Blah, Blah, Blog

The Pirates from Grammar Island

2009-03-04T09:05:00.000-08:00

Kacee's 3rd grade class put on a musical, 'Pirates from Grammar Island'. They did such a great job. Kacee was the Adjective Librarian & even had a solo. It was fun to watch her having a good time & mouthing the words to everyone's part! They signed autographs after the show, then off to ice cream with Aunt Kori!

Family Librarian

2009-03-03T09:09:00.000-08:00

So Kacee was this librarian in her school play, Aunt Kori is a librarian & even grandma was a librarian. As we were getting Kacee ready for her role we had to find something librarianish for her to wear.

Kacee said, "Let's call Aunt Kori, she will have something I can borrow ... like a sweater vest!"
Mom, (smiling), "That's a great idea Kacee, give Aunt Kori a call"
Kacee calling Aunt Kori, "I need borrow something to dress up like a librarian for my play"
Aunt Kori, "What would you like to borrow?"
Kacee, "A sweater vest, every librarian has a sweater vest"

At this point all we could do was hear Aunt Kori laughing thru the phone! Needless to say that Aunt Kori told Kacee she has never or will she ever wear a sweater vest!

Sandy & Kate ... A Love Story

2009-02-26T21:02:00.000-08:00

Okay, so Kate & Sandy have this Love/Hate relationship going on. Kate LOVES to pick up Sandy & hold her...Sandy HATES it when Kate does that. (her growling confirms this!) But as soon as Kate is unaware, Sandy LOVES her!

What Happens in Vegas

2009-02-14T20:45:00.000-08:00

Kaila's soccer team made another trip down to the Las Vegas for the Mayor's Cup tournament. They played well, won a couple, lost a couple. They played 2 Canadian teams that they beat.
We had a good time in Vegas. We went shopping, driving around in a little yellow sports car, walking the strip & 'unseasonably' cold weather!

Baseball Season

2009-01-31T19:47:00.000-08:00

And we are off & running in a new sports season...Baseball! Kyle & Kacee both tried out for Cal Ripken. Kacee was really excited about tryouts & was one of the only girls there to try out with the boys! They both had great tryouts!

And then we wait, and wait, to find out what team they got drafted to! The results are in... Kacee is playing AA for the Red Sox!

And Kyle got drafted to the Majors on the New York Yankees!

Sandy's Her Name if You Please

2009-01-23T20:06:00.000-08:00

She is finally here! All of the way from Iowa, Sandy, our new little puppy is here. She is a little Malti-Poo! Kate wanted to name her Sandy because she has been watching 'Annie'. She was waiting for us at the airport!
She is such a cute dog with a sweet personality. She warmed up to everyone right away & made herself at home!
She has even made friends with Duncan, which is not an easy thing!

Kate's 1st Trip to the Dentist

2009-01-12T19:58:00.000-08:00

It was with much hesitation that I took Kate to the dentist for the first time. Why, you ask? Well, my Kacee has had MANY traumatic episodes at the dentist to where she now has MAJOR dental anxiety. No, I'm serious...screaming, yelling, kicking ... & one time from the waiting room Kyle could hear Kacee "YOU'RE TRYING TO KILL ME". So needless to say, I now have a little dental anxiety taking my kids to the dentist! But, I am happy to report that Kate had a fantastic trip to the dentist, no cavities & more importantly no screaming, yelling or kicking! Good job Kate!

Best Buddies

2008-12-07T00:25:00.000-08:00

Our neighborhood & my house have been a little too quiet lately. We are missing this lively little 'big' boy. He is like the other half to my Kacee & we are WAY ready for him to get better & come home. We miss you Dean & we love you buddy!

Back By Popular Demand

2008-11-20T09:55:00.000-08:00

Okay, Okay ... I've been trying to come up with some riveting story as to why I have let my blog go to the way side ... hold on ... still thinking! Alright, well here are some reasons why I have been too busy to blog!

