Summer Swimming!

I can hardly wait for the heat of the summer.  I absolutely love the sunshine.  It brightens my mood and makes me feel so happy!  My kids love playing in the backyard, running through the sprinklers, and playing in the mini pool.  We have a plethora of popsicles on hand and try and have as many picnic lunches in the backyard as possible.  To me, summer = no structure.  I absolutely thrive in this environment and my kids enjoy just going with the flow and not having to adhere to a schedule. 

Because we still own our old townhouse- we have access to the pool there.  Our town home is a short three minutes from the house we live in now which makes the short trip more than worth it!  So far this summer, we have been here a handful of times.  We have come here with extended family, the kids have brought their friends, and we have just come over as a family for a quick dip.  No one is ever at the pool but us and it is nice to just let the kids go as they please and have a blast!

This the first year where we have some freedom at the pool.  Now that Emily is bigger and more independent- she wears a life jacket.  I let her swim around the pool with her siblings while always keeping an eye (or two) on her.  She is as happy as a clam.  She has figured out how to move pretty well through the water and really never chokes on the water.  She keeps her mouth closed while kicking as fast as she can and it is so funny to watch! 

Matthew is wearing a life jacket, too and he is really safe and comfortable in the water.  He loves to jump in and fool around with his older siblings.  I love that kid!  We have a bunch of goggles but he prefers to wear the scuba mask.  It really adds to the 'cool effect'. 

Michael and Claire are fishies.  They obviously do not wear a life jacket in the pool.  They love to have contests (i.e. holding breath, race to swim the length of the pool) and laugh all the time.  My sweet kids.  There is a hot tub at the pool and there always comes a point where the kids have to go in.  I can't blame them.  I loved hot tubs as a kid.  I especially love when my two year old looks at me and says, "I go hot tub?"  How teenager-ish of her.

While Damien and I are a bit more free this summer to not have to be in the pool the whole time, we still have to be careful and keep a close eye on all of them.  We were filming Matthew on the edge of the pool, right before he was going to jump in.  Suddenly- in the background, you see a flash of pink as my dare devil daughter Emily comes running in a full sprint and jumps in the pool.  Thank God for life jackets. 

I can't wait for more of these fun days where we lounge at the pool.  Watching my kids sing show tunes from Annie with their friends as they choreograph a swim/jump routines is awesome and incredibly funny!  Here is to summer and all the splashing and swimming we can squeeze in!

A Heavenly Shower

My beautiful sister-in-law Heavenly is expecting her first child in August!  We are all so happy for her and wanted to show her some love by throwing her a baby shower!  Heavenly is carrying a little baby girl who will become the 12th grandchild in Damien's family!  We are all looking forward to meeting her in August!

Heavenly just came back from London, England where she had been getting her Masters.  We are all so happy she is back and love seeing her and her ever growing belly! 

The theme we chose for her shower was An English Tea Party.  I actually have to give all the credit for the theme to Lani.  It was a good one!  The shower was going to be hosted at Marlene's house which has the perfect yard for an outdoor tea.  On the invitation it said hats encouraged so it was fun to shop for the girls and find them a cute hat and dress to wear! 

Heavenly looked beautiful.  Pregnancy certainly suits her well!  She was so gracious and you could tell she felt so blessed by the love that embraced her.  Between the sister-in-laws and Marlene, we split up the duties of the shower so no one had to do too much!  We had tea sandwiches, salad, pastries, lemonade, and hot tea.  It was such a nice shower. 

Everyone sat in the warm sunshine, shaded by their hats, and watched Heavenly as she opened gifts from everyone.  It was really wonderful!  My favorite part was her speech to all those in attendance.  She thanked everyone for their support and let us all know how much we mean to her.  We love you Heavenly!!!

Claire and Emily had such a wonderful time today.  Both Emily and Claire were a huge help with the set up.  They loved setting out the plates, saucers, cups, spoons, napkins and favors.  At the shower, Claire tried her darndest to win the game where you try to hear people say the word baby and then steal their little pin.  Although it was a valiant effort- she came in second. No bitterness there (please, sense my sarcasm).

We are so happy for Auntie Heavenly, or Henrietta, as Claire calls her.  We know what a wonderfully strong, beautiful, and amazing Mom she will be to her little girl.  August can't come soon enough!

Goodbye Kirkland

We had such a great time in Kirkland this week.  I am not too sad to leave because I know that we will be back in a month for a fantastic two week stay.  Some of the things I loved the most were:

Seeing my kids gardening with Nonna.  They really find it fascinating that she can find worms whenever she wants! 

Watching the kids play in the backyard all day long!  Between kickball, baseball, and basketball- they love it!

My parents house is rolie polie/potato bug heaven!  They are all over the backyard which was thrilling to the kids.  Emily found them all the time and would summon everyone over to show us her 'new friend' . . . that she would then step on 50% of the time.

