Beckham was riding his bike home from school as I was pushing the two little guys in a stroller. Our house is on a steep hill. So while riding down to school is a thrill, getting yourself home is a bit challenging.
Beckham hopped off his bike just as we were starting up another portion of the hill. I said, "Beckham, you don't usually stop there. You can do better!"
"Mom, I got distracted by the crow."
"You heard the crow so you could no longer pedal your bike?"
"Sometimes when I hear birds in the distance I get distracted and I can't ride."
"Why?"
"I don't know. It's just one of my personalities."
Good to know......good to know.
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Bling
Karaia was very upset when we found out Sanders was of the male persuasion. Of course she loves him dearly, but she had her heart set on having a little sister. I think she kept hoping that when he was born he would be a girl. When that didn't happen she was disappointed all over again.
So, when my brother-in-law, Landon, and his girlfriend, Amy, announced they were getting married June of 2009, I told her we would get her ears pierced for the wedding. Normally, I would have made her wait until she was 8, but I felt like she needed as much girlie things in her life that she could get. The problem was, I was wiped out from being so sick when Sanders was born that March. PLUS the reception was going to be in our backyard and I spent any extra energy I had trying to get it looking pretty.
Time ran out.
The ears did not get pierced.
Fast forward to this past June. I, once again, told Karaia we could get her ears pierced before school started. I'm not really sure what happened, but I do know that when she started school her ears were not pierced.
Yikes.
Mother of the year for sure.
She kept asking if, "this Saturday" she could get them pierced. But something always came up.
Then it was almost time to leave for Europe.
The day before we left, on Sept. 8, she asked if, "this Saturday" she could please get her ears pierced. I started to tell her Mom and Dad wouldn't be here this Saturday, but I stopped because I started mentally going through all of the up coming Saturdays and realized not a single one was free for a few months. The poor thing had waited long enough. So I told her to hang on and I quickly made a few calls.
Classy Chassis was able to get us right in!
After a good 15 mins of debate as to which studs to choose she settled on gold with a pink crystal in the middle. She was nervous, but was so brave. She got misty eyed, but never cried.
She has been so responsible with the care of her new bling. I have been very impressed.
We brought her back a pair of Eiffel Tower earrings and she literally counted down the days until she could take her studs out and wear them.
Karaia told me the other day, "Mom, now that I have my ears pierced maybe people will give me earrings as presents."
And thus a young girl's love of jewelry as a gift is born and a mother finally makes good on her year long promise.
So, when my brother-in-law, Landon, and his girlfriend, Amy, announced they were getting married June of 2009, I told her we would get her ears pierced for the wedding. Normally, I would have made her wait until she was 8, but I felt like she needed as much girlie things in her life that she could get. The problem was, I was wiped out from being so sick when Sanders was born that March. PLUS the reception was going to be in our backyard and I spent any extra energy I had trying to get it looking pretty.
Time ran out.
The ears did not get pierced.
Fast forward to this past June. I, once again, told Karaia we could get her ears pierced before school started. I'm not really sure what happened, but I do know that when she started school her ears were not pierced.
Yikes.
Mother of the year for sure.
She kept asking if, "this Saturday" she could get them pierced. But something always came up.
Then it was almost time to leave for Europe.
The day before we left, on Sept. 8, she asked if, "this Saturday" she could please get her ears pierced. I started to tell her Mom and Dad wouldn't be here this Saturday, but I stopped because I started mentally going through all of the up coming Saturdays and realized not a single one was free for a few months. The poor thing had waited long enough. So I told her to hang on and I quickly made a few calls.
Classy Chassis was able to get us right in!
BEFORE
After a good 15 mins of debate as to which studs to choose she settled on gold with a pink crystal in the middle. She was nervous, but was so brave. She got misty eyed, but never cried.
AFTER
She has been so responsible with the care of her new bling. I have been very impressed.
We brought her back a pair of Eiffel Tower earrings and she literally counted down the days until she could take her studs out and wear them.
Karaia told me the other day, "Mom, now that I have my ears pierced maybe people will give me earrings as presents."
And thus a young girl's love of jewelry as a gift is born and a mother finally makes good on her year long promise.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Sanders 18 months and beyond
Sanders turned 18 months on Sept. 2.
It could not have come sooner.
The kid HATES to sit still. Refer to earlier "Mr Busy pants" post.