Todd is busy arresting bad people, firing guns & speeding around North Sac. He did take a break for what we like to call 'The Senior Portrait' Thanks Liz ... Love you Todd! :)
Kaila participated in her first high school Homecoming Powder Puff Football game. (Can I tell you again how weird it is to see my kid do the same things at the same high school that I did.) We enjoyed watching her play & Kyle even thought it was more important to watch her game than go to practice! WOW! She actually carried the ball a couple of times which is REALLY good for a freshman!
Kyle has wrapped up a great football season. He had a lot of good catches, good gains & played quarterback a little. Did I mention that Kyle has grown 7 inches in the last 2 years?! I know he has been growing, but holy cow!

Kacee was baptized in September. She also finished a fantastic soccer season, she scored goals at every game except one! Her all time record was 5 goals in one game ... they won that game 5-1! Awesome!Kate is the little princess. She is learning a lot of new songs in her music class, finished up gymnastics & keeps reminding me that she wants to go to school too! I have been totally busy perfecting the art of not being able to get any thing accomplished right now. As you can see from this blog I have been doing pretty good at it. I'd like to say it's because my kids are off track. Thankfully I have good friends that take care of me & can get more comments posted to the blog then I usually do! Now that's funny!

P.S. Next time just feel free to change the background ... it's all good! :)

Update your blog, Kara!

2008-11-19T12:16:00.000-08:00

I am taking matters into my own hands! I can do this because I know all your secret passwords for everything. Update your freaking blog. You have tons of stuff you could write about! What are you waiting for? And lets make you a new background for heaven's sake!

Getting My Land Legs!

2008-10-21T12:54:00.001-07:00

There was a couple of "Fun Days at Sea" that we had. We played BINGO, went to a show, watched some karoke & other 'cruise' activites. Everyday when we came back to our room for bed, we had a new little animal made out of our towels, here is one of my favorites!
Of course one of the favorite activities on the boat is to eat. Here is the result of our table getting lobster to eat. Yes that is a lobster flower...thanks to Kathryn's artistic side!
Here is one of the YUMMY desserts that we had every night ... okay sometimes 2!When we were officially done with the cruise we got to spend a few more hours in New York! The bus dropped us off at 51st & Broadway! It was so cool to walk down into Times Square!
Me & Kathryn walked down about 5 city blocks of an open air market! We had a blast! The market ended right at Central Park. Well if you are in New York, you HAVE to go to Central Park!
We only had about an hour before we had to be back on the bus that was probably a good 6-7 blocks away. So here we were at Central Park with only about 45 minutes. Kathryn had a great idea to take a rickshaw ride around the park to see the high points. What a great idea, it was the perfect way to end the trip!

Nova Scotia

2008-10-18T16:41:00.000-07:00

When we stopped in Nova Scotia it was FREEZING! Luck us, that was the day we planned to go on a Tall Ship ride. So we layered up & went on a boat ride!
After that we went on a downtown Nova Scotia tour & we went to a cemetary that has victims from the Titanic buried there. It was really amazing to see the rows of head stones, they way they are laid out it curves like the bow of a ship.
It was wierd to see so many headstones with the same death date of April 15, 1912. Some of them had names & some didn't. They all had numbers on them that indicates the number that their body was pulled from the water. I thought this was one of the coolest places that we had gone to.

St. John's Bay

2008-10-16T19:31:00.000-07:00

Oh Canada! Our next stop was St. John's Bay in Canada. While we were here we went on a trip up the coast to New Brunswick.
We went to Hopewell Rocks to see these cool rock formations. The tide here comes in & out every 6 hours & 50 minutes. The cool thing is when it's high tide it is over 30 feet, & low tide it recedes out about a mile.
When we were there it was low tide so we got the chance to walk on the ocean floor. If you look below at the picture of me & Kathryn the water comes up & almost covers the hole in that rock formation. It was a really amazing place!

Maine

2008-10-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

The next stop was Maine. Now talk about breathtaking scenery. The weather was really nice that day, the sun was out, a little windy, but all in all a fun day. We went on a lighthouse tour. One of the lighthouse's we saw was called "Buglight".

