Monson Mania

I'm the Boss!

2011-08-21T17:31:00.000-07:00

Joey has become so sassy these last few weeks since I spent those few days in the hospital with chest pains. He won't leave my side for a minute, which is cool, except he's gotten a little confused with who's the boss. I ask him to pick up the toys and his usual response is that its too much and he needs help. So I usually get down on my knees to help him pick them up and before I know it I'm the only one in the room and when I call him back to help me, what is his response - "You're doing a good job Momma, you don't need my help". I think I've explained about a thousand times now that I did not make the mess, he did, and therefore it's his responsibility to clean it up.

Dinner time is another battle. He never wants to eat what's on the menu but wants something specific for dinner, usually chicken nuggets. He's pretty much ruled out vegetables and when I force him to eat them he just chews and chews until it's the consistency of juice and then refuses to swallow. I'm really getting frustrated. Take tonight for instance. We had red beans and rice with beef in it and canteloupe. He ate the melon right away and started on the rice and beans and actually told me it was good after 2-3 bites. However that's where it ended. I keep telling him he needs to finish it, especially as I'd only given him a small amount to begin with. His response, "I only like the beef". I told him I didn't care that he was to eat it all and he tells me, "I don't want to". When I responded back, crankily I admit, that I didn't care and I was the boss so he had to do what I said he just smiled at me and says "No your not Momma, I'm the boss". It took everything in me not to just let him have it. So I've taken a stand and I don't care if he has to sit at the table until bedtime, he's going to eat every bite of what Larry made for dinner and if he doesn't he can darn well go to bed hungry. If that makes me mean, so be it. I've had about enough of this.

He's also gotten to speaking so sassy not only to me, but every other adult too. My sister, grandparents, etc. It's really becoming quite embarrasing. I'm trying to discipline without spanking but timeouts aren't working, neither is talking it out. What's a mom to do when her child refuses to use good manners and thinks its funny when we get upset with him. I was raised that you respect your elders and don't talk back. I wanted Joey to grow up where he felt free to express himself but in a polite and respectful way. If any of you out there reading this has any ideas please let me know because I've run out of options here, at least any that are working.

Housework - Emphasis on WORK

2011-08-18T09:18:00.001-07:00

Why is it that no matter how many loads of laundry you do, or how often you scrub your toilets and pick up toys that every time you turn around there are more dirty clothes on the floor and toys to trip over.

I love my hubby - the Tech GENIUS

2011-08-17T14:45:00.000-07:00

My hubby is so great, after almost a month of trying to post on my blog he's finally worked out the kinks for me where I can actually publish them.

He's the best. I bow down to my Tech GENIUS ;p

Summertime

2011-08-17T14:20:00.000-07:00

We've had the best summer this year. Had lots of playdates with Joey's pals, went camping with the Monson clan, a lot of swimming in our pool and at our local lake. My boy is growing up so fast into a little man that I just wish I could freeze time.

We planted our first garden this year - tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, zuchinni, canteloupe and two kinds of watermelon. So far we've harvested exactly one tomato which was very flavorful and juicy, but their has been only the one so far. We've had lots of blossoms and Larry has faithfully been watering them on a nightly basis. Joey asks me daily when we're going to get to pick some more and I have no idea how to answer since I'm beginning to doubt that we'll produce anything. It's been fun watching them grow though. Still a little hope lives on that we'll have something to harvest before summer is officially over.

Joey had his first sleepover party here at the house - four of his pals equalled a house full of fun and laughter. They played cars and superheroes, swam and swam again, went to the park, rode bikes and scooters and skateboards. The energy they created never waned and Larry and I loved every minute of it. We're so happy that Joey has such great friends to play and learn with.

We really do have such a blessed life - what more could we ask for? Nothing, absolutely nothing.

4 + 1 = FUN

2011-08-05T07:51:00.001-07:00

Joey hosted his first sleepover last weekend. We had Joey and Julian Williams and Trevor and Garrett Hill over. These are some of Joey's best friends and range in age from 5 to 7 years old. Even though they're a few years older than Joey, he doesn't seem to have any problem keeping up with them and their antics, and believe me there were a lot of antics going on.

We started the party off with a trip to the park for the boys and Larry. They took a ton of cars and trucks to play with, race with, play demolition derby with. However it was hot out, really hot, and so they only lasted a little over an hour at the park and then came trudging home with their little red faces and sweaty bodies. Our solution - pool time. They all changed and jumped right in and spent the next few hours playing, splashing, shooting each other with water guns and having sword fights with the pool noodles. It was a lot of fun to watch their creative minds at work.

For dinner we cooked up hot dogs and macaroni and cheese with some nice cool watermelon on the side. They all ate really well since we'd promised s'mores if they finished their plates.

After dinner the kids played dress up - we had Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, GI Joe, and Superman. I tried to talk them into changing into normal clothes before we did s'mores but they weren't having any of it so I guess you could say we had superhero s'mores. They all looked so darn cute out there in their costumes toasting marshmallows.

Then it was into PJ's for movie time. We watched some Scooby, some Batman, and then Rango. I made the kids popcorn with maltballs and licorice and they all settled down into their sleeping bags and blankets. Joey 1, Joey 2 and Julian fell asleep about 10 minutes into Rango and Trevor and Garrett weren't to far behind. Larry was glad to see them crash so soon as he was exhausted from the day's activities.

In the morning Joey 2 and Julian were the first up and being the awesome boys that they are they just went into Joe's room and put on cartoons and played until the rest of us got up. Then Joey woke up and joined them followed by Trevor. Garrett just slumbered on peacefully until the boys yelled at him to get up that "sleeping time was over". Such a rude awakening for my sweet little G man.

I fixed french toast for breakfast with some sweet melon on the side and copious glasses of milk all the way around. Let me tell you, these boys can eat. It reminded me so much of when Kenneth lived with me and all his friends used to hang out at our house and chow down. I imagine it will be the same with Joe and his friends as he's growing up.

After breakfast we again headed to the park, this time on bikes, scooters, and skateboards. The boys raced each other at the park, we had a couple of tumbles that required kissing and cuddles to soothe the hurt away, but all in all it was a fun time. Since it was morning time it wasn't near as hot and so we lasted a couple of hours there before the boys were ready to head back.

The minute we got back in the door they began their campaign for swimming, looking at me with their big blue and brown eyes, pulling on my heart strings, so of course I said yes. At this point JoAnna called to see if I was ready to have her come pick them up but it was only 10 and I wasn't ready to give them up so I asked if I could keep them til 1 and she said yes. So swimming we did, followed by a lunch of PB&J sandwiches, chips and juice boxes. I learned that Joey #2 doesn't like peanuts in his peanut butter so I'll have to remember that for the next time.

When they were done swimming they moved on to legos, video games, and playdoh play. I loved watching them interact and have fun. I loved getting to spend time with them all. I so wish they could all be mine as I already love them all as if they were my own and I know Joey would love having them all for brothers.

When it came time for them to go home they begged to stay another night, making me laugh at their enthusiasm and begging techniques. I promised them another one soon so I'm sure we'll be having the same kind of fun this month at some point in time. Joey is blessed to have such great little friends, and I'm blessed to have the friendship of their moms.

The Monson's

2011-07-01T18:30:00.000-07:00

My Little Man is getting so big... look at those long legs and that gorgeous face.

Speaking of faces, doesn't this just tell you how much of a family we are?

The next GREAT chef!

Lifes Ups and Downs

2011-07-01T09:02:00.000-07:00

So much going on and I've been so lax in updating my blog. I'm going to try to do a post at least once a week beginning now.

Joey is getting so big, at our last measurements he was 42 inches tall and weighing in at 40 lbs. He seems taller to me now so we already need to measure him again. I think he's going to pass me up in height before he gets out of elementary school at the pace he's going now.

We've been doing all kinds of things lately - swimming, playdates with friends, library each week. He loves to have stories read to him each evening and I've found some great pre-readers that combine words along with pictures so that he can participate in reading with Larry and I. Now I just need to work on getting him to recognize his letters. We've mastered colors and shapes and he can count to 20 (although he always skips 13 and 16 for some odd reason). I was going to enroll him in preschool this year but it's just not in the budget, so I'm going to be teaching him at home. Another of my friends, Jessica, has a boy who is one year older than Joe and we're going to try to get together 2x a week to have our own "preschool".

Joey is back to swimming like a fish and has even begun to swim under water this year. We have him wear a Speedo life vest most of the time but it seems that every time he's in the pool he starts with it on, then has us take it off so he can swim on his own for a little while and when he gets tired, he has us put the vest back on. He's taken to doing cannon balls off the side of the pool with Daddy, and loves to have Aunt Crystal come play with him in the pool. She lets him dive off her shoulders and spins him around in the water. He just loves it. I don't get to play as much with him in the pool because ours is not heated and even though we have a solar cover, it rarely gets above 82 and I need it to be a little warmer or else I get flare ups with my fibromyalgia. I'm so thankful that he has others folks in his life who can participate in this aspect of his life while I sit on the sidelines watching and taking pictures.

I've been having a bad time lately with my health. A lot of flare ups and if that wasn't enough now I've begun having intense symptoms with regard to my pseudo tumor ceribri. In fact it's gotten so bad that I've had to go back on Diamox (which I hate as it has horrible side affects) and am scheduled to have a lumbar puncture (formerly called a spinal tap) next week. None of these things are fun and this situation with my health is really starting to get me down. Thank goodness for Larry who has been so supportive and helpful throughout it all.

Mom is back with us and Joey is so happy (most of the time) to have her back. He's gotten a little sassy lately and it doesn't always sit well with her, or me for that fact. He loves to spend time with her in the backyard and will just sit at the table with her and have conversations. I have no idea what they talk about but they always seem very engrossed in their talks.

Larry is doing great in his job and with his schooling. He's past the halfway point in achieving his AA degree and is on the deans honor list. I'm so proud of him and think he's setting a wondering example for Joey.

Larry's Uncle Brian passed away recently and we're all feeling the loss. He was probably the kindest and gentlest soul I've ever met. And he was so wonderful with Joey and his cousin Elsa, always making time for them. He will be truly missed by all of us.

Well that's about it for now. Will post more next week.

Joey's World

2011-02-22T10:34:00.000-08:00

I just can't believe how fast my boy is growing. It seems like everyday when I get him dressed something doesn't fit - the pants are to short or the waist is to tight, the shirts show his belly, shoes are to small. I wish I had a magic wand to just slow it all down as it's going by way to fast for me. Larry is already talking about when he's 4 we'll do this or that and I'm wishing we could go back to 2 so I could enjoy each moment even more.

This year he's big enough to play soccer, T-ball, and dodge ball with the Pee Wee league at Rancho Cordova Parks and Rec. Each is a four week series and is aimed at fun so I'm sure he'll enjoy it, as will we who get to watch him learning all these new skills. I'll have to take lots of pictures so that all of you who read this can see how much he's enjoying it as well.

Lately he's been in to costumes - each day it's a different character; Spiderman, Darth Vader (his favorite now that we got him a light saber to go with it), GI Joe, Captain America, etc. He looks so cute in each of them and really gets into character. He and Larry watch Star Wars Clone Wars most nights and then have light saber wars of their own, or at least they did until Joey conquered his Daddy last night by wacking his saber so hard that he broke it. That's my boy, a chip off the ol' block.

Winter Joys

2010-12-30T19:51:00.000-08:00

Larry, Joey and I decided one fine sunny day to head on up the hill for a little fun in the snow. We each got bundled up and into the truck and began our journey. This year I got smarter and packed a 2nd set of clothes for each of us "just in case". We drove just north of Pollock Pines and found a great place to play.

We started off with a few sled runs down the BIG hill, a little scary at first, but more fun with each run. Then we progressed to the action portion of our day with a snowball fight or two. Joey wasn't so great at making them, but he was a champ when it came to throwing them. I'd build him up an arsenal so that we could "get" Daddy only to have my little guy do sneak attacks on me, his loving Mommy. I know that's hard for some of you to believe but its the truth (lol).

When we tired of our fight (or at least when Daddy and I got tired) we moved on to building a new friend for Joe. We lucked in to finding a couple of already rolled snowballs that we just had to add on to and before you know it had the body of our snowman put together. Then Larry and Joey rolled the last one out together for his head and got him assembled. We went hunting for items we could use for his facial features and arms and before you could say winter wonderland we had ourselves our very own frosty the snowman. Note to self for next year... bring a carrot, some buttons, raisins, and outerwear to finish off the finer points of Frosty. Larry and I even managed to get a photo of us taken with Frosty by Joey himself. He's becoming quite the little photographer thanks to his birthday present of a camera from his Uncle Chuck and Aunt Kelli.

Before we left we decided to take a couple of more sledding runs but on the smaller hill this time. We huffed and puffed our way up and laughed our way all the way down. When we got back to the car we stripped out of our outer layers and discovered the boys had stayed fairly dry while I somehow had gotten soaked all the way through so I headed in to the ladies room to get on my dry clothes and then we were on our way again towards home with a quick stop at Carls Junior for a late lunch.

It was an awesome day and I'm already looking forward to repeating this tradition next year.

My Little Prince

2010-12-30T19:18:00.000-08:00

Joey and I were just having an ordinary day, one like so many before it, and decided to have a Playdoh day. We built hamburgers and pizza, snails and snakes, and of course a crown for my little prince. Isn't he just the sweetest thing? I'm sure in the years to come he'll be kissing his fair share of princesses but right now all his hugs and kisses are for his mommy and that's just the way I like it.

My Little Skater Dude

2010-12-30T18:17:00.000-08:00

Larry's Birthday Bash

2010-12-30T18:06:00.000-08:00

Well it's another year past and another year older for my hubby and of course he had to have a party too (lol). This year he selected Dave & Busters for dinner and fun. We celebrated with his family as well as our very good friends, Paul and Jackie. There were so many of us that we had to take over one super long table and a big round one. We all had some pretty delicious eats and drinks and then lost our shirts playing arcade games. Joey had a blast playing shoot em' up games with his daddy and Uncle Chuck. And Joey kicked my behind in a motorcycle race... I kept crashing into the walls. I guess the deck is going to be stacked against me on this one and he'll be riding along side his daddy in no time at all.

