Irina’s First Beach Trip

Last week we went to the beach with some on my family and a few friends I haven’t seen in years.  It was a quick trip, and we didn’t stay long because it was one of the hottest days of summer we have had so far!  But it was long enough to have some fun in the sun!

(She got to come out and enjoy the sun for about a minute or two)

Sleep-Over

On Saturday night the kids had a sleep-over at Grandma and Grandpa’s house.  I will admit I was a bit nervous as to how it would go.  Even though Elijah couldn’t stop talking about it, and seemed to know exactly what was going on, I still had this thought in the back of my mind that when it came to bed time he would just lose it and want to come home.  Elena, on the other hand, I knew would be okay.  Give her her blanket and (multiple) pacis, and she conks out in no time flat.

As it turns out, they did fabulously!  What a relief!  This was a nice little trial run before I go into labor, and it is so reassuring to know that they will not only be just fine, they will also have a great time.

I will recap the sleep-over in my children’s words.

Elijah: Grandma made me PANCAKES, they’re my FAVORITE.  And she cooked dinosaur chicken nuggets in the oven.  They’re my FAVORITE.  And they made cookies!  They’re my FAVORITE.  And I slept there!  And we moved into Lizzy’s room to sleep with her and Elena.  Then we woke up and went to Church.  (Which, he told Grandma is his FAVORITE Church.  Elf anyone?)

Me asking Elena about it:  So, did you play with Lizzy, and Matthew, and—

Elena: AND JACOB!

Me: Oh, you played with Jacob?

Elena: Yes, Jacob.  And E-lah. (I think maybe Leah was her bathroom buddy…Elena didn’t have any accidents while she was gone- another plus!)

I am so glad the kids had fun, so much so that Elijah wanted to go back the next night to have another sleep-over!  While they were gone Nick and I got to go out to dinner, grab some dessert, watch some movies, and SLEEP.  I slept until 10am!  Which is wonderful because I usually can’t go to bed early anymore (the indigestion will kick in with a vengeance if I do).  So it was such a blessing to get well rested before the baby comes.  Now hopefully I can hold on to this well-rested-ness!

Confession: We missed them very much.  It was weird being in such a quiet house.  I missed them so much that even though I woke up when Church started, and they were going to bring the kids home right after Church, I made Nick take me super late.  :)

Sewing Day

It has been a full 10 years at the least since I have sewn a dress. I have busted out the sewing machine a few times here and there, but not for anything too big. Today was a completely pleasant experience to bring me back into the realm of sewing.

This is what I made:

This dress is for Emmy’s Confirmation next week, so I am especially glad it turned out! I had all those old fears pop up… because this dress had everything. Lining, pleats, pockets, waistband, zipper, etc. Wow, this tested my sewing skillz! But I have my mom to thank. After all those years of pushing me to sew, I was able to get through this with minimal mistakes.

But can I tell you another secret to my success? I had help. Lots and lots of help. First of all, the thing I dislike most about sewing is cutting out all the pieces. Robin did that. Plus, Mika and Robin played with the kids the whole time I was sewing. And then I had my helper Emmy who cut out some more stuff for me, did the ironing (which I also dislike), and all those sorts of things. Plus, PLUS, (as if this wasn’t enough already), my kitchen got cleaned, and a yummy lasagna was brought for me, and lunch made for everyone.

So yeah, pretty much I was completely spoiled while sewing. I could sew under these conditions quite often. Quite often indeed.

The Boys Turn 3!

Last weekend we had a birthday party for Elijah and Jack over at Josh & Steph’s house. The boys both turned 3 within a couple weeks of each other, so we just had one big birthday bash. It was great! Steph and I both agreed we got to enjoy more of the boys’ birthday this year then in previous years since we shared the party load. Josh & Steph threw a great party, and even got the boys a bounce house!! Thanks for hosting guys, it was a big blessing to us.

Here are just a few shots of the birthday boys:

Christmas on New Years

I am working through all of the Christmas pictures, and since we had 4 celebrations this year, there are just a few of them!  I am starting with our last celebration, New Years Day at my parents house.  We spent Christmas day there as well, but had a second Christmas with them because Scott and Erin and kids couldn’t be there on Christmas.  We had a delicious brunch, and I mean truly delicious.  I completely forgot to take a picture of the spread, but we had everything.  Eggs, potatoes, sausage, veggies, fruit, scones, pesto rolls, etc etc.  It was so yummy, and really I think every get together should be over brunch food.  It’s my favorite!