Across the water at Buglight you could see the town of Portland. It reminded me of the town from "Murder She Wrote" :)
The next lighthouse was cool because it had all of these flat rocks that you had to walk/hop across to get to the lighthouse. Me & Kathryn went all the way out to the lighthouse, I definately had to choose my path wisely... Kathryn's legs are a little longer!
At the end of the tour we went on our own adventures in the town of Portland. We found a couple of fun shops, spotted a tiny UPS truck, meet some interesting locals & found this chowder shack that had the BEST chowder ever! Sad thing is I don't think I can enjoy clam chowder after having it there, everything else will just be disappointing!

Boston

2008-10-13T19:03:00.001-07:00

After some much needed sleep, our first port was Boston. It is a very historical town with interesting stuff everywhere you turn. We went to the church where the lantern's were hung under the direction of Paul Revere ... 'one if by land or two if by sea'.
We were just walking up the street & here was this little house, just stuck between two big brick apartment buildings! Wild!
Then we got back in the bus & noticed that it was pretty hot in there, wouldn't you know, the a/c on the bus broke, like not working at all, I'm not kidding it was so hot that the windows were getting fogged up! After almost losing consciousness in the bus, we FINALLY were able to get out at Harvard University. This is a statue of John Harvard, well not really, no serious, it's not him, they just liked the way that guy looked & put him above John Harvard's name! So the deal is you're suppose to rub his foot to get good luck...had to try! :)
At this point you couldn't pay us to get back on that bus, so we ditched the tour & caught a taxi to Fenway Park, can't go to Boston & not stop by Fenway Park!
We got back to the port & to our surprise there was a 2 hour line of hungry, cranky, old...did I mention hungry? people waiting to get back on the ship. For some reason they only had one plank open & after about an hour & a half they decided to open another....NICE! But we made good use of our time & made a new friend. Officer "Bob" was on duty at our port, after talking to him we found out that he had actually applied for the CHP like 15 years ago, he thought it was pretty funny that my husband was a CHP officer...small world!

New York

2008-10-12T18:19:00.002-07:00

Last month I went on a vacation....a REAL vacation! I kissed the kids & Todd goodbye & set sail for a 7 day cruise. We flew the red eye to JFK & then went straight to Rockefeller Plaza. We had a couple of hours to play before we had to set sail, so off we went.
We started at the Rainbow Room Observation Deck at NBC studios, then off to the Top of the Rock!It was a breath taking view from the top. You could see everything, Central Park, the Empire State Building & we tried to figure out where the Twin Towers stood. Once we had our feet back on the ground we were off & running. While down in the NBC Plaza we found some authentic NY food, found an NYPD car & walked around 5th Ave.
We were the last ones to get on the bus to head over to the cruise ship. We sailed on the Carnival Victory. Kind of looked like the Little Mermaid threw up all over the boat, but I was kind of expecting that!
Once aboard, it was to the life jacket drill...we mapped out where all the little boats were & figured out how many people we could take out if the boat were to sink! :)
When we left port we sailed right past Lady Liberty herself. It was so awesome to actually see it with my own eyes. It was windy, but so worth it to stay out on deck & watch her come & go!

"Hairspray"

2008-09-03T14:31:00.001-07:00

If you have ever been to our house before you have had the privilege of hearing "Hairspray" the movie/musical playing in the background! It is Kate's most FAVORITE show! She loves to go put on her special dress & sing & dance to every song, it's quiet the treat! When I heard that it was coming to Music Circus this summer I called up a friend of mine that works in the box office & was told that they have a 'policy' that states that people younger than 4 can NOT attend! When I took Kate to the Dr.'s last week for her well check up he told me that she was in the 90% for height, so I figure she could pass as a 4 year old!That night we picked up our good friends & were off to see "Hairspray"! On the way there Kate was telling everyone how 'excited' (imagine a little lisp in there) she was! We had some great seats & Kate did SO good during the performance. We were sitting on a performance aisle so that was fun to be close to the actors.
Kate's favorite part of the show was the, "fat momma, the BIG, LOUD can of Hairspray that sprays & the sparkly paper at the end" (confetti!) It was a great girls night out, full of laughs & good company! I especially liked to hear Kacee's giggles when the actors were being silly on stage!!I know that my dad must have been giggling too!

Back To School!