We went in and put in our table request at 7:30 and didn't get seated until almost 9:00. They don't take reservations at D&B's unless you have a party of 20 or more and then you have a preset buffet to choose from which is not what we wanted, so we waited and waited and waited but in the long run it was worth it. Larry's parents and sister only stayed for dinner as they rode on over together and Elsa needed to get home and into bed. Mary was sweet and offered to take Joey home with them but Larry said he really wanted Joey to stay and celebrate with him and so he did. Chuck, Kelli, Jackie, Paul, Larry, Joey and I stayed until about 1:30 and I must admit I enjoyed myself a lot which I didn't think I would. For me though the joy came in watching everyone enjoying themselves, though I did have fun playing the games with Joey. He loved everything about the place just like his Daddy does, but then again Larry is just a big ol' kid himself.

So another birthday celebrated and I'm sure another one be planned for next year at least in Larry's mind. Who knows, maybe next year I'll get the birthday fever and plan a big ol' party for myself.

Joey's 3rd Birthday

2010-12-30T17:53:00.000-08:00

Boy am I ever behind in my blogging. Joey's birthday has come and gone and now he's a BIG boy at the ripe ol' age of 3. We had a couple of different celebrations this year. The first one was a superhero playdate with my Cradles to Crayons mom's group. There were about a dozen mom's there and twice that many kids. It was a lot of fun. Crystal made the Spiderman cake for me and Joey and Elsa went dressed up as Spiderman and Spidergirl respectively. They looked so cute. We had several Spidermans as it turned out plus a firefighter in the mix. He got all kinds of great presents and they all had a lot of fun just playing at the park. I think the highlight of this celebration though had to be the pinata. Let me tell you those kids are dangerous when you put a big stick in their hands. The great part was that everyone got a turn (3 hits each) and the pinata wasn't broken open until we were on our second go around with the kids. It was so much fun I'm not sure who enjoyed it more, me or the kids.

His second birthday celebration was the weekend after his actual birthday and it was with all our family and our five closest friends and their kids. We went with a pirate theme since that has been Joey's big passion this past year and all of the kids, and some of the adults, came dressed for the occasion. We had it at the pavillion park on the North side of Rancho Murieta which turned out to be a good thing since of course it had to rain on the one day that I planned an outside function. The pavillion was large enough to accomodate all our guests, the tables, chairs, food and games for the kids. Though I must say the rain did not detour the kids at all from playing at the park as they didn't care if they got wet or not.

Larry did the majority of the cooking, smoking and then barbecuing ribs, plus we had all kinds of sides, soda, beer and juice. I ended up going with cupcakes this time around simply because it was easier to do.

Joey loved this party and wanted to have another one the following weekend. He didn't quite "get" that you only get one birthday a year. And he had so much fun with his friends and cousins and loved being the center of attention... and getting all the presents. Larry and I got him a skateboard that he'd been asking for for the last six months, along with some other small treasures. He loved everything he got though and of course wanted to play with it all as soon as we got back home.

It's funny because each year I say I'm going to do something smaller, more intimate the next year and instead we keep going bigger and bigger with our celebrations. I'm just so enthralled with my little man that I want to give him the world and to make sure that all of his childhood memories are something to be remembered. So again, when we wrapped up this party I was saying again that next year was going to be smaller in scale and yet I find myself already teeming with new ideas for next year. I just can't seem to help myself.

So for all of you who celebrated with us, and/or sent him birthday wishes, we thank you for making it his best birthday yet.

Color My Patio Fun

2010-09-03T07:12:00.000-07:00

The other day we had a play date for my mom's group at my good friend Sam's... no small thing considering she's 36 weeks pregnant and has been on restriced movement for 16 of those weeks. We had about 9 mom's in all and about 16 kids.

We tried a new painting technique (cornstarch, water, food coloring) that didn't work quite as well as we hoped but the kids still gave it their best shot. They also got to play on the playground equipment in her backyard and run through the sprinklers. It was about a gazillion degrees outside, or maybe I just felt like it was thanks to my hot flashes. We were there from 9 to 1, and then everyone but me went home and I hung out with Sam til 4:30.

I tried to be helpful and fixed everyone sandwiches for lunch. Sam has two kids, Gracie who's 4 and Ethan who's 2. After lunch we put Ethan down, and then Gracie and Joe read books together and watched a video and then headed back outside to play some more. I wish I had there energy.

I tried to get Sam to lay down but she refused and instead stayed up and we chatted. She's one of the nicest women I know and just really down to earth. I feel blessed to have her, and her family, in my life.

When it was time for us to go Joey didn't want to leave. He kept telling me he just wanted to stay at Sam's and play with Gracie until it was dark. They are so cute together. Gracie is like a little mom, telling the boys what to do and what they can and can't play with... but in a nice way.

All in all we had a great time.

My Little Picasso

2010-09-03T04:50:00.000-07:00

I set Joey up to paint the other day and then went to work on something else. When I came back instead of painting just on the paper I provided Joey had decided to paint himself. I had to use a q-tip to get all the paint out of his nose. Too funny.

Ahhh The Joys of Childhood

2010-09-03T04:45:00.000-07:00

I baked a cake last week for the family, chocolate with chocolate frosting. And yes before you ask, I did get distracted and burnt the edges. Mom and Larry said it was fine, but I could taste the burnt after effects. Having said that, it still didn't go to waste as Mom, Larry and Joey still loved it.

Anyway Joey got to help me mix the batter and pour it in the pan. Then once I put it in the oven to bake, he kept coming back to me every few minutes, "Is it done yet, mom?". He must have did this 20 times... I guess I should have listened to him and maybe my cake wouldn't have burnt.

When I took it out he was anxious to frost it right away and I had to explain to him that it had to cool before we could frost it. He didn't understand and kept asking why. Why and No are his two favorite words these days. Even when you answer his why question, he just proceeds to ask why to whatever answer you gave him and this can go on and on until finally, exasperated, I'll end up saying "because mommy said so". I'm always so disappointed in myself when I hear that come out of my mouth.

Finally the cake was cool enough and Joey and I opened the can of chocolate fudge frosting and began spreading it on the cake. Joey is getting good at spreading as he's begun helping to make his own sandwiches at lunch and loves spreading the peanut butter, jelly, mayonaisse, etc. When we'd cover the cake completely I scooped the rest of the frosting out with the spatular and let him have at it. He loved it. I loved watching him. Before he was done he had frosting all over his mouth and looked like he had a mustache just like his daddy.

The joys of childhood can be found in the simplest things. So can the joys of mommyhood.

Wonderful Weekend = Making Memories

2010-08-22T19:23:00.000-07:00

I am in awe of how a simple day can turn into one of my favorite memories. This past weekend was a bunch of ordinary moments shared with family who have become friends and because of this fact I am sure they will be some of my, and Joey's, favorite memories.

On Friday Larry had the day off as a special way to recognize and reward him for all his hard work at Delta Dental. We had planned to get up early and head down to the Marin Headlands for some beach time but as the old saying goes "We make plans and God laughs". I just had no energy. I kept lollygaggin' and Larry slept in some and before we knew it the clock showed Noon. We decided to stay local and went out to lunch at Rubio's which is one of my favorites, but then again I don't think I've ever met a Mexican restaurant that I haven't liked. After we had made complete pigs of ourselves we headed to down town Sacramento to have some fun at Funderland, a kiddy museum. I had prepurchased all-ride tickets at 60% off some time before so this outing would practically cost us nil.

Joey got so excited when he realized where we were going and started to rattle off the list of rides he wanted to go on and in what order. He started with the planes, and had to ride twice, then we all went on this circular coaster, and of course we had to go twice. He and Daddy rode the Dragon coaster next, only once around on that, and Joey didn't look like he was liking it much at all but Larry had a huge smile on his face. He dreams of the day that he and Joey can go ride the big coasters at Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm. I hope he doesn't end up being disappointed if Joey's enthusiasm for today's roller coaster was any indication. Then Joey rode the Octopus ride and we all loaded up for a ride around the park on the small train. And boy is it small - I thought Larry and I getting on and off it was going to flip that tiny sucker right over. After our ride we went on the teacups, all three of us in one and Larry proceeded to spin us so fast I thought I was going to lose all that lovely Mexican food. Next time I think I'll make him go in his own teacup while Joey and I spin at a more reasonable pace.

Wanting to let my food settle back down I suggested the boys take a ride on the log flume by themselves while I found a bathroom and then got a sprite for us all to share. Of course I had to get a cotton candy too. Who would believe that any child of mine would not just love cotton candy as much as him Momma, but mine doesn't. I think he doesn't like it because it sticks to your fingers. Oh well, more for me (and yes I did go back for a second one before we left the park for the day).

Larry and I each took turns riding the antique cars with Joey. He just loves to be the one to "drive" the car and get to turn the steering wheels this way and that. His smile went from ear to ear. We decided to end our day on that high note, but then Joey begged to be allowed to go on the planes just one more time. One turned in to two, two into three and then we began to notice that he was no longer really flying his plane but had begun to nod off. I guess it really was time to head home.

On the way out we went buy the horse corral and let Joey pick a pony to ride - he chose Rocky. Daddy walked him along the circular paddock, shaded by towering trees, the sunlight catching the red highlights in Joey's hair. It made my heart happy to watch my two boys engaging in an age old pastime. I asked him if he wanted to go around one more time and of course he said yes so this time I took him. We walked a while, and trotted some, but Joey preferred just amblin' along.

The whole day couldn't have been a better memory in the making.

The next day we met up with Larry's family at the lake and had another wonderful outing. We all just brought a little of this and a little of that to share and had ourselves a nice little picnic on the hillside overlooking the lake. Then we took Joey and Elsa down to the lake to play. They are both such water babies. Before I knew it, Kelli, Dad, and I had all joined them in the water even though we were fully clothed. The water was the perfect temperature and so clear. We swam out to the float and taught the kids how to climb up the ladder and jump off into our arms. So long as you stayed mostly under the water it was perfect, but once you stood up and felt the cool breeze blowing across your skin you'd start to shake. Joey and Elsa played so hard in the water, splashing each other and chasing Mary along the shore line trying to push her in. When Joe's shivers got to be to much we decided enough water was had by all and headed back up the hill to dry off.

I had brought kiddy versions of horseshoes and lawn croquet, as well as some bocce balls, and the kids had fun playing with them all even not if meant in the order they should be played. It amazes me how kids this young can be so competitive with one another, trying to throw the farthest or collecting the most balls.

We all had some more snacks and then decided it was time for a nap so we all packed up the gear and headed for home - or almost. I was the last one to take leave of the park and wouldn't you know it my key would not turn in the ignition. I tried everything, turning the wheel, pushing on the brake but to no avail. Luckily for me there were other folks around and one gentleman was nice enough to let me use his phone to call Dad to come to the rescue. He couldn't get it to start either, but at least we had a way to get home. This morning Larry went over, sprayed a little WD40 in the ignition, tapped it a couple of times will a ball ping hammer and voila it worked.

All in all, the day was so nice that even if we'd had to walk home it wouldn't have put a real damper on it for me. I just love making memories with my family. I'll post photo's as soon as I get copies from Dad.

Salmonella Scare

2010-08-16T10:02:00.000-07:00

It sure has been a tough couple of weeks. Joey came down with stomach pains and a lot of poops and I do mean ALOT. Plus he had fevers of 104-105 so we took him to Urgent Care Ped's and the doctor just told us that he thought it was a stomach virus that's going around and to keep monitoring him and give him lots of Pedialite so that's what we did... he didn't get any better. After a few days I called his own Ped's Nurse Practioner and got him in the same day. She said she'd never heard such an active stomache before and ordered some stool sample tests. We got back the one for giardia and general parasites - he was all clear. We put him on the BRAW diet which consists of bananna's, rice, applesauce (unsweetened) and white foods like bread, plain yogurt, etc. He seemed to improve a bit but still complained of stomache pains and was still having the poops just not near as frequently.

After 12 days we ventured out to a play date. I mean he hadn't had any high fevers for ten days and his tests had come back negative so I thought we were good to go, that he wasn't contagious any longer. We headed over to the library for storytime and to check out some books. We hooked up with about five mom's from my playgroup and their kiddo's. We lasted about half way through storytime before Joey got to cranky to sit still and so we left and headed over to visit my pregnant friend Sam who's on restricted duty. Her Mother-in-Law was at the library with her kids for storytime too. Sam and I had a nice visit for about an hour while Joey played in her kids playroom and then we headed home.

Here is where the other shoe drops... I opened my mail to find results for one more test - Salmonella, and Joey was positive for it. Sh*t, literally. I called Sam to make sure she didn't touch the diaper I had put in her garbage and to tell Eric to wash his hands after he'd taken out the garbage. I also had to put up a message on our group message board to let the other mom's know what was going on. I felt like an idiot exposing their kids to his germs but I honestly thought all the tests were in and we were good to go.

After researching it a little more and talking to Kaiser's Advice Nurse I discovered that he wasn't really contagious anymore at least not in a casual way. The only way to pass it along is if they come into contact with Joey's fecal matter and don't wash their hands and then touch either their mouth or eyes. So that meant pretty much that Larry and I were the only ones to have to worry about catching it since we're the ones who change his diapers. Unfortunately I'm at the highest risk since I have a chronic health conditiona and because I take opiates on a daily basis.

I'd been keeping both his and my hands clean so I felt pretty safe with the practices we'd put into place as soon as he got sick. Were down to about two poopy diapers a day, and his appetite is starting to come back so I think we're well on our way to recovery. He only complains that his tummy hurts once in a while so hopefully things are beginning to settle down in there. Still I think I'll keep him home for a few more days just to be on the safe side.

The real bummer about all this, well after Joey feeling so crappy, is that we were well on our way with regard to potty training and now I'm going to have to begin the process all over again. So frustrating.

All we have is today

2010-07-25T03:08:00.000-07:00

That's how I'm feeling today. What's past is past and we are not guaranteed tomorrow so we should make the most of today since it is the only thing we truly have. Over the past few days my family has been blindsighted by the death of Jeff's brother Curt. Don't ask me what happened, or where we all went wrong, it's still just a ball of confusion that's all knotted up.

