallen husband, but she is mourning the loss of her son who struggled for the entire 2 days of his life. Imagine, just imagine, her struggles and strength. Thanks "S" for who you are, for who you have been, and who you will become. You are an inspiration in every sense of the word.