2008-09-03T13:51:00.000-07:00

Another summer is ending & kids are back to school! Kyle is in 6th grade this year & it looks like he is getting ready for his elementary school career to be over! Kacee is in 3rd grade & has Mrs. Victorin & Mrs. Bullard. We LOVE these teachers! Mrs. Victorin has been the only teacher that has had all 3 of the kids so far, it's going to be a fun year!

Kaila started high school a week later & jumped right into seminary. It will take her a while to get use to those early mornings, but for the 2nd week into it, she is doing really well! She likes her schedule at high school & knows someone in all of her classes & is really happy because most of her friends have the same lunch period as her! (You remember those important things from when you were in high school!)

So now it's back to me & Kate. We like to hang out together, run errands together & even once in awhile go out to lunch with friends. She keeps asking when does she get to go to preschool & I tell her I am not ready for that yet! I am going tomorrow to sign her up for a gymnastics class to tide her over!

Home of the Thundering Herd!

2008-08-22T08:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Kaila had to go to the high school & get her schedule, locker, id card & p.e. clothes. I went with her & WOW, things haven't changed too much since I went to school there! As I was standing with Kaila in a line that never ended, I could tell it was not "cool" for Kaila to be standing with her mom. So she went & said hello to friends while I held our place in line. It gave me a moment to glance around at the other students & parents. As I was looking around I found myself comparing me to other parents, what an eye opener that was! When Kaila came back I felt pretty confident that she shouldn't be too embarrassed by her mom & told her about my little survey. She half rolled her eyes at me when I started to explain myself, then I just blurted out to her, "Look at that mom over there in the blue velor sweatsuit, you got to admit I'm better than that!!!" She laughed ... the joys of having a kid in high school!!

Happy Birthday Todd!

2008-08-19T08:30:00.001-07:00

Today Todd is 38! WOW! He is taking the day off today, so we get to spend the day together! Happy Birhtday - We Love You!!

What a Deal!

2008-08-16T18:08:00.000-07:00

Can you believe I got all of this stuff for only .93 cents out of my pocket?! Crazy, I know!! So I have been following this blog that a friend of mine told me about & it is all about saving money! Now it's not for the weak of heart, it does take a good amount of time & organization, but I dig how much money I am saving! If you are interested check out her blog at:
www.frugalisfab.blogspot.com
It's amazing how many good deals are out there when you learn how to shop the deals!

Where Has the Time Gone?

2008-08-14T22:53:00.000-07:00

Wow...can't believe it's been 16 years that Todd & I have been married. Wow, can't believe I'm that old!! Back when I was 16 I was set up on a blind date with this guy Todd, by my friends Eric & Julie Carlson who I always babysat for. Well, he was the ex-boyfriend of Julie's younger sister, and they thought we might hit it off. So, we go on the ultimate first date to the movies, Fabulous 50's Diner and I even think miniature golfing. He was home from his first semester in college & I was a junior in High School. 6 months later, Todd left for his mission to San Juan, Puerto Rico, & I finished my Senior year in high school & went to BYU for a year. When he got home we just picked up right from when we left & here we are 16 years later!
In July we had a little getaway to La Jolla, CA. It was a great time! We walked along the beach, enjoyed the sunset & I even got Todd to go kayaking with me. We kayaked out to the La Jolla Caves & even saw some leopard sharks!

Today while I was doing my soccer run, picking up Kaila & 5 teammates from soccer camp, I get a phone call from Todd & he tells me to stay where I am that he will be there in a minute. So there I sit in my car with 5 sweaty soccer players & he pulls up in his CHP car & we get all kinds of looks from the people still there at soccer. He brings out this Edible Arrangement from the back of his car!! It was great, full of strawberries, chocolate covered strawberries, heart shaped pineapple & grapes. It was yummy & we all enjoyed it (especially Kate!)Happy Anniversary Todd!!

Back In Business

2008-08-13T10:12:00.000-07:00

Life is complete again! My computer is back up and running better than before!
I found a new camera that I LOVE (okay, still trying to figure it all out!)
And finally, my knee feels well enough to get back to running (or jogging/walking!)

Hey Is This Thing Still On?

2008-07-31T22:13:00.000-07:00

Update...Computer, still down, Camera, still looking & knee, still a little sore. Our friend is still plugging away on our computer, I am still shopping around for a new camera & I'm still not back to running yet. But we are still enjoying our summertime.