Curt was an easy going guy, very easy to like. He could eat so much food you wouldn't begin to believe how much unless you saw it for yourself. Yes he was like all the Atkinson boys/men when it came to food. He was polite, especially to my mom and always trying to be helpful. His life hadn't been easy and wasn't getting any easier, but he was trying and I think that's all you can ask of any man.

My cousin, CJ, is in the middle of all the mess surrounding his Dad's death and I'm not sure any of us will ever know the real truth. What is it they say... "There's your side, my side, and the real truth". All I know is CJ is hurting, and we are hurting with and for him.

Our family is sad and our hearts ache for Jeff and Crystal's loss, and for CJ's trouble, and that Curt was robbed of his future whatever that may have been. I can only hope that some good will come out of this loss and that my families hearts will heal, if not today then tomorrow or the day after.

Curt wherever you are I hope you are finally at peace, having a great meal with people that you love and who love you right back.

Firsts

2010-07-15T11:36:00.000-07:00

We've had quite a few firsts today. Started trying to potty train Joey today, so far two accidents and one success. He ran out and told me, "I peed in the toilet - YIPPEE I get to go to school". I'm probably the only mom in the universe who bribes her kid with getting to go to school as soon as he's toilet trained (lol). I've tried a couple of times in the past but in all honesty it was a half hearted effort. Today I decided this is just it and am having him be naked until he gets the concept down even if it takes the next few days. I'm bribing him with organic lollipops when he's successful and the goal of going to school when he gets to be a big boy and can go potty all by himself.

He also made his own sandwich for lunch today. I put some turkey, a slice of cheese, two pieces of bread on a cutting board and together we spread the Miracle Whip, then he took over putting on the turkey and cheese and then putting a lid on it (the 2nd piece of bread). I cut it in half for him and he is now chowing down. Maybe this is the secret to getting him to eat... let him make his own meals.

I can't believe how fast he's growing up, becoming so independent. Dressing takes a lot longer now because he wants to do it himself, and can't really figure it out, and so what should take a minute or two at most takes more like 15 until he finally asks for some help. I don't know how the mom's who have several children ever get anything done... I bow down to their mastery.

4th of July Fun

2010-07-06T10:54:00.000-07:00

Wow did we ever have a great 4th of July this year. We started our day off with a pancake breakfast put on by the Kiwannis Club. They had a nice band playing background music, a yummy breakfast of pancakes, scrambled eggs, sausage, coffee and orange juice and good conversation.

Then Crystal and Jeff came over later in the afternoon and we spent several hours soaking up some sun in the pool. Larry cooked up a bunch of pork ribs, corn on the cob, store bought potato salad, and watermelon. Joey our little chef in the making took it upon himself to shuck all the corn and did a darn good job of it. I only had to pull of the silk threads that he left behind.

Then later that evening we headed back over to the north side so that Joey could play in the park while we listened to the DJ. Thought it was going to be a live band again, but it was still nice if a little loud. Aunty Crystal and Joey took a spin under the gazebo and Daddy taught Joey how to moon walk. It was too cute.

After a while we headed on over to our blankets and settled in with chips, soda and a beer or two to await the fireworks. Larry always manages to snag just the perfect spot for viewing and this year was no different. We were located directly underneath where they were going off, and were all wowed. Joey was a little scared at first, but once I got his earplugs in and he settled in my lap, he really got into it, calling out the colors for everyone's enjoyment. Of course almost everything to him was either orange, red or purple, regardless of the actual color, so he got quite a few chuckles from those sitting around us. At the end of the night he'd crawled out of my lap and layed flat out on top of Daddy, to enjoy the finale.

Crystal and Jeff hadn't taken in a firework display like this in over ten years so they really enjoyed it and already told me they were planning on coming out again next year. Who knows, we might have just started another family tradition.

Mom didn't join in the firworks with us as depending how crowded it is, and how far away we'd have to park, it can be quite a trek to our blanket. She did however take a chair out to the end of the walk in front of our house and was able to not only see the majority of the RM fireworks, but also the displays that our many neighbors put on.

All in all, we had a lot fun.

Fish Boy

2010-06-29T10:24:00.000-07:00

I swear my boy is going to grow fins he spends so much time in the pool these days. Daddy has him already able to swim the length of our pool all on his own without any floatation devices. I'll be honest and say that I did not think his teaching style was going to work, it sounded like he was torturing him out there on most days, but all his efforts have paid off. We still put him in his vest to begin with and let him play and such for the first hour but then he wants out of it, and he swims and jumps off the steps all by himself. He's so amazing to watch. I know you people are all thinking, "She's biased. She's his mom, she has to feel that way and say those things", but seriously he really is amazing.

And my niece, Elsa, she came over yesterday after her swim lesson and hung out in the pool with Joey as well. She's really got her kicking down and the ability to go round and round in an inter tube. I bet in a few more weeks she'll be swimming like a little fish too. Everything Joey does she tries to imitate. They really look like your typical California kids - all blonde hair and tan lines.

Lazy Days are the Best

2010-06-06T19:06:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those low energy, do nothing kind of days. I didn't even get dressed until after Noon. Crystal and Jeff came over, Larry cooked up a passel of ribs while I threw together a pasta salad and opened up some canned fruit. Joey took a 3-hour nap which is unheard of these days, and then we all just lazed around eating and floating in the pool.

It turned out to be a really nice low key day.

Peddle Power

2010-06-04T08:26:00.000-07:00

Joey actually peddled his tricycle for the first time yesterday. It was a bit of a battle at first as he likes to just push it with his feet on the ground, but once we helped him by strapping his feet onto the peddles and utilizing the handle on the back of the trike to push it while he steered and tried to get his feet into some kind of a rhythm we moved along pretty good.

We've decided we'll just practice with him a little each evening until he learns to do it all by himself. I can't wait til he can actually do it all by himself because then he and I can ride along together.

My Water Boy

2010-06-03T06:32:00.000-07:00

Daddy took Joey in the big pool with him last night and Joey did just awesome. He had a life vest on, but he insisted on swimming by himself from one end to the other. He did the dog paddle and used his legs to kick. He maneuvered pretty well, only getting a few mouthfuls of water. The pool was only 74 so it was kind of cold, at least it felt cold to me, but he didn't seem to care at all.

We kept asking him if he wanted to get out and these were some of his responses:

"I'm enjoying being in the big pool"

"No, I like swimming"

"NOOOOO"

When we asked him if he was getting cold, we got the same exact response. After a while I made him get out cause you could see him physically shaking. Had to make Daddy get out too, just to be fair. They looked so cute in the pool swimming together. Can't wait til it gets a little warmer so that I can join them in the fun. I'm sure Grandma feels the same way.

Crystal's Spa Boutique

2010-05-31T08:09:00.000-07:00

My sister finally got back posession of her dog grooming shop in Pollock Pines albeit without any of the furnishings. The lady who had been buying the business - Sherone, defaulted on everything including paying her rent to the property owner and got evicted this past Tuesday after much back and forth and a couple of trips to through the court system. She opened up shop directly across the street with all of Crystal's equipment plus all the personal stuff that my sister had put into the shop such as photo's and plants and such.

I have to give credit to my sister because she has taken the high road throughout the whole process doing everything by the book while I'm sure deep down she'd just have liked to beat the snot out of Sherone. I know I would have.

She, Jeff and Jeff's nephew Earl went up on Saturday and tore out all the bad water board around the tubs and the rotten steps and then spend the rest of the day installing new water board while Crystal began cleaning the shop. It was a filthy mess. We were going to have a painting party but she decided to skip that for now and just washed down the walls.

Mom and I drove up yesterday and brought her a little fridge, a table and two chairs and a rug for the reception area plus we purchased her a couple of beautiful potted plants. All combined it made the front of the shop very welcoming.

All she has to do to complete her business application is to get the fire department to sign off on Tuesday morning and then she's good to go. She's already got five appointments scheduled for Tuesday. While we were up there people kept stopping by to see what was going on and were so happy and excited to see that my sister was coming back. The majority of past clients didn't have anything complimentary to say about Sharone or the way she ran the business. I have a feeling that that young lady is going to be in for a rude awakening when Crystal really gets up and running, because even without her shop cards with all her past clients information, I think they will find there way back to my sister.

Anyway sis, congratulations and good luck.

Birthdays

2010-05-26T08:55:00.000-07:00

We celebrated this weekend with Elsa who was turning 3 and Pop Pop who turned 60. On Saturday we headed over to Elsa's for a playdate party with the birthday girl and a handful of her friends. The kids got to do bubbles, draw with chalk, ride tricycles and play on the playset and climbing bars. Mary provided lunch, PB&J, 1/2 bananna and fruit chews for the kids and sandwiches and chips for the parents. It was supposed to go from 11:30 to 1:30 but the kids were having such a great time playing together that Joey and I didn't get home until almost 3:30.

On Sunday we had a dual family birthday party to celebrate both of their birthdays. We had finger foods, presents and cake with ice cream and of course the kids (and us adults) played more bubbles. It was a really nice get together. They both made out like bandits and I think liked all the different gifts they received.

COOKIES!

2010-05-26T08:38:00.000-07:00

Joey and I made chocolate chip cookies this morning thanks to Grandma. She had bought the premade dough the other day, and Joey and I rolled it into balls. Since he's become a master playdough ball maker, he had it down in a jiffy turning out perfectly round balls which he placed on the cookie sheet and then immediately smashed down into a pancake, thus making us have to do the process all over again. He only dropped one ball on the floor so we still managed to get 24 cookies out of the package. Now they're baking away and Joey is learning just how long 14 minutes truly is as he's waiting in anticipation to be able to pick out exactly the cookie that he wants to eat.

What fun, huh? We're definately going to have to do this again in the near future.

Pool Time

2010-05-20T19:04:00.000-07:00

Well Larry bit the bullet tonight and tested out our pool... 78 degrees on the surface and probably more like 70 in the deeper recesses. Joey got in and skinny dipped along the first and second steps... this boy really loves his water. He kept asking if his friends could come over and swim in his water and I of course said yes and then we had to go through a list of his friends that would get to come. Elsa? Yes. Gracie? Yes. Sandr? Yes and on and on.

Then while Daddy continued to do his laps Joey decided he needed to pee pee so he got out. However he didn't tell me he had to go to the bathroom and my first inkling was when I felt the warm water hitting my back. I hollered to Larry that, "Your son is peeing on me" and Larry started to yell at him while I started to laugh. He stopped his stream the instant Larry raised his voice but as soon as he heard me laughing he let it go and finished... on me. Needless to say we had to have a talk about not only not peeing in the pool, but that it wasn't acceptable to pee on people either.

The whole thing was a little surreal, but it did provide some comic relief. What can I say, that's my boy.

Mother's Day

2010-05-10T09:20:00.000-07:00

I had such a lovely Mother's Day yesterday. It started out with Joey crawling in bed with us to cuddle... love that, then Larry got up to cook sausages and bacon to take to brunch at his sister's house. All of his family was there and it was a mini feast. We had belgian waffles with nuts, three kinds of berries and fresh whipped cream. Mary had made this wonderful frittata that was really delicious, plus muffins, cinnamon rolls and mimosa's. I got lots of cards, flowers and a belgian waffler maker like they use in the restaurants.

Then we came back home and Larry got cooking for our own family BBQ. He made ribs, and tri tips, grilled asparagus and corn on the cobb. Crystal brought homeade potato salad and a fabulous ice box lemon cake that was probably the best lemon cake I have ever tasted. We just hung out, cooking and chatting and despite the occasional rain had a really nice time.

I must admit I wasn't the best host as I snuck out of my own party to try to catch a cat nap for an hour. When I got up Crystal and Larry had cleaned up all the mess and I was left with a clean kitchen and dining area, as well as the rest of the house being tidy as Larry had picked it all up the night before.

I ended the day babysitting for my good friend JoAnna so she and her hubby could go out to dinner and catch a musical performance. I had the best time hanging with her three boys, ages 8, 5 and 4. We watched a movie, and had gun fights... three against one and I got the gun that didn't have any bullets but it was still a lot of fun.

All in all it was a really nice day and I enjoyed spending the time with all my family. I appreciated how Larry took charge and I didn't have to do practically anything... it was a really nice gift.

Date Night

2010-05-06T08:46:00.000-07:00

Larry and I took a little time for ourselves last Friday and planned, and actually executed, a date night... I can't even tell you the last time we did this. We dropped Joey off with Grammie and Pop Pop around 3:00 and lucky little guy that he is not only did he have his grandparents to play with, but his cousin Elsa too. Knowing he was in capable hands allowed us to head out for some couple time without having to worry at all about his well being.

We drove into El Dorado Hills since that's where the Regal Cinema is and since I had pre-bought tickets at Costco for that theatre. We decided to see How to Train your Dragon (which Larry and Joey had already seen but Larry said he wouldn't mind seeing it again). Our show didn't start for over an hour, so we moseyed on over to the adjacent restaurants and decided to get a bite for dinner. We chose this lovely little Mexican cantina that neither of us had been to before and actually got to sit out on the enclosed terrace. It was really lovely. I had fish tacos that reminded me of the ones we'd had in Mexico and Larry had the Tamales. Neither of us could completely finish our plates the portions were so generous.

It was really nice to be able to just sit down and have a conversation with my husband without any interruptions for a change. We got to talk about his school, what's been going on at his job, my plans for my two mom's group, Joey of course and just life in general. It was a really sweet time.

Then we headed over to the movies and got to sit in the dark together, holding hands and watch the 3-D love story... I teased Larry afterwards that it was the perfect movie for us as it was animated and in 3-D for him and had a love story in the mix for me. We both really liked it alot and might just have to add it to our movie collection.

After the movie we headed back home to pick up Joey and had an opportunity to hang out with his parents for a little while, which also was very nice. When we got there Joey was all cuddled up on the couch with Grammie, under a lap comforter, reading together. It was so sweet. We are both so gratefull that Joey gets to have special time with all of his grandparents. I know I still treasure the time I got to spend with my grandparents, especially Grandma Hill, and am happy to know that Joey will have those kinds of memories too.

All in all it was a very successful date night and I'm looking forward to the next one... I was smart enough to buy a few movie tickets (lol).

Cinco de Mayo Celebration

2010-05-06T08:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Joey and I headed out to Hagen Park to meet up with some of our friends for a Cinco de Mayo celebration. There were six of us moms and nine kids altogether and we had a really nice time hanging out in the glorious sunshine.