Seeing Emily come out of Auntie Natalie's room at least once a day decked out in jewelry, hair bows, high heels, and occasionally wearing some rainbow colored nail polish!  Damien was so pleased with all of these choices.

While we were here- Michael, Claire, and Matthew made up words to the Harry Potter video game theme song.  It went, The Dursley's suck, the Dursley's suck, the Dursley's suck- they suck.  This could also be substituted with The Dursley's pee and The Dursley's poop.  Totally mature . . . and a little vulgar.  And is it sad that I don't even know who the Dursley's are?  Haven't read a Harry Potter book yet.  My older two have read six each.  Come to think of it- I better find out who they are singing about!

It was so wonderful to spend time with my nephew Kyle.  He is my godson and I just love him to pieces.  I love that he calls me Auntie Misa.  He loves my kids and he and Matthew are such great buddies.  He calls Emily his baby and always touches her face.  Kyle thinks she is the cutest thing in the world! 

On our last night, I took a picture with him on my parent's deck.  The sunset was beautiful.  I asked him to smile for the picture and he wouldn't.  I threatened him that if he didn't do it- I would kiss him.  Guess what happened??

I loved seeing both of my Grandmas.  I didn't get a picture with my Grandma but got to catch up with her at Emily's birthday.  I did get a picture with my Nana and absolutely love it.  I am a very lucky granddaughter.

We all had a wonderful visit.  I love my parents, sisters, and entire family and I cherish our long summer visits where we can all be together and make memories.  Goodbye Kirkland.  See you at the end of July!

"These Ducks Bite!"

I found myself with some time at my Mom's and thought that I should venture out with the kids!  I stopped by the store and bought a bag of Goldfish crackers so that we could take them down to the beach and feed the ducks.  It was a tricky balancing act.  Trying to give the kids crackers while keeping Emily from running into the water.  If you know Emily and all that she is capable of, it would not surprise you that I was sweating within the first five minutes of being there!

The day was beautiful.  I love it down in the marina in Kirkland.  I have so many memories of my own childhood at this beach- so bringing my own kids here is truly a full circle moment.  Once the ducks figured out that we had food, they were at our beck and call.  Trouble was that they were a bit aggressive.  This was brought to my attention when I heard my sweet Matthew yell, 'These Ducks Bite!"  Apparently, it didn't hurt because soon, the kids were trying to get bitten by their new feathered friends.  For a moment, I thought I should stop this madness but truthfully, it was hilarious!

Damien was in Vancouver, Canada for the day for work and Michael wanted to make sure he wasn't left out.  He made a video for Damien.  It starts with Michael showing the food in his hand and then Michael looks at the camera and says, 'Dad, this is for you!'    Then he feeds the duck, gets bitten, screams, then laughs.  It was classic.

Emily managed to stay dry the whole trip, we probably over fed the ducks and left them with tummy aches, but we had a blast! 

Pike Place Market

I have been to Pike Place Market many many times.  I love the nostalgia of it and I love that you never know what you're going to get!  The crowds, the produce, the flowers, the fish, and atmosphere is awesome!  We have had a few days at my parent's house where we are home alone for a lot of the day.  My Mom is almost out for summer vacation at the school where she is the school secretary.  I thought that it would be fun to load up the kids, Damien, and Laura and go exploring!

The market was busy when we got there.  Once we parked- we headed straight to the famous fish vendors so the kids could take in the flying fish!  Michael and Claire were really looking forward to this and I didn't want to disappoint them!  The hilarious part of this photo is right behind Claire is a giant Monkfish.  It's jaws are open and there is an invisible string that goes from it's mouth to the employees behind the counter.  When kids get close, they pull the string and the kids totally freak out.  I suspect this is why Claire looks a little scared in this photo!

We walked aimlessly around the market and ended up having lunch at a great little restaurant with a nice view of the water.  While the food was good, it took a while to get our food which proved a little tricky with a squirrely two year old.  After lunch we grabbed some candy before we headed back for home.

We had a fabulous time today.  Sometimes the idea of getting all four kids dressed and ready to get out of the house seems daunting.  I am so glad that I pushed though and took them out.  These days of freedom with all of them within my reach are numbered.  I want to make the most of my life with these beautiful children.  What a fantastic day!

Happy Father's Day

Father's Day.  A day where I am thankful for my own Dad.  Thankful for the hours he spent with me as a child.  Great memories of kicking the soccer ball around and shooting hoops.  Long car rides, great conversations.  Needless to say I am blessed.  On the flip side, I want all of these memories for my kids, too!