Kaila has been engrossed in reading all 3 of the Twilight books in the last couple of weeks. Kyle is in the middle of football tryouts HERD PRIDE. Kacee is the king of "What are we doing today?" Kate is enjoying the pool & "just keep's swimming"!
Hope you all are enjoying your summer!

Broke as a Joke!

2008-07-28T22:43:00.000-07:00

I am feeling a little detached right now ... my home computer is down, hopefully not down for the count! Todd's friend is trying to fix it, which I am so hoping it's fixable. So, as if that's not bad enough, Todd & I got back from our little 'getaway' & my camera isn't working either! Are you kidding me?! We all know how these things happen in 3's, right? The last thing that makes me feel pretty detached is that I tweeked my knee right around the 4th of July & I haven't been able to run on it. I totally miss my theraputic run with my friend & I am getting impatient waiting for it to feel well enough to run on it ... I suppose I should be grateful that it's not broken :D

Road Trip

2008-07-20T19:54:00.000-07:00

We have been on the go for the last two weeks. We are happy to be home! We took a road trip out to Utah so Kaila could attend the BYU soccer camp. We dropped her off in Provo at the camp & then meet our friend Kasey for lunch at our favorite Brick Oven resturant.

With our stomachs full, we headed up to Farr West & played with our good friends Patrick & Melissa for the rest of the week. My kids LOVE going up there & having adventures with their friends. On one of our adventures we went to a fishing farm & let the kids fish. All of the kids caught their own fish, Kyle caught a 15" trout, Kacee a 13" trout and Kate...well she kind of caught 2 trout. She caught the first one with help from dad & then she stuck her pole back in the water (when we weren't watching) & totally caught another one on her own! They also clean & fillet them for you. Needless to say, it was pretty hot that day & after watching the workers do all that to the fish, I wasn't looking forward to eating them. But we took our catch back home & threw them on the bar-b-que. It was pretty good, but my appetite was a "little" supressed!
The next adventure took us to Lagoon Amusement Park. They have rides & a water park all in one. There were a lot of rides for the little girls, so they had a blast. We all rode the Rattlesnake Rapids & I think I absorbed the most water out of the group. Then Melissa & I went on the Cliffhanger... I thought I was wet before nothing, it was ridiculous how wet we got, I swear it looked like we jumped in a pool with our clothes on! We closed the park down & the kids loved it!

Some of the other highlights were, sleeping on the trampoline, Wall-E, watching the cornsnake eat a mouse, Nickelcade & Molten Lava cake at Chili's.
We love spending time with the Andrus family & hate to say goodbye to them!

Happy Birthday My Friend!

2008-07-05T18:05:00.000-07:00

Here's to a my friend who I love because she has taught me in so many different ways how to enjoy life (carmelitos), how to try something new (whale watching :D), how to push myself to become stronger (1/2 a marathon)...I am a better person because of you!
Kathryn, I hope you had a fantabulous birthday!

Slow & Steady

2008-07-04T18:27:00.000-07:00

My motto for this year's Run For Independence 10k was "Slow & Steady". This was the first year that Kaila & Kyle ran a 10k. I didn't see them at all during the run, they were way ahead of me. At mile 5 Todd was standing there with Kacee & Kate waving & cheering on everyone who went by. Then I saw Kyle about 1/4 mile ahead of me & I tried to catch up to him for the rest of the run...no luck! As I was coming into the park to the finish line I saw Kaila about 1/4 mile ahead of Kyle. Kaila crossed the finish line first, then Kyle & FINALLY me! It was pretty cool to watch them finish in front of me!

SCHOOL'S OUT!

2008-06-30T14:55:00.000-07:00

We made it through another year at Markofer Elementary School! The last week of school was a busy one, I think I was at school just as much as the kids!Kyle had a great year in 5th grade. He ventured out & was part of student council which he really enjoyed. His teacher Mrs. Suda was great! Kyle did really well in his school work & has proved himself worthy to enter the 6th grade...Watch Out!!
Kacee had the BEST teacher ever. Mrs. Cooper, (or just "Cooper" as Kate likes to call her) is one of the greatest 2nd grade teachers! I was able to work in the class just about every week & work the Scholar Dollar Store for their class. It was a great year for Kacee, she ended it being on the Principal's List (the GOOD one!)
Here is Kate & our good friend Jordie having fun on the last day!

