Decorating for X-mas

Happy Anniversary

Well it has been 6 years together and our lives are still entwined and headed down the same path so- Cheers to us. We have made it.

Tonight we took the girls to the Christmas tree lighting ceremony and out to dinner with Dave's mom. She has healed nicely and is on her way back home tomorrow. Although it started out as a not so pleasant vacation things really ended up rather fun since she can now eat again, walk around, and play games with the kids. There's always a silver lining. Can't wait to see what next Thanksgiving has in store for us.

Happy Anniversary Dave- I love you.

Grandma B Visits CA

Grandma B's visit with her Indian Olivia.

This outfit Olivia made on her last day of school. She looked so festive and fancy.

Ava made her outfit too on her last day of school. Isn't she a cutiepieface. I could just eat her like a gingerbread cookie. Although if you say that to her she will run and hide.

This is Thanksgiving morning. The girls were attempting to write a message on the chalk board for Grandma B.

This is the oh so good brie and crescent roll thing that Safeway has been advertising. It was yummmmmy. Ava snarfed it down while Olivia daintily chomped away.

The big guy.

And this is a picture of the girls before we head to the hospital to visit Grandma B. Oh did I forget to mention she has spent her entire trip out here in the hospital? Yip. She has.

So she arrived Saturday, was in the urgent care for stomach pain Sunday (not from my cooking thank you), Monday was taken in for lab work early in the morning but was in the ER by the evening, stayed 6 hours, came home, everyone went to sleep, got up Tuesday (side note here: Ava now has diarrhea all day and has to wear a pull-up) and by 10 Pm she went back to the ER with Dave and on the way out the door Olivia begins to cry and violently throws up all over herself and her bed. Because when this house falls apart we all fall apart. One for all and all for one. So now we have one in the ER, one with diarrhea, and one covered in puke. Hooray for us.

I called my trusty neighbor to come help me with Olivia who I had showered and dressed but I couldn't leave her by herself because she was still on the verge of throwing up and had the shakes. I had pinned the dogs in my room because they were killing themselves trying to get to the puke to eat it. And Ava still needed to get up and go pee at 11Pm which was coming fast. So Barb held onto Olivia and her bowl while I raced around and cleaned up the mess, started the laundry, and remade her bed. Then Barbara put Ava on the potty and then we just sat in the hallway while Olivia threw up every few minutes. Around midnight Barbara went home, I made a bed in my room on a crib mattress for Liv to sleep on so when she had to throw up I wasn't having to run down the hallway and I think finally at 2AM we went to sleep. Dave arrived at 4:30 AM Wednesday without Grandma B who had been checked into the hospital for possible gall stones. He then slept until 7:30 AM and headed to work. We were told that Grandma B would be kept for the day and the next afternoon for possible surgery on her gallbladder. So at 8AM I'm thinking to myself I guess the girls and I will just lay in bed for awhile and relax now. Olivia was feeling better and Ava was doing well too. Then the phone rings.

Grandma B's having surgery at noon TODAY. OMG. I call Dave who had to go to work to get something. He wasn't going to make it back in time. I called his brother and sister and let them know what was happening. I called Barbara who thankfully had the day off (which I'm sure she just loved spending with two post sick kids) to come watch them while I go leave to go be with GB. So to make a long story short the surgery went well. It was actually a band that had to be cut that had formed around her bowel. Dave made it to the hospital as she came out of surgery. He spent the rest of the day there and came home that night. We went back to visit on Thanksgiving morning and skyped her so she could see the kids. Friday Dave went and hung out again for awhile hoping she would be released today, Saturday, but last night she got a fever and she will be there a few more days.

This poor woman has spent her entire vacation ill/hospitalized. Last time she was here she got robbed. Welcome to freakin' California. I doubt she will be rushing out to visit us again anytime soon. This week has been a mess. The girls are fine now, Grandma B will recover, oh did I mention I burned the turkey- I'll save that for a different day. Happy Thanksgiving.