We were very anxious to get him into nursery. I think the feeling was mutual on his part. For most of the month of August he would always lead us to the nursery to play with the toys.
At 18 months Sanders did not say very many verbal words. He was, however, excellent at gestures and could get his point across.
He is now 20 months and has greatly added to his vocabulary. He can now say:
Mama
Da (Dada)
Bebum (Beckham)
Yiya (Karaia)
ba (ball)
Tebe (T.V.)
yereo (cereal)
choo choo
kawr (car)
kuck (Truck)
WHEEEE!
uh-oh
dree (drink)
brrr (bear)
Eee (see)
All done
Ree Ree (his good friend Rhyse)
papple (apple)
puppin (pumpkin)
crakwr (cracker)
And a bunch of animal sounds.
From having only 3, that's right THREE, words at his 18 month check up to all of those in less than 2 months is such a blessing!!!
Because Sanders had to rely on gestures to communicate for most of his life he has gotten extremely clever at figuring out just how things works. He is also SUPER independent. Combine the two and you get yourself the nick-name of Mr. Busy Pants.
He plays very well by himself, but will come and find you and tell you to come, "Eee" when he wants you to play or see something that he's taught himself.
He is also my little su chef. He likes to push a stool over to the cutting board and sit and watch me fix whatever is on the menu.
He ADORES trains and with play with our train tracks for a good portion of the day.
He's attached himself to a blanket with frogs on it. Most often it has to wake up with him and sit beside him in order for his breakfast taste good.
Sander is always on the go, but he will stop anywhere, anytime if you offer to read him a book. Then he will lean his cute little head against your chest and tell you all about what you are reading to him.
Sanders is one of my most obedient children. He often only needs to be told one time not to do something.
He loves his siblings and feels as if he is as big as them. If they are doing it, then he feels he is entitled to do it too.
It looks as if he may be left handed. He still switches back and forth, but we've noticed that he favors his left hand more and more.
We love our little Sanders Buddy. He brings so much joy in our lives and we are grateful he is part of our family.
 |
| playing drums with Tennyson |
It could not have come sooner.
The kid HATES to sit still. Refer to earlier "Mr Busy pants" post.
 |
| Someone got caught eating pool chalk |
We were very anxious to get him into nursery. I think the feeling was mutual on his part. For most of the month of August he would always lead us to the nursery to play with the toys.
At 18 months Sanders did not say very many verbal words. He was, however, excellent at gestures and could get his point across.
He is now 20 months and has greatly added to his vocabulary. He can now say:
Mama
Da (Dada)
Bebum (Beckham)
Yiya (Karaia)
ba (ball)
Tebe (T.V.)
yereo (cereal)
choo choo
kawr (car)
kuck (Truck)
WHEEEE!
uh-oh
dree (drink)
brrr (bear)
Eee (see)
All done
Ree Ree (his good friend Rhyse)
papple (apple)
puppin (pumpkin)
crakwr (cracker)
And a bunch of animal sounds.
From having only 3, that's right THREE, words at his 18 month check up to all of those in less than 2 months is such a blessing!!!
Because Sanders had to rely on gestures to communicate for most of his life he has gotten extremely clever at figuring out just how things works. He is also SUPER independent. Combine the two and you get yourself the nick-name of Mr. Busy Pants.
He plays very well by himself, but will come and find you and tell you to come, "Eee" when he wants you to play or see something that he's taught himself.
He is also my little su chef. He likes to push a stool over to the cutting board and sit and watch me fix whatever is on the menu.
He ADORES trains and with play with our train tracks for a good portion of the day.
He's attached himself to a blanket with frogs on it. Most often it has to wake up with him and sit beside him in order for his breakfast taste good.
Sander is always on the go, but he will stop anywhere, anytime if you offer to read him a book. Then he will lean his cute little head against your chest and tell you all about what you are reading to him.
Sanders is one of my most obedient children. He often only needs to be told one time not to do something.
He loves his siblings and feels as if he is as big as them. If they are doing it, then he feels he is entitled to do it too.
It looks as if he may be left handed. He still switches back and forth, but we've noticed that he favors his left hand more and more.
We love our little Sanders Buddy. He brings so much joy in our lives and we are grateful he is part of our family.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
It's a good thing too
Tennyson has had a bit of a lapse in the being potty trained department. Once again I find the majority of my dialog with my three year old to be centered around bodily fluid and their appropriate and innappropriate placement.