Officer Stabbed....

2008-06-29T22:15:00.000-07:00

....at a CHP Picnic! :)
Todd's CHP office had a family picnic. We went & had a good time. Todd was playing soccer with some of the guys from the office. One of the guys had a knife in his pocket that had somehow fallen out of his pocket, freakishly opened up in the air & stuck Todd in the leg! So 11 stitches later, it hasn't slowed him down one bit!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

2008-06-28T15:13:00.000-07:00

Another baseball season is over.

We had a busy one this year, Kyle played AAA for the Giants and Kacee played Single A for the Blue Jays, and oh yeah, did I mention that Todd helped coach for both teams!!

We had a fun season full of pitching, hitting and catching.

Kyle's team made it to the first round of the championship games and then he was selected to play on the Divisional Allstar Team and they won!

Kacee once again was the only girl on her team. She does get a lot of offers to play for some girl's softball teams, but for now she likes to play with the boys!

This season we made a lot of friends, played at a lot of playgrounds and ate WAY too many sunflower seeds!

Tough on the Outside, Sweet on the Inside

2008-06-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

Todd has been working a TON of overtime lately so I have had some time to think about how much he means to me & the kids.
If you don't know Todd, you don't know what you're missing! He definitely has a rough exterior but on the inside he is this great guy that would do just about anything for you.He reminds me a lot of my dad, in the way that they both love to help other people. He doesn't mind coming down & catching a snake in your backyard, he will surprise you by mowing your lawn while you're out of town and if you sit still long enough he will even give you a shoulder rub (but he might ask for one in return!)There are a lot of things that I really admire about him. He isn't afraid to work hard. Anyone who knows anything about the CHP academy knows just how hard he worked to become an officer.He loves to push our kids to do their best. He sees this great potential in each one of our kids, sometimes he is a little intense (okay a lot!) but he wants them to succeed with their dreams.He is proud of what he does. He really likes being a CHP officer, so much that he will help recruit you to become one too!And most importantly he loves our family!

Happy Birthday to Kate!

2008-06-11T13:09:00.000-07:00

Today Kate turned 3! She is such a happy, social, independent 3 year old. The first thing she asked when she got out of bed this morning was, "Where is my cake?". Needless to say I wasn't planning on cake, just a lot of ice cream, I figured she was going to have a cake at her birthday party! :D She got to open her big present which was her Dora Bike (she calls it a motorcycle). She loves it, she is just trying to get the hang of pushing the pedals forward & turning at the same time. Then off to Galt to Aunt Kori's house, where to our surprise, she got 2 new books! :) You have to know that Kori is a librarian at an elementary school & so was my mom, so Kori is continuing the tradition of book giving! Then we went to get lunch & Kate got a BIG Birthday Sundae for lunch, that's right, I am Mother of the Year, I just let my 3 year old have ice cream for lunch & nothing else!!After the kids got home from school Kate opened their presents. She loves the Princess dress up, the Princess chair & the dog that goes in the purse!

We had to take a walk to our friends house & show them our 3 year old Pretty Princess! Then to end the day we went to Kate's favorite place for dinner, you guessed it McDonald's. I did make her eat some chicken chunks before she could eat another sundae.

Here are some things that Kate loves:
*Her thumb & sippy
*Her princess bed
*To swim
*To play out front with the big kids
*Dress up
*Popsicles

We love you Kate!

Hello Class of 2012!

2008-06-09T10:22:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Kaila promoted from 8th grade at Kerr. That two years went by in a blink, Kaila probably didn't think so. I went to Kerr a LONG time ago, so it was kind of wierd. I had to pull out my promotion picture and show the kids...they all got a good laugh. She has really made us proud with her dedication to her school work. She also received an award at the Annual 8th Grade Awards Night. When you get invited to the awards night you don't know what award you are getting or from who. So we went & took the whole famdamily & we just figured it would probably be a P.E. award because she is so athletic. To our surprise she received a Science Award from her honors teacher Mr. Meredith. When she sat down she leaned over to me & said, "I didn't realize I was that smart in Science!" (she only has an A+ in Honors Science!)...that's one of the many reasons that we love Kaila! Good job Kaila, you're setting an awesome example for your brother & sisters! WE LOVE YOU!