Check out how cute the nurses are at this hospital! They pay close attention to detail.

Grandma B Party

Okay so we all know it isn't normal to have three birthday parties but one was at school, one was at the park with all her friends before the weather could go bust, and well the third was because what Olivia really wanted for her birthday was to be a BRIDE and to have a wedding cake. So we decided since Grandma B was coming so close to Liv's real birthday we'd have a party where Liv could get exactly what she wanted. And since the neighbors both have birthdays a week a part from Liv's they celebrated theirs too with their own kind of cake.
The wedding cake. Hopefully the real wedding will be this cheap.

The bride slash birthday girl. This was actually a Halloween costume but would be cute for first communion- or a wedding.

And here's the bride and other birthday celebraters getting their festivities on. Happy birthday Olivia, Brody, and Tori. Hope your wishes all come true.

Nick & The Gym

The silly kids playing together at the park.
The gymnast #1
The gymnast #2.



Last week was pretty full with all the things we needed to do and get done before Grandma B arrived but we had the chance to squeeze in a little time at the park with our friends Nick and Joe and a quickie qymnastic class before we headed to the BART to pick up Grandma B.

Nuff Said

Who's happy on their birthday? I just don't know.

Happy 5th Birthday Olivia!

The moment you have waited for since you turned 4 years old. All year you have talked about this birthday. Today we are going to breakfast with friends and then on a play date with one of your little boy friends after we pick up Ava from school. Happy Birthday Olivia peanutbutterpantalonies!!!! We love you!!!

Bright Eyes

The moment she's been waiting for-


Ava and her new glasses

Giving Thanks

Every day for the month of November we have been writing what we are thankful for during dinner and then putting the paper in that day's envelope. It has been quite a unique experience. Ava's been thankful for her dinner, Liv's been thankful for all sorts of things like her family, her toys, and nature, and Dave and I are just genuinely thankful for each other and our family. Ok Ok and Fridays.

The Highlife

With the sun in her face and the wind to her back Miss Olivia rode the dirt trail on her bike. She was so proud of herself. She tore down the first hill and raced up the next hill. Awesome!

The Mishap

From today and beyond I will forever be known as:

THE MOM WHO THROWS THE HOMEWORK AWAY.

Apparently there was a mix up in Ava’s class with the backpacks last week. She and some other girl have the same bag. The teacher gave the kids the wrong ones, homework and folder (with their names on them) included.

Normally I don’t take the backpacks out of the truck because if I do I usually forget them on the next school day. So instead I grab the stuff from the folder, close the bag, and leave it in the truck.

Here in lies the problem.

I didn't look at the front of the folder.

I reached in, grabbed her loot, and brought it in the house. I praised Ava for her work and we left it on their table for a day or two and then I threw it away over the weekend.

So we get to school today and the girl shouts, "That’s my bag Ava." Say what???

So I said, “Oh well. It was no problem.” The teacher replies, “Do you have K’s work for her mom?” Knowing damn well I don’t I smiled and shook my head. Again I’m asked if maybe it’s somewhere in my house… Umm didn’t we cover that with the head shake???

So I said, “You can give her mom Ava’s work. It’s quite alright. You know, so she can have something to take home.” Both teachers gave me a strange and well deserved look I might add and said, “Well it’s not her work.”

You guys gave me the fake backpack and fake Ava homework. Don’t look at me funny. Now I’m not even sure if I took home the right kid.

(Ava's homework courtesy of the Good Mom who doesn't throw her kid's homework away. Or mine for that matter!)

Rainy Day

Nothing, not even a little rain, can stop these two from having a blast!

Monkey Monkey

First Day of GymnasticsThey show no fear.

Olivia's in the 5-7 year old class and is allowed to do a few more things than Ava can do in her class. She feels like a big girl according to her. Here, in this photo, I think the goal is to learn how to do a front flip over this bar. More pictures next week.