Damien is an amazing father.  He finds a way to balance his work, his kids, his wife, and his focus in life.  He is more amazing than I could ever have dreamed him to be.  He reads books to the kids, he coaches their sports teams, he helps me around the house, plays Star Wars and Legos, plays P-Daddy, wipes tears, induces much laughter and lets all of know how much he loves us.  This day is so important to me because without either of them, I wouldn't be who I am today!

We had a lot of cute treats planned for Damien.  On Saturday, we sent him out for a massage which he loved!  I tried to convince my Dad to go with him, not for a couples massage, but for a relaxing time.  No dice.  It was worth a try, though!  On Sunday morning, the kids proudly presented him with their school made treasures.  They were so worried I wouldn't pack them for the trip but I wouldn't think of it!  We got him some new shoes, new Adidas sandals, a Darth Vader and Luke Skywalker figures with the title "I Am Your Father!", some SCU gear, and a few other treats.  (God love Laura and her amazing signs.  She will always have a sign made for any occasion.  You never need to ask her or remind her- she always has one ready!)

As usual, the kids gave him their hand chosen gift cards and Damien loved it!  Michael chose to go to PF Chang's with Dad, Claire chose Cluck U. Chicken, Matthew chose Subway and Emily chose Cold Stone.  Should be some fun Daddy/Child dates in the near future! 

My Mom and I had agreed that a fun Father's Day dinner idea was to make it a Mardi Gras themed event.  My Mom and Dad went to New Orleans last year and my Mom bought a cookbook there- promising to try some recipes from it.  When I bought the cowgirl party supplies, I also bought beads and masks to help make the dinner feel special!

The Dads and kids alike loved the theme and the food was so ridiculously good!  We made red beans and rice, shrimp gumbo, and bananas foster. My Mom did most of the work but I helped where I could.  To sum it up . . . this food was so yummy!  Happy Father's Day to my Dad, Damien's Dad, and of course, Damien (and all the other Father's in our lives)!

Happy 2nd BARFday, Em!

You know, sometimes things just don't go the way you planned.  We flew up to my Mom and Dad's once school was out for summer to spend a week with my family.  One of the plans while we were up there was to have a birthday party for Emily.  My Mom had a great idea!  Why don't we have a cowgirl party for her since she just got her new Jesse gear!  I thought it sounded like so much fun!  In preparation, I shopped for all the party supplies down in San Jose.  I bought party plates, party napkins, cowboy hats, streamers, and a cute Happy Birthday sign.  Did we use them?  Stay tuned . . .

The day before Emily's party I did a huge shop at Safeway and Costco to get all of the food for the party.  That night, my Mom and I did some food prep and went to sleep in order to have the energy to cook for 36 people the next day.  Emily and I woke up and things seemed good.  We talked about her party and she was just so happy!  I sat in one of my Mom's comfy chairs with a cup of coffee and gave Emily her morning bottle.  Then, it happened.  SPLAT!  Huge projectile vomit.  Uh huh.  The kind that makes you think, 'Um, yeah.  That was not good."  All of us worried that maybe she had the stomach flu.  I always think you need to see the second vomit in order to know that it wasn't just a fluke.  Fifteen minutes later, SPLAT.  Dangit!  I couldn't believe it.  Emily had the stomach flu on the day of her party.

I had been looking forward to seeing all of my cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandmas.  To say that I was disappointed would be the understatement of the year.  I was bummed but I couldn't have felt worse than Emily did.  My Mom and Dad got on the phones and called off the party.  Then, I thought about all the food that would go to waste.  And what about the giant half sheet cake I bought yesterday?  This was not good!

Emily didn't barf anymore after those two episodes but it was clear she was sick.  After her afternoon nap, she caught a second wind.  It was as if she was never sick.  She ran and ran and ran around the house like the morning of illness had never happened!  We even got out the sheet cake, stuck in the candle that Laura got her, and sang Happy Birthday!  We ended up barbecuing some of the meat that we had purchased and just had a small party with our family.  Emily put on her boots and hat and had the time of her life- completely oblivious to all of the party canceling done earlier in the day.

We were able to reschedule and get everyone, yes everyone, over to my parent's house before we left.  I was so touched that everyone cared enough to make it.  We celebrated my Dad, Emily, and Uncle Chico's birthdays that evening.  The more the merrier!  Emily had a blast and although I had to go and buy more food to feed everyone, it all worked out in the end!

It wasn't like we had planned, but we got it done nonetheless!  Happy 2nd Birthday (Part 2) Emilini!!! 

So, I must add here that a few days after we headed back to San Jose, my Dad was stricken with Emily's stomach flu which landed him in the hospital for four days.  The tests run in the hospital never detected the flu but based on the knowledge that Emily was sick and my witnessing Grandpa and Emily share a piece of cake on her 'sick day'- we knew she had shared this very special gift with her Grandpa.  See how much she loves him?  She shares with him!  He is all better now.  Thank goodness that is behind us!