Skaters Rock!

2008-05-29T13:59:00.000-07:00

With Todd out keeping the highways safe for Memorial Day weekend me & the kids set out to a skate park in Galt. We had never been there before, it wasn't much of a skate park but the kids had a good time. When we pulled up there were a few older kids there, but that didn't stop Kacee, she got her skateboard & went to it. After a few runs & a few falls, this interesting looking guy shows up, no shirt, longer hair, tattooed & had a charming set of nipple rings! So he is helping his kid & is impressed with Kacee. This guy was totally in his element! He starts giving her some tips & helps her with her balance. He then shouts my direction, "Are you her mom"..I nodded..he continues "She is hardcore!" That's my Kacee! As he was leaving I thanked him for giving Kacee some pointers & he told me no problem that she is a natural! After he left Kacee came over & was telling me all of the things he taught her & I said that was really nice of him, then Kacee says to me with a big smile on her face..."did you see that he had ear rings in his boobs!"..and with that she took off on her skateboard! Kyle had a good time with his buddy & Kate just enjoyed running up & down the pikes!

Rocket Man

2008-05-22T09:47:00.001-07:00

Kyle made a rocket at a science camp that his class at school attended. This week they got to launch their rockets at school! Kacee's class came out to the black top to watch & me & Kate were there also. Kyle's rocket kind of went more horizontal than vertical! It was still very cool! Kyle's rocket is the 4th from the right (in the 1st picture it's just getting ready & in the 2nd picture it leaves a trail of smoke behind)!

Academic Athletes

2008-05-21T14:16:00.000-07:00

This weekend Kyle & Kacee (& other smart kids that play baseball) were honored for keeping up good grades while playing baseball, not such an easy thing with all of the time baseball takes! :) They had dinner, certificates, t-shirts, medals & a raffle...Kyle won a jumphouse rental! Kyle was awarded a Bronze medal & Kacee took home the Gold. Good job guys, we are SO proud of you!

Big League Buddies

2008-05-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

This weekend was ALL about baseball. Kyle & his cousin Josh got invited to play with a baseball team called the Capitol Edge Beasts. We went down to Manteca to this sports complex called Big League Dreams. It was the nicest ballpark I have ever seen...it had artificial turf, an a/c clubhouse, batting cages, playground (yeah for Kate!) & stadium seats! It was cool to watch the 2 of them play together. So I totally stole this picture of them from my sister's blog, but it is such a great picture. The 2 of them always have this thing going how Kyle is taller...but Josh is older!!

Headlands

2008-05-13T14:04:00.000-07:00

Todd went with Kyle on an overnight field trip to Headlands. It is a beautiful place that kids can go & learn about marine life & nature. It is in the San Francisco Bay... no seriously, it's like right there in the bay! They got to go on hikes, become a member of the core club (that's eating an entire apple, yep they waste nothing!) & playing at the beach. They had a great time together & Todd did a good job getting me some pictures!

Grandma Smart turns 90!

2008-05-12T17:37:00.001-07:00

My grandma turned the big 90 today....Happy Birthday Grandma! She had a big party on Saturday that I missed, due to 2 baseball games, but was told that it was a wonderful party & she had a great time. When I think about my grandma, I realize that she is one of the constant's in my life. By that I mean that she has been there from the beginning & is still with me now. I appreciate my grandma for showing & teaching me things like service & unconditional love. I love her because she keeps my dad's legacy alive & teaches me to be proud of it! We love you grandma!!

Here's To Being a Mom

2008-05-12T10:08:00.000-07:00

So I wasn't planning on doing a Mother's Day post, but then I thought that even though my mom isn't here anymore she still deserves all of the kudos for what a great mom she was!