Pajama Day

Doesn't this happy face say it all? It's PJ Day and picnic.
BFF's trading birthday gifts.
Look out. Livy is ready for PJ day.
This picture reminds me of the photos you'd see in People Magazine when the celebrity is caught coming out of a restaurant. They glace around all shifty eyed trying to not look like they see the paparazzi. Good job Liv.

Halloween Party- Olivia

Cinderella looked beautiful for her ball at school. Liv has this thing about dresses and how she only wants to wear the ones that go out as she is demonstrating in the above picture. If they don't twirl, they don't get worn. Thankfully this gown does both.

Here they are on the march to school. These kids can't wait to get into the classroom.

A few of the kids arrived early enough to snap a picture. The boy sitting next to Olivia used to be in love with her but now he's smitten on Liv's best friend who happens to be sitting on the other side of him. Chaos at an early age. It's all OK though. Liv has a new little love interest. She's going to marry him. (This is what you get when your kids get hook on The Little Mermaid. There's got to be a wedding everyday.)

Thankfully Ava hates boys. Today she has to sit in between two of them and she tried to move her chair. Her teacher told her she has to try it and that it wouldn't be nice if they said they didn't want to sit next to her. We'll see how this goes later today. It's Ava first PJ party and picnic at school.

So as far as Liv's party went all the kids came out with hoards of candy and toys. Sunday, the real Halloween, was followed up with the daytime trick or treating at the outdoor mall. Liv ran into one of her school friends right when we got there so she and the friend and Ava all held hands and trick or treated all of the stores together. It was liberating being able to talk to the girl's mom while Dave, a.k.a. Super Dad, shuttled them all in and out of every store. He worked up a sweat and looked great doing it.

Later that night we did the run through our neighborhood. Tori and Brody hooked up with us after awhile and the kids ran up to all the houses together. Barb and I hung back while Super Dave toted the kids around. It's good that I have an excellent husband. If I didn't these kids would wear me out right down to the ground. Thank God for some miracles. Now if only he could win the lotto....

Grammie's New Dog

Grammie and Papa rescued a dog. There's actually a whole sorted story about it which I don't have time for since I am dog-ass tired from being up since 4 AM but anyways here she is in all of her glory.

Everyone loves Foxy, even Sugar the meanie.

Ava- Halloween Party

My little Tinkerbell had her first school Halloween party today. Can you say excited??

Almost there, if only Papa would move a little faster.

Ava's teacher as Minnie Mouse. Let the festivities begin.

Ava was super excited to tell me what all the other kids came dressed as, what they did for their party, how they exchanged candy, and best of all- she promptly gave some candy to her sister with any asking on Olivia's behalf. She simply said, "Olivia, I got this for you." That's my Sweetheart. My little Lovebug.

Olivia's 5th Birthday Party

We decided to move Olivia's party up a few weeks since the weather has been changing so frequently and we wanted to have it at the park. Plus with her birthday so close to Thanksgiving it's always been a struggle to find a good weekend. This time we planned it for yesterday, Wednesday, after school and the weather was perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. And the kids- well there was a lot. Almost 30 I think.
Ava ate lunch while I prepared the table. Olivia had to run home with Papa to potty. She arrived shortly after the picture was taken.

This is probably the best picture ever. Although you can only see Liv's face it is both of my girls with both of their best friends. Playing together. Enough said.

Ava on the move with her buddy in route. They're jamming to the other play structure. This park has 5 or 6 different age range structures so everyone had a place to play.

Singing happy birthday to the star of the show. My big 5 year old.... almost!

All the kids sang their little cute hearts out.

My queen.

I didn't realise how much the kids LOVE party hats. Even the boys ran over and made requests. I never thought they'd wear pink flowered hats. I was wrong.

The unveiling of the gifts.

The loot.

This is just some of her loot. She made out like a bandit. I almost want to re-wrap this stuff for X-mas and save myself some dough.

All in all this was the best party we've had yet. In total I spent maybe $40 and the kids had the best time ever. No pizza, no bouncy house, no Pump It Up. Just the good ol' outdoors and some cupcakes.

Happy Birthday my Queen!!!!