Tonight I asked Tennyson if he had gone potty.
"Yes."
"Good! What kind?"
Referring to the #1 or the #2 label as I am trying to keep track of such things. And lets be honest, poop is harder to clean so I also hope he tells me he's accomplished the goal of placing the poop in the toilet
"Mine."
"Perfect."
Tonight I asked Tennyson if he had gone potty.
"Yes."
"Good! What kind?"
Referring to the #1 or the #2 label as I am trying to keep track of such things. And lets be honest, poop is harder to clean so I also hope he tells me he's accomplished the goal of placing the poop in the toilet
"Mine."
"Perfect."
Home coming, September 17
Traveling home was pretty much what you would expect. Long flights, custom lines, and just general waiting.
The only really notable thing about any of the actual traveling coming home would be as we were coming in for a landing in Salt Lake City.
The last hour of ANY traveling time for me takes for.ev.er. It seems as if the minutes are hours. I try not to look at the clock, but inevitably I cave and no time whatsoever will have passed. ARGH. So when I heard the landing gear on the plan come out I started getting really anxious to get off the plane.
The ground came closer and closer. Just a few more seconds now and the plane's wheels will touch the ground and I will be home! Just at the last possible second before the wheels made contact with the runway the pilot increased the engine speed and pulled us straight up!
He aborted the landing!
Now I REALLY wanted to get off the plane and for more reasons than just being done with traveling. It was so scary. The winds were pretty strong and was causing the plane to bounce all over the place as we tried to land. I'm grateful the pilot listened to his gut, but it was super scary.
We flew around for a bit and took another shot at it. This time success!
Turning his cell phone on Kevin called his mom (she was the one picking us up) to let her know we had landed and would be outside just as soon as we could get our luggage. But instead of answering, "Hello" she said "Kevin". That's when we knew something was wrong.
She had been coming to pick us up with all the kids in the van, except Karaia who had the flu and was at home while neighbor checked up on her (Thank you, Lori!). The freeway was completely backed up so she decided to get off and go the back way around the airport. Then she would be able to kill some time and show the kids the runways.
As she was coming down the off ramp, going West, she met up with an intersection. She did not have a stop sign and proceeded through. However, someone from the left turn lane waved a motorcycle, heading North, through at the same time. The motorcyclist did not stop to check and see if there was any on coming traffic (which he should have because he was the one with the stop sign) and hit the van.
He flew off of his bike, made a body print in the windshield, and flew a few yards away.
There was nothing Candace could have done to avoid it.
When we found all this out, obviously our first concern was everyone's health. Gratefully, no one, other than the motorcyclist, had any notable injuries. Beckham was pretty scared and Candace was very shook up, but the two little boys where pretty oblivious.
The new problem was we now needed a new ride home and Candace and the kids also need a ride home.
Thankfully, Jeremy, our brother-in-law, was kind enough to come get us and then half the crew at the accident. There was a nice man who saw the whole accident who took the rest of the crew home.
It was quite the thing to come home to.
We are just so grateful everyone was watched over and it was only our van that needed medical attention.
The van is back and is wonderful.
The End.
The only really notable thing about any of the actual traveling coming home would be as we were coming in for a landing in Salt Lake City.
The last hour of ANY traveling time for me takes for.ev.er. It seems as if the minutes are hours. I try not to look at the clock, but inevitably I cave and no time whatsoever will have passed. ARGH. So when I heard the landing gear on the plan come out I started getting really anxious to get off the plane.
The ground came closer and closer. Just a few more seconds now and the plane's wheels will touch the ground and I will be home! Just at the last possible second before the wheels made contact with the runway the pilot increased the engine speed and pulled us straight up!
He aborted the landing!
Now I REALLY wanted to get off the plane and for more reasons than just being done with traveling. It was so scary. The winds were pretty strong and was causing the plane to bounce all over the place as we tried to land. I'm grateful the pilot listened to his gut, but it was super scary.
We flew around for a bit and took another shot at it. This time success!
Turning his cell phone on Kevin called his mom (she was the one picking us up) to let her know we had landed and would be outside just as soon as we could get our luggage. But instead of answering, "Hello" she said "Kevin". That's when we knew something was wrong.