The kids got to do bubbles, play on the playground (the swings being the big hit of the day), play emergency spy games, build mounds with their shovels and buckets out of the tanbark and last but not least, break open the pinata. It was a string pinata so no bats were involved, but the kids loved taking turns pulling the strings and even after the special string was pulled that released the candy, they still wanted to continue pulling the strings until there were none left attached. The candy and toys rained down on the ground and it was so cute to watch them want to dive in and get some but each unsure if they were "allowed" so they held back until all us moms hollered "go for it, get some goodies". It was interesting to watch what they all picked. Joey went for the suckers and some gum (which I made him put back since he likes to swallow it), then sweeties, and last a boucy ball. Later it was sweet to watch him offer up his bounty to some of the other kids without any prompting from anyone else.

As for me, I got to see some friends I hadn't seen in quite a while and the opportunity to catch up on what everyone else had been up to. It was nice to swap stories, share parenting oops and get some sound advice from others who had been exactly where I am now. I'm so fortunate to have my mommy groups and to be able to create the friendships that I have.

Gardening with Grandma

2010-05-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Today was so perfect outside, a light wind, around 70 degrees at 10:00 in the morning, and Joey and Grandma spent the time together in the backyard gardening. It was so cute to watch the two of them together, digging in the planters, placing the plants we'd bought over the weekend. A lilly, some geraniums, an african daisy, plus some alyssium. It really will add just the right touch of spring to our otherwise green backyard.

I even got my hands a little dirty as I helped finish off the planting when mom was ready for a break. Joey's favorite part of course was digging in the dirt, moving it from one container to another, and basically spilling have of what he was shoveling onto the patio.

In the end, we all ended up having a nice morning, got a little dirty in the process and built up our appetites for a hearty lunch. A picture perfect day.

Making the most of the funky weather

2010-05-03T14:24:00.000-07:00

This weather has been giving us fits... sunny one moment, hailing the next. I never seem to be able to follow through on our play dates and Joe gets plumb stir crazy. So last week I decided to make the most of it and when it was sunny, he got to swim in his baby pool. Playing with his boats and his water can - basically having a splish splashing blast.

When it was raining, I put him in his raincoat and boots and let him have puddle play once the worst of the storm had passed. As it turned out it was Thursday, garbage day in our neck of the woods, and our neighbors cans made the perfect dam to create quite a deep puddle so Joey could stomp and splash until to his hearts content. He even got to run through another neighbors sprinklers since they were going off.

I decided if I can't beat the weather, then we might as well make the most of it. Joey seemed to agree as he had a blast with the assortment of playtime activities we came up with.

Pet Groomer Extraordinaire

2010-04-27T20:16:00.000-07:00

Boy did my sister save my bacon today. We've been infested once again with the flea virus and so she flea dipped both cats, blew and combed them out while at the same time bathing and conditioning our dog, and combing out the bunnies winter coat as well. And let us not forget all the nails... 16 nails clipped to a more manageable length and all done with a smile.

While we were at the shop grooming, or should I say while Crystal was grooming, mom and Joey stayed at Crystal's place so that we could bomb the house and get the infestation under control on all levels. Larry got home at 2:30 just when we'd finished up with the animals and aired the house out so it would be safe for the rest of us to inhabit once again.

While Crystal was on a roll, she also trimmed up mom's hair and it turned out looking much better. It had gotten quite long and mom was having to roll it every time she wanted to look presentable.

Did I mention that my sister is the best groomer around? If not, then let me say it again, Crystal your the BEST!

Time is slipping by so fast

2010-04-26T16:02:00.000-07:00

Been a while since I last blogged and since then we've celebrated Easter, been on quite a few park play dates, and celebrated four birthdays... luckily they were combined in one party. It was a lot of fun, 60's themed, all peace and love and lots of bubbles for the kids (and us adults if we're being honest).

I've been just too run down to feel much like doing anything, even typing. I'm trying to switch that up and get more active; just bought a beachcomber bicycle and am hoping to work myself up to nice meandering rides along the paved bike trail that's out here in Rancho Murieta and that runs along the river. Larry, Joe and I are starting to do family days in the park on Sunday afternoons. This past Sunday was our first and we took a kite, bubbles and big wands, some chalk and had a blast. By the time we wound up our day, we had over a dozen kids blowing bubbles with us and taking turns flying the kite. It was one of the best days ever.

Larry's taken the cover off the pool, and our pool guy has begun to get it back under normal levels. In a couple of weeks we'll put the solar cover on and heat it up so we can begin swimming in it. I know mom, Joey and Larry are looking really forward to that. I'm looking forward to it too, but don't use it as much as them since I like it to be at least 80 degrees. Plus I'm looking forward to all the BBQ's we have with family and friends during the nicer weather, the fresh corn from Sloughouse, and all the other fresh produce that comes out of Davis Ranch just down the road from us.

Daffodil Hill in the Spring

2010-04-10T06:18:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago we ventured up the hill to the town of Volcano to experience the phenomenom called Daffodil Hill. It was started many years ago by a simply farmer/ranchers wife who began her journey by planting a few bulbs. Each year she added more, separated others until she had more than 300,000 bulbs planted. As they emerge in the spring for their short life span it is like a river of gold flowing down the hillside, and fortunately for us the owners of the ranch as it stands today, have been kind enough to share it with the public.

Larry, Joe, myself along with Mary and Else made the trip, with picnic lunch in tow. It took us just under an hour to get there and when we did, there were a lot of other folks with the same idea. Although there were many people present it didn't feel overcrowded.

We had dressed Joey and Elsa in the Easter outfits and were going to attempt to take some photo's. I still haven't seen the end result, so am not sure if we got any good ones or not, but my optimism says we did especially in light of how many pictures we took.

The kids had a ball running up and down the paths, flirting with the mostly senior population in the area. Once we had sufficiently seen all the blooms on display we made our way down to the picnic grove for our lunch. We had simple fair - sandwiches, chips, cookies and soda pop and juice boxes. It made for a nice picnic.

After we finished we gathered our stuff and meandered over to the meadow to take a short siesta in the sun. It made for a wonderful outing for one and all and it was great to get a chance to hang out with Mary and Elsa.

As soon as I get copies of the photo's I'll post a couple for your viewing pleasure.

Pacific Grove = Relaxation

2010-03-30T12:14:00.000-07:00

Larry, Joey and I were the guests of my inlaws at a house they rented in Pacific Grove the second week off March. It was literally right across the street from the ocean, and only a one block walk to a beach... it was perfect. Joey got to spend some quality time with his grandparents and had a blast with them.

We spent one day at the beach building sand castles and checking out the tidepools. Pop Pop was an expert at locating starfish and other crusty crustaceans on the sands floor... but then again he was raised just a few miles down the road in the city of Marina so he's had years of practice.

Another day we ventured over to the Dennis the Menace park which was fun for all of us. They have a full size locomotive engine (which Joey was bummed would not move), and tons of innovative slides, bridges and tunnels. Joey had us go back a couple of more times while we were there because he loved it so much.

We had intended to go to the Aquarium but because Joe was having an off day decided it wouldn't be pleasureable for any of us to go, especially at $30 a pop. Instead we took him to the MY Museum which was created with kids in mind. They had an actual ambulance inside with a dummy that you could gtive CPR, a farmers market, a lagoon with a boat in it, a small version of a golf course, and so much more. Totally worth the $7 per adult to go - kids get in for free with an accompanying adult.

We checked out Fisherman's Wharf and ate at one of the local restaurants - seafood was yummy. We also got to walk around the cannery and do a little shopping which was nice.

On our last night there Larry's parents watched Joey so that Larry and I could go out for a romantic dinner on our own. We decided on Lattitudes which overlooks the bluff and was only about eight houses down from where we were staying. It made for the perfect ending to a perfect mini vacation.

Thanks so much Mom and Dad for havings us, we had a great time and it made for some wonderful family memories.

Splish Splash Joe's having a BLAST

2010-03-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

Yep it's all about splashing these days. In the puddles, in his sandbox that has become a pond with all the rain... anywhere he can find half an inch of water he's jumping in it and making a splash. We just got him some new rain boots and he wants to wear them all the time. I think he believes if he has them on then it will rain.

We spent two hours playing in the backyard the other day... well me reading, and him playing. He played with his boats, trucks, spiderman... all in his sandbox which now has a layer of sand covered by about four inches of water. He had a blast and got totally soaked with sandy water in the process. When he started to shiver from the cold, I had to strip him down, empty his boots of water and throw his naked little behind in the shower to rinse all the sand away and warm him up again.

It was a lot of fun watching him get so much enjoyment out of making a mess and playing in the water.

Momma's Helper

2010-03-05T09:41:00.000-08:00

Joey has become my little helper when it comes to laundry. I sort it all out in to different load piles, start the washer and then he starts bringing stuff from one pile or another and throwing it in the machine. He has pretty good aim to. Then when it's done washing, I put it on the door of the dryer and he places it inside and adds the dryer sheet and shuts the door. Now if I could only teach him to fold (lol).

Wonderful Weekend

2010-02-18T17:43:00.000-08:00

Larry, Joey and I had the most pleasant three days this past weekend. On Saturday we were joined by Larry's parents and his sister and niece for an outing at the Sacramento Zoo. The weather couldn't have been better and the little ones loved riding on the new conservation carousel and of course the small train.

On Sunday we just played it lazy and hung out around the house.

Then on Monday we headed out to Joe's first dentist appointment (which went really well), and then headed over to a dog park in Citrus Heights to let Duke run with the big dogs while Joey got to play with Daddy at the playground. Once we were all sufficiently worn out we headed over to Larry's favorite barber JoAnna who cleaned both my boys up quite nicely, so now they both are sporting fuzzy heads.

All in all it was a very satisfactory weekend and we made the most out of the gorgeous weather that was given us.

Our Boy

2010-02-09T08:16:00.000-08:00

This is Larry's favorite photo of Joey to date... and of course it doesn't hurt that he's the one who actually took the photo (lol).

And of course it didn't hurt matters that they were working on a motorcycle engine together, along with Pop Pop, and that Larry has dreams of the day he and Joey will ride together on that long ribbon of roadway.

Duke

2010-02-09T07:48:00.000-08:00

Well we bit the bullet and adopted a new dog, Duke. He's approximately 3-years old, a Dachsund/Chihauhau/Manchester Terrier mix and a little love bug. He sleeps between Larry and I each night in bed, and plays with Joey every day. So far, so good. Joey can tend to get a little jealous when Duke's around me, which is all the time since I've become his "person", so it can be a challenge. We've tried to emphasize that Duke is his dog to lessen the jealousy factor some... only time will tell if our ploy has worked.

My sister found him for us. One of her elderly clients passed away suddenly and the family didn't know what to do with the dog. One minute we were getting him, the next we weren't as another family member stepped up, then a week later Crystal called to say it wasn't going to work out with the family member, and that evening we had a dog. So now our house is feeling more like a home cause again we have a dog in it. I still miss Bubba daily, but Duke has already won me over with his charm.

Yeah for blue skies

2010-02-03T17:26:00.000-08:00

Joey and I spent our time enjoying the beautiful day given us by creating chalk masterpieces on our driveway and having toy car races down the same driveway. While out there we also got to see several huge hawks, a half dozen airplanes, one jet and a helicopter all of which Joey pointed out with an exlamation of WOW!

I really enjoy just sitting back and seeing the world through his eyes. It's amazing what is brought to one's attention when it seems brand new once again. I'm so thankful to have this little, headstrong, man in my life.

Ear Pain is just no fun

2010-02-01T13:14:00.000-08:00

Well Joey has experienced his first ear infection and let me tell you it's no fun. Yesterday there wasn't hardly anything we could do to console him. Finally Larry went to the pharmacy and they gave him some OTC ear drops and tylenol and that seemed to help some.

I took him to the doctor's today and he had to have both ears flushed out and as it turned out the infection wasn't in the left ear like we thought, but in the right ear instead. The doctor gave me a prescription for some drops that also have a numbing agent in them so that if it gets really bad again Joey won't have to deal with the pain while he's getting over it. I hope this will be the end of it because I, we, hate to see our little guy in so much pain.

Hi Ho Hi Ho it's off to the snow

2010-02-01T13:08:00.000-08:00

The boys, Larry and Joey, joined Pop Pop this morning on an adventure to the snow. I was too stick to partake of the fun. Anyway Pop Pop did the driving since he has a 4X4 Jeep Liberty and up the hill they headed. They went just past Sly Park up on Emigrant Trail as far as the jeep allowed.

Once they'd reached their location they had all kinds of fun in the snow - sledding, slip sliding and not to mention getting stuck. Apparently the Jeep could only go so far before it got stuck in the road and with a little assistance from some other snow goers was soon unstuck and they made a quick u-turn and headed back down a little ways to were the going wasn't so rough.

Apparently the jeep wasn't the only thing to get stuck as Joey too had to be unstuck a number of times due to the deep snow drifts. Larry said he soon learned how to crab crawl across the tops of the drifts so that he wouldn't get stuck as often. He and Joey took a few turns sledding down the small slopes, along with the other 4-5 families that were playing in the same area. They made snowballs and in general just had a rowsing good time.

On the way home they stopped off in Placerville and had all you can eat Chinese for lunch along with ice cream and pudding for dessert. Yummy.

All in all according to the boys it was a really fun day and they enjoyed spending it with Pop's.

I got the blues

2010-01-20T18:54:00.000-08:00

Winter weather has got me down and out or should I say in as I feel like a prisoner in my own home. I've had to cancel on three playdates in a row because it was just to nasty and windy out to be running around in the car unnecessarily.

Poor Joey this morning just kept telling me over and over, "I want my friends" referring to whom I'm not sure but am thinking the boys at his old day care. At least if we had to miss playdates he still got in some fun each week when he was going to Miss JoAnna's. I tried tracking down my sister in law to see if we could get together with her and Elsa for a playdate since they only live down the street, but had no success in making contact. What a bummer.

And it looks like we're bound to be housebound for at least another couple of days. I sure hope we get a break by this weekend or I, and Joey, are going to go seriously crazy.

Out of the mouth of Men

2010-01-20T18:46:00.000-08:00

Scene: Daddy and Joey playing playdough at the table.