Here are a few pictures from the day.

Moira, reading the books we got her:

Elijah, weedwacking with the sweet toy the Adams got him:

Scott and Nick, Scott explaining the gift of 3 pepper plants! Let’s hope I can keep them alive!

Peyton looks overwhelmed, but he loved it of course:

Sisters:

Stephanie doesn’t sit still:

Elena showing Grandpa someone else’s toy:

Jack is the best present-opener. Everything deserves a “GASP! WOW! WHOA!”:

The Birthday Party

Last night we had both sides of the family over for a birthday party for Elena.  It was the easiest party I have yet to throw, because Nick did most of the cooking!  He made crepes for everyone, and then people brought toppings to share, leaving very little work for me!  And let me tell you, they were amazing!  We had: eggs/ham/smoked gouda, salmon/cream cheese/capers, and chicken/pesto/roasted red peppers for the savory crepes.  For the dessert crepes, we just put out tons of fillings and everyone made their own creative crepe.  Fillings included: mixed berries, brandy pears, bananas, strawberry puree, whipped cream, cream cheese/orange spread, nutella, etc.  I think most people didn’t want to stop eating, that’s how great it was.  Good job Nick!

Elena wasn’t too into opening her presents, but today she has spent time enjoying the gifts.  They have kept her and Elijah busy all day!

She had a great time playing with all the kids, and she too enjoyed her food:

There are more pictures from the evening on my Facebook page.

The City

Yesterday I decided last minute to tag along with my Mom and Jacob up to the city.  They were going to the zoo, and then over to Golden Gate Park to watch Anna race.  So, my Mom was gracious enough to pick me and the kids up, along with our piles of stuff (that I always think I need for a day outing, but turns out I need about 1/10 of it).  I just have to say before you look at the pictures, I didn’t get nearly as many as I wanted to because of ALL THE DAYS to not check my battery, it was yesterday.  Yes, my camera died halfway into the zoo trip, so I had to switch over to my camera phone (Hey, side note, remember when I thought my camera phone took good pictures?  Well, it doesn’t.)  That means, no pictures of the Grizzly Bears which were right up against the glass, freaking my children out.  No pictures of the Gorillas, including a 10 mo old baby who was super cute, and including the one who was signing to Elena! (Yes, I really think he was, she loved him and was hitting the glass and talking to him nonstop and he kept making faces at her and signed to her).  Also, no pictures of Anna running, or of the Blue Angels flying over head.  What a day to have my battery die!  I consul myself with the fact that I will be going up there again soon with my friend Laura, right Laura?  Anyway, here the few pictures I did get, mostly it is a photo montage of the back of Elijah’s head (never assume you can get a kid to look away from the animals while at a zoo).

I love the color:

Funny Chimp who made himself a bed with these blankets:

I think Jake’s favorite part was the Lions:

Elijah’s head:

Elijah’s head:

More of Elijah’s head:

I love how the peacocks just roam around here:

I think the African Region is so well done:

Hey look! It’s Elijah’s FACE!

Aaaand, we’re back to the back of his head:

Waiting to be let in for food:

(Switch to camera phone- like you couldn’t tell)

Hey Elijah, nice haircut!

Now look at the camera! (I had to trick him here…)

One more shot of the back of Elijah’s head, just cause it’s so great:

Phipps Bean Farm

On Tuesday we went with my Mom, Jacob, Erin and her kids, and Steph and her kids to the Phipps Bean Farm up in Pescadero.  Now before you start laughing about going to a bean ranch, you should look at Erin’s wonderful chili she made.  Also, they have animals, tractors, gardens, etc. and they kids had a great time playing.  Here are just a few shots from the morning.

County Fair!

4th of July

This year we went out to Scott and Erin’s house for 4th of July.  They live in the city limits of Watsonville, which means that fireworks are legal (not the aerial ones).  We had a great time, Elijah loved it.  Elena like the first 2, and then got completely freaked out and stayed inside with Gillian watching a movie.  One the way home, it felt like we were navigating a mine field or something.  We would turn the corner to see a guy running from the middle of the road.  Nick stopped, and sure enough, a second later a firework went off.  Then you turn the next corner, and people are shooting off aerials about 10 ft from the car!  It was a little crazy.  But fun.