She had been coming to pick us up with all the kids in the van, except Karaia who had the flu and was at home while neighbor checked up on her (Thank you, Lori!). The freeway was completely backed up so she decided to get off and go the back way around the airport. Then she would be able to kill some time and show the kids the runways.
As she was coming down the off ramp, going West, she met up with an intersection. She did not have a stop sign and proceeded through. However, someone from the left turn lane waved a motorcycle, heading North, through at the same time. The motorcyclist did not stop to check and see if there was any on coming traffic (which he should have because he was the one with the stop sign) and hit the van.
He flew off of his bike, made a body print in the windshield, and flew a few yards away.
There was nothing Candace could have done to avoid it.
When we found all this out, obviously our first concern was everyone's health. Gratefully, no one, other than the motorcyclist, had any notable injuries. Beckham was pretty scared and Candace was very shook up, but the two little boys where pretty oblivious.
The new problem was we now needed a new ride home and Candace and the kids also need a ride home.
Thankfully, Jeremy, our brother-in-law, was kind enough to come get us and then half the crew at the accident. There was a nice man who saw the whole accident who took the rest of the crew home.
It was quite the thing to come home to.
We are just so grateful everyone was watched over and it was only our van that needed medical attention.
The van is back and is wonderful.
The End.
A BIG HUGE THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HELPED MAKE THIS VACATION POSSIBLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Paris, Thursday, September 16, 2010
Thursday in Paris was by far my favorite of all the days.
Remember that little meltdown I had the previous day because the real Paris didn't match the Paris I had created in my mind?
Well, Thursday we found the Paris that fit the exact description of the one in my dreams.
We started out the day by heading to Montmartre. A district to the north of Notre Dame. It also just happens to be the fabric district (said in a sing songy voice) and the home of the Sacre Coeur which is a wonderfully semi-new (well in Paris standards), beautifully architectural church atop a little hill. The church is surrounded by cobble stone streets and quaint houses and shops.
I thought all of Paris was going to look this way. In my brain I had not expected Paris to be metropolized, which DUH! Of course it's going to have a more modern feels in the center of Paris, but I hadn't taken it into account. So the paved roads and the fast traffic really threw me.
But Montmartre is different.
Before we even made it up to Sacre Coeur we had to walk right through the heart of the fabric shops. These fabric shops aren't like ANYTHING in the states. It is literally wall to wall, floor to ceiling bolts of fabric.
Most of the fabrics in Montmartre are apparel and home decor fabric. The other thing about the fabrics is they were expensive!
In Les Tissues I stumbled, quite literally, over a wonderful laminated fabric. It was 28 euros a meter so I thought I would get half a meter. Oh no. The shop owner would not allow it. "You get one meter.", he ordered me in a thick french accent. You really can't argue much with small, french men. So one meter it was.
I also got one meter of a wonderfully bright, gray, pink, and green fabric. (I really should take pictures....maybe another post)
Immediately next door to Les Tissues is another fabric store. And then beyond that one yet another one. Then if you turn the corner you hit a street that has no less than 5 fabric stores all right next door to one another. It was pretty fun.
Kevin was really good about letting me go in a take my time. Especially in Dreyfus-Marché St. Pierre, a multi-level store that is simply glorious. My favorite part of the store were the small mannequins (probably about 2 1/2 feet high) that had sample clothing that you could make with the fabric it was modeling above.
Fabric shopping makes you hungry. We bought a few sandwiches from a little shop and took them to eat on the steps of the church.
Heavenly, No?
Wanting to explore the district a bit more we took a side street next to the church. Lucky us, we ran right into a bridal photo shoot. I fell in love with the dress
Plus can you even imagine having this location be your photo shoot?
Um, yes, excuse me. I'd like to fly my family out here for our next family picture thank you very much!
As it is, you will have to do with me
we found a darling little painters market.
You can find original works of art all over Paris, but here, they were not mass produced like some others. Plus the location of the market was in a little plaza between some darling buildings.
This place completely healed my soul from the day before.
It was time to leave Montmartre, but I have things all planned out for the next time we visit Paris and you can bet Montmartre is high on the list.
Because the day before's drama we decided to try the Champs Elysees again. No luck with the clothes however, we did get a good laugh out of the whole thing. Just refer to my post It's better to hear it from me first .