Daddy: "What is this Joey?"

Joey: "A motorcycle"

Daddy: "Look Joey Daddy made a cow"

Joey: "Cow"

Daddy: "Lets make some turds"

Now I know where Joey gets all his wonderful words from

Out of the mouths of babes

2010-01-20T18:41:00.000-08:00

Scene: Joey and Daddy sitting at the table playing playdough.

Grandma: "He sure is bossy" (speaking of Joey)

Me: "Yep, he sure is"

Joey: "I'm the boss"

5 Minutes later is still walking around telling everyone he's the boss. Too funny.

Daddy's Boy - Pt. 2

2010-01-18T20:16:00.000-08:00

Three generations of Monson's all working hand in hand. Larry and Joe got his grandfather's bike over to Pop-Pop's house without a hitch, unless you call them leaving before Pop got here a hitch. It was a comedy of errors, all on our end, that caused the communication failure.

Anyway once they got it over there, they began dismanteling it so that Pop could begin the refurbishment process. I think it will turn out to be a true labor of love, with three generations of Monson men putting their heart and soul into it. Already they've begun working as a team, even little Joey getting in on the fun.

Pop Pop is teaching him the different names of tools, and Daddy's teaching him how to use them. It may take them a year to get the job done, but by the time it is finished Pop will have a nice motorcycle to ride and hopefully Joey will have learned some mechanic know-how while getting in some true bonding time with his grandfather.

Daddy's Boy

2010-01-16T09:05:00.000-08:00

Joe sure is his Daddy's boy. It makes my heart happy when he always wants to help his Daddy with whatever he's doing. Just this morning Larry was loading up a motorcycle to take over to his Dad's and Joey had to be right in the mix. He lifted and carried one of the ramps to the truck and helped Daddy put it in. Then he rooted him on as he rolled the motorcycle up and into the back of the pickup. They really are two peas in a pod.

I can just imagine in the years to come the projects they'll do together from building birdhouses, to boyscouts, to restoring old cars and motorcycles. Makes me a little jealous, but at the same time like I said earlier it makes my heart happy... and I know that Joe and I will have our special moments too from hanging out in nature and camping, to getting his first dog, learning to cook and do laundry - you know the things a wife will really appreciate down the road (lol), to just having fun together.

For now though it's all about boys and their toys.

Bubba's said his final goodbye

2010-01-11T19:17:00.000-08:00

I have been so sad this week coming to the realization that I was keeping my Bubba dog alive more for me than for him. He has been failing in health this past year and let's face it Joe with his youthful enthusiasm has not been easy on him these past few months. It's been getting harder and harder for him to get around with his hind quarters just completely failing him at times. After watching him collapse several different times on Thursday morning I decided enough was enough and I wasn't doing him any favors making him live in constant pain and struggle. Larry and I had known this was coming and had called around to several vets and the SPCA to determine which service was the best for us. After speaking with the SPCA it was a no brainer. They seemed the most compassionate, were cost effective, and cared for your pet up until the last moment of his life.

I waited until Larry got home from work, we dropped Joey off at Grammie and Pop Pop's and headed over to the SPCA. I did my best not to cry on the way over as I'd been crying on and off all day and I didn't want Bubba to sense how upset I really was. When we got there, Michael helped us through the process and then they allowed us as much time as we wanted before they were to take him back to the exam room, with a long hug and a kiss amongst my tears we said our farewells. I will miss him dearly.

For those of you who don't know I inherited Bubba 8 years ago when my then boyfriend Ron passed away unexpectedly. His family asked me if I'd be willing to take him since they couldn't think of a better home than mine for him, especially since they knew I was already in love with the big lug. I said yes and we've been the closest of companions every since. He got me through some very difficult times, and I'll always be grateful to him for that.

It was also because of him that I met Larry, while taking him for one of his many evening strolls. If it weren't for him I wouldn't have Joe, or my hubby.

Bubba I love you and always will.

The nasty cold bug has got us in it's clutches

2010-01-04T18:45:00.000-08:00

Yep, we're still stick. Joey came down with it the Monday after Christmas, and Larry and I both caught it from him within the next few days. Larry had taken the week off basically so we could have a staycation - hit the snow, visit with friends, head to the seashore, but all that planning was for naught since this cold nocked us on our fannies. We've been plagued with fevers, coughs, sneezing, congestions, loss of appetite, and low energy. No fun at all.

Joey has started to rebound over the last couple of days and has his energy and appetite back. He hasn't had any fevers for three days or more but still has the occasional coughing fit and congestion in his nose.

Larry is slowly starting to gather energy and has been a real blessing handling Joey while I rested. I don't know what I would have done without him this past week. He had really bad fevers the last couple of days but they finally broke through last night.

I haven't had the fevers as bad as the guys, but everything else has hit me hard and as a result my fibromyalgia has been flaring up too. It even hurts just to bend my arm or to lay on my side.

I'll be glad when were all back to normal and can resume our lives. Luckily mom was not touched by the bug and has been a great help to me with Joey as well, and chores around the house. She has one hearty constitution because whenever we get sick she seems to skate free of whatever we manage to bring home no matter how hard we are hit with it.

The funny things that Daddy's say

2010-01-03T16:51:00.000-08:00

We've all been sick now for days, our nerves are a little worn, not enough hours in the day to get adequate rest to fight this bug and Joey who brought it into our house is on the mend (thank goodness) but that means his energy level is back up while ours are definately still down.

Anyway, I've let him watch way to many cartoons in the last couple days because face it its an easy babysitter that can't catch his cooties. So tonight he's begging for more Barney, then Elmo, etc. and Daddy says "No" so Joey gets louder and finally Daddy says in response, "Tough, it's my turn" and I burst out laughing. It came out sounding like he was a little kid himself in competition for TV time.

I just gotta love my guys as they always make my days more interesting and somehow manage to make me laugh at the same time.

Toot Toot All Aboard

2009-12-28T08:03:00.000-08:00

I was feeling pretty run down the day after Christmas, and the day after that as well. Larry saw how exhausted and worn out I was and he and Joey went off on an adventure yesterday. First they headed out to the California Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento. They toured all the trains, checked out the station, and last but not least played in the Thomas Train children's area. After doing all that they headed outdoors to take a walk around Old Sacramento.

They grabbed a hotdog or two for lunch and then shared an ice cream from one of the local vendors down town.

Larry determined that it was still to early to return so he stopped off at BounceTown on the way home and he and Joey had a boucning good time of it. They have a two story slide that Joey just loves going up and then down on, plus all kinds of bounce houses to play in from basic to everything but the kitchen sink. They stayed and played for quite some time until they'd both worked up a sweat and were worn out. Once this stage was reached Larry decided it was time to head home and that's what they did.

He did his best to keep Joey awake so that perhaps we could get him back on schedule that night. He ended up falling asleep at 6:00 only to wake back up at 7:30 pitching little fits. We tryed to settle him back down, gave him juice and milk so he'd be able to choose for himself, and finally had to give up and just lock him in his room for the night until he crashed out again. Took about an hour of his crying on and off, but finally he fell back to sleep and slept through the night until 6:00 AM.

Unfortunately he's woken with quite the cold - congestions, cough, and a whole lot of sneezing. He keeps telling me that his nose hurts, that he hit it, but really it's just bugging him from the congestion. Poor little guy. Hopefully he'll get over it quickly and be back to his boisterous self.

Anyway, thank you Larry for giving me that break in time and letting me get some much needed rest. I'm sure the memories you made with stay with Joey for quite a while. I love you both.

Ho Ho Ho

2009-12-28T07:50:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas celebrations were very nice. We started them off having a nice meal on Christmas Eve at my sister Crystal's. It was just she and her husband Jeff, and Jeff's Mom Sharon, plus Larry, Joe, Mom and I. We just kicked back and had good conversation, then a fabulous dinner prepared by Crystal - Roast Pork with roasted potatoes and carrots, stuffing, and sourdough rolls. It was all yummy. Once we'd let our food digest we did a few rounds of Christmas carols, even singing the song my Grandma Hill had written years ago. It made for a very nice celebration.

One Christmas morning we awoke and opened the presents from Santa and from one another. This day started at 6:15 when Joey awoke and boy was he ever happy when he came out of his room to find a bicycle (or as he calls it motorcycle) from his Grandma. He had a ball opening all his presents, and we had a ball watching him.

Then at 9:30 we headed over to Larry's parents for brunch and more gift exchanges. We did a Dollar Store Christmas exchange which made gift giving quite a challenge for me. Bonnie had prepared a feast for us. Sweet Potato and sausage hash, sausage links, bacon, fried eggs, lasagna, bananna nut bread, monkey bread, fudge, candied pecans, hashbrown casserole, and I'm sure I'm missing one or two things. All of it was delicious and of course we all overate and made ourselves miserable.

Once we'd finished eating Dad read the birth of Jesus from the Bible, and made us all get misty eyes and then he started the gift exchange off with a handmade gift for each of his children and their spouses. He made us bread boards from the table that they had grown up with and Mom had added a poem explaining all that the table had been through on the back. It was really beautiful and sentimental. Larry and I loved it and used it at our Christmas dinner meal.

Then we exchanged our dollar store gifts, getting quite the ecclectic mix of things. Mary and Eric went with a bath them for the women and cooking for the guys. Mom and Dad went with cooking and Uncle Brian who cheated got me a 4C meassuring cup which was great cause I'd just broken ours and a candy thermometer which when I went to get mine the other day I realized had been stolen by Larry for some of his brewing experiments so it was the perfect gift. Kellie and Chuck gave us wands and candy from the dollar store and then they too cheated and gave us personalized gifts - I got a beautiful candle warmer and Larry got a hydrometer for his brewing... at least I think that's what its called.

Joey and Elsa had so much fun opening their gifts, and then stealing the other persons that it was funny to watch. Since we've come home Joey hasn't stopped playing with all the wonderful things that he received. Thank you one and all for your thoughtful gifts.

On Christmas night we had Bonnie, Larry and Uncle Brian over for dinner. Larry and I prepared a beautiful prime rib roast, mashed potatoes, carrots (that were undercooked) and greenbeans with a butter almond sauce. It was all pretty good if I do say so myself.

Bye the end of the day I was exhausted and looking forward to bed. Not so Joey. It took Larry a couple of extra house to get him settled down and into sleep mode.

All in all they were wonderful holiday celebrations.

All things GiddyUp!

2009-12-18T11:34:00.000-08:00

Joe loves the game giddy up, whether it's on my knee, Daddy's back or a mechanical horse. I swear when he grows up he's gonna be a little cowboy. Yesterday we went to the Dollar Tree and out front they have one of those mechanical horses and as soon as Joey saw it he wanted to ride. I told him when we were done in the store if he were good and of course he was as good as could be. So I loaded my purchases in the car and took him back to ride the horse. He had so much fun I had to let him ride a 2nd time just so I could enjoy his enjoyment.

A Christmas Tree Hunting We Will Go

2009-12-16T17:43:00.000-08:00

This year, due to weather, we did not cut down our own tree, but instead headed off to Mikey's Christmas Tree Lot on Sunrise. This year I was in search of a Noble Pine, and one that wouldn't take up half of our living room. We met Chuck and Kelly there at 4:00 and off we went in search of the perfect trees. This was to be the girls year, we had final say, though of course the men had to have their input.

I kept having Larry pull out trees and set them side by side on the center aisle for comparison. I'd choose a six, seven, even an eight foot tree to compare and Larry would drag out an additional 10, 11, and 12 foot variety. Each one was supposedly better than the baby ones that I was choosing. And Kelly and I kept having to tell them that they were not 'holes' in the trees, but intentional gaps since that was the type of tree I was going for. I think all in all I must have said 100 times, "that's not a big gaping hole, it's an intentional gap, the way the tree is supposed to be structured". Each time Larry would chuckle and go off in search of an even bigger tree.

Joey had a ball running around the whole time, in his own personal forest, yellin' Momma come, come, or Daddy here. He was too cute.

After much deliberation and taking in Larry's input I chose my second favorite, a 7-foot beauty. The first didn't pass the color test with Larry, and so my first choice went to another good home - Kelli and Chuck's. We hauled our, and there's in the back of our truck and took first their's to their home and then ours back on home. I have to admit I had a alterior motive for offering to take their tree for them as I wanted to see Kelli's early Christmas present, a darling little siamese mix kitty. So I got some kitty cuddles, a quick cup of tea and then we were off towards home. It made for a nice outing.

We put our tree up the next day, only to have it fall over, again, and again, and again. Crystal came to our rescue with an appropriately sized tree stand and now we have a beautiful if "baby" tree in our living room and a nice white artificial tree set up in the family room. Joe's had quite the fun time of it driving me crazy taking the balls off and playing toss with them. Thank goodness their all plastic at his level. Now if I could only teach him the right way to hang them back up, but I think that skill is going to have to wait for another year.

Larry

2009-12-15T09:36:00.000-08:00

I just want to say for the record that I love my hubby. He's always so supportive of anything I want to do, and in fact encourages me to get out and do things with my friends regardless of how much time it will take me away from the house.

I appreciate your thoughtfullness and all the help you give me with Joey.

Cake Decorating Continued

2009-12-15T09:34:00.000-08:00

Crystal and I had a double class last night with our Wilton Course 2. Unfortunately both of our Royal Icing batches were a bust. Somewhere along the way we must have touched something that was tainted with grease - a spatula, a container, something and it made our icing break down. You'd think no big deal, except last night was the night we were to be making all of our flowers for next weeks cake and ours just didn't hold up at all. We were at least able to practice each style, but they definately were not keepers. My friend JoAnne's icing was perfect and she made some really beautiful flowers all done in Christmas colors.

Now I have to make a new batch after I wash everything in Dawn with a touch of vinegar just to make sure any and all grease is removed. Then I have to pray that I remember how to do each flower. As it was my favorite, the daisy, is the one flower that the teacher couldn't remember how to do correctly so she was going to go home, practice and make enough daisies to provide each of us students with what we need. Then she'll show us the proper way to make them next week.

I swore this was to be my last class, but my girlfriends are guilting me into continuing because otherwise there won't be enough participants to keep the classes going. I'm not sure if I'm really enjoying it or not, though I do enjoy the company and the creativity aspect of it. Oh well I guess only time will tell if I continue on or say enough is enough and that I've learned what I need to know to make Joey's birthday cakes.