Mom & Me

So here is a couple of things that I love about my Mom....
*She didn't give me back :)
*She made the best pinapple pear jam EVER!
*She had a passion for life, shopping, reading & family history
*She was the best grandma!Now a couple of things I love about being a Mom....
*Tucking my kids into bed (it is the best time of the day!)
*All of the hand made cards & presents
*Getting hugs & kisses
*And let's not forget all of the fun we have with each other!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Pretty Princess

2008-05-08T10:39:00.001-07:00

Kate loves her "big grr" bed. She picked out the Pretty Princess herself (I was shooting for Tinkerbell). You can catch Kate napping in her bed, but at night she seems to always wander into our bed! She likes to play Monkeys Jumping on the Bed & likes to look over to see Kacee sleeping in the bed next to her!

A FULL Day of Baseball!

2008-05-07T10:29:00.000-07:00

Todd, Kacee & Kyle in the parade at Raley's Field

So, as if watching 2 baseball games on a Saturday is not enough for us, we took the whole famdamily and went to a Rivercats game. It was Little League Night so the kids even got to walk on the field for a parade. After 4 trips to the bathrooms and twice as many to the snack bar, I think I might have watched 2 innings....maybe! We hung out with our friends on the lawn, watched the kids be crazy and ended the night with a firework show.

A Day at the Park

2008-05-02T10:39:00.000-07:00

Kacee & Kate

We went with Kacee's class to a high school production of "Seussical the Musical". We enjoyed the show & then went to the park with her 2nd grade class & had a good time running around, sliding & swinging.

Kate 'loveit' her new house

2008-04-28T19:40:00.001-07:00

Kate in her house first thing in the morning!

Kate got the best hand-me-down ever. Some friends of ours, where cleaning out their backyard and gave us a call to see if we would want this Little Tikes playhouse. I was all over it....Todd not so much (however, he has changed his tune!) After a little cleaning and assembly it is a magical place for Kate. She got out of bed this morning and made a B-line to the backyard, played in it, ate lunch in it, played in it some more :) She told me tonight, "Mom, I 'loveit' my new house"!

Kaila made her a 'Welcome' sign....Kate is ALL smiles!

Kaila Makes the Team!!!

2008-04-22T08:49:00.000-07:00

Kaila in Las Vegas Feb. 2008

Kaila had try-outs last night for the U-15's Elk Grove Everton FC Competitive soccer team. She had a good try-out & was excited to get a call last night from her new coach offering her a spot on the team...WAY TO GO KAILA!!!!

Grandpa Smart turns 96!

2008-04-21T10:49:00.001-07:00

Our family & grandma & grandpa Smart

We headed out to grandma & grandpa's to celebrate grandpa's 96th birthday....WOW! It is one of his goals to live to be 100, so you see, you're never to old to set goals! We had a good time visiting with uncles, aunts & cousins.

Kori, Grandma, Granpa & Me

Gymnastics

2008-04-16T14:01:00.001-07:00

Kate has found a love for gymnastics. I signed her up for a "Mom & Me" class at Byer's gymnastics. She loved going every week. Kate took right to jumping on the trampolene and even figured out how to jump, bounce on her bottom & jump back up to her feet after the teacher showed her one time. It was fun to watch her have such a good time. Kate also loved her teacher Ms. Barbara, or as she would call her "Ms. Blahblah"!

Baseball

2008-04-13T19:12:00.001-07:00

Kyle's homerun hit

It was a fun day at the ballpark, Kyle hit his first homerun of the season! It was exciting to watch him round the bases, with Todd coaching 3rd base yelling "GO ALL THE WAY HOME!"

Kacce playing shortstop

Kacee's game was also pretty exciting. She loves to play shortstop & thought it was pretty cool that 2 of her classmates were on the other team! Kacee likes to play baseball with the boys and is proud that she is the only girl on the team!

Better Late than NEVER!

2008-04-11T17:05:00.000-07:00

Kyle, Kacee, Kate & Kaila Disneyland Feb. 2008

Okay, so after TOO much thought, I have followed the footsteps of the BLOGMASTER (you know who you are) and have one of the COOLEST looking blogs :) This picture was taken at Disneyland in Tarzan's Treehouse. It's amazing that they all stood still long enough, we were on the run the entire trip!