After the mirror incident, and Kevin composed himself enough to walk straight, we went to the Pantheon which happened to be very close to our hotel.
It was big and old and, unfortunately, because we were at the end of our trip it kind of blended in with all the other big and old buildings and I didn't get a single picture of it.
I also did not get a picture of the Jardin du Luxembourg. It really is a very lovely garden on the estate of a castle/mansion. But again, by then we were both SO tired that we just sat by the beautiful pond and soaked in the scenery not even thinking to document the moment.
From there we went back to "our place" in the Latin Quarter one last time.
Remember that little meltdown I had the previous day because the real Paris didn't match the Paris I had created in my mind?
Well, Thursday we found the Paris that fit the exact description of the one in my dreams.
We started out the day by heading to Montmartre. A district to the north of Notre Dame. It also just happens to be the fabric district (said in a sing songy voice) and the home of the Sacre Coeur which is a wonderfully semi-new (well in Paris standards), beautifully architectural church atop a little hill. The church is surrounded by cobble stone streets and quaint houses and shops.
I thought all of Paris was going to look this way. In my brain I had not expected Paris to be metropolized, which DUH! Of course it's going to have a more modern feels in the center of Paris, but I hadn't taken it into account. So the paved roads and the fast traffic really threw me.
But Montmartre is different.
Before we even made it up to Sacre Coeur we had to walk right through the heart of the fabric shops. These fabric shops aren't like ANYTHING in the states. It is literally wall to wall, floor to ceiling bolts of fabric.
 |
| This is how much space you had to walk between the isles |
Most of the fabrics in Montmartre are apparel and home decor fabric. The other thing about the fabrics is they were expensive!
In Les Tissues I stumbled, quite literally, over a wonderful laminated fabric. It was 28 euros a meter so I thought I would get half a meter. Oh no. The shop owner would not allow it. "You get one meter.", he ordered me in a thick french accent. You really can't argue much with small, french men. So one meter it was.
I also got one meter of a wonderfully bright, gray, pink, and green fabric. (I really should take pictures....maybe another post)
Immediately next door to Les Tissues is another fabric store. And then beyond that one yet another one. Then if you turn the corner you hit a street that has no less than 5 fabric stores all right next door to one another. It was pretty fun.
Kevin was really good about letting me go in a take my time. Especially in Dreyfus-Marché St. Pierre, a multi-level store that is simply glorious. My favorite part of the store were the small mannequins (probably about 2 1/2 feet high) that had sample clothing that you could make with the fabric it was modeling above.
 |
| This mannequin was a bit bigger but I loved the skirt. |
Fabric shopping makes you hungry. We bought a few sandwiches from a little shop and took them to eat on the steps of the church.
This was our view during lunch if we looked in front of us
 |
| That's Notre Dame and the Pantheon. Our hotel was between the two. |
This was our view if we turned around
Heavenly, No?
Wanting to explore the district a bit more we took a side street next to the church. Lucky us, we ran right into a bridal photo shoot. I fell in love with the dress
As it is, you will have to do with me
 | ||
| Oh those cobble stone streets! This is what MY Paris looks like. |
Wandering the streets
we found a darling little painters market.
You can find original works of art all over Paris, but here, they were not mass produced like some others. Plus the location of the market was in a little plaza between some darling buildings.
 |
| This was the building where Renault built the first French automobile. |
This place completely healed my soul from the day before.
It was time to leave Montmartre, but I have things all planned out for the next time we visit Paris and you can bet Montmartre is high on the list.
Because the day before's drama we decided to try the Champs Elysees again. No luck with the clothes however, we did get a good laugh out of the whole thing. Just refer to my post It's better to hear it from me first .
After the mirror incident, and Kevin composed himself enough to walk straight, we went to the Pantheon which happened to be very close to our hotel.
It was big and old and, unfortunately, because we were at the end of our trip it kind of blended in with all the other big and old buildings and I didn't get a single picture of it.
I also did not get a picture of the Jardin du Luxembourg. It really is a very lovely garden on the estate of a castle/mansion. But again, by then we were both SO tired that we just sat by the beautiful pond and soaked in the scenery not even thinking to document the moment.
From there we went back to "our place" in the Latin Quarter one last time.
 | ||||||
| ||||||
| See how tired we look. Happy, but worn out! |
| Our view while eating ice cream on the banks of the Seine |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)