Off to the Reindeer Games

2009-12-14T16:22:00.000-08:00

My mother-in-love Bonnie orchestrated a chili night at her house this past weekend complete with reindeer games. We had childi with all the trimmings - sour cream, onions, cheese and let's not forget the pickles. Yes I said pickles, and unless you've tried it you don't know what your missing. Pickles really bring out all the different flavors of your chili - who knew. Plus we had cornbread, homeade cookies, pies, and egg nog cream puffs. All of it was scrumptious.

After we had thoroughly stuffed our selves we played reindeer games. We placed one game where you were an elephant mask and had to pick up rings using only your trunks. Joey, Elsa and Larry particularly enjoyed this game. I can only imagine what the photo's look like (lol). Then we played the reindeer game where each of two teams gets a pair of pantyhose and some balloons and your task is to blow up the balloons, stuff the pantyhose to make anterles, then once complete one player on your team (yes that would be me) had to put the stuffed pantyhose on their heads and sing Jingle Bells all the way through. My team was the winning team of course and I even through in a little dance while I sang. It was just to much fun.

For a day that started off bad for me, almost where I didn't even go, but didn't want to miss out on the family fun and that was before I knew there would be games, and yet it ended on such a high note. Thanks mom for organizing this fun get together, Larry, Joe and I totally enjoyed ourselves and the company of family and friends.

Children say the darndest things

2009-12-07T14:53:00.000-08:00

I say to Joey, "Oh Joey you got chocolate on your pants."
Joey replies, "Oh sh*t."

Enough said

Let it SNOW!

2009-12-07T08:14:00.000-08:00

We actually have snow here this morning and Joey is loving it. He and Bubba would stay out in it all day if I let them and it's not even really sticking too much to the ground yet. According to the news we're supposed to get two inches, but I'll believe it when I see it and if I do see it then we'll be attempting to make miniature snowmen out of it (lol).

Anyway here are a few photo's of Joey enjoying the first snowfall of the year in our neck of the woods.

Overnight Parties

2009-12-03T15:04:00.000-08:00

Joey had his third overnight adventure... this time it was at Aunt Crystals. He got to have her all to himself the first evening, and then his cousin Gracie came over in the morning to join in the fun. Crystal said it all went pretty well. She put him down at his usual bedtime, 7:00 PM, and he went pretty much without a fuss but she said she could hear him in their talking to himself and just moving about until almost 9:00 when he finally fell asleep. From there it was smooth sailing, until he fell out of bed. She went right in and calmed him down and he went right back to sleep until 6:45 the next morning. He never sleeps in that late for me, but for Auntie Giggles, of course he'll sleep in late. Of course Crystal was already awake because she kept listening for him from about 3:30 on which is when Larry usually gives him a fresh bottle and a fresh diaper, but Joey apparently had other things on his mind as he slept right through this time frame.

Gracie got there about 9:30 and from that point on it was all things princess. He played baby with Gracie, with Gracie being the baby and him feeding her from a teacup, they played with the princess dolls, had a tea party, and colored their little hearts out. Gracie taught him how to share better and was just so gracious with him. She also taught him the Clean Up song when it came time to pick everything up. All in all they had great fun together.

Mom and I headed over around mid-afternoon to hang out with them and then to have dinner. Beth joined us about 6:30 and we sat down to a fabulous meal of b-b-q tri tip, homeade potatoe salad, and corn on the cobb. She'd also made fried chicken tenders for the kids, and cut up some melon. We all ate good that night, ending with toffee brittle ice cream bars.

I got Joey dressed for night time and then we headed hom around 8:00 and I put one very sleepy boy down to bed.

Joey loves every moment he gets to spend with Aunty Crystal, and she loves her special times with him to. I'm lucky to have such a generous sister who's willing to give up her free time so that Larry and I can have a little bit of couple time to ourselves. Thanks sis. We love you.

Cakes, Cakes everywhere

2009-12-03T14:39:00.000-08:00

Well Crystal and I just finished the last class of the four week cake decorating course we were taking. We learned basic icing techniques, how to space plan your design and how to make roses. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work to. I finished two cakes during the course - my first being a rainbow cake and the second a rose cake. I missed out on one of the cakes, a clown design, because my fibromyalgia was acting up so bad that I had to miss class. According to Crystal I didn't miss much (lol).

Anyway here are photo's of my two finished cakes. I say finished because I had to have them finished for class, but I also made several practice cakes at home. Larry became a favorite at work because his coworkers got to eat all of my efforts, both for class and the ones I made just for the fun of it.

Larry's got a FEVER

2009-12-03T14:30:00.000-08:00

Christmas fever that is. He went full out first on the lights of our home and our exterior decorations (even stealing some of my thunder by utilizing items I'd purchased to use inside - little sneak), and now with his desk. I think it's safe to say that he is the first with his decorations up and he did a marvelous job showing his love of all things christmas. But don't take my word for it, check it out yourselves.

Gobble Gobble... going, going, gone

2009-11-27T06:41:00.000-08:00

Well Thanksgiving has come and gone and I for one am stuffed. We had a nice Thanksgiving dinner with family who also happens to be friends. All of Larry's immediate family came, plus his Aunt Margaret and her beau Kevin. On my side I had Crystal and Jeff and Mom. It ended up being 16 in all which was just about the perfect size for a get together. We had wondeful food, fine conversation, and lots of love.

I am so thankful for my family and friends, today and always. I had a lot of help in preparing for this dinner and cleaning up afterwards, as well as food and beverage contributions from pretty much everyone who attended our celebration.

I am very thankful for my husband who supports me and my health issues on a daily basis. For my mom who makes me laugh and helps me around the house as best she can. For my little boy who shows me love and makes me laugh on a daily basis. For in-laws who love and support me and my family. For my own family who love and support me. For my dog Bubba who although old is a puppy at heart and my constant companion. For our ever growing family of pets that add fun and even more love to our household. For my cat Callie who cuddles with me each night, keeping me warm.

I am most thankful for this wonderful life that I have been given. Thank you to one and all who have contributed to making my life more meaningful, and I won't name names because you all know who you are.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Thanksgiving Prep

2009-11-26T12:21:00.000-08:00

Well I cooked an extra turkey last night, and threw another in the oven at the crack of dawn this morning. Got my yams all prepared, the carrots ready for baking, a gazillion potatoes peeled then Larry took them down to his sister Mary's with instructions of what was to go in the oven at what time since we're having to borrow her oven as well since ours only accomodates the turkey and nothing else. Larry was a champ cutting all the potatoes and carrots for me, and mom helped by keeping on top of the dirty dishes for me.

Then when Crystal showed up we got the appetizers going and out - just simple faire, a little hummus, crackers and cheese and a veggie tray, plus the cheese ball and crackers that Crystal brought. Then Crystal whipped up a little fruit fluff salad so that my borther-in-law Chuck wouldn't be heartbroken. It's not the 24-hour fruit salad I usually make and that he loves, but I'm sure that he'll love this too.

Larry carved my birds and did an awesome job so all I have left to do is take the spiral ham out of the oven and throw together my green salad. Then we can lay out the spread and let everyone dig in at 1:00. I think it's going to be an awesome Thanksgiving.

Daddy and his Shadow

2009-11-26T12:11:00.000-08:00

Larry put up our outdoor Christmas decorations over the last couple of days so I could have them lit up this evening - in our community it's against the "RULES" to put them up or have them lit prior to Thanksgiving Day. To that I say PHOOEY on You! Any way I digress... the whole time Larry is doing his thing outside Joey is doing his best to get outside. He keeps opening the front door and I keep telling him to stay inside and close the door. Finally I think I'll outsmart him and put the deadbolt on thus eliminating his ability to open the door. Instead he outsmarted me because he went to to the laundry room door and before I knew it had snuck out to his Daddy through the garage. I finally gave up and told Larry that it was his responsibility to keep an eye on him.

So Joe followed him around for a bit, basically getting in the way, and then he promoted himself to foreman getting his little chair and moving it from location to location so that he could sit and tell Daddy what to do. It was to cute. At the end of the process Larry had to change out some light bulbs on our Santa's and snowman and had to use the screwdriver. As soon as he set it down, Joe was on it and imitating exactly what he'd seen his daddy do. They really are to peas in a pod.

Anyway thanks to my boys I have a marvelously decorated house with lights, ornaments and all kinds of characters.

Trains

2009-11-22T16:17:00.000-08:00

Trains and boys just seem to go together like peanut butter and jelly. Uncle Armas gave me a four car train set for Joey the last time we were up there and he wasn't quite mature enough to play with it, so we put it away until the timing was right. This weekend seemed to be the perfect time.

Daddy broke it out and set it up on Joey's crafting table and he has been playing with it for hours. He's added Bert into the mix and his cows and dinasours so his train now has quite the ecclectic managerie with it. He's put his garbage man on the tracks and let the cow catcher do it job of scooting it aside and of cours ehe's managed to derail it several times in the mix.

Anyway I don't think it would be an understatement to say he loves his train. Thank you very much Uncle Armas for thinking of him. I'm sure it's going to provide him hours of fun and make believe.

Miss JoAnna rocks!

2009-11-20T13:25:00.000-08:00

I have the best day care provider ever. As I said in an earlier post I've had to cut back on day care each week because of finances, and today was technically Joe's off day but since I'm feeling so lousy right now she took him off my hands with one quick phone call. I love having a friend for a provider because they always have your back, even when their life isn't right on track. Her oldest son came down with Strep yesterday so he's also home from school, poor little bugger. (Man that saying just made me think of my Grandma, Queenie - I wish she could be with us this holiday season, and to see my little guy... I think she'd instantly fall in love with him and vice versa.)

Anyway for day care providers out there everywhere, I say THANK YOU!

Mead Making - Like Father Like Son

2009-11-19T16:25:00.000-08:00

Looks like Joey is going to be a chip off the old block. He just had to help Daddy rack off his ice mead so that it could go the next step in the process... and boy is it ever tasty and I don't even like booze.

First he helped him rack it off, then carry the two liter bottles to the freezer, ending with putting the tubing and buckets away in the closet. He really is the man to have at your side when you need a little help. He's pretty good at following directions, so long as you aren't telling him to eat something he doesn't want to, and does it just like you tell him to.

I can already see it - Jesters Meadery and Son. Watch out Samuel Adams, you've got nothing on my boys.

Cake Decorating 101 Continues

2009-11-19T05:50:00.000-08:00

Well Crystal and I, and my other mommy friends, had our second class this past Monday. It was a lot more fun this week as we actually got to work on something. I did the recommended rainbow cake and if I do say so myself, it came out pretty good. Larry took that one to work for his coworkers to enjoy and I began my own cake number 2 for our family to enjoy. This time I free handed it all the way doing a simple daisy and some generic designs that we'd practiced on the night before. It turned out cute also and was a big hit with mom, Joey and Larry to when he got home from work.

I can't wait for next week when we attempt to learn out to make those fancy roses you always see on the store bakery birthday cakes. Should be fun, and I'm sure a little frustrating too.

Joe and his Gang

2009-11-16T15:01:00.000-08:00

My friend and daycare provider JoAnne took this photo at the park one day. Too cute.

She refers to them as "her boys", although today she was willing to trade my Joey for her Joey (far left in the photo) since he was having one of those days and didn't even want to go to school. I declined her generous offer with a laugh.

Change of Format

2009-11-16T14:58:00.000-08:00

I had to change my background, again, because I just realized that my sister and I had chosen the same one. How dare she, she knows that "leaves" are my thing so she should have left that one for me to utilize. Oh well, I think this new background is cute as well.

In future Sis - step away from the leaves backgrounds (lol).

Cousin Time

2009-11-16T14:44:00.000-08:00

Joey got to spend some time with his 2nd cousins, Gabriel and Benjamin this past weekend. He stayed the night with his Aunty Crystal and Grandma at Crystal's place and they had his cousins over for dinner and play time. I only got to hear about it after the fact, but all the same I'm so proud because Joey shared all the toys he took without a fuss. He didn't want to share his train though, so he told his Aunty and together they hid them under a pillow under the couch.

What impressed me the most is that in one photo Gabriel is holding Joey's beloved piggy and he let him. Crystal told me that when he saw Gabe with it he said very softly, "My piggy" and Crystal respond with "He'll give it back" and Joey said "OK" and went back to playing without a worry or a fuss. I'm one proud momma. He hasn't been to great at sharing these past couple of months so it's nice to hear for a change that he was gracious with his possessions.

He had a good stay with his Aunty, although he got up at 1:30 and stayed awake until 3:30 and then was back up for good at 5:30 which is his normal time. Poor Crystal didn't get much rest at all. I'm blaming Larry cause he gave her the impression that Joey could only have milk right before bed and that was it, and so when he got up she gave him water, which doesn't really soothe him much at night. I wish she'd have known that it was okay to give him milk all night long because I think he would have went right back to sleep for her if that had been the case.

Anyway, thank you sis once again for the night off. Even though Larry and I just cuddled up on the couch and watched a movie at home it was some quality time with my hubby that I needed. And Joey got to spend some much beloved time with his favorite Aunt Giggles.

A Cake Decorating I Go

2009-11-12T18:56:00.000-08:00

Crystal and I went to our first Wilton Cake Decorating Class this past Monday. It seems like it's going to be fun, but expensive. We thought it a great bargain - 40% of the class fee so it only cost $27 and then another 40% off one item - our Course 1 Kit, so it only ended up costing $14... sounds like a bargain, right? Wrong. We get in the class and the instructor, Annie, gives us another sheet listing other must haves, about another $75 worth per participant. I don't know about you, but my money doesn't just grown on trees. I was trying to justify the $41 dollars that I thought this adventure was going to run and now I learn it will be over $100. It made me want to sit on the floor and cry.

Crystal came to my rescue offfering to buy my supplies for my Christmas present. A very generous Christmas present. I was grateful, but at the same time humiliated that I couldn't afford to provide my own supplies. What had started out as such a fun adventure with my sister now seemed like a burden with little joy left in it.

Crystal again came to the rescue today, baking her first cake to practice on, leaving me in hysterical laughter at her 1-hour updates. According to her it wasn't near as easy icing the cake without getting crumbs as Annie had indicated. She said that it looked like a speckled cake by the time she was done with the thin icing coat no matter how hard she tried. As we all know she's a Virgo, and a perfectionist so I'm sure it's not as bad as she thinks. What had me really laughing was her comment that her cake didn't even look like the ones in our instruction manual. Now technically we haven't even attempted anything, that's this coming Monday, so far we've only watched the instructor make icing in several consistencies and ice a 6-inch cake and yet my sister, God love her, thinks she should be able to produce a near perfect decorated cake. You just gotta love that kind of enthusiasm.

I'm waiting with baited breath to see the photo of the finished product. If it turns out well enough, which I'm sure it will be, she's going to take it to work for one of her co-workers birthdays tomorrow. Yum.

Sister-in-Love Rocks!

2009-11-08T11:51:00.000-08:00

My sister-in-love Kelli is just the coolest. We attempted to have a creative day together yesterday, but everything seemed to be going against us and we still had a good time. We were going to do card stamping only the coordinator of the event didn't have any extra supplies and I tried to add Kelli in to the mix at the last minute, so we had to scratch that one of our list. We then thought we'd go to a place called "Color Me Mine" to paint ceramics only once we started adding up the costs we were a definate NO. $10 for the studio fee per person, $1 to fire your piece, and then the cost of your piece which started at $12 and went up to $60 for a big ol' piggy bank. That's just ridiculous if you ask me, or Kelli. So we headed over to the Bead Shop hoping to get into a class and got there right as they ended for the day. It seemed creativity was not to be ours on this day.

We decided to get a bit and had lunch at Rubio's. Kelli had never been but I think I have made her into a convert. We both had tacos - she had carniasatas and I had surf and turf. Both were delicious. We then went on the serch for a crimp iron for her hair. We found straighteners of every kind but no crimps.

I took her on a little tour of down town Ranch Cordova, we checked out some new homes, and ended with a yummy treat at Yogurtville. And all the while we talked and laughed and just had a relaxing time of it all.

We ended the day at Wal-Mart, both buying a $3.84 ceramic picture frame of sea life that came with five little paint colors. We're going to do them on our own and then compare, and at last we'll get to be creative.

Kelli thanks for spending the day with me. I really enjoyed our girl time.

Wacky Ways

2009-11-06T23:10:00.000-08:00

That's me, just plain wacky these days. Days feel like night time to me, nights like days. Fatiqued all the time but down right exhausted usually by 3-4 in the afternoon. I've been hitting the sack before Joey lately, and then waking up 3 hours later for the night. I try to go back in and get back to sleep after a little while, but it doesn't seem to work very well.

I'm so foggy these days that literally I feel like I need to write myself a note when I need to go potty that says "You were on your way to the bathroom" because if Joey interrupts me enroute, I can't remember where I was going by the time I've taken care of his needs. Hope this is just a phase of my Fibromyalgia and not something more menacing like senility or dementia.

I swear sometimes I feel as though I'm 83 instead of 43, although I must say most of the 80+'s that I know have more get up and go than I do at my age. There off to the casino, or playing Bunko with friends, going out to lunch, etc. Just having fun. Can't say I have a lot of fun these days, though I'm trying.

I'm doing a card stamping class once a month and Crystal and I just signed up for the first course of a cake decorating class that will be on Monday evenings for four weeks. Hope I can manage to stay awake to take it. I'll have to be sure and get in a nap as soon as Larry gets home from work so that I'll have the energy to go and focus. Seems like everything in my life these days takes a lot of pre-planning in order to actually get accomplished.

Ahhh, the wacky ways of being an older mom with health issues. It's my life, so I've gotta love it, and for the most part do.

Boys will be boys

2009-11-03T07:44:00.000-08:00

Man oh man, Joey decided that wake up time today was 4:00 AM. Nothing I did could cajole him into getting back into bed - his or mine. So being all boy he has been on the go since that time. We're dogsitting two dogs - Soc (a Chihuahua mix) and Leia (a Lab/Pit mix), and Joey has been chasing them through the house for the last two hours. I had to put them in their pens for a while just so they could get some peace.

I've been trying to get some of my group organizer stuff done this morning on the computer and it's all but been impossible with two dogs and Joey vying for space under the computer desk. Talk about akward. If it's not the dogs pushing up against the chair making it move it's Joey banging his head on the keyboard tray. I give up... I might as well join in the fray as I'm not gonna get anything done with this chaos taking place.

Luckily Bubba has just found himself a place to hunker down and is being my good boy. He's just trying to stay off of the boys radar I think. Wish I could follow that plan. I just want to sleep but that will have to wait til Larry gets home and that won't be til sometimes after 3:00 this afternoon.

Wish me luck, and I just might make it through today.

Trick or Treat

2009-10-31T20:05:00.000-07:00

We had so much fun this evening taking Joey trick-or-treating. Larry dressed up in full regalia as Batman (or Fatman as he called himself), I went as a clown, and Joey went as the Fire Chief, and he looked so darling. He carried an axe and wouldn't let go of his goody bag for anything. Grammi lent us her wagon so if he got to tired we'd be prepared, only he wanted to ride in the "boat" in between every house which made the whole process take twice as long. Next year we'll know just to hoof it and plan to head home when he gets burned out on trick-or-treating. All in all I think we only hit about 20 houses before he was ready to go home and go to bed.

He picked a sucker that our neighbor Nick gave him and we let him have it before he went to bed. He was so worn out he didn't even argue when I said it was bed time which surprised me because his night routine was so thrown off tonight and he didn't get his bath or his "down" time with Daddy. We're so lucky that he's such a laid back boy most of the time.

Larry was in his element having spooktifieid our house and was pretty full of himself as everyone kept telling him he had the best house. He did do an awesome job, he always does, but we also had some pretty cool other houses within a couple block radius.

All in all in was an awesome Halloween even if Joe and I were sick. We made sure not to touch anyone else so as not to pass on our germs, and made sure that Joey got the chance to show off his costume to his grandparents and Great Uncle Brian. I really enjoyed seeing all the little ones dressed up from princess' to ghouls to bunny rabbits and clowns. It was a great turn out this year and even as I type this Larry is still passing out treats to the kids in our neighborhood.

Pumpkin Time

2009-10-31T19:50:00.000-07:00

We went to a Pumpkin Party this past Tuesday at Miss JoAnna's and Joey and the other kids had a ball decorating their pumpkins. Some just drew faces, others painted their's to look like ghosts, some made fairy pumpkins, and others just added a little of this, a little of that. Joe fell into this category utilizing a little paint, some glitter, flowers and stickers. I love how his turned out, and I love that he had so much fun creating it.

Things are changing

2009-10-27T06:55:00.000-07:00

Today is a bad day for me... my hands are stiff, I'm off-balance, I have continuous pain in my elbows and hips, not to mention my back. It's day's like this I appreciate so much having JoAnna to help take care of Joey. But even that is changing. I had to tell her yesterday that I was going to have to cut down to two days a week because of budgeting (in reality it probably should have been cut down to one day) and she in return told me that she may not be able to accomodate him much longer on a part time basis. That made me so sad, but I totally understand. Her youngest will be going in to pre-school starting in January and she is thinking of going back to college to get a degree in physical therapy. I'm so happy for her, but don't know what I'll do.

I seem to have more bad days than good anymore, although I don't usually share that with anyone. Joey going to Miss JoAnna's has been a godsend as it's given me a mini break every other day during the week, allowing me to rest so that I could have more energy in the afternoons when I have him home with me. This isn't how I imagined raising my child(ren) would be when I was in my 20's, but then again I wasn't living with constant pain in my 20's either. I thought I'd be able to do it all - play, discipline, life in general when it comes to raising little ones.

Joey's growing so fast that I can barely pick him up anymore because it's just to painful now that he weighs over 30 pounds. Needless to say this has caused me more than one crying bout. I want to be able to snuggle with him, and play, and share adventures with him. I want him to know about the wonders of outdoors, camping and hiking, bike riding... all those things that normal folks just take for granted. I don't take much of anything for granted these days. I know that each moment I get to participate in is a true blessing. I just wish I could participate more.

Okay, that's enough wallowing now. I'm going to snap out of it. Be thankful for what I have, and that we have a fun day decorating pumpkins with my Cradles to Crayons group planned for this morning.

Are my in-laws cute.

2009-10-26T17:38:00.000-07:00

Tahhhhhhhoe!

2009-10-26T17:27:00.000-07:00

Larry and I headed off to Tahoe this past weekend to the Foam Fest at the Biltmore Tahoe. Larry was filling in for his buddy Paul and pouring brew for Alaskan Brewery. It was a fundraiser, in it's 3rd year, to raise capital for handicap parks and activities. They had quite the crowd there and Larry was the hit of the brewer's participants, if I do say so myself. He poured his little heart out, dancing practically the whole time behind his vendor table. He is so engaging with the folks, talking brewing from ingrediants to what goes best with which foods. It was a joy to stand back and watch him work his magic without him knowing I was even in the room.

I did help, for brief spurts of time... no more than 20 minutes a visit. I poured a little, learned that the beer bottle can not touch the guests glass in any way as it's against the food/bev code. Who knew? Not I. And I opened bottles so Larry could keep pouring, but for the most part I just danced a little with Larry and made sure he didn't need a break. It was fun.

The next day Larry and I spent some time taking photo's around the lake and on the drive back home. It was so beautiful... a crisp, clear fall day. The leaves on the trees along Hwy. 89 were just spectacular. I miss living amongs the trees. One day we'll retire and hopefully it will be to a home surrounded by pines, and populars, birch and aspens. We couldn't get over how fibrant the yellow and orange hues were.

We ate junk food coming and going on our journey and had a great time just talking with each other, and laughing. Thankfully we didn't have to worry about Joe because Larry's parents watched him for us Saturday morning and then Crystal watched him for the remainder of the weekend until we got home.

Apparently he was a perfect little angel. Why is it that are children always act better for others and throw the terrible 2 tantrums when we're home with them... that's all I want to know. He gave us kisses when we got home, but we also got some of his recently aquired shrieks to go along with the kisses. Crystal said that was the first time she'd heard him screech all weekend. I'm glad that they had such a nice time together. He sure had fun playing with the new Sand/Water Table that his aunts and uncles got him for his birthday.

All in all it was a really relaxing weekend.

Sleep eludes me... again

2009-10-22T02:46:00.000-07:00

Poor Larry. He's been trying to get a nice night's sleep and I've pretty much made that all but impossible with my tossing and turning, snapping at him not to touch me, and getting in and out of bed every 20 minutes. I took an Ambien tonight at 7:30, was out before I knew it, and wide awake at 10:00. From that point on I haven't been able to regain my sleeping momentum. Unfortunately this is my story almost every night and I have to say literally, and figuratively, I'm getting tired of it. This is not a pattern that I can live with. The less sleep I get, the less patience I seem to have for everything and everyone. It turns me into someone that I don't want to be and I don't know how to fix that except to get more rest which is all but impossible.

I guess I'm going to have to see my doctor yet again to discuss my pain levels, newest drugs available, something, anything that will possible help me out with this situation. God I'm beginning to really detest doctors, and medications, and tests that really tell you nothing.

Okay that's enough of a rant. I'm going to try once again to reclaim sleep. Wish me luck.

My budding pianist

2009-10-20T19:47:00.000-07:00

I took Joey to Toys That Teach for story and song time and while waiting for it to begin Joey found the miniature grand piano and just sat down and played. He loves the piano. His Grammi has not one, but two at their house and he and Elsa often perform duo's on the electric one. He doesn't really know any songs at this juncture but he likes to make his own music. When he was finished he got a round of applause from the patrons. Now is that cute or what!

I just love his sense of adventure and his willingness to throw himself into just about anything that captures his attention. He gets that from his Daddy as Larry is exactly the same way... as my closet attests to since it's now beginning to smell like a brewery with all his meads formulating in there. I can't imagine what it will be like once he's able to convince Joey to join in on his exploits.

and the PARTY goes on, and on, and on!

2009-10-20T16:56:00.000-07:00

We had the final celebration for Joe's second birthday this past Sunday with all our immediate family - all the aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. We kept it pretty simple with just cake and ice cream but Larry and I strung up streamers and balloons the night before and layered the floor with balloons so that when Joey got up in the morning he'd have a surprise. He loved it. As soon as he saw some of the balloons floating near the ceiling his excitement began building. He took off tearing down the hallway and ran smack into all the balloons on the living room floor - kicking and laughing and falling down in them. He must have played for a 1/2 or more in those balloons before he let me change his diaper and get him something to eat.

Around Noon Mona and her grandson who is 5 weeks older than Joe dropped in for a quick visit. He has gotten to be such a cute little monkey and he and Gracie had a ball playing together. Joe was down for a nap so he never even got to see them or vice versa. It was a nice visit, although too short.

When Joey got up at 2:00 he had a bite to eat with Grace and then they got to play for a little bit one on one until our other guests started to arrive. Once everyone had shown up we sang Happy Birthday and Joey blew out the candles and we all dug in to his Pooh cake and vanilla ice cream.

Joey got all kinds of wonderful gifts, that he has yet to put down - fireman outfit, garbage truck (working), and bulldozer that also works like it's the real thing and a smart cycle, plus clothes, books and cash. He made out like a bandit and I hope he realizes what a very lucky little boy he is.

So all in all I'd say his birthday was a success.

The next morning he got up in his new jamma's that Grammi had bought him and started his day right off with playing with his new toys, and has been going at it ever since. He's just crazy about vehicles of any kind, and garbage trucks and big rigs are his favorite right now, along with airplanes.

Joey's 2

2009-10-15T10:26:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday was Joey's birthday and so we took his measurements again. I must have measured wrong last time because this time I did it not one, not twice, but three times and came up with 36 1/2 inches tall and 31.5 pounds. He's a tough little guy, all muscle and my little helper.

He loves to put things away when I ask, not his toys mind you but stuff in the kitchen or things that need to be thrown in the garbage. One of his favorite things is to sweep or rake. He's always wanting to help grandma with her gardening.

Joe is becoming quite courteous, saying please, thank you, your welcome and bless you. Oh yeah and the all important excuse me. Even daddy is learning to use that phrase now.

He has 12 teeth with two more coming in, his left lower incisor started just two weeks ago and his top right incisor started to pop through on his birthday.

We had a party with all his buddies and there were about 20 kids or so, plus 9 mommies. We had it at his daycare provider and had a wonderful time. I went with a Winnie the Pooh them and everyone loved the cake I made in Pooh's image. My first real decorator cake and not bad if I say so myself. Joe had a piece of cake with ice cream and then over the course of the party managed to swipe three cupcakes - can you say sugar overload!

We'll be having a family celebration for him on Sunday. I don't think he quite gets the concept of birthday, but he knows he's now two and he loves the idea of presents.

I can't believe how fast my little man is growing. I wish I could put a little of him in a bottle at each stage and be able to take it out and revisit it whenever I wanted. Time's just going to fast for me.

Anyway, before I get all weepy I'll end with a great big HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOEY! Momma and Daddy love you very much.

Boating the Sacramento

2009-10-12T20:00:00.000-07:00

Pop Pop took us on an adventure yesterday... Joey's first real boat ride. He's captained Pop Pop's boat many a time, only it was landlocked in the garage (lol). Yesterday we got him his very own life vest and headed for shores unknown, at least to us.

We headed out on the Sacramento River and meandered along checking out the turtles sunbathing on the sunken logs. The logs in the waterway we referred to as "Alligatooors" and it was Joey's job to be on the lookout. After a short while we took a right under the green bridge and headed down Sutter Slough. It was so peaceful out on the water. The sun shining, hardly a cloud in the sky and the whole day ahead of us.

Pop Pop gave Joe his first lesson in steering and let him take the wheel all by himself. For the most part he did pretty well, only fearing towards the shore every few minutes. Pop made the necessary adjustments and then let Joey take the lead again. It was really cute to watch the two of them together.

We had lunch in Rio Vista at The Point and it was all good, until Joe tipped over my tea cup and spilled freshly poured, hot tea in my lap. Luckily I'd worn layers and could swap out my top for a dry one.

When we got back in the boat to head back Joey fell asleep within less than two minutes and slept like a log. Larry and I kept passing him back and forth because he was dead weight and our arms kept needing a bit of relief from his hefty little weight.

All the way back we kept picking out houseboats and sailboats that we'd like to own and making up names for them. It was a lot of fun.

Joey woke up when we had about 15 minutes to go and took over as Captain. He loved pointing out all the "BIG" boats for us... pretty much any boat on the water and steering our craft.

On the way home Pop's treated us to soft serve cones from McDonalds and I have to say this was the perfect way to bring to an end our StayCation. We'll definitely be going out again next summer... I can't wait.

Deadly Aim... Good thing he's a doctor

2009-10-10T06:59:00.000-07:00

Larry has taught Joey the fine art of shooting - a water pistol that is. Every night at bath time, he and Larry practice and I am usually the target. I can not even walk past the bathroom door without Joey nailing me with water, usually in the head vicinity. He's not fooling around. He actually aims at what he wants to hit and 9 times out of 10 he hits his mark.

This particular bathtime he had on his doctor's stethoscope and his pistol. It looked like he was trying to drum up some business using his gun skills for his medical practice. Is that ironic or what?

But he does look awfully cute.

A Fishing We Will Go

2009-10-10T06:51:00.000-07:00

For Larry's birthday he rebuilt an aquarium tank that he picked up for a song at a garage sale. My gift to him was the necessary supplies and some fish. He got it up and running, a zillion plants floating in the water, swaying to and fro... it looked beautiful, so who needs fish right? It could just be an underwater garden. NOPE. He had me look at fish online, I picked out a red tailed shark that was just beatiful and Larry had picked out 4-5 other freshwater fish that he particular liked. Okay decision made, right? Wrong. The next day we visit his brother and sister in love and on the way home he says, "Can we just pop in to this pet store I want to check some things out". An hour later we got the BIG one, or should I say two?, fish that is. He decided on a PaCu (a relative of the pirahna) and a Snook (part of the bass clan). That's it two fish... we have a 50 gallon tank and these fish are so BIG that they are all that it can acccomodate.

They look happy and content in there. Larry looks happy and content too, so I think it was a good birthday choice... much better than the ugly ol' Foo dog tattoo he was going to get. I'm not sure who's happier, him or me.

Anyway we're all benefitting from his present as it's really relaxing to just watch them coast around, frolicking in the bubbles created by the pump, and ripping up Larry's underwater garden (lol).

Happy Birthday Larry!

Folsom Zoo

2009-10-07T01:48:00.001-07:00

Today Joey and I hooked up with one of my mommy friends, Deborah and her 3-year old daughter LeiLani and went to the Folsom Zoo Sanctuary. We had a wonderful time. The weather couldn't have been better and the kids loved running throughout the zoo and even getting to pet an animal or two.

They got to feed the chickens, roosters, and peacocks that are on-site, both inside and outside of the zoo. I had brought some bread along for just that purpose. It was fun watching the chickens go after every little piece and while doing so clearly show what the pecking order was amongst them. The kids also fed a little of the melon we brought to a very sweet doe who seemed more pet than wild animal. She loved to be petted, and really chowed down on the melon taking it right out of the kids hands. They loved it.

After the zoo we headed over to the miniature steam train and took a ride on the rails. It was nice to be able to sit down after all that walking and just enjoy the breeze it created and the beautiful scenery that surrounded it. Both LeiLani and Joey liked it so much that they wanted to ride again, but we were able to dissuade them away from that thought with promises of the park that exists right next store.

They had fun climbing, sliding, and swinging. As well as making angels in the tanbark. LeiLani was a lot better at this than Joe, but I think she's had a little more practice at it as well.

We ended our outing with the kids searching for pine cones and playing hide and seek with us in the many overgrown bushes that flank the property. All in all, I'd have to say its one of the best days I've had in a long time.

Vacation, Staycation

2009-10-07T01:38:00.000-07:00

Well as most of you know we were supposed to be at Lake Chelan in Washington this week, but there just weren't any vacation dollars to be found in this months budget, so we sent Mom, Crystal, and her mother-in-love Sharon off to the lake without us. They were going to hook up with one of our oldest friends Jorinda, and her daughter Cassie and granddaughter Sami. An all girls vacation... sounds like fun.

On the home front Larry decided to go ahead and take the week off anyway as he really needed a break, and we needed some family time together and as a couple. So far it's been pretty low key. Friday night we went to a local school carnival to help raise PTA dollars for my daycare providers kids school. It was fun. We won a photo shoot through the raffle, so that was pretty exciting.

My sister-in-love Mary was kind enough to watch Joey for a few hours on Saturday so Larry and I got to sneak away for a romantic lunch for two at this new Thai place I'd been wanting to try - Sala Thai. Man was it ever delicious. Not cheap, but then again I practically ordered everything off the menu, not really, but we did order five or six things to try and wasn't disappointed in one of them. Plus the serving sizes were so ample that we've each had another couple of meals off of just the left overs. You gotta love that, especially in today's economy.

Sunday we spent with the in-loves having a b-b-q dinner at their place. Yummy. That's all that needs to be said, YUMMY!

On Monday and Tuesday Larry began helping his dad with their deck extension. They got it all laid out on Monday, and yesterday began building the stairs and welding on the iron railings. Didn't quite get it finished, so he and Joey are going back over today to finish it up with Pop Pop. It almost double the size of their outdoor living space and will be really great to have come next summer. Even I got my hands a little dirty by helping to drill sink holes where the screws needed to go in. Joey's helped by picking up loose screws and putting them in a box and tossing the scrap pieces of wood into the wheelbarrow for later disposal. Whatever daddy and grandpa is doing, he wants to be doing. These Monson men, they're just so dang cute, especially when they're all working together.

So far we're enjoying the relaxing pace of our staycation and were looking forward to a few outings with family and friends at the end of the week.

2009-10-07T01:32:00.000-07:00

Well as you tell by the post time it's the middle of the night, again. I just can't sleep. The bummer is it makes it a vicious cycle... Pain's so high I can't sleep. Because I can't sleep, I'm exhausted. Because I'm exhausted I don't feel like doing anything, including housework. Because the house is such a disaster it makes me feel even worse and a bit depressed. Depression triggers flare ups in people with Fibromyalgia, and there I am back at the beginning with the pain.

It's just crazy and no matter what I try, nothing seems to break that cycle these days. I need help, and yet feel as though I've exhausted all my resources - medically, familialy, socially. People get tired of hearing about your woes all the time, I get that, try to keep it to myself most of the time, but still it's hard to get through the day these days, and even harder it seems to get through the night.

Such is life, well my life anyway.

Yummy - OOOOO!

2009-10-05T12:41:00.000-07:00

My in-loves had us over for dinner last night and was it ever yummy. Dad bar-b-qued tri tip and it was perfectly seasoned and perfectly cooked to medium rare. Mom did everything else - salad, scalloped potatoes, cake... and every last bite delicioso!

We went over a little early so Joey could hang with his grandparents and of course him and Grammi played chase over and over much to his delight. Dad took him for a short walk out in the jungle (the perimeter of their yard - open to deer and turkey alike and the occasional snake). Joey enjoyed that too, checking out each bit of nature as they passed by it.

Uncle Brian joined us for dinner and it was great to see him since we haven't seen to much of him now that summer is officially over and were not having parties practically every weekend. Thank goodness for that part as I'm exhausted, though I do miss seeing everyone with any kind of regularity.

Anyway it turned out to be a very nice evening and I for one was grateful for a lovely meal that I didn't have one bit of responsibility of preparing. There's something indescribable about being able to sit down, relax, and enjoy a good meal that someone else has put all the effort into... some how it just seems to make everything taste that much yummier to me.

Joey & Peter Cotton Tail

2009-10-05T12:30:00.000-07:00

Well Joseph has taken quite a liking to our newest family member, Peter Cotton Tail. If he's not chasing him around the house, he's begging to be in his pen with him. He wants to share all his toys with him, much to my displeasure, as I'm sure Peter is going to chew on something toxic. So far Joe's given him is farm animals, cars, even a full size basketball, which to my surprise Peter actually played with pushing it all around his pen. I felt a little guilty when I took that one back out of his pen and away from the rabbit as he seemed to be having so much fun with him.

It makes Larry and I crack up when Peter is having free time and Sunset, one of our cats, comes out and Peter ends up chasing her around. Just when we think it can't get any funnier, Bubba starts chasing the rabbit who's chasing the cat and we crack up all over again. Not to be outdone Joe usually joins in the fray chasing the dog, who's chasing the rabbit, who's chasing the cat. Confused yet?!

Anyway, we're just one big happy family around here.

Me, Myself, and I

2009-09-27T02:40:00.000-07:00

If Larry was doing service to others yesterday, I was only doing service to myself. It was a bad day yesterday, and apparently is going to go in to today as well. On a pain level of 1-10, I'd say I'm at a 13. It's ridiculous. All I did yesterday was hang out with a girlfriend so that Joey and her son Sandr could have some fun together. Literally we sat and talked for a little over 2 hours, I came home and fed Joe lunch, and then thank goodness Larry arrived on the scene and I could go lay down. Which is exactly what I did for the next several hours.

Larry made dinner - Cheesy Enchilada Hamburger Helper only he made his with tri tip streak strips and of course extra gooey cheese thrown in for good measure. It was delicious - we all loved it, only I couldn't manage to keep mine down. My pain was at such an all time high that it was revolting at doing anything that required any effort, including eating. Let me tell you it's not much fun.

I've been off and on all night with my attempts at sleep. Poor Larry is not having a very restful night's sleep either since when I am in there I'm trying to cuddle with him, or tossing and turning, messing up the blankets... I think you get the picture. Then I just feel excessively in pain, and as quietly as possible get up, move around, try to take my own focus away from the pain, and I must admit I'm having a hard time doing this tonight. Even my breath work isn't working for me tonight.

Oh well, I guess this is my life, and that it's going to continue to be my life, and so it makes sense to treasure each and every moment that makes itself a part of this thing I call life and to draw close to my husband and son, and the remainder of my family and friends, to absorb as much of the good stuff as possible with each and every one of them.

My hubby, my friend

2009-09-27T02:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Larry went to help my sister and Jeff move into a different apartment within the same complex. He went to help simply because I asked. No "ah Mannn", or "this is my bum around day", nothing like that. Just whatever I needed him to do, no questions asked. He is such a good man, not only to Joe and I, but to my entire family.

Even my sister called to bragg on him about what a great help he was and that he hustled and got a lot accompolished over there. Plus she wanted me to know that he was the only one that zoomed in on just how stressed she was feeling and did his best to do as she asked, and during that process try to make her smile or laugh as much as possible. Usually they pick on each other, like sisters and brothers are known to do, but today he read her heart and tried to be the kind of brother and friend she most needed.

I feel so honored to call this man my hubby, my friend, the father of our child.

Up to no Good!

2009-09-25T19:35:00.000-07:00

So I go into my bedroom to use the ladies room and when I come out, Joey's sitting on the floor in the hallway laying up against Bubba. As soon as he see's me he jumps up, says "Uh oh" and grabs his behind and runs. I think... he's been up to no good, but I decide to let it go and discover it when I discover it. I get my cup of tea, sit on the couch and try to find something on that we'll both like. He keeps his distance and just watches me. After a couple of minutes he disappears into the kitchen and comes back in to me with the bear honey container, minus a lid and says again "Uh oh" and "I made a mess". I look at him more closely and sure enough, there is honey on his shirt and in his hair. I try not to laugh as he's being so serious. I say to him, "show mommy" and we venture into the kitchen. On the table I'd been utilizing while I reorganize my pantry is the 'mess'. 3/4 of the jar of honey are spilled all over it, and around the bottom of the items that I hadn't yet put back in to the pantry, and next to this is a wad of paper towels. My little guy actually tried to clean up his mess all by himself. I'm so proud. I quickly sponge up the mess, strip him of his clothes and throw him in the tub for a quick washing.

When were done, and he's smelling all clean and fresh I walk back into the kitchen to reheat my tea. As I do though, I go through our family room instead of the living room and notice my feet keep sticking to the floor - the carpeted floor. He apparently had brought the honey in here, spilling it a little here and a little there, in his effort to share the good stuff with our new bunny Peter. Peter too has evidence on him as he has 2-3 spots that are all sticky.

Lesson learned... always take him in the potty with me!